Archive | Success Story

Thanks to our client Jessie H. for sending in this blurb about MTA Coaching!

“Coach Joel’s training has set me up for several really successful marathons (and other race distances) and CIM was no different. I went in with the goal of running a sub 3:10 marathon. I had a lot of practice running paces that would get me there which helped build both my confidence and my fitness. I also had just a really solid and uninterrupted training block, and I attribute this to years of working with a coach who has gotten to know me/my fitness and helped build me up to be able to handle the work.

So then on race day, sure I was nervous, but I followed Coach Joel’s plan, felt very comfortable at paces I never thought I’d be running in a marathon, and when it came time to pick up the pace and push at the end to get to my goal I was able to do just that. I had almost a 4 minute negative split (1:36:12 – 1:32:49) and PR’d by over 6 minutes (and hit my goal of sub 3:10!). On top of all that, I actually got to meet Coach Joel in person after over 4 years of working with him!

Thanks for setting me up with a great coach!” – Jessie

Congrats to our client Erica on her stellar new PR!! She writes,

“I reached out to MTA after my last marathon in December 2023. I was paired with MTA Coach Kris and my experience has been phenomenal. Coach Kris completely changed my training. My hard runs were challenging but doable and my easy days were slow and relaxing.

I loved the diversity of my speed workouts. She gradually adjusted my paces to get me where I needed to be and her comments on my workouts kept me accountable. I was able to complete the full training cycle with no injuries and felt great on race day.

At Every Woman’s Marathon, I hit my target pace and goal time on the nose, running consistently and feeling good through all 26 miles. I finished with a time of 3:41, which was a 26 minute PR and a BQ. A huge thank you to Coach Kris and MTA!” -Erica E.

Congrats to our client Soumyadeep on finishing his first marathon in 4:12! He writes,

“After 6 years of running half marathons, 10Ks, and 5Ks regularly and swearing for even longer that I would never run a marathon, I finally ran one. NYC was amazing, with all the color, the energy, and the crowd noise–making us feel like real sporting superheroes.

My main for my first marathon was to finish without getting injured and I am glad to report that I was able to do just that.

Continue Reading →

Congrats to our client Melanie who ran her first marathon at the Two Cities Marathon in California!

“I freaking did it! Yesterday I ran and completed my first marathon! I fulfilled a dream I had since I was 16 years old. 🥹 It was worth the long hours of training, the weight gain from carb loading, 😅😮‍💨 pain, and everything else.

I ran conservatively but now that I know what it’s like, I can’t wait to train for the next one and do it better and stronger. I don’t think I would have been as successful if it wasn’t for Marathon Training Academy and MTA Coach Erin Palos! Thank you so much for your support and guidance! My chip time was 5:33:12.

Also, I oftentimes get insecure about my body not looking like an “average” runner, but I am proud of this body! This body has grown and birthed three beautiful babies and pushed through hundreds of miles of running.” 🥲🫶. -Melanie O

Our client Luis lives and runs in the Azores -a chain of volcanic islands in the North Atlantic belonging to Portugal. He just finished the Triangle Adventure which has three days of running across three islands in the Azorean Triangle. 86 kilometers total. He writes,

“Final race was today with 34K. It was brutal but a wonderful experience. Quite frankly my awesome MTA Coach Henry prepared me for these 3 races and thanks to him I was able to run all the uphills and downhills and no pain.

I tried taking some pics so that you can see how beautiful this place is to run!!” See photos: Continue Reading →

Congrats to our client Joung Song on running an impressive PR at the Chicago Marathon! She writes,

“I am so happy to report my 11th marathon in Chicago with the time of 4:19:44 which is a 23 minute PR and more than one hour and 16 minutes faster than my first marathon in 2015 (5 hours 35 minutes)!

I am 57 and my goal was to break 4 hours and 30 minutes without any injury.

I worked with MTA Coach Erin S. and what can I say, it worked!! Continue Reading →

Thank you to our client Mareike from Germany for sharing this feedback on working with a MTA coach. We are impressed by the challenges she continues to set for herself. She writes,

“I started working with Coach Abby in January 2023 to make sure I had someone guide me professionally through all the races I planned to run that year. Especially since I did not want to injure myself by running too much.

Abby’s training plans have guided me through everything I had planned for myself and even further!

Not only did I not get injured, but my times improved. And I never felt like I was burning out.

In 2024 I was able to run five half marathons, one 34k race, two relays with about 30k distance to cover, one marathon and two ultramarathons (50k and 67k) all without any running related injuries.

And I even got an eleven minute PR in the half marathon and a twenty minute PR in the marathon out of it!!! Continue Reading →

Congrats to our client Evyn Whiteley on finishing her first marathon! She writes,

“I wanted to say a huge thank you to MTA and Coach Jena for helping me complete my first full marathon in Chicago this weekend.

I ran it with my Dad, Brian Whiteley who introduced me to MTA.

Running by his side, with his support was unmatched. This is the highlight of my year, and I will forever remember this weekend.

We completed the race in 5hr and 26 min. This was the hardest thing I have ever done, and I can’t wait to do it all over again!

I cannot thank you enough for pairing me with Coach Jena. She was encouraging, and helped me realize that I can run much faster than I think I can. I felt very prepared and supported by her and MTA.

And most importantly, I cannot thank my Dad enough. He’s my hero, and has instilled in me a love of running by pure example.” -Evyn Whiteley. Continue Reading →