10 tips for running a successful marathon

Here are 10 tips for you to do just that…
 

1. Run More, Run Varied

Training for a marathon isn’t just about one long run each week. It’s about the total amount of running you do. Although you don’t have to run more than 100 miles per week like the best marathon runners in the world, you do have to tot up the miles!

Many novice runners don’t run enough miles during the week to support the long run on the weekend. You don’t want to run four or five miles for two or three days during the week and then shock your legs with a 15-mile run on a Sunday.

Start to do that week after week and you’re setting yourself up for injury. As well as your long run, do a mid-week, medium-long run that’s about 65 to 75% of the length (or duration) of your long run. Normally your long run will be on a Sunday, reasons behind this are the rest on Saturday and the recovery on Monday, and this fits in to most people’s working lives.

Setting out routes that are a specific distance is a great idea for novice runners, these can quite easily be mapped on various internet sites like mapmyrun or runkeeper that also have smartphone apps. Rather than just running there and back I would always recommend a circular route; mentally it is quite tough to know you are coming back the same way – and too easy to turn around!

2. Do long tempo runs

Long tempo runs (and marathon-pace runs) are among the most important workouts of your marathon preparation.

Tempo runs are designed to help you push to a slightly higher pace in the middle of the marathon, or allowing you that burst at the end or to overtake – its nice to know you have a bit of a kick if you need it. Tempo runs should be at about 80 – 85% of your HRmax. (I will blog more about the different type of training runs soon!)

Too many runners, especially beginners training for their first marathon, focus too much on just the long run. If nothing else, complementing your long run each week with a long tempo run at a little slower than your normal tempo pace or at marathon race pace goes a long way toward preparing physically and mentally for the marathon.

The long tempo run trains you for sustained, faster-paced aerobic running and helps you to hold a solid aerobic pace for a long time

3. Work with a coach or trainer

A knowledgeable coach / trainer is perhaps the greatest asset you can have as a runner. A coach designs a training programme for you, monitors what you’re doing, and motivates and inspires you to do things that you never thought possible. You may see much better results with a coach than you do training on your own.

If you can’t afford a trainer – get a running partner – they will help you through those mentally tough long runs. My running partner set her stall out to run with me and took me through my 20m run before the London Marathon, despite being offered the chance of a lift, during freezing conditions at 12 miles in. My Hero!

4. Pace yourself

Proper pacing is so important for the marathon. If you start at a pace that’s too quick, it will come back to haunt you later in the race, as you run out of fuel.

During the London Marathon this year all sorts of costumed people passed me in the first 3 miles – by mile 15 I had mentally ticked each and every one of them off as they walked and I was still running. Too many runners run a strong first half, only to crash and burn in the second half, being relegated to walking and even stopping to stretch and hydrate.

The most physiologically efficient way to run a marathon is to run the first and second halves in the same time (or run the second half slightly faster than the first), with as little fluctuation in pace as possible throughout the race.

In later blogs I will talk more about pacing; teaching you how to change your pace in accordance to how you are feeling and what your HR monitor is telling you.

A quote that stayed with me throughout London was:

"I tell our runners to divide the race into thirds. Run the first part with your head, the middle part with your personality, and the last part with your heart."

Mike Fanelli, running club coach

5. Consume carbs during the race

During the marathon, your muscles use carbohydrate at a faster rate than you can replenish blood glucose, but the trick is to try to delay running out of glucose for as long as possible.

This can be an art, but here are some tips: Consume carbohydrate that’s quickly digestible and easy on your stomach, like gels and liquid. Try different gels and energy drinks during long training runs to see which ones suit you and your stomach the best.

We are all different – so don’t worry if there isn’t an obvious readily available choice, I will blog later on how to make your own! Begin ingesting carbohydrate about 30 minutes before you start to feel fatigued, (you will learn this feeling during training) about an hour or so after starting the race, so that you can absorb it into your blood and use it for energy at the right time.

Ingest about 100 to 120 calories (25 to 30gm) of carbohydrate every 30 minutes or so to maintain blood glucose levels.


Instead of consuming a whole energy gel packet at once, which is a lot for your stomach to process, consume half at a time and chase it with water to speed digestion. You want to create a steady stream of simple carbohydrate coming into your blood to delay fatigue.

6. Water

Dehydration can become a big problem in the marathon. You lose water by sweating much faster than you can replace it by drinking, so you want to do whatever you can to delay dehydration. The saying is “By the time you are thirsty – it’s too late! Hydrate Hydrate Hydrate!”

Your performance begins to decline with just a 2-3% loss of bodyweight from fluid loss. As you lose water, your cooling mechanism also starts to fail, increasing your body temperature. If you want to run a better marathon, you must stay properly hydrated.

Take the Wee Test! – if sufficiently hydrated your urine should be clear or light straw like in colour. Dehydration would show stronger yellow colour and stronger odour.

Running slows the absorption of fluid from your stomach, so begin drinking early so that the fluid is available later, but sip it – don’t glug it! Drink fluids with sodium because it helps you retain water. As a general rule, try to consume 150mls every two miles. If it’s hot or you tend to sweat heavily, drink more.

7. Don’t do anything new on the day.

One of the biggest mistakes you can make on race day is to wear brand new shoes. Even if your new shoes are the same type of shoes you’ve been wearing, don’t wear them in the race.

Although running shoes are your most important item, don’t wear anything new in the marathon, different tops can rub under the arms so make sure you have used and are familiar with everything you plan to wear on race day.

During training for London it was cold weather nearly all the time – I ran London in the same base layer top despite it being hot and the top was black with long sleeves. At least I knew it didn’t rub! Don’t eat anything different on the morning of the race; it’s a good idea to practise different pre-race meals so that you get comfortable with everything.

8. Always eat breakfast

Unlike shorter races, the marathon challenges your fuel reserves. When you wake up on race morning, your blood glucose is low because it’s been about 9-12 hours since you’ve eaten.

Because carbohydrate is your muscles’ primary fuel when you run, you want to go to the starting line as full of carbohydrate as possible. One to two hours before the race, eat 300- 400 calories of easily digestible carbohydrate and protein, such as a nutrition bar, eggs, and toast with jam. Avoid fibre and fat.

9. Divide the Race into Sections

Thinking of running 26.2 miles all at once can be overwhelming, so divide the race into smaller, more manageable segments, like each mile or each 5km, and focus on one segment at a time. If you’re familiar with the marathon course, you can divide the race into sections based on landmarks, neighborhoods, or areas of the course.

Don’t let your head get ahead of you. You can’t do anything about mile 24 of a marathon when you’re only at mile three. Focus on getting to a certain checkpoint and don’t think beyond that until you’ve reached it. Get your family to cheer at strategic points – this really does keep you going.

10. Be positive and confident

One of the keys to running a marathon successfully, no matter what level of runner you are, is to focus on the task at hand and execute your race plan. It’s often easy to let other things become distractions or let your mind wander during a race.

If you don’t allow those things to become distractions and instead remain focused on your performance to the exclusion of everything else, you will perform at your highest level.

Just before the start try to focus on a good training run – how you felt throughout the run and afterwards, keep this at the forefront of your mind.

Remaining positive when things don’t go as planned before or during your race keeps you calm and helps you run well. At the starting line and when you’re in the middle of the race, remove all the negative thoughts and replace them with positive ones.

I will revisit all these points throughout the next 20 or so weeks so look out for my blogs!

Keep running

Babs