r/firstmarathon

My mom and her fiancé are huge runners, a countless amount of medals hanging on the walls that they’re super proud of (and should be!). I’ve ran my whole life but never further than 10 km, I recently decided I want to work my way up to a marathon for next summer.

I’m a big introvert and have 0 interest in running an official race due to the amount of people, traffic, etc. My plan is to make my own route, wake up on a Saturday once I’m all trained up and just go. They both think I’m absolutely insane for not signing up for an actual marathon, and essentially told me I shouldn’t even count it as a marathon.

Is anyone else doing this? They made me feel sort of dumb for even thinking of it. I think I let them get in my head a bit.

Edit to clarifying what I mean by crowd: a lot of people are telling me to sign up for a smaller race. I live in rural Canada, without wanting to drive more than 6 hours which I don’t, every race near me is less than 250 participants. I consider that a crowd lol I get it’s not to people who may live in large US cities but as a country bumpkin my whole life 250 people in one spot doing the same thing is a crowd

Currently I run 3 miles nearly everyday. Today I am going to run 7 miles. 4 days ago I ran 6 in the hot sun. There is a marathon 2 months from now in my area. I ran a half marathon last year after never running more than 3 miles, with a mile time of about 9:40. I seriously believe I can do this in 2 months, with a 10 min mile time. I really believe it.

I’m about 7 weeks out from my marathon and my longest run so far is a half marathon, I feel like my training is going well but I should probably start adding some fuel into my long runs to help train my stomach. I’m looking at the honey stinger fruit smoothie gels, does anyone have any recommendations on certain brands of gels or any other types of fuel that will be sufficient for a marathon and my training. Thanks!

I signed up for my first marathon and have been using my phone to track most of my runs, but that’s getting annoying now that my training runs are getting longer. I’m looking for a smartwatch that can handle GPS, pace, distance and basic training stats without being overly complicated. For those who have already done a marathon, what smartwatch for running would you recommend and are there any features you found especially useful during training?

Thanks, appreciate any recommendations.

The marathon is end of October, so in 2 months.

In April I ran an half and afterwards I started training for the marathon.

However, I had some issues and thus didn't hit the mileage I was supposed to. Long story short I recognized the problem now, it were the shoes and I am angry that I did not get that idea earlier because I lost so much time.

My weekly kilometres are now at around 30km which I know is way too low for a marathon and only 2 month to go.

Should I just "give it up" now and switch to half marathon or continue with my plan ?

First marathon and first time in Chicago Marathon.

Our situation:
Me, my husband, and our 4-year-old daughter
No car.
Staying Saturday–Tuesday (3 nights)
I’m in the last wave targeting a 5-hour finish
Husband will have finish line passes and will be with our daughter while I run.
I really don’t want to switch hotels during the trip

Radisson Blu Aqua - $1,035
Housing site lists it as 0.3 miles from the start & 0.9 miles from the finish
Standard run-of-house room
I called and confirmed they can provide a personal mini-fridge at check-in
No included breakfast
Biggest advantage seems to be proximity to start line.

Embassy Suites Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile $1,175 total
Housing site lists it as 0.7 miles from the start & 1.2 miles from the finish
Suite
Refrigerator + microwave
Included breakfast
Biggest advantage is the guaranteed bedroom space.

The Radisson seems like the obvious choice for race logistics because it’s supposedly only 0.3 miles from the start. But the Embassy is only 0.4 miles farther, which is probably just an extra ~7–10 minutes of walking, and for $140 more total we’re getting a guaranteed suite, breakfast, fridge, and microwave which makes a difference with a 4 year old.

I’m wondering:
For a first marathon, how much would I you value being 0.3 vs. 0.7 miles from the start?

And furthermore, how bad are the elevators at either hotel on Chicago Marathon morning? Is this something I should genuinely worry about, or am I overthinking it?

Who are we kidding, I’m over thinking every thing. I’ll take any and all first time marathon start line advice 😂

I'm almost ready for my first marathon, the issue is I know a medic certificate is mandatory in Italy + the cost of registration it could mean paying hundreds of € for a one time thing (I usually like to run on my own and I don't care about prize).

Since for what I understand for Italians running in Italy a medic certificate is always mandatory but that's not true for tourists I think it is possible that the same can be true also if I go for example in a marathon in France or Germany or any other near European country.

The alternative would be to just run the Turin marathon without registration, did somebody tried? Can you do it without any issue?

Note that I'm in excellent shape, I've competed in the past and I have regular check-ups when I donate blood, I simply wouldn't waste the money for the medical certificate, which is valid for a year, since I don't intend to do more than one race.

Of course if I run without registration I will start after everyone, I will bring my own water and I will step outside before arrival.

Thank you to anybody that will answer me.

Hi runners.

I'm planning to run my first marathon in 5 months.

Aiming for 4:30- 4:45

Currently I'm training with the Adidas Evo SL, Asics Novablast 6 and the Superblast 2.

What new shoes should I get for the race day?

I don't mind spending for a super shoe, but will it be useful for me? Or can I save my Superblast 2 for the race day which currently has done around 200kms?

Hey everyone, I will be running my first full marathon in around 2 months. I am a heavy runner around 170lbs. I am targeting around 4.5hrs for it. Recently got a new ON Cloudmonster 3 Hyper and loving them. By the end of the training block I will have around 450kms on them. Should I use them for the Marathon? Or should I get something else for the race?

I work a job where I stand for 7 hours a day, 6 days a week. My day off is Wednesday. I run 3 days a week and do full-body workouts 2 days a week.

I do a short run one day and a long run another day of the week, but I'm confused about what to do on the remaining running day—should I do interval training or a tempo run?

On my very first run, I finished 5 km at a 6:50 pace, and it felt like zone 3.

Right now, running 6 km at a 6:50 pace keeps me in zone 2, which feels very comfortable.

I guess my cardio is improving pretty fast.

My current 10 km PB (Personal Best) is at a 5:58 pace on a route with both uphill and downhill sections.

Today, I did a tempo run: 7 km at a 6:10 pace. I have so many questions in mind about how I should approach the short and long runs and how exactly I should prepare.

And most importantly, should I add interval training to that remaining 1 day? Would that be too exhausting, or should I go with a tempo/zone 3-4 run instead?

My current routine:

Tuesday: Short run, 6-7 km at a 6:40-6:50 pace

Thursday: Tempo run, 7-9 km at a 5:55-6:20 pace

Saturday: Long run, 12 km at a 6:50 pace

Please point out my mistakes and let me know how I can prepare most efficiently. I’d really appreciate your help; I want to finish my first half marathon with a good time.

Btw i ran 5.58 pace 10 km with backpack It's like 1.5 kg and it was my second run i have been running for 1 week

i was thinking to increase my long run by 2 kms every week

Hi Team! I am running NYC marathon in November and following the Hal Higdon Novice 1 plan. I have a trip planned with friends over Labor Day weekend when I am scheduled to do a 15 mile run. My question is, can I swap this with my deload of 10 miles? So:

1. This weekend 13. 1

2. Next weekend is scheduled to be 10 miles (deload). Was thinking of doing my 15 miles this weekend and then the 10 miles when I am on vacation to help decrease time/fatigue/ increase overall fun. Weekend after that would then be 16 miles.

Is this reasonable? If it is best to follow the plan, I will do that! Just would love some advice for a newbie.

Current race predictions for marathon:

Strava: 4:13:10

Garmin: 3:34:57

Runalyze: 3:44:34 (optimal) 3:59:54 (current marathon shape)

It's crazy how with all the same data their algorithms give such different estimates. I'm curious how it will all shake out come race day. I am really hoping to get sub 4:00 so I'm hoping Stravs is overly pessimistic.

Last spring I strained my soleus 2 weeks out from my HM. I put on my big girl pants, took a couple weeks off running (kept cardio up with cycling), and got back to running. I’m targeting an October marathon and feeling great - workouts have felt good, I’ve felt strong…all good. Except…the last two weeks I’ve gotten so nervous about getting injured.

The slightest abnormal feeling in one of my legs and I’m like shittttt. I think so nervous about getting injured that I’m feeling aches / niggles where there isn’t anything actually wrong.

Just looking for support and maybe a ‘yea me too!’ Or ‘that’s normal!’ Or ‘here’s what I tell myself when I do that’ - or even a ‘man, you’re psychotic as hell.’ I’ll take anything 😂

Completed my first marathon yesterday after starting running in January.

Background: 35yr old male. I’ve played sports my whole life (football, boxing, mountain climbing) and had a good fitness base to begin with. Decided to try something new and prepared for a marathon.

Training: I completed 3 races before the marathon. I completed a 10k (with tonsillitis!) and 2 half marathons. Where I live is very hilly so did my best to tackle at least 1 hill each run. I became a dad for the second time, a month into starting and this made recovery sleep and windows to run much more difficult. I managed to complete just over 300k in training and made sure to add stretching before and after each run. In an ideal world I would have completed much more training runs but with work and kids, this proved to be the biggest challenge. Can’t stress how important the race events before the marathon were. It allowed me to understand timing, organisation, nerves and getting used to crowds. Races were: wolves 10k, Birmingham half, Black Country half.

Injury: I was lucky to get through training with only occasional knee pain. I think stretching properly, watching videos online about correcting my running form really helped with this. Saying that, week prior to the marathon I had a really tight and painful calf.

Marathon: did everything right to begin with, kept a slow reserved pace, took my gels every 6/7k, drank electrolytes/water at water stations. I had porridge and honey for breakfast and a pastry in good time before racing. Was lucky with cloud coverage for the first 10k and then the sun came out and things became much more difficult. Carried on steady and got to 31k and it was like a switch went and my calf, hips and knees became very sore. The course was very hilly throughout! I had to mix up walking and running for the last 15k or so which completely wrecked my hopes of a 4.30 finish. Regardless of how much I had been told at how difficult the race can be towards the end, I wasn’t prepared for the struggle! I managed to limp home to a 5hr finish. I’m both proud and disappointed at how it all went.

I’ve been lurking in this sub since Jan and have found it super helpful reading experiences and advice.
Good luck to those who are preparing for their first marathon!

Hi everyone,

I’ve been running for several years, but I had never competed until recently. My first race was the a Half Marathon in May 2025, which I finished in 2:08. The rest of my races that year were all 10K or shorter.

I ran another half marathon distance in April 2026 and finished it in 2:03.

My latest long run was 14 km two days ago, my average weekly mileage over the last month has been around 25.6 km.

Given this background, would it be realistic/plausible to prepare for and finish a marathon on November 8? Or would this be too rushed/risky for a first marathon? Goal would be to just finish, enjoy it and not to reach some specific time.

Any advice would be appreciated!

Sub 4 possible? Title: 204lb muscular guy, 6 weeks into first marathon training (Nov 14 Charlotte) — stick with structured plan or switch to high easy volume?
Body:
Hey everyone,
I’m a 204 lb male with a muscular build, about 6 weeks into training for my first marathon (Charlotte on Nov 14 — expected cool weather, 40s–60s). Goal is sub-4 if possible, but I’m realistic that it might be more like 4:10–4:20 depending on how the next few months go.
Quick progress so far:
• First time ever over 8 miles was recently → did 14 miles at 10:09/mi average (set a lifetime half PR during it)
• Recent continuous efforts: 2×2 miles at 8:05, then a steady 3.11 mi (basically 5K) at 8:18 with avg HR 157
• Short speed: 300m hill reps in the 7:14–7:59 range, 4×1000m at 8:20 in 89°F heat
• Older 10K embedded in a half was 1:04 mostly Zone 2
• HRV has been flagging “unbalanced” at times (last noted 51)
I currently have a structured 6-week building plan that includes things like:
• Hill repeats (e.g. 8×300m uphill at 10K pace)
• 5×1 mile at half-marathon pace
• Progressive long runs (14–16 miles aerobic)
• Easy days mixed in
I’ve been feeling like I’m always holding back a bit on the harder sessions.
My question:
Should I stick with the structured plan (quality sessions + progressive long runs), or would I be better off switching to a higher easy-volume approach for the next block?
Something like:
• 4 days of easy 10-mile runs
• 1 interval/speed day
• 1 long run
• Total 6 days a week
I’m trying to build endurance for the marathon while also sharpening a bit for an upcoming competitive 10K. Don’t want to overdo intensity too early, but also don’t want to leave fitness on the table.
Here is the link to my Strava: https://strava.app.link/gXMatD8zG5b

As the title said I did a long run on Saturday (17m), I'm 7 weeks out tell my first marathon.

And after the run I noticed the bottom of only my left foot was a little sore. Like when you've been walking all day but not super painful. It was fine the next day, and didnt hurt when I went for a 30 mile bike ride or this morning.

Went for a 10 mile run this morning and it started to really hurt by mile 6. Like hitting a bruise.

Its not the toes as it doesn't hurt to curl them or squeeze/massage them.

It mainly located at the arch and kinda the sides of the arch.

Just wondering if anyone else has experienced something similar! Planning on taking the next couple days off from running, but want to know if there's anything others have done that helped them.

Thanks!! 😊

Hello! I’m training for the NYC Marathon this fall using the Hal Higdon Novice 1 plan. So really getting into some longer distances now with a half marathon this coming weekend (did 12 yesterday).

I’m quite the sweater and trying to understand how to handle sodium replacement. Right now I have a belt with two 10oz water bottles. I’ve been filling one with water and one with water + 1 DripDrop packet. I also eat a Huma gel every 30 minutes.

Is this sufficient for now? I know I’ll need to refill the water bottles as I increase distance. But just not totally sure how much water and electrolytes I should be consuming. And it seems like a lot of people use chews/tabs rather than a liquid IV powder. So just looking for some advice! So far training has gone pretty well and haven’t had any stomach issues. I did feel pretty exhausted after my 12 but I was very active the two days before which I think caused that.

Thanks in advance!

Hello!! It's been a very long time ago since i stopped jogging. I really loved jogging and walking in general to my heart but my knees couldn't keep up, my legs just became worse and worse overtime, i had the ability to still run 20-30 km everyday even if my knees hurt, carrying 4L of water each time i ran.

I saw a bunch of videos on social media telling that apparently u can also do exercises for ur legs to reduce damage and in general just increase performance which is great and i was willing to ask how to do so? I can only do some at home and i don't have equipment for that. Can anybody help?

Completed my first ever marathon yesterday! 42.2km completed in 4hrs38mins.

DONT DO WHAT I DID - I planned my marathon prep to be a total of 16 weeks. The first 8 weeks I smashed it and didn’t miss a single session. Then I missed an entire week due to unforeseen circumstances and from there I missed another 2 weeks from just not getting back into routine. I tried to do get back into the swing of things and pick up where I left off in week 12. Got that done but then got lazy again and just didn’t run a single run until race day.

This race at about the 30km mark absolutely murdered me! I was on track to finish around the 4 hour mark until my body just began to tell me how badly it hurt. Muscles were flirting with the idea of cramping the entire time from 33km right up until 38km before I just mentally dug in and ran the rest of the way to the finish line. I managed to run the whole way but my pace seriously dropped off during these 5km of hell.

I am convinced I was only able to finish this race due to a solid base of fitness from years of competitive sports. If I had not of had that base I would NOT have finished this race without the proper training. I am paying the price for the lack of training body wise today.