A week ago, I ran my first marathon. It was the Bataan Memorial Death March Marathon, and it's the third hardest marathon in the world. I ran it with an amazing team of five people, and we placed first in the Co-Ed Civilian category! But, other than getting a participation certificate, a t-shirt, a cute dog tag, and soon-to-be medal in the mail, my first marathon gave me a lot.

In running a marathon and training for it, everyone gets stronger physically. But, as I became stronger physically, I felt my mental strength grow as well. I was able to push through pain and muscle soreness, and I was able to make better decisions for myself in my life. I've always possessed the mindset that I can get through anything; and while that's true, sometimes it's not worth it, or there is an easier way, or even a better way, to endure. And sometimes you need to realize it, and just be confident about your decision to change something. And, I did.

On top of giving me confidence (I mean who wouldn't feel confident after running a marathon in the desert, up a mountain, at elevation, in the heat) my marathon gave me time to think. In the hours and hours of training miles and even the five hours of the actual race, I had a lot of time to think through things in my life. The extra time gave me a lot of clarity on things I was unsure about. It gave me a lot of time to make pro/con lists. It also gave me four amazing other people to bounce my thoughts off of because you train as a team for team marathons.

The biggest gift my marathon gave me is perspective. Yes, running 26.2 miles sounds terrible, but 17.46 physical fitness tests doesn't sound so bad. Running hill repeats sounds awful, but you're already done with 5/10 which means you're half-way there. Four five-mile loops also sound terrifying, but you get a piece of orange, some water, and a sip of Gatorade after each loop! Even when things are terrible or scary, if you keep moving forward, you're already closer to being done than you were before, so why quit now?

Marathons are crazy, they're long, they take months of training and commitment, but it all pays off in the satisfaction of completing the race. The things you get from those months of training or the hardest longest hill of your life in the middle of the marathon stay with you for life. Sometimes, those long thought sessions on a 16-mile run can really help you to put things in perspective and to help you make the right decision. So, for all of the things my marathon has given me, the intangible gifts have by far been the best.