Q. Tell us a little bit about who you are and what you do for a living?
My name is Marcus aka Marathon Marcus, I am a 10x marathon runner. I believe that mental health is just as important as physical health. I want to share my journey and encourage other people to maintain a healthy balance between these two factors. I was born and I still reside in London, England. I work in construction for an international consultancy firm.
Q. How do you balance your exercise regime and your professional life?
It is hard to balance both. To not exercise would give me alot of free time as training takes up 6 days of my week. I either have to run before or after work but despite this my goals keep me motivated. My long term goal is to complete the six world majors. My short term goal is to run four marathons in one year, as 1 in 4 people in the UK will experience a mental health problem each year.
I was never into long distance running at school or university. I got into running through a bet from a friend to do a 10k, I loved it and shortly afterwards I completed my first marathon in 2008. I've gone on to run 10 marathons including, the London, Berlin, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Edinburgh marathons plus others.
Q. What motivates you to go out there, when you do not feel like it?
Firstly my two goals mentioned before. Secondly in London 2010 I had a poor marathon as I didn't train enough and with the respect, the course deserves. When your struggling mile 8 into a marathon, you know it's going to be a bad day. This motivation is a good lesson in how not to prepare for a marathon and it's taught me to train hard and race the marathon easy.
I've not run beyond the marathon distance. At the moment this is my preferred race distance.
Q. What gives you the confidence to run in the streets?
I wouldn't advise running on the streets, but I tend to stick to pavements and parks due to a health and safety point of view. Generally unless your running on a 400m track you really need to be aware of your surroundings.
Q. What do you think about the lack of exercise among the youth?
I would actively encourage everyone to be active, and to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Being fit physically is important but so is maintaining fitness for your mind.
Q. What was your best running experience?
Achieving a sub four marathon after several failed attempts. Some times I wasn't that close to sub 4 hours, and some times I was only minutes away. But once I achieved this goal it was quite emotional. It was a great lesson to believe in yourself even when there was no evidence to prove otherwise, in the face of negativity from the naysayers. Then with that belief I went on to achieve my PB in Manchester of 3:35.
I've found that other people and ourselves can put so many limitations on what we are and what we could be, that it constricts you as a person. But self belief requires daily nurture, like other things. You can’t train a muscle once and expect it to stay strong for life. I use marathon training in the same fashion. I use it as a challenge to remind myself to not place unnecessary limitations on who I am, and it helps me with the challenges I face in my life.
Q. What was your worst running experience?
My 2010 London marathon of 4:55, for the reasons noted previously. But it was satisfying to go on and achieve my PB of 3:35 following this disappointment.
Q. How do you push through the pain?
As my running times improve, it only is achieved by pushing myself outside of my comfort zone, that's how my running progression has developed. No matter how fast you are, hard workouts always hurt. Pain is always apart of running, if you try disassociate from it you won't push yourself and you won't improve as I learnt in my first several marathons.
Q. What advice can you give somebody who wants to start running?
-Go to a running shop, analyse your running style and get the right trainers for you. The wrong trainers can increase achilles, calf strains and other imbalance injuries. Also consider getting custom insoles.
-Join a running club or find someone to run with or start a Parkrun in your area. Not only will it keep you motivated but you will enjoy the social side to running.
-Start slowly, but don't increase your mileage by more than 10% per week.
-Running will be uncomfortable so you need to have a strong 'why' to refer to when it gets difficult.
-Have a goal to work towards, whether it is to run 5k or complete a half marathon. Get it in the diary, then plan and work towards it.
Q. Which Social media sites are you on and how can one follow you?
My main sites are Instagram and my blog:
Blog: https://themarathonmarcus.wordpress.com
Instagram: @themarathonmarcus - https://instagram.com/themarathonmarcus/
My other social media outlets are:
Email: themarathonmarcus@gmail.com
Twitter: @marathon_marcus - https://twitter.com/@marathon_marcus/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarathonMarcus/
I love running because … Marathon training has also taught me that you can't live without failing but the fear of failing can stop you living.
Injury is … part of being active. Don't rush recovery and deny it, rest up and come back stronger.
My body is … complex, it needs to be looked after to try and maintain longevity. Both the physical and the mental side of the body need to be looked after equally.
My running playlist has … One of my favourites is Lets Go by Calvin Harris
I hate running when … Some training days or races are tough, but I never hate it. You need to have optimism no mater what the result is.
Pain is … temporary. Train hard so you can race easy.
The road … is never predictable or has a final point.
Sweat is … shows your training hard.
In future, I would like to run … My two goals of the six marathon majors and running 4 marathons in one year keep me motivated and I'm not looking beyond them at the moment. I have run London twice and Berlin once. I've got New York 2016 and Toyko 2017 booked in my race diary. The last two majors I need to book are Boston and Chicago, which I hope to complete by 2018.
Indie means … Self-expression.
I do not like runners who … Devalue the race achievements of other runners, who tell you how much faster their race time is in comparison to yours.
#RunRevolution
- Thursday, July 21, 2016
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