According to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, working towards finishing that first marathon can have great health benefits to your cardiovascular health. More specifically, training for a long distance run can help to reduce arterial stiffening, which is one of the key predictors of cardiovascular events.

First Time Marathon Running Study

Starting the journey to finish your first marathon can seem like a daunting task, but if you give yourself enough time and work at your own pace, you can do it just like the 138 people in the study. None of the participants had ever completed a marathon in the past, and they all said that they were running a maximum of two hours a week prior to the study.

Each runner was advised to follow the marathon Beginner’s Training Plan put forth by organizers of the London Marathon, which each runner would eventually complete. This plan consisted of about three runs every week for 17 weeks leading up to the race. Each participant had their blood pressure and aortic stiffness measured prior to their training regimen, and they were again tested between one and three weeks after the marathon.

When researchers compared the measurements from before and after the race, they found that both blood pressure and aortic stiffness had reduced in the first-time marathon runners. Moreover, the changes in aortic stiffness equated to a four-year decrease in vascular age. The results were most notable in older male runners who had higher blood pressure at the outset, even though they were not running at a very fast speed.

Dr. Charlotte H. Manisty, senior author on the study who works at the Institute of Cardiovascular Science at University College London and Barts Heart Centre in London, United Kingdom, said it’s never too late to improve our heart health.

“Our study shows it is possible to reverse the consequences of aging on our blood vessels with real-world exercise in just 6 months,” said Dr. Manisty. “These benefits were observed in overall healthy individuals across a broad age range and their marathon times are suggestive of achievable exercise training in novice participants. [The study shows] the importance of lifestyle modifications to slow the risks associated with aging, especially as it appears to never be too late as evidenced by our older, slower runners.”

While the running certainly helped, study authors also said that participants noted that they also worked to improve their diets and sleeping habits while training for the marathon, and these changes also likely helped to improve cardiovascular health.

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Half Marathon Training Tips

The half marathon has become a popular run in recent years for individuals who are looking for something more challenging than a 5k or 10k but who want a stepping stone before considering a full marathon. A half marathon is 13.1 miles, and most training routines for these types of runs are about eight to 14 weeks long. A recent study of nearly 800 half marathoners decided to try and pinpoint why some runners who are training for this race get injured.

According to the study, there were two main factors that helped determine if someone was more likely to suffer a running injury than the average runner. Those two factors were:

• Mileage
• Pace

When analyzed together, researchers called this measurement the “training load,” and they found that runners with shorter or slower training loads were more likely to suffer an injury during training. Researchers found that runners training for a half marathon who run less than 15 km per week (~9 miles a week), and/or those who run slower than a 6 min/km pace (~just over a 10-minute mile) may sustain more running related injuries than their counterpart runners.

The team noted that of the 784 runners who took part in the study, 136 suffered injuries during their 14-week training plan, and there existed a “tendency toward fewer injuries amongst runners categorized as having high experience or high pace and a combination of both high experience and high pace, compared with their counterpart peers.”

So what should you do if you’re following a low mileage training plan to get ready for your half marathon? Because drastically increasing your mileage can put you at a heightened risk for overstress injuries, runners should focus on working on their speed. By focusing your sessions on your speed work, you can help to improve your pace without adding extra miles to your load. Speed work can also increase your running efficiency and reduce the likelihood of some repetitive stress injuries.

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To determine if time affects our perception of pain, researchers asked 127 marathon runners to report their pain levels immediately after running a marathon. Researchers also asked runners to recall how much pain they were in during the race one week and one month after marathon completion.

After looking at the results, researchers found that runners underestimated their memory of pain as time went on. For example, a runner who claimed to have a pain score of “6” immediately after the race is more likely to rate that pain a five or a four when asked to recall how much pain they were in one week or one month down the road. Researchers say underestimating past pain is more common when the pain is associated with a positive event, like completing a marathon or getting a tattoo, instead of a negative event, like falling on ice and breaking your ankle.

“Suffering in a situation that is perceived as positive and desirable may be remembered differently than the pain associated with traumatic and poorly controllable events such as illness, injury or surgery,” lead researcher Przemyslaw Babel said.

Recollection Of Pain

It’s certainly an interesting study, and it makes sense that pain that is associated with a positive event or an accomplishment is often underestimated, especially when compared to pain associated with a negative event. It’s the same reason many runners sign up for another marathon shortly after completing the last one, even though it was painful. Pain is temporary, but the feeling of accomplishment last longer, and it leads to us underestimating “in the moment” pain when we look back on the event.

It would be interesting to take this study and bring it into the operating room. I would like to see how people estimate pain and discomfort levels before and after surgery, and then how they perceive it down the road, especially if we could track the outcomes after surgery. I’m sure we’d seen something similar, with people who experience the most healing and best outcomes underestimating their discomfort before and after surgery, while others who don’t experience as favorable of outcomes having a more accurate estimation of their past pain.

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Interestingly, it’s not always physical injuries like sprained ankles or chaffing legs that knock runners out of the race. Today, we take a look at the five most common heat-related injuries during marathons.

Top Marathon Injuries

Here’s a look at the top five injuries that are brought on by the sun or excess heat.

1. Heat Edema – Heat edema can lead to swelling in the hands or feet. Caught early enough, the condition is usually not all that serious, and the runner is treated by elevating the extremities and using compression stockings. The patient is usually released after a short while, but they will be asked to discontinue the race as the problem would likely return or get worse if they tried to finish the race.

2. Heat Rash – Heat rash is thought to be caused by blocked or ruptured sweat glands on the skin, and it is more common in racers who wear tight racing clothes. It typically develops under covered areas, so it’s not always easy to see, but you may notice redness or an itching sensation in the area. Removing the garment and putting lotion on the area can help treat the condition, and since heat rash doesn’t increase the risk of a person suffering another heat-related illness, they will usually be permitted to continue the race.

3. Heat Cramps – Heat cramps involve a cramping of the muscle groups involved in exertional activity. This can make it extremely difficult for a person to run or even walk due to pain. The key to avoiding cramps and treating them when they arise is through hydration. Stretching and massages may also help, but remaining hydrated is typically the best solution. Once the cramp or spasms subside, runners can typically return to the race.

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