5 WEEKS TO GO

• Training Programs
• Training Tips – Stretching
• Last Week to get a Team Relay Place
• Be part of Something Bigger – Macmillan Cancer Support
• Lucozade Sport Science Team
• City Link - £5 Return Tickets
• Get Your GPS Tracker Now
• Order your Race Supplement Today
• Still Need to Book your Accommodation?
• Big Fun Run
• 2010 Marathon Merchandise
• Story
• Tell us your Story

TRAINING PROGRAMMES

Edinburgh Marathon training plan – 5 weeks to go
W5	Mon	Tue	Wed		Thu		Fri	Sat	Sun
B E G I N N E R S	Rest	35mins steady run	Rest		10min easy run. 10min steady run, 10min fast run, 10min steady run, 10min easy run = 50mins		Rest	(35min easy run, 3 min walk) repeat 4x. = 2 hours 32mins. Practice your fuelling and hydration strategies.	Rest
I M P R O V E R S	45mins easy run	Rest	20mins easy run		Rest		15mins easy run	Rest	RACE DAY (10 miles, or a half  marathon)
A D V A N C E D	35mins easy	Run 10min easy. Run 30min tempo; jog 5min easy, then 20min tempo. Jog 10min easy = 75mins	Rest or gym or swim ? including plenty of mobility.		70 minutes easy		Rest	Run 40min steady	Run 3hrs 10min easy. Practice your fuelling and hydration strategies. Wear the kit and running shoes you plan to complete the marathon in to check they are comfortable.
Scottish Half Marathon training plan – 5 weeks to go
W5	Mon	Tue		Wed		Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
B E G I N N E R S	Rest	800m, 600m,400m, 200m with 90sec recoveries		Cross train or 40 - 50min med long		40 min relaxed or steady	Rest	Cross train or 30 - 35min relaxed	1h 25min long run
I M P R O V E R S	Rest	1000m, 800m, 600m, 400m, 200m with 90sec recoveries		Cross train or 50 - 60min med long		30 - 40min relaxed or steady	Rest	Cross train or 40min relaxed	1h 30min long run
A D V A N C E D	Rest	1000m, 800m, 600m, 400m, 200m with 90sec recoveries		Cross train or 60min med long		50 - 60 min relaxed or steady	Rest	Cross train or 40min relaxed	1h 45min long run

TRAINING TIPS – (STRETCHING)

 A regular regime of stretching before and after running will help you to feel loose and relaxed whilst running and aid your body's recovery time. Before you run it is important during your warm-up to stretch as stretching increases the blood flow to the muscles. Mobility will give you more range of movement, increase the flexibility of joints and muscles and enable you to develop a fluent and relaxed running style. 

Stretching during your cool-down may be even more important. While you are running your body builds up lactic acid that is stored in the muscles.  Stretching after your run helps to remove lactic acid from the muscle, which in turn reduces muscle soreness. 

But don’t overstretch your muscles. The old adage of too much of a good thing, is absolutely true.  Stretching too far actually can damage the muscles and you could do yourself a nasty injury.  Be particularly vigilant when you are recovering from injury. Some top tips are:

• Always jog a little to warm up before starting these stretches
• Hold each stretch for 15/20 seconds
• Don't go past a point where it starts to feel painful
• Never bounce stretches
• Move slowly into each stretch
• Try to stretch before and after running sessions

For all your specialist running gear go to Run and Become www.runandbecome.com

LAST WEEK TO GET A TEAM RELAY PLACE

Glad to be a part of the great event as the Edinburgh Marathon? Great! How about getting your running friends and running clubs colleagues involved as well in this big day?

There are not many places left for the Hairy Haggis Team Relay. Entries are on a first-come, first-served basis so please don’t miss your chance as they are filling fast.

Click here to enter theHairy Haggis Team Relay.

BE PART OF SOMETHING BIGGER!!

Are you running in the Edinburgh Marathon, Scottish Half Marathon or Hairy Haggis Team Relay?  Then why not make your place count and join Team Macmillan?  You’ll have an unforgettable experience with the highest level of support both leading up to your big run and on race day!  But more importantly, you’ll help us change the lives of people affected by cancer now and far into the future.  

Be part of the action. Register online at www.macmillan.org.uk/edinburghmarathon, email edinburghmarathon@macmillan.org.uk or call 020 7840 7878.

Macmillan Cancer Support, registered charity in England and Wales (261017), Scotland (SC039907) and the Isle of Man (604).

LUCOZADE SPORT SCIENCE TEAM

We’re proud to be different in what we bring to our races, proud that we can come to you with the tips and advice needed to really help you get ahead in your running. At the forefront of this are our team of Sports Scientists; two of whom - Jaymie Mart and Emma Tomlinson - will be with you on race day along with their easily spotted event stations.  Why not arrive a little earlier and have time to chat to them about:

• The best sports nutrition advice before the start
• Great sample products to fuel you before you set off and after your challenge
• Pace bands to help you manage your pace throughout your race

For more information, head to the Lucozade Sport website

CITYLINK - £5 RETURN TICKETS

RETURN TRAVEL FROM ACROSS SCOTLAND IS NOW AVAILABLE TO EDINBURGH FOR THE EDINBURGH MARATHON.

Day Return services from:	Returns into Edinburgh on Saturday and leaving on Sunday evening from:
Glasgow Stirling Harthill Services Grangemouth Dundee Perth Kinross Dunfermline Ferrytoll P&R Cowdenbeath Kirkcaldy Glenrothes	Glasgow Stirling Harthill Services Grangemouth Dundee Perth Kinross Dunfermline Ferrytoll P&R Aberdeen Pitlochry Aviemore Inverness

Citylink is offering a special promotional fare to participants and spectators of the Edinburgh Marathon – a £5 return ticket!

Go to www.citylink.co.uk to plan your journey. Enter the word 'marathon' in the promotional code box to get your special fare.

Offer is valid for travel to/from Edinburgh on 22 and 23 May only.

GET YOUR GPS TRACKING NOW

Your supporterscan now track your progress in the marathon or team relay in REAL TIME wherever in the world they are, as long as they have an internet connection.  Allow family and friends to track you online, on a dedicated website as you run the 2010 Edinburgh Marathon or Team Relay. Runners themselves can also play back their own race at a later date via the dedicated website.   

The Championchip Tracker x5 is the revolutionary sports GPS device that accurately measures positions up to 4 times per second. Tracker x5 uses the GPRS network to transfer positions, heartbeat and speed in real time to the Championchip network.

• Turns on/off automatically at start/finish: no manual action required by competitor  
• Designed especially for extreme sport conditions   
• Light-weight and waterproof  
• LCD Display with competitor name and start number  
• Wireless communication with heart rate monitors

To view a demo of the Tracker X5 in action please visit http://spectator.sport-track.com/1901 or click on the image above.

There are only a limited number of units still available to hire. To avoid disappointment please visit our marathon shop at www.edinburgh-marathon.co.uk/?Shop to reserve your GPS tracker now. Strictly available on a first-come first-served basis.  

ORDER YOUR RACE SUPPLEMENT TODAY

If you are in running in the Edinburgh Marathon, or know someone who is, then don’t miss these two extra special supplements from The Scotsman and Edinburgh Evening News after the event:.

Monday 24 May: Marathon Picture Supplement in the Edinburgh Evening News with pictures from the events and a race report.   

Tuesday 25 May: The Scotsman’s Souvenir Supplement listing all runners in the full and half marathon plus hairy haggis relay teams … along with their final running times.  A great keepsake for every runner and your chance to prove you did it to family and friends!

You may have already ordered your advance copies when you registered for the race.  If not, you can still order them in advance via our online shop.  For just £2, the two papers plus these special supplements will be home delivered to your door.

The Scotsman and the Edinburgh Evening News are delighted to be the Official Newspaper Partners of the Edinburgh Marathon and will be covering the event in the build up to the race, with photographers will be there on the day capturing all the excitement and atmosphere.

The Scotsman is Scotland’s national daily newspaper and the Evening News is the best read evening paper in the Edinburgh and Lothians, read by a third of people in the Capital every night.

For a taster of our papers, visit www.scotsman.com

STILL NEED TO BOOK YOUR ACCOMMODATION?

If you are looking for accommodation we have partnered with a number of providers throughout the City.  We are holding allocations of rooms within 3 and 4 star hotels convenient to the race start and close to local city centre bus routes that have regular operating services.  Prices start from £37.50 per person sharing. We also have one and two bedroom self-catering apartments sleeping up to 4 guests.  

For those looking to pamper themselves we can offer a Country Retreat in lovely grounds. For accommodation rates and availability visit the Edinburgh Marathon website at www.edinburgh-marathon.com/?accommodation or click here. Alternatively you can contact our Hotel manager Bill Evans directly bill.evans@eventsinpartnership.com

BIG FUN RUN

The Big Fun Runs are great events to introduce your friends and family to running. They are 5km long and staged in scenic parks so are a friendly and safe running environment amongst likeminded people.   With 25 events nationwide there is sure to be local event near you.  Entry is now open so book your place now by visiting  www.bigfunrun.com

ASICS 2010 EDINBURGH MARATHON MERCHANDISE

We have a select range of dual branded ASICS technical running gear for sale fully embroidered with the 2010 Edinburgh Marathon logo. To get more details or to find out more please visit our shop on www.edinburgh-marathon.com/?Shop or click on any of the products below.   You can also purchase your shuttle bus and relay tickets through our shop

ASICS Hermes Polo Shirt (Mens) £19.95	ASICS L/S Shirt (Mens) £21.95	ASICS S/S Shirt (Mens) £19.95	ASICS  Epic L/S ½ Zip top (Mens) £44.95
ASICS Stride L/S ½ zip top (Mens) £29.95	ASICS Dionysos ½ zip field sensor top (M) £39.95	ASICS Shorts (Mens) £19.95	ASICS S/S Shirt (Women's) £19.95
ASICS Electra L/S  ½ Half Zip Top (Women's) £44.95	ASICS Knee Tight (Women's) £23.95	ASICS Athena Field Sensor mesh top (Women's) £34.95	ASICS L/S Shirt (Women's) £21.95

JENNIFERS STORY

16 take on the Edinburgh Hairy Haggis Marathon Relay for Piggybankkids and the Jennifer Brown Research Fund

I always knew that I wanted to organise a team to raise funds for PiggyBankKids but having never run in my life, I never quite got round to it until a chance conversation with the consultant who delivered my third baby at Simpson Maternity Centre in Edinburgh – also home to the Jennifer Brown Research Laboratory within the Queens Medical Research Institute. 

Since the stillbirth of our precious first baby Gregor at 39 weeks of pregnancy and the subsequent births of our 2 daughters who are now adorable 4 and 2 year olds, we have  supported the Jennifer Brown Research Fund and the important work undertaken into pregnancy problems and neo-natal research.

We have also persuaded friends, neighbours and family to join us and now total 16 runners. One team consists of friends, (including 2 consultant psychiatrists to keep us sane whilst training and a respiratory specialist to keep up breathing!),  another team is made up of staff from our daughter’s nursery and the third team consists of old University friends from Aberdeen. My team consists of my husband Iain, Dr Rhona Hughes, Lead Obstetrician at Simpson Maternity Centre, Edinburgh and also Jane Norman, Professor of Maternal and Fetal Health at Edinburgh University. Jane and Rhona also sit on the Advisory Board of the Jennifer Brown Research Fund.  It particularly lovely for us that Rhona who delivered my youngest daughter and who looks after hundreds of pregnant women and their babies each year is running alongside us.

Medical advances and research take a long time to progress and require significant funding. As we run the miles, we will of course be thinking of our 2 daughters waiting to cheer with Granny to welcome us home and also of our son who no doubt would have been a cheeky 7 year now - we will also be hoping that our daughters’ generation will reap the benefits of medical research of this generation so that fewer families will have to face the pain of losing part of their precious future. We often feel that we have inherited all those extra years from our son and we have got to make every day count. As Sir Roger Bannister said “Running is the greatest metaphor for life, because you get out of it what you put into it"

Please support us at: www.justgiving.com/Jennifer-MacFarlane0

TELL US YOUR STORY

Have you a story to tell about why you are running the marathon or scottish half marathon? If so, please tell us about it and we could help you highlight your story in our eNewsletter. The eNewsletter currently goes out to over 40,000 members.  Local newspapers are always wiling to highlight stories and it could help you raise funds for your charity. Click here or email us at adele@gsi-events.com with your story.