2022 DCM Novice Thread

Laineyfrecks

Hello all, you're very welcome to the DCM 2022 Mentored Novices Thread!

This is the 12th year that Boards has offered support and advice to DCM Novices. In 2009, -amadeus-- composed the opening symphony. Rainbow kirby took over in 2010, Raycun in 2011, followed by Younganne in 2012. career_move kept the show on the road in 2013, succeeded by Ososlo for the 2014 stanza. Dubgal72 with her expert coaching managed to get her crew through in 2015, while the 2016 edition was hosted by the notorious (not really!) nop98, in 2017 Wubble Wubble did a sterling job to bring Wubble's Wonders to the start line, in 2018 ariana' took over the reigns and expertly guided her troops through to October, 2019 saw the calm & collected Mr. Guappa do a great job of getting his crew (myself included) to the start line. Unfortunately due to Covid DCM 2020 & DCM 2021 didn't happen much to so many peoples disappointment, but thankfully races are back in full swing which leads us to the 2022 edition...

About the Novices thread

This thread is aimed at anyone considering doing the Dublin City Marathon for the first time this year, on October 30th. It isn't limited to those who haven't run a marathon before, maybe you ran one but it's a few years ago and you're getting back into it or maybe you ran it but it didn't go well and now you're looking for a different approach...We have two possible training plans for you to follow and we are here to guide you in your training. This forum encourages discussion about all aspects of your training both with fellow novices and we are also lucky to have a lot of experienced runners to help so don’t be afraid to ask any about anything you like (running related), no matter how stupid you think it might sound, no question is a stupid question (believe me I've asked them all 😉) We are here to help!

The Training

Training for any marathon is tough, it involves adapting your body to the rigours & demands of 26.2 miles of running. It helps if you can spare a lot of time to devote to it, it can involve a fair amount of running at stupid o'clock as your runs get longer. Having your OH/Family on board is really crucial, they will be the ones supporting you throughout your training & then your biggest cheerleaders on the day of your Marathon.

Our training plans commence on Monday, June 27th, which is just over 4 weeks from today. We recommend that you have been running quite regularly for a year. Come June 27th, you want to be running comfortably 3-4 times a week, every week, covering at least 20 miles per week. If you want some advice on how to build your mileage up to 20 mpw over the next few weeks then we're here for that too. 

Have a look at the two training plans on offer and see if you can find a way to fit one of them into your life for 18 weeks. Can you fit this in your daily routine, your holiday plans, your family life? If you're unsure, just try it out for a couple of weeks and see how you get on. The mileage in the programs will go up, so be realistic in your self-assessment. If you have doubts post here and we'll give an honest assessment if we think you're ready, and which plan will suit. Commitment & Consistency to me are really import things when deciding to run your 1st marathon, they are what got myself & many, many other novices to the start line & the completion of our very 1st Marathons.

Training Plans

The Hal Higdon Novice 1 plan is a widely used novice marathon plan. It's a simple, and straightforward plan, which slowly increases the weekly mileage to eventually include a 20 mile training run, and has step-back weeks built in to help the body adapt. It uses 3 mid-week runs, which will slowly increase in length, and a longer weekend run. Ideally, you mix in one day of cross-training, too.

The Boards plan for 2022 is for slightly more experienced runners. It includes more variety in paces (either "easy" pace, or PMP ("planned marathon pace")), it includes strides on some of the easy runs, and generally covers more miles - e.g. 2 * 20 milers.

Both plans include all the Race Series build-up races (the Fingal 10k in Swords on July 17th, the Frank Duffy 10 Mile on August 20th in the Phoenix Park, and the Dublin Half Marathon on September 17th in the Phoenix Park). You don't have to run these races, but it is recommended to try one or more of them or an alternative race of similar distance during the program to give yourself a feel for running at race pace and to see how much you've progressed. If the dates of your chosen races don't tie in exactly with the plan then don't worry - we can advise you on how to restructure the plan as we go on. Getting a few races in can really build your confidence & give you a feel for what it's like at an event, the nerves, the planning, the atmosphere all add to the race experience.

There are many more plans out there of course, but we recommend that you choose one of the above and trust the plan you choose! Both of these plans have got countless runners across the line over the past 11 years and they can get you across the line in 2022!

General Guidelines

Stick to the Plan - The longest runs are the most important. You can of course switch runs around within a week if you need to. If you have to skip a run, try make it one of the short runs. When it's gone, it's gone. Do not go chasing lost mileage in subsequent weeks.

Run slow - Once you think you run slow enough, run even slower. You will not be able to complete all the training miles if you don't run the majority of them slow (slower than you will run on the day itself and possibly slower than you have ever run).

Once the program is about to start, we'll talk about how to determine your training paces.

Be realistic - A marathon is no mean physical or mental challenge - hopefully you will have raced at some of the shorter distances already. Don't set your heart on hitting a particular time. If you do want to set a target time, be conservative. The marathon, especially your 1st, is completely unknown territory, it has so many variables that can impact on your time. Don't fear the marathon, this can lead you to make poor decisions & to try to progress too far, too fast, too soon. Your goal is to arrive at race day healthy & energised, so respect the distance, but recognise it is achievable.

Listen to your body - If something doesn't feel right, stop your run. If it continues, seek professional guidance. As per general Boards guidelines, we cannot offer medical advice.

Be sensible - Things like nutrition, alcohol, and sleep. Paying attention to these things will reap benefits in the long run. Everything in moderation (except for the sleep part!).

And Here Is Your Host...

Just over 3 years ago I stumbled across the 2019 Novice Thread & haven't looked back since. I had been running mainly on my lunch breaks in work but with absolutely no structure or plan. Initially doing the Marathon was a bucket list thing for me but then I got the running bug & well the rest is history...

I joined a fantastic group of fellow novices & gained a lot of knowledge from the more experienced runners here too. The support & encouragement is amazing, especially as most of you will be training alone, 99% of my runs were alone, but I always knew I could come on here & talk as much running talk as I wanted without someone rolling their eyes! The day itself was beyond anything I ever expected, I ran my very 1st Marathon in a time of 3:42, this was just the icing on the cake for me. The whole experience from start to finish for me was amazing, the buzz & excitement after it is unimaginable & the sense of pride for finishing it out can't be beaten(well in my opinion). Your 1st marathon is very special & with the way the last 2 years have been I think DCM2022 will be even more so...

I committed to a plan after looking at what would suit my busy lifestyle, once you commit I do believe your mindset changes & this then just becomes part of your life for the next 18 weeks.Running a marathon is tough going, but training for one is equally demanding but I believe if you want something bad enough, you will make it happen. My motto was then, & is still now that you have got to Work Hard, Dream Big & Never Give Up!

Thankfully I will not be taking on this mean feat by myself, my fellow novice Lambay Island will be assisting along with the very knowledgeable Murph_D. Alongside that, the whole Boards Athletics and Running community is behind you, and will be dropping in with even more great advice and support. However you got here, whether you stumbled into this thread by chance, were directed here, or have lurked for years before finally taking the plunge, you will not regret making us part of your DCM journey!

Joining in the Fun😁

Wanna be part of this amazing journey? I hope you still do! Feel free to introduce yourself if you want to participate. All are welcome. To finish, I'd really appreciate if you could tell us a little bit about yourself, and answer the following questions:

• Have you raced before? If so what are your PBs? (Date and distance please!)
• Do you still need to take walk breaks in your training? (No problem if you do)
• How much training do you currently do ? Distances, how many days a week, cross training - whatever you think is relevant to your current fitness level.
• What do you want to achieve? Dream finishing time and realistic finishing time? Or just complete it in no specified time?
• How many days a week can you train? And what plan do you intend to follow?
• What is your biggest worry/fear/doubt (if you have any!) in signing up?
• Why are you running this marathon?

Thanks for reading. Once again, welcome to the thread. I have a feeling this is going to be a very special DCM, so why not jump on board & be part of this magical journey😉

skyblue46

Congratulations E. A no brainer as choice of mentor for this year. I'm sure you'll cajole the best out of your merry band of novices. I'm also looking forward to Murphs' and Lambay Islands contributions. It is a group that leaves any prospective novices in very safe hands. The very best of luck to the 3 of you.

scotindublin

Brilliant to see the Mentored Novics thread back and honestly could not think of anyone more suited to taking over the role of mentor as E, great support also from Muph and Lambay.

I will be following the thread with interest, best of luck to the mentors and all the novices, you are in for an amazing experience.

C

6run28

Great to see this thread back. Best of luck to all the runners this year !

corcaigh07

Brilliant to see this up and running again! I ran it in 2018 and this thread is invaluable to newcomers.

It was said already but no question is too small so ask Lainey and co ANYTHING! 🙂 It really develops your confidence on the start line if all aspects and questions have been covered already.

py

A great choice of mentor for the novices of 2022 and a fine supporting cast to boot. Delighted to see this invaluable tradition opened up again. Best of luck to mentors and mentees.

Remember, slow down 😃

MrSkinny

Been waiting for this thread after I entered the DCM ballot on a whim, half-expecting not to get a place. Thank you in advance to the mentors for all the time and energy they will no doubt contribute. The training plans don't seem to be open for everyone to see. Will you change the permissions or should we request access individually?

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119120571#Comment_119120571

Sorry about that - should be fixed now.

MrSkinny

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119120684#Comment_119120684

Perfect. Thanks!

Laineyfrecks

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119120571#Comment_119120571

Great to hear you got a place. That should be ok to view now.

Swashbuckler

Man is it good to see this thread up and running again. Welcome to all the novices. Hopefully we see a big influx of newbies.

Great to see you taking up the mantle @Laineyfrecks . You'll do a fantastic job. Great to see Murph and Lambay helping out too.

I'm sure plenty of the regulars on here will be in with inputs too, myself included.

Best of luck everyone!

One piece of advice - easy is a feeling not a pace. If you think you're running easy, you're probably still running too fast. Keep it slow and trust the process!

Unknownability

Congratulations to everyone starting the journey to becoming a Marathon runner.

You are all in very safe hands with @Laineyfrecks, I followed this plan with E in 2019 and like her have fell in love with running. Something I could never have imagined saying a few years ago!

The hardest part for me was and still is understanding that slow running is the key to success.

Best wishes

Runster

You are all very lucky to have Laineyfrecks mentoring you, people pay good money for this kind of service.

If my training improves, I will definitely be hopping on the train as well.

I have three marathons under my belt but never got a time I was happy with so for anyone

in a similar position, Laineyfrecks has the experience and quality to guide you.

You just need the motivation, a bit of luck with injuries and the time you need to put in the effort.

passinginterest

Great mentors for a great thread. I’d encourage anyone, novice or making another go if it after a disappointing first attempt to follow along and take on advice from this thread. You’ve got brilliant mentors on board and you’ll see so many people coming back who’ve had great experiences following the boards novices threads of the past. If you’re really lucky you’ll end up in a what’s app group full of enthusiastic novices (or running **** as they’re better known!).

Lambay island

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119120761#Comment_119120761

It was said in Laineys introductory post and Swashbuckler has alluded to it too in more detail here.

It will probably be the single most important thing to take on board. It will be mentioned regularly.

Learning to run what is truly easy for any individual will improve you as a runner and will make this process easier and more enjoyable too.

It took me a while to take this on board back in the last version of this thread in 2019 but once I bought into it completely(after countless posts from mentors and skyblue specifically) it changed my outlook. Its sometimes not easy to accept initially as a novice that running slower will actually make you faster.

For that reason along with others, it will help us help you to answer the questions on the original post.

No question is silly either..

Wubble Wubble

I'm chuffed to see the old Novices Thread resurrected after such a long absence.

An outstanding choice of mentor. Fair play to you E, you'll get a huge group over the line with smiles on their faces.

Also thanks to Lambay island and Murph_D - two more experienced marathoners faster and more knowledgeable than I.

Looking forward to following everyone's progress!

rovers_runner

Best of luck to ye all, good to see new people from DCM 2020 finally get a chance to tackle the training program.

ariana`

Yay, it's a sure sign normality has resumed to see a DCM Mentored Novices Thread 🤗

To all the novices thinking about signing up - stop lurking and sign up fast! This is the place to be, you will get amazing advice and mentoring from the very experienced @Laineyfrecks, @Lambay island and @Murph_D and you may also make friends for life along the way. It's one of the best things I ever did when I took the plunge back in 2017. Just thrilled to see this back up and best of luck to everyone involved, mentors & novices.

Unthought Known

Great to see this back!

Best of luck to all the novices (and mentors). Stick to the plan, run easy!

cullenswood

Good luck to all the novices this year. After all the hard work is done, remember to enjoy every minute of the race.....

MisterJinx

Great that this thread is starting up. Let me be the first to put my hand up and sign on 😀. I'm not at my PC this weekend but on Monday I'll pop up my answers to the questions in full but short summary is: first ever marathon, done some races and have been working on building milage over the last 6 months and consistently (mostly!) running 4 times a week.

Have heard lots about the past Novices threads and hoping that this year will be just as good 👍

Laineyfrecks

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119124706#Comment_119124706

Welcome to the thread Misterjinx😊. I know from your log (which is great to already have set up as I have found mine invaluable over the years) that you have some decent times in some of the distances & it's good to see you are consistently running 4 times a week now. I think you are in a very good place to train for & run your 1st marathon. Look forward to seeing the answers to the questions & to helping you along your journey 🤗

The Black Oil

Best of luck to all novices, fantastic to see this thread back in action. Did it in 2016 under nop's leadership. Lainey will do a great job too.

Don't forget McGrattans afterwards.

Annie get your Run

Wonderful to see this thread back up and running, and how amazing to have these three very wise and experienced mentors! Best of luck to everyone taking part, you will make lifelong friends on this journey.

Lazare

I met Wubble Wubble at parkrun yesterday and he told me this thread had started, when he told me who the mentor was I was delighted, and can't think of anyone better suited to the task.

Looking forward to following people's progress and maybe chipping in with a bit of help now and then.

Best of luck everyone, you're getting top class preparation the type of which money can't buy to get you ready for what will be one of the highlights of your life.

Enjoy.

Mr. Guappa

It's great to see this thread back again. Best of luck to Laineyfrecks who is already knocking it out of the park by bringing Lambay Island and Murph_D on board. A great team and this years novices could not be in better hands.

All that's needed now are some novices. To any lurkers out there, jump right in and share your background and hopes. Joining the 2018 version of this thread was the best decision I made once I'd decided to run a marathon. Best of luck to you all!

ReeReeG

Yaay great to see the 2022 version of the most exciting thread in this part of the forum! Everyone will be in great hands with these excellent mentors.

Hope to see plenty people come forward now to join the fun...

MisterJinx

So as promised here are the answers to the questions

• Have you raced before? If so what are your PBs? (Date and distance please!)
  • Yes, I've raced from 5K up to Half Marathon. Last race was Bohermeen Half in March this year and it was a PB in 1:33:xx
  • Raheny 5 Mile in January (8.5K) was in 35:36
  • My 5K time is hovering around 20 minutes, I've TT'd several times over the last year either just below or above 20 and my official PB is 20:23 from 2019
• Do you still need to take walk breaks in your training? (No problem if you do)
  • No walking breaks generally but on a long run I might walk to drink some water
• How much training do you currently do ? Distances, how many days a week, cross training - whatever you think is relevant to your current fitness level.
  • At the moment it's mostly running but I had been doing triathlons from 2017 onwards so swimming and cycling and not enough S&C (more to do!). I prefer to commute on the bike so get a little bit each week on it.
  • I've been building my running base since October/November last year with a view to the above races and the Marathon this year
  • Running mostly 4 times a week and finished up in the middle of May with a 60K week before a planned couple of fallow weeks for family commitments. I've had pockets of less activity (Covid, Christmas) but overall I think I've been fairly consistent. I've been aiming to get about 4 hours running in a week without an overly long long run at the moment
• What do you want to achieve? Dream finishing time and realistic finishing time? Or just complete it in no specified time?
  • Tough question.... So yes obviously complete it but I would like to aim for a time but there is a danger in setting myself up for a specific time and pushing too hard for it when it's the first time to run the distance and from everything I have read I know it's a distance that needs to be respected! I think I need to get into the block and feel the pace out over the first half to see what is realistic
• How many days a week can you train? And what plan do you intend to follow?
  • I'll be aiming to run 5 days a week and perhaps 6 depending on the week itself. I have a plan that is time based as it suits me and the family and it builds from 3.30 hrs a week up to 8 hours a week in the heaviest weeks. For me then I'll try and keep my week fairly similar to the last couple of months but the increased times comes from the long run build.
• What is your biggest worry/fear/doubt (if you have any!) in signing up?
  • I hope my back holds up. It's a weak point for me and goes from time to time. It's been good the last 6 months or so and fingers crossed it stays that way! I am slightly worried about Nutrition on the run, gels don't agree with me so far, I don't like running with a load of water in my stomach and I have had to put up with stomach cramps from time to time on my runs and it's definately something I need to get right for the day. I'll also be starting a new job in august, just to throw some stress into the mix, so it's something I'll need to manage so I can give both the effort they need.
• Why are you running this marathon?
  • I like a challenge and I like running

Hopefully that gives enough info work with and that a few others decide to bite the bullet and join in the crew for this year.

Pinoy adventure

Another newbie along here.

have done a bit of running but DCM 22 will be part of bigger plans which start the first of June 22.

Masch8933

Great to see this thread starting up again, the stars I hope have aligned for me to be able to do the race this year as my entry has rolled over the last few years

I live in Switzerland, so I have a few things which may or may not be in my favour when training, namely the hot weather over the summer (last week was 33 degrees)

To answer the questions:

My last race was Geneva Half Marathon which I did in 2:00:02

I dont take walking breaks in my running but currently my running is over shorter distances 5 to 10km and not long runs as yet

I run every second day, I am lucky enough to get around 2 hours for lunch during work and can run along the lake i work beside and then on the weekend at home I try to do a longer run and have been increasing it week on week

I have a training plan already (80/20 training) I used this for my half marathon and was very happy with it and it got me to a time I never expected to get to, it asks for 6 days a week training but in reality 3 of of those are very easy runs

The biggest worry is that I dont get injured and get my weight down before the start of the race, I am currently around 103kg and even though I ran my half marathon at that weight I know every kg dropped increases my chances of doing better and is easier on my body.

The marathon has been on the bucket list for a long time now, I have entered a few but life has got in the way and my wife (she is Swiss) ran Dublin in 2017, so I secretly want to beat her time

Looking forward to following and contributing to the thread as the weeks and months go by

turfman1

Hi.

I created a new account just for this thread. Was on boards before but can’t remember login details.

Anyway.

Probably like a few others 2020 was supposed to be my first Marathon until you know what hit…

I have kept my running up in between though so have a decent base.

I’ll be looking for a sub 4 hopefully. I’ve read the sub 4 thread before when I was a member here before and will keep an eye on that also if anyone is using it.

My PBS are mainly solo time trials due to a lack of racing but here they are anyways.

5km : 21:40

10km : 46:54

Half: 01:53

I also do plenty of cycling so plan on keep doing that also as I find it great for recovery.

Best of luck to all the novices and thanks to Lainey for taking on the mentor role.