Encountering and Overcoming Setbacks whilst Training for a Marathon

Many of you who have ran a Marathon know that the preparation for a Marathon isn’t always plain sailing. The Marathon and the training for it is something that tests you and really challenges you both physically and mentally. So if you are finding it challenging and have encountered setbacks thus far don’t worry as this is totally normal. I’m going to go through in this article some of the setbacks I've encountered myself and how I generally try to deal with them:

What if I’m struggling with the training and finding it a real grind?

This is normal I find especially early on in the process. Its important to do what you can and not go into a state of overload where it can have a negative effect with regard to potential injuries and fatigue. I always stress you need to “Listen to your body” It generally will give you warning signs and you need to heed these signs. I know for myself for instance if I feel as though my body needs to rest for a few days I need to take these rest days. I know a lot of you will worry and think oh I can’t miss any training but a few days off will do no harm and actually will recharge the batteries and help clear up any potential issues. I would stress however that training for a Marathon is tough, if it was easy everyone would be doing it! If you are finding it a real grind currently its important to consider other factors such as, am I getting enough sleep? Am I eating well? Am I drinking enough water? In my opinion sleep in particular is an often overlooked factor that’s vital when preparing for a marathon, don’t underestimate the importance of a good nights sleep.

I’ve missed a period of training due to injury or illness?

This is something I've had to deal with myself recovering from a bout of Covid and the worst thing I could do is dwell on it. You have to deal with it and then worry about recovering and building back in a sensible way and get back to work and train in a way that gets you to that start line in the best possible shape and trust your training and fitness. Again, dwelling on this for too long and overthinking it is the worst thing you can do. You still have loads of time and its important to use that time wisely and constructively.

I’m finding it hard to hit goal paces and efforts during my long runs?

You have to remember when you’re completing your long runs its generally after a week of hard training so you’re not at optimal performance levels or as fresh as possible. That’s ok you’re not looking to be at optimal performance levels right now or necessarily at any stage during the marathon build up, Marathon Day is the day for this. I always tend to say to people when doing long runs that effort as opposed to pace is most important. 10 - 15seconds below km pace during your long run might be actually what marathon pace will feel like on Marathon day. I think with the long runs its important to train at a stimulus that is akin to what the Marathon will feel close to without putting yourself in a hole that means you can’t produce a decent weeks training the following week, it really is a balancing act and again its important to listen to your body. If you’re struggling on your long runs and feel as though the paces and effort are not where you want them to be remember that you are still getting the volume in and that these runs will stand to you massively.

My races in the lead up to a Marathon are not where I want them to be?

I think a lot of experienced Marathon runners reading this will know this can sometimes be the case. You can have build ups where every race goes perfect and you feel great and others where races are a bit off what you expected to be. Having an under par race doesn’t mean that this will also happen on Marathon day, trust me I know from experience! 9 weeks out from Dublin Marathon in 2019 I raced a 10mile and really struggled in particular the last 2 miles and ran a time slower than what I went through the first 10 mile in Dublin Marathon 10 weeks later. 5 weeks before Dublin that same year I raced a Half Marathon and had a solid but not spectacular run 2mins slower than my Half Marathon PB and went through the Half in the Marathon itself Dublin only 45secs faster than what I had ran 5 weeks earlier and held on to this pace in the 2nd half. After the Marathon I reflected on this as I thought those races meant I wasn’t in as good of shape as I wanted to be but on reflection they were perfect training sessions and races that helped prepare me for Dublin. You have to remember you are not tapering for these races in the same way you do for a Marathon and generally you’ve completed a decent training week including probably a long run of 2 hours + the weekend before. Remember these races are better than any training session and will all contribute to you being at your best on Marathon day!