Read my marathon training experiences and get the solution to complete a 26.2-Mile Race Successfully!

I have completed five marathons and during the training process I have learned many lessons of successful (and unsuccessful) marathon training.  I created this blog to share my story and help others avoid the common mistakes most marathon runners make in their training program.  Running is a true passion of mine and I am fortunate that running comes naturally to me.  I am also very competitive which is why I didn’t stop after just one marathon.  I am excited to share my story and the 16-week marathon training program here with you.

I grew up playing a variety of sports and my favorite sport was soccer.  I really enjoyed soccer because I got to run a lot and running was something I loved to do.  I played soccer in college at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque from 1995-1999 and continued to play for one year post college in a semi-professional league for the Chicago Cobras.  The league folded and in 2001, I decided to move back to Seattle (where I grew up) and begin training for a marathon.  Oh, I also had to find a job which I did as a trainer at the Washington Athletic Club.

My first marathon was the 2002 Maui Marathon (I chose this marathon so I could spend a week post race recovering on the beaches of Hawaii). Because I’m so competitive and have high expectations of myself, I set a goal to run the marathon in 3:40 or better.  I picked this time because it would qualify me to run Boston.  I didn’t did some marathon training research and followed the guidelines of the marathon gurus which was to run a lot and run often.  So, I did.  I ran most days of the week and did long runs every weekend.  19 miles was my longest training run.  I rarely took a day off and spent 3 months running in preparation for the marathon.  Race day arrived and I was so pumped!  I felt great most of the way and was pretty close to my target finish time until mile 18.  I do remember hearing about the infamous “wall” that marathoners hit usually around mile 20.  Boy, did I hit it!  My legs were not happy.   It was interesting to me that I ran 18 miles without noticing my legs at all then all of a sudden not wanting to run one more step.  It was a brutal finish.  I ended up finishing in 3:57.  At that point, I was proud that I crossed the finish line.  I was disappointed to be so far off from my goal. Within a week I signed up for my second marathon.

My second marathon was the 2003 Marine Corp Marathon in Washington D.C.  My goal was the same: finish in 3:40 or better.   Since I did not reach my goal in Maui I figured I needed to add more miles of running to my marathon training schedule in order to do so.  I ran every day of the week and took off only 4 days from running during my 3 month training period.  Again, my longest run was 19 miles.  When this race day arrived, I really was pumped!  I knew I had put in more miles and training days in order to hit my 3:40 time goal.  I started out feeling great and running a 7:40 pace which would put me at a 3:20 finish.  I just knew I was going to blow my goal time away.  What happened? Well……here comes mile 18 and here comes the “WALL”.  I smashed the wall so hard I literally fell to the ground. 

Everything shut down and I had to do walk/jog intervals to the finish line.  I finished in 3:48.    I was so embarrassed and so disappointed in myself again.  I did all those extra miles training and still did not reach my goal time.  Within a week I was signed up for yet another marathon.

My third marathon was the 2004 Seattle Marathon.  Same goal: 3:40.  Same training routine: Run, Run, and Run some more.  I also decided to change my longest long run from 18 miles to 21.   However, in week 8 of my marathon training, I suffered a minor hamstring strain.  I saw a physical therapist and he recommended two weeks off from running. He said my muscles were weak and not strong enough to sustain all the miles.  The therapist prescribed a strength training program that I started immediately.  Because I couldn’t run for two weeks strength training is all I could do to stay in shape and keep my mind from going insane.  I actually enjoyed the weight training even though I was so worried of losing all my running fitness.  Two weeks was up and surprisingly my first day back running felt great.   I thought it was going to be a struggle but it wasn’t.  My body felt strong and it was as if I never missed a day.  I started thinking about it and realized the strength I gained from the weight workouts must have really helped.  So, I decided the remaining 8 weeks of my marathon training program would include two days of strength training and four days of quality running.  This was the first time my marathon training didn’t involve running 6-7 days per week.  So, what was the result this time?  I finished in 3:27.  Yep, a whopping twenty minutes faster than my previous best time.  I never hit a wall and even finished with a spring in my step. My pace the last 6 miles was only 10 seconds slower per mile than the first 6 miles.    I came to the conclusion the combination of strength training and running just four days a week was the secret to a successful marathon.  I was so pumped to have reached my goal.  That evening I signed up to run the 2005 Boston Marathon.

Finally!  I qualified for the Boston Marathon.  I was so excited to begin my marathon training especially since I discovered how to train for a successful finish.  I followed my 16 week program and happily finished the Boston Marathon in 3:32.

In 2008, I followed my program again and ran the New York marathon with a finishing time of 3:34.  In conclusion, I have to say that I disagree with what the marathon guru’s say about marathon training.  They coach runners to run, run, and just run some more.  Based on my experiences and results, less is more.  Quality runs four days per week and strength training are proven techniques in a marathon training program.   Trust me, I know.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 14th, 2010 at 7:08 pm and is filed under Faster Marathon Time, Marathon, Run Training. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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