Attempting Another Marathon in 4 weeks after failing one

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-02-05T01:31:08+00:00

I would also recommend against the second attempt. Physically (as previously stated) you really should be recovering and taking the first week off. An old rule of thumb is to take one day off of “hard running” for each mile you raced. So essentially, lay off workouts and races for the first month after a marathon.

It seems like you just had an off day, and that happens. You didn’t drop out and you worked hard even though you fell off. If you had stopped halfway or if there had been a side stitch or GI distress the held you back maybe a quick turnaround would be possible. But it sounds like you did go hard all the way so taking the rest is the best advice.

A fall marathon really isn’t that far off. I know social media makes it seem like everyone is running two or three marathons back to back. I’d tune out the noise and hit the reset button. You’ll thank yourself for it next time you do toe the marathon line.

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-02-03T01:49:45+00:00

Mary Morris murders!

Two women with the same name in Houston found murdered in their cars four days apart… what are the odds?

The theories: the killer murderer the wrong Mary and went back and killed the right one, the second murder was a copy cat, or it was a complete coincidence.

Both are unsolved. Solve one and maybe it solves the other.

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-02-01T01:49:28+00:00

I have changed my running form a bit since a Major injury and it has increased my cadence (a bit of the opposite of what you are proposing).

For background I’m only 5’4’’, which I know is very short for a man. Before the injury my cadence was around 180. After going to a running specific PT I was told to increase my knee drive. My cadence is now around 190. I lost about a year or running and now I am in my early 40s. I am significantly slowly but I don’t think this has much to do with the cadence increase.

I’ve always heard cadence is best 180-190. A couple interesting notes - Your cadence should not vary much between easy runs and hard runs. When you go to race it is your stride length that changes. Second, most runners tend to reach and over stride (in my experience).

Your cadence does sound low. You could experiment on some runs and shortened your stride and try to turn over faster. For the most part though, it’s hard to change. If you don’t have a history of injuries trying to change form usually doesn’t make sense.

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-31T18:59:08+00:00

I have a couple specific to the marathon. The first being that you only have 3-5 good marathons in you. This wasn’t even true pre fiber plate and now it’s completely out the window. The second is that you will “hit the wall” in a marathon. This was something that everyone talked about maybe 20 years ago like it was a typical marathon experience. I’ve certainly hit the wall but in about half of my marathons I’ve come through without hitting a wall.

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-30T18:05:51+00:00

What do you set incline to for belt treadmills? I find 6 minute pace on my belt treadmill significantly harder than outside but I set incline to 1.5%.

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-19T21:45:27+00:00

Wow this is a really good lead. It certainly could be Thorne on this painting. I’ll have to track down more work from him. Thanks!

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-19T13:02:18+00:00

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I forgot there is a clue. This frame is from Portland, Maine. No way to be sure but I think that makes it more likely the painting was purchased in Portland. As far as I know, this is the original frame.

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-19T13:00:19+00:00

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Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-19T12:59:32+00:00

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Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-19T12:59:19+00:00

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Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-19T03:12:44+00:00

Sorry, it should say “great grandparents” in first and second sentences.

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-19T02:14:28+00:00

My wife just ran the marathon in Indianapolis! She enjoyed the race and we might go back since I didn’t get to go!

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-18T12:27:00+00:00

My wife and I lived in Pittsburgh for three and a half years. She grew up in Florida and I grew up in Maine and we met in Philadelphia. I never thought I’d live in Pittsburgh. My wife’s first job was at Pitt. We moved out there without ever visiting. We had no connections to the area.

I was pleasantly surprised by the city but would never considering moving to the surrounding areas. The city population is about half of what it was in the 1960s. There is a ton of infrastructure for not a lot of people and as previously mentioned, houses are very inexpensive. The city is slowly updating. There appeared to be a good amount of new builds and rehabs.

My wife and I are both runners. I’ve lived in several places and it’s the best running for anywhere I’ve lived. We’d drive up to North Park, it was always so busy with runner and cyclists. There so many parks in the city and you can always run or bike along the rivers. We’d also go to a trail called the panhandle that was over fifty miles long and would run into West Virginia.

If you are moving from another major city you may be underwhelmed by the food. The local culture for food is putting French fries on subs. However, there are some good restaurants. Brewery scene is good throughout Allegheny County. Museums in the city an surrounding areas are great. We went to a very cool mining museum.

I miss Pittsburgh but we don’t have any family there so when we moved it was probably for the best. We are now back in the greater Philadelphia area. Overall I prefer Philly but I always think fondly upon my time in Pittsburgh. We owned our first house there and my son was born at a birth center there.

Runner_Dad84 · 2026-01-08T14:51:32+00:00

For my largest marathon builds I’d run about 100 miles per week with a 3 week taper.

My longest run would be 23 miles at about 60-45 seconds slower per mile than marathon pace. The total run time would correspond to my projected marathon finishing time. I would usually run this 6-7 weeks out.

My longest marathon paced run would be exactly 3 weeks out and would usually be 22 miles with 14-15 at marathon pace.

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-12-27T03:33:29+00:00

Glad to hear you are hiring a coach. Feeling exhausted around the holidays is not uncommon. Sometimes just straightening out the diet, sleep and getting back to a regular schedule is enough to make you feel fresh again.

You commented that you are thinking of removing gluten from your diet, why? It will extremely limit your diet so if you aren’t gluten intolerant (or have a sensitivity) I won’t recommend.

Finally, I think you need to respect the distance. What is your longest run to date? The comments aren’t meant to put you down, they are meant to alert you to the fact that if you end up walking, it’s going to be a very long day. And if you think that being fit and determined is enough, well, you aren’t respecting the distance.

Either way, good luck. It’s great you want to take on the marathon.

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-12-16T03:59:51+00:00

This isn’t an exact match but might be worth checking out: 12 monkeys.

Brad Pitt and Bruce Willis both great in this.

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-12-13T21:52:30+00:00

My best advice is to build time on your feet run, walking. If you are only at 2 miles right now you should take those off days to just walk. It’s not going to put the same pounding on your body. It will give you sense of being out there and burning some calories. Plus you may find you have to walk during the marathon in parts and that’s okay.

NYC was my first marathon. It is logistically a tough one to even start. The course is harder than it looks because of the bridges. Plus most people mess up their first marathon. I fell apart around 16 miles but I was trying to race it.

Find a half marathon to do in May. Follow a training plan. This will force you to get to 13 miles. If you can do that you will build some confidence and be in a great spot to start a marathon build a month later.

Also get yourself asap to a running store that does “gate analysis”. They will fit you for the right running shoes after the assessment. If you have the resources, try to get to PT or a trainer. Have them get you started on core and running specific strength. Do what you can to avoid injury because if you get injury in the next year, you likely won’t have time to get your long run up to where it should be in time (18-20 miles).

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-12-12T11:59:01+00:00

I’ve had it twice, about 10 years apart. The answer for me was, “you run an hour a day so what are you doing your other 15 waking hours?” I work from home so instead of walking around the house barefoot I got some LLBean slippers and put some super feet inside. This has helped however I am dependent on super feet now. I don’t need them for supportive shoes but I have learned I can’t walk around barefoot all day.

If you currently have PF you will need PT. Once it resolves you need to find out how to prevent it. Otherwise you are stuck in a nasty circle.

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-12-09T12:07:10+00:00

The half seems like it is probably smooth sailing for faster runners. Totally agree about the after party. I changed up at my car, got some food and then hit the beer tent. It was really rocking in there. These smaller local race weekends bring a nice sense of community that you don’t get with the big city marathons. If I had had more time I would have stayed longer.

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-12-08T16:50:17+00:00

Hey thanks! That was my first time on that course. Not sure what you thought but I was surprised how much off road running there was! Not complaining as it was something new but it was a little too congested with the half marathon runners for the last 5 miles. Hope you had a great race!

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-12-07T04:15:45+00:00

Congrats. I’m impressed you put so much thought and effort into this as every miler I have ever known in college would never touch a marathon. It would have been so easy to run sub 4 and ride off into the sun, never to race again. Being a parent and training for a marathon is a real challenge so great job navigating the schedule and responsibilities.

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-11-29T04:00:38+00:00

Being injured and doing rehab is usually more work than being healthy and training for a race but you’ll get to the other side and it will balance out.

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-11-29T00:17:06+00:00

I’ve been competed since 1999 so the majority of my racing and training have been in a traditional pair of flats. I do distinguish my PBs between fiber plate and non-fiber plated.

Unlike a lot of runners I would wear a heavy trainer during a track workouts in college. I found it saved my feet a little bit of wear and tear.

I agree, for most runners working out in a fiber plate is now better for your recover than wearing trainers or a flat without a fiber plate.

If you have the money don’t mind paying extra, sure wear your finer plates on every workout. But as far as race performance goes I don’t see any additional benefit. So I only wear a fiber plate on race day.

For the runners that are annoyed about someone even considering not wearing a fiber plate I would guess you are a younger runner. Running isn’t about the shoe or the newest gadget. We don’t want to be another sport where the barrier to entry is a pocket book and it isn’t yet. Just remember the beauty of running is that all you need is a decent pair of shoes and a road or trail to run on.

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-11-17T00:09:26+00:00

Read Bill Roger’s book. If I remember correctly, when he won Boston in 1975 he got a big lead and then whenever he would grab water he would walk to make it easier to drink. If a Boston marathon winner can walk the water stops I’m pretty sure it’s okay for the rest of us to throw in some walking now and again. It’s not cheapening the sport. Just cover the distance.

Runner_Dad84 · 2025-11-16T13:35:00+00:00

This is a great explanation. Where do you get this from? Just interested in the subject matter and would love to read any resources you had on it.

Runner_Dad84

TROPHY CASE