First time marathon

[Titan]

Shoes. Get the right shoes. I see so many people go out and buy a pair of zero drop shoes after running in a cheap everyday shoe because the salesperson said they are great. 4 days later they are having issues.

If you have a real running store around you, start there. I just swapped over to the Hoka Mach 4 from Asics and they are amazing - but they might not work for you.

Any gps watch will help you pace - in training and in the race. I would recommend getting one now.

Nutrition - There are TONS of brands out there. Watch what you are putting in your body with crappy "sports" drinks. Find out who the nutrition sponsor is for the race, then either train with their products or plan to self support with what works for you. I have used race belts and now stick to a hand bottle with a concentrated solution.

Your body might totally reject a certain type of gel or drink. You need to try a few and find out. Infinit will even create a customized blend for you. Being that you avoid caffeine for the most part, adding something with some the last 25% will give you some extra boost if needed.
Places like Academy have a selection of gels and chews, but you can go online to Thefeed.com and have a larger selection of individual servings. I have always hated gels, but recently tried a Maurten gel and really liked it. Zero gut issues and you can push the calories per hour limit.

 

[Owens]

Lots of good advice and suggestions on this already. But the interesting thing to me is that your race is in February, in Michigan... clearly not your standard marathon. Running in snow and/or cold is different than your typical spring or fall marathon. What do you expect for the course? Is it going to be cleared road, groomed trail/packed snow, or loose snow? Those variables are really going to impact your pace and the amount of time you are out there.

 

[Loper]

Any tips on the psychological aspect of it? I’m normally pretty good mentally like just gotta keep putting one foot in front of the other, but how do you keep motivated for the long weekend runs week after week? New routes? Running partners?

When training I do long runs and some intermediate runs with a training group each weekend. This helps me commit to the run, knowing that others are doing it too. I don’t necessarily run side by side with others, but we meet at a location and run the same route together. Most local running shoe shops will have some sort of training or running groups.

While running I tell myself to focus one mile at a time and celebrate each mile marker. Like you said it is one foot in front of the other, and I don’t let myself stop at all, just keep moving.

For me, I don’t listen to any music while I run as I’ve found that I either run too slow or too fast depending on the tempo of the music.
Not listening to music also allows me to stay inside my own thoughts, which I like.

When in the race, I have to constantly remind myself that it it is my race and I don’t need to keep pace with anyone else, just listen to my body and focus on the goal. I think that running a marathon is more mental than physical.

The second marathon I ran I was raising money for charity and before the race one of the organizers wrote my name in big letters on duct tape and taped it across my chest and another piece across my back. He told me that I would need the encouragement when it got challenging. At first I was apprehensive about it because I run with minimum things attached to me (no water bottle, watch, headphones, etc) and I certainly didn’t want to introduce something new on race day, but I agreed to let him tape it to me. Damn, if he wasn’t right, my second marathon was much more difficult than my first due to injury and it was amazing the jolt of energy and motivation you get when you run by a group of strangers and they are calling your name and cheering you on with encouragement.

 

[Slim Jim]

I haven’t read through all the replies but I have a few things. I’ve only done two but here are a couple of things I would do. Take salt pills so that you don’t cramp up. Peak your training miles to 24. I only peaked at 20 and really felt the struggle at mile 22-23. There are other small things but I’m sure everyone covered those. Good luck!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[CoStick]

Everyone is different, listen to your body during training. I never went over 18 miles in training and finished the marathon is good form. I agree about one with crowds. I did the San Diego rock n roll Marathon and it was awesome having all the people out cheering. It makes a difference.

 

[mtwarden]

for winter be sure you have traction devices handy- Kahtoola micro or nano spikes depending on conditions

if conditions are especially cold, make sure water won’t freeze

 

[KNASH]

Good suggestions, a couple more or echoed:
1. Learn to guage your workout intensity based on heartbeat. Watches with HRM are everywhere, learn to use one. Training without one is like driving without a speedometer.
2. With your extra time pre build up, start stretching and some strengthbuilding to support joints.. You should be stretching now and continue through your training program. Don't stretch immediately after long runs.
3. Move up your longest run each week now to match week #1 of the Higdon program. Ease into the buildup.
4. Most people run their regular runs too fast and their speed work too slow. Set target paces that are appropriate to each run's purpose.
Good luck! After training injuries I was convinced I could never run one, but with proper training ran my first at age 48.

 

[Loper]

I agree with the stretching. I would get REALLY tight when training and would go to yoga classes several times a month. Never did yoga before marathon training, but ended up really liking it when I went.

 

[zacattack]

Lots of good advice and suggestions on this already. But the interesting thing to me is that your race is in February, in Michigan... clearly not your standard marathon. Running in snow and/or cold is different than your typical spring or fall marathon. What do you expect for the course? Is it going to be cleared road, groomed trail/packed snow, or loose snow? Those variables are really going to impact your pace and the amount of time you are out there.

The organizers said that barring blizzard conditions we will run. I think last year they ran on like a foot and a half of somewhat packed snow and I think below freezing temps. They said don’t be dense and sign up for a marathon in Michigan in winter and then complain when it snows.

All good advice and thanks everyone. I’ve ran in snow and ice here plenty with nothing but shoes. Someone mentioned the removable cleats, are those that helpful on snow? Usually at that time of year that’s what we have. Not much ice yet.

 

[mtwarden]

I think they help on hard packed snow. For as little room as they take up and as light as they are, I’d bring them (barring bare roads). If there is ice somewhere on the course, you’ll be damn glad to have them

 

[Loper]

The organizers said that barring blizzard conditions we will run. I think last year they ran on like a foot and a half of somewhat packed snow and I think below freezing temps. They said don’t be dense and sign up for a marathon in Michigan in winter and then complain when it snows.

Wow…you are a better man than me. Running on pavement in relatively cool temperatures is difficult enough, I don’t think I could do it on top of snow.

 

[Owens]

The organizers said that barring blizzard conditions we will run. I think last year they ran on like a foot and a half of somewhat packed snow and I think below freezing temps. They said don’t be dense and sign up for a marathon in Michigan in winter and then complain when it snows.

All good advice and thanks everyone. I’ve ran in snow and ice here plenty with nothing but shoes. Someone mentioned the removable cleats, are those that helpful on snow? Usually at that time of year that’s what we have. Not much ice yet.

Sounds like a fun race director! If you have run on snow and ice with your shoes, Kahtoola Microspikes will change your life. I finally got a pair last winter and wondered why I waited so long. Previously ran on Denver foothills trails in ice trekkers or yaktax, night and day difference. Packed snow with microspikes felt more solid than running the same trails in the summer. Like mtwarden said, they don't take up much space in a pack.

You probably have a good handle on the other issues that come with running in the cold and snow. If you haven't before, I would practice taking in calories on your longer training runs to figure out what works for you. I think the wall at 20 miles in a marathon is related to calorie intake, that's around the point it catches up to you. Other than that, consistent training pays off.

 

[Glyn Ingram]

Cross train with swimming, cycling, rowing etc. Work on core strength without going silly in the gym. Find a nutrition system that works for you and, finally, take your longest training run to 22 miles; many plans stop at 20 and an extra 6 miles on top of that is a long way!

 

[Highhuntin]

Enjoy race day! That’s the reward for all the hours of training , electrolytes are important, like a lot have said it is a fun run until mile 20! Then it’s a lot of mind over matter. Don’t go out to fast or race others just “run your race”

 

[TxxAgg]

How did it go?

I have my first coming up and found this thread.

 

[zacattack]

How did it go?

I have my first coming up and found this thread.

I had a cyst that kept getting infecting on my leg for most of my training time, ended up had to have surgery to cut it all out, and spent like 2 to 3 weeks with packing crammed in the spot. I also had a bulging disk, I could train through it mostly but the cyst shut me down. So no marathon lol.

Good luck on yours

 

[TxxAgg]

Bummer

 

[timekiller13]

I ran my first marathon October 2022. Started training in June. Peaked out at 21 miles in training.

First off if you have a plan then STICK WITH IT DURING THE RACE!! During my long training runs (anything over half marathon distance) I would run for 15 min, then walk for one minute and then keep that up the entire time. I didn’t do that during my race. I felt so good on race day and I was cruising along. By mile 16 I was a full 30 seconds per mile faster than I was shooting for. Mile 18 I hit a damn wall. I struggled through miles 18-22, mostly just a shuffle. Finished the race nearly 1 min/mile pace slower than my goal. I was averaging 9:31/mile until mile 18. Slowed to 12:40 a mile during that 4 mile stretch!! I just burned myself out. I finished, that was ultimate goal. But I really wanted 10:00/mile average. Instead came in at 10:48/mile Oh well.

First race definitely taught me what I did right and what I did wrong in my training and what to do next time. I am focusing on streghthing my quads more. My inner thighs got really fatigued and showed me that they were weaker than I thought. So I’m incorporating more strength training with some biking, weights and lunges.

Planning on running another in about 6 months. Keeping my base up right now with moderate runs (4-10 miles) 3 days a week. Come Jan will start ramping up.

 

[Highhuntin]

Those first 16-18 miles feel soooo good and you think you can run the distance at that faster pace but it always bites you later on! Did a 50k this year and put in about 6 or so miles in the middle on an easy gravel stretch way to fast and really paid for it at the end, I even knew it at the time but it felt great did another marathon later this year and forced myself to keep to my goal pace and wouldn’t you know it? I was able to keep it even with no wall the entire distance lol!

 

[Highhuntin]

Slowing down/keeping to realistic pace and hydration/fueling is my best advice to avoid smacking into the wall.