Greetings my Feetling's,

Next week we will go back to the normal format of answering questions so if you have any questions please fire them my way by commenting on the blog or send me a private message.

Today I wanted to briefly continue where I left off after the lecture I gave you last week. Sorry for getting a bit technical on you but I hope at least one person impressed a work colleague by saying "I can’t wait to start my macrocycle". I'm sure you would get some funny looks and few people asking if they should have one!

Anyway... An important part of your training is race preparation and us runners like to use races for this. What’s the point in training all the time if you never race! Now is the time to look ahead and book your place into some races before they sell out. Generally 3-6 weeks out from your race you should look at running one or two races. Tune- races are important benchmarks of your fitness and prepare you mentally for the rigors of racing. You can train your little feet off in training but nothing will replace the metal toughness you will gain from a race.

A race will let you know your fitness levels and even a bad race might give you a 'kick up the heel' you may need to work that little bit harder in training. Racing will also help you experience pre-race nerves and allow you to test other areas including diet and fluid intake.

Marathon pre-races:

I personally suggest running a couple or even 3 races before a marathon. I've got to be cruel to be kind so, I do not consider anything lower than 10k as a marathon pre race. Ideally I would suggest two races between 10k to half marathon in your marathon build up before the more important tune up race of 15km- 25km. Remember, this is only a suggestion and you may find advice that says different.

Some tips on pre-races:

1. Not all training programs include tune-up races in training plans. They do not know the dates of when there will be a half marathon in your area and therefore do not want to restrict you to a certain date. Ask for advice in the forums about pre-races in your area during a certain period.

2. Taper and recover: You must consider a small taper for these pre-races.

For a 15km - 25km tune-up race, I suggest you include a taper of 4-6 days. I then suggest you take 5 days to recover from this type of race. Remember this does not mean 4-6 days of complete rest but reduced training and listen to your body (You may need longer or a shorter recovery period!)

For races between 10k - half marathon you can take attack these races in two different ways. You could decide to train through this type of race and not taper (so you teach your body to run tired). The other option is to take them a bit more seriously and include a mini taper and a mini recovery after the race!

3. Plan ahead now but accept schedule changes. Not all plans work out so please be flexible with these races. For example, if you have a niggle, or an injury why would you complete in a tune-up race just because you have already paid the entry fee. Remember these are tune-up races and not the main aim of your training! 

As always folks, be smart and listen to your body! If running were simply a physical battle then every one would turn up at the start fit!

For UK runners why not try out the runbritain events calendar. You will be shocked at how many local races there are and many of them perfect marathon tune-ups!