Running is a very popular sport today with many thousands of people participating each week in some type of event. Before the advent of the mass participation events like the Marathon or Half Marathon most aspiring runners would progress from school or college with some idea of what distance they wanted to run. The usual categories were Sprinting, Middle Distance or Long Distance and depending on the persons preference or ability they would gravitate to one of these groups.
In the late 70's all the way through to today Marathon running has taken the world by storm and many thousands of people from all walks of life have taken up the challenge and competed the classic Marathon distance of 26.2 miles or the lesser 13.1 miles of the Half Marathon.
Many of these people have never run before, they decide to take on the challenge of the Marathon and manage to complete the distance sometimes with very little training. This is not the most sensible way to go about it, but many have done it this way and survived. With some it has inspired them to go on and train more and be in better shape to compete in more of these distance races. With others it has put them off for life, which is sad because with a bit of sense being applied and more suitable training being undertaken many could go on and achieve great things in their running.
So when thinking about which distance is best to run it really is a question of personal preference or aptitude. A good School or College programme should catch the people with abilities at selected distances and be able to offer them the correct type of coaching and training for their events so that they can be given every opportunity to succeed. On the other hand many people will randomly take up the challenge of the previously mentioned Marathon or Half Marathon distances and in so doing fulfill their ambition to run in the classic long distance races and at the same time raise a great deal of money for selected charities. Many of these will progress from there to greater things in running, while others will complete one race and that will be enough for them. Whatever distance is chosen the aim should be to compete and at the same time enjoy the experience.
Author Resource:-
This article was written by Alan Seel who has many years of running experience. Visit http://www.iwant2run.blogspot.com for more information about running.
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