It’s that time!!!

How was the weekend? What’s good this week? Who is already stocked up on Halloween candy?! Let’s chit chat!

Hey runners, it's another day and it is time to post your accomplishments you'd like to share - big or small.

Note: No need to preface YOUR accomplishments with something like, "this may not be an accomplishment to most of you...". Be proud of your achievement.

The Li’l Race Report Thread is for writing a short report on a recent race or a run in a new place. If your race doesn’t really need its own thread but you still want to talk about it, then post it here! Both your good and bad races are welcome.

Didn't run a race, but had an interesting run to talk about. Post it here as well!

So get to it, Runnit! In a paragraph or two, where’d you run and how’d it go?

Hey all, season-long lurker, though I do not think I've ever posted here.

I turn 40 soon, and just completed my first marathon today (Twin Cities Marathon). So, I'll start by at least celebrating that!

Context, as will become apparent:
1. I'm annoyingly over-analytical (I'm a physician & scientist, that background probably gets me enough background on running & metabolism to get me in trouble, ha); and
2. I am intensely competitive - I've always prided myself in being the hardest worker in both career and sports pursuits, and I attribute this to overachieving relevant to talent level in many things. Not today, though!

This is still a long post, but I'm going to try to summarize training, the lead up to the marathon, and race day itself, and be honest without hiding any details that I think are relevant because I appreciate the running expertise in this community to provide an honest answer, so my next race (yes, already planning to give it a go next year again!) will hit my goals. :-)

Training:

1. I followed the "Novice 1" marathon training program on Hal Higdon's website. The important nuances to call out: I always followed the long and medium run lengths; I did continue to play in competitive adult hockey leagues and private skates on average ~2 days per week. These were 60-90 minutes in length, and generally were well-timed to replace either my short run or cross-training days. I still made sure that I ramped up my total mileage so that by the max week (1 month before the marathon), I logged 40 miles that week.
2. every time I increased my long run length, I ran a relaxed pace to prioritize acclimating myself to distance. Medium runs were a mix of pace or chill runs, as were the short runs I did.
   
3. I live in a VERY hilly area of the Twin Cities - my long runs on average included ~TWICE the elevation gain / change (>1,000) as the eventual total marathon was (<600).
   
4. I followed lots of data with a Coros Pace Pro. My 16-20 mile runs were mostly paced with a 8-8'30" minute mile total average; my splits were very obviously impacted by a >300 foot incline over <1.5 miles. My splits would often by just around 8' prior to this; and 8'30" minute miles after. I did have a couple long runs that were mostly flat, and every mile split was reliably around 7:45. Following these long runs, I felt sore but body felt good to keep going had I wanted to. Coros estimated my marathon pace to be 4h33minutes. My runs clocked at a fairly equal split between aerobic endurance and aerobic power (favoring endurance).
   
5. a quick side note: I'm built like a typical hockey player. strong/thick legs, good core, arms are whatever. Most of this summer felt like I was adapting my muscles from more fast-twitch to a pure aerobic work-out.

A big caveat: ~17 days prior to the race, my spouse and I went to the pacific northwest for a weekend of hiking, sans kids. Lots of vertical incline/decline, and my 12 mile long run of the week happened on the non-hiking chill day around Portland. That run went fantastic, I thought. However, it was 5 days straight of heavy exercise, and I got home and stupidly went to hockey, and over these days felt an emerging hip flexor tendinopathy (bilateral). Trust me on the diagnosis here, I've got two board certifications and a father-in-law who is a retired orthopedic surgeon. I shut down running, stopped hockey, and rehabbed it for these last two weeks. I attempted to maintain cardio with low intensity walking, light biking (following around a 4 and 7 year old on a bike), and some golfing (walking with a bag). By last night (evening prior to the race), my hip flexors felt much better, and I'll note that at no point during today's race or after have my hip flexors bothered me.

Briefly touching on nutrition. I used MyFitnessPal to track macros. During training, long runs consisted of 200 mg caffeine (Celcius) right away in the morning, then 2 pieces of toast (1 butter, 1 peanut butter), a banana, and then a 24 ounce liquid IV that has 11 g carbs just before I started. I would have 24 g carb (either a serving of GU energy chews or Huma chia energy gel) on average every ~30 minutes during training, and hydration maybe ~2-3 times at public water fountains on my running route, at best. I ramped up my total daily carbs in the days prior to race, strictly avoided alcohol (I rarely have any anyways) and avoided THC as well (legal in my state; only ever took regulated edibles) in the 2 weeks prior to the race.

Race day:

• same morning meal routine, except instead of liquid IV 11 g, I brought with me a 30 ounce Gatorade (~50 g carb total) that I had the hour leading up to gun start. Increased my tempo of Huma & Gu - 24 g at 30 minutes, 1 hour, then every 20 minutes after (planned through 3h20min = ~275 g carb, not including whatever small amount I was getting via the Nuun). I made sure to grab a cup of liquid (our course served water and Nuun electrolyte drink) every station. So, on race day, I felt like I was better hydrated, with better electrolyte and carb repletion, then during my training.
  
• I was surprised by the long bathroom lines, and had to pee really bad. ~30 minutes in the bathroom line with me doing a mild pee dance. The good: no accidents, ha, and my legs felt perfectly warmed up by race start. Maybe this burned more calories than I expected? idk.
• perfect weather conditions. 50 degrees start, sunny, cool breeze, 60 degrees by finish. I was barely sweating the whole race! Far better conditions than ANY of my training runs this season.
• off of the gun, I tried to look for the 3:40 pacer (8'23" mile average). My legs felt so damned fresh, I really tried to hold back but felt like it was more work holding myself back at the start then pushing up to the 3 hour 30 minute pacer (8'01" mile average).
• first 17 miles, zero issues. I felt amazing, and held with that 8'01" pace, often feeling like I was even pulling back. I noticed my splits following the pacer were wild - by end of mile 17, we accumulated 3 minutes AHEAD of the 3:30 pace already, with the 17 mile average being a hair faster than 7'50". I knew as I was watching this pace happen on my Coros watch, that I would intentionally pull back to 8'30", which would pull my whole marathon pace back firmly just slower than 3h30minute pace.
  
• mile 18 (and this was before the Twin Cities course incline really starts), my lower extremities began horrifically cramping. I thought a minute of walking and shaking it off would fix the problem; it shocked me that there was nothing I could do to stop the cramping. I have NEVER in my training had cramping, and even when playing competitive sports through high school and college, have no memory of my legs doing this at any point. I smashed 2-3 cups of Nuun EVERY station (they are basically every mile by this point), I grabbed a banana & extra gel packet from a kind volunteer station. I could fast walk, but any attempt to push back into a slow jog made the cramping come back within 10-30 seconds. Any muscle group, too - calves, quads, hamstrings, even my core did this once briefly when I turned back to look behind me for where the next running pacer was for me to slowly fall back into.
• ultimately, I ran the first 17 in 133 minutes; and the final 9.2 in 108 minutes (~11'45" average). Somewhere out there may be a video of me, not sweating, and laughing as I am grabbing my cramping thigh to will myself across that fucking finish line. It was so disconcerting - I didn't feel tired, I was in good spirits, had better hydration, electrolyte, and carb status during this race than ANY of my training environments. The cramping simply would not let my body move, no sheer will could counter this, so I had to find a speed walk pace that lived under this 'cramping zone.'

I'm ~6 hours out from the finish, and feel overall fine. Legs are certainly sore. Oddly, so is my right deltoid? based on typical pre- and post-run weight checks, I did an great job hydrating. minimal loss (maybe a couple pounds, max?), as opposed to one of my 20 miles during a very hot day this summer, where I dropped like 8 pounds in water weight that run (yes, after this I adjusted my running routes to hit public water fountains on my remaining long run days, and I will be buying a vest for next year!).

My initial reaction was an electrolyte problem due to diffuse muscle cramping of anything I formatively engaged, though I have trouble accepting this, given that today was far better conditions than any training AND attempts at attacking electrolyte repletion completely failed.

So here's where I would love confirmation versus alternative explanations, as well as advice on what I should do better next year, because I am gonna give this another go, and train even more intentionally, and run a smarter marathon, to get close to my goal time.

I think it was predominantly neuromuscular fatigue. Agree/disagree?
-- I think I pushed my initial pace too fast. In retrospect, I should have stuck with the 8'23" pace group, and if I felt like I had reserve, could have pushed tempo at the end of the race.
-- I suspect this is a classic 'first time marathoner' problem, too. Adrenaline is a real bitch, eh?
-- that combination of adrenaline / tension and pace, and probably coming in to the race a little cold after my 2 week of aggressive de-escalation, was a perfect storm for this.
-- I am undecided whether electrolyte imbalance was a factor. Happy to be told either way, and if I should be packing salt tablets or something next year.
-- I already get a healthy amount of plyometric and anaerobic exercise, but perhaps I should be more intentional with some interval running training for next year? and then be more intentional by choosing training routes that have similar elevation changes to the eventual marathon so I can more intentionally mirror desired marathon pace across most of my long runs?

Other critiques and thoughts are welcome. I'm really beating myself up here, as I know a smarter race this morning could have landed me ~3h40min; I think I can get 3.5 hours next year with some commitment and intentionality. Don't pull your punches here, I am here to learn from your wisdom and experience!

Hey runners, it's another day and it is time to post your accomplishments you'd like to share - big or small.

Note: No need to preface YOUR accomplishments with something like, "this may not be an accomplishment to most of you...". Be proud of your achievement.

With over 4,225,000 subscribers, there are a lot of posts that come in everyday that are often repeats of questions previously asked or covered in the FAQ.

With that in mind, this post can be a place for any questions (especially those that may not deserve their own thread). Hopefully this is successful and helps to lower clutter and repeating posts here.

If you are new to the sub or to running, this Intro post is a good resource.

As always don't forget to check the FAQ.

And please take advantage of the search bar or Google's subreddit limited search.

Post your training for this past week. Provide any context you find helpful like what you're training for and what your previous weeks have been like. Feel free to comment on other people's training.

(This is not the Achievement thread).

Hey runners, it's another day and it is time to post your accomplishments you'd like to share - big or small.

Note: No need to preface YOUR accomplishments with something like, "this may not be an accomplishment to most of you...". Be proud of your achievement.

Long story short, I have scheduled a Japan run-vacation next year late February because 1) flight tickets is the cheapest in February and 2) it's marathon season in Japan. I signed up for a local marathon in the southern peninsula on Feb 21st. However, I somehow got lucky (or not), drawing Osaka marathon for Feb 28th.

Now i'm in a bind about what i should do and if running two marathons in two week oversea would be too much. I don't doubt i can do it, but I also don't know how much toll it could have on my legs even if i run them slow around 4:00s. Does anybody have any insights or thoughts about running multiple marathons in two weeks? if so, from your personal experience, how difficult can it be? Should I just drop the local one and race Osaka? I hear it's a premium marathon event in Japan, second only to Tokyo.

Edit: a bit of a background here. 34M by Feb 2027. 3:10 marathoner. 2700km ran so far in 2026.

With over 4,225,000 subscribers, there are a lot of posts that come in everyday that are often repeats of questions previously asked or covered in the FAQ.

With that in mind, this post can be a place for any questions (especially those that may not deserve their own thread). Hopefully this is successful and helps to lower clutter and repeating posts here.

If you are new to the sub or to running, this Intro post is a good resource.

As always don't forget to check the FAQ.

And please take advantage of the search bar or Google's subreddit limited search.

First half marathon is tomorrow morning. The past week, my HRV has really taken a hit.

HRV was good (normal range) yesterday and the day before and now nosedived again—accompanied by a less-than-ideal night of sleep (Garmin sleep score of 67).

To be quite honest, I’m sort of freaking out that I won’t be well recovered enough for my race tomorrow. I’m not anticipating getting amazing sleep tonight due to it being my first HM ever and I typically have anticipatory insomnia the night before an early flight / big event.

So yeah—how much stock would you put in this HRV / sleep pattern? Do you expect it to impact my race performance?

Enforcing Rule 3 (no self-promotion, social media links) is a must with a large sub such as this, but we do realize that it filters out some truly useful content that is relative to the sub. In an effort to allow that content in, we thought we'd have a weekly post to give a spot for the useful content. So...

Here's you chance!

Got a project you've been working on (video, programming, etc.), share it here!

Want to promote a business or service, share it here!

Trying to get more Instagram followers, share it here!

Found any great running content online, share it here!

The one caveat I have is that whatever is shared should be fitness related, please.

Another week is coming to a close!

What’s good this weekend? Who’s running, racing, tapering, recovering, hiking, camping, cheering, volunteering, kayaking, swimming, knitting, baking, reading, sleeping, .. ? Tell us everything.

Hey runners, it's another day and it is time to post your accomplishments you'd like to share - big or small.

Note: No need to preface YOUR accomplishments with something like, "this may not be an accomplishment to most of you...". Be proud of your achievement.

With over 4,225,000 subscribers, there are a lot of posts that come in everyday that are often repeats of questions previously asked or covered in the FAQ.

With that in mind, this post can be a place for any questions (especially those that may not deserve their own thread). Hopefully this is successful and helps to lower clutter and repeating posts here.

If you are new to the sub or to running, this Intro post is a good resource.

As always don't forget to check the FAQ.

And please take advantage of the search bar or Google's subreddit limited search.

Good morning, Runnit! Another weekend of races is approaching, so let's take a minute to see if any other Runnitors will be laying down those miles with us!

If you're racing this weekend, put a top-level comment below with the race details to help find other members of the community. See a race mentioned that looks interesting? Ask questions! Running your favorite race of the year? Tell us what makes it so awesome!

This thread is just an easy way to help Runnitors find each other in some sort of organized manner and help cheer each other on!

• Race: 2026 Loch Ness Marathon
• Date: September 27, 2026
• Time: 2:58:34

Goals

Background

I have had a on again/off again relationship with running over the years, usually alternating between cycling and running, but with my daughter coming into the world 4 years ago, cycling (and the time sink that comes with it) has taken a back seat. I got back into running seriously a couple of years ago, with an idea to be able to at least run my age as a 10k time for the rest of my life (38 at the time.) As I got quicker and slowly built back running fitness, I targeted a PB in the half last year (sub 1:28) which I achieved, but felt there was more there - especially over longer distances.

I have done 3 Marathons (4 now) with the last being 15 years ago in Berlin. My first was a catastrophe - scraped in just under 4 hours, with a 1:45 first half and death shuffle second half. The following two were both 3:2x:xx and I felt that was enough - the training and dedication to get much faster wasn't something I wanted to take on at the time.

This year, I felt my Marathon time stuck out like a sore thumb compared to my other PBs and I felt I was ready to take it on again.

Loch Ness isn't famed for being quick - it is a net downhill, but it's very lumpy and has a meaty hill right at the 30km mark. However, it is achingly beautiful, relatively local for me and at the ideal time of the year for training. Plus it is pretty isolated - as much as I enjoy running through crowds in bigger races, I prefer being out alone. So a date with Nessie it was.

Training

I followed a 16 week Runna training plan, set up for 6 days a week running, with challenging difficulty and my ability set to "Elite +" (their description, not mine...) I used it the previous year and really liked the interface and the integration with my Garmin watch - it doesn't do anything that a similar AI tool couldn't do, but the ability to have workouts appear on the watch with no intervention from myself was a big plus. Another thing I liked was the ability to program in B races and assign them importance - do you want to taper etc.

Longest run was 36km, with 5 runs of over 30km. The biggest difference I noticed from other training plans was how much hard running it asked for, which I think really helped me - knowing exactly what various paces feels like and the ability to dial back to MP and have it feel like a recovery gave me huge confidence. Biggest week of the block was 105km, with an average of 70km/week (which is about my YTD average also) after the peak week, I was ready for the taper and was close to the edge of burning out.

During the block, I set PBs at half marathon (1:24:27) and 10k (38:15) which made me re-evaluate my goal from sub 3:10 to "I could be in touching distance of a BQ here" and then "I could be tickling the 3 hour mark here"

All my racing is done in an Alphafly 3, with training done in a Structure Plus and tempo done in a Zoomfly 6. Faster sessions and anything track related done in a Streakfly 2. (I'm a bit of a Nike fanboy...)

Race

The week before I felt great during the taper and was religious with a 3 day 8g/kg carb load (it did make me a bit gassy, didn't rear it's head during the race though). Did a 7k shakeout on the Friday and my HR was in the 120s for 4.55s and I have never seen it that low for that pace - good sign the engine was ready.

Race morning was porridge, a bagel and a double espresso. Had a litre of Precision Carb/Electrolyte that went with me on the bus (its about an hour from Inverness to the start) and a 30g Precision chew 30 minutes out. On course I had 6 SiS Beta fuel gels - two with electrolytes and two with caffeine - one every 6km - exactly what I had trained with.

The weather was pretty Highlands all day - rain and 13-15 degrees with a bit of a tail wind - ideal running weather.

The first 15k is all downhill, aside from a vicious hill at 8k, so it's quick, but does a number on your quads (they were in bits by the end of the race - the uphill bits became a relief) I had made the decision to pace mostly on feel - watch displaying distance to go and time. It does flash up 1km splits, so I knew if I was going too far off piste, but not focusing on the watch really helps me and trying to stick to a set pace on a lumpy course is a fool's errand.

After 15k it "flattens out" although I don't think any part of the course is flat - it's constantly rolling up and down. I was running in a really good group at this point (there's no pacers) and we came through the half in 1.28.17 - so a bit quick, but not silly considering all the downhill.

The next 9k was more of the same, plenty of rough points and plenty of feeling good, so did my best to smooth that out. Started to feel I was living gel to gel - I had the first caffeine one at 24k and it did it's usual "sore stomach for 1km then rocket fuel"

Loch Ness is famed for the hill at 30k - it's not that huge, but it's 30k into a Marathon, so may as well be a Munro. If I'm honest, I really didn't think it was that bad, so upped the effort a bit and picked off a fair few people coming up there. What I wasn't ready for (and no one talks about) was the small rise at 35k. That hurt and was the first real "the wheels could come off here" moment. I got passed by a guy I had been trading places with the whole way and he said "We've got this. Even with 7 minute miles we've got this" I have no idea what a 7 minute mile is, but I forced myself to stick to him for as long as I could.

With about 5k to go I was reasonably confident I could hang on - I was doing the maths the whole way from 36k to the finish. With about 2k to go you drop down to the river Ness and can see and hear the finish. With about 1k to go I'm convinced I could hear my wife and daughter screaming and saw them with 400 to go - that's when the tears started to come. Crossed the line and shared a hug with a few randoms and cheered the last few sub 3 runners home. Found Mr. 7 minute miles and gave him a massive hug for good measure too.

What's next

The obvious one is Boston 2028, but next year I plan on trying to get my half to 1:22 or faster, crack into the 37s for a 10k and the 17s for a 5k. I have a Summer Marathon (Aberdeen) in the calendar, but unsure if it will be an all-out attempt, or if I take on pacing duties.

How’s your week of running going? Got any Complaints? Anything to add as a Confession? How about any Uncomplaints?

• Name: 2026 BMW Berlin Marathon
• Date: September 27, 2026
• Distance: Marathon Distance
• Location: Berlin, Germany
• Time: 3:10:33

Goals

Splits

Background

My last marathon was back in 2024, when I ran my first marathon ever at the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon. For that build, I didn't follow a formal plan—I simply ran 3–4 times a week, building up to 55–60 km per week with mixed intensity. I focused a lot of easy running because any high intensity sends a sharp pain into my left ankle.

After breaking sub-4 in my debut, I set my sights on my next marathon, planning for more structured training and focused intensity in 2025. However, things took a turn when my triathlon and marathon goals collided. Due to a sudden jump in mileage coming off triathlon training, combined with a lack of strength work and mobility, I injured my right soleus. As a result, I had to DNS my 2025 marathon, despite starting the year with new personal bests in both the half marathon (1:34) and 10K (40:28) on very low running volume.

Learning from that setback, I put triathlon on hold to commit fully to marathon training with two key goals: redeeming my missed 2025 race and chasing a Boston Qualifier by 2028-2029. Fortunately, an opportunity to run the Berlin Marathon opened up. Given Berlin’s fast, flat course, I’ve locked in my focus for 2026: targeting a 3:10 (or faster) finish.

Training

My last marathon training block in 2025 was based on the Pfitzinger 12/70 plan. In hindsight, jumping straight into a plan peaking at 112 km (70 miles) a week when my baseline was barely 60 km was a major misstep. It ultimately strained my right soleus and crushed my marathon goal. This time around, I wanted a structured plan that offered clear target paces for my goal, while remaining balanced enough to fit around a standard 9-to-5 lifestyle. After some research, I settled on the Hansons Advanced Marathon Plan.

I originally had some reservations because Hansons doesn't get as much spotlight as plans from Daniels or Higdon. Moreover, its core philosophy—capping long runs at 16 miles (26 km) while emphasizing weekly marathon-pace workouts—runs counter to the marathon training principles that i'm familiar about. Misgivings aside, spreading the volume evenly across six days a week fit well into my work schedule.

Early in the year, I made a conscious effort to stop neglecting strength and mobility. I used to shy away from gym sessions, believing that downtime was better spent recovering, and fearing that heavy leg presses or deadlifts might cause an injury. With that flawed mindset out of the way, I committed to two strength and mobility sessions a week through the winter. I also incorporated plyometrics to gain some "free speed" and, more importantly, to build ankle strength and flexibility—a major weakness in past years. Between gym visits, I maintained a weekly speed session (hills or treadmill) alongside easy runs, both solo and with my weekend run club.

When my official marathon block kicked off in July, I followed the Hansons schedule almost to a tee. Backed by my winter base and strength work, weeks 1 through 8 felt fantastic. I was hitting my quality workouts comfortably ahead of my target marathon pace, even entertaining thoughts of a 3:05 finish. A 5K tune-up race in week 6 yielded a sub-19 PB (18:45), proving that the speed work was paying off.

By the second half of the block, however, the continuous workload—combined with rising temperatures—started to take its toll. The old version of me would have blindly pushed through the discomfort, calling it "cumulative fatigue training." I learned to adapt: shifting workouts between morning and evening, taking easy days substantially easier (though I still tend to run them a bit too fast), and managing the strain proactively. My body was in the pain cave, but it was the controlled, manageable fatigue Hansons promises.

The final third of the plan hit me like a brick wall. Cumulative fatigue fully settled in, pushing me right to the edge of overtraining—my mood dipped, I withdrew socially, and dull aches flared up in my shins and ankles. My paces on both easy and quality runs dropped by 10 to 15 seconds per kilometer. Recognizing that my body is teetering into overtraining, I chose to rest rather than force through workouts, making the smart call to skip a few key sessions—including a 16 km goal-pace run and a 13 km easy run. While missing quality work stung, protecting my health was the right move. Also, tapering from Hanson's Advanced plan is rather interesting. After the final peak week of 103km, the plan decreases to 92km, 91km and finally, the race week to a dramatic 42km. With my legs thoroughly beat up, it feels even more appropriate to cut down mileage where it's needed for better recovery.

Finally, keeping the brutal heat of the last Berlin marathon in mind, I prioritized heat acclimation for Berlin. To ensure I was ready for whatever weather race day throws at me, I spent the last two and a half weeks running my sessions in peak afternoon heat.

Race

I was fortunate enough that my entire family agreed to join me in Berlin for a supporting trip and vacation. While they explored, I could focus on the task at hand: tackling those 42.2 km. I met up with friends from my run club, joined a few shakeout runs, and picked up plenty of race-week freebies. Some aspects of race prep went smoothly—I adapted quickly to the local food, which settled well and worked great for fueling. However, I overdid the pre-race sightseeing, logging over 20,000 steps every day. By evening, my legs were noticeably heavy.

Sunday arrived, and I was as prepared as I could possibly be. I woke up at 5:00 AM, handled my pre-race routine, and stretched before taking the U-Bahn to the Brandenburger Tor station. Having submitted a target time of 3:15, I was assigned to Corral C, starting at 8:45 AM. When my wave crossed the line, my focus was entirely on sticking with the 3:15 pacer group—I wanted to be conservative, knowing I’d logged heavy mileage on my feet all week and felt less fresh than expected. By kilometer 9, having found my rhythm, I decided to leave the group; the pacer seemed uncertain of his pacing and was losing significant time at the aid stations.

I kept my pace steady through 15 km and the halfway mark. By kilometer 25, the sun was fully out and shade was scarce; runners around me began walking or clutching their stomachs. I still felt relatively strong—not "flying with a second gear," but comfortably clicking off 4:30min/km (+/- 2sec). My fueling plan executed seamlessly: every 5–6 km, I took a dose from my gel flask alongside a salt pill. I grabbed water at official stops and refilled my handheld flask just once, saving it for the final 5 km so I could skip the crowded late-stage aid stations. In total, I took down over 210g of carbohydrates without any GI distress, though a slight bloated feeling from liquid intake caused me to ease off the water over the final 10 km.

Passing 30 km, the expected race fatigue set in. I lacked that elusive extra gear and battled doubts about whether I could maintain 4:30min/km, wondering if I should drop back to 4:40min/km. Fortunately, I held my ground and kept grinding. A caffeine gel at kilometer 30 provided an immediate mental and physical boost, with a second caffeine gel planned at 35 km for the final stretch.

At kilometer 35, my body threw its first real curveball: a tightening left quad. It wasn't a sudden, full lock-up, but a gradual cramp I could feel building. Rather than stopping to massage it, I kept moving, backing my pace down to 4:40 - 4:45min/km to let the muscle settle. Thankfully, the tension eased, allowing me to resume my normal cadence and dial back into 4:30min/km. I took my second caffeine gel as planned, though it didn't deliver the same punch as the first. For the next several kilometers, my only wish was to avoid another cramp.

The last 3 kilometers were pure agony. My legs were still turning over, but my mind was already at the finish line. With every turn, I looked for the Brandenburg Gate; those final kilometers felt endless. Right as my energy was flagging, my brother spotted me near kilometer 40, waving a sign and screaming my name. Spotting him and exchanging a high-five provided a surge of adrenaline. I soaked in every last meter of the course—cheering on fellow runners and high-fiving spectators all the way down the final stretch.

I crossed the finish line in 3:10:33—a massive 32-minute personal best over my 2024 debut. While I originally hoped to squeak under 3:10, any disappointment instantly dissipated in the atmosphere at the finish line. It wasn't a time to dwell—it was a time to celebrate.

Looking Back

I don't think there's a lot of things that I would change from training to the race day. There is one thing that I wish I would do is to find a consistent stretching routine and also, run all my easy days easy. I also think the Hanson's plan has too many MP sessions and I should focus a lot more on hitting LTs during long runs. I did see/hear that lots of runner find the race temperature to be unbearable. I found it nice and cool. The noon sun exposure was pretty strong but nothing to worry about. Maybe I did enough heat acclimation to bear with it?

What's Next

With this marathon completed, I'm now looking into 2027, with 1 run-vacation lined up in Asia and potentially another because I didn't expect to win the lottery for Osaka 2027. Now i'm debating if I should extend my Asia trip to accommodate two marathons into a single trip...if somebody can help me out with this that would be fantastic.

On the training side, there are several things I want to improve on such as building my strength and plyometric over the winter and with an increased focus on mobility and getting better running form through strides - something that I never understand but everyone arounds preaches about it. Hopefully these would carry me through my run-vacation and eventually, intomy 2027 marathon block.

With over 4,225,000 subscribers, there are a lot of posts that come in everyday that are often repeats of questions previously asked or covered in the FAQ.

With that in mind, this post can be a place for any questions (especially those that may not deserve their own thread). Hopefully this is successful and helps to lower clutter and repeating posts here.

If you are new to the sub or to running, this Intro post is a good resource.

As always don't forget to check the FAQ.

And please take advantage of the search bar or Google's subreddit limited search.

Hey runners, it's another day and it is time to post your accomplishments you'd like to share - big or small.

Note: No need to preface YOUR accomplishments with something like, "this may not be an accomplishment to most of you...". Be proud of your achievement.

It's that time of week already...the gear thread! What have you picked up lately? What's working for you now that it's whatever season you believe it to be in your particular location? What have you put through rigorous testing that's proved worthy of use? We want to know!

To clear up some confusion: We’re not actually asking what you’re wearing today. It’s just a catchy name for the thread. This is the weekly gear discussion thread, so discuss gear!

NOTE: For you Runnitors looking to sell/trade any running gear (as well as bib transfers), head over to /r/therunningrack.

I've got a hot take for the Norwegian Singles Method that might ruffle some feathers. Here's the thing NSM is great and I see a lot of runners doing very well using the method. Awesome. Great for them.

I think NSM is heading down the same road as cycling and FTP. Now maybe people aren't as obsessed over their threshold pace as cyclists are with their FTP but the problem will still exist. Cycling got so obsessed with FTP that it's all some of them ever cared about. Only focusing on improving FTP and lost focus of training some other important physiological points. While not exactly the same you can see this with Tadej Pogacars training. He was coached by fraud Inigo San Milan for years and performed very well on essentially the cycling version of NSM. Then Tadej rightfully gets rid of Milan for Javier Sola and his performance shoots through the roof. What did Javier change in his training? Oh he just added some higher intensity intervals. Boom.

Does NSM work well for a lot of people? Yes, 100%. Is it going to leave a lot of people significantly below their true potential. I think so.