So you might be wondering why you haven’t seen a post on my SF Marathon. Well, it’s in part because it was a rough race and didn’t go as well as I expected. In addition to that, when I was relaying this story to my friend Derek (the one I interviewed recently) he encouraged me to share the honest truth with the folks over at Greatist.
So I wrote something that appeared last week in Greatist’s weekend edition, but I wanted to share it directly with my blog readers here. I think down the road, I’d like to do a piece on “things I’ve learned so far about running” but let’s start with this race recap.
After many months of training, I ran my first marathon this summer. It was agonizingly hard, and I made a lot of mistakes both in training and in the race — but I made it to the finish line. Did it change my life? No. Did it make me a better runner? Yes. Was it worth the hurt? Definitely.
This is how I prepared for and completed that 26.2 mile race. Hopefully my experience and mistakes can help your own journey to completing that first marathon.
Deciding to Run
After graduating from college and finishing an NCAA career in men’s gymnastics, I spent a few unsatisfying years lifting weights to stay in shape. On a whim, I tried running in a pair of Vibram Five-Fingers (those minimalist shoes) and loved how they felt. I hated doing any kind of running as a gymnast, and despite a major knee injury requiring numerous surgeries, the minimal footwear made running fun and basically pain-free.
My competitive career as a runner began in July 2011 when I ran in the San Francisco Marathon’s 5k. The adrenaline rush from that first 5k was thrilling and got me rehooked on being a competitive athlete. In the months following, I ran more 5ks, a few 10ks, and even some half marathons.
Around the winter holidays, I thought to myself, “It’d be pretty awesome if I came back to next year’s SF Marathon and did the full distance. Seven months should be plenty of time to train.” For whatever reason, I felt that finishing a marathon would officially make me a “real” runner. And before I knew it, I had an SF Marathon registration email sitting in my inbox, and there was no going back.
Training for the Race
The marathon distance was daunting, but I knew from my years as a gymnast that with the right training, the seemingly impossible becomes possible. I looked at several well-known marathon training plans, but they generally required running 5 or more times a week, and I wanted a plan with lower mileage to protect my knee. I ultimately turned to running blogger/coach Jason Fitzgerald to devise a custom plan for me.
I ran about three times a week: One easy run, one longer run with a few miles at a faster “tempo” pace, and a slow long run on the weekend. I lifted weights, used the elliptical or performed body-weight exercises on two other days, and rested the other two days. Continue reading →
Photo Credit: 
Jason Shen is the co-founder of 