Training for your marathon: how to focus on your marathon goal
The other day, an aspiring marathoner asked me what is the most important thing for a new marathoner to know. I didn’t have to think for a second.
“The most important thing for anyone preparing for their first marathon to know is that the marathon is 90 percent mental,” I said.
I know it sounds cliché, but it’s true. Successfully running a marathon requires not getting bored, paying attention to what your body is telling you, dealing with the aches and pains that will inevitably come your way, and maintaining a good mental attitude.
The physical side is easy: just get off the couch and run. It is the mental part that is more difficult.
In this article, I provide some tips on how you can keep your head in the game and train your mind while training your body.
Do not get bored:
An experienced runner once told me that he knew he was on his way to becoming a marathon runner when his mind began to wear out before his body. It didn’t make much sense to me at the time, but as he got me in better shape and my mileage increased, I began to understand.
You see, at a certain point, as your mileage increases, there is a tendency, especially for new marathon runners, to get bored while running, and in some cases to feel a little lonely on your longer runs. Thus, a twenty-mile race requires a lot of physical training as well as a lot of mental preparation.
I admit that when I ran my first marathon I hated long runs. I didn’t hate them because they were physically exhausting, they really weren’t. I hated them because I was bored.
But over the years I changed the way I prepared for my long runs and now I love them. The key to not getting bored is to stay focused on something. This is what I do. In the week before my long runs, I prepare for my runs by making a list of things I need to get done during the week that I can seriously think about when I run.
These can be the mundane things, like should I get the black suit or the navy suit, to the more serious ones, like should I take the promotion or start my own business.
One of the fantastic by-products of running a marathon is that I often make good decisions because I can seriously consider the options. This way, the time you spend running can also be your most productive time.
I also use my race time to relax. During the week, I make a deal with myself not to worry about things. Instead, I allow myself to worry about whatever is bothering me during my career. For example, when I run I worry if it’s going to rain at an upcoming outdoor party I’m organizing.
Beyond prompting action, worrying about worrying isn’t productive or beneficial, so I deal with it when I run. Specifically, I might allow myself to think about the presentation, but only for a mile or two. After that, I mentally try to leave it behind as I run. Try it. Works!
In addition to thinking, planning, and worrying, I spend a lot of time praying when I run. It’s weird for me to write this because I’m not the most spiritual person in the world. But there’s something about the calming nature of running and the rhythmic sounds of footsteps that allows me to think deeply about things I normally don’t or can’t think much of.
So after hating the time spent on longer runs, I’ve learned to really love that time and look forward to it.
It will hurt, sometimes:
While I believe that following the advice in this book will get you there, there is nothing I can do to help you with the fact that running a marathon can be a little painful. It is, as best I can tell based on my experiences, part of the process.
For example, on my longer runs, I usually predict the time my legs will start to hurt a bit around mile seventeen. It is always minor and the pain is more annoying than anything. But here again, it’s important to acknowledge these pains but not let them sidetrack you.
Be smart with the pain you feel. If you have severe pain or pain that does not go away or leaves you feeling that something is not right, see your health care professional.
Do not waste your time. If your pain is less serious, don’t let it divert you. Here’s a tip. The way I deal with the inevitable aches and pains while running is to welcome it. That’s how it is. I force myself to think about the pain ahead like meeting an old friend who will run with me for a while. When I feel the pain coming on, I say to myself, “there you are, old friend, how are you?” Then I literally picture myself running alongside an old friend.
As I write this, I know it seems strange. I felt that way when I heard this advice. But it works.
Do system checks:
If you’re really good at thinking and praying when you run, it’s often easy to forget to make sure your body has what it needs to keep going. With that in mind, I force myself to do a quick systems check at every mile marker to see if I’m hungry, in need of water, or in unusual pain.
If you don’t have a lot of experience running long distances, this may seem unnecessary, but it’s not. Trust me when I say that it’s very easy to lose track of what your body needs when you’re lost in thought during a long run.
Be aware:
You’ve probably heard of “runner’s high” before. It’s the feeling of euphoria that comes from prolonged, strenuous activity, such as running. While I don’t know if I’ve felt high as a result of running, I certainly feel better mentally and often physically after a good long run. That’s part of the reason I keep running!
But what you probably haven’t heard of is what I describe as “corridor fog.” The fog I’m describing is the state of mind where you’re not actually thinking about running, but you’re still running. It is similar to daydreaming.
Have you ever had to drive a long way for a period of a few days and get lost in your own thoughts? Then all of a sudden you realize that you have traveled a long way without even remembering it? It is similar to corridor fog.
I tend to get “foggy” when I run the same course over and over. Something about the familiarity of the course makes me start daydreaming. Some people I’ve talked to love the corridor mist because it helps them relax. While this is true, there is a downside to being a victim of the fog.
When I’m less alert while running, I often forget to do the things that are important, like drink water and eat. I also make dumb decisions, like crossing streets without looking or tripping over things on the sidewalk.
In 2005, I was in the middle of a long run and tripped over a small branch that had fallen on the sidewalk. “I came to” when he was lying in someone’s yard, covered in mud and with a nasty scratch on his hand.
The lesson here is to try to stay alert. Keep your mind active. Stay relaxed but keep your head in the game.
Think about staying motivated: I guess if you talked to a hundred people who have run marathons, you would get a hundred different tips for staying motivated. I could give you a lot of specific advice, but part of finding what works for you is finding your own motivation.
However, I will say this. I have small children and I involve them in my training. If you haven’t already noticed, I like to set goals. A few years ago, when we were on a family trip, my daughter, then five years old, asked how much 26 miles was.
To show you, I zeroed the tripometer. As ten, then fifteen, then twenty miles went by, she kept commenting, “Wow, that’s a long way to run!” This led to a longer conversation about running. Her questions were the gambit: “Do you ever get tired?” “Do you sweat?” “What do you think about when you run?” The questions continued. It was priceless.
Then he asked me a question that made me think. “Dad,” she said. “What do the soles of your shoes look like after running so far?”
I decided that for my next run, she and I would use a black permanent pen to draw a design on the soles of my shoes to see if there was any sign of the brand when I got back. Before my next long run, I flipped over a shoe and asked him to make a design. She did. I kissed him before running out the door.
By the end of my run I was smiling as I thought about the conversation and the design we drew. Thinking back, I remembered that his design looked like diamonds on the soles of my shoes. Instantly, an old Paul Simon song popped into my head. “People think I’m crazy, I have diamonds on the soles of my shoes.”
To this day, we draw diamonds on the soles of my shoes before my big races. My kids love it; it is very motivating for me while running. It’s almost like they’re running with me.
The bottom line here is that when it comes to motivation, no one can tell you what will work. You have to find your own motivation.