Travelling away for any event always has it’s difficulties… and fun. After all you’re travelling for a reason, to experience life, so you don’t want to miss what’s on offer, but how do you balance everything? Ideally when travelling for a marathon you want things to be as familiar & routine as possible, but Japan presents plenty of challenges. I’ve taken an approach which gives me the best of both worlds.
I’ve decided to really enjoy my trip & experience ‘most’ of what Japan has to offer. I’ve been trying local food and intend to taste a few Sake as well. it’s a just a waste of nervous energy trying to control everything or becoming anxious about your different surroundings,
so instead i’ve chosen to enjoy them. I’ll have a couple of beers, compare my Sapporo & Kirin, but it’s important not to go overboard. It’s logical advice but sometimes people forget. It’s easy to get carried away with food too. Don’t overeat, no matter how amazing the salmon is, & definitely don’t run yourself down, but otherwise enjoy.
Arriving in Japan my first goal was to rest & recover from the flight. I slipped into the local time well (only 2 hrs difference from Sydney), so I was ready to experience a bit of Japanese culture. As well as making sure my body clock is in sync with Tokyo I’ve been giving myself a chance to rest between sightseeing trips. I like to get out for a morning run or walk & see the city, then have a rest in the middle of the day & get back out & explore again in the afternoon & evening. It gives you the best of everything and stops me sleeping-in waiting for the city to wake up. The morning of the race will be an early start so I don’t want that to be too much of a shock to the system.
This mornings run around the Imperial palace park was great. A friend of a friend introduced me to a local Japanese runner, Isamu. It was great to run & chat with another runner & got me really excited for the race this Sunday. I enjoyed hearing 
about his training (for a 200km ultra) and the Tokyo Marathon. It was a nice connection to make It was also a good opportunity for me to bring back a bit of my routine. My morning run; in the clothes i’ll be racing in (Mizuno shoes, Injinji socks, light beany & gloves), in similar weather to what i’m expecting on Sunday, and around a small section of the actual marathon course, was great. The acclimatisation from Sydney summer running to Tokyo’s snow lined streets wasn’t as bad as i’d imagined. I did wear a long sleeve top which I won’t race in, but I braved the short-shorts, one of the few runners without long pants actually, but it was fine & part of my plan to get used to the temperatures. I used the run as an opportunity to go through my normal warm up & post run stretching to see how much the long flight had tightened the muscles. As i’ve said already routine is important and plugging into your normal running patterns, even in a completely new environment will really help.
While i’m enjoying myself in Japan I’m certainly not going crazy. A beer with dinner and some new food won’t be too disruptive, but i’ll only do that up until about 2-3 days before the race & then i’ll be a bit more sensible. I’ve actually bought over some food I’d usually eat for my 2 day card loading. As I mentioned before in the Road to Tokyo blog I go for a high carb & low fibre diet for 2 days so i’ve got some familiar food so I know how my body will be. I’m lucky & generally don’t suffer from too many problems when trying new food on my travels, but I certainly don’t want to find out the hard way on the morning of the marathon! I’ve bought some powdered Powerade to mix up, as well as snakes, Nutri-Grain & pasta so i’ve got a few familiar things. For the race itself i’ve got all of my sports gels already and that’s a must.
Blog 15/2 – Tapering for Tokyo
Top tips for maximising your holiday & marathon preparation
- Settle into local timezone
- Get enough rest
- Minimise disruptions Try to get good connections on flights &
- Keep your routine (eg sleep patterns, morning run, warm up drills etc)
- Don’t overeat!
- Bring essential food supplies if they’re not going not be available
- Wear sensible shoes (runners or other faithful shoes). It sounds overly controlled but seeing as you’ll be walking all over the city, seeing the sights & constantly going out for meals etc. you are on
your feet a lot. if you wear shoes with a different profile (ie flatter shoes) then you might fatigue your calves & end up with cramps or unusual muscle pains in the race. So choose your most comfortable shoes & look after the body.
If you’ve got any travel & training tips to add to this list please do tell. Everyone is a little bit different but sharing our experience & knowledge helps everyone.
For more information on marathon training or tips on healthy travelling email run@outfithealthcom.au .
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