Nine Marathon Training Tips That Will Help You SucceedPlanning to run a marathon? Then you'd better get some marathon training tips! The average person probably thinks we have got a few screws loose. Who in their right mind spends their Sunday mornings to get up at six o'clock in the morning to go for a three-hour run, for example? But when you are a marathon runner, you know there is a lot of satisfaction in both the training and the marathon itself. A lot of pain as well... :) But completing your marathon after a long period of training is incredibly satisfying. Training for a marathon requires a great deal of commitment and preparation. It's not something you just do or can easily take shortcuts in. Reasonably trained, fit people can do a 10k or even a half marathon with relatively minimal training. Not so with the marathon. You can't just "wing it" and see how it goes on the day. Even seasoned runners look for marathon training tips that will make it easier to prepare and do the marathon. So, I have tried to list, what I think are the most important marathon training tips on this page. I hope they help you get ready for your marathon! Marathon Training Tip #1: Use a Good Marathon Running ProgramThe best marathon running program currently available is 100 Day Marathon Plan by Marius Bakken. Marius is a former Olympian. He has worked with Italian and Kenyan elite runners.The great thing that Marius has done is that he has used the training principles of these world-class athletes and has made them applicable to us, normal runners. His approach is totally different to the traditional high-mileage plans and it works! Using 5k and 10k training first, then moving onto marathon preparations he will get you ready for a marathon within 100 days. His book comes with personal help as well. He answers your questions and provides useful advice along the way. Not bad to have an ex-Olympian as your personal guide towards marathon success! Click here for more information about The 100 Day Marathon Plan. Marathon Training Tip #2: Be RealisticWhen you start training for a marathon, you first need to assess your current running abilities.Have you been running a long time or are you a beginner? Do you run 25-30 miles each week? Or much more? Or less? Do you take the time to track your mileage? The second marathon training tip is to be realistic. When you are a novice runner, I can recommend training for at least twelve months before even thinking about doing a marathon. The marathon is a tough event. Marathon training is tough as well. You need to do regular long runs. If you start marathon training without a good running base and with a time goal in mind you are very likely to end up injured. Sure, you can get from zero to hero in three or four months. Many go this route. But many don't run ever after. For long-term health and fitness it is much better to first run for a year and do some shorter races. Then, after that, get ready for your marathon. Also, make sure you have got realistic goals in mind. Do tune-up runs and then use a race conversion calculator to work out what a likely marathon time would be. Marathon Training Tip #3: Long RunsIn order to do 26.2 miles you need to do lots of long runs. General advice is to do about 5-6 runs of 20 miles or a maximum of 3 hours. Don't do this and you will regret it!Why? Because of the man with the hammer. This guy will come to visit you around mile 20 in your marathon (or earlier) if you are underprepared. It is the moment marathon runners dread. The moment their body system needs to move from burning easily available carbohydrates to hard to burn fat. Running lots of long runs at a slower, easy pace will make your fuel burning processes a lot more efficiently. The guy mentioned before, no, not the man with the hammer, Marius, has found a great way to prepare you for the marathon by having you do long run/walks. This conditions you well, whilst keeping the impact of those long runs down. Click here for more information about Marius' 100 Day Marathon Plan. Marathon Training Tip #4: Middle - Long RunsIf you are anything like the regular runner, you would typically do your long run (16-20 miles) in the weekend. I can highly recommend doing a second long run, slightly shorter (13-16 miles) mid-week. You need to build up that exposure to longer runs.Now, I don't want to deal with all the specifics and the science around it. But basically your body runs on different types of fuel. One is a fast-burning fuel which gives you a lot of quick energy, but you run out of quickly (glycogen). The other fuel is a slow-burning one (fat). You can run on it for a long time, but it is harder to burn it. That's that moment that people meet "the man with the hammer" or "run into the marathon wall". Suddenly they have run out of the fast-burning fuel and need to transition to the slow-burning fuel. And their bodies go through a lot of pain doing it. Basically everytime you go longer than 90 minutes is a time you condition your body a little bit better to burning the slow-burning fuel. Do it often enough and using the slow-burning fuel becomes easier and easier for your body! So, don't just do a weekend long run, add in a mid-week mid-long run as well! Marathon Training Tip #5: Be ConsistentBe consistent with your training. If you run consistently and are well aware of your abilities, you will enter the race with confidence in yourself. Get yourself a good marathon training schedule, or set one up yourself. But whatever you do, try to stick to it. Don't skip too many workouts.Also see this Daily Progress article with some more advice re marathon training. Marathon Training Tip #6: TaperMarathon training gets you very tired. That's why it is absolutely essential that you taper to get your body fresh and fully prepared for race-day. When you do traditional high-mileage marathon training Your last 20-miler should be at least 3 weeks out from the big day.Those last 3 weeks you should cut back your mileage considerably. Any last-minute hard push to get extra mileage in will back-fire because it will only get you more tired on the day of the race. Many of us, for whatever reason, run out of time. We didn't get that last 20-miler in at the right time. Many of us make the mistake of then doing it 2 weeks out, or 1 week out from the race, thinking it is better to do the long run, than to do a proper taper. Nothing is further from the truth. Do your taper properly. Only then will you get to the big day well-rested and roaring to you. Marathon Training Tip #7: DietA healthy diet is critical for marathon training. Eat plenty of carbs, especially complex carbs.Lower fat diets are best, but you need to get a bit of fat in. Fat has been getting a bad rap for a long time, but as long as you get good fats from sources like olive oil, nuts and avocados you are doing well. Just stay away from the sugar and greasy, fatty foods. Drinking plenty of fluids is very important. Not only during training, also in the last few days prior to the race and during the race itself. In essence, make sure you eat healthy. Your training is a real assault on your body. In order to arm your body better, you need to take in healthy foods. Make sure you don't use the marathon as an opportunity to lose weight. Well, let me re-phrase that. It is very likely that you will lose weight when doing your marathon training. But don't go on a "starve myself"-diet and do demanding marathon training. Your body needs the nutrients to keep itself going. Otherwise your running will suffer. During the week before the race, you should increase your carbohydrate and fluid intake. This is known as carbo-loading and another important component of optimal preparation for your marathon. Eat a good meal the night before the race without overstuffing yourself. Eat carbohydrates along with some protein. You want to be light on your feet with plenty of energy. Also check out some marathon training nutrition tips. Marathon Training Tip #8: Train Eating While RunningWhen you run the marathon you need to replenish during the race. It is best to practice eating while running during your long training runs.First of all because it sometimes requires a bit of technique, second because you need to get familiar with the types of food you can and cannot handle during your run. Experiment with some foods like bananas, sports bars and energy gels well before your marathon. Also consider sports drinks like Gatorade. Do all the experimenting before your marathon, not during! Don't let all that hard work go to waste because you decided to get adventurous on race day with some food that you had not had experience with before that gives you amazing stomach cramps!!! Want to run a successful marathon? Then make sure you check out the following link with many more marathon training tips. Marathon Training Tip #9: Believe in YourselfPossibly the most important marathon training tip to remember is to believe in yourself. Prepare yourself mentally. A positive mental attitude is more important than many other factors.When you have come to a point during your training or during the marathon when you are so tired you can't feel your legs, you are so winded your chest hurts and you think you just can't go on, that is when your mental attitude becomes critical. You will need to think positively and know that the pain is just temporary. You can finish the race! You must believe in yourself and know that you can accomplish great things. The marathon requires serious commitment. Just think of all the time you will be spending training for it. Therefore, spending a little bit of money to get expert advice is a smart thing to do. It will make your chances of a successful marathon that much bigger. That's why I recommend the 100 Day Marathon Plan by Marius Bakken. Wish to get more running tips? Subscribe to the Best Running Tips Newsletter or to my site blog. Go from Marathon Training Tips Page to Marathon Running Page Go from Marathon Training Tips Page to Best Running Tips Homepage Marathon Running 100 Day Marathon Plan | Marathon Training Tips | Marathon Training Nutrition | History of the Marathon Like this page: |
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