That's why I love the marathon

The marathon gives runners a purpose, but the journey is filled with challenges and self-doubt. Through training, discipline, and persistence, runners discover strength they never knew they had. The finish line brings more than a medal—it delivers growth, confidence, community, and lasting fulfillment.

I’ve run distances from 5K up to the marathon. I love all of them. They all give you a unique challenge. But there’s something special about the marathon. Here’s my list of 10 reasons why I love running marathons, and training for them:

1. The marathon gives me a clear goal. I run only two marathons per year. Those are my A races. I do a couple of shorter (B) races in between, like a 5K or a half marathon. I can’t put everything aside for these races. My friends and family deserve some time as well. And so does that chocolate cake. But twice a year I am all-in. The 10-12 weeks preceding the marathon, I am more motivated than ever. Whenever I go out to train, I’m not just running. I’m on a mission! And even when I’m at work, my mind is with the training session that I’m going to do that day. The marathon gives me something to aim and live for.

2. The marathon is hard and I like doing hard things. In our life, we create comfort in every way. We don’t wash our clothes by hand, we use a machine. We use cars to go to the grocery store. Or we don’t even go out, we just order online. When something is hard, we make it easier. The marathon is the opposite. It’s all about getting out of your comfort zone. When the training gets too easy, I make it harder again. Mastering the marathon means you have to be ready to for the pain and discomfort. You have to struggle. If you ask me; that struggle is where you really feel alive.

3. The marathon is complex. First of all, you have to train hard. You got to make the mileage, more than ever. You have to do the longruns, and do some sessions at your marathon pace. But you can’t forget about the speed either. You have to make sure you 10K and half marathon speed are up to the mark as well. And your strength, because without strength training, it’s harder to handle that mileage. There’s also nutrition. The marathon is a lot about energy, so you got to train yourself to fuel and drink during the race. You got to find out which drink or gel works for you. Stomach issues have destroyed many marathon ambitions. Then you have to learn how to pace yourself. Go out too fast on a 5K? No big problem. Go out too fast on a marathon and you pay the price! And the shoes. Running 42.2km on a shoe that doesn’t really fit you perfectly can be a disaster. In order to have a good race, all these things need to be taken care off. You miss one of them and the result will be different.

4. It’s easier to improve on the marathon. After training for 10 years, it’s not so easy for me to run a personal best on a 5K or 10K. Even the half marathon is becoming a challenge. But on the marathon there is more space to improve and that motivates me. That being said, I don’t run marathons only to improve myself. I also run them because I like the journey towards them. Just like it’s great to climb a mountain, even if you don’t reach the top. But if I run a personal record, I get that amazing feeling. The feeling that I just did something that I was never able to do in my life. That I’m the strongest version of myself. It’s priceless.

5. Marathon training means I get a lot of ‘me time’. When I train for the marathon, I run a lot. More than in other months. And this gives me time by myself. Time that I spend running around, with my thoughts just drifting away. No phone, no music, no podcast. Just me, running and breathing. If you’re one of those folks that likes to run with a phone, no problem. But I’m not like that. I like to spend time in my own head, just relaxing and being in nature. In this way, running makes me happy and is good for my mental health.

6. The marathon gives me an excuse to travel. There’s lots of marathons all around the world. Every year I pick two of them and make my travel plans. These are places I normally would not visit. But thanks to the marathon, I get to see and experience them. And while travelling, I also get to meet people (including other runners) from all around the world. What’s better than meeting new people? Apart from that, if I’m travelling for work, the first thing I do when I get to a new place: put on my running shoes and run for an hour. That way I get to see and explore this new city. Running is the easiest sport to do. All you need is some running shoes and clothes. You don’t need to look for a basketball field, a tennis court, or any other facility. You just put on your shoes and run. Wherever you are.

7. The marathon makes me part of a community. As marathon runners, we are all connected. It doesn’t matter if you run a marathon in 1h59 like Sawe and Kipchoge, or in 5 hours. We are marathon runners, that’s what matters. In essence we all have the same goal; to train ourselves to become the best we can be in covering those 26.2 miles. Some are more talented than others. Some can make money with it, while others (actually 99.99% of us) only pay money to do it. But in the end, we all run. I didn’t feel that same connection when I was running 5K races. I didn’t feel like I was somehow in the same running community as Jakob Ingebrigtsen. But now with the marathon, I do. And if you ever get a chance to visit Iten, that sense of community is very strong there. The Kenyan elite runners welcome you as part of their community. And once you become a part of that, you don’t want to leave.

8. I run in the same race as the best runners in the world. Which other sport can say this? As a football player, I can’t share the pitch with Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi. As a tennis player, I can’t be on the court with Serena Williams or Aryna Sabalenka. But as a runner, I can run Berlin marathon and be in the exact same race as the elites. Sure, I’m running slower, but we share the same stage. Some of my friends were running the London marathon when Sawe and Kejelcha ran under 2 hours. It was the best moment in their life. They felt like they themselves were part of history. The amateur runners that joined Kenya Camp in Iten sat down with the likes of Eliud Kipchoge, Agnes Jebet and Vivian Cheruiyot. To meet those elites, touch them and talk with them….I think it’s only in our sport that this is possible.

9. Thanks to the marathon, I can eat a lot. Marathon training means making mileage. The volume of training is relatively high, so I burn a lot of calories. I love that. It means that when there’s a nice dessert, I don’t have to say no. When training for the marathon, I can have my cheat day and not feel bad about it. I can eat all the veggies and fruits that I need, and still have some chocolate as well, without gaining weight.

10. Marathon means resting. Normally, when I’m just relaxing on the sofa, I tend to feel guilty. Look at me, I’m thinking, just doing nothing here. Don’t be lazy, I’m sure there’s some work to be done! But when I’m training for the marathon, it’s different. Now sitting on the sofa doesn’t mean I am lazy. It means I’m taking my recovery seriously! Resting gets a purpose. I can only get stronger when I allow my body to recover well after hard exercise. So that means sleeping and relaxing are taking a front seat.

So that’s why I love the marathon. I hope you do too. If you’re not ready for it, no problem, take your time! The marathon is a challenge and you may want to work on your shorter distances first. But when you make the step, I hope it gives you as much satisfaction and meaning as it gives me.