My First Marathon!

First and foremost I want to thank my wonderful hubby Lance Jacobsen,Lindsey Wicklund Lundholm, Brian Lundholm, Michael Wicklund(dad), Mike Jacobsen, & Julie Jacobsen for being there to support me today! And also my Mama Gini Wicklund who couldn't be there, but whom I got to talk to lots along the way over the phone (through my headphones). I 100% would NOT have made it without you all there cheering me on. This was the hardest thing I have EVER been through. Absolutely NOTHING could have prepared me for how hard this actually was! I was stripped down to complete nothingness! Every weakness I have screaming in my face. There were some really great moments. There were some horribly awful moments! I had a lot of issues today that I have never experienced on a long run. I don't know if it was all the hills, or me just thinking "I did 21 miles...not a huge deal, I felt pretty good after that...this is only 5.2 more than that." Man, I was in for a RUDE awakening! This marathon completely humbled me! I felt really good the first 10 miles in. A little tired from the hills, but nothing major. It was a gorgeous day! Then my left knee started hurting REALLY bad. Not sure why, this knee usually doesn't give me problems. I slowed a bit to try and recoup. Then the cramping hit! My left calf on and off would start cramping up every few minutes. It literally felt like my leg was just going to give out on me when I put weight on it. I started chugging the gatorade thinking I needed more electrolytes. By mile 16-17 I was in complete misery! I had to stop in the middle of I-90 to stretch it out a bit. In that moment I thought, "That's it, there is NO way I can do this. This is SO hard!" Not even sure how or why but I slowly started running again. Coming back across the bridge I started praying. Told my Heavenly Father I CAN NOT do this without you! I started sobbing. I saw my family at mile 20. That helped. I slowly felt my legs regaining strength. His strength. At mile 23 I started to pick it up. By the last mile I was crusin' pretty good. I ran up that horrible hill at the end with my friends and out of NOWHERE I felt this HUGE surge of adrenaline. It was like nothing I have ever felt before. My mind was still back with my friends. My legs just TOOK OFF! I started sprinting down towards the finish line, passing people left and right. It really was an out of body experience. The only time I have had that sort of experience was when my husband proposed to me, and when I have given birth. I cant even describe the feeling. I started to choke back the sobs. I flew across the finish line and completely lost it! Sobbed, and choked, and sobbed some more. My body was shaking. It really was a life changing experience, one I will NEVER forget! I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to run it with some of the most awesome people I know. Julie Jensen, Troy Jensen, Jill Webb, Kailee Jensen, & Nathan Webb! My goal for this being my first marathon was mainly to finish, and to do it in under 5 hrs! Mission accomplished! Had a finishing time of 4:54:47. Had I not had to wait in line for the bathroom, and had to stop on i-90 my time probably could have been better. But I am going to try and not scrutinize every split of this race. I accomplished my goal and that is all I could have asked for! Thanks everyone for all the love and support! Every time someone commented or "liked" something here on FB, I would get a little ding on my phone, which I heard through my headphones. I knew it was you guys! It helped me more than you know! Love you all lots! (Pics to follow)