Record-Breaking Marathoner Nathan Martin on Running His Own Race

02/25/22 • 49 min

"The biggest thing for me is trusting my fitness, trusting my body and saying, ‘Hey, you know what, if I end up, you know, not making a team or end up not placing where I wanted to place, it’s because I took the approach I wanted to and knew that I could be successful.’”

Our guest today is Nathan Martin, the fastest ever U.S. born African American marathoner and 8th place finisher at the 2021 New York City Marathon.

You may not assume it (and he intentionally will not boast about it) but Nathan Martin is one of the best long distance runners in the world right now. He’s genuinely humble about his rise in the sport and is interested in only two things: reaching his full potential and being an inspiration to others. That’s it. The really cool thing is his recent accomplishments serve as a reminder that there’s no standard route to the top of running or any other sport for that matter. It shows what’s possible when you wholeheartedly embrace a “never give up” attitude.

There’s no question that this kind of thinking is required if you want to achieve your goals, both big and small. As you listen to our conversation with Nathan, you’ll discover why focusing on your potential rather than things you can’t control, like your competitors and what they may or may not do on race day, can eventually lead to achieving a new personal best, quite possibly more than once.

Timestamped Show Notes

(3:01) The 2021 New York City Marathon experience...

(4:48) Developing an adaptive approach...

(6:34) Weekly mileage, training groups, and long-term goals...

(9:12) “Originally, I was the farthest thing from a marathon.”

(12:56) Finding a work/life balance...

(15:28) “I just want to be somebody who says, no, you don't have to give up. And if you work long enough, you can achieve a lot of things, even if you're hitting your late twenties or early thirties.”

(17:50) The road to the Olympics...

(21:01) Breaching the upper echelon...

(22:29) “The biggest thing that I try and do is focus on what I'm trying to accomplish. Right? You can't control what other people do.”

(25:28) Two helpful conversations...

(27:41) “I try and focus hard on making sure they're enjoying what they're doing and they're seeing the bigger picture.”

(31:43) How the transfer of information is impacting the world of running...

(36:26) Creating an ecosystem and infrastructure to flourish...

(40:11) How has being an African American impacted your experience?

(44:27) What advice do you have for athletes?

(46:24) Nathan’s experience with UCAN

References:

Marathon Project 2020 Results - Athlinks