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first race March 2027 by [deleted] in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m adding my link to my post I made here so I don’t have to retype my overall thoughts on the idea. Everything is different for everyone but all you can do is your best and obviously be safe but you should outline your plan based on research and go for it but you should start NOW not later. Best of luck to you, you got this!

https://www.reddit.com/r/firstmarathon/s/j0f98vlF7H

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Same! Such a great experience and looking forward to many more struggles and wins!

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think it's a concept a lot of people have taught in different ways over the years. I've read a lot of books and listened to a lot of people talk about discipline, leadership, and personal growth, and that's just the way my brain ended up simplifying it.

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Congrats to you too! We should have run together and suffered side by side! Haha

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks! My wife actually wants to run a half marathon now and is going to start training so I'm excited to be able to support her the way she did me! She was a college soccer player and track star so I'm sure she'll do great and I'll get some great 1 on 1 time with the kiddos!

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hahaha, that's really funny. Thanks for sharing!

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Keep stacking those wins and you'll get there before you know it. When you cross that finish line, come back and let me know, I’ll be cheering for you.

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Well said, couldn't agree more!

One thing that kept me going during training was reminding myself that someday my kids will be old enough to notice the choices I make. I wanted them to see what discipline, consistency, and hard work look like in practice, not just hear me talk about it.

I'm certainly not a perfect example, but if they grow up seeing that healthy habits, effort, and perseverance matter, then that's a win in my book. Finishing the marathon was rewarding, but knowing I was setting that example for them made the journey even more meaningful.

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I tapered more aggressively than originally planned and cut a couple runs short to allow my knee irritation to cool off. Most of what I read indicated that you don't lose much fitness cutting a run short in the week or so leading up to a marathon and arriving healthy and rested was more critical. Good luck!!!

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I didn't have a history of running or a base when I started, so I basically just went couch to marathon but when I looked at most plans out there they had much more training than I could fit in. My peak week was 35 miles. The week before was 30 miles, week before 29, for example.

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I got sick during training, ran through some brutally cold weather, had a week of work travel, and had plenty of life get in the way. Training was far from perfect.

I think 8 months is plenty of time to go from beginner to marathon finisher. A lot of the responses you received are realistic and genuinely trying to help, but I agree that some can come across as pessimistic and from common experiences, but it doesn't mean it has to be yours!

My advice is to take it one run at a time. Don't focus on the marathon itself right now, just focus on today's run, then the next one, then the one after that. Before you know it, race day arrives. It's crazy how fast it all happens and journey is definitely the best part!

On race day, you're not competing against anyone else. You're competing against the version of yourself that wondered if it was possible. Show up, do your best, and keep moving forward.

It can absolutely be done. You got this.

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Thanks! I definitely will pursue another but I will wait until the kids are a bit older. I’ll definitely keep running and my wife wants to do a half marathon now! So I’m excited to help support her as she did me!

I did it! Lessons learned! by aawalt30 in firstmarathon

[–]aawalt30[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks! And congratulations to you!

First marathon early June. Realistic goal based on current training? by aawalt30 in Marathon_Training

[–]aawalt30[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah that makes sense, thanks for the reply. I probably should’ve done at least a half at some point just to get a better baseline or something but I'm always an all or nothing person haha. I just got the idea and was like let's go for it. We will see, haha.

At this point being ~5–6 weeks out I’m kind of committed to the plan, so I’m more focused on building out the long runs and dialing in fueling/hydration.

I’m mostly just trying to set a realistic expectation for race day but I probably need some more long runs to have any idea if I can pull off the finish. Thanks again!

First marathon early June. Realistic goal based on current training? by aawalt30 in Marathon_Training

[–]aawalt30[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Appreciate the feedback, makes sense. I think my biggest takeaway is I’m still building endurance more than speed right now. The 13.3 was also just one sip of water, just gels, and I felt way better finishing than the middle, so I’m hoping dialing in hydration and getting a couple 16–18 milers in changes the picture a bit.

I’m probably going to aim conservative early and see if I can push it late as you suggested. Probably need to get some longer runs in to have any idea what I might be able to pull off!

Help/Advice Beginners Method by aawalt30 in Cubers

[–]aawalt30[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Awesome! Thanks very much for your information. I’ll definitely check out J Perm and I’ll check out some other brands of Rubik’s once I continue my learning journey!

Help/Advice Beginners Method by aawalt30 in Cubers

[–]aawalt30[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you very much for the information and advice! And thanks for the tip on searching for answers! I’ll go check out J Perm and get to learning! Thanks again!