People of all body types, ages and abilities have gone through our clinics for the Portland Marathon and completed the event successfully. Marathon running is for adults. You must be emotionally and physically mature to withstand the psychological and physical punishment of marathon training and racing. The stress of marathon distances can cause permanent damage to still growing bones and is well beyond the enjoyment level that encourages young people to stay with the sport of running. We discourage marathoning for those under 16.
Marathon running and training is for experienced runners .
In our program we recommend that runners have been running for at least 6 months, have some short race experience and run an average of 15-20 miles a week. Hal Higdon, who has developed the Chicago Marathon training program, is even more conservative, recommending one year of running as a prerequisite. David Brennan and Al Lawrence of the Houston Marathon suggest a starting base of 10-20 miles per week. There are two reasons we make these recommendations. First, although you may be able to develop the cardiovascular ability to survive a marathon in a 5 or 6 month training program, the muscle and connective tissue fitness takes considerably longer.