Marathon

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Posted: Wed Jul 14, 2010 6:10 pm

I'm planning to run a marathon in September 2011 so I'm starting training now, which should leave me with plenty of time to get in proper condition.
Does anybody here have experience with marathon running and some advice to offer.

Baiting Guru Joined: 19 Apr 2007 Posts: 3123

You're making me ill just thinking about it. Laughing

Posted: Wed Jul 14, 2010 7:07 pm

Is there a training program made available by the Marathon Sponsor? Our local marathon will provide training to beginners up to the date of the marathon. I am just a 5k-10k, knees aren't happy if I go too much longer than that.

There are also groups like:

http://www.teamintraining.org/

who train you for FREE and you help them raise funds for cancer research.

Sometime local organizations such as health centers, gyms, and Y's give classes also. There are a lot of training oportunities for you MoP. Keep us up to date!! Very Happy

Mods: remove the link if need be. Not pimping them, just know of their existence.

Posted: Wed Jul 14, 2010 8:15 pm

Probably best to cut down on the curry & beer.

You have my admiration. I've never been able to run. In my youth I could walk a marathon, but running was never an option.

Having said that, we recently bought a treadmill. Tonight I jogged for the first time in thirtymumbletymumble years. God knows what my knees will be like tomorrow.

Good luck.

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 3:46 am

My running days were over when I tore cartilidge in my left knee and got a stress fracture in my left foot.

I never ran anything close to a marathon but one brother runs three or four a year. He said after the first two he could only walk up and down stairs backwards for a couple of days.

419Eater is my life Joined: 31 May 2010 Posts: 255

I'm preparing for a 17 km run in October. After 42 km my legs would probably fall off though... Running a marathon takes a really good physical condition, unless you're planning to walk most of the way.

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 7:50 pm

^I have more than a year, should be plenty fo time to get that good physical condition. It's also not really like I'm starting completely from scratch, I do have some condition, just not enough for a marathon (or any long run).

I know there's training schema's that get you in a proper condition in a certain period of time (I'm going to run the marathon with a friend, he said he had found one that gets you in proper condition in a 18 weeks), so I'll just need to free up the necessary time and I should be fine.

I need to read up on stuff like that. I'd also imagine that I might need to adjust my diet. Not that it's unhealthy as it is, but I imagine I might need some more extra carbohydrates and proteins if I'm going on intensive training.

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 10:35 pm

See your doctor first! Seriously. Tell her what you plan on doing and then again during regular checkups. My doctor's last words to me on my last check up was to not take in extra calories just because i am exercising extensively. Get really good shoes. Make your purchase hurt your wallet. Get them fitted properly and then keep track of the miles on them. Don't listen to anyone or advertisements when you buy them. Try on many and spend a minimum of 10 minutes in each. Ditch them when you break them down. They last about 400 miles but you will know when they are done. Get reflective gear. I use armbands, flashers, a vest and reflectors on my shoes.

Absolutely anyone can run a marathon by starting out properly-
http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/condition.html

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 6:47 am

Shoes: Check. I actually got them the day before deciding to run a marathon.. Laughing

And the guy in the store where I bought them said that, regardless of the brand or type, shoes last about 1200 km (a little less than 800 miles).
Reflective gear: Shoes and shirt are white and I wear a reflective flashing band around one arm when running in the dark.
Doctor: Really? I'm 20, I hardly ever see my doctor (the last time must've been years ago with a bruised rib because I ran into someone on the hockeypitch). I don't really feel like I need checking up.

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 6:48 am

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_-RDyxaJ1E

Reminds me this scene Laughing

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 7:37 am

Master of Puppets wrote:

Does anybody here have some advice to offer.

If you're going to do it dressed up as a cartoon character or vegetable, make sure you get plenty of pasta and fluids inside you first. Very Happy

I've always been a sprinter. I'm quick (even at 49) up 400m then the tank runs dry and the wheels fall off. Wink

Good luck. Very Happy

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 8:28 am

iMike wrote:

Probably best to cut down on the curry & beer.

And take any and all enjoyment out of life? Blimey, is anything worth that???

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 8:28 am

Once you work your way up to 42km, you should then exceed this.

I.e. Train longer and harder (more hills) than your marathon. Don't just train up to 42km.

When you do run the marathon, pick your finishing time that you know you can make (because you have run the distance already), work out the km time and then stick to the bloody thing. Don't go sprinting off at the start with everyone else.

When I run everyone goes flying past me for the first 20km, but then I reel most of them back in again and finish well ahead of them because I stick to my pace.

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 8:41 am

Drinking a lot is one I had thought of, that'll be especially important for me because, as soon as I start any kind of exercise, my body apparently decides that it doesn't need all that water it's containing...
This also brings up a problem with running as a vegetable, I'll need a suit with holes in the feet to prevent drowning myself.

Seriously though, I wasn't planning to run dressed up like something. On the other hand, running in my usual gear seems like a waste of a nice opportunity to scrape together some cash. So the plan is now that me and the friend im running with are going to ask our boss, and probably some other people to sponsor us and then give that money to a good cause (probably KNGF, the Royal Dutch Guidance-dog Fund, they train guiding dogs for blind people). However, I'll probably need to look into the rules for sponsoring.

Eta: @cookiemonster, good one. Thanks

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 11:44 am

^MoP, if you do decide to run for the guide-dogs charity, put a note up - maybe on something like justgiving.com - and I'll sponsor you. (I'm a sucker for animal charities, as if you couldn't guess.)

Best of luck!

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 2:31 pm

MoP, contrary to popular belief, beer is not "carbing up" and hydrating all in one can. Laughing

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 3:48 pm

@cougar: thanks!
@badgerbait: thanks for that invaluable wisdom...

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 4:07 pm

Or take a short cut, you still get there, but quicker.....

'Fastest' pensioner took a short cut on London Marathon

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 4:44 pm

Ah to be 20 again. It sounds like you are physically fit already so what you have to do is to go directly to your training schedule and stick with it. Forget the conditioning guide that I suggested and go directly to the marathon regimen. At your age I would caution you to not exceed or go faster/longer than your schedule suggests as you may develop stress fractures. You have to let your bones build up too.

I great product that was endorsed by YeahWhatever is this body lubricant.
http://www.bodyglide.com/
I keep a container in my gym bag and in my car boot.

Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 2:35 pm

I did my first marathon this year. I have done some longer races before ( half marathon and also a race that is 30km that I ran three times before) during the last couple of years so I had some experience.

I try to keep in OK shape year round but preparing for the marathon I started doing some 6-8 km distances 2 times a week and then increased to do a 14 km run once a week and ( when I had time ) also did a shorter run for like 4-5 km. After a while you can probably do longer distances up to 20 km. Remember to rest for a while after the longer races – that is very important. You should probably rest at least 4-5 days to a week ( i.e no running ) after a 20 km distance. It is good to mix in a few shorter distances like 4-5 km since you need to “harden” your knees and joints. Running several days in a row ( even if it is a shorter distance ) is a bad idea. Aim to complete at least one 25 km distance before the big day. I avoided to do any longer distances than that since it takes a while to heal.

Marathons are really cool and I think that you will enjoy it if you prepare yourself. I am definitively doing a full Marathon again Very Happy

419Eater is my life Joined: 31 May 2010 Posts: 255

So when you prepare for a marathon, you never run the actual distance before? How can you know that you're ready when you only do 25 km runs?

Posted: Tue Jul 20, 2010 6:15 am

The blob: the problem with running the full distance ( 42 km ) is that it takes a long time for the body to heal. I think you should rest a few weeks after running a marathon..

It doesnt take as much time to recover after a 25 km run and the benefit is that you can do those shorter runs more often.

The main thing is to make sure that your body can handle the stress of running such a long race - in my opinion the best way to prepare is to hit the trails often and that you slowly increase the distance. If you can complete 25 km without being to exhausted you can complete the full distance Very Happy

Good luck again and happy training!

Posted: Tue Jul 20, 2010 8:29 am

For inspiration: check out this guy.

http://www.suneson.se/ ( it´s in swedish but click the english flag for an english version )

It is a 60+ retired journalist that just completed his second time running coast-to-coast across the united states. He runs approx. 1 marathon each day, he is running mostly alone and keeps all of his gear in a stroller that he pushes in front of him. Pretty amazing stuff!

Hello I'm New here! Joined: 20 Jul 2010 Posts: 6

Don't say I didn't warn you.

Posted: Tue Jul 20, 2010 1:48 pm

theblob wrote:

So when you prepare for a marathon, you never run the actual distance before? How can you know that you're ready when you only do 25 km runs?

+1.

I run just under 3 hours for mine unless I am having a bad day. The only way I can do it is if I train more than what is needed in the race. I have no idea how someone could run a marathon without doing the distance prior to the race.

Bush running is brilliant for training btw, specially in mud up to your calves! Very Happy

Other advice: HYDRATE, HYDRATE, HYDRATE. You don't need to be a fool like the guy in Sparkies photo and carry around the stupid little water bottles full of carbs on a belt, just slow down at the water stations and get it in you (as well as prior to the race).