Bonn Marathon

A warning: this post includes detailed information about my beloved hobby, running, and my run in Bonn Marathon 2010. Some Erasmus exchange extras are tried to included.

I registered for Bonn Marathon, actually RheinEnergie Marathon, at the beginning of January this year. I then decided to end my marathon fear, which had developed in 2007 after an unsuccessful marathon. In 2007, I had huge problems with my stomach, possibly due to over-preparation and drinking too much sports drinks before the run. After that pained run, I decided that before I try to run my next marathon, I want to find out what is the problem with my stomach and be sure that it won’t happen again. Well, I didn’t give much energy to solve that problem, but somehow trusted myself that this time everything goes better, and so did it go. I encountered my fear and finished my third marathon without stomach problems and cramps. I’m now merry happy!

Training
It’s somewhat hard to explain my training, because I didn’t follow any particular marathon training program. However, I kept calendar of my training. Simply, I could say that I just ran a lot. It’s more or less one hour or more 5 or 6 times a week. In February, in March and at the beginning of April, I also ran a longer run (almost) once a week. First, the longer run was 1,5 hours, at the end 2,5 hours. At the beginning of the year, I also did aerobics, circuit training and played floorball and football every one and then as substitutive training, which probably did good for the training. 4 and 3 weeks before the marathon, I ran really much, which was mostly because of I didn’t have any university things to do and had a lot free time. During the last 2 weeks, I was mostly relaxing and running only a little. I then actually followed a program (my runs were a little longer than the ones in the program). The last 2 weeks were first confusing but at the end really nice. I was confused, because I didn’t “have to” go running every day and, thus, I had a lot of evenings free. I also noticed that relaxing really enhances the condition. Running felt really good and my body suddenly started to look different than in the hard training period. Hehe. During the training, I discovered that if running isn’t funny, one shouldn’t start with a marathon project. I think that one should really enjoy running and practicing when aiming to a marathon.

Last preparations
I guess almost everyone has heard that the core point of the last marathon preparations is to drink a lot of water and minerals the day or two days before the run. I knew that too. However, I also remembered that last time I probably drank too much sports drinks and was, thus, “over-pumped”. My mom also remembered to remind me of that every day :) Well, on Friday and Saturday I drank mostly water, ate pasta, stayed out of parties, and tried to stay inside, out of the tempting sunshine. Well, I didn’t succeed completely in it. I was also listening to awesome music and tried to stay calm, which wasn’t very easy all the time.

Competition day
I had earlier thought that it’ll be the day of panicking, but it wasn’t. I somehow managed not to bumble around all the time, which I normally do a lot. The day itself was sunny and hot. I guess the maximum temperature during the run was around 24 °C.

The journey from Aachen to Bonn went extremely fast and easily, as well as the waiting time in Bonn. I got befriend a German man, a real marathon pro and veteran, who started talking to me while I was looking for the storage place for my stuff. I then spent the whole waiting time with him talking about running, concentrating, weather etc. It was cool to spend the time with someone and not just to wait alone and try to stay calm. Before the run, my awesome supporting group, some 10 Erasmus students, arrived in Bonn and I had a few minutes time to meet them :) It was really great to have friends in audience. I had something to wait for while I was running!

Now to the run… it went much better than I had hoped for. The first 30 kilometers went really easily. My legs felt perfect and I could run constant but quite fast pace all the time. However, I was a little afraid that I’m running too fast and will encounter “a wall” at some point. It almost happened. After seeing my friends near the 31 km sign, the problems started. I had a lot of pain in my right calf and I also felt otherwise tired. I guess the main reason for it is that from around 21 km to 34 km there weren’t any sports drinks at the supply stations. It was extremely idiotic! I would have needed energy at every supply station. When I finally got sports drinks at around 34 km, I got a little more hope and energy, but the way to 38 km was still mainly pained struggling. After 38 km, I felt slightly better and I decided that when I see the 40 km sign, I’ll start to run faster again. However, I somehow missed the 40 km sign and thought that those must be the longest 2 kilometers in my life… well, then the 41 km sign was a nice surprise and the goal even closer. It was awesome to run to the goal line!

My time was 3:31:11. I’m a little annoyed that I couldn’t run under 3:30 because it was so close… but I’m still really happy that I could finish and do my record.

In goal, it was really easy to smile. The picture was taken by a co-runner whom I met already while running. I think Marathon is a strange event in which it’s really easy to talk to strangers, which are, however, in the same situation as you. Anyhow, in a marathon you’re still somehow all alone. You can chat with your co-runners, and usually they care about you, your success and well-being and cheer you up, but they can’t do everything. I love doing things alone and testing my mental and physical endurance, so I think marathon is fun sometimes. I also like the idea that during the run you really are alone, only with your thoughts. I’m usually that kind of person who hates concentrating on one thing at a time and thinking too long. So, actually marathon is for me, and I guess for everyone, a good opportunity to improve concentration and be more balanced. This time, the thinking part was easier than before; I had three languages in which I could think :P

Feelings afterwards
While running a marathon, I always decide that I won’t run a marathon ever a again, but in goal I always change my mind. It happened yesterday as well. I will still run marathons! And I still hope that I can do that under 3:30. The rest of my exchange I will, however, spent on other things than only marathon training =)

Holidays are over

The long holidays are now over. My lectures begin again tomorrow, which feels at the same time both good and bad. During the last weeks I already had the feeling that I could do something else than just hang around in the town, sit at my computer, listen to music or do sports. However, the summer semester and its courses don’t sound very tempting now. I’ve got the feeling that during the last 5,5 years I’ve already done enough courses and learned the things I’ve wanted to learn. So, I’m rather happy that this will be my last semester in which I have more than one course :) I think that I’m finally ready to start my master’s thesis and even go to work! One exchange semester really did what I wanted it to do.

Because I became rather lazy on my holidays, I’m presenting my holiday happenings with pictures.

I visited Kornelimünster, a beautiful part of Aachen.

On a sunny Saturday Kimmo and I went to the Zoo of Aachen. It was bigger and nicer than I had thought. It was fun!

Spring came and barbeque season began!

Hanne visited me and Aachen. We started the cake&coffee outside season too :)

I visited Finland in Easter. I did my favorite Easter delicacy, Pasha.

In Finland I mostly concentrated on eating, drinking and laying on the sofa. However, once my dad managed to persuade me to go jigging with him.

I also moved. I live now in a student apartment and share kitchen and living room with 15 other students. It feels quite different from living alone, but is not that bad as I had imagined.. Except from the fact that someone steals my food every now and then.. :/ The picture represents a view from my window. My house looks exactly the same as the house in the picture.

Source of the picture: Heiaheia

And the last but not the least… I’ve been training, mainly running, for Bonn marathon, which is in less than two weeks. I’m now quite stressed and nervous, but not actually worried. The marathon is in my mind all the time though.

A mixed week with a happy ending

I’ve started to write a blog post 5 times this week, but I haven’t been able to publish any of the posts. Well, one post that I wrote in Finnish I published at night two days ago, but deleted it in the following morning. With clear thoughts, I found it too personal. Writing has somehow been surprisingly difficult.

I may know the reason for the writing difficulties: my fuzzy feelings. I’ve been sad because a really really good friend of mine left Aachen for good. I’ve been happy because I’ve had enough time for sleeping, relaxing, reading novels, and wandering in the town. I’ve been delighted and surprised because I got a student job. I’ve been homesick. And I’ve also given plenty of thought to my future, which may have been a bit too overwhelming. Apparently I shouldn’t have too much free time, because it makes me to think and dream too much. This time I was thinking about my family, my Finnish friends, and my hobbies in Finland, and I became homesick. It was probably the very first time in my life that I was badly homesick. It felt really weird, because I had been extremely happy the whole autumn and winter. And I’m not used to being the one who is homesick, but the one who adjusts herself really well to new situations and places. Well, the homesickness lasted only two days and after the two days I was happy again and could better see and understand the things which I’ve been enjoying here greatly. I still like Aachen a lot :)

In addition to the blog writing difficulties and strange feelings, I’ve been doing a pleeeenty of sports this week, that is 6,5 hours of running and 2,5 hours of aerobics. When I write it like that, it doesn’t sound as much as it feels. I’ve already been starting to feel myself a bit crazy… but also happy because my condition seems to be better and better every week. Maybe the Bonn marathon is not an impossibility.

So that this post is not as boring as the beginning of my last week I add a couple of pictures that I took today in Kornelimünster, in South Aachen. Kornelimünster war echt schön und hatte ein wunderschönes Café.

HEIAHEIA!!

This week I’ve been mainly running and reading for exams. Sounds boring. However, the week has been surprisingly nice! At the beginning of the week I found an interesting training log website, HeiaHeia. I hope HeiaHeia will help me to keep a log of my sport activities and be, thus, especially helpful for the marathon training. Earlier I’ve been extremely lazy at keeping a log of my trainings and I’ve been just running and running without any proper plan or schedule. Since HeiaHeia gives a clear view of all the sport activities you have done during the last 3 weeks (or earlier), it also gives a hint if you train too much or too little. Although the service looks (at least in Google Chrome) quite nice, it still doesn’t function entirely properly. Some texts and pictures jump around the page and you’re not able to plan your sport activities but just write them down afterwards :( Yeah, I am reading for an usability exam at the moment… maybe I should avoid writing blog postings at that time.

I haven’t studied all the time. On Wednesday I went to a party that maybe had the best music of the whole time I’ve spent here! Or I just happened to be in such a good mood that the music sounded better than normally. Don’t care. It was nice to come home tired and wet of dancing and be still excited about the music.

I also found an apartment for summer semester this week! I’m going to move to a commune (WG in German) with two German guys. I guess it’s going to be nice and interesting after living more than 2 years alone.

Okay, this was a diary-like posting, which I wanted to avoid :(