I know… I’m aware I’m adding to the list of posts of individuals who haven’t run much setting their sights on a marathon without racing at smaller distances… but I have reasons for wanting to do it long term!
I’m new to running longer distances, but have been an avid orange theory/ Barry’s runner (sprint/HIIT interval style) for years. I also teach group fitness (yoga sculpt cardio classes 4 times a week), so I have a relatively solid base fitness level despite not being much of a long distance runner in the past.
I have previously always enjoyed shorter higher intensity forms of running due to getting bored on longer runs or trying to push the pace too much, but as a personal challenge this winter I have forced myself to work on the mental endurance aspect… if I can run 1 mile in 6:30… there’s no reason why I can’t run 2 miles in 20mins!
I’ve committed to this goal and have now gotten to a point where I am really enjoying longer distance running working on slowly increasing my weekly and long run mileage safely! This week I completed a 7mi long run (my first 10k ever!! At an 8:30 pace) with my other runs averaging 3mi at around a 9-9:30 pace comfortably. I’m averaging 15-25mi the last 3 weeks
My first official race is 5/16 as part of my work’s charity run for AAPI month, so I’ll test out how much I can push my pace in a race setting!
I’m at a point in my personal fitness journey where I want a challenge/goal to work towards rather than working out for aesthetics/consistency
A lot of my friends in the fitness industry have run the Boston marathon this past year as charity racers and had a positive experience and honestly, it was incredibly inspiring to watch them. (Preface I am from Boston)
If I stay committed (with a goal of maybe a fall half), would it be insane to consider the Boston marathon as a charity runner next April? .