My Advice for the 2016 London Marathon

As you’re probably all aware the 2016 London Marathon is just days away now! You may be feeling quite nervous about Sunday, you may be feeling excited or you may just want to get it out the way! I ran the London Marathon in 2013 and it really is a fantastic experience and the main thing is just enjoy it as much as you can. The crowd and the atmosphere on the day is incredible and when you do start to struggle they will keep you going! I’m going to talk about some general advice to be doing the day before, the day itself and the days that will follow the event.

Before

• Get plenty of sleep on the Saturday night. Your body will perform much better after appropriate rest and the sleep will have allowed your muscles to relax. Anything above 8 hours is recommended. I also recommend having an early night on the Friday as well as some people feel so nervous the night before that they struggle to sleep on the Saturday night.
• Have a good dinner. For most people this will be a big bowl of pasta. I suggest eating whatever you’ve been having for dinner the evening before you’ve been on your long runs. You don’t want to be changing your diet at such a late date.
• Relax. Take it very easy on the Saturday, you don’t want to be running around and doing lots of chores. Just sit on the sofa for most of the day and keep your body relaxed for the following day.
• Prepare. Make sure your bag is packed, your forms are filled in and you know exactly what you are going to wear and have it out ready. You don’t want to be rushing around and panicking on Sunday morning.

Race Day

• Drink plenty of water in the morning and leading up to the race. I wouldn’t recommend drinking too much in the hour before the race starts as you may feel bloated and be wanting to go to the toilet very quickly.
• Breakfast. Again like your dinner on the Saturday evening, just have exactly what you’ve been having for breakfast when you go on your long runs. For most people this would be porridge, wholegrain toast or cereal.
• Relax. Do everything that you’ve been doing on your long runs. If you want to take any gels, isotonic drinks and sweets whilst running just make sure you’ve used them before in your training. You do not want to be trying anything different on the day of the race!
• Get to the beginning of the race early, you don’t want to be panicking that you’re going to be late.

Following Days

• Go for a walk on the Monday. I assume that everyone running will have booked the Monday off of work! Go for a walk on the Monday just to get the blood pumping round the muscles again, it may feel like it’s too painful but it is definatly worth it! If you sit on the sofa watching TV all day then all your muscles will cease up even more meaning that it will take longer to get back to your normal routine.
• Allow some time for your body to rest. I would normally suggest not to run or do any vigorous exercise for at least a week after the event.
• Sports Massage. Getting a sports massage in the following days would be of huge importance to remove all the waste products from the muscles. It would also generate healing, reduce muscle fatigue and increase circulation in those aching muscles.

Hope this helps everyone for Sunday. If you are interested in getting a sports massage from me or want to speak to me about any further advice then you can do see by calling me on 07792 599566, or alternatively email me on info@tfsportstherapist.co.uk.