Marathon Running

The marathon is a long-distance race with an official distance of 42.195 kilometers (26 miles 385 yards) that is usually run as a road race. The event is named after the fabled run of the Greek soldier Pheidippides, a messenger from the Battle of Marathon to Athens.

The marathon was one of the original modern Olympic events in 1896, though the distance did not become standardized until 1921. More than 800 marathons are contested throughout the world each year, with the vast majority of competitors being recreational athletes. Larger marathons can have tens of thousands of participants. Running a marathon can be extremely rewarding. It represents a personal challenge for all participants.

World all-time top ten lists

According to IAAF statistics, the following men and women are among the top ten fastest at the marathon distance.

Men

Time	Athlete	Country	Date	Place
2h03:59	Haile Gebrselassie	Ethiopia	28 September 2008	Berlin
2h04:27	Duncan Kibet	Kenya	5 April 2009	Rotterdam
2h04:27	James Kwambai	Kenya	5 April 2009	Rotterdam
2h04:55	Paul Tergat	Kenya	28 September 2003	Berlin
2h04:56	Sammy Korir	Kenya	28 September 2003	Berlin
2h05:04	Abel Kirui	Kenya	5 April 2009	Rotterdam
2h05:10	Samuel Wanjiru	Kenya	26 April 2009	London
2h05:15	Martin Lel	Kenya	13 April 2008	London
2h05:20	Tsegaye Kebede	Ethiopia	26 April 2009	London
2h05:27	Jaouad Gharib	Morocco	26 April 2009	London

Women

Time	Athlete	Country	Date	Place
2h15:25	Paula Radcliffe	Great Britain	13 April 2003	London
2h18:47	Catherine Ndereba	Kenya	7 October 2001	Chicago
2h19:12	Mizuki Noguchi	Japan	25 September 2005	Berlin
2h19:19	Irina Mikitenko	Germany	28 September 2008	Berlin
2h19:36	Deena Kastor	United States	23 April 2006	London
2h19:39	Sun Yingjie	China	19 October 2003	Beijing
2h19:41	Yoko Shibui	Japan	26 September 2004	Berlin
2h19:46	Naoko Takahashi	Japan	30 September 2001	Berlin
2h19:51	Zhou Chunxiu	China	12 March 2006	Seoul
2h20:42	Berhane Adere	Ethiopia	22 October 2006	Chicago

Most participants do not run a marathon to win. More important for most runners is their personal finish time and their placement within their specific gender and age group, though some runners just want to finish. Another goal is to break certain time barriers. For example, recreational first-timers often try to run the marathon under four hours; more competitive runners may attempt to finish under three hours.

Live to run run to live

The long run is an important element in marathon training. Recreational runners commonly try to reach a maximum of about 20 miles (32 kilometres) in their longest weekly run and a total of about 40 miles (64 kilometres) a week when training for the marathon, but wide variability exists in practice and in recommendations. More experienced marathoners may run a longer distance, and more miles/kilometres during the week. Greater weekly training mileages can offer greater results in terms of distance and endurance, but also carry a greater risk of training injury.Most male elite marathon runners will have weekly mileages of over 100 miles (160 kilometers). Many training programs last a minimum of five or six months, with a gradual increase (every two weeks) in the distance run and finally a little decrease (1 to 3 weeks) for recovery. The decrease, commonly called the taper, should last a minimum of two weeks and a maximum of three weeks, according to most trainers. For beginners wishing to merely finish a marathon, a minimum of 4 months of running 4 days a week is recommended. Many trainers recommend a weekly increase in mileage of no more than 10%. It is also often advised to maintain a consistent running program for six weeks or so before beginning a marathon training program to allow the body to adapt to the new stresses. Overtraining is a condition that results from not getting enough rest to allow the body to recover from stressful training. It can result in lowered endurance and speed and place a runner at a greater risk of injury.

A typical training schedule will build up mileage over time. A typical example is as per below:

Mileage Buildup Schedule (Schedule I)

At the conclusion of week 19, assuming that you’ve made it through the mileage buildup stage without injury, you are now ready to proceed to the Marathon Training Schedule 2.

(Schedule II)

Many marathon runners also “carbohydrate – load” (increase carbohydrate intake while holding total caloric intake constant) during the week before the marathon to allow their bodies to store more glycogen. Carbohydrates that a person eats are converted by the liver and muscles into glycogen for storage. Glycogen burns quickly to provide quick energy. Runners can store about 8 MJ or 2,000 kcal worth of glycogen in their bodies, enough for about 30 km/18–20 miles of running. Many runners report that running becomes noticeably more difficult at that point. When glycogen runs low, the body must then burn stored fat for energy, which does not burn as readily. When this happens, the runner will experience dramatic fatigue and is said to “hit the wall”. Carbohydrate-based “energy” gels are used by runners to avoid or reduce the effect of “hitting the wall”, as they provide easy to digest energy during the run. Energy gels usually contain varying amounts of sodium and potassium and some also contain caffeine. They need to be consumed with a certain amount of water.

Athletes should also ensure that they are fully hydrated before the race. Light stretching before the race is believed by many to help keep muscles limber. Coaches recommend trying to maintain as steady a pace as possible when running a marathon. Some advise novice runners to start out slower than their average goal pace to save energy for the second half of the race (negative splits). As an example, the first five to eight miles (8–13 km) might be run at a pace 15–20 seconds per mile slower than the target pace for later.