Sport Running Major milestone: Ran my first sub-3hour marathon last Sunday-March 19th. It was my 9th marathon since 2018. My goal for 2023 was to run a "sub 3 in '23" and to get a BQ time. I did both and I'm super stoked!
What is the secret to your success? Running consistently. I ran every day (at least 1 mile) from Nov 20th, 2022 to March 19th, 2023. A 120 day Run Streak. I didn't start the streak with that in mind. I was just trying to run streak out the rest of 2022, but then I kept going because I noticed I was able to recovery more quickly after long or speed runs.
What is the biggest obstacle to reaching your goals and how do you get over it? Building up the endurance to run a sub 7-min mile. The long runs were key to callusing the legs for 26 miles. I ran a stretch of three consecutive Sunday long runs of 23 miles, it was hard starting those runs knowing I had to do it all again the next week.
What is the most rewarding part of training? See that time--2hr 56min 42sec!!! Knowing during that last mile of the marathon that I was going to make my goals of sub3 and a BQ. Very rewarding! Also, getting in shape and losing extra pounds is great as well!
What advice would you give to other members of the Runcoach community? Start slow, start easy. Be kind to yourself. Some runs are going to suck and some runs are going to be great. It's the ebb and flow of this great sport!
Anything else you would like to share? I've used the Runcoach training app for 8 of my 9 marathons. Love the schedule set up and the ability to change it. My first marathon was a 3hr 47min and last Sunday I ran a 2hr 56min!
