I Ran My First Marathon

This past weekend my family and I headed to the Gold Coast for the marathon weekend. It's a brilliant few days, with events for every ability. My wife and eldest daughter ran the 10km, and my youngest pushed through the 5km, with me tagging along for encouragement.

Then on Sunday I ran the full marathon. My first time - all 42.195km of it.

I had a training plan, but life, injury and illness kept getting in the way, so I turned up less prepared than I'd have liked. I had no illusions about a target time - I just wanted to finish. In the end I came home in 5 hours, 17 minutes and 23 seconds, which I'll happily take for a first go.

The race-day plan

If you're not fit enough to race on instinct, a plan is the next best thing. I built one I could actually stick to, and sticking to it was what got me over the line:

Hold a running pace of 6:55–7:30 per km

Keep my heart rate as low as I could

An energy gel every 5km

Plenty of water and electrolytes

Keep running, no matter how slow. No walk/run intervals

That last one mattered most to me. I only let myself drop to a walk three times: a short uphill just past 30km, a 300–400m stretch at 37km as a reward for reaching the final turnaround, and the kilometre between 40 and 41km, where a strong headwind was blowing and I wanted to bank some energy for a proper run over the last 1.2km to bring it home.

The best advice I got

A few things people told me beforehand turned out to be worth their weight in gold:

Don't set off too fast

Keep your head together until the 37km mark

Take Panadol Osteo, but not ibuprofen

And the least helpful advice? "Don't do it!"

Gear that saved me

My feet are normally a disaster area on anything long. This time they came out relatively unscathed, and I put that down to two things: Injinji toe socks and Altra Experience Flow shoes. If your feet are a known weak point, sort them out well before race day. It's the cheapest insurance you'll buy.

My body held up better than I expected too. I felt cramp threatening in my quads a couple of times, but managed to run it out rather than let it take hold.

The course

The Gold Coast course is a good one for a first marathon. It's relatively flat, with spectators and aid stations along almost the whole route. Running on closed roads past so many of the landmarks we know from our regular visits was a real treat. The atmosphere among the runners was the best part, though: everyone supportive of everyone else, plenty of camaraderie. Apart from the stronger headwinds over the final 5km, the weather was glorious. The "Run in Paradise" tagline is well earned.

I'd been warned that the 33–40km stretch is the hardest part, where you leave the buzz around Broadwater Parklands and head up to the quieter Runaway Bay, and can feel isolated just as you're at your most tired. I didn't find that at all. The crowds were out and everyone was in good spirits as we counted down the last 10km. If anything, the quietest patch for me was the run back through Mermaid Beach, around the 19–21km mark.

Would I do it again?

No regrets, and now that I know what to expect, I'm keen to line up again next year (albeit this time with a more consistent build-up behind me). For now, though, it's time to rest and recover before returning to my first love: cycling. I'm looking forward to getting back out on the roads and trails on two wheels, while keeping a regular running routine ticking over.