It seems slightly surreal that I initially started running marathons at a 10:52 min/mi and recently ran a marathon at a 7:49 min/mi pace. Sometimes I see marathon progressions that say something like “I went from a 5+ hour marathon to BQing!” and they basically went from their first marathon in 5 hours to running a sub 4 hour marathon on the next try and while I think that ANY marathon time and progression is amazing, I’m also really proud of MY journey. It took me many tries just to go sub 4 in the marathon and then remember how I trained my butt off for years trying to get under 3:40?!?

Here’s my marathon times broken down:

1. June 2014 Steamboat Marathon 4:46 10:57min/mi

2. June 2016 Revel Rockies 4:14 9:42 min/mi

3. January 2017 Goofy Challenge 4:34 10:29 min/mi

4. June 2017 Revel Rockies 4:03 9:18min/mi

5. November 2017 Rock n Roll Las Vegas 3:55 9:00min/mi

6. April 2018 Salt Lake City 3:52 8:52 min/mi

7. April 2019 Eugene Marathon 3:51 8:50min/mi

8. October 2019 Loco Marathon 4:05 9:19 min/mi

9. April 2021 Cheap Marathon 3:58 9:06min/mi

10. October 2022 Wineglass Marathon 3:44 8:34min/mi

11. October 2023 Wineglass Marathon 3:36 8:15min/mi

12. November 2023 New York City Marathon 3:51 8:51min/mi

13. May 2024 Revel White Mountains 3:25 7:49min/mi

14. October 2024 Wineglass Marathon 3:42 8:30min/mi

Some of my biggest initial thoughts after looking over the marathons I’ve done:

• I got a running coach

• Doing downhill races gave me confidence

• Fueling more = faster times

• Carb loading made one of the biggest improvements

• Purposeful strength training

• Lifting heavier weights!

• Racing more often (all types of distances)

• Easy running stays easy. I’ve been running the same ‘easy paces’ for at least 5 years. (Nothing faster than 9 minute pace).

• I got surgery for my stage IV endometriosis. I think this honestly helped me feel so much better overall and this is when I saw another big improvement in my running.

• Found an amazing therapist- happy mentally= happy running.

• Found the JOY and GRATITUDE in movement. Nothing makes you appreciate something more than when you can’t do it. Having major abdominal surgery with my c-section really made me appreciate and honor the comeback.

I think it’s also important to note that progress isn’t linear. I didn’t just ‘jump’ from a 4:46 marathon to 3:25 in a few tries. I’ve stayed consistent, dealt with a few injuries over the many years of marathoning, and dabbled in ultras too. I’ve had a twin pregnancy, lost my Dad, moved across the country, and switched careers/ gone back to college full-time. Running has always been there and it WILL always be there even when it feels very far away. I think coming back postpartum has really given me a different perspective of the recovery process. I remember when I started running, I thought that running 9 minute pace WAS fast. I actually never thought that I could even run a sub 4 hour marathon.

These are all things that worked for ME, but I’d love to hear some things that worked for you during your training journey. Has your progress been a slow climb or a fast uphill sprint? Comment below!!