From fun run to marathon

My name is Ralf, I am 59 years old and have been running since 1995. It all started with a sports festival where I wanted to run 5 kilometers. "I'll manage that somehow", I thought to myself. But when the time came, the "air" was quite tight. Nevertheless, I did not give up the courage and completed the next 10 years folk runs over 5 and 10 km. Then I discovered the desire for longer runs. My running buddies encouraged me to run a marathon. Again I thought to myself "I'll manage that somehow", but at kilometer 30 it got tight again. I held on and finished in 4:15 hours. Now I don't run to always reach my best time, but to feel good.

Much does not always help much

Since 2010, my marathon times have steadily deteriorated and settled between 3:45 and 4:05 hours, although I maintained my training plans and intensity. In 2016, I wanted to get back to my earlier, better times. I trained more intensely and harder than ever. My training workload and miles were increased. I completed the first race in the spring of 2016 with a time of 3:53:34 h. I was very disappointed because I could not improve my performance. So I put all my motivation into the fall: the Mallorca Marathon. This I could finish in 4:06:33.

I was devastated. I didn't understand why my performance didn't improve, despite my increased training load. I almost wanted to resign myself to this performance, but in the end I didn't give up. Fortunately: otherwise I probably would never have come to the Vitalmonitor. My conclusion: training more does not help me, but only increases the risk of injury.

I wanted more!

I learned about the Vitalmonitor through my current trainer, Peter Blum. He told me that my training with the Vitalmonitor is adapted to my physical condition on a daily basis. So I was able to train the right intensity at the optimal time. For me, this was a great way to push my previous training. The Vitalmonitor sounded promising and I started my measurements in December 2017.

The Vitalmonitor makes it possible to give my trainer access to my measurements. Although my trainer lives in Dortmund and I am at home in Hamburg, this was never a problem. In the beginning, we met every now and then and communicated via the Vitalmonitor app. At the beginning, my bio-age also corresponded to my age, which was okay at first. From then on, my training was based on the vital monitor's measurement data. My trainer suggested a workout or I indicated how long I had that day and he suggested the intensity. This was much less time-consuming than the training units I used to choose depending on my free time.

Desired time achieved thanks to Vitalmonitor!

It was the 29th of September. It was raining and very fresh, like the other races. At least my physical condition was perfect: recovery was 120% and my HRV was 85. I felt good and could hardly wait for the race. Shortly before the race, I reconnected with my coach and he told me not to overpace at the beginning. Proud and even faster than I thought, I finally crossed the finish line with a time of 3:30:43 hrs. I had finally reached my desired time. I had been chasing this time for almost seven years. Without my coach and the vital monitor, this time would have remained a wish forever.