Not the illegal kind, the running kind: Long Slow Distance. By far the most important training run for a marathon is the LSD run. These runs help prepare you mentally and physically for the challenge of race day. They also teach your body to store glycogen and burn fat. Not a bad thing, especially if you’re trying to shed the baby weight like me! This in turn allows you to maintain your pace on race day, and delay the onset of fatigue. It also strengthens your heart and leg muscles, building your overall endurance. I stress that last part again: the long run is meant to build your ENDURANCE, not your speed. This is not a speed run. You should be running roughly 2-minutes slower than race pace. In other words, it should be a conversational pace. If you can’t talk to your running buddy, you’re going too fast. This slower pace conserves glycogen and reduces the risk of injury.
Be prepared for some tough runs. I promise, at some point in your training, you will have a long run that just sucks. This is a good thing. It teaches you the mental toughness you will need on race day to persevere through the pain and cross that finish line. But to avoid too many of these bad runs, be prepared. Get a good night’s sleep before your long runs. Stay hydrated, not just during the run, all the time. Have fuel (Gu, Hammer Gel, Cliff shots, etc.) and don’t run on an empty stomach. Don't do a hard workout or lift weights the day before. And don’t increase your long runs by more than 10% each week.
Lastly, and just as important, the long runs are your dress rehearsal for the race. You will learn along the way what breakfasts to avoid, what socks keep your feet dry, which shorts chafe your inner thigh, and how to plan your potty breaks (trust me this is a must!) Never, ever, ever do something on race day that you haven’t tried out on a long run.
Next week: Fartleks
Happy running,
Genevieve
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