What It Really Takes to Train for a Marathon with Char Griess UESCA Certified Run Coach
Guest name: Char Griess
Business name: Charathoner LLC
Running may look simple—left foot, right foot—but successfully training for a marathon requires much more than logging miles. From fueling and strength training to recovery and mindset, every part of the process helps prepare your body and brain for race day.
In this episode, I sit down with Char Griess, a UESCA Certified Run Coach specializing in endurance nutrition, strength and conditioning, and sports psychology.
Before becoming a full-time running coach, Char spent 12 years as a food scientist in the consumer-packaged goods industry. A Michigan State University Food Science graduate and an official sponsored athlete with Amacx Sports Nutrition, she combines evidence-based nutrition with practical coaching to help runners train with purpose, fuel properly, and perform at their best.
Char has helped more than 100 athletes reach goals ranging from their first finish line to major marathon breakthroughs. She is also an accomplished runner herself, completing eight marathons with a 3:07 personal record and 14 half marathons with a 1:27 personal record. Through consistent training and smarter fueling, she improved her own marathon time by nearly an hour.
Together, we explore what it really takes to train for a marathon and become your own kind of runner—without allowing pace, comparison, or someone else’s training journey to define your success.
Char explains why every runner needs an individualized approach that considers their goals, experience, schedule, recovery, and life outside of running. A successful marathon training plan should challenge you, but it should also fit into your life and leave room for the recovery your body needs.
We also discuss the importance of fueling before, during, and after a run. Char explains why carbohydrates are essential for endurance athletes, when runners should begin fueling during longer workouts, and how consistent nutrition supports energy, performance, and recovery.
The mental side of marathon training matters too. Char shares how purposeful workouts build confidence, how runners can train their brains before race day, and what can help during the difficult moments when the mind begins saying it is time to slow down or give up.
In this episode, we cover:
What it means to become your own kind of runner
Creating a marathon training plan that fits your goals and your life
Building confidence through purposeful workouts
Why strength training matters for runners
How to fuel before, during, and after a run
Recognizing the signs of underfueling
The role of hydration, sleep, and recovery
Training your brain for difficult moments
Avoiding the comparison trap on Strava and social media
How community and accountability support marathon training
Char also shares more about her New York City Marathon Performance Project, which brings together individualized run coaching, course-specific strength training, fueling guidance, mental-performance tools, community support, and race-weekend coaching.
One of my favorite reminders from this conversation:
“Your body doesn’t know pace. It knows how hard it’s working.”
Your pace on any given day does not tell the whole story. Weather, sleep, stress, fueling, hydration, and recovery all affect how your body performs. Learning to pay attention to effort—and trusting the work you have put in—can help you become a healthier, stronger, and more resilient runner.
If you’re preparing for your first race, working toward a marathon breakthrough, or simply looking for more confidence and joy in your running, this conversation offers practical guidance you can begin using right away.
This episode is your reminder that marathon training isn’t only about running more miles. It’s about training with purpose, fueling your body, strengthening your mind, and learning to run your own race.