131: Slow and Steady, Keep to the Left: A Late Bloomer's First Marathon w/ Jude Harper

131: Slow and Steady, Keep to the Left: A Late Bloomer's First Marathon w/ Jude Harper

From My First Marathon by My First Marathon

June 29, 2026 · 53 min · Episode 131

About this episode

Jude Harper shares her inspiring journey from a non-athlete to completing her first marathon at 49, detailing her training challenges and mindset changes.

Jude didn't grow up as an athlete. She spent her childhood with a violin in her hands instead of running shoes, and didn't run her first step until she was 38. From there, the goals kept coming: a 5k, then an 8k, then a half marathon at 40 that she ran through a painful foot injury. After a decade away, she came back to the half at 49, and that race at Melbourne's MCG planted a seed she couldn't shake. Standing at the festival boards scanning for her husband's name among the full marathon runners, one thought wouldn't leave her alone: could she do that too? Eleven months of training followed, built from research, online coaching, and a plan she pieced together herself. But the road to the start line wasn't smooth, and just two weeks before race day, everything almost fell apart. What happened on the course, the strangers who became part of her story, and the moment she ran into the MCG as a marathoner for the first time, that's all ahead in this episode. Jude is now training for her second marathon with a totally different mindset, and she opens up about what's changed for her this time around. Follow along with Jude: @Jude.ch.11 Follow along with the show: 👣 Personal IG/TikTok…

More episodes of My First Marathon

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the My First Marathon podcast page.