NYC Marathon Sunday: Healthland's Tips for a Safe, Fun Run

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On Sunday, Nov. 6, tens of thousands of participants of the annual ING New York City Marathon will hurtle through the city's five boroughs. That's a lot of potential for fun — and for pain.

Following are a few tips Healthland has collected for running a safe race and recovering from the post-marathon blues.

Are you ready? This is a no-brainer, but make sure you are in truly race-ready shape — the fitter you are before a mega-run like a marathon, the lower your chances of injury and the less damage you'll do to your heart during the race. The good news is that marathon-associated heart damage is only temporary.Avoid the wall. Some 40% of runners hit "the wall," the dreaded moment, usually around mile 21, when the body depletes its available carbohydrate stores and starts burning fat instead, causing pain, dizziness and extreme fatigue. This calculator might help you avoid it.Good pain, bad pain. Take a page from these endurance runners and know the difference between injuries that require you to stop and those you can run through. In simplest terms: muscle inflammation is O.K., joint inflammation probably means its time to call it a day.Duck the post-race funk. An episode of mild depression is fairly common in the aftermath of a major event, especially one that you've spent a considerable amount of time and energy planning for. Avoid the post-race blues by scheduling away any empty downtime. Make plans to start a new project, or socialize with friends and family. Your plans don't have to be epic, but just make sure you stay occupied.

Most of all, have fun out there. We'll be cheering — and marveling — from the comfort of the sidelines. Good luck!

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Woman gives birth after marathon

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11 October 2011 Last updated at 01:28 GMT Amber Miller said she was happy but called it the "longest day of my life" after giving birth to a daughter following completing the Chicago Marathon

Instead of having a rest after completing the Chicago Marathon, pregnant Amber Miller gave birth.

Mrs Miller, who was nearly 39 weeks pregnant, said "it was the longest day of my life". She gave birth to a healthy 7.7lb (3.5kg) girl, June.

The marathon was the eighth for the 27-year-old, who already had one child. On her doctor's orders she ran half and walked half the distance.

"Lots of people were cheering me on: 'Go pregnant lady'," she said.

"For me, it wasn't anything out of the ordinary. I was running up until that point anyway," she told Associated Press news agency.

"I am crazy about running."

Because she half-walked the race, she finished the 26.2 mile (42.16km) course in 6:25 - slower than her usual pace.

"A few minutes after finishing, the contractions became stronger than normal and I understood what was going on," she said.

"When they became more regular, we had a sandwich and then we left for hospital," Mrs Miller added.

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