This past Monday marked 16 weeks until that 26.2 mile footrace that happens in New York City every November. You know the one. Anywho, we kicked off The Program, our guided marathon training experience with 250 in-person athletes and thousands more virtually from around the world training. There's a lot to get to over these next few months, but first things first... Some tips straight from the horses mouth on how to start off on the right hoof.

1. Is this your first marathon or your 50th? Trick question. It does not matter.

You're a different person and a different athlete than you have ever been before. No race, no training cycle is the same as the last. Approach the next few months with humility and respect for the journey. Let go of your preconceived notions and past experiences. Trust the process, lean on your fellow marathoners, and most importantly—don't forget to enjoy it.

2. Find your starting line, go slow, and see the path forward...

Where you are now is not where you are going to be. I repeat, where you are now is not where you are going to be. If you want to run a 3 hour marathon, odds are you're not in 3 hour shape right now. That's what the training is for. Find the paces that work for you today, envision a path for moving towards your goal, and again—trust the process. The more methodically you progress over the course of the training block, the better outcome at the end. Go slow the first few weeks. Rush now and pay the price later. 

3. Establish a routine like one of those weird Silicon Valley startup founders

I know you know what I'm talking about. They wear the same black turtleneck every day because "it's one less decision to make." The training version of this is to put your training schedule on autopilot. Know when you're going to do your runs, create your set routes... take the guesswork out of it. The easier you can get out of the door, the more likely you will be to meet the demands of your training block.

4. No one is expecting you to do 100% of your training plan

How does 80% sound? 16 weeks is 112 days. 80% of 112 is 90 and that leaves room for 22 days of a little thing called "life" to come into play. (Don't check our math.) Weddings, social life, work, injuries, storms, family matters... there's so much that will wedge its way between you and your training. That's expected and it's baked into the plan. Try to prioritize your speed workouts and more importantly, your long runs. 

5. Break your training down into 16 "mini cycles" 

If you take nothing else away from this blog post, take this... Each week represents it's own cycle where you break your body down, enter a deficit, you recover out of that deficit and into an even better place than you were before - rinse & repeat. Being intentional in your workouts, but just as much so in your recovery is crucial. If you don't recover out of the deficit, you'll continue to bury yourself into a hole, which is how burnout and injuries happen. Focus on recovery and nail as many of these mini cycles as you can.