First Marathon Buddy Program Athlete Spotlight: Meet Dom!

Dom joined the First Marathon Buddy Community and just ran his first marathon at the Sydney Marathon! Congrats Dom!

Q: What's your favorite race you've ever run?

A: Definitely the Sydney Marathon this year – 1st Marathon and World Major.

Q: What is your favorite running memory?

A: During the marathon in a really crowded area, the crowd was shouting and cheering. I felt goosebumps…I can only imagine how professional athletes feel on the big stage when everyone is cheering just for them!

Q: What is your favorite running mantra?

A: Go one more, take one more step, one more km (or mile).

Q: What do you enjoy most about running and/or the running community?

A: You are racing against yourself, not trying to beat your fellow runners, so everyone is in the same boat.

Q: Why did you join the First Marathon Buddy Program?

A: I was looking for people who were in the same position, training for their first marathon. I wanted to share experiences with people going through the same thing.

Q: What are your current running goals?

A: I'm still in a bit of recovery mode. Now I’m focusing on maintaining my running fitness whilst getting back into weight training at the gym.

Q: How has training been for your first marathon? Anything you didn't expect?

A: I was lucky that it went to plan; I’m glad I added a lot of hilly training runs. I really nailed my fueling and nutrition for performance, which was a big mental change and helped a lot.

Q: What is one piece of advice you'd give someone training for their first marathon?

A: Find a plan and stick to it. Trust the process. If you do the work, you can make it, and don’t compare yourself to others.

Q: Is there a fun fact about you you’d like to share?

A: During the marathon, my headphones died at 32km – I thought that was going to be the end!

Follow along with Dom on Instagram at @domoobrien!

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