Influencers and everyday runners flood social media talking about their training, their accomplishments, and their speedy splits. And when your options range from exciting destination races and multiday challenge events to the coveted World Marathon Majors, it’s easy to get caught up in signing up for 26.2 after 26.2. What does a race calendar that brings out your best performances—while still supporting your recovery and life outside of running—actually look like?
We talked to an exercise physiologist and a sports psychology researcher to find out the physical and mental effects of marathoning and how to determine the number of races per year that keeps you motivated and feeling accomplished without overwhelm or burnout. It’s absolutely possible to go overboard on marathoning, Janet Hamilton, CSCS, an exercise physiologist and the founder and head coach of Running Strong, tells Runner’s World. Many factors play into the number of races per year that best serves an individual, she explains.
One of the most important to consider? Or do you just want to be able to say you’ve completed one every month? Those two goals are very different,” she explains.
Racing a marathon at an all-out effort places much more stress on the body than jogging one at your easy pace. Of course, both efforts still require recovery, adds Hamilton. This means setting aside a full cycle of training to properly base-build, add in speed, gradually taper, and finally, race.
To achieve your best result, you can’t rush any part of this process. Hamilton’s guidance for most runners who want to race well is to aim for a maximum of two, maybe three, marathons per year. Some people complete streaks of marathoning every weekend,” she says.
This can include weakened immune function—part of the reason many runners come down with a postrace cold—elevation of enzymes that indicate cardiac damage, increased levels of the stress hormone cortisol, and a decrease in testosterone levels. But if you never give yourself a break from racing, it becomes much more challenging for you to fully recuperate. And you might not always be able to necessarily feel it.” Some signs, she explains, would only show up in specific blood tests or diagnostic scans, such as an elevated cardiac calcification score, which can increase the risk for heart problems.
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