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Marathon ControlTrain 26.2. Execute 26.2.

Marathon field manual

Marathon Fueling Plan

Choose the products, timing, amount, and water pairing in training—then race the plan you proved.

Plain answerMarathon fueling should be scheduled and rehearsed. Choose a carbohydrate range appropriate to your duration and tolerance, then practice the exact product, amount, interval, water pairing, and carrying method during long runs. Do not wait for hunger or race-day fatigue to begin.

Begin with duration and tolerance

Sports-nutrition guidance commonly uses 30–60 grams of carbohydrate per hour for prolonged exercise, with some events longer than 2.5 hours potentially benefiting from intakes up to 90 grams per hour using multiple carbohydrate sources. Those are ranges, not a command to jump to the maximum.

Source checkCarbohydrates for training and competition
This peer-reviewed sports-nutrition review describes 30–60 g/h for longer events and potential benefit up to 90 g/h beyond 2.5 hours, when trained and using multiple transportable carbohydrates.

Train the gut and the mechanics

  1. Choose a conservative starting amount.
  2. Practice on long runs at race-relevant effort.
  3. Record product, grams, timing, water, conditions, and stomach response.
  4. Increase gradually only when needed and tolerated.
  5. Confirm what the race supplies and where.

Count the whole source

Drink mix, gels, chews, bars, and ordinary food can all contribute carbohydrate. Add them rather than planning each category separately. Check caffeine and sodium too; repeated products can accumulate more than expected.

Make the course executable

Know whether fuel goes in pockets, a belt, a permitted container, or course stations. Pair concentrated products with the water amount used in training. Medical conditions, diabetes, gastrointestinal disease, medication, or pregnancy warrant qualified individual guidance.

Keep the ordinary weeks moving

Run More! You can do it!

RunTeaming is a running game for iPhone and Android. Your best qualifying run of the week becomes your score on a five-runner team. The app supplies the team and matches it against another team near its level, so you do not recruit anyone or share a time or location.

Use the button to choose iPhone or Android and see the current installation options.

Try RunTeaming

Run anywhere · No team to recruit · No shared schedule · Choose the installation page for your phone