Preparing For Your First Marathon
More and more people are becoming interested in long distance running, with big plans of competing in a marathon. In order to successfully complete a marathon without injury, it is important to properly prepare for the big event.
Before entering your first marathon, it is important that you are able to run at least 15-25 miles per week. One day per week should be designated as your distance training day and it's a good idea to follow a long-term training schedule. A good schedule will include rest days as well as cross training days, in addition to distance running. This will ensure that your body is in top form. In the weeks immediately before a marathon, you should shorten your distance training to allow your body to recover from training.
One of the most important things you need to do before even taking your first step is to buy the proper running shoes. Ideally, your shoes should have between 50-150 miles on them when you run the marathon. You want just enough wear on them to know that they are going to be comfortable and broken-in, while not having so many miles on them that you risk having your shoe fail late in the race. A good shoe store will offer to watch you run so they can assist you in buying a shoe most suited to your feet and running style. There are different types of running shoes such as motion control, support and neutral. These different types are designed to address various bio-mechanical issues that runners often have, and will help prevent injury to the runner. You should also buy your running shoes a half size bigger than your every day shoes, to allow room for your feet to swell. In the end, you will know when you have found the perfect marathon shoes as they will feel just right on your feet.
It is important to incorporate a mix of different runs into your training schedule. Most marathons are not all on flat surfaces, so it is important for you to be prepared for variations in the incline of your marathon course. You need to be prepared for hills of different sizes at different intervals in the marathon route, so that you will be prepared for them no matter their location.
In addition to an intense workout schedule, you also need to be sure to schedule rest and recovery periods into your training program. Rest is an equally important part of your training program. Your body needs time after a long run to recover and strengthen. During rest periods it is also important to eat the right foods and hydrate properly, so that your body can strengthen. Your rest days should be taken seriously in order to prevent injury.
Before any run, it is important to properly stretch and warm up. Warming up prepares the body and the mind for exercise and helps to prevent injury. A good warm up will increase the body's core temperature and ultimately the muscle temperature. Increasing the muscle temperature allows the muscle to loosen up. Stretching and warming up also increases your respiratory and heart rate. This increases the blood flow to the muscles, which increases the amount of oxygen reaching your muscle cells, thus preparing them for increased exercise. A good warm up generally should result in a light sweat.
While preparing for a marathon is a difficult process, you can achieve your goal. The tips contained in this article will provide you with a good foundation of what you need to do in order to prepare for your first marathon.
