Half marathon race day is first time running 13m?

seif0068

Hi folks - my first post so please be kind!

I just entered the lottery to run a half-marathon this summer - my first, yay! I've looked at a lot of training programs for beginners, and many have you running 13m for the first time on race day. That seems a little strange to me - wouldn't it be better to have run that distance at least once before the race?

I'm training for a 10k that is on April 6th and the half is the end of June, so I think I have some time to tweak a beginner training program to get to 13m before the race, but am not sure if this is a good move or not. If I do - how long before the race should this other 13m run be, and what should my distances be in between that and race day? I have read about tapering before the race but just not sure how it would work if I get up to 13m before the race.

Maybe it's better just to spread out increasing my distances so that the race is the first time I've run that distance but that just seems a little scary to me!

I appreciate any guidance from more experienced runners! If this is helpful, right now I have done some 5k's and can run 4 miles.

3dogsrunning

Any training program I have used doesn't have you running the full distance prior to the race and I have done fine. I know I have read the reasoning behind it but honestly can't remember. I don't believe most marathon training programs do either.

JustJennie1

I'm not sure of the reasoning either but you never run the full race mileage before race day.

jacksonpt

IME, the only benefit to having run the full distance prior to race day is mental... having the confidence to know you can. A good program will certainly give you the physical ability, you just have to trust it.

SwindonJogger

the reasoning is that the amount of recovery time taken to recover from 13 mile runs as a beginner will hinder your training before the race. If you can run 10 miles during the training plan then 13 will be a breeze due to the adrenaline of race day.

moustache_flavored_lube

I'm not sure of the reasoning either but you never run the full race mileage before race day.

that's not true, plenty of plans have you run the mileage before race day, especially for a 1/2. It really just depends on your goals, and now much volume your body can handle.

You can pretty easily run about 1/2 of your weekly volume in one shot. So if you get your volume up to around 26 mi per week, and your long run up to at least 10 mi you should be able to complete the 1/2 marathon without a problem.

I think many people don't push themselves to make the distance prior to race day for their first 1/2 or full marathon, because it can kind of take away from the moment. It is more exciting to complete the distance for the first time on race day, than it is by yourself on a long run two weeks earlier.

If you can build a plan that increases your weekly millage by no more than 10%, and peaks two weeks prior to your race (you want to taper), then there is nothing wrong with running the distance before the race.

moustache_flavored_lube

That being said if you can build to at least 10 mi long runs prior to the race, I would suggest spending some effort on speed-work runs vs building more distance

seif0068

Thanks for all the feedback, everyone! I think I will stick with just building each week and have the race be my first time running 13m. I don't want to overdo it and then be out of whack on race day. I also am doing some speedwork/hills, to round things out.

All of this is assuming I actually get selected for the race - I entered the lottery today and will find out in a couple weeks. The race is on my 29th birthday, and I ran my first 5k on my birthday a couple years ago - would be kind of a neat tradition! If I don't get into this one I will look at doing one in July.

rybo

Do you want to just finish or do you want to attempt to at least begin to see how wel you can do at that distance. If you want to just finish, like already said, you don;t have to run that distance. BUT if you want to have a more comfortable race or want to run a time closer to what your potential holds, then I think going up to 15 miles or so for the long run helps a lot.

omma_to_3

I have my first half in April. I can run up to about 10.5 miles right now. I would like to hit at least 12 before the race, but it's so cold out right now I'm not pushing it.

I did run my first 10K in a race. I was really concerned I wouldn't be able to do it. Not only did I do it, I could have kept going, and had my fastest 10K time to date. I usually perform worse in races than in my training runs!

pbl1966

Running my first 1/2 this Sunday. My training plan called for a max of 10 miles. After I ran the 10 I was not confident in my ability to go another 3 so I did another slow training run with friends for 12 miles and now feel so much better about finishing strong and probably faster than my orignal goal. Good luck!

JustJennie1

Do you want to just finish or do you want to attempt to at least begin to see how wel you can do at that distance. If you want to just finish, like already said, you don;t have to run that distance. BUT if you want to have a more comfortable race or want to run a time closer to what your potential holds, then I think going up to 15 miles or so for the long run helps a lot.

I think it depends on the person. I never ran more than 11 miles when I did my half marathon training and finished 1:54:46. Had my husband not been suffering from plantar fasciitis my finish time would have been at least ten minutes faster. I was also training for 16 weeks and my runs consisted of tempo runs, speed work, easy runs and long runs. Most of my training was outside and I live in a very hilly area so I think that helped a lot.

Again I think it really depends on the person and what their training program consists of.

kmmuellr

the reasoning is that the amount of recovery time taken to recover from 13 mile runs as a beginner will hinder your training before the race. If you can run 10 miles during the training plan then 13 will be a breeze due to the adrenaline of race day.

I wouldn't say its a breeze, but its doable!

I'm not a runner, trained for about a month and a half and got up to 10 miles. I started from a pretty good base from lifting and calestetics (sp?). I finished the race in about 1:55, but miles 11-12 were a nightmare. I was pulled through by a VERY helpful woman who chatted me up during that portion (before she took off and left me in the dust!) Once I got inside of 3/4 mile to the finish the crowds pulled me through.

K