Oslo Maraton 2017 - Sub 2:35?

Oslo Maraton 2017

• When? September 16, 2017
• How far? 42.195 km
• Where? Oslo, Norway
• Website: https://oslomaraton.no/

Goals

Goal	Time
A	2:34:59
B	2:35:50
C	2:38:09

A goal is to go sub 2:35. B goal is to run exactly 2 hours faster than my first marathon (4:35:50), which I ran in 2013. C goal is to beat the PR I ran in Rotterdam in April (2:38:10).

As for placing, I don't really care. Maybe I can sneak into the top 10?

Scroll down till the end if you want to see how I did now, but where's the fun in that?

Training

This training period was pretty standard. Nothing extraordinary, just the daily grind. I don't think I did many workouts that will make you go "wow". I try to focus on consistency instead. Also, I really love to race a lot, so I'm replacing some workouts with races. I will rarely taper for any of these at all. Oslo would actually be my 24th race of the year (not counting biking). I would always be tapering if I wanted to taper for them all. After the Rotterdam Marathon in April, I took 6 days off from running. Then I made the plan to run sub 2:35 in Oslo. I used the Pfitz 12/105 as the benchmark for the last 12 weeks and then adjusted it a little to fit my life and love of racing. Before then I just mostly did what I wanted to based on the training I've done before.

That meant I had 154 days to get ready. I'm not a fan of rest days, so I ran every single day except for two days where I raced on my bike. Normally I would run as well, but I just hadn't time on those two days.

Actually, my marathon build-up lasted for 22 weeks. My weekly km looked like this: 72, 101, 135, 175, 109, 172, 145, 164, 157, 127, 84, 144, 151, 162, 139, 156, 116, 121, 83, 154, 104, 98. 22 weeks is really a long time to only focus on one goal, so that's part of the reason I race so frequently.

Some highlights from the training period: PR in the 5k. First 16:17, then 16:13 and finally 15:59,52! The last one was a solo effort, so I knew I had more in me as well. I would have PR'ed in the 10k as well, but some guy pointed us in the wrong direction and we ended up running about 600 m too short. I think I would have ran 32:5x. My PR is 33:20 from last October.

The toughest period of the plan was when I went on vacation for three weeks in the US. Running in the morning, being a full time tourist walking around all day and then maybe running again at night really tested me. I had to adjust some workouts a bit because of the heat, but I got in all the km's I had planned.

Course

Alright, it's a marathon in a city. How bad can it be? This bad. Two mountains per round. Because of course we needed to run this thing twice.

I spent the day before the marathon really studying this map. It's not a typical course where you can run a PR, so how do you tackle it? I figured if I could get to the top of the first climb without going too hard, I would then have 10 really easy kilometers next to really find the flow and rhythm, before the second climb. I could also earn back some of the seconds I would lose when running uphill. Then it's just to get to the top, roll down and repeat. I saw that if I was not totally spent on the second lap, it's basically downhill for the last 3 km. If there's anything left in the tank by then, just empty it all. That was the plan on a perfect day. I must say I was really worried about the last climb. I'm used to running lots of hills in training, but not at this pace.

Pre-race

Normally I'm booking a hotel when doing marathons, but I wanted to save some money this time. Slept home at my parents house and relaxed there instead. It worked great. I got in about 7 hours of sleep in my own bed. I don't think I've ever slept that much before a marathon before. Woke up at 5 a.m. Went out for a short shakeout run. This is the first time I've ever done it before a race this long, but I really believe in the concept. Got home, showered and drove to the train station for the 1-hour train ride. I travelled with my dad and a friend who was running as well. Ate my normal race day breakfast at the train, about 3 hours before gun time. This is all routine by now. Nothing to worry about. When you race a lot, you figure out what works and not.

Train ride done, walked about 10-15 minutes to the start area. A bit too much for my liking, but I tried to not focus on the bad things. Picked up my bib and had almost 2 hours before go time still. Fixed everything that needed to be done and just relaxed on a bench and went through the race in my head. I'm glad my dad was there, so he could take care of my bag while I was warming up and running the race. One less thing to stress about. Met my mom and waved bye to my parents. Did a short warm up jog and went to the bathroom 3 times. Ready. 5 minutes to the gun. Shit, I forgot the 2 gels I would normally take 10 minutes before the gun. They're still in my bag. I look for my parents. They're gone. Too late.

Wave 1 this way? Uhmm... Walk through 2000 people to get to the front? No thanks. Jogged along the fence, jumped over it and found a good spot. 1-2 minutes to go. Good timing if you ask me. I let my thoughts wander for a bit. I'm at the very front now, about 5 cm behind the fastest man in all of Asia, Yuki Kawauchi, the Japanese legend. He has dangerous plans today. He wants to run 2:12 to beat the fastest marathon ever run in Norway. He's good for 2:08. I hope he smashes it so bad. One of the big stars of the world is standing right in front of me. Me, merely a hobby jogger, will compete in the same race. How cool is that? It's a bit unreal. This man just finished 9th in the World Championship in London. Today he will run 70th sub 2:20 marathon race.

A quick glance around me reveal some other known faces. People that are faster than me. Some people I know are sub 2:30 runners. One other guy has the world record for the fastest time up and down Kilmanjaro! This just confirms what I knew, no need to race these guys. Run your own race and focus on the time.

Start picture. I'm in the ARTC singlet in the middle, right behind Kawauchi in the green singlet.

Race

(Most splits are from my Garmin. 5 km splits from the results.)

Gun goes off. I'm pretty sure one guy started before the gun, but whatever. Kawauchi goes after. It looks like sprinting to me, but not for this man. It's a little unreal to see that pace right from the start. I try to find a group to run with. Some people are passing me and no one is really right behind me. What should I do? I decide to follow, because I've made this mistake before. It's a little bit faster than what I want to run, but if I don't follow I might end up solo a few hundred meters behind for the rest of the race, even though we will run the same pace. It's only slightly faster anyway. I see my parents. They don't know I need those gels. Time to forget about it. I do still have the gels I will need during the race on me.

To hit 2:34:59 I need to average each km in 3:40 or each mile in 5:54 for you freedom unit guys. First km in 3:32. 8 seconds fast. My HR is already in the low 170's. My max is 196, so ideally I wouldn't be around 88 % of max already. I don't stress too much about it though. I feel good and I know I can handle a very high HR on race day.

Next km in 3:38. Good to see we are slowing down. I just follow the group to see what happens. I ask some people what time they are aiming for, but none can give me an answer in real numbers. It feels like I'm breathing a little hard when talking. At least I'm breathing harder than the people I'm talking to.

Here comes the first climb. We slow down a tiny bit, but the pace is still solid. 3:43 and 46 for the next two. It's pretty steep. I thought we would slow down more and make it up on the downhill instead. Is this group really going to run faster than 2:35? I don't know. I tell myself to take the risk. These kilometers are a bit boring. No spectators in this area. 5 km in 18:24. I look down at my arm. All the 5k splits are carefully written out there, even though I know most of them by heart. That's what happens when you chase the same goal for half a year. I'm 2 seconds behind the plan, but we're on top of the climb now, so no worries. The next part is much easier.

A group with 3-4 others gain some meters on me another runner on the downhill. We both think it's too fast to follow. We decide to not press. Some guy is telling everyone what place they're in. "10th and 11th." when we pass. Well, am I in top 10 or not? 10th would be cool. The next few k's are easy. 3:35, 38, 27, 34. I'm not pressing, just running controlled. I pass 10k in 36:08. Okay, that's too fast. 5k split of 17:44. 36:44 is what I should have ran.

We're done with the downhill and running back towards the start. This part is really flat compared to the rest of the course and it's also filled with a lot more spectators. It's here you really want to flow. I get into a good rhythm and focus on hitting all the tangents as close as possible. I don't want to run any more than needed today. We pass the start area and start to run in the other direction towards the second climb. The support here is really good and I feel good. Please let me feel this good on the next round. 5k split of 18:12. A few seconds too fast again.

Somewhere around here I dropped the guy I was running with and chased another group. It didn't really feel like I pressed on, but I probably pressed more than I should have. I'm sure the adrenaline got me a bit as we started the climb. I was in 9th place as we started the climb and when we went down I was in third! 4th place followed, but the rest looked to be far behind. What in the world was I thinking? I ran some ridiculous splits. 3:28, 17, 20 and 21 before passing the halfway point. 20k 5k split was 17:30. Half-marathon in 1:15:23 for a new PR. I've not done a proper HM in a long time, but still... that's both a good and a bad sign.

The speaker said that I had gapped 4th place a fair bit, so I'm sure that upped my adrenaline even more. Can I really podium here? Or even better, can I negative split this thing and run my goal for next year? The old plan is long gone. I'm all in for 2.29 by now. I continue to press on. I'm all alone now. First and second place are way ahead. I know I will never catch them. It's third or nothing.

I'm not really trying to run faster, but I still do. I just can't help it. It's the feeling of floating and being immortal at the same time. What can possibly stop me now? I feel too good. No problems at all. People care more now that I'm in third. Nearly everybody out there cheers me on. It really helps me to keep the focus. I'm soon starting the third climb. I know what's waiting now. It feels easier than the first time around. I run all the uphill kilometers faster than my goal average pace. I pass 25k in 1:29:14. Last 5k in 17:27. Can this really continue?

Time to float again. Downhill and then the long flat stretch. I try to open up my stride at the downhills. It works, but I'm also finally starting to feel that I've been running faster than planned. Maybe time to be a little careful. 17:44 for the 5k split to 30 km. 12 km to go. They say the marathon first starts now, and boy they are right. My legs sends me some really powerful signals that I've been an idiot and have to pay back the time banked with interest rates. My right hamstring is really tight and I can sense that one wrong step will unleash some nasty cramps. I try to change my form and technique to rely more on my quads than hamstrings, but it's no better there. A cramp rarely comes alone. I'm finished if I stop now.

Time to start the self-pity party. Why am I out here putting myself through this? I thought about that one Frank Shorter quote. "You have to forget your last marathon before you try another. Your mind can't know what's coming." I must have really forgotten the last one. I'm nearing the next aid station. Coffee and Red Bull. I could really use a cup, but none of the volunteers are in the middle of the road. No way I'm running up that curb to grab a cup in this state. I take a gel instead. I did my first at 60 minutes. Then I've taken one at every 20 min interval.

I'm really starting to struggle hard. I place one hand on the back of my right hamstring and try to press the cramp out while still running. It helps slightly at best. I'm seeing splits that starts with 4. This is not ending well. How could I be so disciplined in training for half a year and then throw they plan completely away? I try to calculate how much I'm allowed to slow on each km to still hit 2:34:59. I don't know. I can't calculate now. Math is hard when you're running in pain.

I pass the start area again get a boost from all the cheering. I don't want to look so terrible here, but I can't help it. I need to hold my right hamstring to not cramp up. The 5k split for 35k is 19:39. Talk about blowing up. And I still have 7k to go. I just want everything to end. I feel like I have energy left, it's just that my legs can't carry me anymore. I demanded too much from them earlier and now they won't respond to my commands. Fair game.

The last climbs starts. Running uphill is not that bad now actually. It's much slower than the first time around, but I get some kind of control of my legs. I run 20-30 seconds slower than planned for every km. Can I make it up on the downhill? I'm still in 3rd when I get to the top, but I can hear people cheering for 4th place behind me. Of course he is going to pass me. I try to run fast downhill, but it doesn't work. I'm still running with a shortened stride and increased cadence to battle the cramps. It works to get forward, but the pace is nothing to talk about. I'm finally seing 3:51 for a km. It's still too slow, but faster than the previous ones.

I get passed and just hope that not more people will get me before the finish. 4th place is still way better than expected. I cheer 3rd place on. He looks so much fresher than me. He's done a smart, controlled race, while I've ran like an idiot. It's no shame getting beaten by him, I think he's run 2:29 before, but it's still disappointing to lose out on the podium at this stage of the race.

Anyway, I need to get to the finish. I realize sub 2:35 is gone. Just please run fast and end this. 40k is passed with a 5k split of 20:17. Even worse than the last one. There are some cobbles at the end. Not my favourite running surface at the end of a marathon. I make sure to be careful. If I cramp up for real now, I might get stuck for minutes and even lose out on the marathon PR. I forgot about a small hill at the end. Soon I can see the finish. I give all my legs can handle, but it's not much. The finish is a bit faster than the previous splits at least.

Finally I pass the line. 2:35:18 for fourth place.

You can see my finish here.

Strava data and pictures here.

Happy it's over, but not sure if I'm happy with the race or not. I got interviewed and moved on to get my medal and to see my friends and family.

Post-race

I'm happy with my performance now. I'm actually proud that I tossed my plan and went all in when I felt way too good. I have no regrets now. I could probably have done 2:32-33 with more sane pacing, but I risked it for a even greater time. I'm not sure, but maybe I could have done 2:29:59 in a course like Berlin. I'll never find out, but this course sure is brutal. I'll work hard to get that sub 2:30 next year. I know for a fact that it's possible now.

Kawauchi won the race in 2:15:57. If he ran 4 minutes slower than planned, then I feel even better about my own race.

What's next?

Recovery. Taking about a week completely off from running, before I start building base again. I have a 10k and a HM left before the season is over. I hope to PR in both.

As for next season: I'll see if I get a spot for the London Marathon first. If I do, then I will obviously do that. If not, then I think I will focus on shorter distances in the spring. I hope to run the Berlin Marathon in the fall.

Thanks for reading! Sorry for any mistakes and the length of this thing... Ask any questions you might have.