Sydney Marathon

You’ve done the training. You’re feeling fit. It’s time to think about your strategy for the big day. Factors such as the type of training, food, recovery, and race day strategies can be the difference between a PB and a PF (personal flop!) What can you do in the two weeks leading up to a race and on the day that will deliver your best running effort yet?

Taper your training:

Tapering training will enable your body to be fully recovered from all those long runs you’ve subjected it to. It gives you a chance to build up important stores such as your iron levels, zinc and white blood count. Do you need any more reasons to cut your training back? Most people jump at the opportunity!

Tapering is dependent on the distance of your race. For a marathon I would suggest halving your total distance/time run for the last two weeks. Doing shorter easy runs, mixed with a few sprints will help with speed, but really it’s just about maintaining what you’ve already got.

For a half marathon, the more prepared you are, the more time you have for tapering. Your last long run should be 8 days before, but if you only decided only three weeks before the race to do it, you may very well need that extra bit of time! You won’t make a huge difference to your fitness in the 8 days leading up to the race, but you run the risk of being tired/injured if you smash yourself so close to it.

For any distances less than a half marathon, give yourself four days off running before the race and you should fresh a daisy on the day.

Get stretching:

Admit it, you don’t stretch enough. What is it with most runners and stretching? It’s about as popular as a cold shower in winter (maybe because it can feel just as painful!). Hamstrings, calves (stretch with both a straight leg and bent), glutes, hip flexors, and lower back are the essentials. Click here for a video on some popular runners stretches. You may prefer to join a yoga or body balance class as this will stretch not only your running muscles but others you never even knew you had.

What to eat and drink before the race:

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Tagged As: fitness, fun run, half marathon, marathon, running

How does your body feel after running 21 gruelling kms? Picture this, at the end of the race, an army of sore bodies hobbling around recovering from their big race. You can’t help but get pumped for the next one. However it is your recovery action plan that will determine how quickly your body is ready to train like a champion again. Follow these 5 tips within 3 days of your race to ensure you bounce back better than before:

1. Drink 1.5 litres of sports drink in the 24hr after the race:
Yes we all know rehydration after a race is essential (around 600ml for every 30min that you run), but replenishing your sodium levels is crucial. We tend to lose about one teaspoon of sodium every 2 hours so it is really important to replenish these sodium stores during and after the race. Electrolyte/isotonic drinks such as Gatorade are good as they get absorbed very quickly. NB: Too much sodium in the body can lead to high blood pressure, so apart from race time, avoid excess salt in your diet.

2. Stretch:
Stretch straight after the race, but also stretch every day for the next 4 days. A minimum of 10mins will do. This helps your damaged muscle fibres to repair correctly, preventing scar tissue and permanent flexibility loss. Hamstrings, hips flexors, lower back and calves are the absolute essentials. Don’t look after these puppies and you’re a gonner! Don’t force the stretches, you should be able to feel it but not be in pain. Hold each stretch for 30-60secs, and slow your breathing right down.

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Tagged As: exercise, fitness, half marathon, jogging, recovery, running