Lessons from the Kenyan marathon runner who can help you during the Amsterdam Marathon!

The marathon has been dominated by Kenyan runners for years. You would think that is a long way from my bed show, but as a recreational runner you can also learn a lot from these top runners. Jorin Kamps of Running Solutions works with the Kenyan athletes and has listed a number of lessons from the Kenyans for you.

Quality training

The amount of kilometers the elite runners run per week is between 150 and 200km. This is, of course, a lot. But it is necessary to perform at that level. As a recreational runner you will not have to cover that many miles. But what is interesting is that the focus is on quality training. The fact is that they make a lot of extra kilometers that go very quietly, this is extra. The focus is on two or three training sessions per week where there is really hard training, for example an interval training or a longrun at fast pace.

As a recreational runner you must also ensure that the quality of training is high. Make sure you run a lot at marathon pace but also keep an eye on your recovery.

Rest

Kenyan athletes are good sleepers as well as fast runners. The life of many athletes consists of training, eating and sleeping. They are working on this day in day out. If you train as hard as the athletes, rest is the most important factor for recovery. This is no different for the runners here in the Netherlands. Certainly not if we consider that the running training sessions are often done alongside a full-time job.

Of course you can’t take a nap at noon but what works really well is sleeping 8 hours a night. The chance of injuries will decrease and you will perform better in your running training sessions and at work. Seems to be a good choice as a marathon runner!

Listen to your body

When an athlete in Kenya comes to see me for treatment of his / her injuries, I notice that they are much more in contact with their body. They feel where they have an injury and often know how to distinguish whether or not they can train. In the Netherlands, many runners go on for just too long despite being bothered by something, which often causes long-term injuries and missing a marathon, for example.

Nutrition

The athletes in Kenya eat varied and fresh food, but will not follow a special athlete diet like in the western world. The only supplements that are used regularly are sports nutrition for during the competition and training. Specifically sports drink Maurten, which contains a lot of carbohydrates.

If you have questions please contact us.