Manayunk mom reaches milestone at Philadelphia Marathon

Last week we profiled Elizabeth Seeley, the Manayunk marathon runner who trains on her neighborhood hills. On Sunday, Newsworks’ Max Matza caught up with her as she crossed the finish line, completing her third Philadelphia Marathon with a time of 3 hours and 30 minutes.

Elizabeth Seeley usually runs at least eight miles a day, so when she woke up at 5 a.m. on Sunday morning, it was just like any other day. 

“I had some coffee,” she says, “a little yogurt, got the kids out the door, you know that kind of thing.”

Except on race day, she felt a bit more excitement than usual. She was about to compete in her first marathon since giving birth to her sons Miles, 1, and Shane, 2.

Waiting at the starting line, for the race to begin, the familiar surge of adrenaline rushed through her body. 

Was she nervous? “A little bit. Nervous excitement, not bad kind of nervous. Nervous, like pumped up and ready to go!” she said. 

Since having kids, Seeley says she’s been too distracted to run marathons, but that familiar feeling of awe and inspiration returns to her as she surveys the crowd of thousands of runners.

“You get the same great feeling. You know just being out here with what, 27,000 people?” Seeley said. “And you know each person that’s running has an amazing story- all the training; it’s a lot of work and everything. That’s why I love it so much.”

“Philly’s just a great marathon to run,” Seeley says about her home course. “Sure. I know all the miles quite well. I know the whole course. Every mile’s difficult in it’s own way,” she said.

She particularly enjoyed all the cheering crowds on Chestnut Street.

Now she’s about to launch back into training for her next marathon, which means around 100 miles of running per week. Having finished today under 3 hours and 35 minutes, she automatically qualifies for the Boston Marathon, which she plans to run for her third time. 

On Monday, she’ll go for a short run, “shake out my legs a little.. but nothing much for the next couple of weeks.”

But before she hits the pavement again, it’s time for a post race ritual. Is there any food she craves? Nope. Just a cold beer with friends and family.