Preparing for the marathon as a cosmonaut program. Running rearranges the habits of sommelier Volkinstein / Article

Jānis Volkinšteins is preparing for his first marathon under the guidance of experienced coach Ilona Marhele.

“Flirting with the idea of ​​preparing for a marathon, I had imagined that it was a certain amount of training that should be squeezed in between everyday work and free time.

But the trainings are very nuanced, each one has its own task – some for speed, some for endurance, some for other goals. Therefore, many things in my life have to be rearranged,” admits the sommelier, noting that he wants to enjoy the program to the end and end it with a fine result. Of course, within the limits of possibility.

Being a sommelier and preparing for a marathon is a serious challenge. “Work as a sommelier is often more nocturnal – with evening events, leading tastings, entertaining people. My beloved colleagues Santa and Arnis cover for me wherever they can, driving and leading tastings, thus opening up opportunities for me to be able to fulfill my sports tasks more,” reveals Walkinstein.

Volkenstein compares the preparation program for a marathon to the cosmonaut program, where you not only have to find time for training, but also seriously think about the quality of sleep and food.

Of course, it is not easy to combine all this with work. It is important to find extra time so as not to fall behind in professional everyday life, because the position of a sommelier requires training, but it is Jānis’ bread and work, which he loves very much.

Most recently, Jānis led an event in Līgatne, as a sommelier, he was on his feet for almost eight hours, and the next day he ran a 22-kilometer distance for time. Then he really started to think about his life and the length of his legs…

If we talk about nutrition, then Jānis can praise himself because he is, as he says, a “food geek”. In other words, he likes to cook, follow his diet, and he goes to work with his own food box.

Sport has been very dear to Jānis since he was a child, and even now, preparing for the marathon, he continues to practice powerlifting and boxing as a hobby.

Walkinstein had previously run a half-marathon distance that seemed very long.

When preparing for the marathon distance, I had to have a psychological conversation with myself in order to recalibrate my thinking, putting in my head that the distance I did before was only half.

The Riga Marathon will be very soon – in the middle of May. Well, Jānis has already discussed with his colleagues that he will be able to take a short break from work, at least from managing the evening event, so that he can fully prepare for the marathon and show the best possible result. At the moment, the task is to put in the work to improve the pace and get a good result.