The thing that most marathoners will tell you is this, “anyone can do a marathon,” but there’s always a caveat, like “with the right training,” or “if they believe they can” or “if they can commit to a training plan.”

And after watching dozens of aSweatLife Ambassadors complete fall marathons, we wanted to hear what guidance they’d offer for the distance. As a community, many of us took part in our Goal For It: Running program powered by Puma Running. By the way, you can get your hands on the running plan from Puma Running here.

Train with a running group

We always say, “everything is better with friends.” That’s true for a lot of things, but it’s directly proportional to how challenging something is. The more challenging something is, the more a group of friends will make it better.

Marathon training takes a lot of time – and if you’re training for a summer marathon, a lot of that time will be early mornings and weekends. Find a group of people who encourage you to be consistent, show up to put in the miles and have fun while you’re at it. 

Anchisa Pipatpinyopong advocates for training with a group. You can even start your own group like she did, Gold Coast Run Club!

Once you get to the starting line, let your training do the work and just have fun!

Once you decide to take on the challenge of a marathon, you’ll either train with a coach, a group, or with the help of an online plan. Those plans have specific tempo runs, speed work, strength and mobility, and long runs. Todd Falker, RUNNING Product Lead at PUMA, spends a bit of time breaking those things down on a recent episode of our podcast, #WeGotGoals.

Arm yourself with your training (and tips like those in our Beginner’s Guide to Running) so that by the time you get to the starting line, you’re just running one long victory lap.

Runners like Heather Schultz who have run several marathons, know that you’ll wonder at some point or another if all of this work is actually getting you ready for the marathon itself. She assures you that it will, “The training journey has challenges, you made it to the start line, go have fun and finish strong!“

Write your name on your bib or your shirt

Often underappreciated, but putting your name on your shirt in big, bold letters (with phonetic pronunciation, if you have an often mispronounced name like I do) is very powerful on race day. The part of the brain that’s responsible for self-worthiness is activated at the sound of our own names. So imagine how powerful it feels when you’re wondering at mile 18 if you’re up for the challenge and someone reassures you – using your name – that you are.

Alexa Calingo’s name was displayed on her race day fit, which came in handy in the last mile. “It was so encouraging to hear a random stranger yell ‘I’m not gonna let you give up, Alexa! You’re almost there! Go Alexa go!’”\

Take some time after your marathon to decompress.

You’re going to have feelings after your marathon. You will have met your A goal (in runner speak, that’s the best possible outcome if everything goes right) or not – that’s just a simple fact of marathoning. So as you prepare for post-marathon emotions, our seasoned marathoners have tips.

From Erica Agran, who has run more than 60 marathons: “Take a few weeks to process the experience and determine your “why.” If you have unfinished business with the distance or the desire to improve or participate, sign up for the next one!”

You also may want to break down how your training served you or didn’t serve you. 

Justin Samaniego encourages first-time marathoners to “reflect, rest, and rebuild … and to  think about what you’ve learned, what you’ve gained, and what your why is.” 

And getting out a pen and paper so you don’t forget your post-marathon thoughts will serve you if you plan to come back to the distance.

Kristin Gonzales encourages you to write down things that worked and what didn’t work and to reflect on your goals. “If you didn’t hit your time goal it’s okay. Be proud that you were able to go the distance,” she added that she’s “been chasing a time goal for 11 years now and it has been my motivation to keep coming back.”

And that time of reflections will allow you to understand when you’re ready to run 26.2 again.
“My advice is to wait until you feel like you can enjoy the training again – when it feels like a privilege and joy to get out on training runs – and not a chore. That made all of the difference for me this marathon,” Lexi Florian said.