Yes… two posts in the same day. I’m bored. And there will probably be a third post tonight…
While flopping around blogland, I came upon a link to a site of a fairly popular runner’s podcast. In an effort to keep this post as generic as possible, I will not name any names. Those of you who know this person will probably surmise who it is. Understand that this is not a critique or criticism, simply a confused observation based on what I heard in the podcast. The podcast consisted of a blow by blow account of a marathon from a seasoned and respected runner with multiple marathons under their belt. It went, however, against many conventions and preachings by the marathoning world and I wanted to open them up to discussion. Not that anybody reads this mess anyway…
Everything I have read and everyone I have talked to has said that there are two “golden rules” of marathoning that should never be broken. Yet in this podcast, this seasoned runner breaks them both, repeatedly, and appears to pay the consequences for doing so late in the race. Now, I know that a large part of marathoning is being in tune with your body, but this newbie to marathoning has a question based on the following examples:
Golden Rule Number One- ALWAYS drink. Take something at EVERY station. Even though you don’t THINK you need it. Your body won’t let you know you are dehydrated until it’s too late.
Repeatedly, at least twice, the runner in the podcast states “I’m gonna skip this water station. I feel good right now and I don’t need it”. Yet in his last 6 miles, he says at least once that he is “dried out” or “thirsty”.
Golden Rule Number Two- Pick a pace you think you can maintain and STICK WITH IT. Even though you feel great to begin with, going out too fast can be deadly. If you make it to 20 miles and still have energy, THEN burn it off.
In the first 10 miles of the race (excluding a busy first mile navigating around people) this runner mentions and is even excited by the fact that he is WAY ahead of his mile splits.
Now let’s clear the air and I’ll ask my question. I have loads of respect for this person. They know their body and themselves much better than I know me. I would never question that. I, personally, have run exactly 1 marathon and I had no idea what I was doing. I made mistakes seasoned runners probably didn’t even know a human being could make (like eating a steak dinner the night before the race, among others). I am just going on what I’ve read and been told. I have no real, personal experience and admit that freely.
So, here’s my question… How do you KNOW when you can push your pace in a long distance race like this without self destructing at the 20 mile mark? Is there a way to tell?
Since this is really my “first” marathon since picking the sport back up, I feel like I should just train for a certain pace and just try to nail it. Anything I do will be a PB so whether it’s 4 hours or 5 hours, who cares? I mean, yes, I will have my “dream” time, based on my training, but I don’t even want to THINK about that until I hit mile 18 or so. Is this the right way to think? Or should my “dream” time just be the same as my “training” time?
If you are training for your first marathon, how are you doing it?
If you have done dozens of them, what are the indicators that you look for to tell you it’s OK to push your pace?
Posted by dabigleap 
Posted by dabigleap 
Posted by dabigleap 
