On May 5th, 2024, I ran the Vancouver Marathon. The training and racing bug from last year’s Ironman still lingered, and I wanted to focus my efforts on the marathon distance. The marathon is such an iconic event that I was eager to see how I’d stack up if I truly applied myself. My goal was to run sub-three hours, which meant maintaining an average pace of 4:15 min/km for 42.2 kmâfar from a casual stroll in the park.
I am glad I took the time to write an Ironman race report as a keepsake for myself. As I continue on this endurance journey, it is nice to have a record of my thoughts that I can reflect back on later â either when I go pro or my legs finally give out!
Here’s my (admittedly lengthy) 2024 Vancouver Marathon race report.
Training
Training Plan
I followed the Pfitzinger 18/70 marathon plan, a well-known training plan from the book “Advanced Marathoning” by Pete Pfitzinger. The plan offers various options, differing in duration (12 or 18 weeks) and peak weekly mileage (55, 70, 85). The “18/70” indicates an 18-week plan peaking at 70 miles per week.
Unfortunately running can be notoriously injury-prone, especially as weekly mileage ramps up. This made me apprehensive about choosing a high-mileage plan. After all, the number one rule of training is: don’t get injured!
Initially, I considered the 55-mile peak plan, but realized it would be significantly less than my Ironman training volume. So, I opted for the 70-mile plan, intending to reduce mileage if I sensed injury encroaching. This was a substantial increase from the roughly 30 miles per week I’d run preparing for the SF marathon the previous year (although that included cycling and swimming).
This plan consists of the following types of runs (in order of increasing intensity):
- Recovery – Short and very easy runs, typically scheduled the day before or after a challenging workout
- Easy – These runs form the foundation of any marathon training plan, consisting of steady Zone 2 effort
- Marathon Pace – Long runs incorporating segments at goal marathon pace
- Lactate Threshold – Runs of 6â12 km at lactate threshold pace (the speed at which lactate accumulates faster than it can be cleared)
- VO2 Max – Short, intense intervals ranging from 800â1200 m
The plan was structured with one hard workout per week, one long run, one medium-long run, one recovery run, and three medium-easy runs, totaling six running days weekly.
The true staple of this plan was the “medium-long” run. Don’t be fooled by the term “medium”âthis run was typically 24.4km, done mid-week. Every Wednesday morning before work, I was running 24km. These make you a beast. They are essentially a second long run (the real long run is on the weekend), and quickly get you used to running longer distances.
The lactate threshold workouts were brutalâlet’s just leave it at that…
I enjoyed the marathon pace workouts. They were great confidence boosters (assuming you could complete them). As the majority of your running is at an easy pace, you don’t spend much time at your goal marathon pace, so it is nice to have the confirmation every few weeks that you are getting faster and have a shot at your goal time.
Most of my VO2 max workouts were done on the track, typically consisting of 5x1km at interval pace with 200-400m jog recovery. I may be an anomaly, but I enjoyed these tough sessions. The majority of VO2 max workouts were scheduled in the final six weeks of the plan. Their primary benefit for marathon training is neuromuscularâgetting your muscles accustomed to running fast. Doing them closer to the race keeps that feeling fresh in your muscles.
In terms of mileage, my legs were quite sore during the first few weeks (and not always in a good way). During this period, I skipped a few recovery runs. However, once my body adapted to the training, I found the mileage quite manageable. Towards the end of the block, I was running more than the plan prescribed and peaked at 80 miles. I felt that 85 miles was pushing my limits at the time, and I’d be hesitant to go beyond this without a proper build-up.
Overall, I really liked the plan. It offered a good mix of hard and easy running with reasonable variety (though there’s still a fair amount of monotonyâbut what else can you expect from marathon training?). I’d recommend this plan to others, and having multiple duration and mileage options makes it accessible. I’d also suggest reading the book from which these plans are derived. It explains the reasoning behind the workouts and provides details on how each type of run should be performed and at what intensity.
Run Clubs
Previously, I had done all my training alone. While this provided flexibility and allowed me to hit my planned duration and intensity precisely, it could be lonely. After moving to San Francisco at the beginning of the year, I was eager to join a run club as a way to meet people and make running more enjoyable. It turns out that San Francisco might be the run club mecca of the world.
I started running with a few different clubs and loved it! Not only was it a great way to meet people with similar interests, but it made running more enjoyable. Especially on long runs, time flies when you’re chatting.
It was also beneficial to be around runners who were slightly better than I was. Running with them pushed me that extra bit. I was able to learn and ask questions about others’ experiences. Being around people who were also running 70+ miles a week made it feel more normal. Mentally, I think this makes you feel that you’re capable of it and that you can hit your time goal.
Pro tip: A hack to get your long runs in is to run to the run club meeting point, and then do the run club run. This makes it almost feel like two different runs. Two 11-mile runs seem much more manageable than one 22-mile run.
Rating of Training Block
This was a great training block. Apart from getting deathly sick for a week and having to take the week off, I hit nearly every workout as planned and maintained consistent sleep, diet, and recovery. These factors outside running are important, and I’m learning more about how my body responds to them.
For example, If I had a week where I was very consistent with my diet, by not eating too much and not eating too closely to bed, and going to bed at consistent times, I could get my seven day resting heart rate down to 42 BPM, but if I then ate a bunch of pizza or something Friday night my heart rate would spike into the 50s and would take a couple days to come down..
Overall, my body adapted remarkably well to the training. Running felt natural and enjoyable. I’ve come to recognize two types of “tough” in training. There’s the positive challenge of pushing your limitsâthe good kind of tough. Then there’s the discomfort when something feels off in your body. Throughout most of this training block, when things got tough, it was the good kind..
My mind was in a good place during this block. I was absolutely loving runningâit was awesome. When I wasn’t running, I was watching people run on YouTube or reading about running on forums. It was fun to feel passionate about something.
My mindset was better than during my Ironman training block. There was more excitement; I genuinely wanted to get out there and push myself. During Ironman training, I sometimes dreaded workouts, especially the tough ones. I think a lot of this improvement comes from having gone through and reflected on the training/racing block once before.
As I gain more experience with training, I’m becoming more comfortable with the process. I understand that not every day will be a good day, and consistency is more important than any single workout.
During the Ironman block, I often viewed each workout as a chance to failâif I didn’t complete the workout as intended, I felt I had failed. During this block, however, I began to see each workout as an opportunity to challenge myself and prove that I’m capable of more than I think. I realized it was okay if I didn’t quite hit my paces, or if things felt harder than they shouldâit wasn’t a failure, just part of the process.
I learned that I should expect to fail sometimes, and if I’m not failing occasionally, it probably means I’m not challenging myself enough. This shift in perspectiveâviewing training as an opportunity for something good to happen rather than an opportunity for something badâhad a big impact on my mindset.
Pre Race
I chose the Vancouver Marathon because several friends were running it. While I would have preferred a flatter, more PR-friendly course, sharing both the training and race experience with others was fun.
Six of us ran the race, and we rented an Airbnb in Vancouver together. Not all of us had met before, so it was exciting to get to know each other, discuss our training, and share our race goals. This built up the excitement and anticipation of the race.
One aspect of running I appreciate is its universal challenge. Whether you’re tackling your first 5K or an elite marathoner, you can always push yourself to your personal limits. Despite our varied time goals, we all shared the sense that we were about to undertake something formidable.
If I were to scrutinize the days leading up to the race, two things stand out. First, while it was fun having six (actually eight, counting girlfriends) people in an Airbnb, it wasn’t ideal for quality sleep and rest. I don’t regret thisâit’s why I chose this marathonâbut if I was truly optimizing for maximal performance it is something I would consider.
The second thing I didnât nail pre-race was my carb-load. My plan was a two-day load of 700 grams of carbs per dayâa hefty amount, but recommended for my body weight. On day one, I went overboard. Working from home in the Airbnb surrounded by carb-heavy snacks, I caught the munchies and overdid it. The quantity and quality of food I eat significantly affect my heart rate and sleep, resulting in a bad sleep two nights before the race. I dialed it back the day before the race to avoid feeling heavy and bloated. Things worked out but I’m noting this as a warning for my future self.
Fortunately, that poor sleep two nights before led to a great night’s rest right before the race. On race morning, I fueled up with a bagel topped with peanut butter and honey about two hours before the start, along with a tall Americano from Starbucks with an extra shot. I’d abstained from caffeine for the week leading up to maximize its impact on race day. En route to the starting line, I sipped on a bottle of electrolytes mixed with 30g of carbs (20g cyclic dextrin, 10g fructose).
Race
Race Plan
My goal at the start of the training block was to run sub three hours. However, based on how the training went and a few of the final big workouts, I felt I could run faster. But you never really know how fast you can actually run. The furthest I had run at marathon pace was 22km, just over half the distance. Could I hold this for another 20km? There was no way to know for certain.
The marathon may seem like a long distance, but every second counts. The difference between running a 2:55 marathon and a 3:05 marathon is only 6 seconds per km. The marathon is also know for the infamous “wall”âthe point, often around kilometer 32, when your body depletes its glycogen stores. Hitting the wall isn’t just unpleasant; it means a drastic drop in pace. Blowing up and hitting the wall often means kissing your time goal goodbye.
With these factors in mind, I was conflicted about my race plan. Should I play it safe and “just” try to achieve my initial goal of running sub-three, aiming for something around 2:59? Or should I push it and see what I’m capable of, aiming for something around 2:55 at the risk of blowing up and not making the sub-three goal?
I didn’t drag myself out of bed at 6 AM to run 24 km before work for the past 18 weeks just to do something I was already pretty sure I could do. I didn’t suffer through those lactate threshold workouts just to play it safe. I was going to race this thing!
My plan was to average 4:10 min/km in the first half of the race. This equates to a 2:56:32 marathon. I would then assess how I was feeling to decide if I wanted to push for my stretch goal of sub-2:55, or if I needed to ease off and aim for something closer to three hours. The first half of the race was also the tougher part of the course, so if I made it to halfway still feeling decent, I could drop the hammer.
During my Ironman, I had mantras for each part of the race. I liked having these to remind me of my race plan and split the race into different sections. I divided the marathon into three sections, each with its own mantra:
- 0 km - 21.1 km: Reserved and disciplined
- 21.1 km - 32 km: Steady and assess
- 32 km - 42.2 km: Dig, mother fucker, dig!
0km - 21.1km
My mantra for this portion of the race was “reserved and disciplined.” I knew it would be easy to get excited and go out too hard, so I wanted to ensure I stuck to my plan of 4:10 min/km. The first half of the race should feel boring and easy.
The first half was quite hilly, with significant uphill and downhill segments. I didn’t want to blow up my legs for the second half by taking the hills too hard.
The first half was uneventful, which means it went to plan. I seeded myself near the front, about five rows back from the start. I was slightly surprised at how busy the first part of the race was at the pace I was running. The first portion was net downhill, and everyone seemed to be running decently fast.
My first half split was 1:27:03 (2:54:06 marathon pace), which works out to 4:08 min/km. This was slightly faster than my 4:10 target, but I felt I had run within myself and stayed relatively disciplined, especially on some of the downhill portions.
21.1km - 32km
My mantra for this section of the race was “steady and assess.” This was the point when I would evaluate how I was feeling and decide whether to push for sub-2:55 or ease off. I knew I’d likely start to feel the effort more, but with a long way to go, it was important to remain steady. This is the in-between phase of the marathonâno longer easy, but not quite at the hard part yet.
The first half ended with the race’s largest downhill, bottoming out to a flat section. A bit of headwind here, combined with the impact of the previous hills, made things feel hardâa bit too hard. I worried I’d cooked my legs.
However, around 24km, I joined a pack. This was great for blocking the wind and working together. Everyone seemed to have the same idea, as we all started to stick together. This section was hillier than I’d anticipated, so having others to push me up the inclines was a welcome boost.
The pack began to split up, but one guy maintained a very consistent pace. He was running about 4:05 min/km, slightly faster than my goal. However, following someone made it easier, and after taking some gels, I felt relatively decent. I decided this was the moment to start pushing it.
I him all the way to the 32km mark. It was great to be able to zone out and just follow him. This aligned perfectly with the “steady” aspect of my mantra for this section. At some point, one of his friends joined us, forming a trio running together from about 24km to 32km. The insane thing is that both of these guys had done a full Ironman the weekend beforeâŚ
The last thing I will mention about this portion of the race is that the crowds in Kitsilano from 28km-30km were great. The streets were packed and the crowd had great energy. This gave me a boost to close out section 2 of the race strong.
32km - 42.2km
This is where the race truly begins. Until now, my goal had been simply to reach this point relatively in one piece. I knew this was where the mental fortitude I’d developed over the previous weeks would be put to the test. My mantra for this section of the race was “dig, motherfucker, dig.” Perhaps a bit abrasive, but sometimes that grittiness is just want you need.
They say you hit the wall at 32km. If I made it there still feeling good, I planned to drop the hammer. I’d visualized this portion of the race countless times during training. I’d imagined myself in this final section, how I’d respond when things got tough. I wanted things to get tough. I wanted to test myself and finish the race knowing I’d given it my all. Well, I should’ve been more careful what I wished for…
I hit the 32km mark feeling great. I’d made it to the final stretch in one piece and was maintaining a strong pace. I also saw my friends at this point, and seeing them gave me a big boost of energy. I was fired up.
One of the guys I was running with began to push harder. It was too much for me to follow, but I also increased my pace. From 32km to about 36km, I was running just below 4:00 min/kmâdecently quick, but I was feeling good.
Between 36km and 37km, I could feel things start to slip. I was no longer on the same high I had been. I realized this effort was too much and that I wouldn’t be able to sustain it for another 5km. I slowed my pace down to around 4:08-4:10, hoping I’d start to feel better. I had raced so well the entire time, sticking almost exactly to my plan, and I didn’t want to lose it in the last 5kmâwhich I knew was still plenty of distance to lost it.
I was now running by myself, with no crowds around the sea wall. There was no external source of energy for me to rely on. This was what I had wished for, the moment I had envisioned throughout training: the point when I needed to dig deep.
And deep I had to dig. Those last 5km were by far the most strenuous kilometres of my life. It took everything I had to hang on to 4:10-4:15 pace. Heck, forget about the paceâI was fighting just to continue running. I’m not a skilled enough writer to truly describe how those last few kilometers felt; perhaps Hemingway could. However, that’s the magic of the marathon. I’m not special in experiencing this; it’s a feeling all too common among marathoners.
By some miracle, I managed to hang on. What really kept me going was thinking about all the work I had put in during training and how I had been focused on this goal for the past 18 weeks. I was too close now to give up.
I made the final turn, and the last stretch felt like it went on forever, as it always does. At last, I crossed the line. In that moment, there was no elation, only relief. I had to lean against the fence for a few moments before I could make my way down the finishers’ chute.
At this point, I had no idea what my time actually was. Regardless, I knew I had given it everything I had. I was satisfied that I had emptied the tank. I was proud of myself for not giving up, and more than that, I was proud of the previous 18 weeks.
I checked my official time: 2:54:31. I had achieved my stretch goal of sub 2:55!
Fuelling
For nutrition, I consumed one caffeinated gel every thirty minutes, totaling five gels throughout the race. I had planned to drink electrolytes at every aid station, but the Nuun electrolyte mix they offered on the course was disgusting and didn’t agree with my stomach. As a result, I switched to drinking only water and took two salt tablets that I had taped to my gels to maintain my electrolyte balance.
Learnings and Takeaways
Consistency and Compounding
I share my time not as a “flex” but really out of amazement at the powers of consistency and compounding. If you had told me on January 31, 2023âthe day I signed up for the SF marathon, which began this whole journeyâthat I would run 2:54, I would have said, “No chance.”
A couple of years ago, I saw someone on Strava run a sub-three marathon, and I distinctly remember thinking, “That’s something I’ll never do. I’m not capable of it.”
I only got into running a year and a half ago, and the progress I’ve made boggles my mind. It all comes down to doing the work every day. When you’re consistent over time, the results compound exponentially. Endurance sports have demonstrated this to me, but it extends to all areas of life. Going through this experienceâbeing consistent and proving to myself that I’m capable of more than I thoughtâhas been extremely rewarding.
Mindset
I touched upon this previously, but I think it’s worth reiterating. Training and racing are activities we choose to doâactivities we have the privilege to do. As crazy as it may sound, we even do it for fun. Training and racing should be positive additions to our lives. It’s okay to take the goals you set for yourself seriously and to push yourselfâthis is where the fulfillment comes fromâbut at no point should it consume your life. Be all in, not all consumed.
This starts with having a positive mindset. Look forward to your workouts, don’t dread them. See each training session as an opportunity to move your body and challenge yourself. Don’t view it as a chore you have to get done or as a chance to fail if you don’t hit your splits.
Mental burnout is just as real as physical fatigue. Understand that it’s okay to take days off when you need to, and to take time between training blocks. Do things you’re excited aboutâthings you’re eager to get out of bed at 6 in the morning for, because there will be a lot of those early mornings. It’s a whole lot easier if you’re enjoying it, and you’ll perform better too.
Running in the morning
Running in the morning is infinitely superior to running after work. Getting up and out the door requires some effort, but once you’re outside, you won’t regret it. A morning run, more than any other exercise in my opinion, sets you up to feel great for the rest of the day.
One of my favorite sayings during this training block was “Swallow the toad!"âin other words, do the hard thing first. Get up and get it done. This comes from Nicolas Chamfort’s quote: “A man should swallow a toad every morning to be sure of not meeting with anything more revolting in the day ahead.”
The habit of morning runs is something I hope to foster for life. Perhaps not 24km every day, but once in a while.
Easy Easier, Hard Harder
This is by no means a new insight, but the more I train, the more I realize its importance. Making sure you really are going easy in your easy sessions so that you are able to push it hard when it is time to. And when it is time, make sure you really do push it hard. Don’t be afraid of finding your limits! As they say, “The key is not to wish for the pain to go away but to learn to be okay with the pain.”
What’s next
I know I have more room for improvement. My body was still responding well to training, and I felt like I was just getting started. In the future, I’ll work to cement a BQ time (seriously, you guys need to slow down out thereâthese times are getting ridiculous). My next marathon will be CIM at the end of the year, a PR-friendly course.
My body is still holding up, and more importantly, I’m still having fun with training and racing. I’m going to continue riding that wave while it lasts. Part of the fun for me has been taking on different challenges and learning what it takes to be successful in each area. So, for now, it’s time to get slowâŚ