One night when I couldn't sleep that week, probably because I was in so much pain, but also because I was still so excited about my accomplishment, I wrote down why I felt this was such a big accomplishment and lesson.
1. Running a marathon is incredibly humbling. It is estimated that there are approximately 1.5 million supporters at the Chicago Marathon. I had at least 6 just cheering me on. I remember at one point when my running buddy Anne wasn't with me around mile 19 (though she did catch up later, thankfully for me!) and I remember hearing comments from the crowd like "Nice smile, Lauren", "Come on, Lauren", and my personal favorite, "Looking sexy, Lauren". It was those comments that got me through my race, especially toward the end.
I also cannot tell you how humbling it is to have your family and friends come and cheer you on to see you run by for 5 seconds. They waited for hours to see me, stood in 80 degree weather just for me. If you want to know how incredibly loved you are - run a marathon, and you will see.
2. I did this. Alone. Okay well maybe not alone. I trained for the first half with the Naperville Running Company - which was such a huge help. Running with the group 2x a week was wonderful. During the back end of training when I moved to Olney, I still got weekly e-mails from my running group and this kept the drive in me. But I was the one getting out of bed at 5AM on Saturdays to meet with the group. I was the one running 4 days a week - making sure to hit my mileage. No one forced me to do this. I was the one running 26.2 miles during the race, even around mile 22 when I thought I could stop and walk - I didn't. I kept going. Alone. This was part of the reason I signed up for a marathon. I loved the idea of this because I have had a lot of changes in the past year, and I needed to know I could do this - on my own. Once I finished the race, there was no one to credit but myself. I needed that confidence, and I sure as heck got it. There have been times I've been so reliant on others and this was finally an opportunity for me to say "You did this". Even when I graduated from grad school and landed a job in my career I didn't feel this strongly that I was the sole factor in those. The marathon was different because I was the one putting the work in.
3. You can do anything you put your mind to. When I got injured during my training I didn't know if I was going to be ready to race in October. I made the decision that no matter what I was going to train, and train hard to make sure I was race-ready. And again, I did this. No one else did this for me. I visualized that race a million times and I knew I would do it. I would not quit.
4. Keep dreaming. Just because it's not now, does not mean it's not ever. I have dreamt of doing a marathon since I was 20 years old. I ran on 10.10.10 when I was 24 years old. It obviously took some time to accomplish my goal. It took me being at a certain place in my life where I was ready mentally and physically to train. There are other things I still dream of doing, but I know it may take some time for me to accomplish those dreams. That does not mean I'm going to give up on those dreams. As a matter of fact, I will push harder toward them because I know it is possible to get there.
5. If you fail, try, try again. This is huge for me. I have felt like a failure more times than not in my life. During training I felt like a failure when I had my groin injury and had to stop training for 2 weeks. I felt like I was cheating training, like I didn't put in enough work as all the other runners (looking back I see how silly this thought process is). In my personal life there have been things that I would have liked to have done differently, but you can't go back and change those things. What I do know is you have to keep getting back up, time and time again because if you are persistent you WILL succeed. I no longer have ANY doubts about that. Chris Matthews discussed this at my commencement speech: you have to go to all 10 houses in order to get the 3 sales you'll make. You have to encounter those failures in order to reach the successes.
6. I now see myself as a different person. I respect myself. It's sad to say it has taken me 24 years to get there, but better now than never! I received so many awesome words of encouragement and comments such as, "You are such an inspiration." People I haven't talked to in years were contacting me saying that. After I ran the race, I finally felt that too. That again is so incredibly humbling. If I've inspired at least one person to run a race or continue something they've wanted to do - then it will be my job to support them as much as I was supported through training.
7. I have a new passion and excitement about running. I am more excited now than ever to continue running in races and improve. It is so exhilarating and addicting to have found something I love doing. My passion for running has increased ten-fold and I've never felt I've had something to call my own. I was a disappointed in my time after the race, but a few days after the race, my stepdad (a swim coach, that repeatedly sends swimmers to Olympic trials) told me how impressed he was with my time. He told me countless stories of people that didn't make it through the race due to the heat, and he said my time was incredibly impressive for a first-timer. His exact words to me, "You're good at this, and you should keep doing it." Will do.
8. People are genuinely good. I have so many new friendships due to the running community being so warm and welcoming. People genuinely want to help one another and support one another. When I go home, I call my running friends to meet up. They are huge inspirations to me and I am so thankful for them. During the race, complete strangers call your name and cheer you on the entire 26.2 miles. I get chills thinking about it. The support and encouragement from others makes training worth it.
9. Hard work pays off. Training for a marathon wasn't the easiest feat, but was the best thing I've ever done. It is amazing to see all your hard work and efforts pay off on race day.
10. Patience. 17 weeks of training was all required for one race. Sometimes it was hard to see the end when you're in week 8 and you're thinking "Is race day here yet?" I cannot tell you how amazing it was to finally see the finish line after I made the final turn. I even remember being sad during my last run of training - thinking, "Is it over?" Yet I know, this is only the beginning ;)
Thank you all so much supporting me. Thank you for being there with me during training, during the race, and after. I am blessed in so many ways and I cannot thank you enough.
Here is the letter I sent to Courtney's class as a thank-you for all the cards they made for me (it pretty much summarizes the points I've listed above, in 7th grade format, ha!).
LOTS OF LOVE,
Lauren
Dear Miss Bergquist’s Class:
This is Lauren Baugh, novice Chicago marathon runner, whom your class so generously sent me some of the funniest, most considerate, and inspiring good luck cards. Miss Bergquist handed me the cards, the morning of my race, at 5AM; I took the cards with tears in my eyes when she handed the giant stack to me. Perfect strangers were wishing me good luck? Here I was, nervous as ever, and I suddenly felt calm knowing I had the support of many. Turns out laughter has a calming effect! And if I wasn’t nervous already that I would fall in a “hole to China” or that I would trip – at least I knew you all were nervous about that with me!
The morning of the race I got to the spot I was meeting my running group. I sat quietly and read all of your cards. Your genuine kindness showed through each and every single card. This was exactly what I needed in that moment. I had been questioning whether or not I would be able to complete the 26.2 mile race. Sure I had the support of my family and friends, but I thought they were just saying I would finish the race because they had to tell me that. Then as if an answer to prayer, God sent me your letters. I had the support of perfect strangers with me. It was then I knew I would be able to finish the race.
I hope you all don’t mind (because old people like Miss Bergquist and me ;) tend to want to give people your age advice often) but I was hoping I could share with you what lessons I learned after completing a marathon.
1. You can do anything you put your mind to. I never used to be a runner. As a matter of fact, I loathed running the mile in PE class. I picked up running when I was 20 years old and I haven’t stopped since. I love it. I always dreamt of completing a marathon but I wasn’t sure I had the strength to do it. Training for the marathon took 17 weeks. 17 LONG weeks. I had injury after injury, week after week and I still completed the race. Whatever dreams you have in your heart, please keep them there and let them guide you. Please pay attention to your dreams. You will have to work in order to make them come true, but let the dreams guide you – not the obstacles you will encounter along the way.
2. If you fail, try again. I’ve tried to train for marathons in the past and for whatever reason, my efforts didn’t pan out. During this round of training when I was the most disciplined I had to sit running out for multiple weeks due to injuries. Instead of quitting training and saying “maybe next year”, I kept pushing through. My dream of completing a marathon started when I was 20, yet it didn’t happen until I was 24. Just because your dream may not come true now, does not mean it will never come true.
3. The support of others is critical, and that support makes life worth it. As soon as I finished my race I felt proud and relieved. Though it wasn’t until about 30 minutes after the race was over, I finally was reunited with my family. I burst into tears when I saw them. My family watched me run at mile 4 and 11 to see me for all of about 10 seconds running past them. MissBergquist was at mile 11 and 21. Your entire class wrote cards for me. Spectators along the course encouraged me to “Keep going”. All this support for one measly person – me. Humbled does not even begin to describe how great this makes a person feel. Please keep your family and friends close to you. Had I crossed the finish line and had no one to reunite with, and no one cheering me on during the race, success would not have felt as sweet.
4. Hard work pays off. Training was not always easy. There were so many times I would find myself saying, “I don’t feel like running today.” Every single time though, I went running anyway. Waking up at 5AM and running through the summer heat was not always enjoyable, but all the training was worth getting to race day. Completing the marathon is one of my biggest accomplishments to date, and it took 17 weeks to complete something that took just about 5 hours (4:48:59 to be exact!). I know you don’t always want to do your homework (sorry Miss Bergquist) or clean your room. Though please know your hard work is going noticed and is paying off. You are in training too. You are learning to be disciplined so that when you are out in the “real world” you have the skills to make those dreams happen. Nothing good in life comes easy. That’s okay though – you’ll appreciate those good things that much more once you’ve worked for them. I appreciate this marathon because it was a celebration of 17 weeks of sweat and tears.
As you can see I can talk about this race forever, but I won’t bore you. I hope you all keep supporting others in the incredible way you supported me. Each and every one of you is a gift to this world and I am so blessed to have heard from you.
Thank you – you have no idea how much you all mean to me,
Lauren
PS - I sent a photo of me with your letters before the race. As you can see from my goofy grin – you all made me excited to run 26.2 miles.
Also, I think I need to visit you all in the spring once my students finish school (late May).
Lastly, please take care of Miss Bergquist, she is my best friend and I miss her dearly.
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