Marathon essentials: everything you need to survive your first 26.2 – and what you can run without
The lure of the marathon – arguably running's most heralded achievement – has never been as strong. A record-breaking 840,000 people signed up for the London Marathon 2025 ballot. Big city marathons, such as Berlin and New York, keep setting benchmarks for the biggest crowds toeing the start line. If you're among the runners getting ready to answer the call of the 26.2 for the first time – and you're sweating over the kit you need to get you there – you're in the right place.
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I ran my first marathon in Paris in 2009 and have completed 58 marathons since. Some fast, plenty slow, and I've put together a few flat lays in my time. So I know how important it is to get marathon kit right.
From the best marathon running shoes for speed and comfort to preventing the dreaded nipple chafe, kit choices can make or break your race-day dreams. Or, at the very least, they can be the difference between a happy day out and hours of torment on the tarmac.
I can't guarantee you'll finish with a smile, but here's my shortlist of the mission-critical kit you need to stack the odds in your favour. Starting with the most important item – your running shoes.
In recent years, marketing hype has suggested you have to run a marathon in a carbon-plate super-shoe. However, the best running shoe for first-time marathoners probably isn't a stripped-back race shoe that prioritises speed over protection.
I always advise beginners to ask themselves: will I still want to be running in this shoe if the wheels come off at mile 18, when I'm in a world of pain and everything feels slow, heavy and ragged? The correct shoe is the one that'll work from mile one to mile 26.2. Those fall, roughly, into three camps.
Brooks Glycerin Max
The Glycerin Max has a truly giant stack of new DNA Tuned nitrogen-infused foam to provide softness, springiness and maximum cushioning with a more reliable stability. When you're running on tired, beaten-up legs, the cocooned, protective comfort will be kind to fatigued feet.
Men's£180 at Brooks Running£179.95 at Runners Need
Women's£180 at Brooks Running£179.95 at Runners Need
Nike Vomero 18
With a giant stack of foam, plush-padded heel collars and tongues, and soft, cosy uppers, everything about the Vomero 18 is geared towards cruising comfort. The dual-foam midsole is soft and cushioned without being leg-sapping. It'll put some pep in your step when you're moving well, but it'll still look after you if you start to struggle. All that extra padding means it's quite heavy, but you're trading weight for comfort.
Men's£134.99, Nike£134.99 at Pro Direct
Women's£134.99 at Nike£134.99 at Pro Direct
Asics Novablast 5
This non-plated, big-cushioned running shoe is primarily designed for everyday runs – and that's part of the appeal. You can use it for most of your marathon training and it'll perform on race day. The soft, bouncy, energetic midsole is versatile. It lacks the thrust of all-out race shoes, but the ride is still smooth, springy and controlled. When you're moving well, with good form and pushing your pace, it returns the energy you put in. There's plenty of road-impact protection at slower paces, too. It's a capable marathon cruiser and no matter how you feel at mile 20, it's got your back.
Men's£134.99 at Sports Shoes£135 at Asics
Women's£134.99 at Sports Shoes£135 at Asics
If you've trained well, you're in great shape and you fancy giving it full beans, lacing up a carbon race shoe can provide leg-sparing efficiency gains. It can also just make you feel fast. However, choose your weapon wisely.
Brooks Hyperion Elite 4 PB
From the current crop of carbon race shoes, Brooks's latest racer would be my choice for beginners. It's light and airy, and so comfortable on the foot that you can forget you're wearing it. The 100% Peba superfoam midsole and plate are fast and smooth but, crucially, more natural and reliable than some wilder carbon race shoes. It delivers all the energy you want when you're hitting your splits, but offers enough backup comfort should race plan A unravel to plan C!
Unisex£200 at Brooks Running£199.90 at Amazon
Saucony Endorphin Pro 4
Springy and energetic but with a broader, nicely stable cushioned platform, this shoe offers some of that super-shoe energy and efficiency but with much more road protection to fall back on should things get tough deep into the race. If you need to slow down and rock back on your heels, the Endorphin Pro 4's high-cushion platform will help you wobble home in comfort.
Men's£229.95 at Runners Need£230 at Saucony
Women's£229.95 at Runners Need£230 at Saucony
Clocking up indoor miles? Read our guide to the best treadmills for your home
Men's CXP XP EnduranceFrom £37 at CXP
Women's CXP XP EnduranceFrom £35 at CXP
Don't underestimate the importance of a trusted pair of comfortable running undies. Much comes down to personal preference, but it's worth investing in run-specific underwear that uses soft fabric that wicks well, with minimal or flat seams to help avoid chafing.
Runderwear is a popular choice. I also recommend the sports underwear specialist CXP. Its range of running and training briefs – for men and women – is incredibly light, comfortable and reliable against unwanted rubbing. There are a few different styles, but the CXP XP Endurance is ideal for longer training and events.
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Men's Fujitraiil Elite shorts £85 at Asics
Women's Fujitrail Elite shorts£85 at Asics
Some runners love the fast, free and light feeling you get only from the shortest race shorts. Others prefer the second-skin, suit-of-armour coverage offered by longer-leg half-tights. For sheer practicality, I find the best option is the storage short.
A good pair of storage shorts combine built-in belts, zippered pockets and leg pockets to provide all the stash space you need to carry gels, phone, headphones and your other marathon essentials. Often you need to look for trail shorts for maximum storage, and the Asics Fujitrail Elite shorts are a great example of a lightweight option with ample stash space.
Stance Icon Sport crew£12.99 at Stance
Those old cotton gym socks might work for the odd 5km, but they're a fast ticket to blisters when you start increasing your distances. Happy feet make for a happy runner, so you definitely want a few good pairs of comfortable, durable technical running socks in your kitbag. There are plenty of good brands to choose from, but Stance stands out.
You can't go far wrong with a pair of Stance's run-technical socks, but these crew socks are an excellent mid-cushioned choice that are great for comfort on longer runs. They're quite thick but that generous padding in the reinforced heel, toes and all the way around the foot will be welcome in hour three of the marathon.
Coros Pace 3£219.99 at Decathlon£219 at Amazon
The light and compact Pace 3 is one of the best-value running watches you can buy. It offers an impressive 38 hours of battery, reliable dual-frequency GPS and a competitive suite of in-depth training, health and recovery features, including marathon training plans, fitness progress and recovery insights. Everything you need to train for a marathon is covered, along with handy tools for race day, such as a virtual pacer and race-time predictions.
Garmin Forerunner 165 Music£289 at Argos £288.56 at Amazon
It's pricier than the Coros, but the Forerunner 165 Music is a highly capable watch with enough training and race-tracking tools to conquer a marathon. The bright, smartwatch-style AMOLED display punches up the visibility of your vital stats, the 19-hour GPS battery life happily endures race day and there are reliable GPS and heart-rate trackers. If you want to run phone-free, it also offers offline Spotify. Garmin's PacePro tool can create a pacing strategy based on your marathon course with real-time feedback along the way.
Amazfit Up£42.68 at Amazon
An excellent open-ear alternative to bone-conduction headphones, the lightweight, clip-on Up is among the more affordable running headphones. Yet it has plenty of marathon-friendly features for the price. That includes an unshakeable fit that leaves your ears open, so you can soundtrack your run but stay tuned into the race-day atmosphere. If you struggle wearing in-ear buds for hours on end, this new style is more comfortable. It's a bit like clipping two tiny speakers in front of your ears, where they kick out surprisingly big, run-boosting sound. Throw in a marathon-taming six hours of playback on the buds – 18 more in the charging case – and you've got a cut-price rival for classic headphones.
2Toms Sport Shield£17.99 at Mountain Warehouse£18.99 at Amazon
Stand at the finish line of any major marathon and you'll see countless runners crossing the line with big red circles around their nipples: the bloody aftermath of spending 26.2 miles with fabric rubbing your soft bits raw. I've been that runner. It's a painful mistake you make only once.
2Toms' Sport Shield roll-on oil has been my go-to for a decade to avoid that fate. It provides a trusty barrier against unwanted friction burns. It's easy to apply to all the at-risk areas – nipples, thighs, under arms – and even the hardest-to-reach nooks and crannies.
It's relatively mess-free and covers easily, and one application lasts all day. The tube is portable, too – should you need to take it with you. There's also a Sport Shield Extra variety that offers more waterproofing and skin-soothing extras, such as aloe, green tea extract and shea butter.
Riemann P20 SPF50+ spray, 200ml£19.99 at Boots£24 at Look Fantastic
When you're training and racing, you'll spend long hours exposed to the sun's harmful rays, so it's smart to slather on sunscreen. However, traditional sun creams run when you sweat and often require reapplication.
I've been putting on P20 SPF50+ ever since I used it to fend off the Saharan sun while running the Marathon des Sables in 2015. It's water- and sweat-resistant, so it doesn't leak into your eyes and partly blind you mid-run. The spray bottle also makes application about as mess-free as sun protection gets. And one liberal coating protects from all the sun's nasties for 10 hours.
Get your post-run recovery sorted with our expert-approved guide to the best massage guns
Hydration vest
There are benefits to running with a hydration vest, and they're great for being self-sufficient on long training runs. Having water always at hand during a race breeds confidence and saves you grabbing cups from hectic water stations on the move. Vests also offer a convenient way to carry your energy gels. However, you'll feel less burdened if you leave it at home on race day. Most big-city marathons have aid stations at frequent points, so if you want to lighten your load you can safely leave the pack.
Compression arm sleeves
You'll see lots of runners slipping on compression arm sleeves in search of marginal gains. These elasticated accessories are designed to improve blood flow, help boost oxygen delivery and limit the movement that causes tiny muscle tears, affecting recovery times. Research suggests, though, there's no real performance benefit for runners. So unless you're using them for warmth, or you really love the way they look or make you feel, skip them.
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