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Merry Christmas!
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26.2 is life!
“The starting line is never the hardest part.”
(Unknown)
The Walk into the Future blog is designed to highlight my thoughts and adventures. There are days when I have more to say than others but I’m always searching for new content to keep me engaged with this writing process.
My friend Lauren and I discussed creating a blog post to highlight how running is a metaphor for life. 26.2 is life—catchy, huh? 😊 Well, here’s my run at comparing running to Walking into the Future (living life).
Marathon training is a detailed and long process. I normally put myself through an 18-week training program, so the marathon is the last step in this process. I must mentally and physically prepare myself for the grind and I’ve found that I enjoy the training. The grind is real: 4:30 am alarms, 8:30 pm bedtimes, short runs, long runs and physical therapy. I’m always searching for small wins during the training cycle and celebrating them as much as possible.
You don’t have to be an avid runner like me or Lauren to understand marathon training. We all run some type of marathon daily, but you may call it by another name: Life. Marathon training is a perfect metaphor for life as the lessons overlap and there’s growth throughout the process. Let’s explore!
Most folks think of the starting line when discussing a marathon. The starting line is never the hardest part, it’s getting there. I find the starting line to be the most enjoyable part of the marathon. The work put in just to make it to the starting line is something that most runners are proud of. The excitement for the event is high, and you’re surrounded by fresh possibilities for the race outcome. Daily life works in a similar way. New jobs, new goals, and new relationships always feel motivating at first. The ultimate tests come later when the excitement fades, and the work starts to become routine. This is when you must dig deep to ensure you are moving forward with daily activities. Discipline is extremely important in marathon training and life. Discipline carries you further than motivation will.
Marathon training plans come in many different formats. I picked the 18-week version because it provides enough flexibility to fit into my schedule. There are weeks when I feel strong and unstoppable and then there are weeks when my legs are concrete. This is a normal part of the ebb and flow of marathon training. Daily life can resemble this same cycle. We all have good and bad weeks, but progress is never measured in a straight line. You just need to keep showing up daily to make the most out of life.
Dr. Henry Cloud’s book 9 Things You Simply Must Do to Succeed in Love and Life has a chapter titled Work Like an Ant. This chapter highlights how small things can lead to large things. The ants move one grain of sand at a time to build their home. Marathon runners find race day success because of consistent choices throughout the training cycle. Drinking water, getting consistent sleep, easy runs, tempo runs, long runs and recovery are all things needed for running success. Mile after mile is leveraged to build an effective base that leads to marathon success. Daily life can resemble this process. Small things lead to big things—planning, managing your time and setting goals can help you win in life.
I make it a point to never compare my training program to others. My goal is to run my own race, so I never get caught up in how other runners prepare. I toe the marathon starting line looking to run my best race and not trying to beat someone else’s time. This helps me enjoy the training and marathon process. Life can mirror this process. Comparing yourself to others is a fast way to lose joy in things. Everyone has something they are trying to overcome so don’t get caught up in worrying about others—we all have a race (life) to run.
The marathon is a test of will, mental toughness and physical ability. Each component is critical to preparing and completing a marathon. Mile 23 is always the toughest for me as I battle mentally to keep pressing forward. Training for a marathon is one thing but the work during a marathon makes you question life choices. 😊 This is where I need to dig deep and keep putting one foot in front of the other. There are Mile 23 moments in life too. We all face challenges that stretch us and force us to choose what we want to get out of life. These moments help us grow, teach resilience and prove what we are truly capable of.
I don’t remember every mile in my training program, but I can tell you how I felt each time I crossed a marathon finish line. This moment of accomplishment stays with me forever and I love telling people that I am a marathoner. Finishing a difficult chapter in life, overcoming a challenge or reaching a long-term goal can bring the same level of accomplishment. The finish line is something to celebrate not because of the big victory but because the journey was hard.
Regardless of whether you run or not, we all have days filled with obstacles, discipline, growth opportunities and grit. We tackle these challenges, fight through mental and physical fatigues, celebrate small wins and continue to move forward through hard times. That’s the same energy that gets me through the marathon. Call it marathon energy! Keep moving forward and training for the life you want to live. We’re all stronger than we think and can-do hard things. Marathon or life—they both require you to put in the work to be successful.
Who’s ready!
Irie!
Calvin Williams
“Running is the greatest metaphor for life because you get out of it what you put into it.”
(Oprah Winfrey)
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2025 Student Success Fall Celebration
“Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive.”
(Elbert Hubbard)
Work hard and play hard!
I’ve heard this quote multiple times and decided to look it up to see who originated it. Well, it turns out that it is a bit more complicated than I thought. There is a lot written about the quote and it looks like it goes back to the 19th Century and Racine College’s motto. It was interesting to see this quote associated with the famed poet, Wiz Khalifa and his 2012 hit song, Work Hard Play Hard. 😊 Okay, that’s enough with me trying to be funny and working another Wiz Khalifa mention into a Walk into the Future blog post.
The Indian River State College Student Success Division started hosting an annual Fall Celebration in October 2021. It started as a joke between me and a coworker on the premise we should have a dance battle at work. It was funny at the time but then staff kept asking us when we were dancing. Fast forward and we hosted our 5th Annual Student Success Fall Celebration in October with a Honky Tonk theme.
We work extremely hard on enrollment, retention and completion for our students (work hard) but I want to ensure we have a semblance of balance (play hard). The Fall Celebrations allow us to relax, unwind and just have fun at work. The event continues to grow each year, and we invite our campus partners to join us and have fun.
The Honky Tonk theme was selected back in November 2024 with designs to have everyone wear their best Honky Tonk gear (think western gear with flair) and come ready to have a good time. We added karaoke to our fall celebrations two years ago and it remains a major draw for our staff members and campus partners. I never knew people love to sing karaoke as much as our folks do.
We are always looking for ways to expand our fun levels, and I reached out on a whim to a local dance organization to see if they would come in and give us some line dancing lessons. I love to line dance when I’m in Nashville and thought this would allow more folks to get involved with the fall celebration. I know everyone is not going to sing karaoke but wanted to see if the line dance aspect would get more folks up and having fun—it did! 😊
My Vice President, Beth Gaskin and I are always the opening act, and this year was no different. It took us awhile to figure out how we wanted to start the show and we went back and forth on the song we wanted to open with. I’m not a real singer so I vetoed quite a few songs before we settled on Garth Brooks, Friends in Low Places. We wanted songs that would keep everyone engaged so we added criteria for upbeat songs or party anthems. The singers did not have to perform a country song, but we wanted folks to enjoy a good party while at work. We had several folks follow our grand opening and I was impressed with the singing talent our coworkers displayed.
We stopped singing after an hour and introduced our special guest from the Wild Roses Dance Foundation. This is a local group of dance instructors who teach line dance lessons across the Treasure Coast. I found them through a local Fort Pierce brewery where they host line dance lessons every Thursday night. I went by one Thursday to check them out and then asked if they would be willing to come to our event to get our folks up and dancing. They accepted my request and were a surprise addition to the Fall Celebration.
The Wild Roses instructors provided step by step dance instructions to two separate dances and then turned the entire crew loose to dance to multiple songs. I don’t think I have seen that many smiles on the faces of my teammates! People were enjoying themselves and truly having fun at work. The ultimate image from this portion of our celebration was our President in a full suit and tie line dancing with the team. He normally comes by to see what we are up to during our Fall Celebrations. I never expected him to join the line dancing, but he was spinning and kicking like the rest of us—epic scene from the event this year! 😊
We got back to the karaoke party after line dancing and had several great performances. Beth and I wrapped up the event with our rendition of It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere by Alan Jackson and Jimmie Buffet. It was a fitting way to end the Fall Celebration and allow the crowd to sing along with us as we ended the day.
There were several folks asking what we were going to do next year. It’s a bit early to identify the 2026 Fall Celebration theme but I’m sure we will come up with something HUGE—we always do! 😊
How do you have fun at work?
Irie!
Calvin Williams
“No man goes before his time—unless the boss leaves early.”
(Groucho Marx)
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2025 Atlantic City Marathon
“What a privilege it is to choose your own suffering.”
(@kellycarrdio on Instagram)
Wow! How prophetic is the quote above to my Walk into the Future running journey?
I didn’t get a chance to meet Kelly over the 2025 Atlantic City Marathon weekend, but I found her quote on Instagram after completing the race and hobbling back to my hotel. Her quote resonated with a lot of runners and brings a level of clarity to the life we live.
I had several great conversations with my friend Lauren Apgar as we continued to carb load before the race. We agreed that running is a great analogy for life while having an outstanding chicken parmesan meal at The Twenties Italian Bistro restaurant in The Claridge Hotel on the Atlantic City boardwalk. There will be a blog article on this concept coming your way soon. 😊
I made my way up to Atlantic City on Friday to get acclimated to the area and the cooler weather. I normally fly out of the Orlando International Airport while I’m on a running tourist adventure. Spirit Airlines surprisingly had direct flights out of Palm Beach International (PBI) Airport and the price was very reasonable. I jumped on the opportunity to fly from PBI since it is only a 58-minute drive from my front door to the terminal. The flight times out of PBI were a lot better than Orlando and I didn’t have to get up at 6 am to make it to the airport on time.
The flight to Atlantic City was a little over two hours and I was able to get a little nap in before we landed in New Jersey. The Enterprise rental car process was seamless, and I was out of the airport in less than 20 minutes. I raced in Atlantic City back in 2022, so I was familiar with the area and knew I was only 20 minutes away from the Atlantic City boardwalk and my hotel. I decided to find some food before making my way over to the boardwalk. I pulled my GPS out and located a Buffalo Wild Wings (Bdubs) 5 miles from the hotel and still on the way towards the boardwalk. Bdubs is a go to spot for me when I’m carb loading so this was a welcome detour for me. Posted up at the bar and got my normal wings, potato wedges and a tall Bud Light. There were not many folks in Bdubs, so I was able to get my food quickly and relax a bit.
I left Bdubs and headed east to check into my hotel and take in a few sights. I booked the Sheraton Downtown close to the Atlantic City Convention Center. This location put me in the center of a lot of downtown activities. I was within walking distance of restaurants, the outlet mall, casinos and the boardwalk.
I walked over to the famed boardwalk after checking into the hotel to take in the sights. I got a few pictures close to the water and then went into Bally’s casino to walk around. I’m not a huge casino person and I’m not a fan of cigarette smoke. I spent about an hour playing roulette and left the table with my winnings of $38.00. I used their money to buy a couple frozen drinks on the boardwalk before heading to the outlet mall. I never need much when I’m shopping but made a trip to Nike but didn’t purchase anything.
Googled restaurants and discovered The Twenties Italian Bistro restaurant was only three blocks away and had tremendous ratings. I made my way back down the boardwalk and headed to The Claridge Hotel and headed to the sixth floor for The Twenties Italian Bistro. I was surprised there were only four people in the restaurant based on the ratings. Oh well, I found a seat by a window so I could look out at the water and review the menu. They have a simple menu with traditional Italian dishes, and the prices were fantastic. 😊 I decided to go with spaghetti and meatballs. It was outstanding! I recommend the bread sticks—they are delicious! I got to bed early on Friday to get off my feet.
The marathon EXPO was held in a ballroom in Bally’s. I got up on Saturday morning with a plan for a quick shakeout run but decided to hit the Sheraton’s exercise room. I rode the stationary bike, ran on the treadmill and got a quick workout in before making my way to the EXPO. I thought the EXPO would be a larger setup since we were in Atlantic City, but it was a smaller event with a laid-back vibe. Bib pickup was seamless and made my way through the event to check out venders. Lauren and I walked around the EXPO to explore, and we both booked a session with on-site physical therapists. This quick 10-minute stretch routine provided some relief for sore legs and gave me a little bit of a bounce to my step. We carb loaded at Wingcraft Kitchen & Beer Bar after the EXPO. Fun fact, we ate at this same spot back in 2022 when we ran the Rock N Roll Atlantic City Half Marathon. The food is still good. We parted ways after this meal so we could get off our feet.
We agreed to meet later for more carbs and agreed to head to The Twenties Italian Bistro. I’m a creature of habit and this was a great place for pasta and bread. I got chicken parm this time and it was just as good as spaghetti and meatballs. Doubled up on the bread this time. 😊 We discussed race strategy a bit but relaxed with a good meal and caught up on life. Race day was near.
I headed back to the hotel to get my race outfit ready and get to bed early. I normally travel with multiple race outfits and didn’t figure out what I was going to wear in the marathon until 10 minutes before going to bed. 😊 I took a picture for Instagram of the original race outfit idea but changed the top before heading to the marathon start line. The start/finish line was only a half mile from my hotel, so I used this as part of my race warmup.
I got to the boardwalk at 7:15 am and got in some light stretching and jogging. The mood on the boardwalk was relaxed and almost felt like a party. Lauren and I connected around 7:30 and made our way to the start corral to lock in for the marathon. We agreed to run together at the start and then run our own individual race. Fast forward, Lauren’s race was outstanding! She set a PR and broke the five hours barrier—well done, Lauren! 😊
Fun fact—I also ran a PR and took 6 minutes off my best full marathon time. This was my third PR in three different distances in 2025 (10-miler, half marathon and marathon).
My marathon race strategy was to go out at a measured pace and then see how much I had in the tank. The weather was warmer than normal, but it was still cool with low humidity at the start. Mile 1 was completed at 10:10 (ten minutes and ten seconds), Mile 2 was completed at 10:08 and Mile 3 was completed at 10:23. My plan for a measured approach was executed well and I had a smile on my face for a large portion of the race. My 18-week training program was paying off, and I enjoyed a large portion of the race. A not so fun fact—the Atlantic City boardwalk is made of wood. This may not be a huge revelation but some of this wood is worn and is not conducive to running a marathon. There are multiple spots that are not sturdy and I saw a few runners take a fall because of the footing. I tweaked my left foot on the boardwalk at Mile 15 but kept battling my way towards the finish line.
Fast forward a bit, I crossed the finish line in 5:17:37 which was not the 4:45 target I wanted. This is still a marathon PR for me, so I celebrated like I won an Olympic gold medal! 😊 This was the culmination of a great 18-week training block, and I finished with a smile on my face and enjoyed the process.
Caught up with Lauren and we got pictures ringing the PR bell in the race village. I’m super proud of her efforts to complete the marathon in under 5 hours! This is a tremendous accomplishment, and she put in work to get her PR—bravo, my friend! 😊
What’s next for me? Rest, recover, massage and take a week off from running. I earned this break.
So, let’s reflect on the quote from above. I agree, it is a privilege to choose my own suffering. How lucky am I to be able to travel around the country and run in these races? My suffering (pain) is done on purpose, and I enjoy every minute of it.
Let’s never take for granted our ability to live life daily!
Irie!
Calvin Williams
“The real purpose of running isn’t to win the race, it’s to test the limits of the human heart.”
(Bill Bowerman)
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Happy Thanksgiving!
Enjoy your time with family and friends!
Irie!
Calvin Williams
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My Favorite Book (Henry Cloud)
“A room without books is like a body without a soul.”
(Marcus Tullius Cicero)
The Walk into the Future blog allows me to cover a wide range of topics to include my travel and running pursuits. These are two things I love and will continue to chronicle for my readers and myself. Laying down these tracks provides me with a sense of satisfaction and completion weekly. Stay tuned for more content in 2026! 😊
My friend, Cathy, and I were discussing writing prompts and books last week. We got on this discussion because I gifted her a copy of my book and we discussed some of the topics I wrote about including taking my own advice. I need to give my book another run because I dropped some wisdom on those pages. 😊
We got on the topic of my favorite author and book: Henry Cloud’s, 9 Things You Simply Must Do to Succeed in Love and Life. I discovered the author and this book in a master’s level Career Development course while studying at Liberty University. I never thought a college textbook would have such a profound impact on my educational, professional and life journey. This book opened my eyes and set me on a life path that I still embrace daily.
Why was this book so impactful? Great question, Maria! 😊
The book is a page turner from start to finish with insight that is easy to understand and put into daily life. The author discusses the concept of DÉJÀ VU People but really explains that successful people regardless of profession display similar traits. You may think you recognize someone who crosses your path, but you are really seeing traits that led multiple people to successful outcomes.
The Nine Things Hidden in Plain Sight are:
- Dig it Up
- Pull the Tooth
- Play the Movie
- Do Something
- Act Like an Ant
- Hate Well
- Don’t Play Fair
- Be Humble
- Upset the Right People
Let’s explore Principle 3: Play the Movie.
This principle is like every action has a reaction. I love how the author highlights how each decision we make in life leads to new outcomes. Your actions have future implications, and this chapter is written to remind readers of this simple fact. Playing the movie for me comes into play each time I enter a full marathon training cycle. Skipping a training run is a simple action when isolated but that one missed run can impact my entire training program for the week. Skip too many training runs and my training cycle and marathon may be ruined. Playing the movie allows me to see the consequences of my actions.
You can add the same concept to your daily work activities. Preparing before your big work meeting allows you to provide better feedback to your colleagues. Ignoring the preparation process and your lackluster interactions could set you and your colleagues back. That scene in your movie impacted the next few scenes. Sounds simple, huh?
I remind myself to play the movie in every decision I make daily. What outcomes do I want from my decision? What are the next scenes in the movie I want to play?
Dr. Cloud introduces the Nine Principles in an easy format, and I walk around with his book daily. It’s highly worn but it still provides me with wisdom daily.
I plan to dig into other principles in future blog articles. Stay tuned Melissa! 😊
Irie!
Calvin Williams
“Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.”
(Frederick Douglas)
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New Hampshire and Maine in photos
“Not all those who wander are lost.”
(J.R.R. Tolkien)
The Walk into the Future blog traveled to New Hampshire and Maine in October for the 2025 Smuttynose Rockfest Half marathon.
This was my first adventure to both of these states and I enjoyed my time in the northeast. I’m scheduled to head back up for the same race in October 2026.
Here’s a look at my 2025 adventure in pictures:
Hampton Beach, NH:
Portsmouth, NH:
Maine shoreline:
Race day:
We will do this all again in October 2026! 😊
Irie!
Calvin Williams
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2025 Smuttynose Half Marathon
“Pain is temporary, pride is forever.”
(Unknown)
The Walk into the Future blog is always looking for new adventures and places to explore as I live this life.
I have been lucky to leverage my running tourist mindset to this process. My latest adventure was a trip to New Hampshire for the 2025 Smuttynose Half Marathon in Hampton, New Hampshire. My last northeastern race was in Providence, Rhode Island. This race came highly recommended on the racing calendar and promised the flattest course in New Hampshire. Fun fact, I had no idea what that meant but anything with ‘flattest’ in the description is good for me when it comes to races. 😊
New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont are the only New England states I have never traveled to, and my goal was to cross each of them off on this trip. Well, two out of three got crossed off. I didn’t have enough time to make it over to Vermont without sacrificing race preparation and recovery time. No worries, I will look for a Vermont race in 2026 to get me back in the area.
I flew up from the Orlando airport into Manchester, New Hampshire which is about 35 minutes from Hampton. There is a closer airport in Portsmouth, New Hampshire but there were limited airlines and flights into that airport. I was surprised by the amount of people flying from Orlando to Manchester. The flight was completely full and I’m sure this had nothing to do with the Smuttynose Half Marathon. It appears Manchester is the gateway to this portion of New England.
The Manchester airport was easy to navigate, and I made my way to the Enterprise rental counter to begin my adventure. Plugged in my hotel address into the GPS and headed through the countryside towards Hampton. The leaves had some nice colors, but they weren’t the full fall colors we always hear about in New England. I’m sure the warmer than normal temperatures had something to do with color of the leaves at this point of the year.
Hotel check-in was a breeze, and I dropped off my luggage in my room before exploring Hampton. I made my way over to the EXPO which was several tents in a parking lot close to the beach. I didn’t expect anything huge with the EXPO and this one did not disappoint or offer anything more than bib and package pickup. I was expecting to spend some time at the EXPO, but I was done in about 10 minutes. I made sure to get a few pictures at the EXPO but left this location to explore Hampton and get over to the beach.
The beach was only one block away, so I headed over to become a tourist and see the sights. The area was nice and there were folks out walking on the beach and just enjoying the nice weather. I soaked up the sun and atmosphere a bit before finding food. I found Wing-itz Hampton with a quick Google search, so I headed there to get some wings and carbs. There was a small crowd at this location with most folks crowded around the bar inside. The weather was great, so I made my way to the patio and found a spot in the sun to keep warm. They had nice food and beer selection, but I stayed with the tried-and-true wings, fries and beer. Simple is better when traveling for a race. 😊
Saturday was dedicated to exploring and making my way to Maine. Hampton is situated in the northeastern corner of New Hampshire, so I was pleasantly surprised my Maine adventure was only 15 miles away. Plugged Kittery, Maine into my GPS and then made my way up to see the sights. I’m a huge outlet mall shopper so the first place I stopped in Maine was an outlet mall. I never need anything but wanted to see if this Nike outlet had anything different from the outlet malls in Florida. You guessed it, no they have the same stuff. 😊
I wanted to see a lighthouse and saw the Nubble Lighthouse was close by. I plugged in the address into GPS and made my way along the coast to see the Nubble Lighthouse and take in more seaside sights. The drive was short but took me through the countryside and a couple of quaint little Maine towns. Parking at the Nubble Lighthouse was tough—it is a huge tourist attraction, and this was the last weekend before most restaurants closed for the season. Finally found a parking spot and made my way down a path to get some pictures of the lighthouse, coastline and surrounding areas. This was a very peaceful part of the trip even with many tourists in the same area. Everyone was friendly and enjoyed being in the same area enjoying the lighthouse vibes. The temperature felt great, but it was warmer than normal. I found this out because my bartender told me this was the last day her bar would be open for the season. Turns out a lot of northern places close because they don’t have water pipes that are designed to handle extreme cold.
I made my way back down the coast to get a few additional pictures and then headed back to Hampton. My first stop when I got back was Wings-itz to repeat my meal from the day before. Yes, I’m a creature of habit. 😊 The Florida Gators game against the Texas Longhorns was on the big TV, so I posted up to watch with my wings and beer. The patio was crowded during this visit and there was a birthday party on the patio. I grabbed an empty table and got comfortable. Turns out I sat in the birthday party area and got invited to have food and birthday cupcakes. The birthday boy turned 70 and is a graduate of the University of Florida. I can’t make this stuff up.
I got up on race day feeling good and wanted to see how my marathon training would translate to the half marathon distance. I wanted cooler weather but there was no humidity, and the temperature was a lot cooler than what I left in Florida.
The Hampton beach area only has paid parking, so I got as close to the start line as possible and found a parking lot for $20. This was the going rate in all parking lots so there is no need to look for a better price. The race village was one block over, so I followed the crowd to the boardwalk and joined the other runners to stretch and warm up. The sunrise was gorgeous, and I thought this was a good indicator for the day. Again, I didn’t have time in mind for this race but wanted to go as fast and safe as possible.
There was not a time corral for this race so folks just posted up where they were comfortable. There was a 5k component to race day, but those runners started 15 minutes after the half marathoners which allowed for a cleaner start. I grabbed my spot in the middle of the start pack and waited for the start gun to go off.
I wanted to go out at a measured pace and then see what I had towards the middle of the race. The cooler temperatures to start the race were welcomed and the crowds at the start were fantastic. It’s always great to hear random strangers cheering your name like they know you.
Mile #1 was completed in 8:51, Mile #2 in 9:03 and Mile #3 in 9:08. I won’t bore you with each mile split, but these first three miles allowed me to determine how much I could push the pace. These splits felt good and I knew I had the endurance to run 9’s if the weather held.
Fast forward a bit and the 2025 Smuttynose Half Marathon became my personal record (PR) race. 2:04:31 is the fastest half marathon for me since the 2019 OUC Half Marathon in Orlando. Never thought it would take six years to run another half marathon PR, but I will take it. I think I had a faster time in my legs, but the temperature went up towards the middle of the race, and it felt like summer again. I’m proud of my efforts and happy to bring home a half marathon PR back to Florida. I made my way over to ring the PR bell and get a picture to highlight this huge accomplishment for me.
The after-race party was outstanding with beer, food and good old rock and roll. The band was fantastic and had runners dancing to the tunes. I had such a good experience with this race and location that I signed up for the 2026 Smuttynose Half Marathon before I left New Hampshire. This race will be a part of my regular race rotation moving forward.
Next stop, the 2025 Atlantic City Marathon. 😊
Irie!
Calvin Williams
“It’s not the distance you must conquer in running…it’s yourself.”
(Unknown)
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2025 Atlantic City Marathon training (in pictures)
“You are going to want to give up…don’t.”
(Realbuzz.com)
The 2025 Atlantic City Marathon allowed me to get back into my 18-week training program again this year.
I have leveraged this program for the past 4 years, and it appears I’m getting better each year. My training progressions, physical endurance and race times continue to improve. I’m not sure how many marathons I have left in my system, but this was my favorite training cycle so far.
I have dreams of competing in the 2026 Chicago Marathon or the 2026 Berlin Marathon. I plan to sign up for both next year with hopes of getting selected for one of them. My hope is to get picked for Berlin so I can add an international marathon to my race docket. I’m sure you will hear about it, especially if I get selected–fingers crossed! 😊
This blog will highlight my 2025 Atlantic City Marathon training in pictures to include several races I leveraged to help with my training program. Thanks to my readers for following the training cycle and I will blog about the marathon with results soon.
Here’s my 2025 training cycle in pictures:
Week 1 Long Run
Week 2 Long Run
Week 7 Long Run
Week 15 Long Run
Irie!
Calvin Williams
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2025 Atlantic City Marathon training
“Training for a race is going to be uncomfortable…you can fight it, which uses precious energy, or you can learn to embrace it.”
(Lisa McClellan)
The 2025 Atlantic City Marathon is fast approaching!
I decided to lay low with my training updates this year and concentrate on the grind of the process. This will be my fourth go at the marathon distance, and I continue to learn more about myself and how to train. I am proud of this training cycle with my consistency and ability to hit weekly mile markers.
Maintaining a consistent bedtime (8:30 pm) ensures that I get enough rest and can get up for my early morning runs. I find myself waking up on my own before my alarm clock goes off at 4:30 am. I’m excited to train and it has been showing in my weekly efforts.
I have continued to leverage the Hal Higdon 18-week marathon training program for this cycle. This program has helped me grow into a marathoner and is easy to understand and follow. I have missed a few training sessions due to life (travel, work, rain) but I have found ways to keep my mileage up and mentally prepare for the 26.2-mile battle coming up in Atlantic City.
I lowered my marathon personal record (PR) by over 23 minutes in Chicago last year and I want to lower it again in Atlantic City. I revealed in my first Atlantic City marathon update that my goal time is 4:45 (four hours and forty-five minutes). That would be a 35-minute reduction but I’m not backing down from my goal. Will I hit it? You will see soon! 😊
I leverage races to help me work on my speed and I’m happy with the results in my lead up to the 2025 Atlantic City marathon. I ran a PR at the 2025 Virginia Beach 10-miler in September. I ran 1:34:44 and that lowered my best time for this distance by two minutes. My 2025 Outrun Hunger 5k time of 28:41 was not a PR but was a good indicator of my fitness considering the Fort Pierce humidity levels in September. This all showed my training, fitness and mental approach were producing positive results.
The final tune-up was conducted at the 2025 Smuttynose Rockfest Half Marathon in Hampton, New Hampshire. I set my half marathon PR during this race two weeks before Atlantic City. The 2:04:31 time was due to my training program, and the cool weather helped a lot. (A blog article on this race is coming soon). 😊
Here’s my weekly mileage update:
Week 11 26.65 Week 12 33.28 Week 13 29.73 Week 14 34.64 Week 15 38.02 Week 16 34.3 Week 17 25 Week 18 9.62 Total Week 11 – Week 17: 228.98
Total miles this training cycle: 583.74
Total Friday nights out: 0😊
I continue to learn how to train and recover for a marathon. My body has felt good throughout this training cycle and I’m mentally tougher than in previous years. I am excited to see how this new level of fitness and mental preparation shows up on race day. Race fast and having fun are the main goals with a potential PR at the end—we will see!
Thanks for following the marathon training journey and see you on the other side of 26.2 miles in New Jersey.
What are you training for?
Fun fact: I started marathon training weighing 198 pounds and got down to 189 pounds at one point during this cycle. I will toe the start line at 195 pounds this year. 😊
Irie!
Calvin Williams
“Aiming for the marathon is a task of sorts which can include terrific highs and lows.”
(Bill Rodgers)
Walk Into the Future 