I RAN THE NEW YORK CITY MARATHON!!!!
Those are the words I’ve been dying to say for almost a year, and the day has finally come when I can be as insufferable about it as I want!!
Running 26.2 miles through all five boroughs of NYC was surreal, exhausting, and honestly something I never thought I would do. But here I am, alive and thriving, and I wouldn’t change a thing! (except my quads RIP.)
Training for an unforgiving course
One thing about me is I’m a very all-or-nothing person, so I trained extremely hard for this race, not allowing myself to miss even one run. This worked to my advantage, but still, there was one thing that slipped my mind. For context, I live in what might be the flattest area on Earth, right by the Jersey Shore boardwalk, so hills aren’t normally part of the course for me. And anyone who’s done it knows: the NYC Marathon is notoriously hilly, crossing these five major bridges:
- Verrazzano-Narrows
- Pulaski
- Queensboro
- Willis Avenue
- Madison Avenue
Due to my obvious lack of incline endurance training, (as I’m sure was observed by other runners) I learned the hard way how difficult it is to run half a mile uphill. The Queensboro Bridge feels like an eternal portal to imminent death.
I genuinely thought people were exaggerating about how brutal the incline was. Nope. You just keep going up, and up, and UP until you feel like you’re about to black out. Lesson learned: next time, I’m training on actual hills.
Aside from that humbling experience, my training paid off!! I followed the Hal Higdon Novice 1 Plan, an 18-week beginner marathon program that gradually builds your endurance from runs as short as 3 miles to a 20-mile long run. I cannot recommend it enough.
Another discovery? RUNNING GELS ARE THE GOAT (this was also a shock as I thought they were performative before.) That being said, Bare Performance Nutrition gels, Swedish Fish (Ik I wasn’t expecting that either), and SaltStick FastChews were my personal lifesavers during the later miles. Whenever my legs started feeling like they were about to give out, one snack, especially the gels, took me a long way.
Is it really worth It?
Yes! Yes!!! YES!!!!
Wait, ask me again at mile 22.
By that point, my quads were burning in ways I didn’t know were even possible. It’s where you could say I “hit the wall.” Runners around me were limping to the medical tents, and I was seriously questioning every decision that led me to voluntarily run nearly 30 miles.
But then you look around and someone pulls you out of your tunnel vision. You look across the HUNDREDS of strangers lining the streets, pointing directly at you, screaming to keep going, reminding you that you are capable of finishing, you will finish. And suddenly, the idea of giving up becomes ludicrous.
Unexpected moments
Ariana, what are you doing here????? Yes, that’s right. Ariana Grande was a spectator… to something I WAS DOING??? This is the first and probably only time in my life when Ariana Grande will be cheering me on and not the other way around. Unfortunately, though, she was near mile 24 in Central Park, and honestly, I was pretty much in psychosis after mile 22, so I completely missed her. Good to know she saw me at my worst, though!
Another celebrity appearance? My favorite Jersey Shore cast member, VINNYYYYYY!!!! Vinny Guadagnino ran the marathon, and here’s the best part: WE FINISHED IN THE SAME TIME. Four hours and 38 minutes. About a 10-and-a-half-minute pace. I will never shut up about this. Keto Guido and I are on the same level. LFG. Who would’ve thought?
Even Maria Canals-Barrera, AKA Mrs. Russo from Wizards of Waverly Place, was out there eating down in a hot pink set and a full beat.
But surprisingly, the celebrities weren’t even close to being the most memorable part.
It was the crowd.
For 26.2 miles, you forget about the news, politics, assignments, deadlines, and even the music playing through your own headphones. You’re too busy taking in the overwhelming sense of unity and love surrounding you.
Golden retrievers wearing “Pet Me for a Power Boost” signs. Little kids still in their Halloween costumes reaching for high-fives. Signs reading “You’re Running Faster Than the MTA.” And my personal favorite, “Poop in the Bronx,” which actually made me laugh.
There was so much encouragement, raw compassion, and community; it was unlike anything I’ve ever witnessed.
In all honesty, I might even respect the spectators more than the runners. Navigating street closures and subway trains crowded to the brim, standing in the cold for hours, and screaming until their voices went hoarse, all to support complete strangers? Now, that takes a different kind of endurance.
What I learned
Above everything, this experience taught me two things.
1. Be more open-minded, even when you think your mind is already set
I used to think running a marathon was excessive and superfluous. Why would anyone in their right mind voluntarily put themselves through 26.2 miles of suffering? Just to say they did it?
Safe to say, I get it now, and I’m happy I chose to do this because I don’t think my mind would’ve changed otherwise. It’s much deeper than running a long distance. It’s about proving to yourself that something you once shrugged off as “impossible,” something you would just “never do,” can very simply become reality. There’s something incredibly emotional about accomplishing a goal that requires months of preparation and hours of mental grit. It makes you actually want to push yourself to the limit not just in running, but in every aspect of your life.
2. Consistency guarantees confidence
Following a training plan for 18 weeks wasn’t always motivating. There were minor injuries, exhausting 3:30 a.m. runs, long runs in the rain, and plenty of moments when I desperately wanted to stay home and watch Keeping Up with the Kardashians instead.
Despite all these challenges, I pushed through, and sticking to my plan gave me something more valuable than physical endurance; it gave me self-trust.
When you consistently show up for yourself, you begin to believe that you’re going to do everything you set out to do. It becomes second nature not to question yourself. That confidence extends far beyond just running. It’s a reassuring thought to know that you’re so disciplined; it’s freeing.
Anyway, this was an unforgettable experience, and I can’t believe I ever doubted it would be worth it. I quite literally went from being annoyed by people who made running their whole personality to becoming one of them.