Should You Shave Legs for Marathon?

When running a marathon it is okay to wear shorts or lowers as you find them comfortable. But do you know that shaving your legs for a marathon can leave an impact to your performance? Not only do shaved legs look professional but there are some logics behind why you should be shaving before a marathon.

In this article, we have explained why should you shave legs for marathon whether it’s a small race or a long one. Moreover, we have discussed how shaving your legs for a marathon can increase your speed to reduce your total running time.

Table of Contents:

• Part 1: Should You Shave Your Legs for a Marathon?
• Part 2: Can I Run Faster if I Shave My Legs for a Marathon?
• Part 3: How to Prepare for a Half Marathon?

Part 1: Should You Shave Your Legs for a Marathon?

Yes, you should shave your legs for a marathon whether you will run in shorts or in a full length lower. The benefits of running a marathon with freshly shaved legs are endless and we have explained some of them below.

What Are the Benefits of Shaving Legs for a Marathon?

    1. Less Chafing

When you shave your legs for a marathon, you are eliminating any chances of hair getting stuck with your clothing. This means that there will literally be no chafing and in no manner your leg hair will get stuck with your lower.

    2. Allows Better Wound Care

It is fairly possible to get hurt when running and if you get hurt, it will be easier for the medical team to give you first aid. Hairless skin makes it easy to treat the wound and the skin absorbs ointment faster and much better in absence of hair.

    3. Reduces Air Resistance

The air will directly hit the legs and not hair. Each strand of hair would increase surface area and assuming thousands of hair on the legs can create some air resistance, which can reduce your speed and make you tired quicker because you will need extra energy to run.

If you are a professional runner, you are likely to have sexy calf muscles. You can flex your muscles as you run in a marathon but only if you have shaved your legs recently.

    5.You Can Massage Better After The Run

After completing the race you can relax and massage your legs better. Shall you have hair on the legs, massaging would hurt because the sweat on the legs would cause the hair to stick and get pulled by your palms when you massage.

    6. It Will Be Easy To Apply Sunscreen

Sunscreen will absorb nicely on hairless skin and you will need less sunscreen to get the best protection. Along with sunscreen, if you need to apply any other lotion or moisturiser, it will absorb quicker and better.

    7. Athletic Tape Will Stick Better

A lot of runners put athletic tape on their legs to avoid injuries and improve performance. If you are thinking the same, we suggest that you shave your legs to allow better grip of the tape to your legs.

    8. Helpful In Staying Cool

In absence of hair, the legs can stay cooler or else the hair would create an insulation and encourage body heat to stay trapped. With no hair on the legs, the heat can dissipate easily, letting your legs stay relieved.

    9. Shaved Legs Feel Better

It simply feels lovely and cosy when we run with shaved legs. You will feel more air that will ultimately feel very refreshing. If you are running in a lower, then the silky sensations will feel so tempting.

Part 2: Can I Run Faster if I Shave My Legs for a Marathon?

Yes, some reddit users suggest that you can run faster with freshly shaved legs. Also, a research proves that there is a fair chance of increasing your average speed if you run with shaved legs.

Here is how does shaving your legs make you run faster- Hair can increase air resistance and shaving them will eliminate that resistance. Thus, you can feel like you are running faster. Shaved legs will also aid your overall aerodynamics.

While the idea behind shaving your legs to increase the speed is always intriguing, it would make such a little difference that we can simply ignore it. You will barely get a benefit of a few seconds but if you believe that these few seconds can be worth shaving your legs, then you should definitely shave a night before your race.

Part 3: How to Prepare for a Half Marathon?

      1. Warming Up Your Body

To warm up your body before your daily training, you should run for 500 metres to 1000 metres, depending on your body’s capacity. You can increase your warm up run to 1000 metres or 2000 metres depending on your gain.

      2. Exercises To Increase Your Running Capacity

After doing a warm up run, the next chapter is to do daily exercises.

• Doing long runs, tempo runs, interval training, and rest days are some good ways to increase your running capacity.
• Breathing exercises will help your lungs expand and make you habitual of absorbing more oxygen with each breath.
• If possible, you should do leg presses and leg curls in the gym. You can take help from your gym trainer because he will train your legs in the right manner.
• Do leg stretching exercises on priority but we recommend doing general stretching exercises for all body parts including your neck and arms.

      3. Running Training

Once you complete your exercise training, the next step is to do the running training. This is the part of your daily routine where you will train yourself to run long distances.

• You can start with 1000 metres to 3000 metres depending on your capacity. Remember that you should not include your warm up run with your core running practice.
• Suppose you began with 2000 metres, you need to keep running the same length for the whole week.
• Keep increasing your running by 1500 metres each week. So, if you begin with 2000 metres, you should be able to reach 21KM (21,000 metres) in the next 15 to 17 weeks.
• If you achieve a record of running 22KM before the race, we recommend that you keep working on your potential so that the level of difficulty gets easier for you in the actual race.

      4. Bring Changes To Your Daily Routine

• Strictly avoid smoking and alcohol until your race.
• Take a protein-rich diet and maintain a correct balance of vitamins and minerals in your body.
• Staying hydrated is very important. Merely drinking water will not be enough. We suggest energy drinks and fresh fruit juice twice a day.

Conclusion

If you are very serious about your upcoming race, remember that only a professional nutrition can prepare the best diet chart for you and no online resources can recommend the most suitable diet plan for you. There are some theories that prove that shaving your legs can improve your marathon performance but the difference is almost negligible. Even though there are so many benefits of shaving your legs before a race, there is a possibility of getting cuts, nicks, and skin irritation that will create a lot of pain when you sweat the next day. Also, it will be very irritating to run with cuts and nicks, so it’s better to let your hair keep growing.