Top tips for the New York Marathon

The New York City Marathon

Boy its a killer, widely regarded as one of the toughest marathons on the circuit. I completed it a few years back for a local children's charity. The race its self was awesome, the training up to it was horrific, shin spits, colds, sore Achilles, bad knees you name it I got it. But fortunately it all paid off as I had a fairly comfortable race on the day. Mind you cant remember passing Columbus Circle???

So anyway I was out the other night and ran into a friend that mentioned they were doing the NYCM on the 4th of November, it was too load to talk (dodgy rock/country band ruining the Rolling Stones)
but I got to thinking about what I did when I did the marathon. There not race tips, bit too late for that now, but here's my top race day tips.

1. Drink lots of water on the plane on the way over, to avoid dehydrating.
2. Get more water and plenty of carbs don you for the 3/4 days prior to the race.
3. Avoid Tea, Coffee, Alcohol, Fatty foods
4. Make sure you get plenty of sleep, race day is a very early morning.
5. Get involved with the pre race parties, its a great atmosphere and will boost your moral.
6. Wear an old tracksuit/joggers on the morning of the race, its cold in NY in November, wear your suit until the start of the race or until you cross the Verasano Bridge, here you can take it off and just dump it, clothes get collected later for charity.
7. take foil blanket/ bin bag to wear to keep the wind and rain of as you hang around at the start, you will be waiting around for quit a while before the race.
8. If you need to relieve yourself the over the side of the Verasano Bridge is your last chance before the public can see you.(everyone does it)
9. If you are starting on the bottom layer of the Verasano Bridge, run in the middle you don't need telling whats coming over the side from the top layer.
10. Take it steady for the first 5-10 miles, really steady, there will be a lot of runners and trying to get round them by bobbing and weaving is just knackering and you won't gain much time for all your effort, anyway its good race practice to run the first half slower.
11. Split the race down into sections, don't run it as one whole thing. Say you know you can do a nice steady 6 miles in under an hour, split the race down into 1 hour sections run your 6 miles at your 1 hour target, then start again you've only got to do it 4 and a bit times, you know what it feels like to run 1 hour so your head can handle the times.
12. Enjoy Brooklyn and the Bronx its probably going to be the only time you see it without fear of getting shot and all the kids will be out giving you sweets and oranges and making there own refreshment stops for you, a lot of them cant afford it so give them some high fives and pocket the sweets for later (nice little glucose rush)
    
13. Look up as you cross the finnish the camera for the finish photo is on the top of the gates.
    
14. Arrange a meeting point for after the Finnish line, its chaos. The helpers are brilliant they get you to your bags that you stashed at the start give you a snax bag and get you through that bit where your legs just give out, trying to find your loved ones on the other hand is a nightmare, I ended up with some random New Yorkers helping me back to the hotel.
15. The most important one now Enjoy yourself! its a personal challenge yes, but your probably not a pro runner with a must have time to beat so don't get wrapped up in this I trained to run it 3h so I must do that! thing just do what feels right on the day. Its actually physically harder to run a marathon in 4 hours than it is 2 hours due to the fact the your body will have run out of energy supplies after 2 hours anyway.

Ok everyone have a great time out there, have fun, do some sight seeing, party after the race but most of all have a good race.