Anyone race a marathon?

[tweedledee]

@albertyn That’s awesome! It’s so nice to hear about the good symptoms of pregnancy

 

[ribs26]

@albertyn Mostly fatigue, nausea, and possibly digestion issues. I hate to say this, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up for a PR/BQ. Still, if you’re feeling good then you just might! I’m assuming it’s the weekend after next? A lot can change, especially with a taper, so just be patient with yourself and listen to your body.

 

[ldd]

@albertyn Okay that is really personal but watch your digestion. Ive been pretty constipated which is unusual for me as I’m generally very regular. But this past weekend I went out for a run and had a bad bout of diarrhea even though I was constipated just moments before setting out. I know people can experience extremes in this department but I was talking to my other pregnant friend who was happy to commiserate on this same issue.

I’m 7.5 weeks and have been able to continue running. I think I’m a tad slower but distance and sustainability isn’t an issue for me yet although I’m more at a 10k distance. I just realized I need to give myself a days rest which I personally wouldn’t normally need for a straightforward 6 mile run.

 

[foreveryounginchrist]

@albertyn I would go for it! I did a competitive race at 8 weeks and felt awesome, and the previous week had been super tired and felt winded during my workouts. It really depends on the day, so just hydrate and fuel yourself really well and give yourself grace if you can’t perform the way you would if you weren’t pregnant (you have a great excuse!). If you do great youll have such an awesome memory and feel so accomplished

 

[albertyn]

@foreveryounginchrist That’s incredible great job!!! Was your time what you were expecting?

 

[foreveryounginchrist]

@albertyn I did! I qualified for the next round but it was when I was 13 weeks the following month so had to skip because I knew I wouldn’t do as well as I wanted against national competition. But excited to compete when not preggo in 2022!

 

[swphillips53]

@albertyn I felt totally fine apart from early evening sleepiness in my first trimester. If you’re feeling good, go for it. Be prepped for a little extra pee maybe?

 

[avgold]

@albertyn I raced a half marathon competitively at 8 weeks. The first half I felt fine, second half I fell apart a bit and had to hang on for dear life (at the same time as forcing myself to hold back a bit due to the pregnancy).

It was entirely doable, I don't regret it as it was my last chance for a semi decent race before slowing down too much. I ran fairly hard because I felt like I could, but I was equally prepared to totally change my plans and just jog round if that's what I needed on the day.

The only thing I'd say is that a marathon takes a much bigger toll on the body and racing it at a challenging pace might be too much. But you don't know until you try. I say plan to give it a go, then have a Plan B and a Plan C worked out too. Mentally prepare yourself for the strong possibility of revising your plan mid-race, and if you feel genuinely ok about that then go ahead and enjoy

 

[rodney3929]

@albertyn I did one at 14 weeks. When I first started training I was aiming for sub-4. I found out four weeks before the marathon, two weeks later went for a reassurance scan due to recurrent miscarriage and found I was 12+2!! Baby had done 10 weeks of hardcore training including a 20 mile at way faster than my goal marathon pace!!

In the end, it was my ligaments that suffered - three weeks before the marathon my achilles strained so I didn't really run. I did the marathon, was up on pace for the first 10miles but then the achilles strained again so I had to slow down. In the end, was absolutely thrilled with a PB of 4.05.13, three minutes faster than my previous marathon. So I didn't necessarily race it but still delighted with my time. Crossing the finishing line carrying my baby was an incredible feeling - it's the first time I've ever bought an official photo haha!!

I'd say give it a go, but listen to your body. Yes it's a cool story to tell your little one, but so is "I had you, then worked my way back to fitness to qualify for Boston". Tips I had were to take a bit more fuel and remember it may take more out of you. Recovery's definitely taken much longer which is frustrating but worth it. Good luck and let us know how it goes!!

 

[albertyn]

@rodney3929 That’s incredible!!! Thank you for sharing your story!

 

[peterbablis10]

@albertyn I did a half marathon at 8 weeks. I was no where near your pace but I set a personal best. I had very little nausea and I had a low risk and uncomplicated pregnancy so I felt really good and ran until 29 weeks when the pelvic pain was just too unbearable. I’d say if you feel good and your doctors cool with it, run the full with no expectations on timing.

 

[corbinlady18]

@albertyn I did a half marathon just this past weekend at 8 weeks. I hadn’t trained a ton before, so I took it easy and didn’t run for time. If I had, I would’ve definitely run for time - my body felt/ feels up to it. I won’t lie, though, I am very tired. I pushed through because I didn’t want to give up. Go for it! All the best!!!

 

[jamesb]

@albertyn Can’t imagine running a race anytime between 6-12 weeks given how sick I’ve felt in both my pregnancies. For my first I did run a half marathon at 15 weeks, which went very well despite having barely trained for it. I ran it much slower than I would have normally.

 

[albertyn]

@jamesb Oh boy, I’m 5 weeks right now now I’m nervous for what’s coming lol !

 

[jamesb]

@albertyn You never know, you could get lucky! And to be fair I consider myself to have reaaallly lost the lottery on morning sickness so even if you do get it, maybe running will still feel manageable to you

 

[albertyn]

@jamesb Thank you!

 

[derek1933]

@albertyn I found out I was pregnant about three weeks before my first marathon, ended up running it at 8+6. I was really lucky to have had a relatively painless first trimester though. I’m nowhere near a BQ but my time was only about seven minutes off my goal, and it was about twenty degrees hotter than any of my training runs had been (86°!), so I don’t feel like pregnancy really hindered me too much, although I did make more of a conscious effort not to push myself into a danger zone given the heat.

All that is to say—I think it’s definitely going to depend on your circumstances! Go easy on yourself and have fun—this is baby’s first marathon!!