Samantha C., 27, approached me letting me know she was a fairly active person, who ran a bit for fun, had run before and wanted to complete the upcoming A1A Publix Fort Lauderdale Half Marathon. The goal race was in 20 weeks, so we thought it was an achievable goal. A time goal was not established immediately since I didn’t know her capabilities when we started.
In her first week, Samantha was barely running about 4 miles per session but gradually started improving her aerobic system and running longer. Our first hurdle was her breathing. She would inevitably develop a side stich as she was approaching the 5-mile mark. She started dreading that point because she knew what was coming. So we trained her in rhythmic breathing and set up some diaphragm strengthening exercises until the stiches became a thing of the past.
The more I saw Sam’s commitment and got to know her as a runner, I figured out she could run a 2:30 half. But as she progressed and improved, we revised that estimate a few times until we were comfortable set at 2:15. I asked her to run the Miami Virtual Half Marathon, two weeks prior to her goal race, so she could gain the necessary confidence for race day. She hit it out of the ballpark with a 2:09:03 run. Beyond anyone’s wildest predictions.
Unfortunately, the weather for the goal race was rough. It was hot and muggy morning, yet Sam valiantly pushed through to finish in 2:12:59. Still a couple minutes below of what two weeks prior, we thought she could run in perfect conditions. This is just the start. If she keeps training, she can become a great runner and next season can easily go sub-2 and/or become a marathoner.