Every good marathon-training plan should ‘taper’ during the final two or three weeks. That means you run less and rest more. For some people, the idea of backing off on their training just before the big race seems counter-intuitive. "So many

« Three weeks to goThe hard work is now behind you. You’ve finished the final long run and you should be easing back on the intensity of the mid-week runs. Rest truly replaces training as the most important element of your preparations, and race

the start. Make sure you've eaten these foods before a few training runs with no adverse effects.Drink 250-450ml of energy drink 60 to 90 minutes before the race.Arrive at the start about an hour early, so you won't have to rush.Joke around with friends

in calories and still hit the wall, it means you ran a pace your body wasn't prepared to handle," says Rainsberger. Race-pace training runs and 'test' races are tools you can use to decide on the ideal pace. Still, many runners miscalculate, and Rainsberger