As the Boston Marathon approaches, Laura Betten (Senior Vice President of Clinical Services at Healthmap Solutions) is gearing up for what she describes as her crowning achievement in long-distance running. First held in 1897, the Boston Marathon is the world’s oldest annual marathon and is widely considered one of the most prestigious road racing events. In order to take part in the race, runners must meet notoriously difficult time standards based on their age and gender, making qualifying a significant accomplishment in the running community. Laura earned her spot in the race after finishing the Carmel Marathon in Indiana last year in 3hours, 54 minutes, and 16 seconds—about 11 minutes under the qualifying time for her age bracket.
Although this is Laura’s first time qualifying for the Boston Marathon, it is certainly not her first impressive athletic achievement. After starting her running journey 26 years ago, she finished her first marathon in 2010 and has now completed a total of 8 marathons and 13 Ironman triathlons. An Ironman is considered one of the most challenging one-day athletic events, consisting of a full 26.2-mile marathon after swimming 2.4 miles and biking 112 miles. Laura stated, “With an Ironman, it’s all about pacing. You don’t want to exert too much effort across all three disciplines. I’m a really strong cyclist, but you don’t want to bike too fast and then not have enough energy for the run.” Laura finds standalone marathons much harder from a pacing perspective. She vividly described “hitting the wall” around mile 20 and needing to overcome mental and physical exhaustion for the final leg of the race.
Laura shared that long-distance running is all about how you train. She recalled, “When I started running, I could barely run a mile. I would run a mile three times a week, and then I would run a mile and two houses. Then a mile and four houses. Every couple of weeks I would add a few houses on until I got two miles.”
Currently in the peak of her 20-week marathon training, Laura runs six days a week, rain or shine, often waking up before 5:30 a.m. for a long run before work. Inspired by the book Atomic Habits by James Clear, she sets out her running clothes every night before bed and makes a plan for the morning. “When I go to bed, I have a plan for what I’m going to do when I wake up, what time to set the alarm, what I’m going to wear, where I’m going to run, and how far I’m going to run,” said Laura. She also emphasized the importance of external accountability and credits her daughters—both Ironman athletes—for keeping her motivated, often checking in with her during training and joining her for long runs.
One of Laura’s most memorable running experiences was completing the Rim to Rim to Rim run across the Grand Canyon, a grueling 47-mile trek with 20,000 feet of elevation change in 17 hours. Despite the challenges of running with a full backpack and navigating the trail after sundown with no cell phone service, she has fond memories of the event and hopes to do it again with her kids.
For the Boston Marathon, Laura aims to savor the experience rather than chase a personal record. “This is like the cherry on top,” she says. “This will probably be my last standalone marathon, so I want to enjoy the race, take in the atmosphere, and absorb the memories.” Looking beyond Boston, although she doesn’t plan to pursue other standard marathons, Laura hopes to take on the ambitious task of completing a 100-mile ultramarathon.
Laura’s family is excited to support her in her upcoming race, with her two daughters, her son, her daughter’s fiancé, her son’s girlfriend, her sister, and her nephews making the trip to Boston. As Laura prepares to take on this challenge, the team at Healthmap Solutions is rallying behind her and wishing her all the best in her journey!
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