Marathons are a magnet for all runners. It's the one race that the general public take notice of.

When people find out you are a runner, the first question they ask is; "Have you run a marathon?". If you haven't, you feel inadequate. You could be Seb Coe, Steve Cram or Eusain Bolt, but if you haven't completed a marathon you can't be a 'proper runner'. :-)

At first you may just ignore this, after all, what do the general public know about running? But in the end you are drawn to the marathon, just so that next time you are asked the question, you can say yes!

This section will give advice on training for marathons. It's relevant for sub 5 hour runners, right down to the elite sub 2.45 hour runners. I hope you find it useful.

John McNally