Marathon Runners - past, present & future

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New to the group - 1st time marathoner!

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bert16
bert16 Posts: 726 Member
in Social Groups
Hi all - I just joined the group (thanks for the invite, arc918!) and wanted to introduce myself; I'm currently just shy of 7 weeks away from my first marathon. I've got my training program and am following it with religious fervour... my long run this Sunday will be my first 18-miler (ran just over 16 miles the weekend before last).

I'm super excited for the race and just wanted to connect with other first timers and experienced marathoners out there! :smile:

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  • feisma
    feisma Posts: 213 Member
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    Welcome aboard! :happy:
  • arc918
    arc918 Posts: 2,037 Member
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    Welcome!

    Which race are you training for? Do you have a few halfs under your belt or are you going from 5K to marathon?
  • bert16
    bert16 Posts: 726 Member
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    Welcome!

    Which race are you training for? Do you have a few halfs under your belt or are you going from 5K to marathon?

    I'm running the Walt Disney World marathon in Orlando... hoping that Mickey and MInnie will help me out if I need 'em! :wink:

    I've been a "runner" (which is sort of glorifying the pace at which I run) for a long time and have run a metric marathon (26.2K), several half marathons, about a billion 10K's, and approximately 9.7 trillion 5K's (rounding up). So the race aspect isn't particularly intimidating to me... just need to make sure I can go the distance, which I've never attempted before! I feel pretty confident I can finish the miles, but my goal is to finish with a (figurative) smile on my face, happy that I ran it. I think my big challenge will be pacing; but I'm working pretty hard on that and my Garmin watch is now my BFF... :laugh:
  • arc918
    arc918 Posts: 2,037 Member
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    Good call, I also worry about those who start marathon training without a decent base.

    Cut & paste from another thread in this forum

    My top three tips (which can't be repeated enough):

    1) Don't go out too fast!
    2) Don't go out too fast!
    3) Don't go out too fast!
  • bert16
    bert16 Posts: 726 Member
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    Good call, I also worry about those who start marathon training without a decent base.

    Cut & paste from another thread in this forum

    My top three tips (which can't be repeated enough):

    1) Don't go out too fast!
    2) Don't go out too fast!
    3) Don't go out too fast!

    But should I go out extra fast?!? :huh:

    Thanks for the tip(s)! That's totally what I'm worried about... since I don't really know how fast is too fast! I'm hoping my remaining long runs will help me zero in on that. And though my original goal was as stated in my previous post, the more I run and examine my Garmin files, the more my mind starts drifting towards a time goal, which I was hoping to trick myself out of obsessing over.
  • arc918
    arc918 Posts: 2,037 Member
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    Hopefully through your training you now have a 5K pace, a 10K pace, and half marathon pace and long run pace. I'd say stick with your long run pace from your first marathon. Once you have one under your belt, then you can look to pick up the pace.
  • bert16
    bert16 Posts: 726 Member
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    Well, I can't say that I really do have a set pace for all those yet... as I continue training, my pace keeps improving (not that that's a bad problem to have, in general, but it does make setting a pace difficult). I've still got 6.5 weeks of training to go (including taper, so really ~3.5-4 weeks), so hope I'll be able to figure it out by then.
  • arc918
    arc918 Posts: 2,037 Member
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    Well, I can't say that I really do have a set pace for all those yet... as I continue training, my pace keeps improving (not that that's a bad problem to have, in general, but it does make setting a pace difficult). I've still got 6.5 weeks of training to go (including taper, so really ~3.5-4 weeks), so hope I'll be able to figure it out by then.

    That makes sense, adding miles usually result in an increase in speed. Keep training and you'll be able to sort it out prior to race day. The problem is it is easy to feel great at mile 6 or 11 or 14, but you need to feel ok at mile 23. The errors of going out too fast are exponential, so you really need to race smart so as to prevent the dreaded death march.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
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    Welcome!
    Good luck on your first. I just ran my first last spring, will be running my second again this May.
  • bert16
    bert16 Posts: 726 Member
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    Welcome!
    Good luck on your first. I just ran my first last spring, will be running my second again this May.

    Thanks!

    Hopefully mine goes well enough that I want to head back for more... :wink:
  • cynfullcyn
    cynfullcyn Posts: 81 Member
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    welcome and best of luck to you!!!!

    i too am training for my first marathon :bigsmile:
  • MissFit0101
    MissFit0101 Posts: 2,382
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    Welcome and good luck! I am running my first marathon May 6, 2012!
  • jturnerx
    jturnerx Posts: 325 Member
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    I'm running the Walt Disney World marathon in Orlando... hoping that Mickey and MInnie will help me out if I need 'em! :wink:

    I did that last year as part of the Goofy Challenge. It felt like the world's earliest start time especially with the time change since I flew in from the West Coast. It was really fun to run through the parks. Good luck! It's just right around the corner. :)
  • bert16
    bert16 Posts: 726 Member
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    I'm running the Walt Disney World marathon in Orlando... hoping that Mickey and MInnie will help me out if I need 'em! :wink:

    I did that last year as part of the Goofy Challenge. It felt like the world's earliest start time especially with the time change since I flew in from the West Coast. It was really fun to run through the parks. Good luck! It's just right around the corner. :)

    It's definitely an early start... I did the half there a few years back and the start is also at 5:30 AM (which you know since you did the Goofy Challenge!). I'm definitely excited... 18 miles tomorrow and not too long 'til I try the whole 26.2!
  • bert16
    bert16 Posts: 726 Member
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    welcome and best of luck to you!!!!

    i too am training for my first marathon :bigsmile:

    Well, then, best of luck to you, also! Which one are you doing?
  • bert16
    bert16 Posts: 726 Member
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    Welcome and good luck! I am running my first marathon May 6, 2012!

    That's not too long after mine... hope your training is going well so far! Good luck to you, also. :smile:
  • cynfullcyn
    cynfullcyn Posts: 81 Member
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    welcome and best of luck to you!!!!

    i too am training for my first marathon :bigsmile:

    Well, then, best of luck to you, also! Which one are you doing?


    Surf City USA in Huntington Beach 2-5-12
  • bert16
    bert16 Posts: 726 Member
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    welcome and best of luck to you!!!!

    i too am training for my first marathon :bigsmile:

    Well, then, best of luck to you, also! Which one are you doing?


    Surf City USA in Huntington Beach 2-5-12

    Wow - that sounds like a nice place to run a marathon! I dated a guy in college from there... it's beautiful. Good luck and hope the training is going well!

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