Marathon Day Tips: Drink What You Know

Good luck to those running in my local marathon, the Marine Corps Marathon!! Looks like the weather will be ideal, temps basically in the 50s and sunny.

Continuing with my series on marathon day tips, I think it's worth reminding all marathoners, especially beginner marathoners, that marathon day is not the time to try whatever beverage they are offering on the course if you aren't used to it.

Chances are, if you usually drink Gatorade or Powerade or some other energy drink on your long training runs, some other brand won't have a bad effect on you, but you never know, and I have heard stories of runners having stomach cramps because they weren't used to the sports drink that was offered during the marathon.

After the race, I think it's good to drink some of whatever sports drink is available so you can replace some lost minerals, especially sodium. At that point, the race is done, and you probably can't go wrong with any fluid. But during the marathon, I personally stick to water and the power gels that I bring with me, which are what I have during long training runs. On marathon day, familiar is good!

Happy Running!