OT Any Marathon Or Half Marathon Runners Out There?

[KRECCheer]

Training tips? More importantly, what the heck do I eat?

 

[MadstarRocksAmerica]

http://www.edinburgh-marathon.com/?training

Pretty much all that I've ever followed.

My dad found it really useful up to his marathon too! <3

 

[ALittleBitTwisted]

Thank you for posting that link above! I am actually taking my first year off of cheer EVER next year I am planning on starting to marathon train a little..I ran alot in high school, but I'm definitely not in prime shape for a full marathon yet. I'm going to start with a half then go from there. They are starting a Triathalon Club at my college so I may give that a shot too Please let me know if you have any specific advice for me! I am starting to train this summer!

 

[KRECCheer]

Well, I spoke to someone who has been running half and full marathons for a while. Ill post his message for you to see:

Hey Kate! This is a question I get asked often, probably one of the first topics I'll tackle once I get my Youtube Channel up and running. First some links:

http://www.runnersworld.com/topic/0,7122,s6-238-520-0-0,00.html

http://www.runnersworld.com/subtopic/0,7123,s6-238-244-258-0,00.html

Both those should be pretty helpful, I've always found Runner's World to be friendly for both beginners and Advanced runners.

Ok, now for some advice from Yours Truly The way you start training for your first race, any race, is to just start running! I know it sounds simple but that's the base for everything you're going to accomplish. You'll want to make sure that your race is far enough away that you have time to train and adapt to running, but you also want to make sure that it's not SOOO incredibly far away that you get lax in training because you'll pay on race day. Trust me, lol, my first half marathon was...let's just call it rough. I of course did all the wrong things and crash trained for like 5 weeks and then ran, what a mess, lol.

You'll want to start training at a mileage you're comfortable with, if that's 2 then 2, if it's 4 then 4, if it's only 1, or as high as 10 it doesn't matter just start where you feel good. From there you'll gradually want to go up. Let's just say you start at 2, do that for a week, then bump it to 2.5, do that for a week then bump to 3 (personally I say bump it to 3.1 then you can claim to be running 5k's!!!) You see where all that is going.

Starting on the treadmill is fine, that's where I started, BUT you absolutely need to make the transition to outdoor running. You're legs need to know what it will feel like and you will get a better workout. Plus you'll probably like it more, since I started running outside I have never been able to go back to the treadmill, I HATE it. Now the treadmill does allow you to know exactly how far and fast you're running, which is good at times but really all of that data is best looked at after your run.

By the time it's race day, you should be able to run a solid 11 miles or so no prob, no need to train all the way up to 13.1 but if you want to by all means do so.

A few quick tips:
1. Get running shoes FROM AN ACTUAL RUNNING STORE. Don't go to richard's or Sports Authority or any other general store, the staff there aren't runners and have no idea what you're doing and what they're doing. I made this mistake and it cost me 3 toenails on race day, ouch! I personally recommend Charm City Run in Annapolis, knowledgeable staff and friendly too! Ask for Tom, he's my homeboy, if he asks who sent you, it's Dan from Twitter, @DANN3101

2. It'll be getting hot out REAL SOON. Watch your hydration levels. Gatorade is good, so is water.

3. Don't overdue the Gatorade, to many calories, like the one's in gatorade causes blood to rush to the stomach for digestion. This removes blood from the leg muscles causing you to feel tired and slow down and also causes cramping. Water it calorie free, remember that!

4. Have fun! Don't forget rest days, they are important.

5. Last tip for now. Nothing motivates me personally, like an upcoming race, the Half Marathon is a good distance, if you feel like training is starting to slide or get boring look around and sign up for a 10 Miler or even a 10k, there are a few in the area and both will boost your motivation!