Reflecting on 2025 and Looking Ahead to 2026
A Reflection on 2025: From Down Bad to Glowing
As many of you may know, I’ve always been a more injury-prone runner. Ever since graduating from the University of Pittsburgh in 2022, I’ve battled recurring injuries to my lower back that have hindered me from training and competing in any real capacity. After many rounds of physical therapy and trying everything under the sun, I was finally seeing progress in 2024 as I trained for the Philadelphia Half Marathon in November. Then, I rolled my ankle on a curb during an easy run and soon found myself with a hairline stress fracture to my right foot’s fifth metatarsal, hobbling around in a boot with crutches for the next two or so months. That took the half marathon completely off the cards, and the rehabilitation process was tough and slow-going, leaking well into 2025. However, I took advantage of this period to build back stronger than I ever was, putting a ton of emphasis on strength training with a consistent two sessions per week of roughly 45 minutes each.
It wasn’t until May that I reached my first week above 40 miles, but training continued to gain momentum through the middle of the year and soon I was locked in on the 2025 Philadelphia Half Marathon, using a deferral from 2024’s epic failure. Having been through the brutal injury cycle of the last few years, I truly had no sense of my fitness nor what a realistic goal was for the half marathon, but believe it or not, the number in my head was 1:12:00 (I ended up running 1:12:01). The training block for the half marathon was officially 16 weeks, but I began some very general workouts leading into that which were quite slow and tough. A part of me struggled with comparison to my past, fitter self, but largely, I was just grateful to be running healthy and training competitively again. With time, the fitness started to come, and about halfway through the training block, I noticed training starting to click. Effort was lower, paces were faster, and I was recovering well from the training. At that point, the 1:12:00 time in my head began to feel more realistic, and soon that was confirmed when I raced my first road 10k in 32:57 at the Cooper Norcross Run the Bridge Event held in Camden, New Jersey. Not long after that, I ran close to a 3-minute personal best of 1:12:01 at the Philadelphia Half Marathon which I discussed in detail in this post. Less than a week later, I closed out my 2025 racing at the Chester County Turkey 5k, placing fourth in 15:16.
It’s been a weird but really good year for my running journey. It’s felt like a completely new chapter of my running. I have a newfound joy and appreciation for training and racing, and I’m feeling stronger than ever.
Key Contributors to My Success
There are many reasons this year went well for me (some of which I’ll probably forget):
I’m stronger than I’ve ever been having prioritized two strength training sessions per week.
My running form is the best it’s ever been which makes running easier and more enjoyable (thanks Paul Mackinnon).
I put much less pressure on myself to perform in races, focusing more on gratitude, enjoyment, and race execution.
I made training fun by prescribing workouts for myself that I enjoy like fartleks and 400-meter repeats at 5k to 3k effort, working them into the training plan in a way that would benefit me for the half marathon.
I focused almost entirely on effort in workouts instead of fixating on paces and constantly checking my watch. Almost all of my workouts were done on a two mile neighborhood loop with some rolling hills, making effort much more relevant.
I made more of an effort to run with others, something I’d been missing for a long time after graduating from Pitt.
I prioritized fueling and hydration within my longer runs which helped a ton with recovery. Specifically, I would typically consume anywhere from 60-90 grams of carbohydrates per hour on my longer runs, the number itself varying depending on the intensity of the run. Along with that, I’d carry two handheld soft flasks filled with LMNT-mixed water, allowing me to ingest sufficient water and electrolytes as someone who sweats a LOT and has fairly salty sweat.
What’s Ahead in 2026?
I’m really excited for 2026 given the positive trajectory my running has taken over the last handful of months. I want to take this fitness I’ve gained in the half marathon and use it to run a really fast marathon in the Spring. Specifically, I’ve got my eyes on the Jersey City Marathon set for April 17, 2026. It’s a fast marathon with plenty of competition, and the timing allows me to recover and rebuild for another couple of weeks before the official 16-week block begins. At the very least, I’d like to run a PR which would mean any time below 2:30:49, but I know I’ve got the potential to run quite a bit faster than that barring a disaster in training or on race day. After the marathon, I want to dedicate a few months to speed development and shoot for a fast 5k to end that speed block. Then, it’s up in the air what I do with the remainder of the year. Most likely, though, I’d do a half marathon or marathon build, potentially running it back at the Philadelphia Half Marathon in November.
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The Feed has ongoing sales for the holiday season which you should absolutely check out!
Josh Hoey broke the 600-meter indoor American record previously held by Donavan Brazier, running 1:12.84 which comes out to 24.28 per 200 meters. Sheesh! That’s pretty damn early to be running that fast, but I guess it makes sense as he didn’t have an Olympics-extended 2024 season. It’s one of those unusual times of year where some athletes are just coming off their off-season while others have been training hard for quite some time. I’ll be interested to see how Josh Hoey fares against the competition in a few month’s time when everyone is much more fit.
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jersey city here we come
Great running - maybe 2026 will see you dip under that 2.30 milestone :-)