– A STATEMENT COME-BACK!
“On Sunday, I ran the Paris Marathon in 3:00:11. While those 12 seconds could haunt me, I am not going to let them. Here’s why.” -Mariela
In November 2016, Mariela takes on the Philadelphia, feeling stronger and faster than ever, and runs a 3:01:40 marathon best. From there, things went downhill.
“ The sport that had once given me so much confidence and such a strong sense of self all the sudden filled me with anxiety and self-doubt. What was once my superhuman strength was a sign of my fragility and fool-hardiness. […] I felt I had turned my back on running, to marathons, to my strength, but 26.2 kept dogging me. I bit the bullet and committed to training hard for a spring marathon. ” -Mariela
In December 2018, she began her training cycle towards her spring Marathon with the #CMSub3 group.
The cycle was smooth, the group pulled and supported each other through the cold winter days.
Mariela was able to run her miles comfortably and hit the paces on the track. Time will make it all feel and look smoother, but she had yet to learn to be in control.
She gained her fitness back, she learned to run smarter and more strategically, to ultimately build the strongest Mariela there has ever been as she finished Paris in 3:00:11, a new PR and first-ever negative split marathon.
“When I got back to the hotel, of course, I learned I missed the mark by 12 seconds. In the minutes, hours and days since learning that, I’ve had flashes of frustration and what if moments, but it takes more than just grit to run a 3:00:11 marathon and be ok with it. It takes grace and self-possession. This training cycle, this race proved to me I’ve got that in my bones and I’ve got it in my heart. And that’s something to be proud of. ”
-Mariela