Revelations of a Sub 3 marathoner
I ran two Sub 3hr marathons this year. In a gap of 6 months in 2022.
2:59:22 in Boston Marathon and 2:55:58 in Ahembdabad Marathon.
I was a startup founder, a new dad & an avg joe. Sharing my playbook of learnings here.
1) Set reasonable goals.
Be patient. Becoming a strong runner is not an event. It's a process.
Shared more about it on this podcast https://open.spotify.com/episode/7yvmxI2HdGLfo0Ojn8ayuF
2) Becoming a 'fast' runner and continuing to be a 'fast' runner are two different skills.
Always consider longevity in every aspect of your training. 90% of runners hit a plateau because they think short term.
3) If you want to train hard, you gotta recover harder.
The most important training days of the week are the ones when you rest and recover. Quoting Brad Stulberg here "Stress + rest = growth. Figuring out the appropriate dose of each is key, and a moving target"
4) Curiosity is an underrated skill in this sport.
Always be curious to learn more. Be a student of the sport first and then play it.
5) Learn when to run slow and when to run fast.
You will be unstoppable if you have that judgment. Training is not racing.
6) Good fitness is:
# of days you were not injured.
# of days you felt recovered.
# of days you slept well.
# of days you dint push hard beyond what your body allowed.
7) Most important: If you don’t have a project to achieve your goal. It’s just a dream.
Project = Structure
Your progress depends on your ability to differentiate between goal and dream.
Follow structured training and be a balanced runner. My thoughts https://www.dilipkumar.co/blog/the-balanced-runner
8) My Strava splits for
Boston Marathon https://www.strava.com/activities/7003299941
Ahmedabad marathon: https://www.strava.com/activities/8173579966
If you plan to run any of these races next year, hope this course data is useful
Motivation is in abundance. Discipline is scarce.
Quoting the great @EliudKipchoge "Only disciplined one's are purely free in life and indisciplined are slaves to their moods and passions" If you've read this far, good luck with your running goals.