London Marathon Milestones: Overcoming Mental and Physical Hurdles

London Marathon Milestone 3: Overcoming Mental and Physical HurdlesThis is the third in our London Marathon Milestone series where we focus on food timing and food quantities for performance in training. People running marathon distance often experience physiological and mental hurdles along the way during training, so here we delve into strategies on how to overcome some of these potential hiccups to support training and race day success.SHOW NOTES: (03:42)Outlining HOW MUCH carbohydrate to eat and WHEN to eat it to support running performance for those long runs.PRE – RUN:Eat a substantial meal/snack at least ONE hour before runningOats is an easy food to introduce before a run – as a porridge or overnight oatsYou could have eggs on toast if digestion isn’t a problemBe mindful of how you feel as you start running (13:50)Considering HOW MUCH carbohydrate to eat and WHEN to eat it to support running performance for those long runs.DURING A RUN:Eat a quick release carbohydrate snack every 45-60 minutesAim to ingest between 30g and 60g carbohydrates every hourFoods to consider include; Menjool dates, Ella’s Kitchen fruit puree pouches, raisins, flapjacks (23:45)Discussing HOW MUCH carbohydrate to eat and WHEN to eat it to support running performance for those long runs.POST – RUN:Eat a quick release carbohydrate snack within 30mins of finishing the runFoods to consider include: banana, honey, mango papaya (fresh or dried)Introduce slow release carbohydrate foods alongside some protein approx.1-2 hours after the run (26:41)Delving into some physiological hurdles a marathon runner may experience and outlining some strategies to overcome them, including our FIVE STEP approach to recovery:REDUCE – training loadREMOVE – training for a period of timeSUPPORT – including nutrition, sleep and rehab (physio, massge etc)RETURN – to training but at a lower levelINCREASE – training load steadily (38:24)Exploring some mentall hurdles a marathon runner may experience and outlining some strategies to overcome them:Turn a negative throught into a positive oneFind a mantra that works for youAlways use positive wordsMental association versus mental dissociationUse a reward strategy(58:30)KEY TAKEAWAYSAs you progress with your training miles remember the AMOUNT of food you eat and the TIMING of food intake becomes VERY important…..especially your carbohydrate intakeEating pre, during and post your long run are EQUALLY important for running performance, recovery from training and minimizing the risk of injury.As the miles creep up so does the potential for physical and/or psychological hurdles to overcome. Physical hurdles may include: illness, injury or fatigue. Mental hurdles may include: lack of confidence in ability, boredom when running, negative mental chatterBUT, these hurdles can be managed. If physical hurdles are an issue then consider following our 5 STEPS to recovery:  REDUCE – REMOVE – SUPPORT – RETURN – INCREASEIf mental hurdles are plaguing your long runs then consider using positive thinking strategies or find a mantra that will support you. Or maybe you could think about mental association or disassociation techniques to see you through to the end.Finally, just remember how far you have come and RUN IN THE MOMENT…RELATED TOPICS: