Preparing For A Marathon

By | March 16, 2015

how-to-run-a-marathon-finish-it-and-live-to-tell-the-tale

All across the country the sun is starting to shine and it’s beginning to warm up. Flowers are starting to bloom, birds are seeing songs, and runners are leaving the fluorescent lights and treadmills of the gym and hitting the pavement again. Some of us might be getting ready to start running in any number of the marathons that happen in spring or the rest of us that aren’t quite that committed to it are remembering we signed up to run 10K back in October and had “plenty of time” to train for it. So because sometimes art imitates life, here’s our quick guide to training for your next running event.

Remember that ultimately training to run any kind of long form event is all about training to be able to maintain your energy levels for anywhere from 3 to 26 miles. With that in mind plan out your schedule of incremental increases each week. No matter how hard you put your mind to it and train, no one can add 20 miles they weren’t capable of before in a week. Like all the good things in life according to my parents, training builds character.

Make sure you that aren’t training too hard or too often. If your body feels a lot more gassed than you think it should after a run, take a break for a bit. It’s better to miss one or two days of training than have to miss an entire race. To go along wit that, make sure you have the right gear. If you have high arches and don’t have shoes with any support, you’re going to hurt yourself before you even get close to the finish line. Moisture wicking socks will help keep your feet in good shape as well. Work hard and all that, but work smart as well.

If you’re training for something especially long and difficult, like a marathon, make sure you do the right things when you’re not in running shoes too. This means making sure you’re eating right while you’re training and especially getting enough rest. Keep things healthy on the mental side too. Theoretically you’re willing to put in all of this work because this is something you enjoy, so have fun with it.