Why Running Marathons is so Rewarding
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This post was contributed by Kelsey Allen, who writes about the nursing schools online. She welcomes your feedback at KelseyAllen1010@yahoo.com.
Training to run a marathon is a pinnacle point in your life when you develop the ability to pace yourself as well as motivate yourself to gain the stamina needed to run the 26.2 miles that are required of you. Running a marathon is no easy feat and can take years to completely train for, but the end result is worth it in so many ways. Pushing your body in that way can be highly rewarding as you have never been pushed to that extent before.
The United States has become known as the obese capital of the world which is a title we have yet to completely shake off since there are more and more documentaries coming out about our constant struggle with obesity. Americans’ ability to get off their couches to go out and train for a marathon is a remarkable change from the previous stipulation that all Americans are “lazy couch potatoes”. While most winners in major marathons hail from countries in Africa that are notorious for distance runners such as Kenya and Ethiopia, there are still a great many runners who end up in the top 10 that are from the area. The concept of the marathon run dates from the fabled run of the Greek soldier Phidippides who was a messenger from the Battle of Marathon, taking a message to Athens. His role was to announce that the Persians had been defeated, with the legend stating that he ran the entire distance without stopping. While Phidippides collapsed and died after exclaiming the news to Athens, he set the standard for the run. With the length of the route being approximately 26 miles, this thus became the standard for the distance within the modern marathon.
The advent of the modern Olympic games at the turn of the 20th century paved the way for the popularity of the marathon run, as this became a featured sport within the Olympics. Since this time, the marathon run has become a worldwide event, with major cities like London, Berlin, and Boston featuring many of the top runners within their races. The top ten list of marathon runners mostly hail from Kenya and Ethiopia, with 10th place going to runner from Morocco. While you typically will not reach this time when running your first marathon (near 2 hours), the fact that you can even finish a marathon is more rewarding than you know. Training for a marathon takes a lot of stamina and endurance, as well as continuous motivation to keep increasing your route every day, but as soon as you cross that finish line you are able to realize how worthwhile it is at the end.
Tags: marathon
I finished my first marathon this summer and was talking about it with a friend the other night during a run. We were discussing how just finishing a marathon can be a huge thing to check off your life’s to-do list. Not the only reason to run one certainly, but a huge feeling of accomplishment!
I agree. I think there is an elite group of people who have been able to tackle the distance of a marathon. When you tell a non-runner that you ran a marathon they never ask what your time was because the time doesn’t matter to them, they are impressed by you just finishing the race.