Marathon running has been shown to improve markers of cardiovascular health. For example, research has shown that it can decrease blood pressure and resting heart rate.
Exercise is an essential tool in keeping the body healthy. Marathon is one of the exercises that runners are obsessed at because apparently, they are good and healthy. Marathons may involve long runs of several kilometers.
With long, lean bodies and serious cardiovascular endurance, marathon runners are seen as the pinnacle of health. But is running marathons really good for you? Health benefits of moderate running include weight control, stress reduction, better blood pressure and lower cholesterol.
Health benefits of training for a marathon The benefits of training for a long distance running event such as a half marathon or marathon are many. By far the most notable benefits are improvements in cardiovascular fitness and muscular endurance.
“I wouldn’t recommend that people who are starting out running start with the goal of a marathon, but start with the goal of completing 5Ks & 10Ks over a two- to four-year period,” said Roberts. But with the proper training, Roberts said, a marathon can be a perfectly healthy experience.
If you still are doubtful about the health risks from marathon running, consider how frequently one or more people die running them during competition. Even the very young are not immune. In 2019, a fit, healthy 22-year-old woman who played soccer for a nearby university died near the finish line of the Cleveland marathon.
Running a marathon is a good form of full body workout- it helps you burn a lot of calories, helps you socialise at events and improves mental well being. some people run marathons to challenge themselves or to gain victory.
While these deaths are rare, Dr Oxborough says they underscore why it is important for people to get a health check-up from a doctor before doing a marathon.
Health benefits from running peak at 3-4 shorter jogs a week (about 20 miles total). By doing more you aren’t improving your overall health by much. Marathon running requires much more mileage and concentrated effort, and doesn’t add much more to health per se (but improves your fitness a lot).
How long should I train for a marathon?
Train three to five times per week and build your weekly mileage over time, with runs of varying intensity in terms of distance and speed.
In a hard race on a hot and humid day, marathon runners can lose up to four litres (seven pints) of fluid through sweating and exhalation. This puts them at risk of dehydration and hyperthermia, where the body’s temperature is greatly above normal.
Sophie Everett has not run since her first and last marathon because of the ongoing pain in her feet, but Barry Trott has since gone on to complete several marathons.
Stomach cramps and diarrhoea can also strike during marathons because of how long-distance running can disrupt digestion. This can happen to people who have carbohydrate drinks or gels for the first time during a marathon, Dr Stephen Mears, a lecturer in sports and exercise nutrition at Loughborough University says.
While marathons are a big challenge for our bodies, ultimately any of the health risks are more than outweighed by the benefits, experts say. “There’s no doubt if you undergo all of that hard work to gradually condition your body you’re going to benefit, without a shadow of a doubt,” Dr Lake says.
Dr David Oxborough, who has studied how marathons affect the heart, says when deaths during marathons do happen they tend to occur in people who had undiagnosed heart problems, either in older people or in those with inherited conditions.
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