8,153
edits
Changes
m
→The Long Run and Hitting the Wall
==The Long Run and Hitting the Wall==
A study of 315 marathon runners evaluated the factors that are correlated with reported 'Hitting the Wall'. The length of the longest run but not weekly mileage was correlated hitting the wall<ref name="BumanBrewer2008"/>. Further analysis showed that a longest long run of 20 miles or less increased the chance of hitting the wall by 50%<ref name="BumanBrewer2009"/>.Note that for these studies the definition of 'hitting the wall' was up to the subjects; they just had to consider themselves as having 'hit the wall'. While this lose definition has issues, the correlation is still useful as it indicates the runner has significant issues. Of particular interest is that the length of the longest run is the only training metric that correlated with 'hitting the wall'.
==Injuries==
I found no studies that showed a correlation between the length of the long run and injuries. There is some evidence that the increase in mileage<ref name="Walter-1989"/>, overall monthly mileage<ref name="Lysholm-"/> or both<ref name="Fredericson-2007"/> is correlated with injuries.