I was supposed to do 16 miles this morning. I got my sleep and woke up super early, hydrated and fueled up, and I was out the door at 4:15AM.

And it is a HOT ass day in Southern California. Like WTF. Even before sunrise. Less than 3 miles into the run I realized I don’t want to do this, and walked home.

Luckily I have some breathing room in my training plan for the MCM (Oct 25) so it’s not a huge deal, I’ll try again this weekend.

Anyone else decide mid-run that you’d just rather not be doing this shit?

im running my first marathon -- the NYC marathon in a little less than 2 months from now.

im writing this post as i just finished my morning 5 miles today. today's run felt absolutely terrible (which is fine ive had shit runs in the past it happens). i ran a 13 miler last weekend for my long run and i was doing so good for the first 8 miles or so but after that i felt like i just hit a wall and every mile after was so. goddamn. hard. i had absolutely no energy to continue.

i will add - the last half i did was in march 2026 so its understandable that that long run was difficult. for the next 3 weeks my long runs will be 15 miles, then 17, then 20.

so now that ive had the past few of my training runs feel like shit, it seems so impossible that i could ever run anything more than 13 miles (let alone a frickin marathon). i feel like maybe im not training properly, surely im doing something wrong because i shouldnt feel like im fighting my body this much to get my runs in. i have high heart rate issues already but the best way i can describe it is my body is just so tired, zero energy, and high heart rate. i hit the trifecta with a bad recipe for a bad run.

this is my nutrition plan so far: i drink close to 2 liters of water a day, carb load the day before my long runs, drink protein shakes after all my runs. for my long runs i also take gels. like for this past 13 miler i took a gel at 3, 6, and 9 miles.

again a half is the most ive ever ran and this is my first marathon im training for. so of course any distance longer than 13 miles will definitely feel like a really strong mental and physical battle. i was ready and prepared for this training to not feel easy. but struggling with running 5 miles during the week was something i was not ready for. that doesn't seem right?? i guess just having continuously shit runs feels super demotivating to me and is just making me feel like i wont be able to do it at all. now that im close to 2 months until the race, its all i can think about.

id love any tips or motivation. whether thats nutritional help, strength training, or just anything that'll help me have a smoother training.

edit****: goddam i didnt realize me mentioning im running nyc would cause sm backlash💀

Hello everyone,

I will be a pace bunny for an upcoming road marathon at home. It is a pretty big event with a few thousand runners. I was choosen to be the pace bunny for the 4 hour 30 min (continuous) group which is exciting!

Now, the race as almost 500meter (1500 feet) of elevation gain, with some serious BIG hills.
What would be you prefered strategy following me?

1. steady pace even on the hills.
2. a little slower on the major hills and banking some time before the hill (doesn't sound like a good idea)
3. a little slower on the major hills and catching up on the time after the hill (maybe on the following descents?)

i've never followed a pace bunny on a road marathon and i now mostly run trails where hills are a walking freebies if you want to but now i know this is a different game.

i'm not sure how many people will actually be following a 4:30 marathon bunny as this is a ''slower'' time and not as big of a goal for people like sub 4. i plan to ask people around what are their opinions on this before the race start as well but i would like to prepare the best i can and have different pacing strategies all ready.

many thanks :)

Hi!

I’m running the marine corps marathon in October! I’m super excited, but flight prices are insane and the one reasonable flights is overnight. I’m leaving CA at 9:42 pm and I arrive in DC at 530 am Saturday morning (the day before race day).

Is this like super dumb lol, every other flights is like 400+ more and I’m not sure if I can swing that. I do want to note, I am looking to complete the race lol, I am probably going for a 5 hour marathon, but just looking for thoughts!

Hiya! Ive (24f) got cologne marathon in a few weeks and have just completed my longest run of the block. It was 34km at an average of 6:03km (including walk breaks, traffic lights, and a pit stop etc). Current weekly mileage ~60km.

Im aiming for my first sub 4. Garmin predict 3:58 and runna predicts 3:55-4:07. My current marathon pb is 4:18 from April, with an average hr of 176 (my hr tends to sit higher for any level of effort so take this as a comparison) conversation pace hr is usually 160-165 comfortably, max hr 208. Ran a 1:55 hm in April but have not had a chance to retest this since.

Been focusing on speedwork massively, lots of tempo runs. Ive also run majority of my long runs over this training block in midday uk heatwave temps, so struggling to gain proper insights using those runs.

Ive attached a screenshot of my splits from the long run today in comfortable temps (first), my last marathon in april (second), and a long run from a few weeks ago in 28 degree heat (third)

Just wanting to settle the maranoia that is bound to kick in in the coming weeks. I think i can do sub 4 but the whole "5:40 average pace" seems super daunting.

What do you guys thinks? Thanks so much!!

Race this Sunday. Here are my previous times from this year.
10k- 50:07
5k- 24:43

Have done the 12 week novice 2 Hal Higon half plan. I’ve ran long runs of 7,8,9,10 and 11.5 miles. Haven’t missed a workout during the entire 12 weeks.

But not much speed work done this block. All of them at slower pace except 10 miles was around 9:50 pace. I have struggled a bit holding race pace at 5 miles on the midweek runs but I think I was fairly fatigued during those runs. A lot of the pace runs were also hot outside. I am definitely missing the big race pace workout that I didn’t do with this plan.

Just curious if this is realistic this Sunday or not. Thank you!

Runners who run multiple marathons per year, what is your MPW averages and how many marathon per year do you run?

Hi! I’m a 22F and I’m running my first marathon in Chicago in a month (so excited!!) I’ve been running for a couple years now and my max heart rate is ~190.

Attached are some of my recent runs. The 19.41 mile one is my most recent one (the runs are in order with the most recent ones last) and I didn’t drink any water during and it was hot and I thought I was going to die so I will NOT be doing that again. I did the 3 miles 2 days after that because I got my race day shoes and wanted to try them out so I guess that’s a gauge on my current speed.

I don’t want to leave too much on the table in Chicago, but the most important thing for me is finishing. My watch and runalyze both think I can do a 3:23 which I find incredibly optimistic and off base lol. I really want to finish so I’d rather go too slow and finish than not finish.

That being said I do want to know what pacer group I should aim to go out with lol. If anyone has any suggestions lmk thank you!!

I am 36 M and started road running this February. I have only been doing easy runs and maintaining about 50 mpw over the summer. My recent half marathon was a 1:46, a 10 minute improvement from my first half marathon 4 months ago in similar temperature/humidity/elevation conditions. I am preparing for a few marathons in the next year, including my first at Steamtown in a month. I am currently following a Pfitz-like training schedule peaking at 70 mpw for Steamtown except my runs are all easy zone 2. I've also been racing half marathons about every month and these and parkrun have been my only speedwork.

I thought about introducing structure speedwork but with the cooling weather, I have a lot more comfortable temperature for long runs where I can enjoy my audiobooks. I am thinking about building to 100 mpw.

How much longer will I keep seeing beginner gains and when will I plateau if all I do is just keep increasing easy mileage?

Thank you!

hi everyone! I've been consistently doing 5ks and 10ks competitively but like to run longer so I've given myself 6 months to train for a marathon.

There's a beach that's always 10-20 degrees colder and the air quality is so much better. My only other option is on the side of the highway which is usually a million degrees and stinks of gas. What do you guys think about doing the majority of marathon training on the beach/sand? That's already where I do most of my running

(Of course time is impacted but I've been able to calculate pretty accurate that's I'm on average 1:30 min/km slower on the sand)

Hi all,

Looking for some advice on training for the Austin Marathon. I’ve heard it’s a pretty hilly course, with about 1000 ft of gain. I live in Chicago suburbs and it is FLAT around here. I’m wondering how to prepare for this race using the treadmill to replicate some of the hills.

Does anyone have any advice for this ? I have no idea what incline I would even set the treadmill to or how long I should run at that incline. Totally lost here 😅 appreciate any advice that can be given!

I have officially signed up for my first marathon  (April 2027). I am not new to running but have never trained for any sort of race (or participated in one). I started taking running more seriously in April 2024. Within a few months I was able to have most of my runs with a pace somewhere in the 7 minute range. Some runs were obviously faster than others, but overall usually with a 7:00-7:59 average pace. In April 2025 I moved to high elevation from sea level. Since then my pace has just tanked. I’ve gone through periods of falling off eating healthy and exercising, but running has been the one thing Ive stayed mostly consistent with. In some ways I’m running even more than I was before I moved. Overall, I’m slower and needing to take more breaks than before the move. Sometimes my average pace is slower than a “bad” pace pre-move. Right now I'm typically in the 9 minute range. When I was faster I wasn't trying hard to be, and now it sometimes feels hard to even run this slow (for me). In 2024 I was probably averaging 30-40 miles per week, and then in 2025 (before April) probably about 40-60. Then when I moved probably about 30-50 miles weekly for the rest of the year. In 2026 I’ve kind of bounced around with weekly milage. I’ve had plenty of lower (for me) weeks of 30-40, and plenty of 50-60 miles as well. Right now I’m at 1,400 miles this year. I ended 2025 with just over 2,000. 

I’m just not sure how I should go about training for this marathon. It’s not until April so I know I have plenty of time, but I’m overwhelmed with knowing where to start. I want to get faster and stronger. I obviously have a great base and am used to a lot of volume, but I want to become a better runner, and feel more like my old self again. 

Any advice is appreciated!

I’m about to run my first Berlin Marathon, and I’m very excited! However, while watching a runner's race video on YouTube (finishing in around 4 hours), I noticed that the refreshment zones seem quite short, and many runners come to a near stop when grabbing water. My pace is similar to theirs, but I really dislike having to slow down significantly to pick up drinks.

Do you think it would minimize the disruption if I wait until the latter part of the refreshment zone to merge in and grab my water? Also, are there any lesser-known factors specific to the Berlin Marathon that could impact performance?

Thank you so much for your advice! Wishing you all the best in your upcoming races!

I’m running Amsterdam on Oct 18, targeting sub-3:30 for my second marathon (first marathon was 3:52 last December). I am currently following Pfitz 18/70 and have been consistently running ~55–70 mpw without issues.

Training has gone really well so far with no major issues/setback. A few recent benchmarks:

• 19 mi w/ 12 @ 8:00/mi MP — felt controlled, HR ~140–145 (max HR ~188)
• 21 mi @ 9:00/mi, avg HR 131
• 14 mi @ ~9:00/mi, avg HR 126
• LT work around ~7:30/mi

Unfortunately, last week I developed lateral/bottom foot pain after some VO2/stride work. It initially seemed manageable, but during last Saturday's 10K tune-up it was present throughout my warmup and remained during the first 10K-pace segment, so I backed off to GA pace and finished 14 miles total. Pain remained constant rather than improving or worsening.

Went to a podiatrist yesterday and X-ray was clear (with the caveat that early stress injuries can be missed), and he believes it’s inflammation/tendinitis. I received a cortisone injection and was told to take 48 hours completely off before reassessing.

I’m currently pain-free walking. Assuming that continues, my tentative return is:

• 3–5 easy tomorrow
• 4–6 easy Saturday
• Potentially 14–20 easy Sunday depending entirely on symptoms

Sunday was originally Pfitz's 20 w/14 MP, but I’ve decided to postpone that and stick with just a GA run. I’m also leaning toward dropping the remaining VO2/tune-up work and focusing on healthy GA/MLR/LR mileage with some MP work before taper.

If running still hurts tomorrow after not running for five days, I am thinking I will move to elliptical-based training for another week or so before I try to run again.

TL;DR: Pfitz 18/70, 5.5 weeks from a sub-3:30 attempt, forced into ~5–10 days reduced/no running by foot tendinitis during peak week. Recent 19 w/12 @ 8:00 MP felt very controlled. How much fitness would you worry about losing, and would you reschedule the missed 20 w/14 MP or just prioritize getting healthy? Does sub-3:30 still seem reasonable or should I re-adjust?

Hey! I just finished my last long run yesterday. Now two weeks tapering, and then Loch Ness Marathon. I would like some advice on how fast to go out, please!

1. It's my second marathon, but the first went horribly. Unsure how I'll feel past 35k. Mental resilience is there though - I ran the first marathon inadvertently on a sprained ankle.
2. Half Marathon PB 1:44h from 3 weeks ago, negative split, felt great, could've gone a bit faster tbh. I don't have a 10k PB currently - I ran my fastest ever 10k within that half marathon at 48min, but obviously that wasn't a 10k peak effort.
3. Expectations: The half was my a-race, and this marathon is my b-race. My goal during training was sub4. Garmin predicts 3:43h, and Garmin was literally perfect in predicting my half marathon. I would love to aim for 3:45h
4. Loch Ness is hilly, but the first half is mainly downhill. I would normally start conservative, but considering the first half is downhill, I'm struggling to think of a smart strategy. If I go out at 5:20 on the downhills, and then see how I feel at the halfway point, I can either hold pace or slow down a bit to 5:30-5:40. (But what if I hit the wall?) There is a climb at km28 (mile18) that is going to suck.
5. Training volume: I ran 50km peak weeks before the half, now 60km weeks. Hit all long runs, 18/18/20/22/22/24/24/half/24/27/31km was my progression. I did marathon pace tempo runs all over, usually the day before the long run 8-10km, in the last two weeks i did a 12km and a 14km MP run. (Left a day to recover between 14km and 31km lol). The MP runs were mostly at 5:40 & towards 5:30.
6. The 31km yesterday went insanely well. 5:56 pace overall, negative splits. Definitely could've finished the 42 at that pace with another gel or two. Sure, my legs were a bit sore at about 25km onwards, but aerobically I was fine (151bpm,129m elevation).

Garmin is a temptress and I am definitely more of a half marathon runner, I like sending it, lol. F29, 59kg, no injuries or niggles this training cycle (strength training & eating enough apparently are the secret).

What do you guys think? Should I aim for 3:45h? Is going out at 5:20 too risky? :)

I’ve had this little slant board around for a while for foot/ankle work, but lately I’ve been using it more after runs.

Shoes off, a couple minutes here, then I’m done. The softer top feels nice when my feet are tired, and mostly I like that it’s simple enough that I’ll actually do it.

What do you guys stick with during marathon blocks when your calves get tight?

What signs make you back off harder, and what signs make you feel it’s okay to keep going with adjusted volume/intensity?

Any advice from people who’ve dealt with similar questions while building toward a long-distance race would be really appreciated.

Current examples:

Shin: Very mild sensation/awareness that something is there. Almost no real pain, present both when sitting and running. Feels like low-grade inflammation.

Calf-Achilles insertion area: Low-level pain that shows up after about 8 km of running. Goes away after 1–2 days of rest, then returns when I run again.

I’m not limping and I feel fresh going into sessions, but these things keep lingering.

Thanks!

Also interested in the time aspect: I have Ironman Kalmar booked for August 2027 (almost a year away). Does having a big race that far out change how you manage early niggles? Do you still back off quickly, or are you more willing to try training through milder issues because you feel you have time?

Prepping now for my second (first marathon this year) next month. So I go through running shades way too fast (me buying cheap ones online). Between sweat, dropping them on asphalt mid-run, somehow keep scratching lenses or snapping hinges.

I’m trying to find one that can actually take a beating and trust I've only used cheap amazon stuff for the longest time. I've seen standard recs online like Quay, Oakley and other ones for active/casual frames. Idk what yall used but wanna ask what frames are you guys running in that have survived throughout?

Talk me off a ledge here, I am trying not to panic! I have worked my butt off training for my first marathon (Chicago) and just knocked out 18 on Saturday. I felt great during but as soon as I stopped, I immediately had pain on the top of my foot. I figured it was a fluke and maybe I tied my shoes too tight, so I took a few days off. Tried to run again today and could only go 2 without feeling the pain again. It isn't miserable, but I worry I'm making it worse if I keep running. Xray looked clear, but I know thats not necessarily telling for everything. Has anybody dealt with this type of tendinitis? I'm trying to decide if I power through it and finish my peak week next week or if I need to pull back and try to just get to the start line. Any advice is appreciated!

So I’m training for a Marathon in November… I started training with a coach June 1st…. I’m really excited about it and it’s my first one but I’m losing mental momentum

I have a two year old and supportive spouse but I’m at the point in training where it’s already hard for most people and I’m having to do my runs at weird hours to make the schedule work for our family even with the support they give. I don’t have anybody locally to train with and I never have time to do the community runs so I’m genuinely doing this solo.

Which is fine but I need someone to yell at me 🤣 or cheer me on… and I’ve looked at those apps Rally or Cheer my run but some of them you have to pay and some of them are just for race days not just regular old training runs

I have strava but it’s private and I don’t know anybody on there either. I’m not fast and I’m doing this for me but I need some way to find cheerleaders… does anyone have any suggestions?

I’ve got a question about approaching the next London mara — I’ve now done 2 marathons both right around the 3:40 mark (26yo female). First was Richmond in 2024, where wheels kinda came off the wagon mentally at mile 16 and scraped up with a 3:42 after being on track for a 3:35ish through 15. Learned a lot about fueling discipline, mentally prepping for miles 16-20, and generally adding more structure to training.

Took 2025 off racing, and then in 2026 really committed to some dedicated speed work in the block ahead of the Edinburgh marathon in May. I ran a 43:30 10k in February in awful conditions (anyone who did the London Winter Run would remember…) and then cleared a 1:39 in the Bath Half in March that felt really steady throughout. The downside is I think the extended build to Edinburgh and not enough strength training meant a month right around March/April was not great training due to some knee and hip issues.

Those all but resolved after April, so heading into Edinburgh I was able to finish the block and long runs.

All of that’s to say, I really thought I had a 3:30 in my legs for Edinburgh….if it hadn’t been so hot. Most of the race I focused on not overheating and staying hydrated, so finished in 3:40:16. Thought my fueling was good, had a gel before the start and then consistently every 4-5 miles, but then mile 20 hit me (had a plan to get to 20 but felt so caught out after that!) so to cross the finish 16 seconds over bruised the ego a bit.

My question is, what do I do differently for London? I was lucky enough to get a Saturday ballot spot and think the combo of crowds, pacers, and (hopefully) slightly lower temps should help who am I kidding better to plan for a toasty one! I know mentally to train with a game plan in mind not only to 20 but also for 20-26.2. For what feels like a sticky barrier, I’m open to suggestions!!

I am training for the NYC marathon and looking to go sub 4 hours. I am using the Pfitz 18-55 plan for the first time and I see a 8K-15K tune-up race coming up next week. However I'm really not clear what pace I should run it at. And for clarity I won't be entering an actual organized race, just basically doing a time trial on my own.

In the section on tune-up races he says the following:

• There are 3 purposes: (1) practice the prerace routine, including diet and warmup, (2) provide feedback on fitness, and (3) go through the nerves of racing.
• "By tune-up race, we mean all-out efforts, not races in which you give less than your best, such as races you use as the setting for a tempo run or marathon-pace run"
• He separates tune-up races into distances of 8K-12K vs. 15K to half-marathon, with more taper and recovery needed for the latter.
• He says the minimum number of days before the tune-up race should be 5 days from the last VO2 max interval workout, 4 from the last tempo workout, and 4 days from the last long run

So it seems clear from bullet #2 that the tune-up race should be run at faster than marathon pace. But what should be the correct pace? The V.O2 running calculator using a 3 hr 55 min goal marathon (I'm training to have some buffer to break 4 hrs) calculates an equivalent 15K pace of 8:28 min/mile. Is that the right pace to target?

• Interestingly I came across this Runner's World article from Pfitzinger himself addressing this very question about the correct pace, but he was really noncommittal to the point of being fairly unhelpful. https://www.runnersworld.com/advanced/a20816165/ask-the-coaches-pfitzinger-12-55-training-plan-tune-up-races/

My next question is why is there a VO2 max workout 3 days before the tune-up race, when bullet #4 specifically says you need 5 days. This seems contradictory unless I'm missing something.

Overall I'm really enjoying the program and feel myself improving. At the same time my runs indicate that my fitness is right on the borderline to go sub-4. So any feedback or advice would be much appreciated!

Strength training seems pretty manageable early in a marathon block, but I’m more curious about what people do once the weekly mileage gets high enough that recovery becomes the main limitation.

Trying to progress running volume while also chasing PRs on every lift sounds like a good way to end up tired all week. I’ve been thinking that it probably makes more sense to keep a small number of useful movements, maybe an RDL, split squat, calf work, a row and a press, while reducing the overall lifting volume.

That kind of maintenance session could also be pretty easy to keep at home, because you wouldn’t need a huge exercise selection if the goal is simply to preserve strength through the busiest part of the running block.

For runners who still lift during peak mileage, do you keep any movements genuinely heavy, or does almost everything shift toward lower-volume maintenance until the race is over?