Run Training

Whether you are running just for fun, to lose weight or for a specific event there are a number of elements you should take into account when you go out and run. These include the terrain you run on, the distances you run, the pace you run and how you warm up and stretch. Our Training team have created the Run Training section to give you the latest tips and insights to get the most out of your running.

Dealing with being injured

24/6/10

As recreational athletes running is a massive part of our lives playing an important role in maintaining our physical and mental wellbeing, affecting elements including mindset, moods, self esteem and energy levels. Running’s importance is often emphasised when injury prevents us from running or cross training.

I picked up a back injury in the weeks leading up to the Paris marathon in April and, apart from limping round the marathon, I haven’t been able to run since. 16 weeks of rehab and cross training but no running. This is the first time injury has stopped me from running in this time. Through this period I’ve learnt a lot about why I got injured in the first place, what I can do to reduce the risk of becoming injured again and how to cope mentally with being injured.

Injury prevention

The majority of recreational runners start running following a period of inactivity and more than likely a sedentary lifestyle. Long periods of being predominantly sat at a desk, on the sofa or in a car, train or plane lead to postural imabalances in musculature, leading to some muscles becoming long and weak and others becoming short and tight. This can often affect muscles that play a key role in stabilising dynamic movement such as that involved in running, leading to global muscles such as glutes becoming overworked to compensate for structural weaknesses. Running puts at least 4 times your bodyweight through each leg so this impact and load will highlight any muscle imbalances and weaknesses and result in injury. When and where the injury occurs will depend on the volume and intensity of your run training, your running form, the degree by which you have increased your running and the strength of your musculature.

The surest way to reduce the risk of injury is to have a balanced run training programme which in addition to running and cross training incorporates:

Dynamic core conditioning -your key stabiliers need to be able to fire whilst running,
Strength training – you need strong glutes, quads, calves, hamstring and backs to be able to run with good form for distance
Flexibility – muscles become short and tight after running and you need to balance this out by stretching thoroughly at the end of your run and having one dedicated flexibility session, such as yoga, a week.
Myofascial release – in addition to becoming short and tight muscles can develop trigger points (hyperirritable knots of muscle that can trigger pain) . These trigger points can be released through a sports massage administered either by a physio, sports massage therapist or by using a foam roller.

The key thing is to get the balance right. My period on the sidelines has made me realise that I wasn’t getting the balance right. Too much time was being spent on running and too little on strength and conditioning and also rest and recovery. My body coped with the demands I was placing on it up to a point, but as my speed increased the demands on it were getting greater and greater until I reached my injury threshold.

I believe everyone has a threshold at which their body can cope, but if you increase the volume or intensity you will exert greater forces than the body can withstand. Therefore if you are training for a specific running event your chances of avoiding injury, of raising your threshold point and improving performance will be enhanced by having a health and fitness professional design you a tailored strength and conditioning programme. Prehabilitation is better than rehabilitation.

Mentally dealing with being injured

Running is a highly addictive activity and it’s easy to become obsessive about the actual act of running and overlook the other aspects that are vital to improving running fitness. This is particularly important if you are injured as you are suddenly left with a massive hole in your training schedule, having a balanced training programme, incoporating cross training and strength will not only reduce injury risk but soften its blow when it arrives.

Whilst injury and not being able to run is something all runners dread and wish to avoid it can prove to be a blessing in disguise and act as a stimulus to become a better, fitter runner. My enforced abscence has created time for me to evaluate my core strength, global strength, running form, mental approach and training methods. This is something that being on a treadmill of training for 2 marathons a year had not previously afforded me enough of. Whilst going through my pleothera of core exercises and foam rolling I have found a new perspective with which to evaluate the importance to me of running and to ensure I change the way in which I run and train.

So, although there are days when I put on the Mizuno Wave Riders and feel sad that they will be used to support my glute bridge and not to run 15 miles, I know that when I am fit again to run I will have a stronger body, a more efficient running form and will be mentally fresh and focused to achieve my running goals. I will also love running more than ever!

Marathon countdown...

You have trained hard for months and now the big day is upon you. Despite the months of hard work behind you, the days leading up to the marathon can still affect your performance on the big day.

Taper

You should significantly decrease the volume of training in the two weeks before the event. This will leave you feeling sluggish as your body has got used to training constantly and you may feel heavy as your body starts to hold onto the fuel it will need for the big day. The taper can also affect you psychologically as you will miss the buzz of running. Your negative inner voice will also be at its loudest, praying on your fears. These feelings are normal, keep reminding yourself how many miles you have logged and be confident that you have got yourself into a good shape to run 26.2 miles.

You won’t lose any fitness during the taper, in fact the rest will improve your fitness (we actually get fitter whilst at rest as opposed to actually training) and ensure that you conserve energy ready to run your best on the day. Whilst you should significantly reduce the volume and intensity of your running you can still schedule in 2 or 3 small, light sessions of either running or cross training in order to keep the body moving and the mind occupied in the week before the race. Your body and mind will know that a big challenge is on the horizon so your emotions will be high as the body goes into fight or flight mode in order to release hormones such as adrenaline to deal with the challenge ahead.

Fuel to run

To run your best 26.2 miles the body needs to be well hydrated and have a full store of carbohydrate / glycogen. Therefore you should ensure you are drinking at least 2 litres of water a day in the lead up to the race, check the colour of your urine to check hydration levels, it should be pale straw colour.

You should be eating plenty of complex carbohydrate such as porridge, pasta, potatoes and rice in the days leading up to the run to ensure your glycogen stores are full.

Your immune system will be low in the weeks leading up to a marathon after months of training so ensure that you wash your hands regularly to keep colds and viruses at bay.

R and R

Sleep is king at this time, this is no time for late nights. Get at least 8 hours sleep a night to ensure your body is repairing and recovering in order to be at its best for race day.

The day before the marathon should be used to rest as much as possible in order to conserve energy for the next day. Also, eat a big carbohydrate meal, although don’t eat anything that you haven’t eaten before and only eat as you feel comfortable. Drink at least 2 litres of water.

Preparation

Get your kit ready, including race numbers and timing chips on the evening before to reduce the stress on the morning of the run.

If you are staying in a hotel on the eve of the race check ahead that they have a breakfast meal that you are used to running on. If not take your own. On the morning of the run ensure you have a complex carbohydrate breakfast that you have eaten before on a long run and top this up with a carbohydrate sports drink or snack on the way to the race. You will have a long wait between dropping of your bags and crossing the start line so take an old top / gloves that you can discard as you cross the start line.

During the race take on board water, sports drink and gels as frequently as you can. The drinks and gels will top up your carbohydrate stores which is effectively your petrol and the water will prevent dehydration which is a key indicator of performance.

Post race

After the race, start rehydrating and refuelling as soon as you can. Also, stretch as much as you can immediately after and on the evening of the race, this will reduce muscle soreness in the days after and help you get down the stairs! Compression socks will also help reduce muscle soreness, as will a sports massage. Give yourself a big pat on the back and get as much rest as possible in the days following the race. Oh and don’t forget to book your next challenge!

Race day tips
by Simon Burden 2/3/10

Race day

It’s road race season again, and following our first race of the year at the Sussex Beacon we’ve put together some of our tips for having an enjoyable and successful race day.

Don’t rely too heavily on technology. Sometimes technology just stops working, particularly in poor weather conditions. So do some of your training without your iPod or GPS watch so that you aren’t derailed or distracted too much during the race if either stops working.
Allow plenty of time at the start. It always takes longer than you think to queue for the toilets, for bag drop and to get to your correct place at the start.
Allow time for a dynamic warm up. Start by running at a very easy pace for about 5 mins and then stretch your key muscles but don’t hold the stretch at the end range of the movement.
Get to the right place in the start pen. Have an idea of estimated finish time for those runners around you so that you’re not held up or pushed over in the first couple of miles which are invariably congested.
At big races, have some warm old clothes to wear whilst you wait to cross the start line. You can then discard them as you start the race. At the big marathons and half marathons you may have to wait for at least half an hour after you have dropped off your bag.
Pace yourself evenly. Avoid getting carried away by spectators and other runners at the start of the race and running too fast a pace. You’ll pay for it later in the race, particularly at half marathon distance and beyond. Have a race day strategy of the pace you want to run and stick to it.
Have a complex carbohydrate meal before the race to give you fuel for the run; porridge, weetabix, shredded wheat, muesli, bread, pasta, rice.
If you’re staying away from home for the race ensure you can get your normal pre-race meal where you are staying.
Don’t eat, drink or wear anything new on race day.
If you’re running a marathon make sure you’ve worn your race kit on a run of at least 20 miles.
Check the weather forecast beforehand, but take layers and clothes with you for all eventualities.
Know when the drinks stations are. Take on plenty of water. You will more than likely run quicker in a race than in training so will require more fluid. If the water is in cups, squeeze one side of the cup to create a spout or you’ll be wearing it!
In the bigger races make sure you know beforehand what sports drink they are using and try it before the race.
Sprint across the line and smile for the camera!
Have a spare pair of socks, shoes, tracksuit and gloves to wear after the race in case yours get wet. You could be stuck in wet kit for a long while if you are driving home from a race.
Stretch thoroughly at the end.
Eat a complex carbohydrate meal within an hour of finishing the race. Rehydrate, check the colour of your urine to see how dehydrated you are. Anything darker than straw colour and you are dehydrated.

Sport Relief Training Programme

2010 is a Sport Relief year and provides a fantastic opportunity for you to get active, raise cash and change lives.

On the 21st March you will get the chance to rise to the challenge and run a mile! You’ll be joining thousands of people at Mile events across the UK. So choose your challenge - 1, 3 or 6 miles - and start raising cash to change lives.

To find your nearest Sport Relief Mile event simply visit the Sport Relief website.

The event is a perfect opportunity for friends and families to come together and run either 1, 3 or 6 miles. So, whatever your running experiences there will be a distance for you and we have a training plan to help you cover your chosen distance:

1 Mile beginner’s programme

This is an ideal programme if you haven’t run at all in the last few years


Week 1	Walk 30 mins brisk (so that you start to feel your breathing getting heavier)	Walk 10 mins brisk Jog very slowly 5 mins Walk 10 mins brisk	Cycle 30 mins	Cycle 30 mins
Week 2	Walk 10 mins brisk Jog very slowly 5 mins Walk 10 mins brisk	Walk 10 mins brisk Jog very slowly 10 mins Walk 10 mins brisk	Cycle 30 mins	Cycle 30 mins
Week 3	Walk 10 mins brisk Jog very slowly 10 mins Walk 10 mins brisk	Walk 10 mins brisk Jog very slowly 15 mins Walk 10 mins brisk	Cycle 30 mins	Cycle 30 mins
Week 4	Walk 30 mins brisk	Walk 10 mins brisk Run slightly faster 10 mins Walk 10 mins	Cycle 30 mins	Cycle 30 mins
Week 5	Walk 10 mins brisk Jog very slowly 15 mins Walk 10 mins brisk	Cycle 30 mins		SPORT RELIEF MILE

3 Mile beginner’s programme

This is an ideal programme if you can currently run for around 20 minutes.


Week 1	Run at easy pace 20 mins	Run at easy pace 25 mins	Cycle 30 mins	Run at easy pace 20 mins
Week 2	Run at easy pace 20 mins	Run at easy pace 30 mins	Cycle 35 mins	Run at easy pace 25 mins
Week 3	Run at easy pace 20 mins	Run at easy pace 35 mins	Cycle 40 mins	Run at easy pace 25 mins
Week 4	Run at easy pace 20 mins	Run at easy pace 40 mins	Cycle 30 mins	Run at easy pace 25 mins
Week 5	Run at easy pace 20 mins	Cycle 30 mins		SPORT RELIEF 3 MILES

6 Mile beginner’s programme

This is an ideal programme if you can currently run for around 30 minutes.


Week 1	Run at easy pace 30 mins	Run at easy pace 30 mins	Cycle 30 mins	Run at easy pace 30 mins
Week 2	Run at easy pace 30 mins	Run at easy pace 40 mins	Cycle 35 mins	Run at easy pace 30 mins
Week 3	Run at easy pace 30 mins	Run at easy pace 50 mins	Cycle 40 mins	Run at easy pace 30 mins
Week 4	Run at easy pace 30 mins	Run at easy pace 60 mins	Cycle 30 mins	Run at easy pace 30 mins
Week 5	Run at easy pace 30 mins	Cycle 30 mins		SPORT RELIEF 6 MILES

Yasso 800s

This workout was created, and named after, renowned runner and coach Bart Yasso.

The workout converts your predicted time in hours and minutes for the marathon into minutes and seconds and uses that as your target time for each 800 metre hard effort. The 800 metres hard efforts are followed by a jog recovery of the same duration in minutes and seconds as the hard effort. So if your target time for the marathon is 3 hours 30 minutes you would aim to run 800 metres in 3 mins 30 seconds and then have a jog recovery for 3 minutes 30 before doing the next set.

We would recommend that you start with 4 sets of the workout around 2-3 months out form your target marathon, building up to a peak of 10 sets, with a reduction in sets every 4^th week. The workout should be stopped 3 weeks before your marathon inline with your taper to ensure that your fitness peaks on the day of your chosen race.

There are so many variables involved in running a marathon that no one workout can give a fail safe prediction of your marathon time. However, we have used the workout on a number of occasions and always found it to be accurate to within 5-10 minutes.

Seven steps to achieving your goals:

Leading Life Coach Dawn Goldsmith takes a look at the secrets to successfully setting and achieving goals. For more knowledge visit www.dawngoldsmith.com

Setting goals

1. Switch off your internal critic. He or she is the one who tells you 'You can't do this', 'This is stupid' and 'You're a complete failure' or my favourite 'Who do you think you are?’ You don't need your internal critic. When has he or she ever worked in your best interests?

2. Imperfect action is better than perfect action. You can sit around tinkering with your business plan or novel until its perfect, or refrain from participating in that 10K until you're a better runner, or not bother about pitching to customers until you've got your branding just right. But ultimately, how is being perfect working for you right now? Got any clients? Finished that novel? Don't strive for perfect first time round. Cut yourself some slack. Being creative needs a little nurturing - not nagging.

3. Break your goal down into smaller, bite-size pieces. 50,000 words in 30 days sounds horrible. 1600 words a day on the other hand sounds almost ok. Likewise, if you've got a big plan such as setting up a business, developing a sales strategy or even losing weight, break it down into bits - and focus on one bit at a time. Keep your bigger goal in sight of course, but focus on the daily smaller goals to keep you on track.

4. Which leads me to Just for Today. Every once in a while it's likely you'll get overwhelmed by how big your task seems. that's when your internal critic is at his or her loudest. When that happens, forget that big ambitious picture completely. Make a very small list. Just for Today I'm going to tune out negative comments, Just for Today I'm going to pitch my idea to just one potential client, Just for Today I'm going to write 1000 words. Tomorrow can look after itself... just for today.

5. Connect with the stuff that blows your hair back. By this I mean try to find the parts of your challenge that you really love. If you're training for the London marathon right now then the next few months are going to mean going out in the cold and dark to run. Not the biggest incentive on the whole planet, I know. So instead, focus on the one thing that makes you feel good about your challenge. Perhaps it's the feeling of having done it, how your body feels after you've exercised, maybe it's the quiet time you get alone with your thoughts as you run. Focus on that feeling, and make it really big in your mind. Make it the one reason you're doing this. In my case, I fell in love with my characters, actually, my romantic lead. Well, someone had to!

6. Excellence is not an act it's a habit - to quote Albert Einstein. There were days I didn't write and then at the end of the week had to write 6,000 words just to catch up. That was hard-going. But making 1600 words a day eventually became a habit. Tomorrow's successes and failures all have their root in the actions you take today - so make them good ones.

7. Lastly, and more importantly - Just Start. Start working on your goal today. Forget the reasons why you shouldn't, needn't, can't... the longest journey begins with a single step!

10 ways to be a better runner in 2010

1. Do a Mile – it’s Sport Relief in 2010, so why not try and run a mile as fast as you can and raise money for a good cause. A mile is also good barometer of your fitness and you can re-test throughout the year. For more details visit the Sport Relief website.

2. Enter a marathon – there’s nothing as motivating as a challenge as big as a marathon. Everyone can train for a marathon in around 16-20 weeks and you’ll be rewarded with a day and experience you’ll never forget. Check out an extensive range of overseas marathons with our partners absoluterunning.com

3. Foam roll – our muscles get short and tight when we run and we develop knots of tissue that can cause injury. Rolling on a foam roller, or a tennis ball will reduce the tightness in our muscles and fascia. Check out our article on foam rolling the IT band.

4. Keep a training log – whether you’re using a pad and pencil, excel spreadsheet or training watch be sure to log the distance, time and notes of all your runs. This will provide invaluable feedback and motivation as your run training develops.

5. Strengthen – running is a high impact activity with at least 4 times your body weight going through each leg. If you have a desk based job your vital running muscles; glutes, quads, hamstrings and calves will be weak and will need to be strengthened to withstand the impact of running.

6. Try something different – inject new life into your running; whether it’s going longer, going shorter and hitting the track, going off road, trying triathlon or doing an adventure race.

7. Fuel better – our body’s are machines and require fuel to perform. Be sure your carbohydrate stores are topped up before a long run and that you refuel within half an hour of a long run. Also, ensure you are well hydrated throughout the week. Trial using gels, bars and drinks to fuel your longest runs. See the health and nutrition section for more advice on how to fuel to run.

8. Set goals – we all need goals to aspire to and to inspire and motivate our training. Write down your goals for 2010 and enter races at your goal distance. Events are fantastic motivators and rewards for the lonely miles.

9. Volunteer – think of the best race you’ve ever run in…well it wouldn’t have taken place without the work of the race marshals and stewards. Give something back and help someone else have a race to remember by volunteering at a local event.

10. Be flexible – our muscles become very tight when we run. Be sure to have at least one dedicated flexibility session in your week. This could be Pilates, Yoga or an extended stretching session. Stretch dynamically at the start of a run and statically stretch at the end of a run, further knowledge on how to best stretch is available in our strength and conditioning section.

Motivating half marathons for 2010

A recurring theme at the recent London Running Show was the importance of having an event goal on the horizon to provide structure to your run training and motivation to leave the house during the cold, dark and wet winter days.

Running is as much a mental activity as a physical one, everyone has a negative inner voice that will try and dissuade you form doing things outside of your comfort zone, it will say that it’s too cold, too wet, too windy, too early to run or that you’d rather watch the telly, read a book etc. So having, an event to focus on and train for will give you an added purpose to override the negative thoughts and to get out and complete your training run. This can be particularly challenging through the Christmas and New Year period.

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In terms of goals, we would encourage you to set them as big as possible, as the bigger the goal the bigger the motivation and desire to train. Your negative inner voice will try and talk you out of setting a big goal, but be positive and set a big goal. This will give you a real focus through Christmas and into the New Year.

A half marathon is a good goal and a new challenge for many recreational runners. However, even beginners can run the distance (13.1 miles) off of a training base of 12 – 16 weeks. We have detailed below an outline training schedule for those who are relatively new to running and currently run up to 30 mins. If you can’t run for 30 mins then slow the pace down and set yourself a goal of running (the slower the better) until you get to 30 mins (in increments of 5 mins each week)

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Week	Run 1 – Steady pace	Run 2 – Mixed pace	Run 3 – Steady pace
1	30 mins	30 mins	4 miles
2	30 mins	30 mins	5 miles
3	30 mins	30 mins	6 miles
4	30 mins	30 mins	4 miles
5	35 mins	30 mins (Fartlek)	7 miles
6	35 mins	30 mins (Fartlek)	8 miles
7	35 mins	30 mins (Fartlek)	9 miles
8	30 mins	30 mins (Fartlek)	5 miles
9	40 mins	30 mins (Fartlek)	10 miles
10	40 mins	30 mins (Fartlek)	11 miles
11	40 mins	30 mins (Fartlek)	7 miles
12	30 mins	20 - 30 mins	Half Marathon Race Day

Fartlek Run (FR)
Fartlek is the Swedish word for ‘Speed play’ and is the term used for unstructured interval running. This is when you vary the speed of your runs as and when you see fit, using landmarks such as roundabouts and lampposts to vary your speed between.

Motivating spring 2010 half marathons

There are a number of popular half marathons throughout the UK early in the new year and through to spring. Here are our pick of events for spring 2010:

Sunday, 21 February 2010 Sussex Beacon Half Marathon
Sunday, 21 February 2010 Wokingham Half-Marathon
Sunday, 28 February 2010 Tunbridge Wells Half Marathon
Sunday, 7 March 2010 Bath Half-Marathon
Sunday, 14 March 2010 Adidas Silverstone Half Marathon
Sunday, 21 March 2010 ASICS Fleet Pre-London Half Marathon
Sunday, 21 March 2010 Hastings Half-Marathon
Sunday, 21 March 2010 Stafford Half Marathon
Sunday, 21 March 2010 Reading Half Marathon
Sunday, 28 March 2010 Asics Wilmslow Half-Marathon
Sunday, 28 March 2010 Liverpool Half-Marathon
Sunday, 18 April 2010 Chris Hoy Edinburgh Half Marathon
Sunday, 25 April 2010 Rotary Shakespeare Half-Marathon
Sunday, 25 April 2010 Sheffield Half-Marathon

Marathon not a sprint

by Simon Burden, 29/10/09
Marathon

Are you doing a marathon in 2010? Congratulations! Whether you’re a first timer or looking to improve on a previous time we’re sure you’ll find the marathon experience both inspiring and rewarding.

The marathon is a unique event which requires months of training, commitment, focus and preparation, resulting in an unforgettable day of achievement, support, atmosphere, reward and memories.

The sheer size and scale of the marathon is what provides the unique sense of achievement, and appeal. It’s also what gives the sense of fear and uncertainty to marathon first timers, and experienced marathoners, who are about to embark on a period of marathon training.

To help you achieve your 2010 marathon goals our team have put together a GoOutRun.com guide to the marathon.

Training principles

There is no shortcut to Marathon success. Whatever your goal you will need to spend at least 4 days a week to improving your running fitness over a period of around 16 weeks. The amount of time you devote, and the type of exercises you do, will depend on your exercise history, marathon goal and running experience.

It’s important that you start your training by building a strong base. This should be in the form of an aerobic running base and also improving the strength and conditioning of your body. If you’re doing a spring marathon, then the time before Christmas is a good time to start building your base before you start a progressive training programme at the start of the New Year.

Your strength training should focus on building strong legs, gluteus muscles, core and functional strength. This will help reduce your risk of injury and improve your running economy. A period of 4- 6 weeks of running at a steady, conversational pace will help build an aerobic base. See the GoOutRun.com article on building an aerobic base for more information.

It’s important that your training is progressive, planned and structured to ensure you manage the load on the body, reducing the risk of injury and improving your chances of success on the big day. Running is a high impact activity with multiple times your body weight being placed through each leg on impact.

Don’t get carried away with excitement and attempt too much training too soon, this is a shortcut to injury, remember it’s a marathon not a sprint! Start steady and only increase the amount of run training by 10% each week, reducing the load every 4th week to aid recovery and increase fitness. Be sure to listen to your body and rest if you pick up an injury or illness.

Training terms

When you start training for the marathon you’ll come across terms that are new and can appear quite daunting. So, in our own words this is the meaning of some of the terms you’ll hear over the coming months.

Long Run (LR)

This is the foundation of your marathon training programme, you are training for a very long run after all. The majority of runners take more than 4 hours to complete a marathon so you’ll be spending a long time on your feet. Long Runs are intended to get your mind and body used to this exertion. The length of the Long Run will depend on your marathon goals and experience but you should be preparing to run up to 3 and a half hours or 22 miles as your training peaks. The Long Runs are initially done at a steady, conversational pace, however you should include periods of near to and on marathon pace efforts in to your long runs as your training progresses.

Threshold Run (TR)

These are bouts of ‘comfortably hard’ running and test you to your aerobic limits for a period of 2-4 miles sandwiched between a mile easy to warm up and cool down. These runs are also known as Tempo runs.

Fartlek Run (FR)

Fartlek is the Swedish word for ‘Speed play’ and is the term used for unstructured interval running. This is when you vary the speed of your runs as and when you see fit, using landmarks such as roundabouts and lampposts to vary your speed between.

Interval Run (IR)

These are structured runs at intense pace ranging from 100 metres to a mile in duration with easy run recoveries in between. These runs are important for increasing your speed.

Pace

Everyone should know the pace they are aiming to run at on the day of the marathon. Pace for runners is measured in minute milling. The chart below shows the minute mile paces for the marathon. Be sure that you include marathon pace runs in your training.

Goal time	Goal pace
Sub 6 hours	13:43 min/mile
Sub 5:30	12:35
Sub 5	11:25
Sub 4:30	10:16
Sub 4	9:07
Sub 3:30	7:59
Sub 3	6:50

Tapering

A taper is a period of up to 3 weeks at the end of your marathon training where you reduce the amount of mileage that you run, enabling you to recover and for your to be at your peak fitness on Marathon day.

Negative Split

This is perceived as the perfect way to run a marathon and occurs when you run the second half of the marathon faster than the first. You should absolutely aim to run an even paced marathon.

The wall

Marathon folklore is full of stories of people ‘hitting the wall’ during the marathon. This is simply the point at which the body runs out of fuel and therefore no longer has the energy to continue. Avoid the "hitting the wall" by ensuring you top up your glycogen store before and during the race and also that you don’t start the race too quickly and burn your energy stores too early.

Kit

You should get through upwards of 250 training miles. It’s therefore important to have the right kit. The first step is your trainers. Go to a specialist running shop and get an advisor to watch you run, this will ensure that you get the correct trainers for your running gait and style. This will reduce your risk of injury and greatly increase your comfort.

As you’ll be training in the British winter and spring you’ll also need the following:

At least 2 pairs of trainers as they’ll get wet and muddy pretty quickly, they also only have around 500 miles of use before the cushioning and support you pay for wears out.
Gloves and a hat
Layers – short and long sleeves breathable fabric tops and a rain/wind jacket
Water Bottles that you can carry either by holding or with a run belt for your long runs
High visibility clothing – you’ll be doing a lot of your miles in the dark, so ensure you have a high visibility bib/vest, jacket or reflectors.

Mind
Endurance running is as much in the mind as it is in the body. Invariably it is your mind that gives up before your body, so you need to prepare strategies to stay focused. We all have a negative inner voice and the longer (and faster) we run the louder the voice gets, it will tell us that we are hurting and should stop / slow down. When your mind starts to wander, focus solely on putting one foot in front of the other and remind yourself why you are running. Have the reason you are running the marathon at the forefront of your mind when you start each training session, so that you commit to the session and give it your best. Another strategy for clearing the mind when the going gets tough is to chant a mantra such as “run strong, stay strong” or to count to a hundred in your mind in time with your running rhythm. These diversion strategies are used by elite Marathoners such as Paula Radcliffe.

You are what you eat
The human body is a machine and requires fuel to move. Our primary fuel as runners is Carbohydrate. For many people who have been following fad diets carbohydrate can be a dirty word, for runners it is an absolute necessity. Around 65% of your intake should take the form of carbohydrates. These should ideally be complex carbohydrates such as oats, bread, pasta, rice, fruit, vegetables and potatoes. Fruit and vegetables are particularly important as they provide the vitamins and minerals that the immune system requires to stay strong under the stress of training for an endurance event.

About 15% of our intake should be in the form of protein, which delivers amino acids that are the essential building blocks of muscle and aid muscle repair and growth after a run.

You will need to take on board additional fuel during your training runs and the event itself. The body can only store enough energy for up to around 18 miles. So try different energy gels and drinks through your training to see what works for you.

Hydration is also vitally important and is often responsible for a loss in performance. Stay constantly hydrated through your training. Your urine should be a very pale colour, if it is dark you are dehydrated. Be sure you are well hydrated before your long runs and on race day.

Staying fit

We often combine running a marathon with sitting at a desk all day. Our key muscles used to stabilise running movement can become tight and weak through our sedentary lifestyles.

Weak and tight muscles are often the cause of running injuries. Be sure you incorporate strengthening and stretching of the key muscles into your training programme.

You should include a dynamic warm up into your runs and be sure to stretch at the end of each run. See the GoOutRun.com strength and conditioning section for key stretches for runners.

Find a local physiotherapist for hands on treatment to any ongoing niggles and also for a regular sports massage which will help to release any tension and trigger points in the key muscles.

Support

The road to completing a marathon can be a long and winding one, but the day of the marathon is an unforgettable experience and one which will live long in the memory.

Following these guidelines and others that are available from resources such as the official Virgin London Marathon website, Runners World and Realbuzz will ensure you are in the best shape for the big day!

Autumn base training

by Simon Burden, 30/09/09

Autumn Running

Your big races are behind you, the leaves are off the trees and the days are getting shorter and cooler, which can reduce the motivation to go out and run. However, the good news is that the sun often shines in autumn and the cooler temperatures make this a perfect time of year to build an aerobic running base ahead of a specific training programme for an event in spring time.

Energy for running is provided, depending on the intensity of your effort, by either the aerobic (oxygen) or anaerobic (lactate and ATP-PC) energy systems. Your aerobic system provides about 95 percent of the energy used in a 5K race and even more for half and full Marathons, so a strong aerobic base and foundation will benefit all road distances.

The foundation of your base training should be moderate aerobic running. These are runs done at a conversational and comfortable pace or if you’re using a Heart Rate monitor at 65-75% of maximum heart rate. This translates to around a minute and a half to 2 minutes slower than your 10k time. Whilst it may feel counter intuitive at first to run the majority of your miles at a slower pace, these runs are a fundamental foundation to improving your running fitness.

Over a period of 8 -12 weeks of aerobic training you would be able to run at a faster pace at the same heart rate. The key is the discipline involved in reining back the pace and staying in the aerobic zone. Running above this intensity will move you into the threshold and anaerobic zones.

In a typical base period you should look to incorporate 2 aerobic runs into your schedule of between 45mins – 1:30 hours and one long aerobic run of 1 – 2 hours dependent on your experience and New Year race goals. As with all training periods you should only increase your mileage by 10 to 15 percent every fortnight and always listen to your body to gauge overtraining.

If you’ve had a hard race season then the beginning of autumn is also good time to take 2-4 weeks rest, significantly reducing your mileage and incorporating more rest days than usual, before you start your base training.

This time of the running year is also ideal for incorporating 1-2 Core training and flexibility sessions such as Pilates, Yoga or Gym based conditioning. The base training phase is also an excellent time to work on running form and economy.However, this isn’t the t to be doing short intervals or extensive speed work. This work should be re-introduced when you start an event specific training programme at a later date.

5 top run training tips

by Simon Burden 27/07/09

A quick look at the changes you can make to improve your running.

Pace

Those new to running usually fly off at the speed they last ran at School Sports Day and wonder why they can only run for 5 minutes! So, when starting to run it’s important to keep the pace easy and comfortable. You should be able to hold a conversation at this pace and should feel as though it is around 60% of your maximum effort for that task. The aim should be to run 3 times a week for at least 30 minutes at this pace. To get to this point set yourself a goal of increasing your runs by 5 minutes each week. Once this foundation is in place it is time to start varying your pace.

Increasing the intensity or volume of your runs are the two key determiners of increasing running fitness. The best way to introduce variation in pace is interval training which can be done in a structured or unstructured way.

The best example of unstructured interval training is Fartlek running. Fartlek is the Swedish word for ‘Speed play’ and uses landmarks as points between which you can vary your pace. The distances can be short or long, for example sprinting between two trees or increasing your pace to around 80% until the next roundabout. Once you have completed your pace run, you should drop back to your conversational pace. The key is that you set yourself goals and run outside your comfort zone for periods of your run.

Check out our Training Video for more insights on the importance of pace.

Running Form

Although everyone has their own unique running style and gait there are ways in which you can improve your form to make your running more efficient and reduce your risk of injury. The whole purpose of running is to propel yourself forward as efficiently as possible, efficiency is often referred to as ‘running economy’. Try the following in order to improve your running efficiency and form:

Head and torso

Look straight ahead, neither up nor down, the head should be relaxed and eyes on the horizon. Keep your torso tall and relaxed.
Arms and hands

Arms should be relaxed, low, at a 90-degree angle and swing by the side like a pendulum. The arms shouldn’t cross the midline, excessive rotation will result in wasted energy sideways and could cause a stitch. Keep hands relaxed, envisage lightly holding a pencil in each hand.
Legs

To increase your efficiency you need an optimum stride length and cadence. Cadence is the rate at which you turn your legs over and is measured in foot strikes per minute. When running don't overstride, this will increase the risk of injury and will result in a braking movement. Heel striking will cause a braking motion and results in wasted energy.

Footwear

It is important that you run in the right footwear. The best way to ensure this is to visit a specialist running store. They will watch you run and you'll get a pair of running shoes that are suited to the way in which you run and most particularly to how the foot lands. Everyone pronates to a degree when their foot lands. Pronation is an inward roll of the foot and this helps us stabilise.

However, if your foot excessively rolls inwards (overpronate) you will need a ‘motion control’ or ‘stability’ shoe that has increased support and will stabilise your foot on landing. Supination or underpronation refers to the outward roll of the foot and this style requires a ‘flexibility’ or ‘cushioned’ shoe. Finally if you land in a neutral fashion with no excessive roll in either direction then you will need a ‘neutral’ shoe. The technology that you pay for in a shoe only lasts for 400-500 miles. Also, never wash your running shoes in a washing machine as the heat will destroy all of the cushioning and support that you have paid for.

Structure your running

Running can be highly addictive and the temptation can be to do too much too soon. You should be careful not too increase your training by more than 10% each week and you should reduce your training load every 4th week. Increased load is a key determiner of injury. If you’re new to running limit yourself initially to 3 runs a week. Even those who have been running for long periods of time should take 1 or 2 days complete rest a week. The body adapts, repairs and improves when at rest.

Terrain

Running is a high impact activity with at least four times your body weight going through each leg. In terms of impact grass and trails causes the least impact and this is a surface we have evolved to run on. Road running causes the highest impact. Try to vary the surface you run on to break up the amount of road running.