Patricia recently ran her 6th NYC Marathon! She speaks to her journey to this point, both successes and obstacles.
Major milestone: This will be my 12th marathon! I ran my first marathon in Los Angeles in 1996 and ran San Diego in 1998 (the 1st Rock n Roll marathon) and a few others until I ran a Rock n Roll marathon in 2004 in Arizona on limited training and “suffered” the last 13 miles! I didn’t run a marathon again until the 2017 NYC marathon which I got into via lottery and only then started training. This Sunday will be my 6th NYC marathon.
What is the secret to your success? I have always been a disciplined person and have enjoyed running for over 30 years! Every year, I have run at least a 1/2 marathon and in the early years I raced 5ks and 10ks almost every weekend!
What is the biggest obstacle to reaching your goals and how do you get over it? I feel I do not recover as quickly now and have had little issues as my training progressed. Last year my back hurt quite a bit after about 13 miles…this year, I struggled w/right bunion pain and pain in my left foot after attempting 19 miles two weeks in a row!
What is the most rewarding part of training? I love the feeling when I’ve completed my session successfully even if oftentimes slower than was designated in the plan!
What advice would you give to other members of the Runcoach community? I have reached out to my coach and she always responds quickly w/advice on how to proceed when I feel pain. For example, I have been aqua jogging the last few weeks at her suggestion and my left foot feels much better!
Anything else you would like to share? I love running the NYC marathon! The crowds are amazing and it’s just a positive, wonderful experience to finish!!!!!
What feedback would you offer on the Runcoach experience? Take it a day at a time and reach out to your coach for advice and positive motivation.