Road warrior
With just 17 weeks to train, can tech help our writer not only compete in but complete the London Marathon?
Have you ever had a terrible idea that you just had to do anyway? One day, after returning from one of my lunchtime runs, T3’ s editor Matt asked if I’d thought about running a marathon. “No,” I laughed. “I’m not a masochist!” But the seed was sown.
Okay, I like running. But a marathon? 26.2 miles? I probably… could, though, couldn’t I? The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to try. Oh. Dear.
Before I knew it I had a gruelling 17-week training plan ahead of me, which included four runs a week. If I was going to stand any chance of not only competing in but completing the London Marathon 2018, I would need some well-chosen tech to keep me motivated and, perhaps most importantly, to help me recover after 50 runs on unyielding pavements.
Given the reality of having to train mostly on my own, which included long, sometimes snowy (yeah, thanks, April 2018) and often wet Sunday runs, I turned to music to keep me feeling upbeat. Fortunately, Garmin had just released the Forerunner 645 Music running watch. The face is smaller than the rest of Garmin’s sport range, which suited me perfectly. The Forerunner 645 Music was easy to set up and connect to Strava using the Garmin Connect app. Not only did it play music from the wrist, the watch also monitored my heart rate and oxygen levels, and compared my runs to others via the app. I plugged the watch into my computer and added my running playlist from iTunes.
Finally, I was ready to go. Well, almost: I needed something to listen on. Despite working on T3 I’ve only ever used headphones that come with my phone (I know, I know). The team insisted that I go for a pair of true wireless in-ears for extra freedom, so I settled on the Jabra Sport Pulse.
The earphones took a bit of getting used to at first, especially the fear that they would fall out mid-run, but once I attached the correct in-ear fitting and took them out a few times, there was no going back.
Going the distance
For a start, I was impressed by the Jabra’s battery life. Some of my runs hit the three-hour mark but I didn’t have to recharge the earphones afterwards. They also connected to the Garmin watch easily enough, and the Jabra’s sound quality was great. Honestly, I had far more problems choosing what to add to the hardcore long-distance playlist I was building.
I also began using the Stryd tracker during my runs to gain extra insight into my performance. Unlike the Garmin, the Stryd records metrics such as cadence and power. It was interesting to view the data, but I realised that it wasn’t what I needed. Yes, it could shave a few minutes off my time by improving my technique, but I wasn’t worried about speed;
I just wanted to reach the finish line.
When preparing for a marathon, recovery is just as important as the training. The risk of injury is very high, so I wanted to make sure I protected myself properly. Quite often I’ve seen professional runners wear long socks during training but never knew why. It couldn’t be for the style, that’s for sure! In actual fact, what I’d seen the likes of Paula Radcliffe wearing is compression gear designed to help stimulate bloodflow, oxygenate muscles and improve flexibility, reducing the chance of a strain.
Well, if they’re good enough for Paula, they’re good enough for me, so I called in some compression clothing from the aptly named Compressport. First was the Run Compression Shorts, which were tight and warm and just perfect for training in the -8°C chill the first day I wore them.
The Compressport Full Socks V2.1 were a great fit too, and wearing them underneath running tights kept my legs toasty and feeling supported. That run was also a 20-mile endurance test, and it felt like the socks were helping a lot… Especially the next day.
We can rebuild you
My secret weapon for recovery was the Normatec Pulse system, which turned out to be the single most
I looked like I had climbed into the michelin Man’s spacesuit
I wore the jabras during the race, but the crowd was so loud they drowned them out
important piece of kit for my marathon training, though nobody could take me seriously while I was using it. Why? Because I looked like I’d climbed into the Michelin Man’s spacesuit. Seriously.
totally tubular
To use it, you put your legs into the two tubes. The outside of each is then inflated one at a time, compressing against your muscles and working like a massage. The system was easy to put together and offers different levels of intensity. I used it after longer training runs, so anything from 13 to 22 miles. The Normatec Pulse made a world of difference after training, with my legs feeling just a bit tight instead of the usual John Wayne-style walking I’d normally have to adopt. Recovering faster meant I could literally fit in more runs overall, helping me to stay on course with my training schedule.
Although not techy, one of the handiest accessories I used was the Flipbelt. It’s like a slimline bumbag for runners. In it I could stash cash and also energy gels for an extra boost. After months of training the big day finally arrived, and with it a heat wave. It was the hottest London Marathon on record and my Garmin tracked the minimum temperature as 26°C, hitting a 33°C peak. I ditched the too-hot compression shorts but kept the socks because the support was so useful.
We were told to take it slow and to keep dousing ourselves with water. Everyone had been training in snow, so we were all in the same sweaty boat. The Garmin was great for helping me keep a consistent pace each mile, but, if I’m honest, I was better off not knowing that my heart rate was averaging 175bpm! I had the Jabras in and out during the race – the crowd was so loud, they drowned the earphones out half the time. There’s also a long stretch in a tunnel with no crowd and the heroic facade soon falls away. People use the relative privacy to have a pee, and I even spotted someone having a smoke. It gets pretty bleak in there so music was vital for inspiring me to push on.
After all that training and with much sweat and sheer grit, I completed the London Marathon in four hours, 32 minutes. I was over the moon with the time given the intense conditions, but would have settled just to make it over the finish line at all. And I think I have tech to thank for helping me do it.
next month
Can tech help you become a better surfer? hangs ten to find out.