Learning from your last marathon
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Learning from your last marathon run is an ongoing process as each marathon is different, run under different conditions at different times of the year, at different locations and at different altitudes. Still, with each completed marathon you come away having learnt something about yourself.
A marathon is a test of your personal endurance, strength and will and a testament to your own stamina. There is no better feeling in the world than crossing that finish line and saying to yourself, “I did it!”
Adjusting your training
One thing you will definitely learn is how to pace yourself and where your strengths and weaknesses lie. You may discover that you battled on uphill sections and so will focus on doing more uphill training before you attempt your next marathon. Adversely, you might find that the down hills were very tough and that you need to build your stamina in this area. You may find that you want to sign up for a longer marathon next time around or that this last marathon run was simply too much for you.
Here you must decide to either extend your training time to build up your stamina to be able to do better next time or you can choose to do a half marathon next time and build your strength and stamina more slowly. It all depends on your individual goals and what you really want to achieve in the end. One of the most important things to look at is your diet. Aside from the typical marathon “carbo-load” diet before a big marathon, you also need to focus on feeding the body with proper nutrition during the training process.
Eating & drinking
Eat plenty of fruit and vegetables, plenty of fish and chicken and stay away from saturated fats and low quality carbohydrates. Frozen vegetables which have been cooked before frozen have lost a lot of their nutritional value, so choose them carefully. Alcohol should only be consumed in moderate amounts and should be steered clear of if at all possible. Focus on complex carbohydrates like the ones found in grains and pasta’s. Include plenty of nuts in your diet and if you are going to drink fruit juice, make sure it is freshly squeezed.
You are reminded to drink 8 glasses of water a day
Speaking of liquid refreshment, you are reminded to drink 8 glasses of water a day. This may sound difficult or even tedious, particularly if you have a very busy schedule, yet water is very important to the proper functioning of the entire body. Proper hydration and replacing lost fluids while running will help you to run faster and more efficiently. Another important part of the runner’s diet is supplementation with vitamins.
There are so many products available on the market today that the runner is spoilt for choice. Make sure to take supplements that include Vitamins E, C and B as well as Calcium for strong bones and teeth. These vitamins assist in fighting anti-oxidants, in nourishing the skin, the organs and the brain are vital for proper body function. Fish oils are essential in assisting with oxygen uptake in the blood and assist with healthy joint function, essential to any runner.
How are your feet doing?
If you have ever walked a mile in uncomfortable shoes, you can imagine the discomfort in running a marathon in ill-fitting trainers. Footwear is a very important part of the runner’s ensemble and so every marathon runner must make sure to invest money in a good quality pair of running shoes that cushion the feet and provide adequate support while running. Now that you have run a long distance, you can most definitely tell whether your feet hurt and if you need to get different running shoes or not.
Vary your training & keep a record
Learning from your last marathon run means varying your training regime. The body needs to be faced with training variables to improve all-round fitness and stamina. Running the same route and doing the same exercises will not challenge you physically beyond a certain limit. The idea is to vary your training routine so that you keep your body, figuratively speaking, on its toes. Alternate weight training with cardiovascular exercises in order to build up endurance, which is required for marathon run.
Record you training, it’s the best way to look back on your progress
Keep a record of your daily training sessions. This is the best way to look back on your progress and to ascertain what is working for you and what you might want to change or improve upon. You should begin training for a marathon no less than 18 weeks beforehand, perhaps longer if you are a beginner runner. You should increase the distance you run by 10 – 15% each week and alternate your running days with an easy day/hard day approach. Avoid doing more than 20 miles in any one day’s training as you don’t want to burn yourself out or risk injuries while training.
(More about starting a running log)
Get plenty of uninterrupted sleep during your training period and in the days leading up to your marathon run. The last thing you want to do is wake up on the morning of an important marathon to find that you feel over-tired and listless. Ensure a minimum of 8 hours a night. Avoid late nights and then attempting to catch up on sleep by sleeping late during the day. This has an adverse effect on your Circadian rhythms, so try to keep to a regular routine.
After the marathon
You will find that learning from your last marathon run will come more easily with each marathon completed. As you are running the route you will find yourself thinking of ways to improve your performance next time around. Once you have completed your marathon run you should cool down by taking a minimum 15 minute walk. Replace your electrolytes with a sports drink and be sure to eat some fruit, like bananas or apples.
You can take a warm bath to relax your muscles, but make sure the water is not too hot and be sure to take some Ibuprofen or similar if you have any sore muscles. Enjoy a dinner of lean steak or chicken and plenty of carbohydrates to replenish your system. One of the things you’ll be learning from your last marathon run is that you should take at least a weeks break from running. The build up of lactic acid in the muscles will cause some pain, so when you resume running do so in short bursts alternating running and walking to ease back into your running routine.
Have you ever run a Marathon? Please share your experience below.
In your article you note that:
“Fish oils are essential in assisting with oxygen uptake in the blood and assist with healthy joint function, essential to any runner.”
What is an alternative to fish oil for someone who has an allergy to fish and shellfish?
Hi Michael
You can combine flax seed oil and walnuts, to create a good alternative to fish oil.
I’m going to disagree with avoiding coffee “if possible” and staying away from frozen vegetables. Coffee is great for you and is rich in antioxidants. See: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/05/health/05brod.html. It’s what’s IN coffee, like sugar and whip cream, that can be bad for you. A lot of pros use it to enhance performance in workouts like Ryan Hall, Josh Cox, Meb Keflezighi….
And frozen vegetables have just as many vitamins/antioxidants as their fresh counterparts, if not more because the majority of supermarket veggies are picked well before their ripe date. There are a few nuances, but you shouldn’t be advising people to avoid frozen vegetables and fruit.
Hey Fitz, thank you for your great input! You are absolutely correct about the coffee. Since it wasn’t explained clearly, it has been removed from the article.
About the frozen vegetables and fruit: A lot of those products are cooked or blanched before freezing. This will make the product lose a part of their vitamins/antioxidants.
Don’t pverlook other meats as a good source of protein. A 2006 USDA study found that six common cuts of pork contain 16 percent less total fat and 27 percent less saturated fat than they did 20 years ago. It also found that pork contains no artery-clogging trans fats, and it includes essential vitamins and minerals. A serving of roast pork tenderloin, for example, is an excellent source of protein, thiamine, vitamin B6, phosphorous and niacin and a good source of riboflavin, potassium and zinc. Pork is a lean, low-calorie, relatively low-cost source of high-quality protein – a 3-ounce tenderloin has 2.98 grams of fat compared to 3.03 grams for the same-sized serving of skinless chicken breast.
Also, how can you find a shorter marathon versus a longer one? A marathon is a standardized distance of 26.2 miles (~42K).
The one thing I learned from my previous marathon was that there is something called “shin splints”. That part of my leg really hurt and I was wondering whether there something wrong bout my bones or what. Good thing Run Addicts posted an article about shin splints about 3days after… Otherwise, I would’ve gone to an orthopedic and have it check! SO it’s normal. Im all good and running again.
My previous marathon was in April. I aimed to finish in 4 hours, but could only manage 4:19, which is a pace of 6:08/km. I realized that I hadn’t been doing enough speed-work as part of my training. So I set myself a goal of training for speed and running shorter races faster before I attempt my next marathon. I have recently done a 10km race in 49:29 (4:57/km) and the next target is a 21.1km at the end of February in 1:50 (5:13/km). Only then will I slowly start working on the endurance for a marathon, while maintaining the “sharpness” on speed.
I also make sure that I always record my training so that I won’t miss anything and I can track my progress. I do this so that the next time I join a marathon I’m more prepared and confident. Thank you for your post I can really relate to them!
I ran my first marathon about a month ago – running my second in a few days. I learned a few lessons the first time around and share them here..
http://werrunners.wordpress.com/2011/10/18/post-marathon-thoughts/
I ran my first marathon in Oct 2009 and it went great. The training went without a hitch and was great, as well. I came in under 4:00:00, so I was happy about that, especially considering I was 51 and had only been running 18 months. About a month afterward, I was 20 seconds off my time in the 5K. This was the beginning of a tough battle with adrenal fatigue. Constant chills, asthma, fatigue were the symptoms, along with low core temp. It took me a year of tests to diagnose it. That only happened when I did a hair mineral analysis.
Tomorrow is my first race (5K) in 13 months. I’m trying to listen to everybody who knows anything about adrenal fatigue, and just wanted to warn first-timers to rest adequately after their marathon, instead of starting kung fu classes and running a 5K two weeks later.
I want to run the Newport Amica Marathon next year, and am undergoing accupuncture, I sure hope it works.