This series is written by Mike.

My wife and I decided to enter the Marine Corp Marathon in 2006. My wife used to run recreationally in college, but me, well, let’s just say my last running effort was for the President’s Challenge in high school, and I cheated.

I’m a 220 lb, 5′10″ male (on my good days). I haven’t gone to the gym regularly for a few years (ok, since we got married), and even then I didn’t really focus on cardio training. So you may ask, “How do you expect to run 26.2 miles, you flabby bum?!?”. Well, hold on there! You don’t need to be so rude just yet!

We signed up for the free training program offered by Jeff Galloway on Active.com. This program is only available for free to Marine Corp Marathon paid participants. It gives us a calendar, and outlines what we should be doing each day, along with tips and tricks for training and for race day itself. This program is specifically tailored for the Marine Corp Marathon, and we chose the “To Finish” program.

This series of articles is meant for those of you who are in my shoes (take those off now!). I’ll provide my own tips and tricks to help you train, and what to expect during your training.

First up: Make sure you’re healthy enough to begin running long distances!

It’s surprising how many people think they can just throw on any pair of shoes, go outside and hit the pavement. What you need to find out first is whether it’ll be your feet or your face hitting the turf. Go see a doctor, get a physical, and get their assessment of your current health. You may not be able to do a 5-6 month fast-track training course just yet. First, you may need to begin with some light gym exercise on stationary bikes or elliptical trainers before you can really begin running.

Don’t be discouraged if the doctor mentions your arteries are a bit too clogged, or you have an irregular heartbeat, etc. Just be glad you checked first before risking your health or your life out in the hot sun in the middle of August! Oh wait, I’m getting ahead of myself.

Stay tuned for the next edition of this article where I’ll outline the gear that is required, useful and/or useless.

Update: Visit the Marathons for Beginners Collection page to see the rest of the series!