I spend a good bit of time thinking about the marathon. Since I ran my first marathon, back in November of 2013, I have spent a good bit of time thinking about becoming a better marathoner. Through my journey I have become faster, but more important to me is the better aspect. I ran marathon after marathon under trained and didn’t understand why I wasn’t reaching my arbitrarily set goals. I thought I’d look back at those races and reflect on what I learned.
Marathon 1 – Richmond Nov 2013 (5:27)
You never forget your first time. When I decided to run my first marathon, I had an arbitrarily set goal of running a marathon in less than five hours. I say arbitrarily set because I had zero knowledge of what it would take to run a marathon in less than five hours. I had zero idea of what that meant in terms of how I should pace myself and how I should train. I basically knew nothing. And so, of course, I did not finish in under five hours. In fact, it would take me two more years and multiple more marathons before I would finally run a sub-5 marathon.
Marathon 2 – (after Shamrock DNF) Queen City March 2014 (5:33)
I tried again to tackle the marathon in March of 2014. I had a solid training cycle – meaning solid based on my limited understanding of how to properly train. I ended up getting the flu (but didn’t know that at the time) and dropping out of Shamrock at mile 17. That hurt – so I signed up for a trail marathon a couple of weeks later and boy did I suffer, but I finished, which was what I needed. I had no real time goals for this one, which was smart.
Marathon 3 – Richmond Nov 2014 (5:30:14)
I ran Richmond for the second time and ran slower than my first marathon. This was the result of terrible cramps that started around mile 14. I am now convinced my legs cramped because I was under trained and trying to run too fast on legs that were not prepared for that. I am also not great at nailing nutrition during marathons. This is actually still a work in progress.
Marathon 4 – NCR Trail Marathon Nov 2014 (5:06:47)
Again, after a bad race, I wanted to run a marathon closer to my fitness level. I loved the NCR Trail Marathon. It’s actually a rails to trail and basically flat and packed – perfect for running. While I wasn’t quite able to come in under 5, I got much closer and was happy with my race. Especially considering this was less than two weeks after Richmond.
Marathon 5 – Wineglass Marathon Oct 2015 (4:51:18)
Ah. Sub-5. For this race, my A goal was 4:40-4:45 and again, I set that kind of arbitrarily. I was learning more about running and pacing, but my training was still not where it needed to be. I peaked around 36 miles and while I had added Pure Barre and some light yoga into my routine, I was still running over 50% of my mileage on Saturdays. No bueno! But I felt really good about finally coming in under 5 hours.
Marathon 6 – Marine Corps Marathon Oct 2015 (4:52:06)
I ran this race just three weeks after Wineglass and wanted to run a 4:30 marathon. I have no idea why I thought I could cut 20 minutes off of Wineglass. Looking back, I also think I have been consistently under fueling during these races. In Marine Corps, I had nothing but Nuun until mile 16. I’m not sure why I thought that was a good idea. I’m still dialing in on my fueling but I would not attempt to run a marathon and not take in any substantive calories for 16 miles. That is a bad idea – don’t try it at home, folks!
Marathon 7 – Chicago Marathon Oct 2016 (4:29:21)
Chicago was my first training cycle using Hansons. I set a goal of 4:10, which would have been a 42 minute PR. I messed up my fueling big time – I basically only drank half my water bottle by mile 15. And that was it. I am still not sure why I sabotaged myself like that. I was feeling great and the weather was perfect – so I just didn’t feel thirsty or hungry. BIG MISTAKE. I had terrible terrible cramping starting at mile 18 and was just proud to squeak in under 4:30. Like I said, I’m still figuring out my nutrition. The great thing for me with Chicago is that while I totally broke down, I did not let it totally ruin my race. That was huge for me.
Marathon 8 – Berlin Marathon Sept 2017 (4:14:10)
Berlin. Berlin was a great race and I think my nutrition was not perfect, it was definitely the best so far. I had a pretty good day and another big PR. The weather (99% humidity) and the crowding (SO CROWDED) were the two big obstacles. I think if the weather had not been awful I could have run much better. But – given the weather and how hard I pushed, I felt really proud of my effort. I felt like I truly left everything out on the race course and I had zero second guesses about if I could have done more. That was a good feeling to have after a marathon. I finally feel like my marathon PR is pretty in line with my fitness. I of course am going to keep chasing sub-4 but I was really happy with my performance in Berlin. The idea that I could run a sub-9 mile during a marathon is pretty wild to me when I think about how my first marathon (just about 4 years ago) took me 5 hours and 27 minutes.
I have learned so much running marathon after marathon. I have learned that I need to focus on strong training cycles and for me, that means a good bit of mileage. I can’t run 20 miles a week and expect to run a fast marathon (I actually don’t think many people can run a great marathon off of 20 miles a week, but that’s a whole other discussion). I have learned that figuring out nutrition is hard but critical – this will be something I continue to hone in on for the future. I have learned that I am capable of so much more than I give myself credit for. The act of becoming a better marathoner is a process that will always be happening for me but that is the fun.
Do you ever reflect back on a series of your races and assess what you have learned?
I love this recap! Amazing to see your progress over the years. I think it’s great that you can objectively look back and analyze what you should continue doing or change. Love seeing you grow as a runner. You’re such a rock star.
So kind, friend. Thank you! We still have to run a race together 🙂
I would love to. It would have to be a recovery fun run for you 🙂
Any run with you would be a fun run!!! 🙂
I attempted to run MCM yesterday and sadly had a DNF. I had a fairly strong training cycle (ran my last long run — 18 miles — three weeks ago and felt great!), but felt like I had zero energy from the beginning. Finally at mile 22 (on that awful bridge!) I got nauseous and started throwing up, and had to be taken to a med tent. Couldn’t muster a finish after that. Still trying to figure out exactly what went wrong. AND it wasn’t my first marathon — I ran Chicago last year and everything went super smoothly! Guess you just have to learn from those not-so-smooth races, huh?
Oh no – I’m so sorry to hear this. I’ve been there before and it sucks. I was spectating yesterday right before mile 22 (after the bridge, before the mile marker). It was a hot, hot day so take care of yourself and I’d chalk it up to the weather. We saw a few people go down – I’m glad you are safe!
Love this post!! We are very similar in that our first couple of marathons were sabotaged by under training. I know now for a face my cramps were due to that. After Hanson’s last year, I’ve yet to experience the dame debilitating cramps I used to get. My legs do get tight, but NOTHING like the excruciating pain of my first couple of marathons. Congrats on a such a great marathon journey thus far!
You continue to inspire me – we’ve had some similar challenges like you noted and seeing you just kill it recently always lights a fire underneath me. 🙂
This post was written at the perfect time for me. Chicago didn’t go as I had hoped, partly due to the weather, but also partly due to indigestion. I’ve been doing a lot of reflection about what I ate in the days leading up to the race, and the morning of, so that I hopefully don’t face similar issues with indigestion during future races.
Kathryn @ Dancing to running recently posted…2017 Chicago Marathon Recap
Glad you found it helpful. It was really interesting for me to see how I made some of the same mistakes multiple times!
Nutrition is my problem too. I don’t fuel much for half marathons and that works for me, but not fueling and barely drinking at this weekend’s MCM for the first half put me in a bad place that I could not fully come back from.
It’s so hard! I’m sorry I missed you Sunday – I was looking for you!
Just LOVE this post! Look at how much stronger you have gotten! I ran MCM the same year as you! I kind of felt nostalgic about it this weekend and kind of want to go back. I’m really looking at Wineglass for next year and would love to pick your brain about the course.
Read my recap and let me know if you have questions – I loved wineglass. I think it’s a great medium sized race with a beautiful course. I highly recommend it – unless you need big time crowds. There are supporters but not lining the entire course. I actually don’t mind that but just as any FYI.
Such a great perspective on your evolution as a marathoner. Very helpful read!
I can’t believe I’ve run 8 in 4 years. I certainly never expected that 🙂
Amazing improvements, Courtney!!! I have only run two marathons (and am gearing up for #3) but I have also seen huge gains in my half marathon times. It’s really nice to look back and see how far we’ve come, especially when we’re in the thick of a training cycle and stop to get a little perspective. I was injured last year so I’m not sure how this marathon training cycle will go but I hope it will bring me another PR!!
Gabrielle @ Marathons and Macarons recently posted…Wanderlust 108 Austin: A Mindful Triathlon
Oooh exciting! What will be marathon number 3??
Great insight. I definitely like to learn from my races. Fueling is tough! But I’m sure you’ll figure it out.
Fueling is tough and always in flux, at least for me!
I’m so proud of your progression, Courtney! You always see the positive side of things and I love that!
Even if you didn’t meet your goal time in Berlin, you have learned and grown so much as a runner, marathoner, and person. I love that you keep it real in your blog and that you also race a lot and run with your friends, that you’re not too “into” training to do those things. You also seem to enjoy the journey while taking the training seriously. And like you, I’ve found that running more/higher mileage has really helped me progress.
Thank you! I think I’ve said this before, but I’ve always valued and respected your opinion so I very much appreciate your words. I genuinely love the sport but try to remind myself that it’s just running. 🙂
Thanks so much for sharing your marathon journey – and boy what a wonderful journey it’s been! I love how you made adjustments to get better and better throughout the years.
I’m always in awe of everyone that trains via the Hansons method because I know it takes a lot of dedication! I really, really wish I could do the Hanson’s training but i just don’t know if my body can run 6x a week 🙁 How hard was it for you to make the switch from the traditional running 4x a week to 6x a week?
It actually wasn’t that hard at all – the plan starts you off at 3 or 4 days a week for a few weeks before you run 6 days. I didn’t find it that hard. The plan overall is hard, but the change in running days was the least of my worries.
This was really inspiring to read. Sometimes I get caught in that mind trap of “I’m never going to get faster” and this post has made me feel more hopeful after seeing how far you’ve come and what you’ve learned about yourself along the way. I was supposed to run Chicago this year (and had hoped to put some of what I learned from running my first marathon to good use), but got two sacral stress fractures halfway through my training cycle so I’m planning to come back stronger next year! Thanks for keeping it real!
You will definitely come back stronger next year! I am always inspired by seeing hard work and the results of that – can’t wait for your come back.
this is amazing!!!! you got so much faster!!!
Thank you!
Love this! So interesting to read about how you progressed and what you learned. I guess I always assumed that most runners start slower and then somehow magically get faster. I’ve wondered what that magic is and why it passed me by. This helps me understand that it’s really about learning more about all the different aspects of running–nutrition, training, the courage to try for scary goals–and there’s no magic to it. You’ve come such a long way and have so much to be proud of. Hearing about your progression really inspires me!
Definitely no magic here. I think, knowing you, the scary goal part will be hardest. You are so disciplined and that works to your advantage. Getting the idea out of your head that you “hate racing” I think will help you too. You are one of the hardest working runners I know, Jennifer!
Great post! Every marathon teaches us something! For me, I just need to get through a cycle without getting injured! I haven’t been able to get through a complete training cycle for one. I’m curious to see how I can perform if I do.
Oh I think you will crush it. Your training is so so strong. Staying injury free is gonna happen and I can’t wait to watch 😉
Amazing progress!
I actually have been reading the Hanson’s Half book right now and I like a lot of it.
I already do 3 hard days/3 easy days & 1 rest day.
However, I LOVE the strength training that Orange Theory gives me and that it lets me get something a bit different than running. I am tempted to try a modified Hansons when I come back and do 1 long run, 1 tempo run, 2 days of OTF in place of the speed/strength, and 2 easy days.
I know it won’t be quite as effective as the results you have seen from doing all 6 days of plan, but I feel it might be good for me to ease in that way and do that for a cycle to see how my body can handle it.
Also, how did you fit barre in when you do Hanson’s? Do you do it on the rest day? Add on more to SOS days? etc?
There are many modified Hanson’s plans so I think your plan sounds great. As for barre – I tried to go 1x a week but this last cycle was a fail. It became too hard for me to get there after work. I’ve found a yoga studio right by my house and have been 1 to 2 times a week and I plan to keep that up. Generally though I would go on a hard day. That rest day was really really needed.
Setting goals but not setting myself to meet them continues to be the biggest mistake I make as I am starting on my journey to become a runner.
It’s such a journey, friend. I am always learning SO MUCH!
I am a firm believer that the day we stop learning is the day we stop growing! We can always learn and grow from our past race performances!
It’s really cool to see how you have progressed with your marathons – so much growth over the past few years and you continue to get faster and stronger! Getting the right fueling system is definitely key!
I’ve decided to go for marathon #2. I have no idea what to expect, but I’ll be working with my coach and I’m excited to continue to challenge myself and hopefully get a little faster!
Janelle @ Run With NO Regrets recently posted…Oktoberfest 10K Race Recap
Awesome! I suspected you would. 🙂 have you thought about where yet?