Marathons for Beginners: Get Running Without Getting Hurt

The 2018 Beijing Marathon is not too far away. Are you going to make it your first big race? It’s easy to get over-excited for your first marathon and get carried away with training. But, are you training correctly? Are you doing the right things? You don’t want to end up with an injury just before the run. You definitely don’t want to be running 42.195 km with pain! To keep that from happening, Beijing United Family Hospital's (BJU's) Physiotherapist Ying Swee Ong shares a few tips to help you prepare for the marathon safely.

1. Don't over-train

You should allow yourself enough time to train for the marathon. Going from no training to running 20 km in one go is too much too soon. Running a full marathon (42.195 km) is a lot of stress on your body, and you need to give yourself enough time to build up to it. The less experience you have with running, the more time you need to prepare for the marathon. Ideally, you need to start training at least 12-16 weeks before the marathon. Slowly progress your runs each week as your body gets used to it, preferably adding three to five kilometers every week. 

Also, make sure you rest between runs so that your muscles can recover. People often forget that rest is also part of training. Without sufficient rest, your muscles can become fatigued, which increases your risk of having an injury. When you feel tired, it will also have an effect on you mentally during your run. 

Below is a 16-week training schedule for a full marathon (in km). Because the Beijing Marathon is six weeks away, you should only consider running it if you can already run 26 km (the distance of week 10's long run) in one go. If you're not quite there yet, you may be demanding too much of your body when it comes to race day and you could get injured. 

2. Warm up and stretch before each run

Long-distance running is not only physically challenging, but also mentally demanding. Warming up and stretching is a good opportunity to prepare physically and mentally for each run. It also plays an important role in preventing injuries by increasing blood flow to the muscles, which in turn loosens the muscles and joints. Stiff and tight muscles are more prone to strains and tears during exercise. 

Start with a slow jog at a comfortable running pace to increase your heart rate slowly. This should last for about 5-10 minutes to warm up your muscles and joints. 

You can start stretching after your warm up. (Not sure how to stretch? Ying Swee shows you how here.) When you go into the pose, stop at a point when you feel a good stretch and hold it there. Don’t push too hard and overstretch, as this might strain your muscles. To get an effective stretch, you must hold each of your stretches for at least 20-30 seconds. 

3. Do strengthening exercises

While running on level ground, the force exerted on your knee and hip joints can amount to at least four times your body weight. Muscles are responsible for protecting the knees and hips by absorbing the force exerted on your joints when you run. If your muscles are weak, most of the force will go through your joints and this will cause increased wear and tear. Over time, this will cause your joints to become inflamed and painful. 

Injuries in runners are normally due to overuse of a certain muscle due to weaknesses in other muscles. Look at knee pain in runners, for example. This often happens due to weakness in the hip that causes knee muscles to work harder in order to stabilize the whole body. After a while, this will cause inflammation and pain in the knee. 

Having stronger muscles helps you to maintain your form and posture during your run. This also means that your muscles won’t fatigue easily, which will help you run faster, longer, and more efficiently. Ideally, you should do resistance training focusing on your core and lower-leg muscles twice a week.

4. Wear supportive shoes

Did you know that without proper shoes, you may develop pain in your ankles, knees, hips, or lower back? Wearing supportive shoes while you run helps to distribute the force onto the ground. When the force is not adequately distributed, it goes straight to your joints. 

First, you will need to identify the type of feet you have. Do you have flat feet? Are your arches too high? Different models of shoes are designed for different types of feet. Asics is a good brand for running shoes. Asics Gel-Kayano is recommended for flat feet and Asics Gel-Nimbus for feet with high or normal arches. If you are not sure which foot type you have, you can visit a physiotherapist to assess your foot type.

It's also important to make sure you only run in running shoes and not shoes designed for other sports. Each type of sports shoe is built in a different way to match the needs of each sport. For example, running shoes are narrower than tennis shoes because running only requires your foot to move in one direction: forward. Tennis shoes, on the other hand, have a wider base to give more stability because tennis requires your feet to move in all directions: front, back, and side to side. Thus, your shoes should be specific to your sports. 

For running, it is recommended to buy a half to a full size larger than your normal size. During long-distance running, your feet swell up slightly. If your shoes are too tight, you may develop blisters on your feet during your run. This will change the way you run, causing increased stress in unwanted places. 

Over time, as you run, with three to four times your body weight pounding through your shoes, the shape of your shoes will change. As your shoes get worn out over time, they will not provide your feet with as much support as they initially did. Thus, you should replace your running shoes every 500-600 km. If you run 30 km per week, then you should replace them every five to six months.

5. Cross train

Running is a repetitive sport. You are doing the same movement repetitively, causing friction in the same area over and over again. It is recommended to cross train once per week so that you give your running muscles some rest. It can be cycling, swimming, elliptical, or some other sport. 

Sometimes, it is normal to feel aches and pains after a run, especially if you have increased your training intensity. With rest, the discomfort typically goes away in five to seven days. However, if there is no change after seven days, you should stop running and get checked out by a physiotherapist. That doesn’t mean you have to stop training completely. You can continue to do other sports that don't aggravate your pain, like cycling or swimming. This way, you can keep up with your cardiovascular fitness while taking a rest from running.

Ying Swee Ong is a New-Zealand-trained physiotherapist. She speaks English, Malay, and Mandarin. If you wish to make an appointment with her or any of our other specialists, please call the BJU Service Center at 4008-919191.

Want to sign up for the Beijing Marathon? Registration opens soon, and foreign nationals can avoid the headache of navigating the online registration by registering in person at BJU. Watch this space for updates, coming soon!

• Want to get into sports this summer? Read all about gearing up for a new outdoor sport without getting injured.

• Not sure what your physiotherapist can do if you get injured? Read Ying Swee's guide to the discipline.

• Keen to prevent tennis elbow? More here.