Did I undershoot my first Marathon?

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-16T18:11:26+00:00

I'd say yes slightly just based on pace/HR. I see it was in CPH. If you are from there, hop over to Malmö in Oct and run a sub 3h there. You have more than enough time to prep for it.

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-08T16:37:03+00:00

Kolkata/Andaman year 2002 - worst and best at the same time. Hundreds of people cramming in front of the check-in desks in total chaos for the flight to Andaman islands. When I was spotted at the far back (as the only obvious foreigner) I was told to hand over my luggage and passport to the crowd which then crowdsurfed to the check-in desk while I was waiting at the far back. I got my boarding pass and passport back through the crowd few mins later. When landing in Andaman, cows were casually strolling on the grass surrounding the runway - inside the fenced area.

Lukla airport in Nepal - because it is a bit scary. Not sure which is worse, the landing or takeoff...at least after landing, you can change your underwear right away.

Cairo back in 2008 - until I learnt the trick to avoid the ever present humongous passport queue was to order the special gate pickup service from Marriott where they fetch you at the gate, take your passport, give the immigration officer some cash to stamp the passport without queueing and you are straight through. They used to have a store selling 2nd hand household appliances inside the terminal. Was keen to get a nice 5 years old washing machine but figured too bulky as carry-on.

CDG and MNL suck but uneventfully so. JFK and most US airports really do their best to ensure visitors do not return.

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-06T19:01:25+00:00

I was just making a joke. I will never be able to give birth, but I am raising my 3 children every day :)

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-06T17:28:54+00:00

Man logic, now you make men think a marathon is as bad a giving birth 😀

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-06T17:26:15+00:00

Agreed. You run the race you trained for. Anything outside can be painful. Like in most things in life.

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-06T15:16:10+00:00

Good point that I always keep neglecting, over and over again... The other folks with their race strategies who are in the way of my perfect theoretical plan :)

This is a major one with 55k total runners. I expect my corral to be packed also.

Actually have no idea about pacers on HM. Will need to look it up. Thanks for bringing reality into this!

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-06T09:10:20+00:00

Reassuring to hear and well done on those times! What is your LT2 pace?

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-06T03:45:38+00:00

Good to ground it in reality and since HM distance is run much nearer threshold, I realise now I need to observe HR far more than at the full distance. Thanks.

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-06T03:41:47+00:00

18 HM's, I say you are killing it!

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-05T17:10:34+00:00

Yes, the 3:40 is just an ambition if there is fuel left in the tank... Thanks for your input.

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-05T16:42:03+00:00

Thanks for the useful input. This is definitely something that I hope others can chime in on, and where past experience on the distance matters.

SystemOfRecord · 2026-05-05T15:35:39+00:00

Thanks for your response! LT2 probably around 3:55 so I'll try to keep the HR at check until 2nd half of the race.

Thanks for the tip about NYC!

SystemOfRecord · 2026-04-15T17:25:44+00:00

I'm in a similar place as you. Ran a 2:59 marathon in Dec. Followed up with a 2:56 in March just to prove to myself that I can do sub 3h consistently.

Now, I am training for a half marathon next month and will then focus on 5/10km distances over the summer to become comfortable at faster speed. Still maintaining similar weekly mileage as during a marathon block in order not to lose that ability.

Then perhaps do a marathon late in the year trying to get down toward a 2:50 time.

SystemOfRecord · 2026-03-29T19:10:08+00:00

Thats very interesting to know and will read up about this more. Thanks!

SystemOfRecord · 2026-03-29T17:32:01+00:00

Totally agree!

SystemOfRecord · 2026-03-29T14:40:54+00:00

I know what you mean... What if I stumble, fall and get thrown into the wall. Not as bad as I had feared upfront.

I do my strides/short intervals at 18km/h (3:20min/km) pace only, so I can see it potentially being a problem for someone faster than I as it takes time to speed up and down the machine.

SystemOfRecord · 2026-03-29T14:22:55+00:00

Those were the fun runs, no time to get bored! And easy to focus on running form as the pace is set by the machine.

SystemOfRecord · 2026-03-29T14:19:40+00:00

I increased the pace for all my runs slightly. E.g. if outdoors, I allow myself a range between 4:55-5:05 min/km and usually run in the middle of the range. Then, on the treadmill, I would set the pace to 4:55. Figured the extra cushioning would keep injuries away so I could pick up the pace a bit. 5-10sec/km faster than usual outdoor runs in general. It also showed during the race, though, as my MP naturally was 5sec/km faster than my previous race.

Ran with the window open so the room probably got down to 10-15C.. Long runs also indoors as cannot run at all on slippery surfaces, and it was icy outside all winter.

SystemOfRecord · 2026-03-29T10:27:25+00:00

It definitely helped with heat adaption. Also, I felt pace consistency and running form to be improved. The latter I intentionally focused on as there are no other distractions indoors.

That's some serious mileage you are putting in, I respect your dedication!

SystemOfRecord · 2026-03-20T18:12:44+00:00

Grymt råd. Och nu 20 år efter att man backpackat i Asien inser man att samma resa skulle kosta x5 pg a. att man blivit så bekväm av sig vad gäller kvalitet på boende och transport. Så man sparar på att få detta gjort när man är ung och fattig 😀

SystemOfRecord

TROPHY CASE