Anietra Hamper, WBNS-TV

I used to say ‘I am not a runner.’ I always perceived marathoners as people who possessed something unique to be able to pursue such a mission. Sunday, I joined a special group of winners who put everything aside to reach their goal. I saw people running for loved ones who have passed, or running after beating cancer, or running because it is something they never thought they could do. It was exciting, emotional and sometimes surreal. It was a gorgeous day and the energy was high. I think I gave a thumbs-up to each of the 80 bands along the way and thank yous to all who were saying “you got this, you can do it, good job!”

I found myself realizing about half way that this day that it seemed a little easier than my long runs by myself. I was strong and I felt really good! I enjoyed taking in every moment of the day. I also knew that my parents were waiting for me at mile 18. That was motivation to pull past 15 when I started to feel my first glimpse of slight fatigue. To see mom and dad there was awesome!!! The energy pulled me through another few miles feeling gratitude for love and support of my family and many friends.

Miles 20-23 are a blur to me. They were a little rough. Once I saw mile 24 I couldn’t believe it—I had to look at the flag a couple of times to make sure. I have never seen 24 before! I knew I only had 2 more miles and I could reach that dream. 2 miles is nothing! I kept running and soaking in the surroundings. The runners thin out a lot by this time and people were hurting but we all kept going. The minute I saw Nationwide Boulevard, I knew I was going to do this! The crowds got bigger and the cheers got louder. I crossed that finish line strong and it was a moment I will never forget.

Unfortunately, after my incredible finish my body decided it had taken on enough. I became very sick and landed in Grant hospital for a couple of days with renal failure and muscle breakdown due to severe dehydration. How could this happen? I did everything RIGHT. It has been a rough recovery and the doctors had to pry my medal out of my hands to heal me. I decided to share this marathon moment because I think it is important to note that despite the most diligent training, and the most conscious efforts to hydrate and the most careful consultation with doctors during training, your body is still in charge. My doctors believe an illness I picked up while overseas earlier this year impacted my body in a way that made it difficult to recover properly from extreme exertion. I encourage anyone considering this new adventure—or taking on another phase of running to really listen to your body and be aware that what may seem like a small issue or just a little bit of fatigue could actually be very serious. I got wonderful medical help and I am on the mend.

Despite the unplanned addition to my marathon finale—I am so proud of my accomplishment. I get an excited jolt every time I look at my medal. I know for the rest of my life when I am not sure how I can tackle something, I will think the waving flag at mile 24 and that feeling of knowing I can do it just by sticking it out a little longer.

I can no longer say I am not a runner, because today, I officially am one!

Congratulations to all those who reached their goal and to those who tried. There is a lot to be proud of for the time and commitment you gave to this feat.

Anietra Hamper, WBNS-TV

Something neat happens when you transition from ‘wanting’ to do something to ‘committing’ to it. That is what has happened with my marathon training. As a result of that commitment I researched all I could about nutrition, rest, stretching and pushing my limits. A chance meeting with Olympic Gold medalist, Ohio State track star and the ULTIMATE runner Butch Reynolds is taking that commitment to another level. Once Butch learned of my dream to run the marathon and my frustration at being stuck at 16 miles he jumped on board to help me. I now work with the mighty Butch 2 days a week and he has filled my calendar with training assignments on non-Butch days.

I like to say that there are marathoners (you know, the Butch Reynolds’ of the world that make it look so easy) and then there are the rest of us. There are many things I am learning from Butch that are significant and important to reaching my own personal potential. We focus everything in our training on keeping the body tight and conserving energy….we want to stave off fatigue as long as possible. I have learned so much—and I have improved my consistency so much that, with Butch’s blessing, I wanted to share some of the knowledge.

–STRETCHING: is key! I mean, really stretching. We want to lengthen those muscles. I realized I was not stretching enough.

–BREATHING: is everything! Full, deep breaths. Use your diaphragm and fill it like it is the last breath you will take. Slowly inhale and exhale. Try breathing in for 15 seconds..hold for 15…then exhale for 15. It’s tough! This will condition your body to take full breaths while you run. This has made a significant difference for me.

–RHYTHM: Hit your stride by finding a rhythm. I used to take off with no real game plan. Finding a rhythm also helps me remain consistent with my body positioning, my breathing and everything just seems to work together effortlessly.

–ARMS: ok, after participating in SEVERAL marathons, I just discovered that the arms have an actual function in this feat. Use your arms to pump and help the legs with momentum.

–POSITIONING: Butch pointed out to me that if I were running AND reading the news—I would have perfect form! Unfortunately, that perfect posture that helps me so much in my job is not gaining me any points in running. A big part of my training is angling my head down-just a tad. It has made a huge difference for me. The run is more comfortable, more natural.

Since implementing these drills into my running routine—my time has remained very consistent at a point when I would normally start to slow down. Between vacation, personal and professional obligations and recently an injured tendon, I have definitely hit some challenges. I have incorporated training drills with Butch several days a week and rigorous swimming in addition to my running. Our goal is to get me over the hump by becoming more efficient with my body. So, while I feel like I have had a small setback, I am more motivated than ever to push ahead!!

Training for the marathon or half marathon is such an individual journey. Everyone is at their own place, facing their own challenges and pushing for their own goals. There is no comparison of apples to apples. That is so neat! Someone struggling to break 3 miles feels the same reach for that goal as me struggling to hit last week’s 18 miles or as someone pushing 23. Hitting your personal milestones is all that matters. No one is judging your performance except for you. No one is monitoring your progress except for you. YOU are the biggest motivator or inhibitor in your success. I have discovered on very long runs that I sometimes think – “wow, I still have 8 miles to go and I’m feeling a little tired.” I have changed that. Now, when I am at those points in my run I say “wow, I have already tackled 8 miles and I’m feeling great!” There is something amazing that happens with the mental attitude when you change that perspective and put a smile on your face. I encourage those who are struggling with the mental part of the grueling runs to try it—just once.

Anietra Hamper, WBNS-TV

Circle of Support:

As the miles pile on and I am spending hours on the trail on long runs I have come to really appreciate my circle of support. From my family wowing over the miles I’ve logged…to my boyfriend Harry Peachey congratulating a good day and training with me (he is going to do the half)…to my co-worker and super marathoner Steve Harvey checking in daily on my progress and telling me it’s ok when I feel I’ve slipped a little…to my girlfriend and fellow blogger Miss Lisa bringing me champagne for tackling a very tough run… to the marathon king Darris and his lovely wife Star providing me with expertise and advice to keep it going… to my lovely friend Jamie McGann who surprised me on my grueling long-run last week by showing up on my route when I was really struggling and ran with me the last 4 miles…this support is essential! There are many times that I still consider the full marathon a bigger goal than I can handle, but my circle of support is lifting me and encouraging me.

You are what you eat:

Since I am pushing upwards of 40 miles a week I am really buckled down on nutrition and recovery. It became very clear to me at one point that my body can only perform on the fuel I give it. Girly lunches and tiny snacks don’t cut it anymore. Changing up my intake—has dramatically impacted my running output. I reserve a weekend day to have whatever I want and indulge in some ice cream and the rest of the week.

So I am on course. I continue to climb into new territory in my training and it is very exciting!

Anietra Hamper, WBNS-TV

As the weeks pass- and my running performance improves- my challenges change. I am at 14 miles for my last increase and I will tackle 16 next weekend. At this stage, good nutrition is even more critical throughout the week. I am slowly letting go of the things that tempt my sweet tooth and trading in ‘quick’ meals for ‘quality’ meals. I have a lot of nutrition questions that I hope to get answered as I struggle on some long runs with feeling very sick AFTER completing those runs. I am also trying to add in more quality carbs into my diet which is typically void of excess carbs. This is an adjustment.

As an ambitious perfectionist my other training challenge is trying to see the light at the end of the tunnel from the beginning of the track. I have been feverishly increasing my miles. All of the training schedules have ‘long run’ days that scale back throughout training. It takes a lot of effort for me to do that as I am eager to reach a goal that seems so distant at this point. I DID scale back this weekend to 12 miles. What I discovered is that same 12 miles I really struggled with several weekends ago was not as much of a struggle this time. In fact, I ended my run feeling tired but not sore or exhausted the way I had the first time and even the second time I ran 12 miles. This tells me that I am getting stronger, building endurance and making strides—literally.

At this stage of training I realize that rest is as important as running. I am seeing how training, nutrition and rest converge to enable your body to perform at an increased level. So, in addition to tweeking my eating habits (yes, I still allow for the occasional chocolate treat or ice cream) and increasing my total weekly mileage, I really pay attention to my sleep. Since I go to bed around 7pm for my work schedule it leaves little opportunity to go to bed ‘early’. So, I aim to go to bed ‘on-time’ and try to get good rest on the weekends.

I remain motivated. I focus on crossing that finish line. I ask lots of questions and seek out lots of resources. The support from the experts of the Columbus Marathon and from other runners is a tremendous help.