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"  It&amp;#039;s been close to two weeks since I ran the Nike Women&amp;#039;s half marathon in San Francisco and aside from some serious sore legs, the experience was truly inspiring. The camaraderie that comes along with joining forces for a cause with 30,000 women (and a few good men of course) after months of 6 mile + runs is insurmountable. I was in good company running with a few of BAZAAR&amp;#039;s favorite fashion faces including Lily Kwong and Tamu McPherson. On the days leading up to the race, it&amp;#039;s hard to know what to expect and luckily we were surrounded by experienced female athletes including the inspiration for the Nike Women&amp;#039;s race as a whole, Joan Benoit Samuelson, and Nike Master Trainer, Marie Purvis. So just in case you&amp;#039;ve caught the running bug for this week&amp;#039;s New York Marathon, I sat down with Marie to help you make the most of every moment leading up to starting line and as well as a few helpful tips to get you through the race on the big day. The Build Up What to do: Two to three days before the race, you should be in full recovery mode - you&amp;#039;ve put in the work (and if you didn&amp;#039;t, don&amp;#039;t try to make it up in 3 days!), and now it&amp;#039;s time to make sure you stretch and work out any muscle soreness that may be lingering from your training. The Friday preceding the race try to fit in an hour or so of yoga. On Saturday, really take it easy by simply stretching at home and staying off your feet as much as possible. We know it might be a long shot (especially with with our locals here in New York) but if you have access to an ice bath, it is a great remedy for muscle soreness and for reducing any swelling before the big day. For most people, nerves can be a big factor leading up to a marathon, but sleep is really important, so try your best to get at least 5-6 hours each night. What to eat: What Marie told me next is definitely going to break a few foodie hearts \u2013 carb-loading the day before a big run is in fact a myth. While you&amp;#039;re not supposed to vary anything dramatically in this time frame, general rule of thumb for the build up days is to eat clean and dry. Protagonists for prep are chicken, lean fish, green beans, sweet potato and quinoa. Not all greenery is fair game however \u2013 stay away from cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower and brussel sprouts as they are hard on your stomach and could cause digestion issues the days following the meal. If there is anything you should change consumption wise, it should be the amount of water you drink. If you generally drink 8 8-ounce glasses of water increase it to 10-12. What to think: When I asked about mental preparation and any final words, Marie&amp;#039;s answer was clear \u2013&amp;quot;My best advice is not to think about it until you wake up the morning of.&amp;quot; There are two types of athletes \u2013 those that need to visualize and prepare for every bend, every hill, every potential variant and those that are more free form and thrive off of the unknown. Marie and I both reside on the free form side. There are endless unforeseen issues that (most likely) will arise \u2013 a cramp, a rip in your legging. Expected or unexpected, you can and will get through it.  The Day Of What to wear: This piece of the runners puzzle is often underrated but leave it to BAZAAR to get to the bottom of what to wear no matter the occasion. The biggest mistake people make is wearing new clothes and shoes for race day. We know it&amp;#039;s exciting and what better way to celebrate than with new digs, but in this case, stick to what you have been wearing and what your body is used to. New clothes can cause chafing or become uncomfortable and that&amp;#039;s the last thing you want when you&amp;#039;re 7 miles in and (what will seem like) an eternity to go. Marie&amp;#039;s personal preference is a light long sleeve top, capri leggings, dry fit socks and the tried and true sneakers she trained in. One New York specific tip that Marie could lend is that the wait time at the beginning of the race is longer than others \u2013 close to an hour. Combat the morning chill by bringing either a shed-able warm layer or bring a trash bag to wear as poncho of sorts (chic, I know) and toss it when the race is about to begin. What to think now that you are at the starting line: Similar to the days leading up, don&amp;#039;t overthink. Remind yourself how hard you&amp;#039;ve worked and there is no going back now. All you can do now is have fun. New York&amp;#039;s specifically incomparable energy and the adrenaline will take you farther than you can imagine. What you&amp;#039;ve been waiting for: I found throughout the entire experience with Nike, the best advice I got was for during the race itself. Marie told me that she consistently hears that running a marathon, whether it be a full or a half, is more emotional than people expect it to be. If you are running a full, mile 16 and 21 are breaking points for people. Her advice for those mile markers and or any other point of anticipated personal struggle is to plan a power song or two to come on at those points celebrate with yourself for those few minutes. If music doesn&amp;#039;t do it for you, have a friend or family member stand at the &amp;#039;pain point&amp;#039; to either cheer you on or, even better, jump in to run with you for a half mile or so. Finally, celebrate every little thing you can in the coming hours. Whether it be a good song, witnessing a helping hand, or the cheering crowd, celebrate those little wins with yourself or others around you.  Now what? When I asked Marie what to do after the race, there was zero hesitation: &amp;quot;Have a burger and a beer (and maybe a couple ibuprofen)! The salty protein will be good for muscle recovery and the beer will help to numb the pain.&amp;quot; After my run in San Francisco, I found the beer really did hit the spot followed by 12 hours of sleep. Take Monday to recover, Tuesday a &amp;#039;shakeout&amp;#039; run which should be short and sweet \u2013 3 miles will feel like nothing after all you&amp;#039;ve accomplished and finally, on Wednesday, a yoga class. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.harpersbazaar.com/beauty/diet-fitness/advice/a1161/prepping-for-the-ny-marathon/>