Signed up to a marathon a year away with no running experience? How exciting! In this blog, we will tackle what you need to do to get marathon fit within the year. 

We are not going to sugar coat the fact that marathon training no matter what type of runner you are is a challenge. The training won’t be a walk in the park but with Coopah and the amazing running community, you will discover so much about yourself, find a truly welcoming and supportive community and have a huge sense of achievement every time you look back on the huge milestones you are achieving.

If this is your first marathon, completing the distance is a huge achievement itself. Don't worry about the time. You can focus on improving your time next time. 

Running Tips to go from Couch to Marathon

1.Follow a training plan

Following a training plan will make this epic journey so much easier for you. Make sure the plan fits your schedule as it is important that it is achievable. Otherwise, there is no point in having a plan. 

2. Run in good quality running shoes

No need to buy the very best, but it is important to invest in some good quality shoes that fit your feet correctly. This will make you less likely to get injured and therefore, enable you to keep training. You may need to buy a couple of shoes this year as once you run more than 400 - 500 miles, you will probably need a new pair. 

3. Do strength and conditioning workouts 

Strength training will help you run faster as it boosts your neuromuscular coordination and power. It also improves your running economy, making you a more efficient runner. And my favourite benefit, It will make you more resilient to injury by making yours muscles and connective tissues stronger! 

4. Recovery is key 

It is crucial that we allow our bodies to recover as we do not want to run our bodies into the ground which will end up with us overtraining and injuring ourselves. If following a training plan, your recovery will already be included so there is no need to worry. However, if it is one of those tough days and you feel you may be getting ill or your body is very tired, best to swap your run for a gentle walk or maybe even a siesta!

Plan of Action - One Year To Train a Marathon

1. Start by doing 1 week of easy running/ walking

No need to worry about your pace or distance too much here. The most important thing to do here is get out the door or on the treadmill and start to jog. It is important to start slowly. Ideally we would have a few weeks like this, so if you have a little more than a year do a few more weeks at this stage

2. Start your 10 week 10k training plan

The next 10 weeks are very straight-forward, all you need to do is follow the training plan. Make sure you choose an achievable pace, remember our focus is on building your mileage. The long runs are very important. Even if you cannot keep to the pace, do not worry, slow it down and focus on completing the distance. 

If you feel like you need to modify your goal time, that is no trouble, just update your plan and Coopah will instantly provide you with your updated sessions.

3. 2 weeks - recovery/ easy running/ active recovery

Congratulations, you have done your 10k! Now, you have a couple of weeks to recover and prepare your body for your next 12 week training block. You can take a few days off here but make sure you keep active by going on walks, doing a spin session with your friends,  yoga and easy runs. 

4. Start your 12 week Half Marathon Training Programme

For the next 12 weeks you will be focusing on building up to Half Marathon. Can you sign up to a Half Marathon race? If so, just insert the date into Coopah and our digital run coach will create a running plan specific to your race day. 

This is a great opportunity to get used to running with big crowds. Research also shows people sign up to events to motivate them to keep training. Another benefit is that running in a race is likely to improve your performance. 

As with the 10k training plan, making sure you gradually increase your mileage is very important. Those long runs are really important. Sometimes running with a friend or your local running group can help in those tougher sessions. 

5. 3 weeks - Active recovery/ easy running 

Congratulations, you have completed your Half Marathon! Now, you have a couple of weeks to recover and prepare your body for your next 12 week training block. You can take a few days off here but make sure you keep active by going on cycles, swimming,  yoga and easy runs. 

6. Start your 24 week Marathon Training Plan

Last 24 weeks before your Marathon! Remember to select the correct date for your Marathon when creating your training plan, as Coopah will ease off the volume and intensity before the big day so your body and mind is ready to take on the challenge. 

As mentioned before, when doing your first marathon, we advise you to focus on the distance, not the pace. So if you cannot complete every session in a certain week, do not worry, drop an easy run or the interval session but make sure to complete the long run. Or even if you have to miss a weeks training, due to illness, it is okay, as it is a 24 week training plan you can afford to miss a few sessions here and there. Just when you feel better, jump back on the training plan or talk to your Coach via the app, we are here to support you.

Completing the session’s mileage, you can be confident you will be able to run 42.2km  when it comes to Marathon Day!

What training plan to use to achieve the couch to marathon? 

The great news is that you can use Coopah for the entirety of your marathon training. Coopah will provide you with all the training sessions you need to achieve the marathon distance. As well as achieving your first 5K, 10K and Half Marathon! Sessions will include interval sessions, recovery runs, tempo sessions, yoga classes and Strength and Conditioning sessions with your coach James and Esmée! 

All you have to do is sign up to Coopah, decide how many days you want to train, your goal distance, your current easy pace and goal race time. Then Coopah will instantly create your personal training plan so you can start right away. 

Download Coopah today! 

Best of luck with training! 

Let us know if you are aiming to do a marathon in a year via run@coopah.com