Name: Steven W

Sex: Male

Age (at the time of first BQ): 30     

Height (at the time of first BQ):  5’5

Weight (at the time of first BQ): 135

At which marathon did you get your first BQ? New York City Marathon

Tell us a little about the race. I had a shit marathon 3 weeks prior to NYC. I ran an October race hoping for sub-3 and hit the halfway just under 1:30 but totally fell apart the final 10k.

Going into NYC, I knew I could at least scrap together a 3:05 (the BQ at that point), so I went with a more conservative plan. I ended up executing just about even splits, and crossed the finish at 3:04 and change. Although I wasn’t in much better shape than the easier race I did three weeks prior to NYC, a smarter and more conservative approach to the race gave me a much better result.

How long had you been running when you ran your first BQ? 3 years

Did you run in college or high school? No

What was your approximate lifetime mileage at the time of your first BQ? 3500

How many miles did you run in the year before your first BQ? 1500

Approximately how many races did you run in that year? 10

Did you follow a canned program? If so, which one? If not, can you give us an idea of what your training philosophy was? no

Did you run with a running club or utilize a coach? Yes

Did cross training play a role in your training? If so, how? Nope

Did speed work play a role in your training? If so, how? Yup. Mostly longer tempo runs in the 8-12 mile range

Any other thoughts you would like to share with those of working towards a BQ?