Drew Martig: Self-Coaching to a 2:28 Marathon, Altitude Training in Flagstaff & Berlin Race Day

Drew Martig started running at 27 — talked into a 5K by his CMO at Checkpoint Software. Less than a decade later, he ran 2:28 at the Berlin Marathon while self-coaching from his home in Flagstaff, Arizona.In this conversation, Chris Detzel and Drew (Tanium teammates and fellow distance runners) get into the nuts and bolts of building real marathon fitness on limited time. Drew opens up about leaving structured coaching to design his own plans, why he caps mileage around 70-90 per week, and how altitude in Flagstaff changes everything — including measurable shifts in red blood cell count and ferritin after just three weeks at 7,000 feet.We cover: → Drew's journey from no athletic background to 2:28 marathoner → Why "running by feel" beat structured pace-chasing for him → The Berlin Marathon: pre-race nerves, hip flexor niggles, negative splitting through 50,000 people → Self-coaching vs hiring a coach — the real tradeoffs → Why strength training prevents most running injuries → ChatGPT coaches, AI training plans, and the value of human mentorship → Coming back from September hernia surgery for a Chicago Marathon fall goal → Heat training in Texas vs altitude in Arizona → Why community matters even when you train aloneA grounded, honest conversation between two working runners who balance demanding corporate careers, family life, and serious training goals.Subscribe to DFW Running Talk for new episodes weekly. Newsletter: dfwrunningtalk.substack.com