{"id":17824,"date":"2026-04-20T12:05:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T12:05:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/17824\/"},"modified":"2026-04-20T12:05:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T12:05:13","slug":"london-marathon-what-you-need-to-know-before-signing-up-to-run","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/17824\/","title":{"rendered":"London Marathon: what you need to know before signing up to run"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"STYLE\"<\/p>\n

I cast my mind back to when I had consumed more pasta in a week than in the rest of my life combined as I sat with two ice packs tied to my feet<\/a> and a great big piece of metal hanging around my neck. That\u2019s right: I\u2019d completed the London Marathon<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The big race is upon us again on Sunday as over 50,000 people get set to run, sprint, jog, shuffle, or all of the above through the capital.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

London Marathon is running right at us once again<\/p>\n

PA<\/p>\n

Having been a pretty consistent runner, and after living vicariously through my flatmate when she ran the Paris marathon<\/a>, I decided on a whim to sign up for the ultimate challenge myself.<\/p>\n

Getting a ballot place for the London Marathon<\/a> is notoriously tricky; 1.1million people applied to enter<\/a> this year. So I wasn\u2019t really expecting to actually have to run the thing. But to my surprise \u2013 and slight dread \u2013 I received the confirmation email the previous summer that I\u2019d been one of the lucky few selected to put myself through the 26.2 gruelling miles in nine months\u2019 time.<\/p>\n

I had run a few half marathons before, and listened to numerous friends rattle on about their training, so I thought I had an idea of what I was getting myself into. Alas, I did not. <\/p>\n

Here are ten things I wish I\u2019d known before signing my name on the dotted line to run the London Marathon<\/a>. <\/p>\n

1. The training is unfathomably time-consuming<\/p>\n

Depending on your training plan, the four months leading up to the big day will likely see you running<\/a> between three and five times a week. But whatever plan you opt for, it will be a lot of time spent hitting the tarmac.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Emma Loffhagen crossing Tower Bridge at the halfway point of the 2024 London Marathon<\/p>\n

Sportograf\/Emma Loffhagen<\/p>\n

And it\u2019s not just the run you need to make time for \u2014 it\u2019s factoring in when you’re going to eat before and after, meal prepping<\/a>, leaving enough time to warm up, cool down and stretch (more on this later). It requires a lot of of organisation: alarms set a good couple of hours earlier, and saying no to some weeknight plans. Especially if you have a full-time job, your schedule will fundamentally change and you\u2019ll spend a lot of time repeating the phrase, \u201csorry, I can\u2019t, I have to go for a run.\u201d<\/p>\n

And when you start to build towards those Sunday long runs, be prepared to give up the majority of your weekend. Drinking on a Saturday night<\/a>? Not if you\u2019re running<\/a> 20 miles the next day.<\/p>\n

As someone who has been a pretty consistent runner for five years, I was always sceptical of the idea that running has to be an expensive habit. The shorts I bought in Decathlon when I was 18 had been serving me fine, and why would I need a fancy watch when I\u2019ve got Strava? Turns out, once you start hitting a certain mileage, these things do, unfortunately, start to matter.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Nike GO running leggings<\/p>\n

Nike<\/p>\n

The vast majority of your training for the London Marathon will be in the depths of winter, but by the time race day comes around it will be considerably warmer, so buying both good quality running leggings and shorts is essential. I opted for the Nike GO leggings <\/a>and the Lululemon Hotty Hot shorts<\/a> \u2013 I found they were the only ones that didn\u2019t cause unbearable chaffing on my long runs. You\u2019re also going to need a running vest or belt \u2013 these range in price from around \u00a320 to upwards of a \u00a3100 if you go for a bougie brand like Salomon.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

There are few things I would say are an absolute non-negotiable for a marathon, but a running watch is one of them<\/a>. The majority of runners go for Garmins, which can range anywhere between \u00a3130 to \u00a3500.\u00a0I went for a Forerunner 265<\/a> which has some additional features, but they all do the basics. If you\u2019re more interested in the health and wellness side of a fitness<\/a> watch, Whoop<\/a> also provides a good alternative.\u00a0<\/p>\n

3. You\u2019ll probably get injured at some point<\/p>\n

Getting injured while working towards an event is incredibly anxiety-inducing and disheartening. But if it does happen to you, remember that you\u2019re far from alone \u2013 30 per cent of marathoners report race-related injuries. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Around 30 percent of marathon runners get injured during training<\/p>\n

Alamy\/PA<\/p>\n

I somehow managed to pick up every injury under the sun while I was training, including a sudden bout of severe runner\u2019s knee four weeks out from race day. No one wants to hear the dreaded word \u201crest\u201d, but it\u2019s incredibly important.\u00a0It was supposed to be my biggest mileage week, and I was terrified that if I took time out, it would reverse all of the training I had built up. Not true \u2013 it takes weeks of inactivity for any noticeable loss of fitness<\/a>. And don\u2019t get complacent with stretching \u2013 I’d always been a bit of a lazy stretcher<\/a>, preferring to get in the shower and get on with my day, but it will come back to bite you.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s amazing how well we can get to know our own bodies, but sometimes it\u2019s worth speaking to a professional, even if it\u2019s just for some peace of mind. After my knee injury, I was working with the brilliant physiotherapist Dylan Walsh at Opus Biological <\/a>in Marylebone, who was incredibly patient when listening to my anxieties, and gave me all the confidence I needed to get back on the road. I was also under the care of podiatrist Simone at the Footlift Clinic in Soho<\/a> for three courses of cold laser treatment to zap away my tendonitis.\u00a0<\/p>\n

4. You\u2019ll become incredibly boring company<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat have you been up to recently?\u201d \u201cOh running, mostly.\u201d It\u2019s embarrassing how many times you\u2019ll have some iteration of this conversation during marathon training<\/a>. Suddenly, the minutiae of running will be all you\u2019re able to think, and thus, talk about \u2014 your splits, your cadence, your various injuries \u2014 all will be thrust upon your friends and family for months. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Investing in good running kit is essential<\/p>\n

Emma Loffhagen<\/p>\n

Spare a thought for your loved ones: you might have signed up for the gruelling training, but they didn\u2019t sign up to hear about it. <\/p>\n

As anyone who has done any kind of endurance training will tell you, nutrition is everything. Once you get to the point of your training programme where you\u2019re regularly running upwards of 20km, you\u2019ll likely be burning more calories in one run than you\u2019d usually eat in a day, so it\u2019s vital to replace that lost energy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The idea of eating copious amounts can seem daunting for some, especially for women. But if you\u2019re losing drastic amounts of weight during your training, chances are you\u2019re not eating enough. Marathon training should not be undertaken for aesthetic goals, your body won\u2019t thank you. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Emma Loffhagen passing Big Ben at the 2024 London Marathon<\/p>\n

Sportograf\/Emma Loffhagen<\/p>\n

Protein is crucial in the 30-minute window post-long run<\/a>, and then for the rest of the day think carbs, carbs, carbs. In the week leading up to race day, you\u2019ll want to increase the carb proportion of your food intake to around 70 per cent. I personally opted for a Herculean amount of pasta.<\/p>\n

6. You probably won\u2019t be able to stick to your training plan<\/p>\n

Life happens. Whether it\u2019s an injury, sickness, a holiday, or just a busy work schedule, chances are you won\u2019t be able to keep strictly to your training plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I used mine as a rough guide, focusing on the long runs and fitting in whatever I could around that. As long as you\u2019re running semi-regularly and hitting those big miles towards the end, you\u2019re probably on the right track.\u00a0<\/p>\n

7. Don\u2019t try anything new on race day<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll have heard it a million times before, but that doesn\u2019t stop some people \u2013 ahem, me \u2013 doing it. To be fair, they weren\u2019t brand new trainers. I\u2019d worn them for four runs the week before race day, which I thought was enough, but it turns out I was wrong. See: my grape coloured toes and inability to walk after the event.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Make sure to test out your running gels before race day<\/p>\n

SIS<\/p>\n

The \u201cnothing new\u201d rule also goes for food, clothes, drinks, gels and running technique. Gels in particular can mess with your stomach if you\u2019re not used to them \u2014 I practised with Sports in Science gels <\/a>on three of my long runs before race day, which meant I didn\u2019t have to pull a Paula Radcliffe; it happens more often than you\u2019d think.<\/p>\n

8. Remember why you signed up\u00a0<\/p>\n

There will be moments, when it\u2019s chucking it down with rain on some dark, miserable February evening and you want to join your friends at the pub but you have to run 25km instead, that you\u2019ll wonder why you ever decided to put yourself through this. Which is when you need to remind yourself of your \u201cwhy\u201d.<\/p>\n

Whether it\u2019s to raise money for a charity close to your heart, to reach a fitness goal, or just to prove to yourself that you can, we all have our own reasons for making the slightly mad decision to put ourselves through this ordeal.<\/p>\n

9. The last six miles will be the hardest thing you ever do<\/p>\n

To paraphrase the words of running coach Julia Lucas: on race day, run the first 10 miles with your head, the next 10 miles with your training, and the last 10km with your heart.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I used the tactic of dedicating each of the final six miles to one of my loved ones<\/p>\n

The furthest you\u2019ll likely have run in your training plan is around 20 miles, or 32km, so the last 10km (six miles) will be unknown territory. It\u2019s this final stretch that is famously the hardest, where runners tend to hit the dreaded wall. Or, like me, start losing the will to live. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Let yourself have a cry at the end, you deserve it<\/p>\n

Emma Loffhagen<\/p>\n

I was flying along until about 38km, at which point my whole body began screaming at me to stop. I used the tactic of dedicating each of the final six miles to one of my loved ones, and made sure I had a good support crew camped out for the final stretch. And if that doesn\u2019t help, keep in mind a sign that I saw on mile 25 which read: \u201csmile, you paid for this!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

10. The crowd will get you through it<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll likely have read about the atmosphere at the London Marathon, but nothing will prepare you for it. I had curated a playlist to listen to, but ended up just soaking up the sounds of the crowds who are out in full force for every inch of the course.\u00a0 (Top tip: if you want a mixture of both music and the crowds, try bone conduction headphones like these from Shokz<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

From a guy playing a trumpet out of his window in Greenwich, a middle-aged lady dancing on her porch with a boombox, to every single stranger who shouted my name, it was a feeling like no other. And let yourself have a little cry at the end \u2013 you deserve it. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"I cast my mind back to when I had consumed more pasta in a week than in the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":17825,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[148,27,1317,6804,8235,4477],"class_list":{"0":"post-17824","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-london","8":"tag-fitness","9":"tag-london","10":"tag-london-marathon","11":"tag-marathon","12":"tag-marathon-training","13":"tag-running"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@UnitedKingdom\/116436947760890777","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17824","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17824"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17824\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17825"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17824"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17824"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17824"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}