Half marathon...

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Doing a half marathon a week on Sunday and really nervous! I've only done one race before which was a really quiet one, and this is a much bigger, city one which is freaking me out a bit. Usually just run on my own! Going to take music to listen to and just focus on running but getting really, really nervous... Anyone else done a half marathon/marathon?

Never done one. But I applaud you for going for it. Good luck! Go get it.

I've never done one, but I've been a medic at several. You crazy people. I say this in the nicest way possible, but really, you're all nuts

Def take your music, I know from doing fun runs (5 km is my maximum...now I feel lazy) that even in the craziest, busiest ones you can zone out just fine - everyone else will be doing it too. Once you get running you'll forget your anxiety and just run. Actually, I find the busier it is, the easier it is to zone out.

Just be sure to grab your water when you can and lather on the sunscreen.

Good luck and have fun!

Thanks for the advice and encouragement! I'm kind of looking forward to it because I love running in new places but don't always feel safe on my own, so will be nice to have a totally new route and know I won't get lost! Will be a totally new experience as well which is really scary but I'm trying to work up to joining a running club so hopefully will make that easier. Taking lots of water and bananas don't think I'll need sunscreen though coz it's in Glasgow, more likely to need a waterproof!

Running a half marathon is a huge achievement if you are unfit or never ran that sort of distance before. For a fit and active person a half marathon can be completed in less than 2 hours.

I have ran 6 half marathons with a PB of 101 minutes. I would like to get my half time down from 101 to 95 minutes. I have only ran one marathon with no training in a disappointing time of 4 and a half hours (270 minutes).

How did you go in your half marathon? Will you run a marathon, one day?

Did it in 2 hours 1 minute really pleased with that time, especially as I've had a tummy bug over the last couple of days and had to take lots of imodium so it would ease off long enough to run the race! Really glad I did it though, massive sense of achievement. Would love to do a full marathon someday but not sure I'm fit enough at the moment... Might try some longer runs and see what happens. Are you planning to do another marathon one day?

I would love to do one but I struggle with endurance. If I do one next year, might be one where walking is an option. I will take my I pod for sure. Don't know how I managed it before the Ipod.

There were lots of people walking yesterday- they advertise the Great Scottish Run (10k or half marathon) as something anyone can take part in and there's the option of running or walking. They put you in groups according to estimated finish time (I was in the slowest group, lol) and it's a lot less intimidating that way. Still couldn't believe how many people there were though! I went right to the back and started slowly so I wasn't in a massive amount of people, then people gradually spread out more and I had my ipod in so it was OK. Actually really enjoyed it I love Glasgow and it was nice to be able to do a run that covered a lot of the city which I'd be too scared to do on my own in case I got lost!

What do I do to get ready for a half marathon by Spring? Is it possible? I can't run that far, only about a quarter mile and then I stop and walk for a bit before I do it again but I want to run a while without stopping. How do I work up to that? It seems like I do the same amount of running every time I go around the track for three miles.

Ideally, I would like to be able to sprint ahead and then keep a pace going during a marathon ahead of the others but that might be too ambitious considering I haven't even run one before. If I could build speed and endurance, I have a strategy for winning.

I would just like to know, should I try running for three miles everyday to get ready? Should I stop running a week before the marathon to get strength because I do get tired when I run everyday. I notice when I skip a couple days I have more energy the next time I run and can run a bit longer. I heard runners run everyday to get ready for marathons.

Of course, I want to increase the distance I run. Next distance will be an extra lap around the track (another 1.5 miles.) Question is, how long should I wait before adding more distance?

It's definitely possible! Just focus on increasing your distance tolerance for the moment, then think about everything else. Last summer, I was running three miles at a time and didn't think I was capable of doing anything more than that. My uni tutor (who runs marathons) lent me Haruki Murakami's book 'What I Talk About When I Talk About Running' which was AMAZING, really inspirational and he says that he counts six miles a day as 'serious running'. I started doing two three mile runs a day and still didn't think I could do longer, but my tutor said to try putting the two runs together which felt terrifying at first but got easier. Try increasing gradually- don't do too much at once. When I was more used to six miles at a time, I tried doing two six mile runs one day a week, then after a few weeks of that, I put the two runs together to make twelve miles.

Try increasing one run a week by a mile or two and see what happens. If it's too much, step back a bit and try again in a few weeks; if it's ok, give it a few weeks then increase again. Make it gradual then your body can adapt. I've been obsessed with running/reading about running for nearly two years so feel free to PM if you want more advice! Don't worry too much about speed/strategy until you can do the distance comfortably. And running is genuinely 80% psychological- two weeks ago, I thought my fitness level had dropped too much to do a half marathon and I had a tummy bug when I did it, but could still get round and actually beat my time from last year by 6 and a half minutes! Good luck

When you say your "run for six miles," do you run the entire time or just for a while, then walk, then run again? This is what I do. I want to run the entire way, but I get to the point where I walk instead after running about a quarter of a mile. I have always been much better at sprinting so I never learned to run long distances when younger and now I am attempting it but feel completely untrained.

I have noticed improvement from when I first started but not as much as I wish. Do you run everyday or every other day? Which is best for someone who wants to enter a half marathon?

I use this for my training: http://www.runnersworld.co.uk/racing/ru ... /3057.html

Put in the relevant details and it comes up with a training programme for you.

Enjoy and good luck!

Vx

That is definitely a help! I plugged in some times into the website and it told me I do not need to run every single day but should do a long run once a week. I don't know if I can run as long as it says to. I picked "very hard" since I want to train quickly but am not sure I am up to that just yet.

I think I need a few more jogs, and maybe some walks, too!

At least I feel pointed in the right direction. I need to rest a few days a week, not try to run everyday and a couple of times a week, I need to try for the longer distances while the other times focus on shorter ones.

You're welcome!

However, if you're just starting long distance running, I'd go for the moderate version. It's very easy to get carried away and do too much too soon. The body needs to adapt and get used to the physical changes that will happen. Building up distance and pace gradually is the key. One rule is to not increase your distance over 10% from week to week.

Also, as you've noted, recovery is just as important as the training itself, plus you need to stretch correctly before and after. Nutrition and what you eat/drink before and after a training session is also another element. These are all important to help prevent injury and keep you running!

There are some very useful articles on the Runners World site that can help, such as: http://www.runnersworld.co.uk/nutrition ... /8640.html

Please note that I'm not a coach (yet!) but an endurance athlete with over 20 years experience of training and racing. I've had to learn the hard way by making the mistakes I've quoted above!

Happy running!

Vx

I hope to run a half marathon between 90 to 95 minutes.
I hope to improve my marathon time and obtain a time under 4 hours and closer to 3 and a half hours.
Based on my current PB of 101 minutes for half marathon I ran recently I should easily run a sub 4 hour marathon.

I just read about something called a "stitch" that runners get in one of the links I found thanks to this thread. That must have been what I got when I was young and why I never liked to run long distances. Anybody have trouble with stitches when they run? I can remember mine being so annoying it used to keep me from exerting myself. I am so grateful to no longer have them.