Training for a marathon is a big commitment. You have to put in a lot of work to make it to the start line. With a full-time job though, it would be almost impossible to reach the smashing times set by the front-runners, especially the Africans. While everyone who is training for a marathon is following some schedule or so, but I think, that Jeff Galloway has a great schedule that may minimize injury.
Most marathon schedules are that you run an allotted distance 40-60 miles per week, with one long run every week or other week. That means, that Monday through Saturday you will average about 4-5 miles a day and then on Sunday (or Saturday) do a long run of 18-20 miles. These schedules are an invitation to injury, although it works for some, but not hopefully for a long time. Jeff, on the other hand, advice that you run a more simple routine by running for 30 minutes twice a week (Tuesday/Thursday) and a long run on the weekend (Saturday or Sunday). The goal is to gradually increase the long run and correspondingly reduce the length of the mid-week run so that the total distance per week is not increased. The long weekend run starts at about 3-4 miles and gradually increases one mile every week, then later every other week as the distance run gets longer. Another source for a three-day training schedule is the Furman Institute of Running and Scientific Training. The Wall Street Journal reported on February 7, 2006 , how runners who completed the FIRST program at the Furman Institute had improved their metabolic and cardiovascular fitness levels by 2.5% and 7.5% under various tests. Moreover, those who followed the 3-day program had improved past marathon times posting personal bests of 10-20 minutes better than before.
I would of course warn that too much running, like running too many marathons and ultra marathons is the wrong thing to do for the human body. Our bodies cannot take so much of a beating. It will not affect you when you are young, but you will wear out your joints to the extent that when you get into your 60s and beyond you stand the risk of getting arthritis or other autoimmune diseases. Many runners I know of are fairing badly in old age while others who ran moderately are much better off. Therefore, it is important to count down on your marathon participation, as you get older. In addition, during marathon training, you can minimize joint damage by following a 3-day schedule and doing other non-impact exercises like biking and swimming on the non-running days. In fact, Jeff Galloway recommends short periods of walking during marathon training and Furman recommends biking and swimming on non-running days. In addition to cross training to minimize injury, runners may also consider running on soft ground, like non-paved trails and grass. Most of all, a good shoe is important. Change shoes at least every 500 miles.
In essence, the theory of diminishing returns works for physical activity as well. When it is overdone, then there are negative benefits. Furthermore, at the same time, the marathon runner is also facing the unavoidable biological process of aging. No doubt, exercise can delay the aging process and keep you in better shape than not exercising, but the choice of exercise matters much, and running too much can cause too much joint damage due to pounding the pavement. It is just flabbergasting to think that running a marathon involves 60,000 – 70,000 steps of great force. Everyone who completes a marathon is a winner. Running a marathon is one of those superhuman events. A triathlon no doubt is an extraordinary superhuman event.
If you taper your running down as you grow older and not run when injured, you should be running for a good long time into your golden years. If you push too hard when you are young, you may stand the risk of injury and incapacity in older years. It is best to use common sense and not follow the crowd. Running is a fantastic sport, you feel wild and free, you do not need much equipment other than shoes and you can run almost anywhere. The workout that you get from running would take much longer in most other sports. The runner high is a great feeling, only those who run can testify to that. On runners high you get ideas, you solve tricky business problems, you are happy for days and weeks. However, when overdone, runners get grumpy. Pull back then. No one likes to see a grumpy runner.
I hope sharing my little knowledge and experience of marathon running will help you to run marathons with no injury. At the same time, I wish you also took serious heed of warnings. As each of us have different structures and genetic makeup, some exceptional people can run fast and long and still not injure. Nevertheless, many of us cannot definitely fall into this exceptional elite category.
Reference:Marathon Lite: New Programs Help You Prepare for the Big Race in Less Time; Wall Street Journal, Feb 7, 2006
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