My Marathon Strategy Revealed

With endurance we conquer.

I am thinking about it a lot. And the more I think, the more I can visualize myself finishing the marathon with nothing left. I would collapse at the finish line just like Pheidippides did. I won't die though, I hope. I'll just leave everything behind the race and lay down in fatigue and exhaustion, and quite possibly be drowning in tears of joy.

That is the strategy right there. I will walk you through the details of this strategy. Let's move on.

As with any sound battle plan, to formulate a good strategy, we will need to know our advantages and accept our disadvantages. To maximize our chances of victory, we should carry the fight our way, with our style and on our comfort zone. We would want the fight to proceed in a manner in which we could apply our advantages to the fullest and to be able to exploit the disadvantages of our competitors, if any.

Guard your thoughts. Don't harbor jealousy or envy of other athletes. A marathon is yours and yours alone.

Know our advantages and exploit our competitors disadvantages. On my case, I'm not competing for the top spot. I am competing to be the best runner I can possibly be. So I will just focus on my strengths and my weaknesses and formulate a race strategy based on that. I know how elite athletes could finish marathons below 3 hours. At the world stage, Sammy Wanjiru, Haile Gebrselassie and Ryan Hall could do it under 2:10:00. Good for them, great athletes. I am not chasing after them though. As a cliche I have been repeating over and over, this is a battle against myself - to be the best I could possibly be.

What are my advantages then? Disadvantages?

Disadvantages First.

1. I am a first time marathon challenger. Zero experience.
2. Past 3 hours of running, my legs already feel the pounding like I have never felt before. Beyond 3 hours, it feels like I'm in a torture chamber taking all the punishments there is. Painfully difficult. Indescribable punishment.
3. No running buddy. I have always ran alone during long runs and during races. No pat in the back, no cheerful "kaya mo 'yan", no inspirational smiles, no nothing. Just me, myself and the road.
   

Advantages:

1. I have trained myself to run faster than I ever was. I could now run at 4:09 min/km for 5Km straight.
2. Physically prepared with careful and strategic planning and training schedule. I have interval runs, tempo runs, easy runs, long runs with uphill terrains, abdominal exercises / core drills, anaerobic training with boxing and basketball. My training schedule has been posted here long before I started my first marathon training run.
   
3. Besides conditioning my mind to stay on course on this marathon dream, I have Nerissa, my family, my friends and you guys reading this blog serving as my inspiration. I have always said I cannot run this marathon alone. And with the support I have been receiving from you all, I am more motivated to finish my marathon.
   

Like a piggy bank, every workout is a small deposit. Every deposit counts.

I have been training for a lot of weeks now preparing my body to last 42 kilometers of running. To be honest with you all, I am just around 50% ready at this point. Clouds of doubts still float all over me. The fear of a "Did Not Finish (DNF)" lingers. A race strategy could be pretty useless at this point in time where I am unsure of finishing the marathon distance. Physical training is the utmost priority. I could plan all month long, but without an able body to run with? I will just be spitting nonsense after nonsense here, right?

No worries, there is still more than 3 full weeks to prepare the body. This Sunday, I should log 35Km of long run from our house in Silang, Cavite to Tagaytay City and back. That should build my confidence or that should ruin all my plans and strategies. That's how important the run is. It's a gauge. Hopefully, a confidence builder.

And then more runs to follow. An interval run to prepare me for my first 5K race on the 24th of October. A little cut back on the weekly mileage to keep the body fresh and recover from the gruesome training sessions. And then a marathon race simulation run to rehearse the game plan - the strategy in action. Lastly, the marathon race.

Little by little we should conquer. Focus on the daily runs, confidence is built by continuous preparation. It has to be earned. And while doing so, there should be no rush to build endurance and confidence for the upcoming marathon. Both takes precious time. Focus today so we could be prepared for tomorrow.

Have Faith. Talk, Act, Plan and Think that you are going to finish what you started.

Three more weeks, I am going to finish my marathon. Hard work pays off. Perseverance keeps us on course. That is why I am letting out my strategy this early. It makes me accountable to everything I've written. It motivates me to finish what I've started. It allows me to follow the plan relentlessly despite any obstacles that come my way.

Michaelangelo: The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that we aim too low and we reach it.

I am aiming high. If you have followed my very first post discussing about a possible marathon, I wanted to do it under 3:45:00. A sub 4-hour marathon debut. Had I set my aim too low, I would not have been as relentless in my pursuit. Had it been an easier goal, I would not be having douts and fears of a DNF. Had it been an easy fight, there would be less victory to celebrate and talk about.

Train effectively. Challenge yourself.

How would you know if your training methods are effective? Have you challenged yourself enough to bring out the very best in you?

You must set a goal before you train. Plan before you act. Analyze your performance in relation to your goals. That is how I would know if my training methods are effective. I wanted to run faster. How would I achieve that? I researched for the workouts that would suit me and then adapt those training and workouts to my needs and goals. Then train as planned. Challenge yourself to bring out the best in you. And when the action begins, execute what you have trained for.

Strive for your best performance and personal excellence.

And now the strategy must be revealed. This is what I have been training for. And I do believe this would give me the best possible performance out of my current running capabilities. I have based this strategy from the knowledge of my strengths and the acceptance of my weaknesses.

Best Scenario: Finish @ 3:20:00
The Most Probable Scenario: Finish @ 3:40:00
Worst Scenario: Finish but suffer from exhaustion and severe leg pains beyond 4+ hours.

The Strategy:

• Divide the 42Km marathon distance into shorter familiar race distances. A half marathon, a 10K and then a 5Mile.
• Above 3 hours, I will feel the heavy pounding on my legs. The more minutes I run beyond 3 hours, the more suffering.
• Specifically, run the half marathon at 4:40 min/km pace. I have done this at Rota Run. This is also my Tempo training pace beyond 5Km. I might just know what you think now.. Pandesal Runner is crazy! He should be conserving energy from the first half of the race. The popular and more advisable strategy would be to run conservatively. That is precisely why I trained to be faster for the first two weeks of my marathon training. I have improved my 5K pace to 4:09 min/km so a 4:40 min/km for the first 21K could be manageable and enjoyable.
  
• After the first 21K, relax, stretch for a while. Jogging pace for the first 500 meters then slowly accelerate for the next 500 meters until I see the 22nd kilometer sign.
  
• Run the next 10K as if it was a 10K race - incidentally, my favorite race distance. I should be a little tired and a little fired up by this point. A little tired because I have just ran 21Km even with the 1 km recovery pace. A little fired up because this will be my chance to beat my 51:19 10K PR. From Km 22 to Km 32, run at 4:30 min/km pace.
• After the 32K, relax, stretch for a while. Jogging pace for the first 500 meters then slowly accelerate for the next 500 meters until the 33rd kilometer.
• Run the next 8K as if it were a 5Mile race - incidentally, I have never joined a 5Mile race. I should be a lot tired and a lot more motivated at this juncture. A lot tired as I have just ran 33Km, 31 of those at race pace. My legs would be a little shaky from this point on, the knees will feel the pressure and the calves would be hard and tight and on the verge of cramping. On the positive end, I would be a lot more motivated as it would be the last phase of my marathon strategy. The third and final chapter of a historic run in a personal level. Nerissa, my family and some of my friends will all be waiting for me at the finish line. One more determined push to finish the battle. The next 8K should be run at 4:30 min/km pace.
• To summarize, the strategy would be 21-10-8. The paces would be 4:40 pace for the 21K, 4:30 pace for the 10 and 8K distances and then a recovery pace of 7:30 for the 1km in-between race paces.
  

Develop a vision of victory - visualize your moment when crossing the finish line!

Three more weeks from now, and the strategy will be put to action. Meanwhile, I have been continuously training my body to adapt to the 42Km distance. As I've said, the strategy will just be thrown to waste if I don't have an able body to run with.

Mental toughness also comes into play. I guess joining this marathon is a good sign of mental toughness. I wouldn't be here if I wasn't tough enough. It could also be ruled out as being just crazy enough to be joining the marathon. At the last 10 kilometers of the marathon, the body would be very much willing to quit. It would be the role of the mind to take control. To remember why we joined the marathon and why we want to finish. To convince the body to stay strong and active until the finish line. To be aware of the needs of the body for hydration, stretching and a little massage for comfort. To know when to speed up and when to recover. And to always remember not to quit on everything we believed in from the very start. My friends, my family, my beloved readers, Nerissa, myself, we shall all share the glory of this marathon dream.

Mix it up. Go really slow for a change.

Wait.. Wait.. Wait.. I happen to know how to count Jayson. Your 21-10-8, that's only 41Km with the two 1K recovery paces in between. Will you NOT cross the finish line?

Thank goodness, you reminded me. ;)

I have been working all week and all month trying to be the fastest runner I could be at this point in time. Besides giving it all out on the  21-10-8 race strategy and with almost nothing left to give on the last kilometer, I think it's a very nice feeling to just go slow and jog the last kilometer and 195 meters of the race towards the finish line. Feel the energy of the crowd. Enjoy the surroundings. Show support and flash your genuine smiles to your fellow runners and marathoners - share the glory of all the sweat, time and blood invested on this marathon run. Dance to the music. Shout and giggle to celebrate the moment. Drop a couple of tears of joy. Embrace your friends and family waiting for you on the finish line. Just take your time and be grateful that you have the resource to train and run when more than half the population of the world are merely getting by and trying to survive. Take that last kilometer as my victory run. There is absolutely no need to rush.

This is my marathon run. I will see you at the starting line. Hopefully, you will see me at the finish line.

-
Special thanks to the Marathon Geek for the Twitter inspirational quotes.