10 Tips to Sidestep Marathon Training Burnout in Beijing on Your Way to Running the Great Wall

Marathon training should be a journey of pushing your mental and physical capabilities beyond what you ever thought possible. A chance to be one with nature, humanity, and your own body as you run through kilometers of varying landscapes. However, anyone who has run for an elongated period of time knows that there's no such thing as pain-fee training, which can get increasingly tough when coupled with the need to endure indoor treadmill workouts, something that often the case in Beijing as air quality doesn't allow for year-round training outside. The gym can begin to feel like you're in a prison working your way through a hard labor sentence. Here are some tips I am currently using to keep my marathon training liberating, fresh, and stimulating ahead of the Great Wall Marathon.

1. Get Out of the Gym
If you have a kilometer of visibility, get outside for training! Now take this advice with a shake of salt (an appropriate metaphor for polluted air; a little is fine, but a lot can be poisonous). I say if the AQI is below 175 and you don’t have a headache – avoid treadmill monotony.

2. Get Into Nature 
Evade chaotic intersection motivation loss by taking your regular running routine along a river, canal, or a park. Anything where there's more green than exhaust gases will do. Nothing can squander the enthusiasm to run 12 more kilometers than traffic-induced immobility.

3. Take it to the Stairs
If you’re preparing for the Great Wall Marathon, a mountain trail race or a route with slight incline, nothing can give you the upper hand (or leg, rather) like sprinting up and down your apartment complex’s staircase. Factor in some obstacles found in many dark building stairways and you’ll be prepared for anything race day throws your way.

4. Don't Check Out the Pooch 
Avoid eye contact and remain bold when trotting by unleashed pooches. A poodle in designer jeans and a sweater can sense fright just as quickly as a matted, snarling mongrel. They can also pack a mean, skin-piercing nip on the least expected bystander (spoken from experience).

5. Don’t Eat Like a Dieter 
Endurance athletes have the luxury of ignoring diet plans trending amongst friends and colleagues. If you’re eating quality foods and listening to your body, you should be fueling adequately for performance, injury prevention, and recovery.

6. Challenge and Entertain Yourself 
Chinese culture might not be ready to run outside in shorts, but we know we are. Each time an onlooker gapes at your exposed legs, increase your running pace by 10 seconds a kilometer.

7. The Early Bird Catches the Worm
This might mean that your evening Jing-A carb-loading sessions may have to wrap up a pinch earlier than your non-marathoning pals as the coast is clearest before the hustle and bustle of 10am.

8. Playlists 
If the skies are resembling an airpocalyptic foggy blanket sending you to the nearest available treadmill rather than your usual outdoor route, check out the Aaptiv App which gives you a “personal training” session with playlists that’ll suit your preferences and sustain your enthusiasm.

9. Podcasts
When your jog has gotten so lengthy that your mind needs an input switch, check out a motivational podcast such as The Strength Running Podcast that covers a range of topics such as strength training, injury prevention, nutrition, as well as overcoming self-doubt and failure. Learn how to become a better marathoner while becoming a better marathoner.

10. Pack Tissues
If you’re consuming as much as me, what goes in must come out. This is especially true if you’re out early-bird running. Chinese characters to the wise: 女子 means women and 男人 means men.

If you're not registered yet but interested, you can still sign up for late registration as a local or international runner for The Great Wall Marathon on May 20 (RMB 400) via their website. 

Another option this summer is the Conquer the Wall Marathon at Badaling on May 13. If you’re feeling as if you might not have quite enough time to adequately prepare for either of these, this is definitely a race to consider next year as there are only few people in the world that can mention in passing, “Oh yeah ... I’ve run a full marathon on The Great Wall of China.” Definitely one for your Beijing bucket list, we think.

Photos: Great Wall Marathon