Ouch to 5k wrote:
I was a 2:47 marathoner pre-pandemic but once races were cancelled, I lost the motivation to train hard and reverted to running for fitness.
When in-person races returned, I jumped in a local half just to see where I was at and ran a relatively comfortable 1:32. I then (foolishly) agreed to pace a friend to a sub 3:20 in a marathon the following month, thinking it wouldn’t be too difficult based on my current half time and past fitness.
Well, I ended up getting dropped by said friend in mile 18 and finishing in 3:47 with splits of 1:38/2:09. Those last 8+ miles were the most painful experience of my life. The highlight of my race was my finishing “sprint” in the last 0.2 mi to avoid the shame of losing to my past self by over an hour lol (avoided it by mere seconds).
I should have known better but I can look back on it and laugh now.
The last few miles of my first marathon were the worst pain I have ever felt from running in life. I have pushed myself to my limits in training and racing, but I had never felt the pain I felt in the last 10k. Finally found out what it felt like to have nothing left.