Marathon runners, what are your top tips?

You might find run/walk intervals make you faster, if you do it from the outset you don't fatigue in the same way as running continuously. I do this whenever returning from injury or whatever.

Think it's a bit unfair to blame the chocolate milk and not the burger there!

It's really when you can't face food but know you have to have something in the first half an hour or so post long or tough run/race, nothing special just standard chocolate milk. I had a little 200ml yazoo one yesterday, it wasn't very nice but 130 calories isn't going to make anyone fat!

Ive not ran a marathon yet. Im in the London ballot, but if I dont get in that then considering either Edinburgh or Manchester.

Re walking. Lots of people do a method called Jeffing. Its where you run and walk at certain intervals. Certainly works for them.
I jeff on my lone training runs and on the last 5K of a half marathon.

This thread has been interesting. Im looking forward to my marathon next year (whichever one it may be)

I ended up putt on loads of weight drinking chocolate milk, I think marathon runners tend to put on weight if they over estimate the calories they burn after a run.
So I'd think "brilliant I've just run 16 miles, that's 1600 calories burned" and then I'd drink a liter of choc milk, eat a burger and generally eat double the amount of calories I'd just burned.
Also I found the choc milk make me very phlegmatic as well so didn't really help with the training.

Go England!

Marg I am much better at shorter distances .I am worried as the Richmond website says there is a cut off of 5 hours. Can you imagine running for 5 hours and not being allowed to finish !!
Which one are you doing?. I tried a walk break but it did feel awful to start running again. Even a toilet stop doesn't help. I think for me better to slow right down rather than walk. Though I'm prepared for a walk at the end to get enough energy to jog over the line

Pacing is the problem I think. I tried not think to about it but then I go too fast.I am realistically aiming for a 4 anything. Seemed reasonable as I've done a half in under 2 hours.This means I can go as slowly as 7 minutes per km for 4:59. But it's really hard to go that slowly particularly at the start. I'm definitely not built for long slow distance running!

I ran about 10k recently with boy 2 really slowly and chatty but I can't be trusted on my own. They have a 4.5 hour and 5 hour pacer. I'm thinking in the middle of them ? Any wise thoughts

The other tip whilst you're training is to be realistic. Don't think that you can skip training and be 100% prepared. Dont think that you can do it in 3 hrs when you've never really run before doing 16 weeks of training. I have quite a few friends who haven't made it onto the start line because they've been injured during training when they over estimated their fitness / they pushed too far or fast / just set unrealistic goals.

Wow, this thread brings back memories from my marathon.

I had an awful race day but still managed a 4.50hr. I mentally couldn't get my head in the game, even though I'd done plenty of training and in reflection I think it was because I was running in full sunlight as opposed to the dark as I'd done all my training runs at 3.30am as it's so hot here to run in the day. So something as simple as different time can throw you off, so try and do your long runs around the same time as the marathon will be.

I also didn't get on with gels so used clif shots which were tiny cubes of endurance jelly. The raspberry ones were the only ones that didn't leave an awful taste. Regular gels made me com.

I made the mistake of recovering my long runs with chocolate milk. Don't do that I'd recommend coconut water over ice to replace electrolytes, but better and refreshing too.

Good luck, I do miss my lovely long runs and the fantastic feeling at the end of a 15-miler by 7am. And then soaking the aches away in a salt bath.

Marathons are tough as fuck and I tip my hat to anyone who manages it!!

Hi Marg
It's Richmond. I lay on my sick bed in Edinburgh and googled a marathon in 16 weeks time and it came up. Fortunately its near home which I think is a good idea seeing the state people were in at the end of Edinburgh.

16 miles hurts. I think chow mein and watching the England women win the football is going to be healing. A day off is good. Bike ride strangely helps the legs recover. And a hot bath rather than a cold one !

Agree with lots that has been said above.

Trust your plan, you will do it, it really is mind over matter. Just keep running.

Try to regulate your pace at the start - you will run quicker than you want / need to and it will have a knock on effect later if you go off too hard.

Try to stick to the centre of the course (in London, they have a white line for the elite athletes to follow to make sure they only do 26.2 miles - I ended up doing 27.2 miles just by being on the outside at corners etc).

Take flip flops to change into at the end.

I have never really got on with gels so I fuelled with sweets (haribo etc) & mini mars bars. Probably not the best advice but it worked for me.
The orange segment a spectator gave me at mile 19 remains the best thing I have ever eaten!

Completely forgot to drink today and skipped breakfast which might account for my grumpy mood 😳

I think it's really important to keep yourself well nourished (extra calories) and rested as far as possible throughout each week of training, as well as finding some fuel you can tolerate on long runs (and eating well after those). I dilute multipower sugary drink 50:50 with water plus some isotonic concoction and set my watch to remind me to drink every 3 miles or so. Apparently most standard chocolate milk drinks offer perfect ratio of carbs to protein for post run replenishment, so I always have some of that. Sometimes my appetite is suppressed for a while after a race or a tough run.

Ive just ordered some electrolyte tablets and some gels to try. I made it to 20 miles without any of that in the last lot of training. But felt dead afterwards. I have enough fat stores to run many ultras so survived.

Also runderwear, very comfy and an old fashioned hair grip to keep hair out of my eyes ( got fed up with bandanas falling off)

I use electrolyte tablets - SiS or Hi5. And yes to running commentary! Also like marathon talk

Reading with interest! I'm doing my first marathon in 7 weeks. Trained for one in May and then got really ill the day before and couldn't do it. Reset the training to week one for another 16 weeks of pain .Regretting that choice now....

Get very nauseous whatever sugary thing I eat. Maybe i should try real food like a flapjack? chips? What salt tablets are there? Are they ones that dissolve in a bottle of water or are there ones you can pop? I have just run 16 miles and sweated buckets. Can't imagine another 10 on top of that. I seem to be getting slower as well which is not very inspiring .

My only tip so far is running commentary podcast. two comedians chattering away sometimes with guests. Distracts from the pain.....

Agree about the ibuprofen, avoid and use paracetamol. Not usually a great idea to take painkillers pre race either.
Start slow, statistics show that if the first 3 miles are your fastest it can add up to 50 minutes to your finishing time!

No one gets half way around a marathon and wishes they'd done less training - stick to your plan!
Give yourself 20 weeks to do a standard 16 week plan. That means you can miss a week for injury, one for illness, one for work and one for not being arsed without tying to play catch up the following week

Your training pace is your race pace
No matter how great you feel at the start or in the first 3 miles, you're NOT going to run half an hour under your target time so don't try and convince yourself you will. Stick to your pace and you'll finish strong

Race day is not the time to try anything new - kit, food, gels, pace. Stick with what you know

Enjoy it. Channel Chrissie Wellington - her mantra when it gets tough is 'never give up, and smile'
Just the act of smiling makes it feel easier, honestly

And lastly, get your name printed on your shirt for race day. You can't underestimate the lift you get from the spectators shouting your name - and it makes you smile, and smiling makes it hurt less...

For a first marathon, dont worry about time as increases risk that you go out too fast if you're trying to keep on pace.

Be prepared but don't overthink it/ have this perfect race in your head.

Unless there's a genuine reason why you need to carry snacks and own drinks on race day, don't. It's just extra weight. I just carry gels.

For a winter marathon get a hoody you don't mind losing and just chuck it when you start running.

Trust your plan. You'll have points where you feel you've not done enough, or think you should be doing more during your taper but just trust it.

Include hills training and intervals in your training, the difference they make to your running fitness is invaluable.

Mike sure you've tried you kit, nutrition etc a few times before race day. Nothing new on the day!

Don't get carried away at the start, run at your own pace. Try not to 'zig zag' too much if it's crowded at the beginning.

If it's a race with lots of support, pace yourself when it comes to interacting. It's so tempting to High 5 every hand offered but you'll soon get tired! That said, be prepared to take sweets off strangers!

Enjoy it! You may have a race day that goes exactly to plan, you may have a nightmare day, or more likely something in between). Whatever it is it will be an incredible achievement just to get to the start line after months of training, let alone running 26.2 miles.

(Just a thought on the topic of taking painkillers above. It's generally recommended not to take ibuprofen before long distances as it can have a negative effect on kidneys. Think paracetamol is generally thought to be ok).