First Half Marathon!! Advice?

Hi, Congrats' on deciding to do your first half marathon!

OK:
1) Fuel. I follow (roughly) the "Paleo Diet for Athletes" which follows the same principles, but adds some complex carbs immediately before and after your workouts. During the event you may only need a few sweets (Gummy bears or something soft) and maybe a Poweraid or similar. Practise eating and drinking while you train.

2) 2 Hour pace is around 9 minutes per mile. I do the 2 hour pace runner for a local event each year and practise running at this pace. Your training should have some runs at this pace, some (shorter) faster than this too.

3) New shoes will eliminate some potential problems. Other problems can be from training too hard, fast, much or when too tired. Following a programme will help and do not "catch-up" on a missed session - let it go.

4) Water / hydration is a personal choice, and really you can only experiment and see what works best. Body size, temperature, gradient all have a factor. I dont get side ache (stitch) but have heard it can be eased by raising the arm (on the side of the ache) above your head for maybe 10 seconds while you run - looks nutty, but apparently it helps.

5) Other advice?
Have Fun
Set your main goal "to finish", then "have fun" "thank all volunteers" etc with time goals being further down the list. I totally understand you have time goals, but try not to let that goal be the only goal you have - it could ruin your whole experience.

Practise running technique (either watch Youtube or join a club with coaching) . This will also help efficiency and avoid injury.

Mix up the terrain on which you train. pathways, trails, grass, hills, pools, swamp (??) all make your runs more interesting, fun and can avoid injuries too.

Wear your "race clothes" a few times on your longer runs. This will help you discover any chaffing or annoying things on your clothes BEFORE your big day.

Train in all weather conditions (OK, maybe not dangerous conditions). You dont know what the weather will be on race day, so training in all weathers will help you be better prepared (clothing, antichaffe etc) and mentally better equipped.

Drag friends out to train with you, either running or biking beside you. Company is always good and provides some accountability.

Try to train on the course if you can. familiarity will make the raceday less stressful and more enjoyable (knowing you can run that long hill etc). If this is not possible, try to train on similar terrain as the course provides.

Have fun (again), train hard and race easy. I won't wish you good luck (you won't need it) but I will wish you "no bad luck"

:drinker:

1. What to fuel with? I follow the Paleo Diet. I already know I need to up my carbs (I don't eat grains though)
--Eat what you normally eat, just have increased carbs on your run days and the day before your long run days (about 50% carbs). For fuel during the runs, you won't really need anything until you start getting up towards/into double digit distances, but you should give yourself to test out any options you are considering to make sure they won't mess up your stomach on race day. What to use varies per runner, Clif Shot Blox, Gu, Honey Stinger Chews, gummy bears, baked potatoes, etc. are all things I've seen runners say they carry.

2. What pace should I go? I wanna finish under 2:00
-- That is a decently lofty goal for a first half marathon finish time. Most folks will tell you that for your first one you should focus on finishing rather than pace. But I can certainly understand wanting to have a good time despite that. Personally, I ran my first half in just under 2:05 but I also had almost ideal conditions, weather wise, for my San Francisco run. Pacing-wise, that was 9:32 per mile average for that finish.

3. How to NOT get injured?
-- Don't push yourself too hard. Vary your workouts so you aren't just running every day. Include strength training in your routine. Include at least one rest day every week where you do nothing in terms of working out. Don't increase your distance my too much each week.

4. How much water should I drink on my long runs without getting a side ache?
-- I wear a belt that holds 20oz and, with the exception of one really hot day, I always have about 8oz, give or take, left when I finish. I just drink when I need it, never more than a sip or so at a time so it doesn't upset my stomach.

5. Any other advice would be amazing!!
-- Remember to have fun and also to listen to your body. If your body is telling you to take a day off or to slow down, do it. This doesn't mean giving in to feelings of laziness, but if there is a decrease in performance, soreness that isn't going away, you're constantly over-tired, and other similar things, that's your body telling you that you need to take it easy. Don't make skipping a workout a regular thing by any means, but taking one day off if you need it isn't going to hurt your training and will probably end up being beneficial. And when it comes to the race day, don't do anything you haven't already done. Wear clothes you've worn on your long runs, wear the same hydration belt or carry the same bottle of water, eat the same food the couple of days before and then same thing the morning before the run. You don't want any surprises when you're out on that course.
Thanks all!! I am super stoked!!
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I'm curious as to where you got the time goal. Is it based on previous race times?

I'm curious as to where you got the time goal. Is it based on previous race times?

Curious on this as well.

If you fitness supports a 2 hour HM pace now, then set your training paces based on it (and training paces should almost all be slower than race pace), otherwise set training paces for where you are now and evaluate a race goal in about 8-9 weeks. If you have a recent race, use a pace calculator like McMillian (google it) to set appropriate training paces. If you don't have a recent race, try running a 5k or 10k time trial to get a starting point.

I don't have much to offer, but have fun. I treated my first half like it was just another Sunday run. I had the BEST time.

My goal was to finish, but I wanted to finish in under 3 hours. That goal was based on my training run time. I finished in (run\walk)2:43 and some change.

Good luck!

Hi!
I've done around 7-8 half's now and although it is a loooong way, it is easily manageable if you PACE YOURSELF!
The worst thing you could do is try to keep up with the pack and deplete all your reserves early on.

The aim for your first half marathon should be simply to finish. If you set yourself too tough a challenge you will be put off for life cos it will not be enjoyable. You should just enjoy the occasion and use it as a starting point for subsequent races.

The furthest I had run prior to my first half was 10k but I managed fine. Your mind knows that 'This is a long distance and I'll be running for a long time' so when I finished, I felt I could've done more!... It's all in the mind and how you prepare yourself mentally as well as physically.

Eat a peanut butter bagel & banana and a litre of water an hour before start and take on water halfway through and you'll be fine. You can get some energy beans/gels to consume at the later stages to give you a quick boost when you start flagging.

Enjoy!

www.runningbug.com

great advice and also great training plans,

Hi!
I've done around 7-8 half's now and although it is a loooong way, it is easily manageable if you PACE YOURSELF!
The worst thing you could do is try to keep up with the pack and deplete all your reserves early on.

The aim for your first half marathon should be simply to finish. If you set yourself too tough a challenge you will be put off for life cos it will not be enjoyable. You should just enjoy the occasion and use it as a starting point for subsequent races.

The furthest I had run prior to my first half was 10k but I managed fine. Your mind knows that 'This is a long distance and I'll be running for a long time' so when I finished, I felt I could've done more!... It's all in the mind and how you prepare yourself mentally as well as physically.

Eat a peanut butter bagel & banana and a litre of water an hour before start and take on water halfway through and you'll be fine. You can get some energy beans/gels to consume at the later stages to give you a quick boost when you start flagging.

Enjoy!

Thank you - great advice. I have my first half on Sunday Yikes! Just aiming to finish! The food and hydaration info is very handy!