All Business

This post is the recipe for how I ran a marathon in 3:39.  I'm going to break it down by mile- so that's a lot of boring stuff to read considering the race was over 26 of those!  Maybe it will help just ONE PERSON.  If it does, then it's worth it.

First off, I think it's important to pick a realistic goal for you.  I trained for a 3:30 marathon, but I only achieved 3:39.  Am I happy?  You betcha!  I really wanted to run under 3:40, and I knew that training a little harder would get me there.  If you are wondering what a good goal is for you, I would suggest checking out the McMillan Pace Calculator.

One tip I heard is that a marathon pace should be 1 minute longer than your 5K pace/mile, 45 seconds longer than your 10K pace/mile, and 30 seconds longer than your half marathon pace/mile.  If you look at my PR's, that was exactly true for me for my first marathon.  For example, my Half Marathon PR is 7:46/mile, so I could realistically run a marathon with an 8:16/mile pace.

Second of all- you have to run smart.  A marathon is a whole different beast than a 5K, 10K, or even a half marathon.  You do not want to burn out when you still have 6 miles left to go- it's tough enough as it is.  Top of Utah was unique in that it wasn't the best idea to run a "negative split" (which means running the last half of the race faster than the first half); most other marathons (and races!) you want to be able to achieve the goal of a negative split.  I think it's very smart to hold yourself back for the first 18 miles- or even 20!  I can't tell you what a huge boost it was to know that I was at mile 22 and I still felt great.  I didn't experience the "marathon death shuffle" at all and I credit that to running smart.

That being said, here are the splits:

Mile 1: 8:05 pace

Mile 2: 7:59 pace

Mile 3: 7:59 pace- drank powerade at the water stop

Mile 4: 8:08 pace

Mile 5: 8:02 pace- drank powerade at the water stop

Mile 6: 8:07 pace- ate 1/2 granola bar.  I had a hard time swallowing it while I was running.

Mile 7: 8:12 pace- drank powerade at the water stop

Mile 8: 7:50 pace

Mile 9: 8:02- drank powerade at the water stop

Mile 10: 8:19 pace

Mile 11: 7:59- drank powerade at the water stop

Mile 12: 8:01- ate some shot blocks.  I had an easier time swallowing these when I was running but I accidentally dropped one

Mile 13: 8:05- drank water at the water stop.

Mile 14: 8:15 pace

Mile 15: 7:59- drank powerade at the water stop

Mile 16: 8:17 pace

Mile 17: 8:20- drank powerade at the water stop a

Mile 18: 8:19 pace- I kicked it into gear and passed the pacers at this point.  Looking at my splits I can definitely tell that it was "maximum effort" and not "maximum speed".  I was slower than I thought!  I can't imagine how slow I would have been at this point if I hadn't run conservatively at the beginning.

Mile 19: 8:00 pace-  I ate a GU and drank water at the aid station.  Rachelle told me to GU before I felt like I needed to, and I'm so glad I did!

Mile 20: 8:38 pace

Mile 21:  8:24- drank powerade at the water stop and tried to eat a banana but ended up dropping it!

Mile 22:  8:35

Mile 23:  8:49- drank powerade at the aid station

Mile 24: 9:06- Oh no!  The pacers caught up to me!  Maybe it would have been better if I had stuck with the pacers until the last couple of miles???  Or the entire time?  I guess what I'm saying here is THE PACERS ARE A VERY, VERY GOOD THING.  I highly suggest using them.

Mile 25: 8:24- I didn't stop at the aid station because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to start running again!  No lie.  I felt totally hydrated and fueled because I didn't run through a single water stop prior to this.

Mile 26: 8:50 pace (Woah!  As Kara Goucher says, "When you think you're keeping pace, you're actually slowing down.")

Final .56:  7:37 pace- had enough kick at the end to finish strong.

The main tips are:

• Use a pace group.
• Don't pass on the water stops in the beginning.  (If you feel like you think you need to fuel or drink, then it is already too late!)
• Don't push really hard until mile 18- or even later.
• Pick a reasonable goal for you.  If it's your first marathon, don't put too much time pressure on yourself.  More than anything, you want to enjoy this accomplishment!

Add tips in the comments so anxious marathoners (like I was!) can learn from YOU!

2011 Top of Utah Marathon

Brace yourselves- I don't want to forget anything so this post is pretty detailed.

Hey look!  I'm running a marathon!!!

Where do I even begin?  I'm flooded with emotion as I think about my marathon on Saturday.  It was grueling at times (although, not nearly as much as I thought it would be), exciting, joyful, and ultimately very fulfilling.  I am once again at a loss of words to accurately describe the event!

In the early morning hours before the race I was awake in my bed listening to the rain splatter against the windows.  I just kept thinking 8:15, 8:15, 8:15 over and over and over again in my head. I wasn't certain how my body would feel and I was hoping that by keeping it easy I would feel good by the end.

FINALLY it was 4 AM. Mindy and I got up to shower before the race.  I thought my nerves were under control until I put on my mascara- my hand was shaking like a leaf!  I had plenty of time to stretch a little, dress, and eat a bowl of oatmeal before heading out the door.

Mindy and I met up with Darcy at the start.  We just started walking towards the bus and before I knew it we were boarding!  The ride up was pretty peaceful.  After getting to the shuttles my nerves calmed down and I just kept thinking about how great my 23 mile run felt and I was excited to get the race started so I could have that feeling again.

We got to the start and got in the long line to use the port-a-potty.  Was it just me and my bursting bladder, or did anyone else feel like the line was soooo loooong?!  When I was in the potty the rain came- but never fear, I was prepared!  I pulled my poncho out of my pocket to open it.  I thought, 'I should close the lid so my poncho doesn't fall in there.' But, you guessed it, I didn't, and you guessed it again, I tore open the wrapper and my poncho flew right into the toilet!!!  So much for that idea.

At the start- huddling together to stay warm.

By the time we finished at the port-a-potties it was time to get to the start.  We took off our warm clothes, dropped our bags in the school bus windows, and lined up next to the 3:40 pacer.  We tried to stretch, but there wasn't room- and then it started pouring!!!  We ran into the heat tent to keep our clothes relatively dry, and when we were in there that is when we heard the start gun for the hand cyclists.  Rain or not, we had to get ready!  We lined back up by the 3:40 pacers and next thing I knew the gun was off and we were trotting along!

Darcy and I stayed by each other for the first 6 miles of the race.  The pacers ended up getting a little ahead of us because we had a hard time making it through the crowd, but our pace was well below a 3:40 marathon so I wasn't worried.  Those first 6 miles flew by!  My body was feeling great for the most part, and I just focused on light and easy steps.  I could feel every one's prayers during this time.  I felt so blessed by my Father in Heaven to be able to be running.


It was so easy to pace myself when I knew I just had to stick with the people with the yellow balloons.  It was awesome to have a visual of my goal staring me in the face.  After mile 6 Darcy and I started to settle into our own pace and I pulled a little bit ahead of her.  I wished I could run with her for the whole race, but I knew that a marathon was a solo event (running together is what a Ragnar is for!).

During mile 7 the clouds broke!  It started pouring rain, and then it started hailing.  Hail!  Really?  I wanted to yell out 'This is so awesome!' but I'm pretty sure everyone else would think I was nuts.  Maybe I was.  All I know is nothing could break my stride. I also noticed that between miles 7 and 8 there was a discrepancy between my Garmin and their mile markers.  Somehow it was off by three tenths of a mile within those 2 miles- before that they were all pretty much right on.  I started asking some other runners, and they noticed that they were off, too. 
I was so excited by the time I hit halfway because I knew that I was feeling good and that I probably wouldn't have any problems with my IT Band.  The canyon was the perfect downhill grade.  It wasn't so downhill that my legs felt beat up at all- it was just nice and slight so that I didn't feel like I had to work so hard.  I was right with the pacers at this point and was itching to move past them, but I didn't!  So proud of myself for not pushing too hard too soon in the game.

Mile 17 and pumped up!!!

Miles 14-20 were my favorite of the race.  I felt so great and having the family and friend support was fantastic.  The biggest problem were my tight and painful calves, and the blisters on my heels.  I tried to stop at miles 17 and 19 for band aids at the aid station, but they didn't have any!!!  My friends Kalie, Erin and Whitney surprised me by coming up to cheer for me and they gave me the biggest boost!  I wasn't expecting them and I got very emotional when I saw them.  My husband, kids, and brother in law Beau were also there at miles 17 and 19- I was super excited and still feeling great.  When I saw my friends is when I finally let myself pass the pacers.

Mile 18- Can you tell I'm emotional

Mile 19- I think I have the same face every time I see my family :)

I stopped to have my calves sprayed with icy hot at mile 23.  They were so painful at this point.  I noticed my bloody ankles from my blisters, but I was so grateful that I couldn't really feel them.  I guess the pain from my calves was bad enough that it blocked the rest of the pain out from other places.  I suppose that is a good thing?!

Then the goin' got tough.  I felt great until mile 23 and then after that I just kept trucking along.  I still had a big smile on my face, but I was definitely feeling it.  I pushed through and I was proud of myself.  Typically at the end of a race I get passed a lot because I gas out too soon- this time I was the one doing some passing!  I never got passed until about the last mile of the race.  I knew I had paced myself perfectly when I was in the last 3 miles.


Seeing my friends and family at the finish was surreal.  As I crossed the finish I saw on the big clock that I was coming in under Boston Qualifying time by a hair- 3:39 and some change for seconds.  I. DID. IT.  It all sunk in and then I couldn't stop crying.

I pushed through hail, rain, bleeding blisters for 10 miles, tight painful calves, an injury before race day, and I was able to pull a Boston Qualifying marathon!!!!!!!!!!!!

I owe it all to an incredible Physical Therapist, great advice from Rachelle after learning so much from mistakes she made during her first marathon, and those awesome pacers and sticking to my plan.

My official time ended up being 3:39:07 for the 26.56 miles that I clocked on my Garmin.  Know what makes me even happier though?  I looked at my time on my Garmin when I hit 26.2 miles, and my time was 3:36:39.  I was 10th in my age division!  My average pace was 8:15/mile- just like I had been envisioning.

Possibly one of my favorite pictures of all time.  Dallas is my number one fan and I know I couldn't do any of this without his support.

Darcy had quite a few troubles- a bruised and very painful foot, soaking clothes that chafed her to hamburger, and a cold.  She pushed through and finished in 4 hours exactly.

Darcy at the finish- smiling in spite of everything!

Mindy- the crazy girl hat decided to sign up to run a marathon only 5 weeks before the race- finished with a time of 4:17.  For a girl that had NO DESIRE to ever run a marathon, she rocked it!!!!  She says she will never do one again.  We'll see...  :)

Mindy is amazing!  I love this girl.

Marathoners!!!  Mindy, Me and Darcy

The texts and messages from people all day were so awesome.  Thank you to everyone for your support and excitement.  I'm so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family!

Will always thinks I win because I walk away with a medal :)

Erin, Kalie, Me and Whit- these are the best friends a girl could ever have.

What would you count as your PR time if the distance was off in a race- your Garmin, or the official time?

Part of me wants to say my Garmin time because it is better, but official time is probably the right one to use.  Plus then I might have an easier time of beating it during my next marathon :).

Are you thinking about running a marathon?

If it's even on the radar, I say you should do it!  It's an experience that you can be proud of for a lifetime.

How long should you rest after a marathon?

I'm itching to start running again!  I want to wait at least a week, but I don't know if I can last that long.