Comments on: Why Did You Run Your First Marathon?

By: sarah

sarah — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 02:45:47 +0000

Because it was there, basically. I just wanted to see if I could finish. It still feels awesome to think that I did.

By: eliza

eliza — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 21:47:29 +0000

My dad used to take me to watch the annual marathon in my hometown, and I noticed how much they impressed him. He told me that marathoners are very special people, because there’s no faking it, no getting lucky, no cutting corners and no coasting on someone else’s hard work or talent — they either finish or they don’t. That impressed me too, and I wanted to honor my dad for teaching me about real achievements by pushing myself toward the ultimate goal. It brought us closer and made me a runner for life!

By: Jeanne

Jeanne — Sat, 16 Jun 2007 00:35:23 +0000

Because for three years beforehand, I had to walk with a cane due to a debilitating back illness. Once the PT told me “You’ll never run,” well, that was that.

then a friend told me about gallowalking, and yep, that’s how i finished the first one.

I was the fat kid who was always picked last for all the school teams.

I had something to prove to myself, and I proved it.

go me!

By: Steve in Maryland

Steve in Maryland — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 23:29:01 +0000

I ran my first marathon as part of the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training. I received the “wake-up call” you spoke of. I lost my 8-year-old son, Jake, to leukemia in 2001. I ran the Marine Corps Marathon in 2003 in his honor. I am still running and have completed seven marathons, all for him (and for me. I found running to be good for grief therapy).

By: Fran

Fran — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 02:23:00 +0000

I wanted to run a marathon before i turned 30. It’s just one of those things in life that I wanted to cross off my to-do list. I never thought it would lead to another item of “qualifying for Boston” that would eventually be added to the list. Trying to do that before I turn 35.

By: Jon (was) in Michigan

Jon (was) in Michigan — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 01:52:50 +0000

I have no idea. I tried running the first one because a friend of mine had run one. But I never made it to the start line. Then it took me a year to finally make the second one, but I barely finished.

Can’t imagine why I’d do another. I’ll let you know.

By: MrStylz

MrStylz — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 22:21:57 +0000

I ran my first marathon simply to challenge myself.

I’ve run 10/26 years and I like goals to work towards. I always want to push myself beyond what I have already done. Next step? Ultra-marathons – why not.

By: txrunnergirl

txrunnergirl — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 20:36:53 +0000

I was never a runner in my life. I had a list of things I wanted to do before I turned 30 and run a 5K was one of them. Yep, right there in between “travel to Egypt” and “learn to surf”. I had a friend who ran a 5k the year before, while I walked it…I vowed to be able to do that the following year. And I did..then I was hooked. 3 miles turned into 4, 4 turned into 5…I had a crazy friend who was training for the Houston Marathon and when I made it to 6 miles, she said “You know, it’s only October..you should train for the 1/2 marathon!”. So, that’s what I did. I printed out a training schedule from the web and trained for and ran the Houston 1/2. In my cotton socks and t-shirt, too…no gu, no fuel belt, nothing. I was so clueless. The next year, I joined a group and trained for my 1st full. The rest is history!

By: lisa

lisa — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 18:05:22 +0000

I used to smoke a pack of cigarettes a day. Glad to say I’ve been smoke-free for over 5 years now. Working on my first marathon in November. Started as a goal a couple years back when I realized I had a hard time running a mile without stopping.

By: Bill Blank

Bill Blank — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 17:49:32 +0000

I ran my first marathon to test my limits, to see how much pain I could endure, to fill in holes left in my becoming-a-man process that resulted from avoiding military service during the Vietnam war, to become as strong as I could, to astrally project, to enhance my sexuality, to experience god, to transcend my body, to let go of fear, to provide a space in which to listen to the still small voice, to undo my own weak flabby body image, to become the athlete at 30 I couldn’t be at 20, to do something few others would ever come close to, to pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming, to meet my inner demons, to know what it’s like to plan, complete, and implement a significant project all on my own, to be cool, to figure out how my body works, to see what else was out there, to become a role model, to strengthen my intuition, to find out what they never taught us in school, to learn what it means to say, “I did it because it was there.”