Attention marathon runners

Running a marathon takes a serious amount of dedication – it’s a huge commitment that challenges you both physically and mentally. With marathon season well and truly upon us, we sat down with Omar to find out how you can support your marathon training, to get to the start line as prepared and happy as possible.

What should I do before and after runs to perform well?

“A warm up is essential to maximise your running ability and reduce your risk of injury. My warm ups are made up of four key stages: raising my heart rate, activating key muscles, mobilising key joints, and stimulating my central nervous system. After your runs, a cool down is vital for helping your body to return to its steady state. I tend to stick with static stretches and controlled breathwork in my cool downs.”

Specifically created to support runners, Doug’s Runner Prehab and Runner Rehab are great workouts to integrate into your routine, to support your body both before and after your runs.

I hate fartlek training, what are some alternative training methods?

“Interval training is a great alternative to fartlek training, as it builds your speed and endurance in a similar way. The main difference lies in the fact that interval training provides you with periods of complete rest in between your short bursts of running, contrasting the continuous nature of fartlek training.”

Our top pick for an interval run on WithU is Interval Ready, led by Rory.

Can I continue training while injured?

“Depending on your injury, it’s possible to continue training while you recover. My suggestion would be to incorporate lower impact cardio workouts into your routine to keep your fitness levels up. This could be cycling, swimming, elliptical, or aqua jogging. However, it’s always worth seeking advice from a medical professional before training through an injury, to make sure you’re not going to do more harm to your body.”

What are some great cross-training suggestions to complement my running?

“Yoga and Pilates are great exercises to complement running. Yoga serves to mobilise your joints, while Pilates strengthens your muscles and bones. I’d also really recommend strength training as an additional supplementary training method. These will help you to become a stronger, more robust runner.”

How do I stay healthy and happy during training?

“Enjoy the journey and the process of getting better with every week. Being patient is essential to staying motivated, so focusing on your long-term goal rather than getting wrapped up in the short-term struggles (every marathon runner has them!) is important. Small daily and weekly wins will add up to big results in the future – try to remind yourself of that in the harder moments. And finally, remember to be grateful that you get to train and that your body is capable of carrying you through such a feat. Simply shifting your narrative from ‘I have to do a run today’ to ‘I get to do a run today’ is a surprisingly powerful motivator.”

If you’re training for a marathon this year, we applaud you! You’re doing something amazing for your body and mind, and the feeling of crossing that finish line and collecting your medal will make every ache, niggle, and blister worth it. And last but not least, good luck!

Follow Omar on social: @mromg

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