chongqing marathon notes this is the only race that made me want to cry

Soaking wet

Throwing away the last empty mineral water bottle

Lifting my legs that were numb with pain

For the first time, both legs were covered with kinesiology tape

By the end, only the left leg still had kinesiology tape

The blue shoe surface was stained with gray-black mud

And that glaring '3 hours 56 minutes' finish time

My eyes felt a bit sore

Disappointment, bitterness, embarrassment, regret, and a touch of emotion

This is the most emotionally complex race I've ever participated in,And the only time I felt like crying near the finish line.

My most anticipated Chongqing Marathon ended in such a gloomy way.

Pre-race: Injury

The Chongqing Marathon on March 25th, held at my doorstep and also the first marathon I ever participated in, this year marks my third time running it.

I had been looking forward to this race since last year, preparing diligently, only to start the year with a major defeat.

During the time I was injured and caught a cold before the race, I wrote a few words in my social circle that a friend said and that I really liked:

"A slap in the face may be late, but it never misses.

Many things in the world are daunting because of the phrase 'since we're already here'.

The biggest illusion in marathon running is the phrase 'the foundation is still there'.

"Sister Wang, don't be afraid. Since we're already here, at least the foundation is still there."

I received encouragement from my 'bad friends' smoothly.

Self-mockery, teasing, and a mix of laughter and tears, along with a tiny bit of psychological expectation and luck.

Last year's Guangzhou Marathon also saw me injured before the race, but that was because I twisted my foot wearing high heels. Despite running with an injury, I enjoyed it more and ended with a PB of 3:42. Although it wasn't my best performance, I was still happy.

I jokingly call this the pre-race injury syndrome, always messing up at critical moments.

In January, I was at my peak, running 10KM in 40 minutes and 41 seconds, a half marathon in 1:36, with a four-week training cycle ensuring one 30KM+ LSD and one 10KM speed run per week, along with interval and easy runs. I rested for 11 days in January, running 316KM, not much more than my usual 300KM.

Thinking it was relatively scientific training, I relaxed my vigilance on 'intensity,' neglecting pre-race warm-ups, and coupled with reduced rest and recovery due to busy work.

By February 3rd, I already felt something was wrong. I took a complete rest for five or six days, which alleviated it somewhat, then reduced my running volume, slowly recovering with jogging, medication, and massage until March 2nd, when I felt almost fully recovered.

But my muscle endurance and explosive power had significantly decreased.

"Maybe I cared too much about the Chongqing Marathon, took it too seriously."

I was a bit anxious to resume training.

Two weeks before the race, I did a 36.6KM long run, and my almost-recovered leg injury relapsed. After a few days of rest, it felt better, so I ran the Shuangyi Half Marathon, thinking it would be my last pre-race training.

Naturally, the injury worsened, and I caught a high fever because I didn't change clothes in time.

In the days leading up to the race, I was taking cold medicine and only did a 10KM and a 9KM slow run.

"I was ready to withdraw from the race or finish it looking terrible."

Countless possibilities ran through my mind.

But I never thought I would feel so miserable so early, never thought I would collapse so badly.

Pre-race: Encounter

March 24th in Chongqing was drizzly, with white fog, the mountain city faintly visible, somewhat gentle.

This day was special to me. My birthday is March 24th, although it's the lunar calendar, it inexplicably felt ceremonial.

Although I was mentally prepared not to finish the race, I still carbo-loaded for a few days. After meeting up with my dad, we went to the site to pick up the gear.

A long time ago, I always wondered with friends about the significance of participating in a marathon. Is it the hard work and training for a PB? Is it to see different scenery and taste different foods in a new city? Is it to fulfill a long-awaited promise? Or is it to meet friends you've never met but know well?

It should be all of these.

On the way to pick up the gear, I met Lao Yan from the equipment group, Zuo Chun whom I had chatted with before, and Lao Yu from Si Tu... At noon, I had lunch with running friends in the misty rain on Nanbin Road, then returned to the hotel with my dad.

The race pack was still rich in supplies, opening familiar paper bags and food packs, and there was even a cute little Chongqing hotpot base.

"Try to break 3:10," was my dad's wish.

"I just hope I can get through this." I couldn't accompany you to a PB this time. I didn't say the last half of the sentence.

I took cold medicine, looked at the flickering lights outside the window, and went to bed early.

That night, I slept more soundly than ever.

Race: Self-hypnosis and willpower in a water battle

In the morning, I woke up around five, hearing the sound of rain outside the window.

"Looks like it's going to be a rain battle." I felt inexplicably happy. I missed the heavy rain in Xiamen, ran through the moderate rain in Guang'an, and the light rain in Shuangyi. Running in the rain always excites me. Whether it's the cool weather or the sunny days in Liupanshui and Beijing, different weather challenges are a new experience and expectation for me.

Wrapped in a raincoat, my legs still ached.

At the Sheraton downstairs, I went to the kinesiology tape station and taped my legs for the first time. Hoping it might help, "I can't wimp out in front of the hometown folks," I laughed.

Before the start, I found my 3:30 pacer Lao Yu. In my sight were the red balloons of the official pacers not far away, excited faces, my dad's and friends' shining eyes. I thought I wouldn't be excited because of familiarity, but I felt a bit thrilled.

"Yes, you must self-hypnotize. Think of Guangzhou, pretend you're still the uninjured, un-cold, peak-state Wang Dazhu." I seriously sang the national anthem, counted down, and the starting gun fired.

I crossed the timing point.

"Lost my pacer..."

Just after starting, I realized I lost my pacer. "Looks like it's fate."

I felt a bit helpless but also relieved. Given my poor condition, forcing myself to follow the pacer might have made things worse and dragged others down.

It turned out to be true.

"Oh no..." After just 2KM, my legs started to hurt, feeling heavier than ever, and my breathing was labored for the first time in so many races.

For the first time, I had the thought of quitting after just 2KM. With 40KM left, if I felt like this the whole way, I couldn't imagine it. I felt a bit overwhelmed at that moment.

"It's just psychological... think of Guang'an, think of Guangzhou... you need to distract yourself, focus on your glutes... such a flat course, such cool weather, you should enjoy this feeling, remember your legs can fly..." I started my self-hypnosis and Wang's mumbling method.

But it didn't work; my legs were too heavy.

Struggling through the first few kilometers, should I quit at 10KM? Am I really unable to run anymore? I never want to run again... More and more negative thoughts flooded in.

Maybe I really should give up this time.

But I knew that although my condition was terrible, it wasn't a heart issue, so I decided to keep going as long as I could. I tried to think about other things to distract myself.

"I wonder where Xiao Qi is? I hope to see him soon, at least he can't capture me looking so miserable." I started looking around for the yellow vest photographers with 'I Yun Dong' printed on them.

Xiao Qi is Seven. I met Xiao Qi last year during the Chongqing Women's Half Marathon. Many of my photos were taken by a photographer named 'Seven,' and we later got to know each other. Before this race, I told Xiao Qi, "Xiao Qi, remember my outfit and take my photos."

"But maybe it's better if he doesn't take any, given my condition..." While grumbling, at the 12KM mark, suddenly, "I got you!" A yellow figure on the roadside waved at me (I couldn't see Xiao Qi's kind face clearly due to my severe astigmatism).

After a moment of blankness and dullness, I realized it was Xiao Qi.

I felt a bit moved. "Since you're moved, keep running." I gathered some strength. There was a water station ahead, and I decided to stop and drink properly at each water station today, breaking my usual habit of rushing through.

I had already planned my race strategy accordingly.

Although I had a few kilometers of side stitches, I slowed down, adjusted my breathing, and the stitches gradually improved.

Marathon races have taught me so much: from fearing side stitches when drinking water to not being afraid of them, from fearing hills to liking them, from slowing down in the second half to being able to speed up, from just running to paying attention to diet and strength training.

More importantly, I gained a group of like-minded friends.

Along the way, I met many familiar faces, and many people called my name, "Xijia, Wang Yi, Little Pepper, the kid running with his dad," and many others I didn't know well but had crossed paths with.

This race brought us, familiar and unfamiliar, together. Suddenly, I thought of hotpot.

The drizzle gradually stopped, and the sun came out. I had almost reached the turnaround point.

My legs were numb, "I can't stop, once I stop, I won't want to run anymore," I gritted my teeth and kept moving forward.

During the race, I didn't take any salt tablets, but remembering I didn't take any in last year's Guangzhou Marathon either, I was confident I could manage without them.

However, because the sun came out later, to prevent any accidents, I kept hydrating with small amounts of drinks and cooling myself with sponge water. In the last 12KM, I took three full bottles of mineral water, drinking and pouring water on myself to cool down.

The repeated hydration and soaking my body gave my numb legs some strength.

My breathing was no longer as labored as in the first thirty kilometers.

Those three bottles of water unexpectedly helped me regain some form, allowing me to speed up in the last 12KM and avoid finishing over 4 hours.

"Hey, I ran 3:26 in last year's Shanghai Marathon, and this year's Chongqing Marathon will be around 4 hours."

"Xijia, keep going~"

"Do you need water? I can help you get some."

...

Along the way, different runners greeted me, some exchanged a few words, some nodded and smiled, some cheered me on.

The companionship of fellow runners made this seemingly endless road less painful.

Being able to finish the race was due to my willpower and also because of you all!

Like those 'lifesaving' three bottles of water, my Codoon friends gave me strength. I met two friends midway, accompanied them, and then separated. In the last 10KM, I met my final companion—Zuo Chun.

I remembered the last few kilometers of last year's Chongqing Marathon, where I silently followed an uncle in UA gear ahead of me.

This might be the charm of running!

I love running because it gives me a sense of grounding, the feeling of flying under my feet, and the independence of not needing company. Though I don't like crowds, running with a group of like-minded people brings warmth and mutual understanding.

Sometimes, 'companionship' can have unexpected power.

At 38KM, Zuo Chun said, "Keep going, we're almost there."

"As long as it's not 41KM, it's still just the beginning," I said.

At 40KM, I said, "Let's get some drinks and recharge; we need to speed up for the final stretch."

Returning to the city streets reignited my fighting spirit, which had been crushed by leg pain and labored breathing. I poured the last of the water from my bottle over myself and started to speed up.

Seeing the '800 meters left' sign, my eyes suddenly felt hot.

"How pathetic, are you going to cry?" I took a deep breath and held it back.

"3 hours 56 minutes," a terrible time, very bitter, but within that bitterness, there was also emotion.

"It was because I endured the race with willpower, because of my friends' companionship and encouragement, because I still felt the joy and happiness of running, because of the painful yet persistent effort, and because of the psychological battle that ended successfully."

I later thought that if I had really quit, it might have become a shadow in my heart. So, I pushed through.

"This is the Chongqing Marathon, the race you've been preparing and looking forward to for so long; this is running, the activity you've always persisted in; you don't want to look defeated in front of your hometown folks; there's the medal, and there's you..."

Maybe these were also the reasons that kept me going.

Reaching the finish line, I felt a huge sense of relief.

More wishes

The sky over Nanbin Road was a bit gray but not gloomy. The Twin Towers looked beautiful, and the volunteers' smiles were warm.

My dad successfully achieved his goal of breaking 3:10, and I also successfully overcame my ordeal and finished safely.

"Leaving regrets means having expectations; leaving pain means having reflection; leaving failures means having growth; leaving experiences means having accumulation."

The Chongqing Marathon on March 25th, though it started bitterly, was the most complex race I've ever participated in.

I still love running, love marathons, and love the Chongqing Marathon.

Whether it's collapse or joy, as long as I'm running, it's good.

See you next year. I hope next year, my dad and I can step onto the Chongqing Marathon course in our best training condition.

P.S.: Thank you to all my friends. See you next year.