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You have no doubt heard of long slow distance runs or LSD for short. I prefer to call these types of runs, running slow to run fast. This weekly long run is the cornerstone of all distance running programs. By adding the use of heart rate monitors a runner can improve the effectiveness of long runs significantly.

A simple formula is needed to calculate the effort level of these runs. The formula 180bpm minus the user’s age was popularized by the great triathlete Mark Allen. Using this formula Mark Allen went onto to build his enormous aerobic capacity.
Example: 180bpm (180-your age = heart rate limit)
- 35 years old
145 bpm heart rate limit

Running for marathons has become quite a rage and you have professionals and amateurs who start the marathon together. Professional marathon runners need to train effectively and must have well thought out training plan to gradually being up their fitness levels to competitive levels. Training is vital for marathons and if you are serious you will sit down and devise a training plan.

Professional runners normally break their training into different phases. What each entails and the duration of each phase depends on the runner’s fitness levels. It also depends on how much time the runner has to prepare for the event.

One ironman race morning I watched in awe as an industrious triathlete attempted to tape a full size foot pump to his bike. Air cartridges were available at the time and I estimate his pump weighed about the same as 150 of those. I never stayed around to see how that episode ended, but hopefully he didn’t get it to fit and went to plan B. Whatever that was.

Do you want to run a marathon for the first time? A good training schedule is important to avoid healthy risks and injuries. The distance of this run is 42,195 km or 26 miles 385 yards. You will understand the need of a good preparation to start this athletics event. Nobody will do the same like the Greek soldier Pheidippides who ran the entire distance without stopping from Marathon to Athens and died by his arrival.

How to train for a marathon depends of the current condition of the runner. Some important questions are:

Every time that I read an article about marathon training I see something pertaining to the longest run in a marathon plan. Why is there so much controversy?

Every marathon runner or coach has his or her own theory about the longest run during marathon training. Some argue that 20 miles in long enough. Others argue running up to 30 miles. And some even say that 15 miles is long enough. Which theory is correct?

If there is one area that always comes in for a bashing when people run, it is the knee. Ironically the knee joint is actually rarely the problem and the fault often lies in the joints above and below the knee. Unfortunately the knee is between the ankle and the hip, two areas where people often lack the necessary stability (in and mobility to create good movements.

In any race longer than the half-marathon, much of the body’s natural mineral salts are lost due to sweating. If not properly replaced, their lack can bring on an increased risk of dehydration, cramp and slow peak performance and recovery time. The main minerals to watch are sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium:

By now you have spent months training and now it is time to get ready for the marathon. Now it’s time to get ready for marathon day.

Begin by running your longest run of 22 miles three weeks before race day. Studies have shown that three weeks is the perfect amount of time for the body to adapt to this last run and still be rested enough to perform at its best on race day.

This week will be your highest mileage total of your taper. Next week reduce your mileage by 20% and by 40% the week of the marathon.

When training for long-distance races like the marathon, a sense of mental weariness can easily creep into our approach, making the training runs seem more like a chore than something to look forward to. Here are some tips to increasing the enjoyment during training runs:

After spending weeks training for the marathon how do you peak for race day? Race specific workouts are the method that I recommend.

The marathon is 26.2 miles long. A big mistake that I have made in the past was doing workouts that were tailored to shorter races, specifically 5k and 10k. The problem was I was only training for leg speed; the marathon is 100% about endurance. Can you see the problem?

The law of specificity says that you must train for the event that you will perform. To become efficient at an activity you must practice the activity. So I began to practice the activity.