{WDW Marathon: Finale}

I have been working on this post for about a week. I am super excited to finally share it! This is the third and final post in the now WDW Marathon Trilogy.

There aren't any other running adventures to share only the aftermath which actually wasn’t as bad as we both had feared.

The bus ride back to our hotel was interesting to say the least. It was fun to be able to listen to and share stories with other runners. Every experience is unique but the feelings that are shared tend to have a familiar ambiance! I had already made up my mind (I think it was made up the moment I crossed the finish line). I will definitely be running this event again!!! Jason wasn’t as sure as I was. He was pretty much over running at that point. He gave me quite the scare when his entire body cramped up on him. Fortunately, it passed and we were able to make our way to our room moving slowly and as steady as possible.

Favorite Friends After A Marathon

Epsom Salt

Bath Tub

Ice Packs

Hot Tub

After a couple of hours of soaking, we headed down to our celebration dinner! Looking at a menu after running 26 miles is pretty awesome!!! Why? Calories and carbs are your very BEST FRIENDS!!!! How many times will you be able to say that?!?!?!

We celebrated our achievements with a delicious dinner and a drink or two of course! Needless to say sleep was not a problem that night!

The Day After

After two days of 2:45 AM wake-up calls, 6:30 feels like sleeping in! 

You feel refreshed after a goodnights rest because you literally passed out the night before. 

Your body feels pretty great so you give yourself a pat on the back for taking such good care of yourself after the run. 

You feel ready to conquer the new day. 

You stretch a bit and turn to get out of bed. 

This is the moment people “forget” to tell you about, the moment you put your feet on the ground and stand up. EVERY single ounce of muscle and bone, every flake of skin, and every strand of hair is sore and tight! It's quite the experience to take the first few steps towards the bathroom!

Here’s the BEST part about moving, no matter how much you want to stop walking, no matter how comfy and inviting that nice soft bed looks, no matter how many times your body is trying to figure out what the heck you are doing, you HAVE to keep moving!! Sounds amazing, right?!?! Actually, there is a big bright tunnel waiting to be found because the more you move the better you feel and the faster you recover.

Our last day in Florida was spent at Magic Kingdom. We spent most of the day walking around and chatting with other runners. One the coolest things about going to the park the day after the big marathon weekend, was being able to see all of the runners wearing their medals around their necks! You see the bling, you see the smile, but more than that, you see the pride!!! 

It is pretty amazing to be able to have that experience where you can share your moment and your accomplishment with everyone else. High-fives are the common hand shake!  Praise is received and given in return! Congratulations becomes the word of the day!

It's actually pretty incredible when cast members come up to you, shake your hand, and tell you that you have inspired them beyond belief. That because of people like Jason and myself, they are motivated to run the event next year.

It's very awesome to have characters come up to you, grab a hold of your medal, hug you, give you a high five, and then try to race you down main street.

Everyone who participated feels your pain. There just might be some sense of comfort in that! =) It doesn’t matter if they did the half, the full, or both. EVERYONE is in the same boat. Obviously there are those who will bounce back faster than others but no matter what, there is going to be some form of ache or pain associated with running an event such as this one. 

One of the things that I found funny was that you could pinpoint exactly who ran not only by the medals that hung around their necks but also by the way they were walking.

My favorite quote of the day

“You learn to walk up stairs backwards!”

You learn very early on after running 39.3 miles that stairs and ramps become your arch-nemesis!!!

Our Final Day at Disney World

The train waiting to make it's first appearance of the day inside Magic Kingdom

Sharing a bit of pride in front of Cinderella's Castle

These are a few of my favorite rides

"I almost bounced clear out of the ride!" 

"Come on everybody, here we gooooo"

"There is just one moon and one golden sun
and a smile means friendship to everyone"     

 "This chamber has no windows and no doors...

which offers you this chilling challenge...

to find a way out!"

"Dead men tell no tales" 

Pretty close to the "Happiest Place on Earth"

Oh bother, our absolute favorites!

Memories that will last a lifetime 

Goofy was very pleased with our medals

One of the most AMAZING and INSPIRATIONAL men we've ever met!!!

"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them"

    

When we left the park that night, we were both tired and sore. I could barely move my feet. I'm pretty sure I was shuffling along instead of actually walking. We missed the kids more than ever. It was time to go home!!! But, as we stood on the boat and watched the castle get smaller and smaller, I grabbed onto Jason and the first thing that came to mind was

Have faith in your dreams and someday,

no matter how your heart is grieving,

if you keep on believing,

the dream that you wish will come true