Sydney Marathon Training Has Started: 3 Training Tips to Ace you Training & 3 Tips to Prevent Injury By APA Physiotherapist Nóirín Ní Chasaide

With the Sydney Marathon approaching, training blocks are kicking off across Sydney. Whether this is your first marathon or your fifth, the excitement of starting a new build often comes with the temptation to do too much, too soon.

Marathon prep is one of the most rewarding training cycles you can undertake, but it also places a significant load on the body. The runners who perform best (and enjoy the process most) are usually the ones who can stay consistent and healthy across theentire block.

Here are my top three training tips and top three injury prevention tips as marathon season gets underway.

🏃‍♀️ 3 Top Training Tips

1. Build consistency before intensity

One of the biggest mistakes runners make early in a marathon block is chasing fitness too quickly. Long runs, speed sessions, and weekly mileage all ramp up at once, and the body struggles to keep up.

Your goal early on should be:

Consistent weeks, not heroic sessions.

A steady progression of training is far more effective than a few massive weeks followed by injury or burnout.

Aim to:

  • Increase mileage gradually

  • Keep easy runs genuinely easy

  • Prioritise completing weeks consistently over hitting perfect pace targets

Remember: marathon fitness is all about endurance and is built over months, not one workout.

2. Respect easy running

Easy runs are where a large amount of aerobic adaptation happens. They also allow you to recover between harder sessions while still accumulating valuable training volume.

Many runners unknowingly run their easy sessions too hard, which can lead to:

  • Excess fatigue

  • Poor recovery

  • Increased injury risk

If you feel like you could hold a conversation comfortably, you’re probably in the right zone.

3. Fuel your training properly

As training volume increases, recovery and nutrition become more important than ever.

Low energy availability is a major contributor to:

  • Fatigue

  • Reduced performance

  • Bone stress injuries

  • Poor recovery

Particularly around long runs and workouts:

  • Don’t underfuel

  • Prioritise carbohydrates around training

  • Recover with adequate protein and total caloriesYou can’t adapt well to training if your body doesn’t have the resources to recover from it.

🦵 3 Top Injury Prevention Tips

1. Strength train alongside your running

Strength training is one of the most effective tools we have for improving running resilience and reducing injury risk.

It doesn’t need to be complicated.

Focus on:

  • Calf strength

  • Single-leg control

  • Glute and hip strength

  • Hamstring capacity

  • Plyometric training

Even 1–2 sessions per week can make a huge difference over the course of a marathon build. This can be reduced to one session later in the training block and can still maintain the stregth you have built

2. Don’t ignore “niggles”

Most running injuries don’t appear suddenly, they build gradually. That mild ache that only appears at the end of a run? The stiffness that settles after 10 minutes? Those are often early warning signs rather than things to simply push through.

Catching issues early is usually the difference between:

  • A small training adjustment

    or

  • Missing weeks of running later on

Pain that:

  • Persists after running

  • Worsens week to week

  • Changes your gait or loading

…is worth addressing early.

3. Avoid sudden training spikes

One of the biggest predictors of injury is rapid changes in load.

This can include:

  • Sudden mileage jumps

  • Adding extra speed work

  • Increasing long-run distance too quickly

  • Big changes in terrain or footwear

Your tissues adapt best to gradual progression. Often, the runners who stay healthiest are not necessarily the ones doing the most, they’re the ones progressing load the smartest.

🧠 Final thoughts

Marathon training should challenge you—but it shouldn’t constantly break you down.

The runners who usually get to the start line feeling strongest are the ones who:

  • Train consistently

  • Recover properly

  • Strength train regularly

  • Manage small issues early

Fitness is built through stress, but performance comes from balancing stress with recovery.

Good luck to everyone starting their Sydney Marathon build. Train smart, stay patient, and enjoy the process.

Stuart McKayComment