Ready For The Marathon ?

Ready for the Marathon ?

There is a bit less than a month to the Honolulu Marathon – and it is almost time to taper.

 

Are you ready for this years marathon ? – At this point, you should either have done your last long run, or get it done very soon.

 

Training

With three weeks out it is time to cut down on your mileage a little bit. Just enough so that you can feel that your body is not as tired, and your legs start to recover.

Many people will use this weekend’s Val Nolasco Half Marathon as one of their last long runs, adding on some miles in the warm and cool down will make it 18-20 miles.

Race Pace

Do you know your pace yet? Knowing your pace and sticking to the plan is important, starting out too fast will cost you in the end. You can print out pacecharts here, and laminate them and put them around your wrist: http://runningtimes.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=6763

Equipment

If you haven’t done so already, then it is also time to take good look at the shoes you would like to wear during the marathon, do they still have some mileage in them. If you feel it is necessary to buy new shoes, buy the same brand and model as you already have and buy them now, so you can run them in.

It is also time to figure out if you have everything ready for raceday; your favorite gels, vaseline, nipguards for men (yes, that does exist), a big black trashbag (in case it rains before the start), or an old t-shirt/sweatshirt you can wear before the race in case it is cold, and then throw it away as the start goes.

How to Get there

Finding your way to the start is also good to figure out at this point, remember most of the roads are closed in the vicinity. Being dropped off is the best solution.Pensacolaand Piikoi is closed nearKapiolani Blvd.Also important, is to figure out how to get home fromKapiolaniParkafter the race.

Sleep

It is the last couple of weeks sleep before the marathon that is important. Get good solid hours of sleep in now and up to the marathon. Not being able to sleep the night before the marathon is less important than the weeks up to the day.

Hydration

Staying hydrated is also equally important. Coffee and tea is not helpful for your hydration. Water, and sports drinks after workouts, works best. According to the Honolulu Marathon’s homepage, Gatorade with Lemon-Lime flavor will be the sportsdrink this year.

We will be back with more tips as we get closer to race day.