FIRSTMARATHON.A young woman in the office where I work says she plans to run a marathon within the next year. She’s been running for nearly a year but has never run anything close to marathon length and has never raced before. I’m not sure what to tell her. Although I’ve been running for a decade, I’ve never run a marathon myself, although I hope to some day. What do you think? Can she do it? Should she do it?

Hal Rickerts, Livermore, Calif:

TELL YOUR friend that she can be successful and run the marathon if she trains smart. It’s a great goal and doesn’t require a lot of prerequisites if the plan is to finish and not to place. It won’t be easy, though. Suggest that she train with a heart rate monitor, which is a very useful tool. With a thinking training plan and a courageous heart, she should be able to do it. [know lots of others who have. She just needs to finish one mile 26 times!

Sally Edwards

is a pioneer in ultrarunning and the triathlon; she currently runs Heart Zones (www.heartzone.com).

March/April 1999

IT’S THE old issue of what is the difference between running and racing a marathon. If the goal is merely to finish, your friend is correct—no experience is necessary. Just ask the legions of Gallowalkers (those who follow Jeff Galloway’s training program) and Teamin Training folks who “complete” the marathon in droves. For them, finishing the marathon is what it’s all about, and time is but a tertiary consideration. With that as a guiding philosophy, your friend can literally take all day. But if part of the marathon experience for her is to push her personal limits, competing in the event to the best of her ability, experience in shorter races (not events) is invaluable. Jim Hage is a lawyer and national-class masters

road racer who is also publisher of Running, Ranting, and Racing.

RACING A 10K is not a prerequisite for the marathon. Many experienced 10K runners have been humbled in the marathon. The best advice for your friend is to train specifically for the race distance. Suggest that she run a one-mile time trial to gauge her current fitness. She should then build a training program around a gradual buildup of her once-per-week long run. Keep the increase in the long run tono more than 10 percent of her total mileage per week. The long run should

be run at a pace 60 to 90 seconds permile slower than she can currently run her time trial. Suggest that she use walk/run combinations to extend the long run and improve recovery. Most folks find that 10 minutes of running and 1 minute of walking works well on the long runs.

Her buildup in mileage should incorporate a recovery week every four weeks during which her long run is cut by 50 percent. Her long run buildup can be held to a maximum of a 20-mile long run. Once per week she should run a hilly course of 10K to work on her strength and improve her cardiovascular system. She should take at least one rest day per week. The balance of the days should be recovery run days at a gentle pace. The key to her running the marathon is to keep it fun. Tell her not to worry about training farther than 20 miles for a long run. She should cut her mileage right back in the final week prior to the marathon as a safe taper. This rest week and the adrenaline of the day will carry her to a smiling finish.

John Stanton,

founder of The Running Room Canada, is the veteran of dozens of sub-3:00 marathons.

ABSOLUTELY, SHE canrunamarathon. After a year of consistent running, she should be ready to take the next step to completing a marathon. She’ II need at least six months of training with someone who will start with her at 3 to 4 miles and gradually build her up to the 20-mile distance. I’d be happy to help her via e-mail (gbarron@ mindspring.com) if she would like. I’ve trained over a thousand beginner and intermediate runners over the past seven years, and I know that finishing a marathon can be done if coached the right way. Patience is something that every beginner must have when taking on the challenge of the marathon. If your friend trains properly, she’ll avoid injury and find that finishing the marathon (no matter what her time is) is the most wonderful accomplishment she could ever have.

Gayle Barron

won the 1978 Boston Marathon and is the author of The Beauty of Running.

Send your questions to “On the Mark” Marathon & Beyond

Forestville, CA 95436 USA E-mail:

onmark @marathonandbeyond.com

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May/June 1999