If you’ve trained at Landing for any length of time, you know our clients do some pretty incredible things outside the gym.
This fall, Brittany Ivey ran the 2025 TCS New York City Marathon, and her story is a perfect example of what steady, consistent training can do.
Who She Is:
Brittany is a creative entrepreneur and nonprofit professional who wears a lot of hats. She runs her own design and calligraphy business, Brittany Ivey Designs, while working full-time helping nonprofits manage their software.
Between work, travel, and training through the Tennessee summer (every East Tennessean just shuddered), her schedule was packed. But that didn’t stop her from chasing one of the most iconic races in the world.
Her Journey:
Brittany began her structured marathon training back in June, balancing midweek runs, strength work, and long runs on the weekends while juggling her professional and creative life.
She first started training at Landing in early May, working with one of our former coaches, and began consistent weekly strength sessions with us on June 3. From that point on, she never missed a single session except for one planned travel week in early October (talk about impressive!).
Her goal wasn’t to lift the heaviest weights. It was to feel strong, resilient, and durable through 26.2 miles. Each week, we focused on single-leg strength, hip and core stability, and controlled movement patterns that directly supported her running.
Her consistency was impressive. Week after week, she showed up, trusted the process, and kept doing the small things most runners overlook.
Training Focus:
To support her marathon prep, Brittany’s strength program centered around simple, high-quality movement patterns designed to improve durability and efficiency.
A typical session included single-leg work (like split squats and step-ups), posterior chain strength (RDL variations and glute bridges), and core stability/upper back endurance work to reinforce posture and control through each stride.
Across the final 12 weeks, her training progressed gradually with focusing on control and consistency early, then building load and power as her body adapted.
About three weeks before the marathon, we tapered overall volume while keeping intensity steady to help her feel fresh and confident heading into race week.
Race Day:
The New York City Marathon is electric but also crowded, with nearly 60,000 runners winding through all five boroughs and more than two million spectators lining the streets.
Brittany quickly realized that hitting perfect paces wasn’t going to be possible on such a packed course. Instead, she focused on patience and presence, fueling every few miles just as she had practiced.
She never hit the infamous “wall” and crossed the finish line in 5:32:46, smiling, strong, and proud of the work that got her there.
In her words
“Crossing the finish line, while amazing, wasn’t even the best part. The best part was the support I received from the two million (!!) spectators along the course and from my friends and family. The texts, voice messages, and videos carried me through and will stay with me forever.”
What’s Next:
After a few weeks of recovery, Brittany plans to rebuild an even stronger base. And while she’s not ready to make a commitment just yet, she’s already thinking about another World Major (Watch out, Chicago!).
A Coach’s Perspective:
It’s been awesome to see Brittany’s commitment inside and outside the gym. Her marathon success is a reminder that strength work, consistency, and trust in the process go a long way. And not just in performance, but in life.
One of Brittany’s quotes that stuck with me was her response when asked, “You started tapering both strength and running about three weeks out. What did that phase feel like for you physically and mentally?”
Her answer summed it up perfectly:
“Honestly, it was a relief! I knew I had put in the bulk of the work and could finally look forward to the big day with confidence.”
Brittany set a goal. Brittany created a plan. Brittany put the work in. And Brittany walked into race day confident and fully present in the moment.
As a coach, I’m not sure I could ask for anything more.
Coach Shane
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Inspired by Brittany’s story?
If you’re training for a race or just want to build strength that carries over into life, we’d love to help.