The 42.195km distance is becoming more popular these days. But more often than not, the difficulty of running the distance gets lost in translation. The marathon distance is difficult. We runners are always humbled by the distance, and always respecting the distance. With attempting the marathon distance, it is important to train properly. The right choices brings you a greater timing, an injury-free race and thus a more enjoyable race.
Avoid these mistakes and become a stronger and faster runner.
#1 Don’t Forget The Long Run
The Long Run is the most important specific workout to a marathon. The long run helps build up your aerobic fitness and the required endurance for the marathon distance. The biggest mistake you can do is to forget the long runs. Gradually increase the distance of your long runs to ensure you are ready to run the distance on race day.
#2 Too Little Time For Too Big An Achievement
Some people register for a marathon hoping to run the distance in just 10 weeks. They rush their training. It has been said that the fitness to run a marathon should be developed over a course of 16 – 20 weeks. Giving yourself sufficient time to prep for a marathon is very important. This is because with limited time, your training becomes rushed. Your increment of mileage comes too quickly and you risk injury. Remember the rule of thumb – weekly increase of mileage should not be more than 10 per cent.
Respect the distance and put in the time for training. You will see the desired results.
#3 Running Empty
Our body relies heavily on carbohydrates to fuel our body. The problem with carbohydrates is that our body can only store limited amounts in our muscles. Our body is such that we can store sufficient Carbohydrates to fuel us for 1 hour 30 minutes when running at half marathon pace or 2 hours running at marathon pace. Beyond that, your muscles will be depleted of glycogen supply. This means, provided you are a elite marathoner, you will need to refuel your glycogen supply to keep going.
So running empty is a big no. You will experience the famed hitting the wall. Where your mind wants to go on but your body just does not respond. Remember to have something to eat pre-race and fuel yourself during your race.
