Marathon Training Program Makes Magic

Rachele A

With the arrival of cooler weather and the return of the "pumpkin-spiced everything," there is no denying that Autumn has arrived and with it, the fall marathons are just around the corner.

Over the past four months, I have been working with the coaches of the Flyers Marathon Training Program (MTP) with my eyes on the NYC Marathon this November. In fact, the Marathon Training Program was what sealed the deal for me to join the Flyers this spring! When my guaranteed entry from my NYRR 9+1 was confirmed, I faced the sobering realization that I was going to need some help preparing to make my marathon "debut" and the MTP approach just made sense – with its top-notch coaching staff, manageable work-out schedule, and potential for camaraderie with a group of fun and quirky people who also love to run.

The summer felt brutal. All of our scheduled runs were either in the crushing humidity or the skies would just open and it would rain. And not just a little rain, but flat out pouring rain. Little by little, we fell into the rhythm of the cycle of speed workouts on Wednesdays, long runs on Sundays, and all of our "homework" in between.


MTP Coaches Kari, Will, Todd and Joe are All Smiles
Before Yet Another Rainy Weds Speed Session

Personally, it has been fantastic for me to work with such a great team of coaches and also one-on-one with Coach Will B who was able to cater to my style of learning (i.e., the more information up front, the better).  A program was tailored and personalized for me to keep me running as much as possible without burning out.  And careful monitoring gave me a better idea of what I was capable of than when I received my initial 17-week plan overview at the start of the program, which has since been adjusted accordingly.

But while I wasn't burning out, it was hard to judge what exactly was happening. My runs were definitely getting longer, but I hadn't really run an official race since the spring (with the exception of the brutally hot and muggy Queens Half... yuck!), and so I was anxious to see how our MTP speedwork was changing my running.

And then, it happened.  On the morning of the NYRR Fitness Mind, Spirit, and Body Games 4-Miler, the heat ran away and took the humidity with it.  I made the decision that I would use the new weather to my advantage, run like we'd been practicing in our loops of the Great Lawn and hill repeats, and just see what would happen.

When I looked down at my Garmin coming into the last mile, I noticed that I was on target to come close to a personal record. I let the downhill on the west side of the park help as I went "all out" (a relative term coming from one of the slowest members of the MTP... haha!) and shaved a healthy 11 seconds off of my previous best for the four mile distance! All the hard work and humid runs have been paying off and I swear I did not stop smiling (and occasionally bragging to anyone who would listen) all day, before resuming training as usual on Sunday morning.

Fun on the Run
-MTP Pace Group Running Long-

I feel that I've been privileged to be training with such an amazingly talented group of runners (and coaches) because while I've been working hard and slowly seeing the improvements in my own workouts, I also benefit from getting to learn and (literally) follow in the footsteps of the faster MTP-ers. Speaking as the girl who is usually bringing up the rear in most MTP workouts, a large part of the motivation to keep pushing comes from seeing the successes of the other members of the program. With a little over six weeks until the New York City Marathon, I cannot wait to see what everyone is able to accomplish!

-Rachele A.