As of today there are 85 days until I put my toes in the start line of the Chevron Houston Marathon. Today, I want to tell you about my friend Sundar Shankar, an incredible runner who completed 4 Houston Marathons ('09, '10, '11 and '16). I mistakenly erased our photo together (oh no!) but I'll add one here tomorrow when I see him.
Sundar told me that his favorite mile is mile 21 because there's when you see folks serving beer. He proceeded to tell me that while he doesn't drink the beer, he loves that mile because it serves as a visual landmark meaning he is super close to the finish line. He said that he enjoys being in the home stretch at Houston.
Sundar ran 3 Houston Marathons back to back and he took a break to recover from knee surgery. The surgery was unrelated to running. He came back strong this year and his goal for Houston is to get a Personal Record. Sundar's strategies include powering through tough spots in the course by focusing on different landmarks. Mile 21 is such landmark for him.
Sundar gives some great advice for runners who will be taking on the joy of running 26.2 for the first time. He said that because he ran the first 6 miles too fast, the last 10 were tough. He said there was so much excitement with all the people and the bands in the first miles that he forgot to better pace himself. He said he never starts out too fast during training because the routes are more predictable and there are no expectators. Start slow is a great avide form Sundar.
He also says that being part of a running group is essential to take on a full marathon because there's a lot of motivation to run the long runs.
My training this week went well! I was pleasantly surprised with my time last Saturday. I ran with a friend and we chatted the whole way. I was 10 seconds off my best half marathon competition pace. Tomorrow the weather is going to be cooler and my goal is to run a conservative pace but really push myself during the warm up series races so I can prep for the marathon. Thanks for reading friends!
Remember: there are Charity entries available if you want to join us. The Chevron Houston Marathon is such a great event, you will be so glad you registered! Please visit their website for more details.
Previously in this Series:
• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4 - Barry Walter
• Week 5 - Christine Soliman
• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4 - Barry Walter
• Week 5 - Christine Soliman
• Week 16
Read the stories of my previous Marathons in Houston:
• Chevron Houston Marathon 2014
• Chevron Houston Marathon 2015
• Chevron Houston Marathon 2016
Read the stories of my previous Marathons in Houston:
• Chevron Houston Marathon 2014
• Chevron Houston Marathon 2015
• Chevron Houston Marathon 2016
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