screwed on to make sure you've got the best chance of race-day success.The Night BeforeOne of the keys to racing success is having clearly defined goals to aim for. Before you even pin your number onto your top, figure out what you want to get out

, mimic the demands of a race because they cause lactic-acid buildup and muscle fatigue. Your workout On a track, run 8-12x400m at 10K-race pace, with one lap recovery. For your first workout run the second to last 400m at top speed. Build up to three

In the middle of a race, particularly a long one (such as a marathon), runners often get bogged down. A quick surge when you're battling this kind of fatigue makes sense for two reasons. First, when you make the conscious decision to change your pace, you'll get

," as he calls them, mimic the demands of a race because they cause lactic-acid buildup and muscle fatigue. Your workout On a track, run 8-12x400m at 10K-race pace, with one lap recovery. For your first workout run the second to last 400m at top speed

occur when muscles are used repetitively, which is certainly the case during a marathon. Possible causes include electrolyte imbalances (not enough sodium and/or potassium), fatigue and running in hot temperatures.If your quads cramp up during a marathon

your fatigue. Your times in long races may improve, and you’ll feel good even after running a hard half-marathon or marathon.Try doing your long runs using the nine-to-one plan: run for nine minutes, then walk for one. Record your times and distances

and cooling down. Add an interval every other week until you're up to speed.Pace CalculatorYou need to know your 5K and 10K race paces to do many of the workouts on the following pages. To gauge them, run one mile fast at an even pace. Note the time. To get

You've run countless miles, spent hours in the pool and pedalled until your bike feels like it's a part of your body, but unless you put yourself through some training sessions designed to help you hit your peak in time for race day, your efforts

the national long-distance triathlon championships, and decided to take three months unpaid leave from work so that I could train full-time. I ended up finishing tenth. I had a terrible race, and was exhausted from beginning to end. I had overdone my training

, dehydration, heat exhaustion, constant fatigue, hypothermia.Which of the two scenarios you are likely to face depends largely on your preparation and training programme, and the theory behind every successful marathon is largely the same. The following 10