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half/full or faster first
mjpTennis
Posts: 6,165 Member
Ultimately, I am trying to qualify for the Boston Marathon as part of fulfilling a running dream. To get there this summer I have started training for a marathon in Sept. With all of my training runs, I am realizing that I am improving but not where I need to be to fulfill my dream of qualifying. I have only run two 5k's (24 min) and a 10k (53 min) competitively and have been running for a little over 2 years. My times if extended to a marathon will not hit the qualifying times for the Boston race. I do realize it could take years before I get there, but I am willing to work at it.
I am convinced that I could finish both a half (with an ok pace) and full (just finish) this year. In the grand scheme, should I be trying to get faster first or work on the distances first and speed second. Just looking for your experiences around this. Thanks.
I am convinced that I could finish both a half (with an ok pace) and full (just finish) this year. In the grand scheme, should I be trying to get faster first or work on the distances first and speed second. Just looking for your experiences around this. Thanks.
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Replies
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The marathon is a totally different animal than a half. If you feel like you could finish, and not concerned with time, could be worth the experience0
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Paula Radcliffe took 10 years to run her first marathon. For me, me have to increase the distance/improve the body a few every month / years until when we will naturally find that we are ready to face a 10 miles race.. half and a marathon. Running doesn't match with hurry. So, don't matter how time that could take, I have to be patient ...0
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I think you should do the races. They would be valuable experience. And I think the experts would say you should work on your distance and endurance first, the speed will come later. If your goal is to run a fast marathon then you need to run some marathons!
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Definitely get some completed marathons in. Work on distance and strength first. You have to be patient with progression. It took 5 marathons before "the wall" move from mile 18 to mile 23. This has been over a 4 year period for me, but it is different for everyone. Good luck achieving your goal0
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Ran my first 17 miler today. Ran 9:45-10 min miles for the first half, 9:30 until the last two at 8:30-8:45.
I think I am going to hit a few more weeks of my marathon training, settling on this pace and continue to work on my strength/stretching. I will see where I am in a few weeks with the long Sunday runs. If they continue to go well, perhaps I will hit that late Fall marathon or the half. I do like the idea of experiencing the marathon for the experience the more that I think about it. Thanks.0 -
You will get faster at ALL distances by running more easy training miles. Training for a marathon was the best thing that I ever did for all my other race times.0
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You will get faster at ALL distances by running more easy training miles. Training for a marathon was the best thing that I ever did for all my other race times.
True! I ran an organized half marathon on a weekend during my marathon training that called for a 13 mile run and in the midst of my marathon training, I blew my half marathon PR away. I totally surprised myself at how much faster I performed over that distance.0 -
Which is why I have started telling people to run a 50K to better their marathon time.You will get faster at ALL distances by running more easy training miles. Training for a marathon was the best thing that I ever did for all my other race times.
True! I ran an organized half marathon on a weekend during my marathon training that called for a 13 mile run and in the midst of my marathon training, I blew my half marathon PR away. I totally surprised myself at how much faster I performed over that distance.0 -
As the runs get longer, I am starting to understand the beauty of running slower and how it impacts the rest of my runs. Tha me for sharing. It is nice to do the run continuously and comfortably. Amazing how I can start telling how fast my pace is before looking at my phone. Looking forward to my at pace run this week too.0
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You will get faster at ALL distances by running more easy training miles. Training for a marathon was the best thing that I ever did for all my other race times.
Agreed. The early training periods for just about any distance race (say 5000m+), looks pretty similar. I'm training primarily for the 5000 right now, with an eye towards the 10000, but my base training could pass off as marathon training (although I would bump up the mileage at least 10-15 more for a while before doing one).0
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