Marathon Training Guide

If you are searching for a marathon training guide then there are a number of features that you should look for. Perhaps the most important feature should be how the guide suggests you should increase your training distances.

For example, if a guide suggests that you should go straight into your marathon preparation by running 50 miles in your first week then you will be asking for trouble. The reason for this is that you are more likely to get niggling injuries if you follow the advice of this guide.

Ideally you should look for a marathon training guide that suggests that you shouldn’t increase your training distances by more than 10% per week. Too many beginner and novice marathoners fall into the trap of the ‘I feel good, so I’ll train more’ syndrome. You too may feel like this in the initial stages of your marathon training program, but do not fall into the trap. Not only will you be more likely to develop injuries but you will also start to feel fatigued during your later training sessions and may even lose motivation to even finish training for your marathon.

Apart from increasing your weekly distances by no more than 10% per week, your training guide should also explain how to warm up for each of your sessions. The reason for this is that if you do not warm up correctly then again you will be more susceptible to injury.

When you are warming up for a training session you should aim to warm up for approximately 5-10 minutes to get the blood flowing through your muscles. You should then aim to stretch for another 5-10 minutes in order to get your muscles loose and supple. Following this guide will not only have your body moving most efficiently but you will also decrease the likelihood of injury.

Your marathon training guide should also explain how to simulate your race pace. The reason for this is that as you train you should subconsciously be developing your body to simulate actually running a marathon. One way to do this is to train at your marathon race pace during your shorter training sessions. To do this, you can calculate your race pace for a certain distance.

For example, if you are aiming to run a 4 hour marathon, then your race pace will be 9 minutes and 10 seconds per mile (260 minutes / 26.2 miles). If you have chosen a good training guide to follow then you will be aware that you can simulate your race pace in your shorter sessions by aiming to run say 9.10 minutes per mile during training.

At the end of the day, no matter how good your marathon training guide is you will still need the motivation to follow through and actually do the training. This comes down to your commitment and having the dedication to get the miles into your legs in the lead-up to your marathon. It is once you have the dedication and commitment to finish your marathon that your training sessions will become second nature and you will complete your goal of finishing a marathon.

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