Optimize your preparation for the Zurich Marató Barcelona

Running a marathon requires discipline and prior preparation. We give you some recommendations that will be useful to you to face the previous months to your preparation

Training is not the only important thing, rest, a balanced diet, good hydration and a positive and determined attitude towards a challenge like this one, are key elements for success in one of the most mythical races of athletics.

Get to know the recommendations

Check-up and effort test: to prepare a marathon it is essential to know if your body is in optimum condition for this big challenge. A check-up with your doctor and an effort test would be advisable before starting your training. In addition, an effort test with gas can help you to determine your training zones in a scientific way.

Sleep well: it is demonstrated that the rest is a key factor in the recovery and regeneration of any athlete. To sleep at least 7h a day is essential. If you have the chance, a short nap of 30 minutes has been scientifically proven to be very productive.

A healthy lifestyle where you maintain the same schedules with a good diet, a hydrated body, while respecting the hours of rest at night are factors that will directly influence your performance. This is what coaches call the invisible training.

It seems to be very simple, but very few athletes can maintain during the 3 key months of preparation for the marathon.

Train your nutrition: to train nutrition means to prepare the stomach to be able to digger a high concentration of carbohydrates during the effort. A minimum of 60 G of carbohydrate per hour is going to be necessary to optimize your performance. You can work it in short trainings of high intensity as well as during the long session of running of the weekend. Low intensity trainings performed with low carbohydrates availability will be important to maximize your aerobic efficiency and the availability and use of fat as source of energy.

Control the loads: To control the loads is the basis of training progression. It is just as important to train and stimulate the body to generate new adaptations as it’s to allow it to recover after very intense or very long sessions. The key is to do the maximum of what the body assimilates. Good control of the loads will be essential to avoid overuse injuries. Listen to your body and your sensations, sometimes resting one day will add up to twice as much in the future.

Attitude: a positive attitude towards a challenge of these characteristics is essential for success. In a specific preparation of 3 months, we will find for sure days when we have doubts or feel less like training. At this point, commitment to your challenge and/or accepting the bad feeling sometimes present during the training due to fatigue and daily stress with a good attitude are fundamental to reach success.

“Planning” holds everything but you don’t: any sports planning is based on an optimal training progression, however, we are not machines and there is a charge that we don’t see in the trainings which is the family load, the work load, not resting properly sometimes due to stress, so it is important to listen to our body and sometimes it is better not to do a training session before putting our health at risk and suffer an injury.

Perfect planning doesn’t exist, your best version does: When we are following a generic plan, it must be understood as a guide that has to help us to achieve our challenge. However, during our preparation, we may have to make some change due to climate conditions, family or labor engagements, illness, etc. Concentrate to give your best version everyday and don’t hesitate to adapt the sessions to your reality.

There is no perfect planning, there is your best version: Hello, when we are following a generic planning we must understand it as a guide that has to help us to achieve our challenge. However, during our preparation, we may have to make some changes due to inclement weather, family or work commitments, illness, etc. Concentrate on giving your best version day by day and do not hesitate to adapt the sessions to your reality.