The Extramilest Podcast

#4: How to Qualify for the Boston Marathon with Bobby Barker | Marathon Running, Training and Racing Tips

Sep 23, 2017

01:12:51

Bobby Barker is a 41 year old marathon runner from Frisco, Texas. He has transformed in the past 5 years from couch potato to Boston Marathon Qualifier. A few weeks ago he ran a marathon PR of 26 minutes and qualified for the Boston Marathon with a time of 3 hours and 13 minutes!

In this episode of The Extramilest Podcast, we discuss:

How he improve his marathon time from 3:55 at his first marathon to 3:13 a few marathons later. We look exactly at his training schedule for every day of the week, between regular training, cross training and nutrition.
How Bobby motivates himself to wake up at 5am to train before work
Tips and tricks for athletes to improve their running and become a healthier, happier and faster runner!

Bobby and I have experienced a lot of the same challenges and learnings as we strive to be the best versions of ourselves. I had a blast on this show and hope you enjoy our conversation!

Show Notes

Bobby’s journey to get off the couch and start working out (5:00)
Rookie mistakes with nutrition during his first marathons (8:30)
How 2 biking accidents changed Bobby’s direction from triathlon to marathon (10:00)
His first few marathons were hard and very uncomfortable, completely out of energy (12:00)
How he discovered Dr. Phil Maffetone and changed his training approach (14:00)
His first experiences with low heart rate training, training much slower at 12 min / mile (7 min 27 second per km) (16:10)
Bobby trained at a low heart rate for 1 month and noticed he started to improve (18:00)
How he measures his monthly progress with a MAF test at a running track (18:15)
How Bobby changed his nutrition and dropped 13 pounds in 1 month (21:00)
Dropping a few pounds of extra body weight makes you a much faster runner (27:00)
Bobby found a coach to guide him towards his Boston Marathon goal (29:00)
There are people just like you and me who struggle to get to the next level. Patience is key to see small improvements every month (32:00)
A breakdown of each training day of the week, low heart rate runs, hills, bike rides, long runs and rest (35:00)
His longest training runs include 15 minutes warm up, 2 1/2 hours low hear run, 15 minute cool down (41:00)
Be aware not to follow formulas too strict, importance of listening to your body (44:00)
His pace dropped from 12 minutes per mile to 7 min 27 sec / mile (47:00)
High temperatures can have a huge negative impact on your running pace at the same heart rate (48:00)
The race strategy that qualified Bobby for the Boston Marathon with a 3:13 time (49:00)
It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Month after the month consistency in training is key for long term progress (54:50)
Bobby ran 35 to 40 miles per week (56 to 64km) in training + 2 bike rides a week (56:00)
Motivation to get up every day at 5am to train, by praying, meditation, looking for inspiration, and helping inspire others (57:00)
Recommendations for runners to improve your running and qualify for Boston: consistency in training is key, put training structure in place, train mostly in aerobic zone, nutrition in training and on race day (1:01:00)
Hiring a coach vs creating your own training schedule (1:03:00)
Bobby’s involvement in the Texas Big Star Half Marathon and 5K on April 14, 2018 (1:06:00)
Low HR training and improved nutrition make Bobby and Floris feel like healthier and happier athletes (1:08:00)
Don’t get discouraged, reach out to the Extramilest Group and Maffetone