My Marathon Story

by Troy Thompson, M.D.
(St. Joseph, MI, U.S.A.)

I was 13th of 14 cross-country guys at a small college back in 1987. Making varsity was not compatible with going to medical school; It probably wasn't even compatible with my abilities. So I quit the cross-country team, but I kept running moderately.

I turned 40, so I ran my first marathon in Chicago in 2008, which unfortunately was 82 degrees. I targeted 3:20:59, and was on pace until 18 miles. Then it was all over. My brain was even more dead than my body. I ran/walked some 9:00 and 9:15 miles to the end, getting passed first by the 3:30 pace group, then by Batman and Robin. I had no lift in the quads.

This year I've registered for the Grand Rapids Marathon October 18th. I'm planning on targeting a 3:27, which would bring me half way up to my Boston-qualifying time. I'm running 5-6 hours a week presently, with long runs up to 1:40 and 60-minute tempo's at about 7:30 pace. I don't care as much about VO2 max this year and Yasso 800's; success with that is nothing without the running economy.

The knees and feet are holding up this year, perhaps due to a focused effort on a new running style with hips forward, higher leg turnover and less bounce. Also, I'm intending to delay the hardest speedwork until the last 8 weeks, add core work, add one ellipse workout a week, buy proper racing shoes, and fuel up better during the race.