Virgin Money London Marathon Training and Survival Guide Thank you for your commitment to run 26.2 miles for SeeAbility. You have a wonderful challenge ahead of you and this pack will give you useful information and advice on how to survive the training and succeed in your challenge. All the information in this pack has been endorsed by a qualified UK Athletics Coach. This time next year it could be your photo on this pack! If you have any questions, email s.askaroff@seeability.org Or call 01372 755041 Good luck! SeeAbility is the operating name of The Royal School for the Blind founded in 1799. Registered Charity No.255913
Training Fit to run? Before you do anything make sure that you speak to your GP about your overall health and fitness, especially if you smoke (or if you are an ex-smoker), have high blood pressure or have any family history of cardio-vascular disease. Set your goal So is your goal to run the marathon in the magic 4 hours or less or are you looking to run for the overall experience and don t really mind how long it takes as long as you cross the finish line safely (and eventually)? Your goal will determine how you should plan your training schedule. So consider your aims early on. Getting started with your training You must plan your training programme carefully. A marathon is a major physical feat and you have to follow a careful plan to ensure you are ready on the day both in body and mind. You must also have a race strategy clear in your mind on the day. But the first thing you must do is Start Now with your training. Don t put it off any longer. It doesn t matter what your level of fitness is, you need to get yourself to a basic standard of fitness starting now (phase 1) so that you are ready to start your full marathon training programme in mid-late autumn (phase 2). Phase 1 Start Now Phase 2 Mid - late Autumn You need to get yourself into an exercise routine not necessarily running. Start slowly and build up your exercise so that you develop your overall fitness levels over a period of time. Ensure that towards the end of this phase, if you haven t already done it, incorporate some running, which builds up gradually. If you follow a 24 week programme (e.g. Virgin Money London Marathon Web training guide) then 1st November is the nominal start of your actual marathon training schedule. Don t panic if you are reading this after that date! If you follow an 18 week programme (e.g. Hal Higdon) then your start date is 13th December. It all depends on what you go for. Start gently and build up your training progressively. Build frequency (how often), intensity (how hard) and duration (how long) of your training runs as the weeks go by. Different programmes vary in terms of days per week that you run, rest days etc.
Training Choosing a training schedule Everyone is different and you are going to want to find a training schedule that fits you, your fitness level, your goals and your lifestyle. We recommend that as a first port of call you go to www.virginmoneylondonmarathon.com and find the Training tab across the top of the page and select Training Plans. There are 24 week training plans for beginners, intermediate and advanced runners. You can download your plan easily so you can print it out. Remember that these are a guide adjust them to suit you in terms of days of the week that you run, pressure points at work or with family etc. The key thing is to have a plan and make it work for you. There are a huge number of websites with training plans and advice on preparing for running events. We recommend you also take a look at the following sites to find a programme that will suit you. www.halhigdon.com/ training/51135/marathon-training This is a well known American runner who offers free 18 week training guides for novices, intermediates and more experienced runners. www.realbuzz.com Official partner of Virgin London Marathon. www.runnersworld.com www.timeoutdoors.com www.netfit.co.uk www.virginmoneylondonmarathon. com/en-gb/news-media/blogs-forums/ to register on their forums and to register to receive the Virgin London Marathon e-newsletter www.virginmoneylondonmarathon. com/en-gb/training/training-plans/ for injury prevention advice Don t forget that you should follow a Recovery Programme after you run the marathon. The above sites will give you more information. Decide on yours before the event.
Training Top training tips Choose a training programme that suits you and stick to it as much as possible. Do not train everyday you will burn yourself out. If you re ill or tired, rest and don t try to make up for it in later training sessions. Make sure you warm-up and cool down as well as stretch before and after every run. Every 2nd / 3rd training day, run on grass and come off the road to help your joints. Step up the intensity of your running nearer to the race. Try running for 2 hour periods, in different places and on different grounds as this will help you physically and psychologically. Eat well (see nutrition section) throughout your training as this will help you keep up energy levels and train more effectively. Don t put pressure on yourself to finish in an unrealistic time as you will constantly be disappointed throughout your training and on the day. If you are injured or feeling ill STOP TRAINING and wait until you are completely well before returning to training or you will keep incurring the same injury or your illness will be prolonged. Keep yourself safe! Always plan your route before you run and let someone know where you are going to be running. Do not train down lanes and paths alone that you do not know. Use the free Virgin London Marathon Route Planner tool at www.realbuzz.com/route/virginlondonmarathon/ You could visit the website www.runningpartners.org.uk where you can register your details and search for runners in your area. (You must be very careful when arranging to meet someone you do not know - follow the guidelines on the website). Use this service at your own risk.
Health and nutrition Follow a sensible eating plan that ensures that you are eating enough carbohydrates to keep your energy levels up and protein to help repair muscle damage. Avoid fatty acids, such as fast food takeaways. A good way to maximise your carbohydrate intake is to watch you don t go overboard on fat. The more fat you have, the lower your chances of eating enough carbohydrate. Below are a few tips to help you follow a sensible eating plan! Do: Be careful on how much oil you use in cooking, the amount of spread or mayonnaise you use on bread and cream in sauces Do: Avoid naturally higher fat foods such as whole milk, fatty meats and high fat cheeses Don t: Fill up on crisps, chocolate and biscuits, all of these contain carbohydrate but have a high fat content too You should be aiming to eat at least 8-10grams of carbohydrate per kilogram that you weigh during your training programme and in the days up to an event. Many people hear or read about carbohydrate loading (also know as carbo-loading) and assume that they should eat lots of pasta in the run up to an event, regardless of the type of event. Carboloading is of little use in short duration, high intensity events and may even make you perform slower as it can cause weight gain. Drink a lot of water, both during training and on the day. If you feel thirsty you are too late, as you are already dehydrated. Drink plenty of water before training and always carry some water with you you can buy special hand grip water bottles. On race day, take a drink from every water station as you go past. If you wish to drink carbohydrate drinks, make sure you try them in your training sessions, rather than on the day of the marathon. As that way if they don t suit you, you have only lost a training session and not ruined your marathon. The Marathon News magazines have loads of advice on training and nutrition, so we recommend you read them from cover to cover when you get them.
Running gear You are not just running the marathon, you will be running hundreds and hundreds of miles during your training programme so it s vital to invest in your running gear to get you across the finish line safe and sound and uninjured. Go to a good sport shop at the beginning of your training to get your running gait assessed. Your running gait is a unique set of actions and reactions that your foot performs while in motion to support, cushion, and balance your body. The specially trained staff will find you trainers that will help prevent injuries. This is very important as a lot of injuries are cause by badly fitting trainers. Make sure: you warm up, cool down and stretch properly - always make time for this - or you will incur a lot of injuries. Be careful: when choosing socks - some people recommend seamless socks. Whatever you find most comfortable in training use on the day. Don t: wear new running shoes or clothes on the day of the marathon, they must be worn in or you will be very uncomfortable throughout the run. Invest in: some blister plasters early on such as Compeed and then use them at the first sign of any soreness. Look after your feet: if you get blisters in training then you need to review whether you have the right shoes and/or socks. Always: get inflammation associated with blisters checked out by a doctor/ nurse.
Liz s story There s the old saying - no pain no gain. Well I suffered plenty of pain but gained plenty as well in sponsorship for SeeAbility, when I ran the London Marathon. When Marathon day arrived, Blackheath was heaving with people making their way to the various starts. My start was in Greenwich Park. As it was raining everyone was dressed in the latest style of black plastic bin liners! These were great as they kept you warmish and dry and could be thrown away once you started running and warmed up. The count-down started and there was a last minute dash to the toilets! Then all of a sudden the claxon sounded and we were off, not that it was very fast to start with. As there were so many people we started off at a walk and eventually picked up speed, so by the time I crossed the start line, 10 minutes later, I was just about running. Right from the start the crowd were magnificent, cheering and shouting your name and really encouraging you. The first half of the run went really well and by the time I reached Tower Bridge, 13 miles done, I was still feeling quite good! Then it started getting harder, we had turned back away from the finish and began to see the faster runners going the other way past us. This distance was now an unknown quantity for me as I had never gone this far before and my body began to hurt. I had been very focused at the start but now I was beginning to tire and my mind over matter was changing to matter over mind. I started walking every now and again and each time I walked for a little longer, so by the end I was walking more than I was running; well even walking was rather a grand description; it was more of a shuffle! I felt like sitting down and crying at about 23 miles, but the crowd were again fantastic. They seemed to sense when a runner was having difficulty and the shouts became louder and more encouraging come on luv, you re doing great!, you re nearly there (liar, I had about 3 more miles to go!), thanks for what you re doing, well done! and so on. After 5 hours, 12 minutes and 13 seconds I crossed the finishing line; cold, wet, aching in every part of my body, mentally and physically exhausted, but oh so pleased! I had done it; I had run the London Marathon for SeeAbility and finished it. Liz, a previous SeeAbility Marathon Runner