This is the second-season finale ofTraining Diaries, a Lifehacker series about my journey to the 2024 Philadelphia Marathon.
Ever since my first marathon in 2019, I had never beaten my own timeuntil last weekend.
Of course, to get to take advantage of race day conditions, you oughta be knowledgeable and prepared.
Even though the weather forecast was cloudy, Iproactively wore a hatthat protected me during unexpected sunny stretches.
After overheating in my November race last year, I knew to opt for shorts over leggings.
And when I opted for shorts, I knew to go crazy with my anti-chafing stick.
(Shout-out to theBody Glide anti-chafing stickit routinely saves my life for just $8.99.)
Perfecting my fueling strategy
In 2023, I vomited afterrunning the New York City Marathon.
The culprit: over-hydrating.
First, there’s pre-race hydration.
Start hydrating deeply 24-48 hours before the marathon.
This means consistently drinking water and electrolyte drinks, not just chugging water right before the start.
Then, you’ve got your actual race day plan.
Throughout the race,only sip.
I don’t know if I can put it more plainly than that.
I like to start fueling early, around the 45-minute mark.
If it were easy, everyone would do it.
Positive self-talk: Develop mantras or mental strategies to push through challenging sections.
My go-to this year was to tell myself over and over, “I can do hard things.”
And I was right!
Visualization: Practice mental imagery during training, imagining yourself strong and resilient in those difficult miles.
When the time came to push through, I felt like I was simply following a well-rehearsed script.
Missing a few training runs (which I did!)
won’t derail your entire preparation.
And if youtrust the process, consistency matters more than occasional missed sessions.
Setting a personal record is about more than just physical training.
I believe if marathon training gives you one thingbesides sore musclesits perspective.
(And if marathon trainingtakesone thing from you,its your toenails.
Who needs em?)
I’ve had some real stinkers of races in my running career.
This past weekend reminded me that the mantra I tell myself is actually true: Icando hard things.
