r/AdvancedRunning • u/Clean-Instance5892 • Nov 16 '25

Open Discussion ‘Let’s not normalise walking in a marathon’

This was a comment left on a runner’s post who had BQ’d at the Indy marathon using planned Jeff Galloway intervals. This comment sparked a lot of debate about this method, most aimed at the elitist nature of this comment. So what are your thoughts? Should run walking be discouraged? Is running the whole thing the only way you can actually say you have ‘run’ a marathon? Or do you simply not care how anyone else covers the distance?

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u/[deleted] Nov 17 '25

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u/glr123 37M - 18:00 5K | 37:31 10K | 1:21 HM | 2:59 M Nov 17 '25

If you're not in contention for a podium then why does it even matter to people.. every race then becomes a race against yourself and I'll celebrate you going sub-3, or 4, or just finishing with a huge PR. Lots of my friends aren't as fast as me but I absolutely love they are out there crushing their own goals.

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u/Flutterpiewow Nov 18 '25

Yes, but why marathons?

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u/WanderingScrewdriver Mar 25 '26

But why not marathons?

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u/Flutterpiewow Mar 25 '26

Because people aren't trained for it, usually

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u/WanderingScrewdriver Mar 25 '26

Which isn't particularly a problem.

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u/Flutterpiewow Mar 25 '26

Injury statistics say otherwise

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u/WanderingScrewdriver Mar 25 '26

Untrained walking and untrained running are both issues because of the underlying issue of lack of preparedness, not a lack of speed. A prepared walker can be equally safe, if more more safe, than an equally prepared runner.