"I could have walked it faster"

@Andy D. Yes of course. But I do understand too why the OP got defensive. He got a PB and shouldn't have to be lifted off Cloud 9! 

Oh and FWIW, I have run four marathons. The easiest one was my PB simply because I was out there for much less of a time. If you're exercising for longer, regardless of whether you are crawling/walking/jogging/running, you are expecting your body to hold out for a longer period of time. That's why my VLM goal next year is "as quick as possible" now. If I get a time close to what the OP got, I'll be well chuffed as they say.

I agree that choosing to walk for a long period is way easier for sure. However, I was talking about specifically in a marathon setting - if you are running a marathon and end up walking/shuffling out of necessity vs. choice, it's extremely hard. That's why I personally hope to never need to do it again... 

Dreamtwister wrote (see)

It's common and predictable that the slower people get defensive, doesn't mean they're right. The facts are they haven't trained properly and they are very unfit. They just don't like to admit it.

Also, I think this is inaccurate. "Very unfit" might apply to a person who can't even do a mile. Also, the marathon where I got my PB I absolutely didn't train properly at the time. Sometimes things go belly up in a marathon despite proper training. There are people who trained "properly" and are fit who didn't even finish the thing.  

Also some slower people are slow because  of age, bio-mechanical problems, long-standing injuries or chronic debilitating illnesses.  They might have trained to the limits of their abilities and still got carp times whereas other like RZR can get good times on minimal peparation.

Hi Bear B. Hind, I agree with you re: bio-mechanical problems, illness etc 100%. 

I do take issue with my name being associated with the phrase "good times" though! I've yet to achieve a "good" time, just was talking about MY best time! It wasn't that I prepared minimally on purpose, it was that my training was seriously interrupted by a death in my immediate family. I am definitely not an advocate for minimal training at all.

Personally I am in awe of people who run it with illness and injuries. 

Sorry  RZR- I did not wish to offend you and I'm sorry to hear of your loss.  I did not think that you were advocating minimal training.  I was just making the point that finishing times does not necessarily reflect the effort put into training (I bet compared with my time yours is bloody brilliant!!).

Hah, BBHind, remember we all finished and yes absolutely, finishing times and effort don't always correlate.

My 5K PB is annoyingly from a time when I had stopped running for a few months. I had done a marathon and then gone away on a hiking/outdoor adventure trip. I got super-fit and slimmer but my running fitness had decreased. I got two 5K PBs within ONE weekend. I was knackered at the end and clearly had terrible running fitness at that point, but just being skinnier I got a PB. It annoys me because I didn't "earn" that 5K time!