First time marathon training

I just finished my 4th marathon last month. I used the Hal Higdon Intermediate 2 plan and knocked 20 minutes off of my PB. His comments for each workout are great and I logged the workouts in the free version of Training Peaks. I would recommend any of his plans. For my next race however, I need to knock off another 13 minutes to qualify for Boston so I am using a more aggressive plan designed by Peter Pfitzinger that includes speed work and a lot more mileage. I'll find out in October if it was the right decision or not.

Here are some things that I wish I had known before I did my first marathon.

Training:
Go sloooow on the long runs in training. The goal of them is to build endurance by safely extending the time that you are running, not to see how fast you can do it. Save the speed for the short runs or speed workouts. Try to do all of the hard work in training and think of the race as your reward.

Strategy:
After a good 2 or 3 week taper, you will be surprised by how easy it is to maintain your race pace. It will be so easy in fact that you will want to run faster. Don't do it. This might require some discipline but make sure that you stay at race pace. Once you reach mile 22 and still feel like you should go faster, then go for it.

Nutrition:
Eat lots of carbs for a few days prior to the race and cut back on fiber the day before. As Hal Higdon says "This is NOT the time to be on a low carb diet." Unlike training, you will be running faster and your HR will be higher so glycogen will be your primary fuel. Unfortunately, all of this glycogen stored up in your body at the start line will be spent by mile 20 so you will need carbs during the race to get you to the finish. If you use gels, eat one every 45 to 60 minutes. I like to eat regular gels until mile 15 then switch to the ones with caffeine.

As for water, just take a small sip of water at each water stop even if you are not thirsty. And if there is water at mile 25, take a sip. If it's a warm day, eat a salt tablet every 5 or 10 miles to avoid muscle cramping.

I hope this helps you out. Enjoy the awesome runner's high you'll have at the finish and for several days afterward.