So you have picked the marathon you want to run – it could be that it is a famous one like New York or London, or it is your favourite local one like the one that is held each year in your local town or city. Perhaps it is a marathon you want to do in a country you want to visit like the Auckland marathon in New Zealand, or you have chosen a real difficult marathon which is the toughest in the world say like the Great Wall of China marathon.
Whatever marathon you have chosen (for me my first was the Pittsburgh marathon in the USA) the first two questions you should ask of your self or your coach is the climatic conditions you might encounter on race day and what is the nature of the course you are going to be running.
For me I am a bit of a nut when it comes to weather for races especially for marathons so I tend to look at the past history of marathon races I entered to get a feel of what may happen on the big day-so i look for weather factors such as the temperature, wind, the humidity and rain – why? – so I can train in the conditions I might face so my mind and body doesnt go into shock on race day.
Same for the nature of the course – is it hilly, is it really flat, is there a mixture of flat and hills (where do the hills come in the race) are there some downhill bits – why so I can train on similar terrain in preparation for race day and once again so my mind and body doesnt go into shock when a nasty ole hill appears at the 32k (20mile mark) I expected it and trained for it !!!
You must know what you are letting your mind and body get into and it starts with finding out about the nature of the course and mother nature herself !!!
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