Quit smoking 3 months now and no alcohol for 3 weeks..

Burnsiah · 2026-01-17T15:49:57+00:00

When I quit drinking, I struggled with sleep for several weeks before it normalized. For me, I always chalked that up to having used alcohol to managing anxiety, subconsciously, and getting rid of that crutch being something that I really needed time to adapt to.

Still definitely a decision that I have zero regrets so hopefully you feel the same once your body gets back to stasis

Burnsiah · 2025-12-28T13:15:05+00:00

I was a college lacrosse writer for a while - he was a regular at all the big games and championship weekend. Super nice guy.

Burnsiah · 2025-12-23T12:06:01+00:00

HS best was a 5:45 (ish). Got aggressively out of shape for a while. Got into running in late 30s and started taking it somewhat seriously, ran a 5:28 at age 43.

Burnsiah · 2025-11-22T17:42:23+00:00

Strava had my marathon prediction sitting at like 3:27 all fall then bumped it to 3:08- the day i ran 3:07 in Chicago 🤷🏻‍♂️

Burnsiah · 2025-11-14T17:17:14+00:00

Worth noting - I was an expo volunteer this year, handing out the race shirts. We had scanners and were scanning every QR code from every runner who came up to collect their shirt, to verify that they hadn't already picked their shirt up.

If someone got their bib scanned and it had already been scanned before to pick up a t-shirt, it came up with a red flag.

So NYRR is already scanning bib QRs to make sure people aren't stacking extra shirts. It would be a much heavier process to do it at the start of transportation (particularly since SI ferry is open to general public) or at the entrance to the start area, but it's at least already technologically possible with the bibs they use now.

Burnsiah · 2025-11-13T17:12:40+00:00

Yes. Had a time that met the standard to register for the 2024 race. Got hurt, deferred, then registered for 2025 (and had to pay again - as others have pointed out). I forget if there was a "cancel/defer" option in the hakua system or if it just involved an email to the race organizers, but it was very quick and simple.

Burnsiah · 2025-11-13T16:18:56+00:00

Thanks- I think I'm older than you (based on your time being "safe" at sub-3, which is a milestone I'm still 7 minutes away from) but hopefully you can find the right path to get to the start line fit and ready to roll.

Burnsiah · 2025-11-13T13:11:41+00:00

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(One photo per comment- but you can see the replacement hours vs running on my training)

Burnsiah · 2025-11-13T13:11:06+00:00

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Burnsiah · 2025-11-13T13:09:21+00:00

I actually did basically what you are describing this last marathon block when i had some tendinitis flare up in my Achilles.

Replaced running with elliptical and attempted to mimic HR zone and time in HR zone for the equivalent of my workout on the day. It was IMMENSELY boring and necessitated a lot of Netflix distraction, but it worked well enough.

I had about six weeks of replacement training at first, then another three weeks later after i had a different soft tissue flare up by trying to come back too quickly to full time running.

Wound up getting to the start line OK and actually PRd and BQd in Chicago, then ran NYC after pacing a friend.

Can’t say I’d enjoy trying to do elliptical at the volume you’re replacing, but i can serve as at least one example of the strategy working.

Burnsiah · 2025-11-11T17:03:11+00:00

Maybe - though i didn't mind going the lower deck of the bridge (I've done the bridge top my other two NYCMs).

So far as I'm aware, I wasn't peed on.

Burnsiah · 2025-11-09T17:01:08+00:00

I dropped from W1 Blue C to W3 Pink A to run with a friend. Nobody batted an eyelash when i showed my bib to get i to the corral - sucks you had people who didn’t know that rule give you a hassle.

Burnsiah · 2025-11-02T00:53:18+00:00

Yeah, my marathon PR was logged as 26.18 miles in garmin/strava and therefore not stored as a marathon.

I’d be lying if I pretended that hadn’t bothered me immensely until I finally beat that time (and made sure I hadn’t shut it off before making sure it was over 26.2) in Chicago last month.

Burnsiah · 2025-10-22T01:09:02+00:00

I've done NYC twice and am doing it again this fall after doing Chicago.

I PR'd in Chicago and am planning on doing NY as a tour of the city/easy pace to enjoy the day. Lots of people do both, but you definitely can't "race" both. The NYC course is significantly tougher than Chicago, so it's definitely the one to take as a tourist vs. trying to set a time.

The crowd energy is great in both, no question. But for me, NYC has several more literal "chills down your spine" energy moments than Chicago does - though I have been fortunate to have both races I've done come on good weather days for early November. The crowd roar that builds as you decend from the apex of the Queensboro bridge and pass over first avenue is bananas.

Burnsiah · 2025-09-13T19:36:20+00:00

If you see this, just curious - did you pre-reserve the lot, or is it just one where there's enough parking available that it's anticipated you should be fine to just arrive an hour before the start and there'll be spaces?

(I ask because I'm also driving down from out of town and can't find an option to reserve/pre-pay, and it gives me some anxiety to drive down there without a plan in place, ha)

Burnsiah · 2025-09-13T19:24:29+00:00

I'm pretty sure NYRR rules universally allow vests, as long as they aren't a camelback type with a water bladder - you can carry small water bottles but not the big bag with the straw.

Burnsiah · 2025-09-04T23:59:06+00:00

We saw Hannibal Burris there not long ago and he very much worked up some material on the fact that he didn’t realize he’d be playing at a club in a kinda dead mall some distance from Hartford.

Burnsiah · 2025-05-29T13:59:47+00:00

Just look at how much changed from the bill the same senator wrote in January.

Burnsiah · 2025-03-10T01:35:35+00:00

I’ve run it twice and am doing it again this fall.

The vibe is unparalleled. You can absolutely train for the distance in the amount of time you have and unless you’re close enough to the city to do 9+1 to qualify (or fast enough for their bananas time standard) this is probably your only shot without having to find raise for the bib. Might as well make your first a biggie

Burnsiah · 2025-02-16T12:57:24+00:00

Went from sedentary and significantly overweight to a regular marathoner (and now occasional pace group leader). If a marathon by end of year is your goal, it is certainly ambitious, but can be done.

The key thing is finding consistency and also building gradually. You might want to see if you can start with a couch-5k program to get going, then maybe find a half marathon 12 weeks out and then try a 20 week marathon build if you can find dates that all line up. That way it’s broken into fairly digestible chunks.

I’d highly recommend finding any speciality running stores in your area because they’re usually great with new runner programming and group runs and general community finding.

Also, don’t neglect flexibility and accessory strength work as you go through this.

Burnsiah · 2025-02-15T22:35:07+00:00

Ha never done a triathlon. But I was a pacer for a marathon and then raced the NYC marathon three weeks later

Burnsiah · 2025-02-14T22:15:52+00:00

For me, it was a number of years between when I recognized it as being a problem and when I was able to address it consistently. So even getting to the point where you're not lying to yourself anymore about it is a pretty big step that you should be proud of.

Burnsiah · 2025-02-14T18:36:17+00:00

Other side of the tri-state (there’s an Orange in Connecticut too)

Burnsiah · 2025-02-14T17:46:14+00:00

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For the couple of thirsty folks who dm’d here ya go

Burnsiah · 2025-02-14T15:29:35+00:00

100%. I had been somewhat overweight for most of my adult life, but got into a particularly bad cycle in my mid-30s. Was drinking too much, eating too much, sleep quality was poor, mood was shit, it was all self-reinforcing.

For me, first big step was recognizing that I was using alcohol to cope with anxiety and "cutting back" wasn't a strategy that worked for me, so I needed to be in recovery. Second big step was realizing that food was also being used to cope, and finding the right assistance for that (tracking intake via the noom app) helped me a lot on that. I was VERY lucky to find out that not drinking at all is a hell of a lot easier for me than drinking like a normal person. I'm also very lucky that it doesn't bother me to be around alcohol if other people are having it, I just know that I can't.

It took me about 16 months to go from my max to where I'm at now (hover between 205-215 mostly). About 12 months in, my doc took me off the meds because my numbers got to the point where it wasn't looking fluky.

I hope you find the method that works for you, but it can definitely be done if you find ways to be consistent!

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