James Atkinson - Marathon Training & Distance Running Tips: The runners guide for endurance training and racing, beginner running programs and advice (Home Workout & Weight Loss Success Book 5)

Critical Acclaim for James Atkinsons

MARATHON TRAINING

AND DISTANCE RUNNING TIPS

I started10 weeks agoto work on a half-marathon, and with a couple of tips from this book, I successfully completed it injury-free!

Erik Van Asch

I have wanted to start marathon training since a good friend suggested it. This book is not only motivational, with its super tips, but has the best suggestions that a runner will encounter! It mirrors exactly what my friend has gone through in his training, and now I have a faithful companion as well.

Kay Dee

If you are interested in running marathons, endurance running or long distance running, this book is a good start to your training.

The author, James Atkinson, is a qualified fitness coach and personal trainer, and his many experiences shine across in this guide.

You get all the INs and OUTs you need to become fit for long distance running. Also included in each chapter is a summary at the end to re-enforce your learning.

Colin G Smith

As usual, Jim has written an entertaining read.

There are some great lessons from his past experiences, his own mistakes and mistakes of other runners that he has known. This will, no doubt, save the budding long distance runner from a lot of potential setbacks. Over all, a solid runners guide!

Lucy Croft

JimsHealthAndMuscle.com

MARATHON

TRAINING

&

DISTANCE

RUNNING

TIPS

The Runners Guide For

Endurance Training & Racing,

Beginner Running Programs & Advice.

EBOOK EDITION / 2nd EDITION

PUBLISHED BY:
JBA Publishing
http://www.JimsHealthAndMuscle.com
jim@JimsHealthAndMuscle.com

Marathon Training And Distance Running Tips
Copyright 2014 by James Atkinson
All Rights Reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of James Atkinson, except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles.

Requests for permission to make copies of any part of this book should be submitted to James Atkinson at jim@swapfat4fit.com

ISBN-13: 978-0-9932791-4-0

DISCLAIMER
Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure that the information contained in this book was accurate at the time of release, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions in this book, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause.

First published in 2014 / First printed in 2015

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

First off, thanks for making the purchase! If you are in any way interested in marathon, long-distance, or endurance running, you are in the right place.

If you are a beginner and are looking for a starting point, this will benefit you greatly. But its not just for beginners; the intermediate and advanced runner will also find some great information and inspiration in this book, Im sure.

For many people, running a marathon is the pinnacle of their fitness career. It is the benchmark in long-distance running prowess. This is why I have focused on marathon running rather than your everyday track and field running.

If you shoot for the moon and miss,

youll still end up amongst the stars

I would like you to keep this great phrase in your mind as you read through this book. If you feel that all of the references to marathon running do not apply to you, you should revisit this quote.

Although a lot of people set out to achieve this goal, many never actually achieve it. This can be down to a number of things, but, most commonly, it is lack of correct advice. Lack of consistency, feelings of self-doubt, and incorrect mind-set also play a part in the failed attempts of many.

This book will outline the factors that will lead to your success as a long-distance/marathon runner. I believe that my personal experience, lessons I have learned and mistakes that I have made with this type of training, will help budding long-distance runners reach their goals in the most direct way possible.

Heres to your success!

CHAPTER 2

WHY SHOULD YOU TAKE MY ADVICE?

Hi, Im Jim from JimsHealthAndMuscle.com. I am a qualified fitness coach and personal trainer. I have been into fitness for much of my life and have been at both ends of the fitness scale, from long-distance running and endurance to competition bodybuilding. I served a number of years in the British Army where I was part of an elite airborne unit9 Parachute Squadron Royal Engineers.

As you can see, I have changed the conditioning of my body more than most.

But this book is all about endurance and long-distance runningmarathons and beyond!

I know there are plenty of books out there about this type of training, but I would like to share my firsthand experience of developing from a guy who couldnt run 1.5 miles in 15 minutes to a guy who could be handed a pair of running shoes and be standing confidently at the start line of a marathon in the time it took to tie those shoes up. That was all the preparation time that I needed.

Oh, and I got to a point when I could cover the same 1.5 mile distance in 8 minutes and 22 seconds!

Lets start at the beginning.

It was summer 1999, and I had just finished my secondary school education. Not being an academic and not knowing what I wanted to do with my life, I decided to enrol for a Business Studies class at college. It wasnt long before I realised that sitting in an office was not something that I really wanted to do. (Looking back, this was a fairly good opportunity, but you live, you learn, I suppose.)

Anyway, about six months into this college education, I decided that I wanted a bit of excitement from my life and the thought of being an average Joe with a regular nine-to-five job made me pretty depressed. It was at this point that I ventured into the local army careers office.

So, do you have any idea what you want to do as a job in the army? asked the sergeant at the front desk.

I had heard a lot about airborne forces and the parachute regiment and wanted a piece of that.

Yeah. I want to look at joining the paras, I said, not realising at that time that you dont simply join the paras!

Okay, lets have a chat, he replied (probably thinking, Jeez! Heres another one with absolutely no clue!)

The sergeant had a good chat with me and concluded that I should look at getting a trade in the Royal Engineers; I could then volunteer for para training at a later date. This way I would have a trade, be on higher pay, and also get to jump out of planes and serve with airborne forces.

To go down this path, however, I would need to pass the army aptitude test at a higher level than I had done.

I took this aptitude test four times with a six-week gap between tests before the sergeant just gave me a pass. (I actually think I failed the fourth time as well, but he just fixed my score. It was good to see someone give me a chance.)

So that was me going to the next stage of the army selection process. And this was the fitness testing stage!

These fitness tests were over a long weekend where all potential recruits are taken to an army training centre and tested on attitude, strength, and endurance and checked if we were medically fit.

As I was into weight training at the time, I did well with the strength tests, but, on the last day, there is a mile-and-a-half run that must be completed in something like fifteen minutes. This is very achievable and you could probably do this at a fast-paced walk.

This 1.5 mile circuit is led by a PTI (physical training instructor) who is the pace maker. If you stick with this guy, you will passsimple!