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Marathon Training

Top 6 Mental Tricks to Get You Through Your Long Run

As much as running is a physical activity, to truly start becoming better at running, continue to make progress and reach your potential you have to become mentally strong, too. One of the toughest types of runs to conquer is the long run...and this starts as soon as you see it on your training schedule and your brain automatically goes to a place of, "I'll never be able to run that far." See, mental. And you haven't even...

Your Comprehensive Guide to Long Runs in Marathon Training

Long runs are the "bread and butter" of marathon training. Getting them right is essential to having success in the marathon distance. As part of a comprehensive training plan, the long run provides you with the necessary physiological adaptations to prepare to run 26.2 miles. Easy-paced long runs allow you to build aerobic endurance week after week, as you work up to the longest run of your training cycle which will be...

What is 80/20 running? Using Polarized Training to Your Benefit

80/20 running is a popular concept in the running world nowadays. But what exactly is it? 80/20 running is a principle of polarized training, where a runner spends 80% of their training runs at an easy effort pace, and 20% at a hard effort pace. Training in this manner typically allows runners to reach their best potential on race day while avoiding injury, burnout and/or plateauing. You might be wondering how to implement...

Should You Hire a Running Coach? 6 Reasons Why

Most non-elite runners don't consider hiring a running coach when they're just getting started, especially if they never ran track or cross country in their younger years. But as time goes on and runners become a part of the running community and start chasing bigger goals, it's pretty common to start thinking, "Should I hire a running coach?" And if you're already thinking you're not a fast enough runner to hire a running...

How to Run a Marathon in 4 Hours: Top 7 Tips

Running a marathon in 4 hours is a time goal that many runners aim to achieve. Knowing that most runners complete a marathon between 4 and 5 hours, as discussed in our article, "How long does it take to run a full marathon?", getting a sub 4-hour marathon time is something very few people will ever do. I personally didn't achieve this goal right away, but with a few tweaks to my training, I was finally able to make it happen...

How Much Should I Eat When Marathon Training?

Training properly for a marathon means that you're going to be running a lot of miles. Most likely more than you ever have. It's possible you're replacing different types of calorie-burning workouts with all of your extra running mileage, but for many runners, marathon training will result in more calories burned than typical. Which means you'll be hungrier, right? But just how much should you really be eating during...

Top Tips for Pacing a Marathon the Right Way

No matter how many shorter races you've run or how pro you've become at pacing those, it just doesn't carry over the same way to a marathon. Pacing a marathon takes a lot of practice in training and trusting yourself enough to put it into play on race day. In hopes of helping you pace your marathon as well as possible, I've put together the top tips I've learned through my marathon journey. You'll find that there's a lot to...

What You Need To Be Doing After Every Long Run

Your long run is done and you are on cloud nine. Now what? What you do directly in the hours after your long run is an important part of your run training. Following a proper routine will maximize your recovery after putting your body through a hard effort. After a long run, you need to focus on hydrating, getting proper nutrition, completing simple but effective recovery activities, and getting good sleep in order to allow...

What You Should Eat Before a Morning Long Run (and the Foods You Need to Avoid)

One of the questions I'm asked the most often as a marathon runner is what I eat before all my morning long runs. We've all had those runs (no pun intended) where our stomach starts churning and the car or home is miles away. The key is to find the right foods that fuel you with energy, but keep your stomach feeling good. Let's keep you on track by talking about what to eat before a morning long run. The best foods to eat...

Can You Train for a Marathon and Build Muscle?

People run for many different reasons. Perhaps the reason you run is to get rid of stress, run with your dogs, to stay healthy, to compete in races or to lose weight. But people don't generally choose running as a way to build muscle. So what are you to do if you want to run more and start training for a marathon, but also want to maintain or build muscle at the same time? It is difficult to build muscle while training for a...