Marathoning and Strategy: How distance running prepares me to face challenges

When the Illinois Marathon began in 2009, I worked a traffic post around Mile 10. Thousands of runners streamed by me that morning. I was impressed with how many people had committed themselves to the effort. It left me inspired to do something about my own physical fitness, which could have been better as I stared down my 30th birthday.?

A week before that milestone, I ran 1.59 miles around the the park near our house. I felt awful. I also was determined to feel better and stick with it. After my first 5K a month later, I started thinking about what I could do next. The following spring, I trained for and completed a half-marathon. I knew then that a full marathon was in my future, but how would I do it? Most people don’t have a concept of how far 26.2 miles is, let alone what it means to cover it on foot. I was one of them.

To make it to the finish line, you must have a plan. There must be a strategy.?

“Strategy” is one of those words that is thrown around a lot these days. It’s a fun word that projects an image of serious thinking and purpose. Unfortunately, “Strategy” is often confused with goals; inflated and ornamented with decorative fluffy language. Most “strategy”actually fails to meet the challenge. You may have encountered this before. I particularly like Richard Rumelt’s definition:?

Strategy is a cohesive response to an important challenge; a coherent set of analyses, concepts, policies, arguments, and actions.?

To begin, you must understand the challenge that is set before you. Charles Kettering was head of research at General Motors from 1920 to 1947. His list of accomplishments is long and worth reading, but a few notable inventions he is credited with include ignition and lighting systems for automobiles, Freon (for air conditioning), and light-weight, two-stroke Diesel engines. You can imagine the issues he was trying to solve with those innovations. He said:

“A problem well-stated is a problem half-solved.”?

In the case of a marathon, running the race is not the key challenge. The main problem facing marathoners is having the physical endurance to be able to run that distance. The challenge is complicated by course time limits and the threats of personal injury and exhaustion. A strategy is needed.

Much of the information I needed to build a strategy for that first marathon was found in Hal Higdon’s best-seller, Marathon. In that book I found sample training plans, gear and diet recommendations, and chapters addressing the mental element of running long distance. The book was transformational. It gave me the guiding concepts and actions I needed to craft a strategy to build fitness and capability. It worked. Marathon 1 was a great experience. I was thrilled when Hal later signed my dog-eared copy of his book two years later at the 2015 Illinois Marathon Expo.?

I’ve had a strategy for every race since then. To give you an idea about what that planning looks like, my current marathon training plan for my 8th marathon (Houston, January 2023) calls for 580 miles over 30 weeks. That’s roughly the distance from Chicago to Washington DC. Every month, week, and day has a purpose. Within each run, there is a plan for every mile that I evaluate as I go. I practice race conditions, clothing selections, pacing, hydration, and nutrition. Fun fact: Your body completely exhausts its energy stores at about 20 miles, so you need to put energy back in the machine as you run the race. Yes, of course I track it all in Excel. All of these things come together to serve the strategy for making it to the start line healthy and strong. Then what?

You might have guessed that I need a strategy for the day of the race too:

• What will I wear??
• When should I arrive at the start line?
• How fast should I run??

Each of these questions is a challenge that needs clear action to solve.

My race-day strategy cannot be:

• Wear the right clothes
• Arrive at the start line on time
• Run an even pace, but not too fast

These are goals. They won’t help me meet the challenges. Instead, I need:

• The weather will be 40* at the start. Wear a short-sleeved shirt, a disposable hat and gloves.?
• The race starts at 7:00am. Be in the start corral at 6:40am. Approach from Green / State.?
• Run 8:30/mile for the first half, try to hold 9:00/mile for the second. Large hills after mile 22.?

You can see the difference. As I’ve gained more experience with developing strategy, for marathons or other things, I’ve gotten better at properly understanding challenges, identifying possible courses of action that address those challenges, and implementing effective solutions. It is a skill you can develop with time and exercise. This is particularly useful when things go wrong in that last stage.?

What happens when things go wrong?

In 2019, at the New York City Marathon, my running partner and I had a long trip to the start line. We walked to the subway, took that to the southern tip of Manhattan, where we boarded the Staten Island ferry. More walking to buses before finally walking into the runner’s village at Fort Wadsworth. We were careful to take it easy, but my watch registered over 8,000 steps before the race even started. Unsurprisingly, my legs gave out around mile 15, right after crossing the Queensboro Bridge from Brooklyn to Manhattan. It is a notorious spot on the course that does to many runners what it did to me.?

My training to that point had gone flawlessly. I was prepared for the marathon. I was not prepared for the toll of so much walking before the race that morning and the day before. I did not have a plan for salvaging the back half of a marathon. We needed to invent a new race strategy mid-race to carry us the remaining 11 miles to the finish line in one piece.?

Challenge: Make it to the finish line.?

Stretch goal: Try to break 5 hours?

Complications: No non-stop running (legs are shot!)

Solution: Run/Walk. Run for two city blocks, walk for one.?

Relentless forward progress. We implemented this 2:1 strategy for nearly 100 city blocks from the Bronx back into Manhattan. By the time we arrived at the finish line in Central Park, we had enough energy restored in our legs to run strong across the finish line. We made it in 4:57:48. Not exactly an amazing time, but that we were able to make adjustments was something to be very proud of.?

To develop your own strategic thinking (marathon suffering not included or needed!), I encourage you seek out challenges and practice developing plans to address them. You can do this for trivial things such as breakfast plans, your commute to work or how to repair your lawnmower.?

Ask yourself questions as you address these challenges such as:?

• What problem am I trying to solve??
• What needs to be true for this to be possible??
• Does this action contribute to solving the main obstacle?

Resist the urge to jump into a problem and start solving. Remember Kettering’s advice, and realize that value of totally understanding your problem. Develop realistic solutions, and then relentlessly act while being prepared to adjust accordingly.?

Diagnosis - Solutions - Execution?

I recently described my marathon training to a friend. He was surprised to hear me say that I enjoy the training and planning more than the race or even the rush of endorphins at a marathon finish line. The answer is simple: I love the proper execution of a good strategy, no matter the challenge. For me, the race itself is one big victory lap.?

What about you? What works for you as you create strategies in your own life??

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