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My First Marathon Rundown
First Marathon Stories
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Real runners. Real first marathons.
These stories, pulled from the My First Marathon podcast, highlight the grit, growth, and surprising moments that come with training for—and finishing—26.2 for the very first time.
From Postpartum to Pittsburgh: Rebecca Simonic's First Marathon Story
Rebecca Simonic never imagined herself as a marathoner. After the birth of her second child, she found herself in a dark place, scrolling...
Taylor Sayles
Sep 292 min read
From Poison Ivy to Philly: Asher’s First Marathon Story
Asher didn’t grow up with sports, organized teams, or even a background in running. His story began in Brooklyn, where movement wasn’t...
Taylor Sayles
Sep 172 min read
From 90 Seconds to American Record: The Reinvention of Keira D’Amato
Keira D’Amato’s journey in running isn’t a straight line. In fact, for almost a decade, she stepped away from the sport completely. When...
Taylor Sayles
Sep 82 min read
The Great Turkey Detour: How Molly Survived Her First Marathon
Molly’s journey into running wasn’t planned. She never thought of herself as athletic and avoided running whenever possible growing up....
Taylor Sayles
Sep 82 min read
Why Rachel Focuses on Finishing Happy, Finishing Healthy, and Finishing Strong
Rachel O’Brien didn’t grow up loving running. In high school, she played lacrosse and even committed to play in college before health...
Taylor Sayles
Sep 82 min read
How Katlynn Uses Mantras like "Forward is a Pace" To Keep Moving
Katelyn grew up in the pool, not pounding pavement. After nearly two decades as a swimmer, she carried the classic mindset that running...
Taylor Sayles
Sep 82 min read
Why Brandon Hicks Says Setting Big Goals Matters More Than Hitting Them
Brandon Hicks didn’t head into his first marathon cold. Years before, he had run a couple half marathons, training solo in regular gym...
Taylor Sayles
Aug 202 min read
Sour Candy and Solo Miles: How Paige Foote Ran Her First Marathon and Founded Noogs
Paige Foote didn’t expect to run her first marathon on a half-mile loop at an Air Force base, but like a lot of runners in 2020, she made...
Taylor Sayles
Aug 72 min read
Paige Spangler Cried Five Times During Her First Marathon. Then Signed Up Again.
Paige didn’t grow up dreaming about becoming a marathon runner. She started running in high school and kept it up on and off through the...
Taylor Sayles
Jul 292 min read
“I’m Not Athletic, But I Ran a Marathon”: How Emily Bailey Rewrote Her Identity One Mile at a Time
Emily Bailey never considered herself an athlete. She stayed active, played sports growing up, even ran a few 5Ks for fun. But the word...
Taylor Sayles
Jul 233 min read
Marathon Therapy and Ultra Weirdos: What Running Gave John Calabrese When Life Got Hard
John Calabrese didn’t expect running to become a core part of his identity. For years, it was just something he did when he had to—mostly...
Taylor Sayles
Jul 172 min read
A Marathon Built on Grit (and Google Sheets): How Sarah Yankello Rewired Her Life Through Running
Sarah Yankello never thought she'd run a marathon. She definitely never thought she’d become someone who carefully compared 15 training...
Taylor Sayles
Jul 92 min read
Half Marathons and Tofu Aid Stations: Running Charlotte without a traditional training block
Ten years ago, Theresa Dornburg hated exercise. The thought of movement for fun—or worse, for sport—was foreign until she found herself...
Taylor Sayles
Jul 72 min read
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