The saying ‘more is less’ is perfect when you think of warming up for marathons. These races are designed to push your body to the limits, which is exactly why you should be smart about your approach and spend minimum energy for maximum results.

If you are set to participate in marathons in future and don’t want to huff and puff your way across the finish line, here are some tips to enhance your performance.

Early Morning – for long duration races the warm up starts as early as when you wake up in the morning. It is a good practice to wake up 1-1.5 hours earlier so that you can slip
into your gear and run a mile. The key is to run this mile as slow as you can. This helps improve muscle brain coordination and perfectly prepares your body for the grueling run.

Pre Race – This is when you are lining up for the race. Here you will not have too much space to work, making it the best time to do some stretching to relax your muscles and
joints. 20-25 repetitions of basic exercises like toe touches, lunges, squats, hip extensions and knee flexions, twisting hip side to side is enough to prepare your body for the run.

During Race – Running fast at the start is a rookie mistake that tires the body too much too soon making it very difficult to finish the race. A marathon is a 42 km race, so reaching the finish line is a challenge in itself. While the distance is intimidating, it also gives you ample time to pace yourself. This is where you do the final part of your warm up. The 5-6 kilometers are where you jog slow. This increases your core temperature steadily making it easier for your muscles to tap into the glucose reserve later.

Key to success lies in preparation. While warm up is the most important thing, there are a lot of other things to take care of when running a marathon which will be taken up soon..!