Race alert!
Training for a race of some sort? There are some things to do that will help you have a successful outcome! I outline some of the things I like to do here.
I just registered for a local half marathon. For those in the Sugar Land area who enjoy the more rural trail runs, the Brazos Bend State Park hosts the Brazos Bend 100, which has a number of different distances you can sign up for—100 miles (yikes!), 50 miles (still yikes), 26.2 mile marathon, and 13.1 mile half marathon. Yep, I’m doing the least! Hey, it’s still a lot and plenty for me. But go ahead, go crazy and sign up for more!
Plan
Now, I’ve been keeping up with my running, and trying to increase my weekly mileage lately, so the time is good to start training for a longer race–a half. I was already running more than the first week of the plan I’ve chosen, so I was in good shape to start. Now, it’s just increasing mileage! My plan will help me do that safely.
The best way to increase mileage without injury is to try to limit the weekly mileage increase to less than 10% of your total mileage. For example, if you run 20 miles weekly, the next week you can increase by no more than 2 miles.
I suggest finding a good plan online (there are a lot of good plans by reputable people), and stick as closely to it as possible. You can also download the Strava app or another app that allows you to keep track of your miles and have friends follow you. That way, you’re being held accountable! It’s fun to have a group of friends and you can follow each other, see what each other did that day, give them a thumbs up, and comment on their run. It helps to know there are others in the same boat and to be inspired by those who are working hard.
Practice
It’s also a good idea to train with the same sort of conditions that you’ll be racing in. Your morning breakfast, for example, is a good thing to try out and know that it will work for you. If you take nutrition or sports drink while running, those should be tested prior to the actual event, too. No good if you try a new gel or fuel and end up with cramps or something as you race!
Day of
For me, morning of the run, I eat some oatmeal, drink a little water. I like to foam roll before I go and do a light, dynamic warm-up when I get there. Nothing too big. During the race, depending on the distance, I may drink water. Usually, 10k and up, I do stop for water and Gatorade/Powerade, alternating, as I need them, starting at about 20 minutes into the race. I also consume one gel around mile 8 for the half marathon. I’m still toying with the best nutrition strategy for me, but so far, that has been fine! Will the race be in the heat? You can read more about that here.
It’s always a good idea after such an intense effort to cool down, then stretch out those tight muscles. The best way to stretch the muscles after vigorous exercise is to do some static stretches, holding the position at the point where you feel a good stretch for about 30 seconds. I stretch my calves, my quads, my hamstrings, back, hips, and sometimes even my arms, because they do get tight pumping as you run.
All that’s left is picking up my medal, right? Ha! Sometimes…
So those are some things to keep in mind when training for a race.
However you train, enjoy the run!
