Half Marathon Training

BeccaKay96

So I'm going to start training for a half marathon. I think having a big goal will help me stay motivated with my running! Any tips would be great! I live in the rockies of Colorado so I won't be doing the actual race until next summer but just want to start a training schedule to keep me going.
I'd love any and all tips from more experienced runners!

gdyment

Frequency first, work up to 5 days a week, comfortable enough you-can-talk sort of pace and short enough you can go the next day. Get fitted for proper shoes at a running store. Once you've been doing that for several months then worry about tempo/sprint/strides/etc. Run/walk combos are great if you're really new.

JoRocka

how much are you running now?

SueInAz

You actually don't need to run 5 days per week, 3 are enough with two shorter and one longer run each week. You have a lot of time so just focus now on building up slowly to a good base mileage. Remember the 10% rule: Don't add more than 10% more mileage from week to week.

If you aren't running more than 5K at a time yet, build up to that, then to 10K. If you're running 10K (6.2 miles) at a time, 3 days a week you'll be in a very good place to start half marathon training a few months away from your race date.

I'd suggest finding a good training plan to follow. Hal Higdon's comes highly recommended but there are also others. Cross training on the days between is a great idea, too.

BeccaKay96

I just did my first 10k in late July at a 10 minute per mile pace (pushing myself hard!) and I have been lazy with my runs since then. I am comfortable with a 6.5 mile run at a comfy pace of 12-11 minute miles right now but further seems intimidating! I'm just ready to get back in the saddle and push myself further!

SueInAz

BeccaKay96 wrote: »

I just did my first 10k in late July at a 10 minute per mile pace (pushing myself hard!) and I have been lazy with my runs since then. I am comfortable with a 6.5 mile run at a comfy pace of 12-11 minute miles right now but further seems intimidating! I'm just ready to get back in the saddle and push myself further!

If you're already running so far you could easily be ready for a half marathon in a couple of months. I ran my first one about 4 years ago with a longest run of 11 miles done once two weeks before the race and a base mileage of 6 miles that I ran 2-3 times each week.

JoRocka

SueInAz wrote: »

BeccaKay96 wrote: »

I just did my first 10k in late July at a 10 minute per mile pace (pushing myself hard!) and I have been lazy with my runs since then. I am comfortable with a 6.5 mile run at a comfy pace of 12-11 minute miles right now but further seems intimidating! I'm just ready to get back in the saddle and push myself further!

If you're already running so far you could easily be ready for a half marathon in a couple of months. I ran my first one about 4 years ago with a longest run of 11 miles done once two weeks before the race and a base mileage of 6 miles that I ran 2-3 times each week.

agreed.
I'm running Hal Hidgon's 1/2 marathon training Novice 2- which is only 4 days a week- and only one long run- it's perfect for me. I think its 12 weeks.

BeccaKay96

Thank you everyone for these awesome opinions!

mwyvr

You definitely have lots of time to prepare. Ignore pace for now - you need to first work on endurance and you get there by spending more time on your feet, running, and running a training pace not race or tempo pace. Go with the 80/20% rule - 80% of your training should be slower paced runs where you can easily carry on a back and forth conversation with someone real or imaginary running with you - that'll probably be your "comfy" 11-12 minute mile pace. At that pace you shouldn't have a problem increasing distance by 10% (7.1 miles).

I find I get bored if I don't mix up my runs quite a bit and by mixing things up I mean distance, location, topography (hills or no hills) and surface. Especially when it's warmer I much prefer to run in the mountains to keep both me and my dog cooler (and dip in the river of course).

In order to have that flexibility unless there is a race in my imminent future I don't go by any set training schedule except to target a miles per week objective which I derive from a miles per month goal. As I built up my running I fairly naturally moved from 3 days per week to 4 and 5 and often 6 days a week. Running a slower training pace makes this possible - if I was running flat out or tempo runs all the time it's highly likely I'd be injured, frequently, if I was running that often.

Good luck with your training and have fun!

Mike, Vancouver BC

dewd2

There's a great training guide from Runner's World on the news stands right now with tips and plans for all distances. It is worth checking out, IMO.

FireStorm1972

I used Hal's Novice 1 for my 1st back in May...2 weeks till my 2nd half and am planning to PR this 1/2. I agree no need to run 5 days a week, I tried that and had trouble with recovery times. I now run 4 times. Tuesday is my Tempo as i'm uping my pace, Wednesday is a 10k 1/2 pace run, Thursday is a 6 mile pace run, and Saturday is my long run 10+ miles. The long run is VERY IMPORTANT even if you have to walk some, endurance is key at this point for you. Add me if you like.