One piece of advice stuck out at me: “A marathon is a 10k race with a 20 mile warm-up”. It seemed like one of those soundbites of wisdom that didn’t actually mean very much and certainly wouldn’t help when the going got tough. If you’ve ever read the words “Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional” in the comfort of you home and thought ‘this guy is on to something’ and then been reminded of them 17 miles into a marathon when the wheels have fallen off, you’ll know the sort of stuff I refer to.
At mile 20 of the Edinburgh Marathon I was feeling pretty good, too good I’d thought. Had I done something wrong? Was I going too slow? Everyone I chatted to that was also aiming for sub-4 seemed to be somewhere ahead of me now. But a glance at my splits every couple of miles told me I was bang on target pace.
Then I started to slow down. From mile 20 pace dropped by more than 30 seconds a mile. Running suddenly got tougher. Had I been on my target pace of 9:07 all the way round I’d have finished in 3 hours 59 seconds flat. This slowing between miles 20-23 would put me over my goal time by at least 30 heartbreaking seconds.
So I speeded up. It hurt like hell, but I ran as fast as my legs could carry me. I was overtaking everyone around me, it was hot, and it hurt, but from mile 23 to 26 I ran the fastest three miles of my whole race: 8:55, 8:56, 8:50, to finish in 3:59:31.
And that’s when it made sense to me. Logic says that running a marathon is hard, and therefore it will feel hard. But, you can’t push hard and feel you’re running to your limit all the way round a marathon like you can for a 10k. If the pace is right, the first half of a marathon, at least, should feel pretty good.
Good pacing is about getting yourself to a point in the race where you can push hard for home – even if that means you’re still going at the same speed that you started at. It’s the balance between feeling good and feeling that you can’t give any more. It’s that 20 mile warm-up for a 10k race. And, maybe I’m late to the party, but I ‘get’ it now.
Well done! Amazing…. I’m working up to a marathon, slowly, and hope to do one maybe this time next year. It sounds so damn hard but you’ve proved that with a lot of hard work it can be done and sub-4 is fantastic. You must be so proud of yourself. x
Thanks AliBunn! Yes, I was really pleased. Working up slowly sounds a good plan. I see lots of people that launch straight into marathon training with little running experience and are surprised when they end up injured. Good luck with it and I love you picture by the way!
Laura.
good observation. I’ve only run one marathon, but your thoughts reflected what I’ve thought about it. Thanks for sharing.
I love this, it’s exactly what I need to hear I think. I’m just like you in that i do a lot of research, but it’s great to hear from other people’s experiences. Thanks. Oh, and what model is your garmin watch and how do you rate it?
Thanks for the comments guys. My Garmin is a 405. I have tiny writsts and it fits fine. Sometimes takes longer than I want to pick up signal (usually when it’s cold so maybe it just feels longer) but once it’s locked on the satalites I’ve had no problem with it.
Laura.
Congratulations.
After only having started running in January this year, I’ve got the bug! Done six 10km races so far and got my PB of 52.18mins – and have just been talked into doing the Rome Marathon in March next year. No idea what I have got myself into so thoughts and tips from someone who’s been there, done that and undoubtably got the t shirt is invaluable! Thanks and HELP!