Better for a run

Like so many of us, I have sat down on the sofa in my loungewear (ok old t-shirt and shorts) and coffee to watch the London Marathon every April. The amazing group of runners, both elites, and those raising money for causes close to their heart is always inspiring.

It has been on my bucket list for many years, but my collection of various London Marathon consolation jackets (and the sponsorship history) is a reminder that I have not been successful in getting in yet.

In May 2023 my mobile phone rang with an unknown number. This could only mean one of two things – I was either missing out on the deal of the century for upgrading my TV package or my mobile phone was so last year and must be replaced!

The ringer was persistent so I reluctantly answered, ready for the sales talk. ‘You have won a place at the New York Marathon’ said the caller. Of course I thought and waited for the ‘… if you just transfer a £1000 to my cousin in Africa then we will have you on your way!’. However, as the caller carried on it was clear I had genuinely won a place at the November 2023 New York Marathon. I gulped.

I had just returned to running after an injury to my leg, and was still dealing with plantar fasciitis. In less than 6 months I would be running 26.2 miles around Manhatten. After much procrastination I realised this was the chance to realise my dream. Whether I ran, walked, hobbled or crawled I was going to do it.

So what did I learn about training and running a marathon for the first time?

Training. Where do you start? Luckily today there are many marathon training plans available on the internet, and through Apps. They come in different forms, from beginner’s to advanced, but all have the same format of a 16 week plan, building you up to running 4 to 5 times a week with increasing distance and intensity. They include easy, steady, tempo and yes you guessed it – long runs. I know some people follow these religiously but I adopted it as a guide recognising my life and my body would not always be able to do everything. The key part I prioritised was the Sunday long runs. These gradually build up in distance over the plan, and were important psychologically to convince myself I could run this distance.

Mission. Although I had a place already, I knew I needed something extra to motivate me to train and finish the marathon. As my Mum suffers from MS I contacted the MS Society who helped me set up a fundraising site. Especially in those later miles of the marathon it was so important to remind myself of this cause and the generosity of people to the cause.

Gear. It goes without saying that in pounding your feet for 26.2 miles (and the walk out of Central Park, but I will save that for another day!) you need a decent pair of running shoes. In the last few years I have used Hoka for my running and I found in the Clifton 9’s a pair I could train in and also run the marathon in. They are not the carbon-plated speedsters but they did the job for a mere mortal like me. Importantly I also bought a great pair of running shorts with lots of pockets to hold my gels and a small collapsible water bottle. This last point was something I learnt on the half marathon ‘dress rehearsal’ I did the month before (see next). Although New York and all the other major marathons have plenty of water stations, I found that on the half marathon they were not always at the point I really wanted a drink. Having a small bottle with me gave me that option.

Dress Rehearsal. What is that I hear you say? It struck me a few months before the marathon that I had not done any big races with lots of people for over a year. It felt like I needed something to prepare myself for the 50,000 runners and massive crowds of New York. I therefore booked myself into the Cardiff Half Marathon a month before. It gave me the opportunity to acclimatize to being at a big event, and importantly to test my gear and refuelling strategy at a real event. This turned out to be one of the best decisions I made. I had a refuelling strategy that involved taking a gel every hour. Mine required water to help them be digested, but the water stations were not designed around my personal needs on my hour marks! Hence carrying my own water bottle.

So on the 5 November 2023, I completed my first Marathon in the amazing venue of New York. I will post another blog soon on the details of completing that race, but I hope you get your dream too of running those 26.2 miles. Only 0.01% of the world’s population complete a marathon each year. Time to join that special club?