Should I bother with the marathon?

Maybe just take a break from road running and try some trail races?

The nice thing about running is, that you can change things up whenever you want. That's the beauty of hobby jogging.

A boring race isn't going to help you with motivation. With stronger 10K/HM times than your 5K time, marathon training doesn't sound like an obvious way to boost your training, either. While your marathon time could definitely drop, wait until your heart's in it. It's a big commitment.

My suggestion is to do a block of serious training for the mile, or anything from 800-3000m, really. That would probably help your 5K (and everything else) more than a big marathon block.

Yeah, marathon training can be boring, especially in winter.

Here's something to think about. Some people, myself included, suffer from degrees of seasonal affective disorder. A common symptom in mild cases is lack of motivation. The cause is thought to be lack of sunlight beginning in the fall and lasting through early spring.

You can look it up. You might find something helpful.

You might find this interesting. I'm learning how to use chatGPT so I ran my post shown above through Bing's ChatGPT with CoPilot with the prompt "Expand the following text to make it more useful to runners" and then inserted the above post word for word. Here is what it said.

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of mood disorder that affects some people during certain seasons, usually winter. It can make you feel depressed, tired, and unmotivated. If you are a runner who is training for a marathon, SAD can make it harder to stick to your plan and reach your goals.

But don’t worry, there are some ways to cope with SAD and keep your running motivation high. Here are some tips that might help you:

Get some light. One of the main causes of SAD is the lack of natural sunlight in winter. Sunlight helps regulate your circadian rhythm and boost your mood. Try to get some exposure to natural light every day, especially in the morning. You can also use a light therapy device, which mimics the effects of sunlight, for about 30 minutes a day

1.

Eat well and avoid carbs. Your diet can also affect your mood and energy levels. Eating a balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats can help you feel better and fuel your running. Avoid eating too many carbs, especially refined ones, as they can cause blood sugar spikes and crashes, and increase your cravings

2.
Stay active and exercise. Physical activity is one of the best ways to combat SAD and depression. Exercise releases endorphins, which are natural chemicals that make you feel happy and relaxed. Running can also help you improve your fitness, confidence, and self-esteem. Try to run at least three times a week, and vary your routes, distances, and paces to keep it interesting. You can also cross-train with other activities, such as yoga, swimming, or cycling

3.
Be social and seek support. SAD can make you feel isolated and lonely, which can worsen your symptoms. It’s important to stay connected with your friends, family, and other runners who can support you and motivate you. You can join a running club, a online community, or a training group to share your experiences and goals. You can also talk to a therapist or a counselor if you need professional help

4.
Running a marathon is a challenging and rewarding goal, but it can also be stressful and demanding. If you are suffering from SAD, don’t let it stop you from pursuing your dream. By following these tips, you can cope with SAD and keep your running motivation high. Remember, you are not alone, and you can do this! 🏃‍♂️

are you going to enjoy it? is there some sort of reward in it for you? do you have motivation? if answer to all these questions is 'no', then no you shouldn't bother.

Marathon training is hard in the winter, like others said. Maybe see if you're lower vitamin d or iron rn. Motivation is everything. If you're not drawn to the marathon & want to race other distances then do that. Feel like people just go to the marathon because it's viewed as more glamorous & gets more like on IG than a fast 5k or 10k. Don't let that stuff bother you.

FWIW your 10k & half are a lot stronger than your 5k. Feel like there's a ton of free time for you in the marathon (sub-2:50) if you're willing to add more miles. Dk how your 2:59 went but maybe pacing/fueling is something to look at too. But I wouldn't think you're tapped out at the 5k either. Getting into a 12 week block with 2 workouts/week (every 2 weeks- 2 VO2, 1 tempo/threshold, 1 under distance) should have you continuing to make gains. It looks like you have strength so maybe just doing 3 out of 4 workouts every 2 weeks @ 5k pace or faster could get you there. Then playing with periodization stuff like giving yourself more rest early in a build & cutting that rest for the same workouts as you get closer to a race. Don't be afraid of stuff like a good amount of standing rest when training for the 5k. Start with 5 x 1k 12 weeks out w./ 3:00ish standing (or walk/jog/stand combo- ez 200 then standing). That amount of rest should allow you to do them all around 3:35 or faster. Then you build that with other workouts but repeat it 6-8 weeks out with 2:00 rest & 2-3 weeks out with 90s rest.

There's lots of ways you can go here, as others have mentioned. One I'd suggest to liven things up in the short term is new weekly mileage goals. I'm not talking about anything crazy, if you're running 40mpw try to hit 50 for the next 3 weeks. The point is to forget about the race itself for time being, have the day to day be the challenge. It can help bring a little more excitement to your training which otherwise sounds like it could be a bit repetitive.

This probably won't help with the motivation piece, but sub-3:00 on 40mpw is pretty uncommon. I think you'd be well served by just ramping your mileage up significantly. It's probably too late for a giant shift for this marathon, but getting to 50/60 will start dropping all your times substantially (assuming you stay healthy through it)

Maybe try some new stuff in training? Is there a running group you can connect with for long runs or workouts? I train mostly solo, but when I jump in with a group it definitely provides a jolt.

Ever since I graduated from college (and was therefore running primarily for myself, not a team), I have never had a good experience in a race that I ran when I wasn't excited about it and/or motivated to train for it.

The fire to train and race comes in ebbs and flows, especially when you're out there training on your own. If it isn't there right now, don't race. Don't even pick a future race to target. Just run however you want to for awhile. If that is just easy running with liberal days off, so be it. If that means crushing some workouts that you like without a specific goal in mind, do it. Run how you want to, not how you feel like you have to.

The fire to race (and train to race) will most likely return. When it does, it usually comes with some sort of inkling about what to do next. Listen to the fire.

You do not say where you are from or how long you have been running but there is some value in improving your speed before you start your marathon buildup. Most people, including myself follow Lydiard who never espoused that. But what you have not done might help you. By speed I mean what you can do for distances from 60 to 100 meters.

When you're ready, sure. If you don't want to, you don't have to. I'm going to take a shot in the dark and say you're pretty young. Do what the pros have historically done: Stick to shorter distances for a long while, and then in your late 20s, or early 30's, consider the marathon. But building a great foundation of racing and mileage makes more sense to me than just jumping to the marathon.

You're asking this on a running forum, where presumably post of the posters have a heavy focus in running.

The reality is that there are SO many other ways to stay healthy and enjoy life. Your sub-3 is already a very impressive accomplishment. In the absence of (what I'm hearing) another running goal, or a running community, it's fine to take some time off, try a different sport.

A physical and mental break may help you return to running (in a year, or three) with a renewed appreciation, or maybe you'll discover that you're happier kayaking, bouldering, BJJ-ing, or whatever it happens to be.

i would recommend a trail half - good fix for the "boring course" fatigue and also you don't need to really compare times much it's a whole different category. and the community is A+

There is too much emphasis on the marathon for recreational runners. The half is long enough to be challenging and short enough to recover quickly and avoid injuries. Also, training for a marathon is all consuming. You dedicate 6 months or more to a race that on a given day might turn out too hot, too cold or raining. You can also turn up marathon day not feeling well or injured and the whole year is shot. It's better to run consistently and race year round and not place too much emphasis on any one race.

I’m telling ya: no, no , no. Training seriously for a marathon is one of the few regrets I have in life. Tones of time and energy and money wasted for one stupid 2.5 hr morning. The thing they don’t tell ya is that when you’re not running the energy level is so low you’re sorta miserable and useless. 5k-1/2 is the sweet spot.

I would recommend taking a week off or maybe run like 2 miles once or twice in a week. It is amazing how some time away can recharge the batteries. At this point, you are running for your own enjoyment and health. If it isn't fun, stop it for a bit.

To combat boredom, half marathons and trail races are where it's at! Also do yoga a few times a week after your long runs, 15' - 25' is just right ;-)

Why should we care?