PRE-RACE JITTERS
I am again having the jitters. Is this a good sign? Last Thursday, I started preparing all my things. I had to be sure that everything in my checklist is ready. And in my desire to improve on my Camsur 42K performance and to avoid a déjà vu, I had to follow some very important reminders given by experienced marathoners and authors of books containing everything you need to know about running a full marathon. Here are the tips I got:
WEEK BEFORE THE RACE
[source: http://www.mindfulness.com; Before/The Month After@2001 Austin “Ozzie” Gontang, Ph.D.
1. Carbohydrate loading the right way. By eating normally on days 5, 4 & 3 before the marathon plus hydrating well, you will have stored the energy needed to complete the marathon. Eat early the night before the marathon so that you have enough time to have a good bowel movement. Make sure that you have plenty of bulk/roughage in your meal so it is digested and you are ready to have a good bowel movement several hours before the marathon.
2. Sleep-Get It Early. The sleep you get on days 5, 4 and 3 before the marathon, especially days 4 and 3 will get you through the marathon. Even if you were to be up all night before the marathon or even if you only get 3 to 5 hours of sleep, it will be due to the energy your body has stored by your minimal running 4 days before the marathon. Knowing the body is on a 36 hour cycle, will allow you to run the marathon no matter how little sleep you had the night before the marathon. That is one less worry you have the night before the marathon.
3. Hydrate! It Needs Repeating: Hydrate! Knowing it takes 3 grams of water to store 1 gram of carbohydrate in your liver and the muscles, the water you drink on days 5, 4 and 3 before the marathon is very important. Should you not drink enough water, your body will use water from the body to store the carbohydrates. So it would be possible to be carbohydrate-loaded but not well hydrated. If you are flying to your marathon, bring a liter of water for every 2 hours of flight time. Even then that might not be enough, but it will keep you from getting too dehydrated from being in a pressurized cabin.
4. The day before the marathon, you will do nothing but hang around. Remember that if you go sightseeing by walking around, each mile you walk is costing you 100 calories. Should you walk 8 or 10 miles, you will not be able to replenish your energy stores in your legs by next day. Even then you possibly wouldn’t feel it until the last 4 to 6 miles in the marathon.
Am I prepared for this QCIM full marathon? Your guess is as good as mine. Well, there is no other way to assess my readiness and performance until I cross the finish line on Sunday, Dec. 5. Good luck to all runners and may God bless us all!
JBA, Wishing you the best on your marathon. I believe we are novice marathoners for the first 5 to 8 marathons. Usually at the 6 to 8th we think we have it together. We find that the distance stays the same. However weather along with mind, body and spirit, teach an overconfident ego about being mindful to the reality of being present. One's best marathons are when one see what mind, body and spirit can accomplish by finishing and crossing the finish line together.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to see how you did, in what I believe is your 2nd marathon. Say aloud 5 times during your marathon: JBA, RELAX SHOULDERS. You will find that at least 10 people will thank you for reminding them.
Here's the story of my first marathon. Like yours I'm sure a rite of passage.
http://www.mindfulness.com/2009/01/27/my-first-and-last-flip-off-while-running/
In friendship and on the run,
Ozzie Gontang
San Diego, CA
Director, San Diego Marathon Clinic est. 1976
Hi Sir,
ReplyDeleteI am honored by your visit in my blog. I thank you so much for the tips you gave. From my 5:09 performance at the CAMSUR marathon, I was able to improve my time to 4:38. Rest assured that your tips will be passed on to my fellow runners here in the Philippines.