VLF 2012 Disaster, peeing pure blood at mile 13 & more.

To say im gutted is an understatement. I dont feel like celebrating, theres no champagne or sense of achievement. Im feeling quite low right now.

My background is I used to be overweight a lot, I lost 3 stone to run last years London marathon and my training times suggested a 5 hour finish, I did it with a cousin who didnt train for it or prepare or eat breakfast and she suffered badly, we were doing 15 minute miles from mile 3 and walking and stopping at every toilet and st johns, at mile 13 she collapsed and ended up in hospital,  her boyfriend  went with her and I carried  on though by this time a 5 hour finish was long one, I ended up doing 6 hours 50 minutes.

So for 12 months that time has annoyed me and pushed  me on to train hard for yesterdays marathon. I lost 3 stone since xmas and improved my times amazingly, my 10k went from 1 hour 35 to 53 minutes, I could do 8-9 minute miles rather tthen 13-15 before, I could do a half marathon in traiing gear in 2 hours no problem, 22 miles took me 3 hours 45 minutes.

So my aim for yesterday was if it all clicked a 4 hour time or 4 to 4.20 ish time.

It all started off badly, I was penned in and couldnt run at my pace, I was doing 10-11 minute miles and not the 8-9 I did in training. At  halfway point it was 2 hours 20 minutes, id planned to run 14 miles in 2 hours so only 1 mile more then training so not pushing myelf too much but then that gives me 2 hours to get 12 miles done which I can do easily even if I tire.

So besides that I carried on, then at mile 14 i noticed my wee was reddish,   then as soon as I weed i needed to pee again so at the next toilets I went and my wee was pure blood, not diluted but thick and clotted, needless to say i shit myself and was scared  to death, I tried to soldier on but my mouth was so dry, I needed to pee but couldnt and when I did it was just pure blood, by mile 17 I was worried ot hell, phoned my mum and contemplated dropping out, seeing yourself lose blood like that got me so worried.

Anyhow I carried on at walking pace just to finish as i never want to quit. I ended up with a 5 hour 50 time. I wasnt happy when finishing, didnt get the tingls or feel the magic, i just crosse dthe line and then  got my things and tried to get home. I ended up in a posh hotel toilets  being sick and just sitting on the toilet for 30 minutes as i could not walk and felt so ill. Luckily the concierge helped me get a taxi and i went  back to my hotel.

Besides this  half a toenail fell off and split my other toe, my ipod ran out at mile 17 which it never doe,s my nike gps watch failed at mile 18 and went dead and i got blisters despite wearing same socks and trainers as I have done for 5 months with no problem.

All my friends and family have been really supportive and say look you finished it but I did that last year, I wanted a really good time for me, it was all about the time and ive trained daily so hard since xmas to lose 3 stone and improve my times.

I did change my gels on the day to a twice as powerful one but that wont cause the bleeding surely. Ive had a bit of a bug all all week, not much but enough to have a few lemsips so wonder if thats related.

Also for the first 13 miles I had what I thought was a stitch and I never get one and even if I do its run off quickly enough so now think its related to the blood thing.

So 4 months of sheer dedication and blood, sweat and tears for nothing.

I usually have a glass of champagne  when i get home but tonight just dont feel ive anything to celebrate and i feel so dejected.

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Comments

  • What was the blood, did you find out?
  • Not sure, gonna get checked out tommorow.
  • Ok blood in urine isn't particularly unusual - but pure blood is unusual.
    Have you seen a doctor about this today or is it back to normal ?

    I'm struggling to understand your plan ? Go out fast and gain time for the first half and then you have longer to do the second half ? That's not the best schedule.

    Switching gels to something you've not used and are twice as strong is a silly idea. You really want to have stuff that you've used before. But as you say gels don't cause bleeding.

    Stitches just happen - no real reason - were you feeling particularly worked up about the race ?

    You say daily training ? Did you have rest days ? It's rest that lets the body recover. If you've just trained constantly you'll just wear yourself down.

    Don't take it as a failure - you've got some good miles in your legs - stop and think about what went wrong and which things you can control. And change them. Enter a marathon later in the year when you have recovered and regrouped ?

    iPods and gps aren't needed for London. Ditch them and there's two less things to go wrong. Blisters just happen sometimes - but you have to get on with it.

    Good luck for the next one.



  • Reason im so dejected is in 2 weeks im having a full knee revision and anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction which will render me in rehab for 6 months so this was a big thing to do before I am unable to run for 6 months.
  • Sounds utterly dreadful.  I suspect you don't want or need a post mortem and just need to vent.

    There ARE positives which I hope you see once the initial pain has eased.

    You overcame real adversity. 

    You are supremely fit now and this will stand you in great stead for your post-operative recovery.

    You have family and friends who care for you.

    And when you come back to running, your next race can only get better.

    ;-)

    All the best.

    HB

  • Can anyone explain why I'm crying laughing at this? Have you put in for next year yet Mark?
  • Mark - I wonder if the blood in pee was either a renal contusion (bruised kidney) possibly exacerbated by dehydration or maybe some other low grade trauma somewhere in your ureters,bladder or urethra as a result of bashing your pelvic organs about running. It doesn't take much blood in pee to make it look like it's "pure blood" coming out when in fact it's blood diluted in urine. In any case - if it doesn;t quickly settle you should get it checked out. You'll no doubt have to submit a urine sample pre op in a couple of weeks so that'll pick up if there's still traces of blood kicking aboput in your pee. All the best !
  • I am really genuinely sorry for laughing Mark but when things go that spectacularly wrong what else can you do but laugh? I'm sure you will have your friends laughing at the dinner table for years to come with that story.
  • JeremyGJeremyG ✭✭✭
    How many gels did you take? If they were twice as strong surely less? To properly absorb the carbs in gels you need water. Too many stronger gels without enough fluid could have caused some of the problems?
  • Sussex Runner (NLR) wrote (see)
    Can anyone explain why I'm crying laughing at this? Have you put in for next year yet Mark?
    We all have races that go wrong but I can't see that peeing blood is anything to "cry laughing" about. I'm guessing it's partly because what you type doesn't come out the way it sounds in your head but it does make you sound like a very unpleasant  person at times. I really think you need to think before you post.
  • Poor you Mark, that all sounds rotten. I hope you recover quickly, and try again next year. Good luck.
  • Mark, you had an awful experience but kept going and crossed the finish line, that is an amazing achievement really well done, I hope everything is ok.

    Screamapillar, you have summed up exactly my thoughts when I read NLR comments.

  • Mark, I do hope you recover soon. Also, did I understand correctly that over the past two years you have lost a whopping SIX stone total!?

    Also, I totally understand that you are dejected and you wanted more, but you finished and hopefully soon this will feel like an achievement.

    Do keep us posted on the blood and the knee.

    I do hope to see you on the start line again next year!
  • Too much thinking before you post is wrong. More spontanuity please. I think my post is very relevant. If I thought about it I might not have posted it. X-factor style over deliberation and control is not always a good thing.
  • I think sometimes you think too much before you post types can totally misread the needs of the poster. The OP doesn't want medical advice. I'm sure he has seen a doctor. He needs to get his head right. When things go that badly wrong you need to find your sense of humour and quickly.
  • Although I don't agree with all NLRs sentiments, there is one thing I am utterly jealous of Mark that you have and I don't.... As NLR said, you have a dinner party story like no others. Dine out on it, get yourself physically and mentally fit, get in the ballot and repost next year with a boring 'I did it' post!

    I genuinely hope all is well for you as a fellow runner. Good luck and get well!
  • RicFRicF ✭✭✭
    Well if the lemsips have aspirin in then there's your source.

    🙂

  • Get yourself checked out and worry about what went wrong from there.

    I can guess how you feel as I had what I perceived to be a bad run (went and bought Nike GPS as had forgotten Garmin charger, panicked as i couldn't use it and it was in km not miles, it also went deal around 18 miles, I was boxed in, heavy legs from the start, strained thigh at about 15 mikes, stomach pains from 16 etc not to mention the idiot that nearly ended my race by stopping in the middle of tower bridge to pull out a camera!) So missed my goal by about 5 minutes and felt disappointed.

    I doubt many people have everything go right but the bottom line for you sounds like you were not 80% right never mind 100%, its disappointing but you don't need to look far into this years London marathon to find a far more tragic story to put things in perspective. Hope you are given the OK by the doctors and try not to dwell on it too much, perhaps after a few weeks off worry about half maeathins for a while and come back to marathons later.
  • baldblokebaldbloke ✭✭✭

    actually, congratulations, mark. firstly - despite sunday - you've got yourself fundamentally fit and after a few weeks recovery, you'll be able to get back to enjoying running. as speed-10 says, take it easy and enjoy some shorter races over the summer - i bet your 10k time will come down a treat, for example. you might even find it fun to join a club, where you'll probably make some new friends and get good advice, marathons are not everything. and as for the VLM, well you do indeed have a story you'll be able to tell for years - non-runners will gawp at the physical horror; runners will enjoy hearing about what you will come, in time, to appreciate as a total tactical cock-up -- we all make lots and lots of "mistakes"...in their own way, part of the joy of running...make sure you keep at it, and post news of your forthcoming successes

  • mitiogmitiog ✭✭✭
    Sorry it didn't work out Mark, but look at what you have achieved in terms of your fitness and weight loss. That's worth celebrating image
  • Been taking ibuprofen by any chance?
  • I took 2 ibroprofen on the wednesday before thats it but had maybe 2 lemsips a day  for the 3 days prior to the race. But I had a proper bug last years london marathon and had way more lemsip without the blood issue.

    My tactics were ok,  my first half pace was slower then my normal pace due to being penned in.

    I cant do any more runs now as im having the knee op in 3 weeks so will be in rehab for 4 months with no running.

  • I doubt that would be enough to cause a problem.  Blood cells can break down through the impact of the foot hitting the ground resulting in the fragments being able to pass through the kidneys causing the urine to become red.  Running with an empty bladder can cause the bladder walls to hit together and bleeding to occur.  Both appear quite shocking but are not serious.  You do need to be checked out pronto though.  If things have not returned to normal and you start to have trouble passing urine or cannot pass urine go straight to A&E.

    It would be useful to see the training schedule you followed for the last 6 weeks before the race.

  • "my ipod ran out at mile 17" behave yourself lol
  • Just so upset. I trained twice as hard as last year for 4 months for that 4 hour window and that happens on the day, why not all 50 other training runs.

    I got myself as fit as ive ever been and in great shape, dedicated 4 months to it, made sacrifices etc. Every sunday up at 7am regardless of snow, frost, rain. Increasing speed and improving times amazingly and all for that 1 race.

    Now I have to have the knee op in 2 weeks and lose al the running fitness I have got as its a pretty limiting op and you cant do anything for 3-4 months.

    I know people say but you finished but it doesnt help, I finished it last year, I finished new york, i set myself high standards and got myself in shape and a position to reach that and it all fell apart on the day.

    Ive been to the docs and had some tests so will know in a few days what happaned hopefully.

    Ill pick myself up and dust myself off and move on I always do but at the moment im in a burst out into tears mood so just wanna be at home and sulk a bit, think ive earned the right to.

    On a side note Claire Squires RIP, I donated to her page yesterday, such a sad story.
  • Mark, look at Sophie Raworth. She just shaved over two hours off her time, and her "bad" marathon last year was far more public than yours or mine. I'm not trying to minimise your disappointment but we both have a year to achieve our speed goals. And in your case, you have two bits of your body that you need to make sure are healed! image

    There are people who also trained hard and had excellent running fitness who had to drop out so yes YOU FINISHED and it is a big deal. And when I think about what Claire Squires's family/friends must be going through, the fact that I got to the finish line with merely a couple of blisters and a slower-than-hoped finish time, it really puts things into perspective.

    Mark, recover well and see you here next year with both of us bragging about our marathon PBs!

    Zaftig
  • Good luck with your op. My husband had this done last year and after 6 months of being v diligent with his physio he know has the best knees since he was 20 - also no pain for the first time in years!

    He has come back quickly and strongly and raves about it to anyone who asks - whole new lease of life.
  • Despite all that, you finished!! Lesser mortals would have given up. This shows enormous strength of character which will serve you well for future marathons and life in general! You do need to see your GP about the blood, they will probably refer you to a urologist for a check up!
    It's ok to feel rubbish for a few days, normal, probably important but then you'll be ok, you will move on, life will feel good again and hey 3rd time lucky! Best wishes!
  • Hello Mark,  using the Mcmillan calculator and your 10k time of 53mins it shows that if you ran 53mins dead your best case scenario for marathon and half marathon would be 4.08 and 1.58 respectively.  Given that information a first 14miles in 2hr and a sub 4hr finish was highly unlikely.  14miles in 2hrs equates to your best 10k pace exactly.  Your 5k splits were...

    5k 29mins

    10k30mins

    15k34mins

    20k36mins

    25k31mins

    30k54mins

    35k53mins

    40k56mins

    On one of your other threads I read that you ran a 22 miler 3 weeks out, 17miler 2 weeks out and were planning to run 10 miles a week before race day.  Despite a background of having run  a 6.20 marathon and having improved to a 53min 10k there is nothing to suggest that running a 22/17/10 would have done anything other than impede your recovery during taper and further stressed your immune system.  Sure enough you were ill the week before the race.

    I appreciate that the start of the race can be very slow and frustrating, however the first and second 5k's are the fastest  of your race not the slowest, from there on they get progressively slower but rally between 20-25k there after it looks like you popped big time, an enevitable outcome when you run 5k 5mins faster than the previous one which is what generally happens when you get to half way and realise it's all going wrong .  There after the splits show you walking in at a steady 3mph to the finish.

    Analysis.  Overtrained in the taper.  Compromised recovery and immune system - hence not well in final week and on the day.  Unrealistic race plan.  Your 42lbs weight loss in the run up to the race is commendable, however the rate of loss while training hard and the use of a low carb diet for endurance training may have had some impact somewhere.

    On the subject of passing blood especially clotted blood, get off the course and seek medical help.  If the bleed was coming through the kidneys they could block and fail - I can't really understand why you didn't go to A&E straight away.  If you'd gone down on the course it would have meant putting an ambulance on  which would mess up a lot of peoples races.

    For next time the following may be useful.  HADD training (google it) McMillanrunning.com, Smart Coach(on this site) and The Lore of Running by Tim Noakes.

    Good luck, you will run under 4hrs but remember doing more doesn't always = doing better.

  • Thanks, those times are slower then my normal pace,  do a half marathon in 1 hour 55, my aim was to do 14 mile sin the first 2 hours on race day.

    I was penned in and ran slower then I normall did so didnt over do it trust me.

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