Race Recap: How I fueled & how I felt at the Revel Big Bear Marathon (and 5 things that made the difference)
“We’re going to Boston.”
Those words will forever be a part of my memory box. My husband said those words after I crossed the finish line of the Revel Big Bear Marathon. I was going for a very BIG goal, and nailed my training, and race day gave me favorable conditions.
I beat my first marathon time by nearly 40 minutes. Beat my PR by nearly 7 minutes. Minutes are a lot when it comes to the marathon, as you may know.
In my podcast (tap to listen), I give a more detailed version of the story, but something I don’t mention is:
WHAT HELPED ME THE MOST TO DROP MY TIME.
I gave this a lot of thought, and came to the conclusion that it came down to 5 specific things.
Fuel (of course she would say that lol)
The build/base training
Strength work
Mental strategies
Speedwork & easy runs
FUEL
You know this was important. In my first marathon, I literally had no idea what I was doing. I thought I knew nutrition, but I didn’t. Fueling a marathon is SO MUCH MORE than what the average joe knows about how to eat right. I learned how to optimize macronutrients, how to properly hydrate, when and what to eat prior to my runs & race day, what supplements to add, when to use caffeine, what a recovery meal should look like. I can go on and on about how to fuel (and in fact, I do in the Essential Marathon Fueling Course!). I’ll save my breath and just let you know that you’ll find so many answers inside that course. Oh- and bonus, I offer in that podcast episode I mentioned earlier, a carb-loading schedule! Check it out here.
THE BUILD/BASE TRAINING
This was something that took time. You’re not gonna run your fastest on the first marathon. Usually you get better over time. And it isn’t always linear. Many marathoners, including me, don’t improve their time every time. Sometimes it goes up sometimes down. But in my case, I was coming up from my first postpartum marathon. Then after that marathon, I finally had a base built, where I had an endurance built up. THIS TAKES TIME, and I’ll say that over and over again. Getting a strong base of mileage over a few months or even years can help level up your ability to run long.
STRENGTH WORK
Just by looking at photos, I can notice a difference in my strength between my marathons. As well as a good marathon build, we need to work strength as a BASE before we even work toward the marathon, then keep it up as we go. It’s tempting to try to do strengthwork for a body-builder, but we need it to be marathon-specific. When I started to do more single-leg work and running-specific exercises, rather than general weight-lifting, I noticed a HUGE difference.
MENTAL STRATEGIES
People call me crazy, but I like to race without headphones. I know. It allows me to get into a special “zone”, where I am able to tune into my body. I practice mantras prior to my race so that when I am in the race, I am able to get in that zone and use those mantras, affirmations, and positive thinking to get me through the race. Things like Keira D’amato’s quote: “It always gets harder right before you level up”. Or, “I’m unstoppable”. Or “Prove to my children that they can do ANYTHING they put their mind to. Or “Boston-hunt those unicorns and pick them off one by one”. Or “Give up, give in, or GIVE IT ALL I GOT”. I like to also break the race down into chunks. Having a race strategy for each seciton. For example: first 10 miles, warmup. Second 10 miles, sustain. Last 10K, KICK. Listening to motivational and running-related podcasts/books during my training cycle helped a lot as well.
SPEEDWORK & EASY RUNNING
Another thing that was KEY to my improvement was SLOWING DOWN on a majority of my runs. Running too fast doesn’t allow your body to adapt because it is constantly trying to keep up & recover. Run at an EASY effort, and then that will allow you to take the benefits of speedwork 1-2 sessions each week. I stayed consistent with my plan, slowing down when I needed to, and that allowed me to hit my goal paces during training and surprise myself on race day.
I hope you can learn from some of the things I learned at this race. I’m looking forward to future races where I can continue to implement these things, and see continued benefits! What’s something you did that leveled up your game? I’d love to hear about it!