Endurance (Part 1)
Having recently qualified as an England Athletics Endurance event group coach, here are some thoughts on endurance: what it means, how to prepare for endurance events and why you might undertake an endurance event. This is the first of a two parter
What is endurance?
In athletic terms, although most people would think of an endurance event being at least a half-marathon distance in fact anything over 800m is considered endurance. This is, in part, due to the energy systems that your body uses, but also fits in with a dictionary definition of endurance:
“the ability to keep doing something difficult, unpleasant or painful for a long time”
You can define your own endurance limits from that!
Here goes with some top tips for training for endurance events:
Start early
It takes a while to develop your aerobic energy system so the sooner you can start training, the better.
Take it slow
Build up slowly. This helps your body to adapt to moving more, going further and is less likely to result in injury. See point 1 above for one way to make it happen.
Stay consistent
From points 1 and 2, this is another great tip. Committing to regular training sessions is important and probably the key ingredient to successful training. It’s easier to commit to a plan with three sessions per week and so you’re more likely to be able to stick to it. If you try and over commit yourself it can lead to “schedule stress” and overwhelm toa point where you end up doing nothing because you’re always behind schedule. If you’ve started early, and are building up slowly, this also allows you to review and refine your plan as you go along.
Add variety
Mix up your activity options. This can help to reduce injury and allows your muscles time to recover in between training sessions whilst continuing to build up your aerobic endurance. Include some strength training in the mix.
Practice on your event terrain
If you want to run a trail marathon, at least some of your training needs to be done on the trails. This will make event day feel a little more comfortable. Similarly if your event includes hills (or mountains) make sure you include hills in your training. You can’t always replicate the exact terrain, but do your best. This might be a great excuse to explore places a little bit further from home to get to some slightly higher/longer hills, but if this isn’t possible you can go up and down the same hill more than once (even if your event is flat, hill training is soooo good!)
As always, trust your training. If you follow the tips above, even when it doesn’t seem like you are making progress you will be and although it won’t make your event easy, it will make it feel easier than if you hadn’t done the training. Coming up next time:
Nutrition
Altitude
Kit
Rest, recovery and the taper
If you have any questions or want advice on training for an endurance event, get in touch.