ATTN: Marathon Runners, I need advice!! :)

Sorry, I don't have advise, I want to bump this to read the comments that you receive. Good luck with the marathon, you will be great!

bump

I have made the commitment to run in next year's Dallas White Rock Lake Marathon.
It will be my first Marathon ever, and it is 26.2 miles long. I have an entire year to train for it though and I am going to go for it !!

That's where you come in.

If you've ever run a marathon, I need advice.
What running shoes are the best?
How should I begin training?
How many minutes should I aim for 1 mile?
Should I practice on the road or on a treadmill?
How about attire, what to wear...?
How do you adjust your calories during training or prior to race day?
Any sage advice?
Do you think I can be race-ready in one year?

ANY AND ALL HELP IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!!!!

first off...CONGRATULATIONS!!! I just completed my first full 2 weeks ago and I'm registering tomorrow for my 2nd! YOU CAN DO THIS!

1. The running shoes I wear and swear by are Brooks. But I don't know your foot so I suggest you go to a running store and they can fit you. That will play a HUGE roll in your running. Don't skip out on good shoes. They may be costly but they are definitely worth it!! and replace them when they need to be repalced!
2. I'm not sure how many miles you run per week but since it's a year away I would just get your mileage up to 15-25 miles a week. You want to be able to run that easily. Then when it gets a little closer look at marathon training plans. I used the Hal Higdon but I altered it a little. I ran 22 miles rather than only 20.
3. I set a time goal for myself and I didn't make it and was disappointed so my advice: DONT SET TIME GOALS FOR YOUR FIRST MARATHON! It's going to be enough just to finish it!! aim for a time goal for your 2nd, 3rd, etc. If you finish, that will be an accomplishment itself! but just for instance, I ran about 11-12 min mile on my long runs and it was a tad faster during the actual race.
4. personally I HATE, HATE HATE the treadmill lol you will be doing your marathon outside so I would say train outside as much as possible but the treadmill is a great tool for training in bad weather, etc.
5. depending on the weather there...which I'm in MI so it was COLD! I ran in running tights and a Nike compression running top for cold weather it was perfect. I also wore a crappy hoodie in the beginning because it was so cold and just tossed it when i got warm.
6. during my marathon training I got off of MFP because I didnt want to be concerned with calories. EAT!!! if your body is hungry..eat! You will be burning tonnnnnsss of calories and you need to keep your body fueled! I ate healthy of course I didnt go hog wild but I didn't try and stay within a certain number. I also got The Runners Diet book...VERY HELPFUL!
7. ENJOY IT!! You will feel so great when you go farther than your last run! it's a great feeling.
8. you will be more than race ready in a year!! i only trained 4 months and I was ready!!!! You will do great!

hope this helped! Keep me updated on your progress! I'd love to see how it goes for you! I am entering for the 2011 NYC marathon so i'll be training as well!
any more questions, just ask!! I love talking about running! (obviously, my post is forever long.)

My husband and I ran our first marathon in October. Here is the link to our blog:

http://brookesmarathontrainingpage.blogspot.com/

Hope this helps! Feel free to message me if you have any other questions.

Good on you! I've done 3 full road marathons and a high altitude mountain one. Please don't take my suggestions as gospel. It is just what works for me and definitely some of the websites mentioned in other posts have very good information.

What running shoes are the best?
- I always buy reputable brands, but from the bargain bins - last year's model and replace them often. I buy well cushioned ones a size larger than my regular trainers to accommodate swelling. I've never had foot or knee problems. I actually got second place in last year's Run for the Cure 5k in Tokyo (bcs it was appallingly organised and started 2 hours late and everyone had gone home!) and one of my many prizes was a voucher for a pair of New Balance shoes. The guy measured me up and was very skeptical when I insisted on half a size larger but they've worked great for me. That said, I don't try and break records. My marathon times have been between 4.22 and 4.50 and I am 75kg, 180cm hence my priority on cushioning.

How should I begin training?
Start by jogging very slowly about 5km and build up. 1 year is loads of time :-)

How many minutes should I aim for 1 mile?
For the "long runs" 11-12 minutes is fine.

Should I practice on the road or on a treadmill?
I'm another treadmill loather but it must be better than not running if you can't get outdoors. Maybe the treadmill is good for keeping a constant pace??

How about attire, what to wear...?
As little as possible in good weather! I run (jog I think it is called!) slowly - 6k/h, about a 10 minute mile - so in winter I run with a jacket, gloves and cap as I don't generate much heat at that speed.


How do you adjust your calories during training or prior to race day?
I take PowerBar gels for long runs and every 30 minutes through a marathon. Running makes me so hungry. I was very happy to eat my extra 1000+ calories tonight after a 90 minute run!

Any sage advice?
Don't run too fast.

Do you think I can be race-ready in one year?
DEFINITELY and Good Luck.

Yes, absolutely, a year is plenty! I started running in March, and could hardly do a mile (out of breath) but Oct. 23rd ran first marathon and it was a blast! That's 8 1/2 months, with 4 mos. of actual marathon focus.
1.READ A LOT to learn about training -- and 16 weeks of serious marathon training, prior to that just start building a base of mileage and getting heart rate up, comfortable, a litte speed play too. Track progress -- amazing how quickly one can progress!
2.TAKE WHAT YOU'VE READ AND TOSS what doesn't feel right for you. Such as the tapering thing, for me, like archyjill, didn't feel right. Carbloading? Yuck! I tried it and felt gross within a day. Less running for 2 -3 wks? Yuck. Final week prior to marathon, some real rest is essential, but for me not any more than that.
3. Get a gadget. So you know your comfortable pace and can watch it change, so you know exactly how far you went -- until I did that it was a guessing game. I have a garmin forerunner 110 -- gps (fun to map new places), heart rate, pace, all the details, and simple to use. but a simple sport watch is fine too.
4. HAVE A GOOD TIME!

p.s. running shoes -- I like barefoot on the beach (when I'm there) and have solid, strong, happy feet that simply want a shoe that doesn't interfere. I wore Nike Air Pegasus for final weeks of training and marathon -- they were fine -- for othere months wore a pair from goodwill of worn Asics something, and Saucony something, and all were o.k. but better if you wear an insole gel thingie. Haven't found a shoe that feels magic -- perhaps it doesn't exist?

2.TAKE WHAT YOU'VE READ AND TOSS what doesn't feel right for you.

That is great advice, and absorb all you can and experiment with different things during training, which you have plenty of time for.

You do have a lot of EXCELLENT advice so I won't try to re-spin anything that's said, but I do have a good tip on shoes. Try to buy a few pair of shoes and rotate them during your training. Ideally have a pair that is near the end of it's life-cycle and a new pair, and some "just right". That way you are never spending too much time on old or new shoes. I also do different brands or shoe's that work just so the wear points change slightly, this reduces chaffing and blisters on longer runs. The 1/2 size big is a good comment too, but overall be sure the toe box is generous for your feet. This will help prevent the cursed black toenails.

Of course.... this takes some folding money but running is such a cheap sport overall.

I usually don't swing into random threads, but thought I'd give a good tip here. GOOD LUCK to those trying, and GREAT JOB to that have done one, or many.

Ray

I started running in March and completed my first marathon in October. I used several resources. My three favorites were "Marathoning for Mortals" by John Bingham, "Brain Training for Runners" by Matt Fitzgerald, and ChiRunning by Danny Dyer.