The Amster-Damned Marathon

I travelled to the land of wooden shoes and tulips(it's not known for anything else is it LOL ) this last weekend to run my 8th marathon, . I was full of hope with the prospect of running what I had hoped would be an epic personal best of around 4 hours and 10 minutes, an hour and 20 minutes off my previous PB.... I came to this time having run the Goodwood 20 mile a couple of weeks before and managed to run a time of 3 hours 13 as comfortably as one can run 20 miles, which was 8 laps of the race track....

We got to Amsterdam early Saturday morning and we headed right to the marathon expo to buy some extortionately priced marathon merch, After the expo we headed into town to meet up with some others who had travelled up separately for some dinner. . We indulged in our usual pre-race prep of Steak and chips and continued on to the famous "bulldog" coffeehouse.. Never in my life did I think I would experience people standing in line looking at a menu of marijuana available for purchase the strength of which was gauged by paw prints similar to the spice rating at Nando's. Some of us indulged in a drink or two.. others indulged in a spliff.. and we headed back to our accommodation to get rested for the day ahead!

I slept alright, better than other nights before a big race and soon enough the morning was upon us. Now anyone who has ever run will tell you it is universally accepted that within moments of runners congregating for a race it will take no longer than 5 minutes before the chat turns to toilet talk.... IF you have ever taken part in a race you will know that morning constituional is imperative to a good race and can be make or break for a good result. Well as the title suggest things did not go to plan. Some people will know that I struggle with IBS as a symptom of a condition I have called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome type 3. I didn't bring my usual tablets that help me manage my stomach complaints and I paid the ultimate price, I wasn't able to use the facilities that morning and I didn't know it till later but that marked the beginning of the end for my goal for a 4:10 finish.

We made our way to the start line after having checked our bags into the clothing storage. We had to wait for what seemed like an eternity to get into the 1928 Olympic stadium. What I failed to mention up to this point is that on the drive over to the stadium my stomach had started churning and I thought woo hoo here we go success after all but I hadn't had the chance to stop somewhere yet and I was starting to panic. Once the build up of eager athletes started to finally funnel through to the stadium I saw the row of 5 porta-loos (woefully limited facilities for 16000+ runners) and made a bee-line for the freakishly long queue of equally anxious competitors. I just kept telling myself that it was chip timed and that it didn't matter if my wave started and I was still queuing I had to go before I could even contemplate running 5km let alone 42.2.... The queue moved quickly, but alas no "movement" as such... Great I thought.. never mind I am sure it'll be fine...

The girls had all decided to wear Union Jack dresses, but I also wanted to ensure I flew the flag for my team, Team Evo, so I wore my Union Jack dress just passed the start line and then swapped over to my Evo top! We started running but the congestion was so bad we had to start and stop several times which meant that my planned pace of 9:30 Min per mile was 10:16... but I thought no worries I can make it up, just needed to relax into a stride and ocus on my pace... we weaved in among buildings and trees which made pacing difficult as my garmin didn't seem to like the interference, one minute 10:45 min/mile the next 8:30.. but I felt good and was still confident for the race ahead.. I planned to use the same nutrition plan I had used at Goodwood 20 1 gel at the hour mark, and then every 5km or 30 min after that... I got to 56 min or so and had my first gel immediately.. shortly after this is when the stomach cramps started and I needed to go to the loo... problem.. I wasn't near one yet as I had just passed a water station and the next one wasn't for another 5km... I continued to run, whilst monitoring my pace fluctuate with each time that I had to alter my cadence ever so slightly to allow me to clench so as to avoid disaster from striking... finally I saw it, that green beacon of hope... a porta-loo!!! I rush over and queue with another 2 women who also looked as flustered as I felt meanwhile watching my watch and the time continue ticking by.. don't worry I told myself you can make it up once you have been you will run so much better once you have been. except despite the urgency of nature and its screaming at me to stop.. I Still couldnt bloody "go" ARGHHH.. I continued to run and had to stop a further 2 times at the porta-loos all blighted by the same problem... I eventually managed to relieve myself to a degree that would allow me to run without feeling like I was on a knife-edge, however this was only the beginning of my problems...

It was a warm day, around 14 degrees and I was feeling it. Although I made sure I hydrated to what I thought was sufficient level, I was still gasping while I was running and at every water stop I was taking 2-3 cups of quarter filled paper cups with water. I was having to take my gels at more sporadic intervals as my energy became depleted quicker than planned and at one point I felt quite faint and dizzy.. and then it started around 16 miles my calf started to flicker... then the back of my knee flickered... and then the flickering turned to full on CRAMP... the cramps came hard and fast and were relentless. I cramped behind my left knee, I cramped in both my calves, though the right one was by far the worst affected to such a degree that at one point I had a gaping hole in my leg where the muscle had contracted so badly, as well as both my quads all screaming at me to stop... the pain searing through my legs.. and all the while I am watching my watch, looking at my pace and telling myself I can still do it, I can still get in on time... but as the miles passed some of them so painfully slowly it was becoming more and more apparent that It wasn't to be, by the time I had only 5km left I knew I was never going to finish in 4:10 but I still had hopes of 4:30 I just had to keep running, no matter how slowly I just kept telling myself you just have to keep running, don't walk... my body had other plans and I had to keep stopping to walk as my legs seized on and off with very little relief between ... but when I could run, I ran.. I ran out of sheer stubbornness for that goal that I still clung to.. but the pain was now becoming overwhelming. I finished in 4:47 and I sobbed when I finished, it wasn't what I planned but it was still a 41 minute Personal Best for Marathon distance!!! Those who were there probably thought I was crying out of disappointment, and part of me was but I was also crying out of exhaustion, pain, anger and frustration. I don't often let the medical issues I have been experiencing affect me in such a way, I usually laugh it all off and make the usual self deprecating jokes as a way of deflecting and coping, but at that moment I just felt like wallowing and frankly feeling a little sorry for myself.

Since having run the marathon I have met with my Rheumatologist and have had my diagnosis of Ehlers-Danlos type 3 confirmed and I now know that the issues I have been experiencing are a product of this condition. I am going to arm myself with as much knowledge I can so I know how I can better manage this condition to allow me to continue doing all the things I love safely, but I am going to have to accept that my body has it's limitations because of this condition and through that I am going to have to learn to respect it a little bit more.

I have an appointment with a GI specialist in November and so I hope to get even more answers and guidance as to how I can better manage my digestion and eating to better manage my symptoms.

If you have read to this point... well done! I wanted to give you all the grim details of the day.. and hopefully you got some entertainment out of it, as we all know I do love to make people laugh even if it is at my expense..