Half Marathon...realistic time goal?

ninamm3

I just ran my first Half this October. I finished in 2hrs 42min. I've only been running since late April of THIS year and had some pounds to drop in the process. I've lost 40 pounds and have 10 more to go. Anyways, there's another Half coming up at the end of March 2012 and I'd like to break a 2hr 30min time goal...is it a realistic goal to shave about 15 minutes off a time I set just a couple months ago? Which training plan would you recommend> I've been looking on Runner's World.

THANKS!

bjbixler

I definitely think its reasonable. The more you run, the longer you run, the faster you'll get. In March I had a 13:30 minute/mile 5k pace. Just ran my HM at an 11 min/mile pace (time 2:25)

I used Hal Higdons intermediate program, but he also has a novice 1 and 2 you may want to look at.

I'm still new to this myself but am more than happy to help in any way I can!

bstamps12

I think it is very realistic to improve that much in 6 months considering that you are practically doubling how long you have been running (only 6 months for your first 1/2, 1 year for your 2nd half). My time goal is under 2:20 for my first half marathon and I've been running right at a year now (mine is also in March 2012) so pretty close to yours!

Pebble321

Have a look at the Runkeeper fitness classes - they have training plans for specific times, I'm currently using the one that aims to have me finishing in 2:30.
(Note that you have to pay to download the plans to Runkeeper on your phone, but if you don't want to pay, you can still view the plans online and follow them without Runkeeper).

healthygirlforever

Definitely! I bet you will drop even more time than that. Did you drop 40 lbs since the race? Congrats! Just on that alone I would expect you to run much faster .

ninamm3

Definitely! I bet you will drop even more time than that. Did you drop 40 lbs since the race? Congrats! Just on that alone I would expect you to run much faster .

I lost 30 pounds prior to the race. But I should be 20 pounds lighter total (and 50 pounds down over all) before the next Half. Thanks!

rybo

Very realistic. Lots of people end up gaining speed just by keeping up consistent runs. You have 4 more months of that from your race.

RushinBruisette

First off, congrats on both completing your first half and losing weight! WAY TO GO! Second, I think it's totally reasonable!

I have my first half next April, I would love to have a 2hr 20min time (a few min faster than my sister in law, always in competition) but really, I'll be happy to finish anywhere under 3hrs.

Good luck, can't wait to see your time!! Please post it if you remember!

ninamm3

First off, congrats on both completing your first half and losing weight! WAY TO GO! Second, I think it's totally reasonable!

I have my first half next April, I would love to have a 2hr 20min time (a few min faster than my sister in law, always in competition) but really, I'll be happy to finish anywhere under 3hrs.

Good luck, can't wait to see your time!! Please post it if you remember!

Thanks! I will post the results (end of March is the race). I plan to follow a Galloway training plan. I have learned so much through his books and I like his methods. I put it all on a calendar and plan to start next week! The goal is to average a 10 minute mile...

lurelw

As others have said, that's a great goal. Another good place to make training plans for specific time goals is halfmary.com

skemery

Totally realistic, my first half was finished in 2:40:06. Three weeks later my second half was 2:29:15. Try to find yourself a pacing group to at least start with. If you're feeling good halfway through you can step it up and leave the group.

meagalayne

Very realistic. Lots of people end up gaining speed just by keeping up consistent runs. You have 4 more months of that from your race.

Exactly! I shaved 5 minutes off my 8K time in one year of not-so-intense training, including 2 months of injury. Only started running in Mar 2010 and ran my first 1/2 Marathon in 2:08 and change. It's very realistic to aim to improve that much over 4 months. You have 13.1 whole miles to make up those minutes! :bigsmile:

And congrats on your accomplishments. You are awesome!

bonjour24

i think that if that is what you want to aim for, then it's totally doable!

i have ran 2 half marathons, my first in 2hrs 44, and my 2nd (3 weeks later) in 2hrs 50 (way hillier!).

my next half is at the end of feb, and i'd love to be able to do it in 2hrs 30, but i'll take 2hrs 43!

i'm working on just doing distances (i'm running a marathon in april, so the next half is a bonus of that journey). but if you want to do speed stuff, there is particular stuff you can do to focus on speed like intervals and things like that.

good luck. i'd love to hear about how you're doing and how the training is going.

BerryH

You're speedy already by my standards! 2:30 is totally achievable. Look for a plan with mid-week intervals (or hills), fartlek and tempo runs to get your speed up, in addition to your long run and recovery run.

scotrunner

Hello, congratulations on your weight loss! Fat is dead weight that still needs oxygen so having lost some will definitely make you faster. I did my first half a few weeks ago. I followed the runners world sub 2.15 training plan for 12 weeks and I managed to finish in 1hr 59mins which is just over a 9 min mile pace. I could not have done it without my garmin. I have the most basic version 110 with HRM and it is the best training buddy ever. When I was slowing down I just upped my pace to get back to 9 min/mile. Good luck with your training. Definitely achievable by march

keiraev

My first half was in March this year, I had been running for over a year and a half but I was 26lb heavier than I am now and plodded my way along!

I think I finished in about 2 h 48 !

I am doing my second HM in March 2012 and would LOVE to do it in 2 h 30 or less, is that so much to ask!?

The thing is I can only do a 10/11 minute mile if I am running 5K or something, I get soooo slowwwww over longer distances.

Time will tell and hopefully having lost weight will help a bit!

millionsofpeaches

I think that is realistic... You need to do speed training to improve your time. Not just train at your normal pace. You may want to look into Fartlek Running which means "speed play" in Swedish. Here is one link that popped up when I typed it into Google... There is a bunch more. http://runners-resource.com/fartlek

Dragonfly1996

Congrats on your weight loss & completing your 1st half!!! Agree with everyone on here - that's totally achievable!! I did my first half sept 2010 in 2:48 then my 2nd last month in 2:28 so I managed to knock 20 mins off!! I did follow a plan from runners world this time, got properly fitted trainers & also wrote my mileage plan on my calendar for my long runs as found it helped me mentally to see what distance I had to do in the run up to the weekends. I did one interval run during the week, crosstrainer, spinning & two strength training sessions.
Good luck with your training and the actual race!!! :flowerforyou: