Boston. First run in 1897, this is the oldest annual marathon in the world and arguably the most prestigious.

The London marathon

The Abbott World Marathon Majors is a series consisting of six of the largest and most renowned marathons in the world: Tokyo Marathon, Boston Marathon, Virgin Money London Marathon, BMW BERLIN-MARATHON, Bank of America Chicago Marathon and TCS New York City Marathon.

Here are the 5 Biggest Marathons in the World:

• New York City Marathon. Date: November 2, 2014. Finisher Record: 50,266 (2013)
• Chicago Marathon. Date: October 12, 2014. Finisher Record: 39.098 (2013)
• Paris Marathon. Date: April 6, 2014.
• London Marathon. Date: April 13, 2014.
• Berlin Marathon:

User Options

• Olympic Trials (Country Specific; US Men 2:15 A Standard,2:18 B Standard/ US Women 2:37 A Standard, 2:43 B Standard)
• World Championships (Men 2:17, Women 2:43)
• Fukuoka International Open Marathon Champs (Men Only A Standard: 2:27, B Standard 2:40)
• New York Marathon (2:45 Men/3:10 Women)

Inca Trail Marathon

The 6 Hardest Races in the World

1. Marathon des Sables. Held in Morocco each year, the Marathon des Sables bills itself as the “toughest footrace on Earth.” Participants cover 156 miles over the course of six days.
2. Badwater Ultramarathon.
3. Hardrock Hundred Mile Endurance Run.

Beginners need to be able to average at least 30 to 35 miles per week for six to eight weeks during the marathon training cycle. This means that you need to be able to comfortably run 25 to 30 miles per week before you begin training for a marathon.

If you’re following a training plan, getting in those long runs can be a challenge sometimes. If you happen to miss one there is no need to panic. It’s ill-advised to skip to the next distance, considering that long runs can jump up by two miles at a time.

Fewer than 25% of marathoners have broken the 4 hour barrier. Nearly all of the marathon must be run and a good pace must be maintained throughout. The 4 hour marathon requires an average pace of 9 minutes 9 seconds per mile, which is a moderately fast pace for most runners.

You can definitely train for a marathon on a treadmill. Whether you use the treadmill as a training tool for specific marathon speed workouts or even do all of your marathon training runs a treadmill, lots of people successfully prepare for marathons using treadmills.

9 things you need to know before you sign up for a marathon (or half marathon)

1. You can do it! … you just have to really want to do it.
2. Pick the right time.
3. Go see a physio.
4. Be prepared to skip the pub.
5. Do what works for you.
6. Don’t forget cross training.
7. Stretch it out.
8. Get some rest.

Of course it’s your first and maybe you’re new to running, but you need to have been running long enough to have a small concept of 26.2 miles. Don’t run a marathon if you’re having health issues…it won’t make them better. Marathon training can weaken your immune system without the right plan, coach and nutrition.

Your weekend long run—one week before the marathon—should be eight to 10 miles. Any longer and your muscles may not be able to fully rebound before the race. Plus, if you’ve been lifting weights during your training, you should stop during this week.

Most marathon training plans call for a 20-mile run four weeks before the race.

In short, tapering allows your body to prepare for peak performance. During the taper, it is most important to remember this: physiological adaptations to training take a minimum of six weeks. Therefore, training hard during the final two to three weeks before your marathon is not going to improve your performance.

A taper should start the day, or the following week after your last longest run. Typically that run will be in the 20- to 23-mile range. Whenever you do start cutting back, you should look to reduce your long run into the low teens. An ideal number would be 13 to 14 miles.

A 20 mile run two weeks before the marathon is fine. You should be able to recover from it by race day, especially if you are tapering. Remember to keep up the intensity on the hard days and you’ll be okay.

The way that I suggest doing it is,you’ll want to cut out the most difficult strength training stuff two weeks before. So two weeks before your marathon, if you’re doing anything super heavy: squats, deadlifts, anything like that, then you’re going to want to cut that out of the training cycle that second week.

I usually take the week off prior to a bigger race. If that is the case, maybe take off one to two LIFTING days prior to your race (so, I guess up to 4 days). You will definitely notice the difference on race day, even if you don’t normally notice being sore on your runs.

Training too much before the race Many amateur runners think it is a good idea to train hard right up until the race, particularly in the last few weeks. But these efforts turn out to be counterproductive. That’s why you should decrease your training volume by 30-50% of your normal mileage in the last week.