Rob’s Cork City Marathon Blog: Week 2 – Varying your training and setting time goals
Welcome back to the Irish Examiner Cork City Marathon blog. I’ve really enjoyed interacting with readers on Twitter during the last week and reading about their experiences as they hit the roads around the country to get set for race day.
It has certainly provided an extra little bit of motivation for myself as I hear so many inspiring stories.
You can ask me questions and tell me about your training regime by using the hashtag #IECCM on Twitter. You can also tweet us your training pics @irishexaminer and we’ll publish them in the blog each week.
Mixing-up your training regime
Running long distance races is primarily about getting miles in your legs and looking after your body in the build-up.
However, whisper it quietly, running can get a little monotonous at times.
Only a little, mind you!
Don’t get me wrong, running is enjoyable and even addictive when you’re doing it long enough, but doing the same thing over and over again can affect your mindset and throw you off course by being repetitive.
It’s always a good idea to look at your routine and see if you can improve it by adding something fresh.
These suggestions will help you work on your core strength and lessen the risk of injury while adding another dimension to what you do as well as breaking up the week.
Remember that these are just suggestions and may not be suitable for all training regimes.
You can do this in the comfort of your own home and even without any equipment if it suits you.
Swimming is a superb add-on for running training that will help any stiffness in your hips and shoulders caused by your upright stance when you run.
I have to admit that I’m guilty of not doing enough of this. I mostly just go out and run and it can often be the cause of injuries, because my body and joints are not strong enough.
Keep this in mind if you’re hampered by niggling injuries. Adding weights to your strength training might not be a good idea in the middle of your training program so stick to the exercises and save the weights until after the race.
By all means go and have a game of 5-a-side or tag rugby with your mates but sports that require sideways movement increase your risk of injury so keep them to a minimum - especially the closer it gets to a race.
Setting time goals
I’ve been dreading writing about this because my view on it is a little controversial.
As far as I'm concerned, time goals are not absolute.
Getting to the finish line is the most important thing in my opinion - no matter how many marathons you’ve done.
The reason I say this is because everyone is different. Every time I speak to other marathon runners I always get asked what my best time is and I feel people can get a little obsessed with it.
It’s good to set goals but there are so many variables that can affect you on the day and you're not always in control of when you finish.
You could get injured. It could be a really warm day. You might stop to help a struggling runner. You might have a bad week in the run-up to the race. You might have personal problems that are on your mind.
The list is endless.
By all means, have a time goal in mind but detach yourself a little from it because you cannot always control the outcome
Focus on training as well as you possibly you can. Engage yourself in the process rather than the end result and more often than not, you’ll be OK. If you achieve your time goal, it's a bonus.
Remember, though, finishing a marathon is the real prize.
In the interests of full disclosure, I usually come in around the four hour mark. The elite runners will never be in any danger with me around!
My best ever time was 3:58 in the Great Limerick Run in 2012.
After that race, I thought I’d never run a slower race ever gain. The following year my training for the same race was continually interrupted by my final year college project.
I didn’t get anywhere near as much training done as I had in 2012, yet I still expected a sub-four hour race.
Too stubborn to pull out of the marathon, I re-adjusted my goals and came in at 4:28. I took the pressure away from myself and really enjoyed the race. I took it all in and relaxed.
Afterwards, I felt a pang of disappointment as I felt I had taken a step backward. It lasted a few days but with hindsight I realised that I had run yet another marathon. What did I have to feel dissapointed about?
Don’t get too caught up with times, train as hard as you can and the goals will take care of themselves.
READ MORE: WEEK 1 - Rob’s Cork City Marathon Blog: Week 1 – Training plans and footwear
GET INVOLVED
Follow and interact with @whatrodidnext on Twitter and tweet your training pics to @IrishExaminer using the hashtag #IECCM #IECCM Tweets
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
