The Ten Commandments for your Marathon Race

Race Day is all but here, your training is done, now you've just got to get your Race Plan right and your reward awaits.

Here's my 10 best tips to take into Race Day with you this Sunday.

Good luck, and as always Run Well.

Be a Finisher!

Your 10 Commandments for Running a Marathon; 

1. Know your Race Plan & follow your plan. 

2. Don’t weave through people at the start, you’ll just waste valuable energy.  Relax, there’s plenty of time. 

3. Run the tangents, corner to corner, don’t make it any longer than it already is! 

4. Don’t wear a hat, you’ll overheat, and you need to sweat to keep your cool! 

5. Drink early & often, at every station. Don't wait until you're thirsty.

6. Don’t do your shoelaces up too tight, your feet swell alot in a marathon race, and do double knots. 

7. Run with the pack as much as possible for the first 30km. 

8. Don’t fight the wind. Sit in behind a pack into a headwind, & wait until you’re downwind & to increase your pace. 

9. Use the gradients – relax downhill, let your pace increase. Uphill - shorten your stride but maintain your cadence, slow your pace back a bit. It all evens out in the end. 

10. Your goal is to get through to the 32k mark, or back onto St. Kilda Road in good shape. Your race starts here!

Finally, the marathon is all about economy & efficiency. Be mindful of this as you run. 

How you run your first 10km will usually determine how you finish your last 10km! i.e. be conservative early to save your glycogen, for a strong finish, when you’ll need it! Regardless, it is always hard finishing a marathon, and that's what makes it what it is. How you finish is always reflective of your preparation, sticking to your race plan, and how mentally tough you are during the final stages. This is what I like to refer to as Pain vs Suffering, which you can read all about here.

When running, think about being relaxed. Think smooth, light & easy with your running form. If you’re not feeling this, ease off a bit, settle into your rhythm again before gradually picking it up.

And if you don't have a race plan, you better make sure you're not planning to fail!  

Taper Time...no time to switch off!

Whilst we like to think taper time starts after finishing our last long run, it is not actually the case, as the training 2 weeks out is just as heavy as many of those before. As far as our body, or legs are concerned, they're still doing a lot of work, and will most probably feel just as tired as they have for this previous month of high mileage.

Taper time, take it easy!

So, in reality our taper starts from this weekend (2 weeks to go!) if you're preparing for the Melbourne Marathon as our weekly running volume reduces by about 20-30% in this second last week, and reduces again for the final week, thus allowing for full recovery. Your running frequency and schedule should remain the same, it's just the volume, distance or number of reps that reduces.

And with that, here's a few tips that I like to suggest to keep you focussed on Race Day and to ensure you get to the start line in the best shape & ready to race.

Taper time is essentially the time our body needs to recover from the heavy running loads & high mileage training we have done, particular in the past month. This of course serves to ensure we are at our physical peak to perform on Race Day.

Enjoy your taper time.

So, what do we need to do?

1. Assist Your Recovery ; stay hydrated, well rested, get plenty of sleep, and avoid alcohol.

2. Muscle Maintenance ; Continue or even pay more attention to your physical maintenance ( active recovery) to ensure your legs are at their peak by Race Day. This means massage, stretching, using your foam roller & spikey ball regularly.

3. Remain focussed on the goal ahead ; No cramming! Don't be tempted to start doing extra 'other' sessions or more running than your program says. Keep your running frequency the same, it's just your mileage or number of reps that will reduce. As you start to feel better and fresher in the legs, the temptation to do more comes up, but don't, simple. You're at more risk of overdoing it now than ever, so just Don't! 

Also, this is not the time to start up some extra circuit training or the like to fill in the extra time. Focus on running well, make your sessions sharp. Apart from that, relax, and take the time to recover. You deserve it & you need it!

4. Reflect on all the hard work that you've done, and consider all the long hard Interval and Tempo sessions. You will gain confidence by acknowledging the hard yards you've been through. Try not to overthink this, as you have nothing further to gain in these final two weeks from a conditioning perspective. The work is done, recover, and focus on your Race and Race Plan.

5. Eat well, nourish your body. You don't need to eat more, and you definitely don't want to eat less ( just because you're running less). Ensure your muscles are recover and are well stocked with glycogen by the night before Race Day. Stay hydrated, and ensure you are fully hydrated throughout the last week before Race Day.

However, it is also a time that some may start to wonder or ask a few questions about whether you are well enough prepared, whether you've done enough miles etc? Whilst it's hard to back off the training mileage when it's all you've done for the past 4-5 months, you must trust in your program. Understand that you've done a lot of training, a lot of hard speed & strength work, and a lot of miles. Now, is the time for you to recover from all that, in preparation for Race Day. Don't overlook how important this final stage is. If you don't get to the start line fully recovered, your performance will suffer!

Well done! You're nearly there, but you're not done yet!

On your marks, Get Set...

Step it up on your Long Runs for a faster marathon finish!

A fast finish in the marathon is what we want and aim for.

The Long Run is without doubt the most important run in your marathon training program. These runs are specifically designed by pace & heart rate to maximise your body's ability to burn fat & spare your limited muscle glycogen stores as well as improve your leg strength & condition to allow you to make the distance.

This month represents the peak in your running mileage and arguably the most critical stage in your marathon preparation.

Having completed more than 12 weeks of structured running thus far, you will have built up a good level of aerobic conditioning courtesy of your easy paced, steady Long Runs at your prescribed pace to maximise your aerobic threshold training effect.

However, if you're anything like many runners I speak to, it's common to start to wonder how on earth you're going to manage to run 42.195 kms at your desired race pace, when you've been doing all these miles at a much slower pace.

Thus, with 5 weeks to go this is an ideal time to work a bit of Race Pace into your final Long Runs. This I believe will serve you well on two fronts;

Firstly, to give you a feel for what it's like to run at Race Pace on tired legs. These runs will show you that you can run at Race Pace even under these conditions of high mileage training on often tired legs. This will give you confidence that you can take into race day. 

Secondly, after many weeks of slower paced Long Runs, your legs will relish the opportunity to open up a bit, utilising more glycogen as you push your pace up to your desired Race pace. Paradoxically, your legs will feel fresher and alive with the extra work - the change of pace will recruit more intermediate muscle fibres, allow you to increase your cadence, reduce your ground contact time as you increase your pace. Think of it as giving your legs a break from the slow easy pace, as you train your body to work hard under conditions of fatigue.

Here are 4 tried & tested ways that you can step up the pace on your upcoming Long Runs.

These techniques have been practised & endorsed by some of the great runners & coaches of our time, such as Arthur Lydiard, Gabrielle Rosa, Greg McMillan, Hal Higdon & subsequently many thousands of athletes since;

1. FAST FINISH:

For a 32 km Long Run, run the first half (16km) at your prescribed easy Long Run pace. Gradually increase your pace over the next 8 kms up to Race Pace by the 24km mark. Hold your Race Pace through to 30km, and finish the last 2 km even faster if you can. 

2. SURGES:

Run the first half of your Long Run at your easy prescribed Long Run pace and work up towards your Race Pace ( RP) in the last km . Hold your Race Pace over the next 3 km, then follow this with 3 km at easy pace, then 3 km at RP and so on. Perform 3 x 3 km at RP, with 3 km easy pace between. Finish your last km at Easy pace.

3. THE 3/1:

Run the first 3 quarters ( 24km) at your prescribed easy Long Run pace, and run the last quarter (8km) at Race Pace.

4. THE MOUNTAIN:

My favourite. Run the first 5-10 kms of your run at prescribed Long Run Pace, then increase your pace by 10 seconds/km for each subsequent 5kms up until you hit your Race Pace. Try to calculate this so that you are running the last 5 kms at your Race Pace.

5. HILLS/TRAILS: 

Increasing your pace is increasing your work-rate. You can also do this on a hilly course or hit the trails. Work hard up the hills, and ease off on the downs. A great place for this type of run is Kew Boulevard in Melbourne; a tranquil undulating 14 km return roadside course.

Incorporate these runs into your next 30+ km runs over the next month only if your body is feeling up to it. These runs will give you the confidence and better conditioning for a stronger, faster finish come race day!

An additional note for these runs is that you might want to take gels with you. Firstly, to practise for race day, as well as provide some extra carbohydrate energy for your fast finishes. You don't need to consume your gels in the early part of your runs at easy pace, but wait until just before your faster run sections if you wish.

A note on gels; if you haven't tried V-FUEL, a fructose free energy gel that is great for training, racing and assists recovery. Built on the pillars of taste, quality and performance, check these out. Did somebody say salted caramel apple !!! Best of all, they won't upset your guts!

With the additional demands of these runs, please make sure your recovery is up to scratch. If you missed my recent blog on best tips for recovery you can find it here.

As always, Run Well.

PBs all round at the AV Burnley Half Marathon!

One of the greatest pleasures of coaching athletes to the marathon, is seeing their previous best times for the shorter distances such as the half marathon & 10km, get smashed along the way. Many runners don't believe it until they see it; that training slow to go fast, really works. Many of these runners have spent years smashing themselves week in week out on the track and running hard all the time for small gains, tiredness & injury. Others have simply just run their Long Runs too fast, or not slow enough in their previous marathon attempts. When introduced to the concept of even slower running on their Long Runs to develop the aerobic energy system (combined with quality faster sessions), I am often met with disbelieving looks. However, commitment to the program over time tells another story.

Last Sunday, Sep 4 on Fathers Day, four of my coached Run Well runners enjoyed perfect running conditions for the annual AV Half Marathon event held at Burnley.

This a really nice course, and a strong club event with many runners looking for a PB on this fast course. It's a far cry from your regular Fun Run, with fewer runners, but a high class field that pretty much leaves you for dead right from the start. But importantly, it's being amongst such a field and feeding off the energy of these fine runners that will often bring the best performance out of you. When i first ran in this event last year, i found myself at first slightly in awe, but then rising to the occasion as I could see & feel the relaxed energy of the front runners and those that passed me so effortlessly. This observation taken on board helped me to my own PB in a time that I never thought possible, let along 6 weeks out from the Melbourne Marathon.

Our Run Well runners who are on their way to the New York marathon in under 8 weeks time, had a great hit out all recording their own PB's! Importantly, these new HM times give us a good indication of what we can expect and aim for with the upcoming marathon race and hence their personalised race planning!

Congratulations to ;

Jerome Carlin - 2:50 off his Run Melbourne time just 6 weeks before.

Micheal Cutting - 1:22 quicker than his previous best, and 5 minutes quicker than Run Melb.

Micheal Bishop - a few seconds here or there but given the limited preparation, and that his training & focus is on a 10k PB coming up, a damn good effort to match his PB.

James Clarke - a whopping 14 minutes off his previous best, not to mention his second fastest ever 10km time recorded in the back half of the race. Represents a well executed race plan if you ask me!

Stay tuned for more PB smashing as the our runners hit their peaks and the all important day arrives!

All About Recovery now...

Best tips for Long Run Recovery

With less than 5 weeks to go till the Melbourne Marathon, you are in the midst of some big mileage as your long runs approach and go beyond 30kms every second week. This is the time to get serious about recovery as your running load is at it's peak over this month and before we taper.

Once you hit 30kms and beyond you start to get a bit excited about really Long Runs. For many this will be the longest runs that they have ever undertaken, which is an exciting and perhaps slightly nervous time as you contemplate a further 12kms. 

With the longest of Long Runs, also comes an increase in length of Tempo and Interval work, resulting in much bigger cumulative loads as our weekly mileage peaks typically at around 70kms or more per week. Some of you will run further than you have ever before, and further in this month than you've run in the previous 12 weeks!

As runners we are in a constant state of destruction and adaptation, as we stress our bodies with harder, and longer runs, in order to achieve physiological adaptation to become fitter, stronger & faster runners. The key ingredient to facilitate this is recovery. If your recovery is not adequate, you will break down, and get injured. Simple.

Here's a few very important and effective tips to ensure your recovery is sufficient to get you through your long runs, and long weeks of running to ensure you arrive at the start line in good shape.

1. Ice baths : I try to finish all of my Long Runs beyond 2 hours bayside, so that i can have a good soak in the very cool waters of the Bay. I believe 15 minutes of slow walking in it up to your waist is perfect. Failing that, sit in a cold water bath for 15 minutes, and just add ice. My Tip- grab a cuppa tea before you get in!

Why? Immersing yourself in cold water helps to take the excess heat out of the stressed and damaged muscles, thus reducing and controlling the inflammatory process and getting you to your recovery state quicker.

Along with many other athletes of all sports, I've been doing this for years and I feel it works. You will feel much different the next day for your recovery run. After the bath or bay, go and prepare your meal & wait another 45 minutes keeping your legs cool before having your hot shower.

2. Post Long Run Re-Fuel ; Whilst your Long run is designed to burn predominantly fat as its  fuel source, it will also leave your glycogen stores depleted so you need to replenish these as quickly as possible. Consume protein with carbs in the first half hour after your run, when it is most easily absorbed. I believe the best way to do this is in the form of a shake that you can prepare and consume quickly & easily.  I prefer Endura Maximiser which gives me the right mix of carbs & protein. Alternately, Follow that over the next 90 mins with a good meal of quality carbs and protein. Your ideal protein: carb ratio is 1:4, meaning if you weigh 73kgs (160 pounds) you need 160g carbs to 40 g protein. Ingest 50% of this in the first half hour ( shake), then the other 50% over the next 90 minutes as a meal.

My favourite - my own muesli mix, yoghurt, fruit, seeds & nuts. Poached eggs on toast, with avocado and bacon. Or if I'm feeling decadent, which I am mostly then it will be more like french toast or pancakes, bacon & maple syrup. Another favourite well worth a try  is Sofie's 'Naked Seeds' healthy pancakes, 

3. Re-hydrate : Keep drinking plenty of water throughout the day, or a light mix of Endura powder to keep re-hydrating and topping up the glycogen.

4. Roll, stretch, Roll : You don't need to do this for long, but do it regularly & often. Great at the end of the day.

5. Compression : Whether tights or compression sleeves, these assist the transfer of fluids ( toxins, lactic, blood) out of the muscles by maintaining a firm pressure gradient on the muscle cells. This I believe helps your recovery post run & overnight.

5. Sleep : Your body heals & recovers at rest, and in particular when sleeping. Get plenty of good quality sleep during this heavy running time.

7. Recovery runs : A very low intensity short run performed on the next day will assist recovery and aid physiologic adaptation > gets you fitter & stronger. Steve Moneghetti would call these 'absorption' runs as it is during these runs that your body will benefit from the longer, harder runs done previously. This promotes movement & blood flow into the healing muscles to increase vascularisation and mitochondrial growth - essential for endurance running.

8. Massage : achieves a similar effect to recovery run, just easier, however probably more painful. Essential for recovery, improves blood flow, and relieves congestion & tightness in muscles that you are unaware of. Start booking in regular massage from here till race day to keep you running well.

9. Get off the grog! : Even that innocent glass of wine with dinner through the week will have an impact on your recovering body during these weeks of high mileage running. Take a dry month to 6 weeks into your marathon race for optimal performance.

I've never been happier to have cellulitis in all my life!

Wonderland was wet & magnificent!  

Just 10 days ago I competed in a superb event called the Wonderland Run. The 37km (they call it 36km but we all know it's not!) route starting from Halls Gap heads straight up to the Pinnacles, back down the other side and up & over Mt. Rosea before a long sweeping downhill down past Lake Bellfield, before a brutal & wet slog home. All in all over 1300m of ascending, and whilst shorter than the marathon distance that I'm more accustomed to, this took about an hour longer! Hence the last hour I found pretty tough. Constant rain, wet, muddy conditions probably didn't help either, but that's all part of the adventure. To be honest, it was the toughest run I've ever done, very tough on the legs no doubt as a consequence of being much longer than I'd ever run, and much, much steeper than the typical bayside runs that prepare me well for road marathons.

In any case, it was fun (in retrospect) and great to be part of the wonderful trail running community that make these events so much more rewarding than just the run itself.

But lest I digress...

My post Wonderland recovery week was seemingly going well, with a heavy but very easy run on the Thursday, followed by my group session the following morning at the Tan where I surprisingly felt pretty good, particularly on the hills.

However, Saturday morning I noticed some tenderness along the inside of my lower leg and Achilles towards the ankle. Being a rest day, (from running at least; with two young boys there is no such thing as rest) I didn't worry too much, took it easy and figured I'd run it out the following morning on my Long Run. Now with my runner's hat on (as opposed to my coach's or Osteopath's hat), I figured I'd get the long run in before anything further eventuated, which of course it did. It started out just a bit tender, eased up nicely after a couple of kms and I managed 10km until it gradually started to hurt more, and then a bit more. Rather than stop there (as per Osteopath's advice), I continued the run & assessed whether it was affecting my gait. And so I just flattened my foot strike a little more, kept my cadence up and pushed a little less to ease the load through the achilles. It didn't really get any worse so I figured I'd pull up at 18km, where I got into the cold soothing bay water for a good soak for 12 minutes, and start my recovery from there. I've been fortunate enough not to have had too many injuries, rather just niggles that I seem to be able to manage well, and not miss any or much running at all. 

Achilles pain can be debilitating and frustrating if not treated properly.

Nevertheless, for the rest of the day I just got sorer and sorer, despite applying ice for 15 minutes every 1-2 hours, compression, elevation etc or so it was still there. I wore my Strassburg sock at night, and to bed, as one does at the slightest hint of plantar or achilles tightness or pain; only to discard it sometime through the middle of the night once your toes become red hot from the pressure. ( Warning: the sound of tearing velcro in the dead of night does little for anyone sleeping nearby, and will not be appreciated!). "It will be okay in the morning, but I'll rest tomorrow just in case, in prep for Tuesday's Interval session", were my thoughts.

Next morning started optimistically but not for long, as pain came on rather quickly even with walking. Not to worry too much, some active recovery as I cycled to work should help I figured. Once at work, I began to further assess this Achilles situation?? Surely, it can't be an Achilles injury, not with less than 10 weeks until the NY Marathon?? I mean, just because I ran for nearly an hour longer than my longest run, in steep, wet terrain instead of flat, bayside paths that I've been used to for the last however many years. Surely, that wouldn't explain why my Achilles could have been overloaded and subsequently injured?? But I don't get injured I tell you!!

Well there was that time about 10 years ago that i ran, inspired by Chris McDougall's 'BORN TO RUN' for 2 hours barefoot in the sand at North Stradbroke island after a late night of drinking, that created a horrible case of plantar fasciitis, that i couldn't shake. So I stopped running for about 6 months and took up competitive Mountain Biking instead! But that was ages ago, and just a silly thing to do, regardless of how inspired I was from just having read the book that changed my life.

So I removed my anxiety ridden, catastrophising runner's hat, and replaced it with my Osteopath's hat in an attempt to have some objectivity about the situation, and called in my colleagues in clinic to help me out. A thorough examination to diagnose the complaint revealed some very interesting features ; no pain, thickening, or swelling along the achilles tendon or it's bursa, no heel or plantar pain, no loss of power or strength. Something wasn't quite right if this was an Achilles injury. Further examination of the painful swelling down the inside of the leg, revealed skin sensitivity & pitting oedema further from the Achilles and that's when the lightbulb moment came! Aha....if this was red or itchy I would definitely think that I had a case of cellulitis! This makes some sense too, as I will have repeatedly scraped my lower legs with the soles of my shoes many times on this run, & in the process imbedding into my skin wombat or roo-poop or some similar bacterium present in the mud & rushing waters of the Grampians and it's swampy lowlands, as I dragged my fatigued body about in the wet & muddy terrain. 

Convinced I'd hit the nail on the head, I rushed to the closest GP and managing to convince him also, received my prescription for the antibiotics required urgently to bring this case under control. To be honest I can't say whether it was the weight of the clinical findings that were most convincing or the fact that the treatment protocols & prognosis of cellulitis was a much more favourable option that that of an Achilles tendinopathy that was potentially going to de-rail my Marathon campaign.

Well, I guess time will tell,  which is why the GP also handed me a referral for an Ultrasound to further investigate the Achilles also. 

The moral of the story is of course ;

Don't wonder what it is, don't self diagnose, and don't delay.

Go see your professional health provider that knows about running for a thorough assessment, diagnosis and treatment plan to get you back on track ASAP!

If you have or suspect you have an Achilles injury, here's a link to a very good article to help your recovery.

Strasburg sock; integral to Achilles & plantar fasciitis recovery & management  

So, it's looking like a week off for me and with a bit of luck & good management, I'll be back for the weekend!

In the mean time, as always, Run Well.

Switch on to TEMPO runs, your second most important run for the week!

Tempo runs are an integral component of most if not all marathon training programs. I believe these are the most important session of your program after your Long Run, and essential if you want top race faster!

Read on to find out why, and how to perform these for maximum benefit.

10,000m world & Olympic champion Mo Farah demonstrating sublime form.

A Tempo run is a faster paced workout also known as a (lactate) Threshold run and is considered to be run at "comfortably hard" pace. Typically this pace is as fast as your fastest 10k pace, or somewhere between here and your half Marathon Race Pace when training for the Marathon.
This run is the key to racing your fastest, at any distance as it improves your metabolic fitness, or simply teaches your body to run faster for longer as your muscles become better conditioned at dealing with lactic acid build-up. 
Importantly, the Tempo run is the single most important workout you can do to improve your speed for any distance. 
Furthermore, when training for longer distances of Half Marathon and Full Marathon, the Tempo run is more valuable than track work.

How Does it Work?

Whilst Long Runs train your cardiovascular (aerobic) system to enable you to run long distances by delivering blood & oxygen to the muscles and utilising fat as the primary fuel source, the Tempo run trains your body to use that oxygen for metabolism more efficiently. This happens by increasing your lactate threshold as your body becomes better at removing this waste product. Your lactate threshold is the point at which your body fatigues at a certain pace, due to lactic acid buildup, which eventually leads to fatigue, and forces you to slow down.  

The more you train this threshold, the higher your threshold goes and the further and faster you can run before you fatigue. The longer the distance you want to race the longer your threshold runs should be.

So Tempo runs will certainly improve your race performance, from 10k,  right up to Half Marathon & Full Marathon distance, as you are able to hold faster paces for longer as you push harder towards your threshold. This results in faster marathon race times, as you are able to sustain faster paces more comfortably.

How To Perform your Tempo Runs?

So for Half Marathon and Full Marathon training, we want threshold runs to go from 20 minutes out to 60 mins or more during the course of your training program. You can start with shorter duration and add 5 minutes each week to the duration of your Tempo run.  I like to alternate these with Race Pace runs of the same duration on alternate weeks. Therefore, over your typical 18-20 week program your Tempo run can build up to 60 minutes or more depending on your starting point. Hence it is easy to see how training this way will quickly improve your 10 km race time!

Here's how your Tempo Run is performed;

1. WARM UP - 10-15 minutes EASY running. Let your heart rate and breathing rate settle.

2. BUILD TO TEMPO PACE - gradually increase your pace up to TEMPO pace over 1-2 kms. (This counts to your Tempo workout duration)

3. MAINTAIN TEMPO PACE - maintain your prescribed TEMPO pace for the remainder of the session duration ensuring you are running with good form and rhythm. Maintain your focus on good form and cadence. If you find your form is collapsing, ease your pace a little until you;re running well again, and try to build again.

4. COOL DOWN - Finish off with a further 5-10 minutes at EASY pace to cool down, and let your heart rate drop.

Tempo runs are performed at a 'comfortably hard' pace, where you know you're working hard, but not flat out racing but you'd be happy if you could slow down a bit. To be honest, they're pretty bloody hard of you ask me, but again this is where your training is not just physical but mental also as you training yourself to endure such discomfort.
When training for the marathon; typically your Tempo pace range is about 10-20 seconds faster than your Marathon Race Pace up to as fast as your 10km Race Pace.

And this is where the real challenge of Tempo running lies. It's hard and it hurts a bit. But you need to sustain the effort, in order to maintain the threshold training effect. Understanding the training benefit is important in helping you to sustain the effort in training.

And so, you're psychological approach here is critical. Further to your physiologic training effect you need to train your mind to be comfortable with this level of discomfort! You're running hard, it hurts a bit, and your mind is telling you if you slow down you'll feel better. This is where you need to practise being content with the discomfort, so you can keep yourself going. -I regularly say to myself, "Sure it's uncomfortable, it hurts a bit but it's okay, and I'm fine with that."

Remind yourself of your training session objective, remember your training & race goals, and reward yourself at the end of the session by telling yourself how awesome that was!

Remember to always think about your running form, always Run Well. Think; Tall posture, hips high & forward, keep your cadence up, and your ground contact time short.

Finally, the Tempo Run will instil confidence in you, as you soon learn you can hold a challenging pace for prolonged periods of time. This serves you well when thinking about running your marathon race, being at a gentler pace than what you've trained in your Tempo runs, as well as knowing that you can endure the discomfort that is inevitable towards the final stages of your marathon race.

So, if you're looking for a PB at your next race, switch on and get the most out of your Tempo runs.

As always, Run WELL!

Long Run : Your Most Important Run

In marathon training there is no more important run than your  Long Run.

But whilst this may seem obvious to most runners, the mention of this also brings many questions such as how far, how often, what pace, and what should I eat?

Are you running yours too fast?  

Whilst nearly everyone will agree that your Long Run is crucial to any marathon preparation, I would also add that it is often performed wrong, leaving many a runner ill-prepared when it comes to race day.

It is commonly said that many runners " run their long runs too fast, and their short runs too slow" and I would have to agree. But before we go into why this is the case, we need to understand a little about your Long Run objective.

Your Long Run serves two main purposes.

1. To develop the required muscle condition in your running muscles (predominantly legs) to allow you to complete the marathon distance. Simply this is achieved by gradually running for longer periods ( time) and longer distances ( mileage). Getting mileage or time on your legs is what is important here, and as a result you get stronger; both physically and mentally as you continue to run further on tired legs, and resist fatigue.
2. Secondly, and most importantly for the marathon is to develop and maximise your ability to burn fat as a primary fuel source and spare your limited muscle carbohydrate (glycogen) stores.
This form of energy production is called your aerobic energy system and when developed appropriately will allow you to run at faster speeds and for longer without utilising much glycogen, as fat (& O2) is the primary energy source. The more you train this system, the greater your maximum aerobic capacity will be and the less reliant you are on glycogen to fuel your marathon race. Simply, the better your maximal aerobic capacity ( or VO2 Max) the faster your marathon potentially can be).

Read more on this by our guru Phil Maffetone, and predicting marathon race times here, including  the sub 2 hour marathon here.

Using too much glycogen in your marathon race, commonly results in "hitting the wall" which occurs once your glycogen stores are depleted, and that's pretty much the end of your race as you stagger very slowly to the finish line. This is commonly the result of incorrect pacing during training combined with a poorly executed ( or no) race plan!

How to Ensure you are getting the most out of your Long Runs.

To maximise your aerobic training effect, you need to observe a few key principles;

1. Maintain your Heart Rate at or near your Aerobic Threshold. To calculate this, there are a number of more complex methods but a simple rule developed by Phil, that I have followed for many years, to great effect is simply known as the 180 Formula. Read more about it here. The more time you spend working in this range you soon develop a feel for exactly where that limit is, and over the weeks & months you will also notice your running pace increasing at the same HR as your MAF develops. That's when you know it's working!
2. We know that the carbohydrate stores are lowered after 90-120 minutes of running so you want to do 30-60 minutes of running 'after' this to maximise fat burning and to help the body store more muscle glycogen for future runs. So we're talking 2-3 hours for your longer runs, but naturally not every week! 
3. As we are working with your body's ability to burn fat as a fuel source, it is important not to feed it glycogen along the way. So no gels, or sugary drinks, and no need to carb load before a long run. However, it is important of course to stay well hydrated.

In summary, keep your Long Runs long & easy for now and continue to build your aerobic base.
Later in your program I will write on how to step up your Long Run as we start to incorporate some Race Pace into these sessions as we get closer to race day.

Any queries, please ask and I will try to answer as best I can or provide references to support these principles.

As always, Run Well!