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What It Takes to Run a Marathon

Surprisingly, individuals still tend to misjudge the sheer scope of a marathon. It is a serious physical undertaking that requires you to keep a solid pace for 26.2 miles (or 42.2 kilometers) and cover the distance to the finish line. Appropriately, the first factor that springs to mind when it comes to running a marathon is – endurance.

You need to push yourself ever-further during your training to reach peak endurance and agility. However, this crucial factor is only a singular pillar among the whole battery of minutia you need to beat the distance. Here’s what it takes to run a marathon.

 

What it takes to run a marathon RunThrough Running Club London

 

Marathons are becoming more popular…

The popularity of marathons is reflected in countless city-wide events that occur annually around the world, and it appears that the activity is here to stay. Let’s take one particularly renowned example with a 40-year tradition and the one that appropriately arrives during the autumn season. The Copenhagen marathon results have shown that attendance has increased by nearly 12 percent in five years. Furthermore, the participation of female runners has increased by 27 percent, while the participation of males has risen by meager 7 percent.

These results bode well for the overall future of the marathon and the inclusivity of the occasion, but what do they mean for you as a participant? Well, for starters, sex and gender were proven to be insignificant when it comes to conscription. All that you require is a strong will and a desire to strive for the goal.

Be realistic about your goals…

That being said, you cannot endure through the entire marathon fueled by strong will alone. You have to commence your effort with reasonable goals in mind if you aren’t exactly in the condition to run a 5K, let alone a half-marathon.

Apart from that, you will need a detailed training plan, as well as a change in diet that, roughly, excludes refined sugars, pastries, sodas, and enriches your food with fruits, veggies, and protein. Keep in mind that this article covers some broad strokes for beginners, and represents a jumping-off point for further research.

Gradual beginnings

You need to find comfortable equipment and athletic shoes that will make you feel as if you are running on clouds before you take up your first goal – to run consistently and comfortably for 20 minutes, at the very least. Of course, if you can already easily reach 10K without a hitch, you should start from there, but as you prepare for a marathon, adhere to one golden rule…

Change the pace…

While you should certainly work at pushing yourself further every day, without a setback, it is more important to surprise your body with an eclectic set of paces within a certain time limit. Punctuate your jogging sessions with numerous sprinting sprees and try to run across diverse terrain.

It is just as important to learn how to run uphill and regulate your energy levels, as it is on the flat road. If you train yourself to run uphill consistently, you could sleep safe and sound, knowing that you can tackle a challenge such as a marathon, even if there is still a lot of training in front of you.

The time is your greatest asset…

Now, when it comes to the time necessary to prepare yourself, you should begin to train at least four months before the marathon. Ideally, you will have 20 weeks of prep time, laden with intensive training, a weekly long-run, three jogs a week, as well as strength-workouts. Check out this article if you need comprehensible training plans for getting from couch to marathon. Finding the right training plan that works for you is of utmost importance, and it is a topic that can easily cover several articles alone, and that’s without going into grueling details.

So, what does it take to run a marathon?

If you were to boil it down to one word, it would be – resilience. As soon as you engage with the preparation, nothing will lead to satisfactory results but full commitment. This is the only way to go to reach the level of prowess and endurance to persevere through the daunting gauntlet