Surely you are familiar with running marathons. Marathon is a long-distance running event held on the road. This marathon is held all over the world every year, followed by professional runners and beginners.
Did you know? Of the 800 marathon events held each year, the six most prestigious events include the Tokyo Marathon, Boston Marathon, London Marathon, Berlin Marathon, Chicago Marathon and New York City Marathon.
Marathon running is often considered a big physical and mental test for runners. This is because intensive training and high discipline are required, as well as maximum physical and mental preparation to overcome a marathon.
Marathon Distance Group
Before starting a marathon, it is important to choose a marathon variation that suits your abilities. So, according to the length of the track, the marathon distance is divided into several groups. What are they? Check out the explanation below!
1. 5K
A 5K run is a run of 5 km or around 3.1 miles. For those of you who hope to start trying to run a marathon, you can choose this https://runguidesraces.com/ group. This distance is still quite easy to do and is considered suitable for beginners.
Apart from the fact that the distance is not too far and is still safe for beginners who have never run a marathon, preparation for running in this group does not take a long time, only around 4 to 8 weeks.
2. 10k
The next group of marathons is the 10K run, which is a run with a distance of 10 km or 6.2 miles. You can prepare physically and mentally for 8-12 weeks to run in this group so that your body is able to survive non-stop running more optimally.
To go from 5 km to 10 km, start training in stages until you can at least stay at 8 km for some time with the right running and breathing technique. After success, increase the distance to cover 10 km.
3. Half Marathon
A half marathon is a middle distance running event whose track is half the length of a full marathon, which is 21.1 km or 13.1 miles. This group is generally held as training before running a full marathon.
Before entering the half marathon group, you need to train by running a 10k marathon several times until you know the fuel and speed needed for at least 3 months to build endurance.
4. Full Marathon
A full marathon has a distance of 42.2 km or 26.2 miles. This marathon running group is very draining and risks causing mental fatigue. Therefore, it requires very thorough preparation and painstaking and intense training for at least 6 months.
You can start by training to run a half marathon every week. Once you get used to it, increase the distance to 40 km per week. When the running speed is steady, physically and mentally ready, you can run a full marathon.
5. Ultramarathon
After you have successfully crossed the 42 km finish line without any obstacles, if you still feel challenged, you can run in the ultramarathon group. This group has distances ranging from 50 km to 160 km or even further than this.
Unlike marathons which are held on paved roads, ultramarathons often involve more challenging terrain, for example mountains or deserts. This aims to test the endurance and mental toughness of the participants.
Of course, thorough and scheduled training and preparation is needed to face this marathon event. To conquer it, don’t just concentrate on speed, but also observe a long running path that is as comfortable as possible.
These are some of the marathon distance groups in the world. Each distance certainly has different challenges and preparation. However, everything requires consistency and serious promise in conquering long distances.
So, to support your training needs in preparing for a marathon, you can use running sports accessories such as armbands, wrist protectors, sports shorts, sports leg t-shirts, and even running waist backpacks.
