Well Done Kelda Gibson on 7 minute Personal best in the SSE Airtricity Dublin Marathon.

Well done to Benny Mullan at the SSE Airtricity Dublin Marathon. Great effort.

Dublin Marathon final week preparation Best of luck to everyone from the Northwest who is racing the Dublin Marathon on Sunday 29th October, especially all the athletes who included Northwest Lactate Threshold Testing as part of their preparation. I have reviewed a lot of the research on how to improve performance in the week leading into the marathon and for the race day itself and here are some of my recommendations: 1. Taper: add an extra rest day early in the week, reduce your time spent running by 50% or more from your peak and add a shorter, faster session (but not too tough) four days prior to the race. 2. Beetroot juice: The nitrates in the juice have been proven to improve oxygen transport into the muscles so start taking it one week prior to the race but be aware that if you are well trained (running 5-6 times per week specifically for the marathon) you will need to take higher amounts to have a positive effect so one shot of juice will not be enough. Take your final drink of beetroot juice 90 minutes prior to the race also. I would not recommend taking a 1 litre carton this close to the race in case it causes stomach upset. Taking it for 7 days prior to the event has the added benefit of increasing betalains in the muscle which reduces muscle damage and improves recovery after the race. Avoid caffeine before or after you take the juice as it inhibits the effect. 3. Kit: Wear racing shoes and clothes you have practiced wearing in a long run or session and you know does not cause discomfort. 4. Carbohydrate loading: This is basically eating as much complex carbohydrate as you can the evening before the marathon. Have your normal pre-race breakfast 3-4 hours before the start. 5. Race Feeding: you will only have enough stored carbohydrate for approximately 90 minutes of hard running so you need to take on carbohydrate drinks or gels every 5k, especially early in the race. You should use a combination of glucose and fructose as this allows you to absorb more carbohydrate per minute compared to glucose or maltodextrin alone – your choice of carbohydrate should be practiced in training in case it causes gastric distress. 6. Pacing: Analysis of the pacing strategies of the worlds’ best marathoners has revealed that running a conservative first 10k is most successful, aiming to run negative splits (a faster second half). 7. Drafting: Researchers analysed Eliud Kipchoge’s sub 2 hour attempt and found that the drafting strategy they employed provided the largest energy efficiency saving so if you can get in behind a big guy at the right pace it will save you spending €200 on the nike shoes he used! Good luck & I hope the weather is kind.

100% agree with this.

Marathon Pace Road test completed for Benny Mullan and Kelda Gibson. Good luck in Dublin, 12 weeks of hard work done.

Timeline Photos

Well Done to Andy Leighton and Kelda Gibson at the Walled city marathon. 16minute personal best for Kelda (3:38) and 3:26 debut for Andy.

Timeline Photos

Well done to Andy and Kelda on their personal bests in the Strabane Lifford half marathon. Ready for the walled city marathon now after their marathon pace tests.

Timeline Photos

New T-Shirts and Running Vests arrived.

Eliud Kipchoge applies science to his pursuit of two-hour marathon milestone

https://bergansportathletics.wordpress.com/2017/04/27/eliud-kipchoge-applies-science-to-his-pursuit-of-two-hour-marathon-milestone/