To Marathon or not to Marathon?

Zetti

Barefooters
Feb 17, 2012
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So here’s the deal. I was right on track for my 1st BF marathon in the end of September (last weekend of the month). About 1 month ago I ran into ITband issues. I was at 30 mi/week at that point but I then took about 5 weeks completely off and swam, did yoga, and specific strength training for my hip flexor, abductor, and core area (abs, quads, butt, etc). I am now back to running with no IT band pain but haven’t gone over 4 mi yet. I understand that this is going to be a very subjective experience, and I need to listen to my body and only I can know if I will be ready….but what say you?

To marathon or not to marathon?? Are 2 months enough in your opinion base on the information given to get through marathon prep with the lost month in there?
 
So here’s the deal. I was right on track for my 1st BF marathon in the end of September (last weekend of the month). About 1 month ago I ran into ITband issues. I was at 30 mi/week at that point but I then took about 5 weeks completely off and swam, did yoga, and specific strength training for my hip flexor, abductor, and core area (abs, quads, butt, etc). I am now back to running with no IT band pain but haven’t gone over 4 mi yet. I understand that this is going to be a very subjective experience, and I need to listen to my body and only I can know if I will be ready….but what say you?

To marathon or not to marathon?? Are 2 months enough in your opinion base on the information given to get through marathon prep with the lost month in there?
Zetti, I've never marathoned, but I have done long distance hiking and biking, and if the goal is only to finish, then you could probably run a marathon tomorrow and be OK, zero-prep, especially if you're one of those who finds it acceptable to walk part of the way or walk intervals. If you want to run semi-competitively though, either against yourself or others, then pushing the training might risk re-injury, and set you back further. So I would just train within the limits of what your body's telling you, and then see how it goes when the big day comes. If you can't finish, well, there's always next year. As someone who's had to hold back due to nagging injuries, I would never do anything that would risk laying me up again. It feels too damn good to be doing good runs and workouts again.
 
60 days out and you haven't even ran 4 miles?

Yikes...

Personally, I'd say "no", but you're an adult and this is America so carry on how you must.

It's too bad Talon isn't on here anymore. He had ITBS last year during the Hottest Half and it took him a long time to properly recover. I'm not sure how long it took him, but it was months before his mileage came back around.

If you're really pushing to run it, see if you can run 13 this weekend and be the judge of how you feel (could anybody else? Stoopid question...). I'd be very quick to shut it down if I felt ANY twinges that were out of the ordinary. If it's one thing that I've learned while training for marathons barefoot is that at the first sign of pain, shut it down. Nothing good comes from "running through pain" whilst barefoot.

JMHO.
 
60 days out and you haven't even ran 4 miles?

If you're really pushing to run it, see if you can run 13 this weekend and be the judge of how you feel (could anybody else? Stoopid question...). I'd be very quick to shut it down if I felt ANY twinges that were out of the ordinary. If it's one thing that I've learned while training for marathons barefoot is that at the first sign of pain, shut it down. Nothing good comes from "running through pain" whilst barefoot.

JMHO.

Thats what I was thinking. I did get a few long runs (10+) in before the ITBS, but haven't dared the upper milages yet, out of fear of realizing that I will not be able to run this one.....if things go well maybe I'll just do the half.

...And Lee...I dont think I could walk in a marathon...doesn't fit my style. Wish I could but I know the reality of what happens once the gun goes off....its a blessing and a curse:barefoot:
 
I have a 13 scheduled for Sunday, but I've been training pretty well so far averaging 30mpw and just starting to ramp up the mileage (I've got just over 90 days to go).

Best of luck to you. Keep the thread alive and let us know how it went.
 
...And Lee...I dont think I could walk in a marathon...doesn't fit my style. Wish I could but I know the reality of what happens once the gun goes off....its a blessing and a curse:barefoot:
I hear you. I could've run in my neighborhood's Fourth of July races, just 2 and 4 miles, but I'm still way too slow for my liking. I won't consider a race until I can do it the way I want to. This whole notion of "just finish," is foreign to me, but it seems quite popular now, especially for marathon or ultras. I think Pilot's advice is best.
 
Been there done that Zetti.
I think you should continue to train as if you are running the marathon and see where that takes you.
Run as far as you safely can and stop at the first signs of discomfort and stay away from hills.
What was your longest run before injury?
 
Dama, I did a 12 miler about a week before I really started feeling it.
 
Run to finish does not preclude doing well, it just precludes external
standards about what 'doing well' means. Getting off your ass and
not only starting but finishing a race is a big accomplishment, particularly
after one has had a few decades of a career sitting on their ass :)
 
Dama, I did a 12 miler about a week before I really started feeling it.

If your longer run was 12 mi prior then forget about it. Let this one go by and concentrate on getting healthy.
Remember there are hundred of marathons.
Sorry.
 
personally i will not run a marathon until i fully know i can do it in less than 4 hours. i know a lot of people are of the mindset of "just finish it" but not me.

i see no point of hurting myself or struggling so hard to "just finish it". i will get faster and stronger at lower distances before jumping that high so that i can be called a "real runner" by someone else's standard.

last summer my cousin asked me if i had run a marathon and when i told her no i saw her chuckle. she then went on to ask me form advice, of course ignoring adding in any training of going bf. she ran the portland marathon the year before and skipped that one because of injury. i don't think she runs at all on a consistant basis.

to me running consistently makes me a runner, not completing some arbitrary distance.
 
Since you are a michigander, which marathon are you looking at? There is a Grand Rapids marathon in the middle of october. If a half goes well, you could shoot for that, maybe? Though I'm guessing you're an east sider..........
 
personally i will not run a marathon until i fully know i can do it in less than 4 hours. i know a lot of people are of the mindset of "just finish it" but not me.
I agree Mike, four hours would be the cut-off for me. That's only a 10mm pace or so. I don't think I want to race with anything slower than that. It wouldn't be racing. Why not just run the distance on your own? Maybe next year, if I can consistently do 5k or 10k distances at 8mm pace, I might consider one of those races. We'll see, but no race is worth risking injury for, not when there's no chance of winning fame or fortune. I love my running routine too much and nagging injuries are more frustration than I can handle. I'll do anything to avoid getting sidelined with an injury.
 
Zetti, I have been battling knee pain for a long time. I went into a marathon with knee pain in Feb. and it did not go well. You might have to postpone your marathon. I don't think you have enough time to build back up for the marathon, but I think you can easily do the half if you can put in some 10 to 12 mile runs. Better yet, schedule a 15 miler and see how that goes. Of course, stop if you feel any knee problems. You will do a marathon in the future, it might take some patience.
 
to me running consistently makes me a runner, not completing some arbitrary distance.

Nice comment Mike. I wish I could follow that statement. I don't know why running long distances have so much pull on me. I know I could run every day pain free if I could just give up on the long distance goals. Speed was kind of the same pull, but I have been able to give up on the idea that I will ever be fast.
 
i too have to many little nagging things keeping me from upping my distance, speed, frequency. i know, believe, there will always be something to work on. i'm in no hurry. i'm too old to be competitive. i should say i took up running too late in life to be challenging elites.
 
I think you might have to start increasing mileage just see where you stand with the IT issues, I think it's the only thing to do right now. If you still have IT issues, maybe you should hold off on the marathon. My first marathon I got a bad case of IT issues a month before the race, I barely ran at all that month but still ran the marathon, everything was going well until I hit mile 15, then it was a death march until the end but still made it.
 
To marathon or not to marathon?? Are 2 months enough in your opinion base on the information given to get through marathon prep with the lost month in there?

If it was me, I would do what I can to get back on track. However if something flared up, I wouldn't hesitate to postpone until the next one that might only be a month or two away.
 

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