17. Setting expectations for your FIRST marathon
Setting realistic expectations in the marathon.
If this is your first marathon - you should not set a time goal. Your goal should be to finish upright, smiling, and wanting to do it again. But you CAN set a speed limit. That is a pace that you are not allowed to exceed, so that you don’t go out too fast - But how do you set that?
First Marathon - Use the slate magazine predictor - we put in a half marathon time of 1:55:20, with an average of 25 miles per week and got a 4:27:10
With an average of 30 miles per week - 4:23:58
Liz - first marathon in 2011 was 4:31:02, with a spring half of 1:53:26 - even putting in the average of 17 miles a week over 13 weeks, it gave a 4:18:11 - BUT that 4:31 was taken out in a 2:03, if there had been a speed limit equal to the pace of a 4:18, perhaps that first marathon would have been faster! But this is why you don’t put time expectations on your first marathon
To use calculators - don’t use a race over a year old or one where you were in prime shape and you’re not in that shape now. Use one that approximates your current shape. Try to use longer races - a half or 10 miler, but remember that a marathon is a completely different animal!
Liz 2013 - 1:54:00 was a recent half from the spring,
Volume: 20.25 over 12 weeks
Predicted - slate: 4:18.07, actual race 4:09:45 (other calculators still predicting 3:57)
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