Walking a Half-Marathon or Marathon

sllm1

I'm not a runner, but I'd like to set some personal fitness goals. Is WALKING a half marathon (and eventually a marathon) a realistic option? If I check the maximum amount of time that the race allows and can walk it in that amount of time, is there any reason I shouldn't give this a try? Do people walk marathons?

SabrinaJL

Yes, it is and yes, they do. http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/01/us/san-diego-marathon-oldest-woman-finishes

glevinso

Most races have a time limit. The typical time limit for marathons is 7 to 8 hours so that works out to 16:00-18:00/mile. If you can walk that fast, I guess you could. But almost nobody purposely walks a marathon. That seems overly painful.

Some half marathons out there might have slower required average paces. There are sometimes people that walk them.

What is your motivation though for walking that race? You say you are not a runner but are interested in these events. Why not learn to run?

WhatMeRunning

Check the time limits of any half marathons you are interested in by contacting the race director. Some have strict limits due to road closures of around 3 hours which would not be realistic for walking. In some of those cases I have seen even these races with so-called strict time limits wait for the last racers to cross the finish line and still hand out medals. A half marathon I ran this last weekend had a group of veteran runners called "Heroes of the Hill" who walked the whole way on purpose and made sure they were the LAST ones to finish. This way anyone who signed up was guaranteed NOT to be last.

Same for marathons, but that may be pushing things time-wise for most races. You never know unless you ask the race director though.

TavistockToad

sllm1 wrote: »

I'm not a runner, but I'd like to set some personal fitness goals. Is WALKING a half marathon (and eventually a marathon) a realistic option? If I check the maximum amount of time that the race allows and can walk it in that amount of time, is there any reason I shouldn't give this a try? Do people walk marathons?

I haven't walked a marathon, but I walked 30 miles for charity a couple of years ago. First 20 miles were ok, last 10 hurt... A lot!

Why not do something like that?

Jerlasvegas

Thousands of people walk the Las Vegas Rock N Roll Half Marathon. The cut off time is 4 hours which gives you quite a lot of time if you walk at a decent pace. I would consider walking a Half Marathon over a Full though. I've walked and ran a Half Marathon and for me, it was easier to run it. Walking that distance is definitely a great workout!

CSARdiver

Run when you're able, walk when you must. No shame in walking even if you finish when they're taking down the banners and wrapping up. You still did better than everyone who didn't try.

Try it! You'll be surprised how well you do with all the motivation around you.

mreardon990

SabrinaJL wrote: »

Yes, it is and yes, they do. http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/01/us/san-diego-marathon-oldest-woman-finishes

Not a good example, she didn't walk, she ran! But you could probably do it if you power-walked! However it might be best to start off with some smaller goals, like a 5k or 10k.

NofatdaddyMike

They do walk half and full marathons. It is done in Wisconsin every year: http://www.activeportagecounty.com/index.cfm?action=walking.walk

ArmyVet92

I walked both a 25K and a trail marathon back in 2013 with two other friends. The three of us all had injuries of some sort that prevent us from running so we decided to walk the training schedule and races. It was ALOT of hard work but in the end it was very satisfying to actually finish. We finished the marathon in 10 hours and 16 minutes... probably would have been quicker if it had been on pavement and not on trials.

WhatMeRunning

CSARdiver wrote: »

Run when you're able, walk when you must. No shame in walking even if you finish when they're taking down the banners and wrapping up. You still did better than everyone who didn't try.

Try it! You'll be surprised how well you do with all the motivation around you.

I tend to agree with this. If you can find an event with "smart pacing groups" you can pick the ones towards the back. They tend to do a strategy of combined walking and running that many people can handle if they have done any training at all. A lot of these strategies are walking for a minute at every mile, and walking up hills. Since you use different muscle groups between walking and running it is actually easier to do a long distance mixing the two together.

acorsaut89

WhatMeRunning wrote: »

Check the time limits of any half marathons you are interested in by contacting the race director. Some have strict limits due to road closures of around 3 hours which would not be realistic for walking. In some of those cases I have seen even these races with so-called strict time limits wait for the last racers to cross the finish line and still hand out medals. A half marathon I ran this last weekend had a group of veteran runners called "Heroes of the Hill" who walked the whole way on purpose and made sure they were the LAST ones to finish. This way anyone who signed up was guaranteed NOT to be last.

Same for marathons, but that may be pushing things time-wise for most races. You never know unless you ask the race director though.

This is awesome! I know when I ran my first 5K this year I was so terrified of coming in dead last . . . I know finishing is better than not starting or trying, but still when you've worked so hard you don't wanna come in last, even if it beats those who didn't even try.

lishie_rebooted

glevinso wrote: »

Most races have a time limit. The typical time limit for marathons is 7 to 8 hours so that works out to 16:00-18:00/mile. If you can walk that fast, I guess you could. But almost nobody purposely walks a marathon. That seems overly painful.

Some half marathons out there might have slower required average paces. There are sometimes people that walk them.

What is your motivation though for walking that race? You say you are not a runner but are interested in these events. Why not learn to run?

I've purposely walked 3.
And then walked a half marathon the next day.

Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. 2 days, 39.3mi (except San Francisco was 41.7)

I say go for it, just check the cut off times for the races or if you feel like fundraising, join the Avon Walk.
I broke my fibula so I can't run and I'm signed up for some races. I checked out the results from last year for the race to see if I could walk the race, people finished with 20:00/mi+ so I'll be ok since I walk much faster than that.

ThickMcRunFast

Sure you can. Most people with an average level of fitness could go out and walk a half marathon today (though they might be varying levels of sore/tired after). So if the time allows for it, there is no reason you can't do it. I know a woman who hikes the Catalina marathon every year. She beats a lot of the runners.

But for just your average road race...why? Seems dreadfully boring to me.

rybo

While I may not understand the motivation or desire to do such a thing, it seems people do walk them. An alternative might be to find a "challenge hike". They are typically very long and over very difficult terrain. It would be far harder than just walking a road marathon (at least the one I do is) so you could look into that.

cemb1977

I walked a charity marathon (Boston Marathon route). 8 hours and 10 minutes. I also am not a runner, but wanted a goal. I "trained" by walking around my town. Not too hard on muscles, but my feet were a little beat up at the end. It is a good goal for non-runners. I did it with my sister, so we helped each other keep up the pace.

auntiemsgr8

glevinso wrote: »

Most races have a time limit. The typical time limit for marathons is 7 to 8 hours so that works out to 16:00-18:00/mile. If you can walk that fast, I guess you could. But almost nobody purposely walks a marathon. That seems overly painful.

Some half marathons out there might have slower required average paces. There are sometimes people that walk them.

What is your motivation though for walking that race? You say you are not a runner but are interested in these events. Why not learn to run?

I disagree with this. I know multiple people who 'purposely' walk marathons and half marathons. Many have progressed to running but some stick with walking. They do average 15 min miles, some are even faster. So it is possible

sllm1

Thanks for all of your input. I walk 15 minute miles and do not desire to run and put extra stress on my joints and flat feet. I routinely walk a 10K for exercise. I appreciate all of your thoughts and ideas!

msf74

If you want a hybrid of running and walking you may find this interesting:

jeffgalloway.com/training/marathon-training/

BrianSharpe

I've seen lots of races listed with "walkers welcome" on the description. Check for cutoff times and if you think it's doable for you go for it (just check to make sure you start from the correct corral, most races will spread participants out so that people with faster projected finish time start at the front of the pack)

VeryKatie

sllm1 wrote: »

I'm not a runner, but I'd like to set some personal fitness goals. Is WALKING a half marathon (and eventually a marathon) a realistic option? If I check the maximum amount of time that the race allows and can walk it in that amount of time, is there any reason I shouldn't give this a try? Do people walk marathons?

Check to see if it allows it or not. Otherwise... learn to walk faster than 14 min miles and they can't really stop you (that's the cut-off speed where I live)! Slower than that and the cut off van might pass you. Different marathons might have different cut off speeds.

I've always been interested in those walks across the country things... you know... like fund raisers that are all like "We'll be walking across Canada for the next three months, please donate!" And people just... take 3 months off work and WALK. And WALK. And WALK.