This One Adjustment To My Training Changed Everything

ALTHOUGH I'VE SUCCESSFULLY finished five marathons, something about my training blocks never quite worked.

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I run marathons because crossing a finish line is insanely fun and highly rewarding. However, I've always found training for them to be nerve-wracking. A training plan is necessary for this kind of distance, and while it helps with structuring my schedule and blending time to run with a full-time job and family, it's also always created a lot of distress for me.

As a runner with both ADHD and anxiety, I'd look at the 16 weeks ahead of me and full-on panic that there's no way I can possibly run 26km in Week 9 or hit the prescribed pace in Week 12. Instead of enjoying the process, I'd constantly worry about future workouts and wonder if I should just give up altogether.

So, for a bucket-list marathon I worked up the courage to enter last year, I hired a coach.