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Whats the one thing you wish you'd known before your first marathon...
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Just need to say this thread is superb. I've had injury problems in the last couple of months so my focus and confidence were shot for a while . But reading this thread has really given me the encouragement (and useful tips) I need to get back in the right frame of mind.
See you all at the finish
If at all possible go to the expo during the week. Saturday will be busy and the afternoon is particularly busy.
Try and give yourself plenty of time and go see some of the talks - very good for getting you in the right mindset and putting any worries to rest.
One thing I would say is if your planning on using the underground after the race be aware that it will be packed so if your on your tod and got bags etc try and make sure your travelling as light as possible and not trying to stand up/sit down with the added burden of a rucksack and three of four carrier bags full of stuff half of which you won't need.
Also just in case not been noted from earlier posts from people, vaseline on your feet will stop or reduce blisters it's a life saver.
Hi all and thanks for so many amazing insights. Legends all of you!
As a first time FLM runner on Sunday (run NY and Chicago before) and a Mind Coach, I'd like you to consider the following ahead of Sunday.
If you've felt something shift inside of you answering any one of the above (I'm not suggesting you've had a mental checklist going...) then write down the answers to these questions, really letting yourself go like that 5-year old above (if you're a guy and you dont have pigtails, then just go with the flow and write like a 5-year old boy). Use music if it's easier but write solidly without letting your pencil leave paper for at least 5 minutes. Go, go, go...
Read this over and over this coming week as you see yourself strong over 26 1-mile runs (you can do 1 milers right??), hear the roar of the crowds, listen to a random voice call out YOUR name as you run past them, feel the hairs on the back of your neck rise as your own 5-year old hugs you after the race clutching your medal telling you how special you are...
And last but not least, feel free to play this DVD in your mind as you sleep every night, counting down from 26, 25...5, 4, 3, 2, 1
See you all on Sunday and if you see a blue and white AICR vest with "Go Mel" on the front and GT on the back, give me a shout too!
Just another running hero
Mel
Forecast for Sunday, cool & wet.
Try & stay off your feet as much as possible Sat & Sun before the race, it will become apparent!
Old t-shirt, hat, gloves, waterproof top or bin liner to keep you dry.
Goodluck & enjoy! Keep your goals in check, many run to fast the first few miles and regret it later, if you feel strong at mile 20 then speed up. Pace, pace, pace!
Keep your head up, helps you take in air easier and allows you to take in the views!
Having already contributed to this forum and clocked up my 4th marathon on Sunday in Paris I and my partner still managed to make some classic mistakes. We couldn’t find our preferred energy drink and so went with a different one – big mistake. Not a problem for UK runners but if you are flying in from overseas try and work out where you can buy your preferred drink in advance if you don’t want to put it in your luggage.
If you are staying in a hotel speak to them about breakfast arrangements ideally the morning before when the breakfast staff are around. Most hotels won’t be geared up to having anything available at the time you need but may let you use microwave for milk etc.
Watch the forecast closely. I regret wearing a T shirt instead of a singlet.
Avoid running on the pavements even if crowded. Saw a sickening site of a runner go into a lamp post on Sunday.
I was very pleased to have carried some wet wipes with me both to the start/finish and on me during the race. To hold the wipe while running I use a finger from one of those gloves you get at a petrol station, but any small plastic bag will do. Avoid cling film – you spend too long trying to find the end !
One of us took Imodium for the first time on a long run. Difficult to judge the benefit but they were in a lot of distress at the end with stomach cramps. Just not a time to experiment.
Don’t forget to sort out your pacebands well in advance of departure from home. This is when your ink cartridge will decide to run out. Don’t rely on either using one or even being able to get one from the Expo.
The entry about falling asleep in the loo from Birminghamowl has a funny side to it, but a serious one too. We had to call in to a fast food restaurant immediately after the race to use their facilities as there was nothing else around and I came back to find my partner asleep at the table. Just be aware of the possible need for sleep and the risks that can bring.
Take extra safety pins !
Don’t be surprised if your mobile doesn’t work in the immediate vicinity of the finish. The signal isn’t the problem, it’s the number of concurrent users. Just try and move away from the finish.
I hated the lead up to London (first Mara and for Charity) last year - as I had a knee problem - so didn't run for the three weeks prior!
Was terrified I wouldn't finish; and miserable that my time would be bad after all the training I had done
I wish I had known then.... that I would finish it
....that I would love it (well okay it Bl**dy hurt - so I loved most of it!)
....and that 9 out of 10 people who will ask you afterwards have NO idea of
how long it should take !
Tip that helped on the day... 'drinking lid' for water bottles - buy a bottle the day before and keep the lid - makes drinking easier and you just keep the lid when you chuck the bottles.
What a great thread. It's stirring up so many feelings and I am not even running this year!
Last year was my first FLM, first marathon too. There is loads of great practical advice in this thread and I am sure you have all got good practical advice from elsewhere too. I have to say I'm so envious of you all, because last year when I ran London it was one of the best days of my life and one of the best, most rewarding experiences I have ever had.
So bearing that in mind, try and relax and enjoy it. I was nervous as hell beforehand and you will be too but once you start running those nerves just fade away. What I wasn't prepared for (and I say this as a slow runner: 5hr40) was how quickly it would go. So make sure that you enjoy it, and that you savour it. As someone else said, you'll never get to run your first marathon again. It is an amazing experience so open your eyes, look around, take it all in and SAVOUR it. Because a year later you will still find yourself daydreaming about it or thinking about it when you are down. Those memories will never leave you.
I second those who said you should not aim for a time. I read a great book in preparation for FLM that said aiming for a time in your first marathon was a bad idea because if you don't make that time, you may get stressed and start to feel a failure - when really, if you finish a marathon, regardless of how long it takes, you are a winner! So aim for nothing more than to finish. I didn't worry at all about time - in fact, when I started my Garmin I didn't press the button properly so I had no real perception of time anyway and this was a brilliant feeling.
I also second the person who said try to make sure there's something savoury for you to eat afterwards. I too was sick of sugar but I really wanted a cheese sandwich and my mum was a hero and had one!
Another really good thing I read somewhere (I think it was in that same book) was that you should think of race day as your reward for all that training. I really do mean it when I say that the race is easier and more enjoyable than the training. And if you can do the training you can do anything.
Don't be upset if you don't see your supporters where you expected them. It's harder for spectators to get around London than they might imagine and my support team didn't make it to one of our planned cheering points but it didn't matter as I knew they would have been there if they could.
And take your recovery slowly too. It was probably about 10 weeks before I could run normally again and I did not injure myself on race day either.
Good luck everyone and ENJOY - this is your reward, remember.
Snails, you have just described my last 2 weeks to a T. Glad to know you made it, I feel a bit more confident now. Thanks so much.
Beckstrous, I have the same book as you. It's great isnt it.
It's a fab book, Shimmy shimmy
.
Enjoy the day!
Shimmy, Great thread isn't it. We'll be fine. We've prepared to within an inch of our lives
Thanks for all the advice folks.
Shimmy, what is the book? I am looking for a good inspirational read for the train down.
Thanks everyone for your really good advice, can you answer my couple of worries?
There are definitely loos on the course arent there, what are the queues like for them on the way round?
Also, its my first marathon, I am hoping for 5hrs but realistically maybe about 5.30. Will there still be loads of supporters at this stage or will it have thinned out a bit?
Phebes
Running for my friend's daughter who has cerebral palsy Please sponsor me- www.justgiving.com/phoebedickinson
The book is The Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Non-Runners-Marathon-Trainer-David-Whitsett/dp/1570281823/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_b
It is also a training plan but if you wanted something to read on the train, then the last couple of sections are all about the build-up to the day.
There are plenty of supporters after 5 hours. I finished in 5.40 and there were still tons of people around. Loads of people finish between 4-6 hours so you will be fine...it will still be packed!
There are loos on the course, but I didn't use them - you might find you don't need to. I did notice queues at some of them.
Really recommend that book. It was a godsend.
Hi CStar, didn't expect to see you here.
That's very true!! So when people ask you what time you did - no matter what the answer is and whether it's what you were hoping for or not, ANSWER WITH PRIDE!!! And I bet they will say "wow!"
Simon - Paris was my 4th too. Good point about pavements. I saw someone take a tumble in one of those dark tunnels too, ouch. Much prefer London - can't wait!!
mehul - that stuff is GREAT, thanks so much!! I like to print out quotes and things to think about for inspiration to read the night before a marathon as I go to bed, I think I will add your list to the things I print out! So thank you for that, it's really appreciated.
Ran my only one in 2004
1. DO NOT IN ANY CIRCUMSTANCES CHANGE YOUR ROUTINE THE NIGHT BEFORE. (I ate at 6pm and didn't have any drink - whereas I should have had a couple of cans of guiness and a load of pasta at 9pm!!)
2. TAKE UP UNTIL CUTTY SARK STEADY!! (Its virtually downhill/flat!)
Thats the main 2 - good luck!
This is my first FLM - how long does it take to get across the start line?! Bearing in mind that I will be in pen 8... I've heard rumours that it can take up to half an hour. I want to warn my spectators if this is the case.
Good luck everyone - and enjoy!
Please just let the run come to you , give yourselves time to find your pace group .
Calm down , there's nothing else to do tomorrow .
It's a grand thing you're doing tomorrow .....run well
thank you everyone for what you've written on this thread. Lots of it will be going around my head tomorrow morning. I really like the thought of 'you only run your first marathon once, enjoy it' and 'its just a case of putting one foot in front of the other, thats the best way to get to the end and we do this cause we love it'
Best of luck tomorrow everyone who is running
one marathon later... those thoughts above really really really really helped me, especially in the last ten miles.
A lot of you that viewed this thread over the last few weeks were 1st timers - so was there anything you still didn't know - did one piece of advice stand out more than others ?
Well done to all those who ran FLM. Having done Paris I was a somewhat frustrated armchair supporter this time. And get those 2009 ballot entries in quick - I've done mine. I heard from somewhere that there was going to be a 120,000 cut off on the ballot entries, but that makes no sense as they would lose out on the money they get from donating the entry fee.
I wish i had known how tough the climb to the start was up to the observatory!!!
NO ONE mentioned that little effort
The one piece of advice that I took on board and kept chanting to myself was the fact that if you feel great at 5 miles, don't speed up; if you feel great at 10 miles, don't speed up; if you feel great at 18 miles, don't speed up; and if you feel great after around 23 miles (then you're a weirdo)...
...well, I added the last bit myself but PACING people...that almost got me my sub-4.30.
Thanks to all who contributed to this thread over the last months...it was an inspiration and a real help!!
so in hindsight, the one thing i wish i'd known was that when standing in pen 7 on the blue start, needing the loo a little but with about a minute to go to the start - there's still plenty of time to nip to the portaloos before I actually would get anywhere near the starting line!