You can’t run a marathon if you want to. Experts explain which people are not suitable.

　　May 12, Qinhuangdao, Hebei, 2019 Qinhuangdao International Marathon and National Marathon Championship. Photo courtesy of vision china

　　With the coming of summer, the marathon has ushered in a small climax. According to the "2018 China Marathon Big Data" released by China Athletics Association in March this year, in 2018, marathon-related events held in China (except Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan) (road running events with more than 800 participants and cross-country events with more than 300 participants — — Reporter’s Note) There were 1,581 races, an increase of 43.46% over 2017, with an average of 4.3 races per day, and the cumulative number of marathon participants nationwide reached 5.83 million.

　　But after all, marathon is an extreme sport, and sudden death occasionally happens on the field; Other sports injuries are more common. How to judge whether you are suitable to participate in this fashionable urban sport? What preparations should beginners make? Sports medicine experts and amateur marathon enthusiasts gave their own suggestions respectively.

　　People with cardiopulmonary diseases and potential heart diseases are not recommended to race horses.

　　"Marathon is a typical extreme challenge project, and its first finisher died suddenly at the finish line, which is enough to show us the risks of this sport." Dr. Zhu Jingxian from Peking University Institute of Sports Medicine told the reporter of China Youth Daily and Zhongqing Online, "However, it is also a sport full of challenges and enjoyment. Regular running makes the brain secrete more dopamine and endorphins, which makes people happy, even ‘ Addiction ’ 。” In the city marathon, people run through places of interest, rivers and lakes, and city landmarks. This step-by-step running experience is a kind of enjoyment in itself. Coupled with the cheering audience along the way, the satisfaction after crossing the finish line has undoubtedly added a strong attraction to this sport.

　　Zhu Jingxian said: "Every year, in the media reports about the marathon, there are always several news about the sudden death of athletes. The news that these marathon runners with stronger physique fall on the track will always bring shock to everyone. " According to incomplete network statistics, from 2014 to 2016, there were 14 runners in China who died suddenly in the race. This sudden death rate is not high in the statistics of marathon races around the world. Foreign literature review statistics show that the incidence of sudden death in marathon is 0.6 ~ 1.9/100,000. "It is pointed out in the literature that only a very small number of participants have sudden death during or immediately after the marathon. Even so, we still hope that this sport is safer. " Zhu Jingxian said.

　　According to some surveys, the Tokyo Marathon, known as the "safest marathon in the world", achieved zero death in 10 years. With the in-depth understanding of its operation mode, the organizer’s rigorous, efficient and professional medical security services are presented to the world. Abundant first-aid equipment, sufficient first-aid personnel, detailed first-aid work and various and efficient first-aid modes have rescued the contestants from the brink of death many times.

　　Sudden death of athletes mostly occurs in fierce competitions. For sudden cardiac death, defibrillation within two minutes can improve the survival rate, and 10 minutes after falling to the ground is the golden time for rescue. In a large marathon with tens of thousands of runners on a track of more than 42 kilometers, it is impossible to ensure that there are professional doctors beside the runners on every section of the road, but there must be a professional and three-dimensional medical rescue team, which can ensure that the contestants can bring AED (Automatic Defibrillator) in place within two minutes after falling to the ground, and complete the initial first aid and transshipment within 10 minutes.

　　"We are delighted to see that most domestic sports events are constantly improving their medical security capabilities, and more and more professional medical personnel and volunteers are participating in this sport. However, we still hope that every marathon in every city has a medical security team that meets the standards; I also hope that more and more media reports are about the successful treatment of the contestants after the cardiac arrest on the track, instead of the Fidi Pitz (the pioneer of marathon — — Reporter’s note). " Zhu Jingxian said.

　　"Unlike sports competitions, the purpose of mass participation in sports is to keep healthy. Therefore, the most important thing is to let everyone learn to scientifically assess their own sports risks, so that people who are not suitable for marathon should not take risks in this extreme sport. " Zhu Jingxian pointed out: "First of all, because the sudden death on the marathon track is mostly sudden cardiac death, people with cardiopulmonary diseases and potential heart diseases are not recommended to participate in this sport. How to find the potential heart diseases of the contestants, such as congenital heart disease and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, is the key to reduce sudden cardiac death. We suggest that participants go to regular hospitals for the following examinations before the competition: electrocardiogram, echocardiography and cardiopulmonary exercise experiment. "

　　Zhu Jingxian, for example, said that a middle-aged and old-aged participant who participated in the marathon for many times felt chest tightness and shortness of breath in the last few kilometers every time. The cardiopulmonary exercise test result was positive, and it was later confirmed as coronary heart disease and was treated accordingly. "If left untreated, he is likely to fall on the track due to myocardial ischemia in the future. Therefore, the physical examination before the game is very important. "

　　Regular exercise habits and step-by-step exercises are the basis of horse racing.

　　Zhu Jingxian told the reporter of China Youth Daily and Zhongqing Online that it is the foundation to ensure the completion of the marathon to carry out running exercises step by step before the race and keep regular exercise habits. Generally speaking, if you have never run for a long distance, even if your physical fitness is good, you are not recommended to participate in the marathon. Exercise-induced rhabdomyolysis is easy to occur when playing a strange sport, and severe cases may be complicated with renal failure.

　　For the first time, a marathon runner can perform better in the official competition and reduce the risk of sports injury after completing several running trainings equivalent to the whole distance of the target marathon before the competition.

　　Amateur masters who have participated in many marathons should also be careful not to blindly pursue achievements and pay attention to their own feelings during the race. If they feel unwell, they should stop the race in time and seek medical support. If you stay up late, have a cold or are in poor health before the game, it is recommended to give up the game. "After all, for most people, the marathon is not for showing off, nor for achievements, but for better shaping a healthy body in extreme sports. Therefore, marathon, please put safety first. " Dr. Zhu reminded.

　　Scientific training, healthy running and enjoying the competition.

　　Run a "horse", know a city, and maybe fall in love with a city. Marathon is becoming a window for runners to learn about a city.

　　"Participating in the marathon is the motivation and goal of many fans’ daily training. I regard the competition as a reward for myself. I take a weekend off in my daily life, run with many runners in other cities, pass by beautiful urban scenery and feel the enthusiasm and encouragement of the audience, just like attending a large party or festival. " Mr. Gao, a 42-year-old office worker, is an amateur marathon enthusiast with 10 years’ running experience. He told China Youth Daily and Zhongqing Online reporter: "When I first participated in the competition, I was interested in those Cosplay runners (using costumes, accessories, props and makeup to play the role in anime works and games — — Reporter’s note) I am very interested, and I will share my experiences with my family and friends after the game. Slowly, I admire older runners and disabled runners more, and I will also motivate myself to work harder and be more active in my work and life. The race I remember most is the running section of triathlon in Miyakojima, Japan. It was a long-distance race: swimming 3 kilometers, cycling 157 kilometers, and finally a marathon of more than 40 kilometers. The Japanese audience is very enthusiastic and professional, and there are spectators cheering and performing arts performances all over the track. In the last marathon stage, it was already in the evening, and several elderly audiences in their sixties and seventies were playing Sanweixian (a local national musical instrument, similar to Sanxian — — Reporter’s note) cheer for us. I can hear that after playing all day,They are already very tired. At this time, a Japanese male player near me gestured to cheer up the old people while running, and took out a harmonica from his pocket and played it while running. The old people were very excited when they saw it, and immediately accompanied them with Sanwei Line, and the players and audience on the whole street immediately got high! This Japanese player really embodies the spirit of enjoying the game and enjoying life. I was very moved at that time. "

　　Mr. Gao takes part in about two or three marathons every year. Speaking of the changes in these years, he believes that there were few competitions and few players and organizers 10 years ago, but all parties attached great importance to the competition and the competition was well organized. In recent years, the number of races and runners has increased, and media attention has also begun to rise. Many novice runners died suddenly because of their inexperience. Uncivilized phenomena began to appear, and runners felt bad about participating in individual events because of the organizers’ inexperience. "But now the overall environment is much better for runners, such as competitions, training institutions and registration platforms, and it is easier for everyone to participate." Mr. Gao said.

　　Regarding training suggestions, Mr. Gao said: "I started to participate in the marathon in 2009, and most of my daily training was on the street. In my impression, three injuries were caused by uneven roads in fun run. Now I pay more attention to the safety problems in training, and I hope other runners will pay more attention. My training from 2009 to 2017 was relatively casual, and all of them were long-distance jogging with little intensity, so I was not injured because of excessive training. Since 2017, I have gradually contacted the training plan (including long-distance jogging, intermittent running, short-distance repeated sprint running, leg strength training, core strength training, etc.), and my intensity has improved. According to the planned training, there were no injuries. It is recommended that newly joined runners train scientifically from the beginning and step by step, so that they can get twice the result with half the effort while rapidly improving their performance. "

　　Because he has been training according to the plan, Mr. Gao created his personal best result when he participated in the 2019 Beijing Half Marathon. He suggested that beginners should try jogging by themselves first, and if they feel interesting, they can join the running group nearby, so that they can get started faster and get in touch with scientific training more conveniently. The game should be gradual, and don’t compare with vanity. "I am an amateur myself and I am not qualified to give professional advice, but I hope everyone can train scientifically, run healthily and enjoy the game. Our fans exercise to live a better life. Running is only a part of life. The most important thing is to live a healthy and happy life. " He said.

　　Marathon is getting closer and closer to people’s life. Are you ready to run in it or cheer from the side and join this fashionable urban sport?

　　China Youth Daily Zhongqing Online Reporter Lei Zhang