Post my marathon PB, I went from months of structured training to nothing.
I gave my all in training and racing. With logging high mileage weeks, I didn’t miss not running during my break. As the discomfort of the last 10k of the marathon was still fresh in my mind.
Post marathon planning is important. To have things to look forward to which aren’t running related. Because you’ll go from a massive high to trying to fill a void following the race.
Here is an article I wrote about dealing with post marathon blues.
Post race marathon planning can take many forms, for me it included family holidays. Hence why I’ve not posted an article for a while.
Also because my running is structured it is also great to run for the enjoyment of it. So I ran the trails (over roads) and I absolutely love the Salomon S-Lab Sense 7 SG to do this.
Also I included running with friends, and the social element helped. I connected with other people who are passionate about running, which gives the opportunity for interesting and inspiring conversations.
Plus supporting my friends running the London marathon was a great way to reset.
Reset button…
The marathon can take it out of you especially in respect of the mind and body.
The plan was to take two weeks off but, I recovered physically quickly so I returned after a week.
However in the mind I felt tired. For one of my training runs post the marathon I didn’t run at my target race. Whilst I was physically capable of doing so, I just didn’t feel like pushing myself so I didn’t. I just ran by feel. I felt much better for it because there’s only so far you should push otherwise you can get stale and dislike running.
Being able to give a tired mind a break is something Eliud Kipchoge does. Below are photos I took of him after mile 25 at the London Marathon. His form and his Yoda like demeanour is insane.
Anyhow I digress in this quote he talks about why he only runs two marathons a year. Plus why a decent period of recuperation and preparation is essential.
All the team, the coaches, the medical staff believe that if you run many marathons, then you can’t run strong marathons.
We prepare well, plan well, then run a beautiful marathon. Then come back, relax, prepare well and plan again.
The training is intense. Those running five a year, I want to meet them and ask them to describe their training.
It takes three, four months to make your mind cool and confident. You need to be ready in your head. To feel inspired.
The mind drives the body. The body can’t drive the mind. If the mind is tired, you are done and when you train, you hit the wall often.
What’s next…
In the interim for my training for the BMW Berlin Marathon, I’m looking forward to take part in some shorter distance races. The first of which is the Vitality 10k which is a flat and fast route by the organisers of the London Marathon at the end of May 2019.
Moving forward I will be covering more detailed analysis for my BMW Berlin Marathon cycle, including strength and conditioning, mental training plus my running training analysis from my coach. Watch this space.
Marcus Runs 