Planning to Run a Marathon?

By Dr. Pamela Peeke, trusted genConnect expert –

If you’re planning on running a marathon today or in the future, read these tips from a veteran marathon runner for all 26.2 miles …

For any marathoner, whether it’s your first or your 50^th, we all know it’s 80 percent mental, 20 percent technical. Particularly for the more experienced runners who have trained endlessly for the big day, you already know you’re going to finish it, the question is: A) are you going to have fun doing it and turn it into an adventure? And B) are you going to be smart?”

Pace the Race                    

The morning before the big race, just do a short 5K at a nice, easy pace, and get a lot of sleep. There’s no partying the night before.

On race day, after you’ve crossed the starting line, choose a buddy. If you’re running by yourself and it’s your first race, pick someone who’s running at your pace and keep up with them. You don’t even have to talk to them – although saying “hi” and making conversation may actually help you get through the race. Just say, “Hey, I’m running your pace, I’m feeling really good,” and you could make a friend.

Peanut  Butter, Peanut Butter!

When starting the race, use the peanut butter sandwich trick. When you make a sandwich, you spread the peanut butter evenly across the bread; don’t glob it all up in one place. The same thing goes for a marathon – you have to spread your energy out evenly as best you can, knowing of course, as soon as you hit a half marathon, you’re going to get a bit kooky.

First timers get carried away with the big crowds, everyone running quickly … don’t get caught up in that. Just keep thinking to yourself, “ peanut butter, peanut butter,” and by the time you reach half-marathon distance, you’ll be grateful.

Proper Nutrition

The best foods to eat the day of the race are sustainable carbs – oatmeal, whole grains, whole wheat bread, etc. The best thing of all is to put peanut butter on a banana, or peanut butter on whole wheat bread. Also throw in some fruit; too much protein will weigh heavily in your stomach. Sustainable, high-quality fats and carbs can be eaten the night before, but there’s no need to carb-load on pasta. A little bit of pasta, some grains or brown rice works like a charm.

Enjoy the Scenery

One of the greatest things about the New York Marathon is the chance you get to run through all five boroughs and experience all the different flavors and cultures that make those areas distinct from each other – all part of a magnificently awesome experience. People will be out on the streets playing music, cheering you on – get caught up in it and have fun!

Get distracted by all of this and next thing you know, another 5 miles has gone by. But part of the mental game runners get caught up in is to look for each mile marker to see how much further you have to go. Don’t play the “but” game. Replace all the “buts” with “ands” in your head … think “AND I’m doing great” not “BUT I have 10 more miles to go.”

Hydrate

This one should go without saying, but hydrate well, both on race day, and the night before. Be sure to stop and get a drink at every water station along the race route.

Layers, Layers, Layers

If you start with more layers than you need, you can peel the layers off as you run and leave the layers behind. Go buy some cheap sweat or workout pants, long-sleeved shirt and gloves that you won’t care about leaving behind; all of those clothes are then donated to the homeless.

To learn more about Dr. Pamela Peeke and her fix for hunger, visit her Website, become a fan on Facebook or follow her on Twitter.

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