Planning the Marathon Day

I just completed my 7th marathon in a period of 3 yrs. This has given me enough experience to plan the marathon and just run for fun.

The first and foremost planning is required for food.

Food mix should be such to provide energy for most part of the race. I being a veggie, prefered to have brown bread,Missi bread and Maize bread, veggie with lots of potato, lentils, milk, fruits and nuts. The meal should be divided into small servings and should consume it at regular intervals. The basic principle of intake is just right. It means not too heavy, not too light. The fundamental is that we should not starve.

Second most important is to have right clothes for the Race day. Play dry stuff is the best. Lots of branded products are available in the market eg. Nike, Reebok and now asics will be available.

Running gears are most important. This time running has given me the insight to wear right pouch which should have only main essentials. If we running with 1/2 kg. It will be too much for us to gain speed in the initial 1 hr.

This time i found good elite running socks. This was good and my feet were very happy to have them. Shoes is the vital element which should not be too old (which has run more than 100 miles) and too young (not less than 50 miles older).

Cap should be such which will help the head to breathe.

This time I ran with out the knee caps which means entire leg was able to breathe and I felt very comfortable in the run.

Experience speaks better than any thing else.

Bad Sleep lead to slow run

It disturb the entire day. Idea is to learn handling the pressure. It is pressure which destroy the sleep. We should do every thing to contain sleep.

However we should face all tolerance. Even sleep is less, it does not means we should not go for run.

Run is life. It makes life better.

Enjoy run Before Marathon

When we are planning a marathon, just few days before the race just have relax run. We should not try pace. This will work up the muscles. We should eat well and plan a relax day before race.

Just build strength and ready to give the best on race day.

Bad Sleep, Bad Food lead to Bad Run

I had a bad food day and a bad night. I did not have proper lunch and my night was full of mosquito bites and scare. It lead me to a troublesome night. I could not sleep the whole night. The result of this is that I could not had a good run at the time when I wanted. I generated the pace of 10.6 k/hr over a stretch of 2 miles. This pace should have been rather on the 4 mile stretch.

Its a learning for me and to keep my health and running together i shuld get good food to build strength and relax night to give rest to muscles to perform better.

Feeling of a Runner

When we see a runner, we feel good and make an impression that this runner must be very disciplined.

Being a runner is the devotee of two gods : endeavour and perseverance. Runner feel delighted after giving the due. Also, a runner feel great when he eats its meal. He feels that he has earned his meal.

Sense of feeling endeavour, perseverance and the earning of meal is great. This build mental and physical strength.

Relax after a Long Haul

When we do the 10 miler on Sunday, Monday desreves a rest/ relax day. It helps muscles to build strength. The most important is to focus on diet. We should eat grains - wheat, rice and pulses: fruits - apples, oranges, banana, grapes, papaya etc: milk : Bourvita, paneer, curd: drink green tea and continuously drink water.

Do not use old shoes for big run

I had the show with over 1600 (1000 miles) km of mileage. I tried doing 10 miler on it. I faced the biggest pain in my leg and hips. It was a nightmare. I had to rub iodex and could not walk better for many days. I had a great learning that a serious runner should not use the same show for more than 600 miles. If to be used the old shoe, we should not use it bigger runs or tempo run.

mixing pace 2:1 yield a quality run

When we run 2 min slow and 1 min fast it generates a quality run. This is a fantastic mix and I enjoyed this run for the past 2 days. It is helpful

Long Distance Running is exciting

I have started doing long distance once in 3 days. It goes upto 6 miles on a weekend and 10 mile + on a weekend. It makes a great impact on body and mind.

Running has great effect on mankind , that is the reason there are 10 mn runner across the world.

10 miler is must

Last year, Benji Durden of Colorado, who made the 1980 Olympic team in the marathon, was coming back from an injury and all the training he could handle for several months were leisurely-paced runs around Boulder, where he lives. As he waited for the chance to do more intense work, Durden decided to perform an experiment on himself. He wanted to determine if he could get faster by continuing long, slow runs a couple of days a week. No tempo runs. No hills. No track work. Just Long Slow Distance."I started out with the ability to run 22 minutes for a 5-K," Durden recalled. "I was doing one-hour runs. Two months later, I was down below 21 minutes. Then I upped the run to 90 minutes. And a few months later, I was under 20 minutes."Durden, 54, eventually improved his time to 18 minutes and change, more than a 3-minute improvement overall. All of his progress came from running long and slow.A former world-class runner, Durden re-learned one of the most important principles of running-that long runs, even at a slow pace, count for a lot.Durden's rediscovery has valuable implications for high school runners, who oftentimes neglect long, easy runs in favor of more intense work. Sure, do your intense work, but don't think LSD is for the novice. A weekly 10-miler can work wonders. Wouldn't you like to improve your 5-k time this fall by 3 minutes, too?

10 It fine tunes your form: Running a 10-miler takes more than an hour to complete, putting you into fatigue when flaws in running form become obvious. You must try to correct those flaws (like slouching) and hold form to the end. Durden believes that a 10-miler makes you a more efficient runner-"by getting all your body parts, while fatigued, to agree on the direction you need to go: forward." You smooth away rough edges like a stream smoothes out a rough stone caught on its bottom.

9 It's not a marathon: "People think a 10-miler is like running a marathon, but it's not," said Robert Smith, boys track and cross-country coach at Michigan's Novi High, one of the state's best teams. Ten miles is not 26. You don't need four months to "build up" to the distance. Many high school runners, accustomed to running 5-milers and 6-milers, are fit enough to tackle a 10-miler right away. Others may need just a couple of weeks to reach that level. Some freshmen, Smith cautioned, should top out at 7 or 8 miles.

8 It caps off a great week: Speed on Tuesday. Hills on Thursday. Race on Saturday. That's a good week. Want to make it great. You guessed it: The Sunday 10. "It's the last accomplishment to a great week of training," said Katie McGregor, a professional who trains with Team USA Minnesota and is a former NCAA cross-country champion.

7 It's like weight lifting for your legs and heart: Ten-milers will not only do wonders for your leg muscle strength, but for your heart, another crucial muscle, as well. A strong heart means you have larger "stroke volume." That is, the amount of blood sent from the heart to the working muscles increases. More blood going from the heart to the leg muscles means your heart will need to beat less when you're running the same pace.

6 It gives you a king-sized bed: "When you spend more time on your feet doing 10-milers, you build more capillary beds," said Bob Williams, director of running at the Sports Lab Training Center in Beaverton, Oregon. Capillaries are the smallest blood vessels in your legs, and during 10-milers, you literally grow them like tree branches. More capillaries means that your heart (which we already know is pumping more blood, see #7) can deliver more energy-producing oxygen directly to the leg muscles during a run.

5 It fosters camaraderie: Because of its duration and conversational pace, the 10-miler fosters a sense of esprit de corps (French for camaraderie) among teammates. But one caution: "You can't expect all runners to stay together," said coach Smith. "Runners will naturally divide into same-pace groups-7 minutes a mile, 8 minutes a mile-early in the run." Smart coaches monitor the runners to make sure every runner is comfortably in a group, and that no runner is in over his head.

4 It makes you an aerobic tourist: Your 10-miler can take you far, and be your ticket to some nifty sightseeing. Every runner knows the importance of variety in keeping a training program fresh. You can venture to new trails, pass the homes of friends along your route, circle through town, hit that big hill that no longer seems far away-go almost anywhere your legs desire in the course of 10 miles. And the many new scenes will make the run go by that much faster. Enjoy!

3 It boosts confidence: Who doesn't feel 10 feet tall after running 10 miles? Okay, you feel good after 5, 6, 8 miles... But 10, you feel unstoppable. Suddenly, hard track workouts may seem more manageable and you'll feel more eager and less anxious about training. "I know I'm ready for a great race when I've done a great long run," said McGregor, who adds that recognition of your long run get you out of a bad patch in a race. If you get that sinking feeling in the second half of a 5-k cross-country race, recalling your 10-miler will remind you how tough you've been on hour-plus runs. "Soon," says McGregor, "the race could go your way."

2 It gets out the tightness: "A muscle remains tight because it isn't getting enough blood," contends Durden. "The tissues in the muscle haven't gotten enough nutrition to repair themselves." In this respect, a 10-miler a couple of days after a hard race will supply the muscles with ample blood flow for repair and recovery. Long runs therefore can function as recovery. Think of a 10-miler as a massage for your tight calves and hamstring muscles.

1 It enables you to switch on your kick: Can Bob Kennedy, the American recordholder in the 5,000 meters, outkick Tim Montgomery, the world recordholder in the 100 meters, on the home straight of a 5-k? Sure he can. But not because Kennedy is faster. He's not. But Kennedy has endurance that Montgomery, a sprinter, does not. And Kennedy got that endurance from countless long runs like 10-milers enabling him to turn on his speed as he approaches the finish. Coaches like to say that "speed comes from strength." The stronger you are, says Durden, the better you'll kick in the last 200 of a race.

How to Run 10

Start Slow: Aim for a "conversational" pace, about a minute and a half to 2 minutes slower than 5-k race pace. If you're a 19-minute 5-k runner (about 6:05 pace), run your 10-miler at about 7:30 to 8:15 per mile.

Stay Slow: Don't get hooked into "picking it up" with an adventurous teammate at 7 or 8 miles. "Racing long runs is the number-1 training error," says Benji Durden.Stay Together: A good rule of thumb is that the slowest runner in your 10-mile pack dictates the pace.

Break It Up: Instead of focusing on the whole 10 miles at once, mentally break up the distance into segments, like circling the lake or reaching the next intersection. "This way," said Katie McGregor, "you'll avoid the moment, around 3 miles, when you realize you still have 7 miles to go."

Be Fluid: Drink 8 to 12 ounces of water or a sports drink leading up to the 10-miler to prevent dehydration. On hot days, you might want to "plant" a water bottle midway or stop for a drink along the route.

Finish Fuel: Try to snack on something solid within 20 minutes after the run to aid in recovery. Fruit or a bagel will help replace energy. A carbo-protein powder is ideal.

A Half Marathon in alternate wk is a Thrill

I had a great half marathon. I clocked 2:02:26. It was a decent time considering the water arrangements were limited and it was boring to run in the loop. The temerature was good which helped me to run through the marathon.

In Delhi, we have the half marathon on 28th Oct, which means a more colder time period around 7:00 pm which will be good.

I have to take care of my pace in the last 5 K and control intervals especially for pee. Food needs to be taken along side when start feeling hungry.

Plan Intervals at longer interval

When plan for a marathon, concept is to build strength and endurance and plan intervals at longer periods. The duration may differ from season to season. In summers it can be every 18 min and in winters it can be 27 min or 36 min.

Maintain mentally, you will get it physically

I planned for a 16 k run this sunday. I was very uncertain about the strategy of doing the run. I made a final call to go for the run in 5 equal laps @ 3.2 km per lap. It was made easy when I tried it mentally.

Body respond tot he decision what mind has made.