Half-Marathon Training and Weight/Inches Loss
runningfromzombies
Posts: 386 Member
Hello, all you half-marathon-type people! I'm looking for some input from all of you. (:
I've trained for a half-marathon before. (Hal Higdon's novice plan, which I extended from 12 weeks to 18 weeks.) A great half-marathon it was, too (I finished in 2:11:02--my goal time pretty much exactly). During the course of training, I really expected to lose a lot of weight. I didn't. I lost in the range of 5-6 pounds during that 18 weeks (and post-half-marathon I gained about 10 pounds). Despite the fact that I lost very little weight, however, I lost a ton of inches: from a 31" waist to a 28.5" waist, my belly button area shrank, and my hips lost a few inches, too.
In retrospect, I don't think I was eating enough for how much I was training. I was usually in the range of 1800-1900 calories, and burned anywhere between 400-1000 calories merely with exercise depending on the day (those long weekend runs can really add up the burned calories). I'm 5'8", female, and was at the time between 150-155 pounds, with an estimated BMR of 1500-1550, so I'm pretty sure that my mistake was netting below my BMR on any given day. This time around I'm eating more, in the range of 2000-2200 calories, and it'll probably go up as my runs get longer and the workouts get harder.
I guess my question is this: have any of you lost a considerable amount of scale weight (say, .5-1 lb per week) while training for a half-marathon? Or is it your experience that you tend to lose much less weight, but see a major shrinkage of body fat % and measurements?
I don't really care if I lose scale weight as long as I'm shrinking--I just wanted to know what the general experience has been.
I've trained for a half-marathon before. (Hal Higdon's novice plan, which I extended from 12 weeks to 18 weeks.) A great half-marathon it was, too (I finished in 2:11:02--my goal time pretty much exactly). During the course of training, I really expected to lose a lot of weight. I didn't. I lost in the range of 5-6 pounds during that 18 weeks (and post-half-marathon I gained about 10 pounds). Despite the fact that I lost very little weight, however, I lost a ton of inches: from a 31" waist to a 28.5" waist, my belly button area shrank, and my hips lost a few inches, too.
In retrospect, I don't think I was eating enough for how much I was training. I was usually in the range of 1800-1900 calories, and burned anywhere between 400-1000 calories merely with exercise depending on the day (those long weekend runs can really add up the burned calories). I'm 5'8", female, and was at the time between 150-155 pounds, with an estimated BMR of 1500-1550, so I'm pretty sure that my mistake was netting below my BMR on any given day. This time around I'm eating more, in the range of 2000-2200 calories, and it'll probably go up as my runs get longer and the workouts get harder.
I guess my question is this: have any of you lost a considerable amount of scale weight (say, .5-1 lb per week) while training for a half-marathon? Or is it your experience that you tend to lose much less weight, but see a major shrinkage of body fat % and measurements?
I don't really care if I lose scale weight as long as I'm shrinking--I just wanted to know what the general experience has been.
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Im training for my first Half-Marathon and I've actually gained. I eat way more carbs then I normally would and I think that is the cause. I have two weeks tell my race and want to get back to my normal diet!! It will be worth it once I finish but it is very frustraiting. My legs are definitly more toned though. I'd be interested on what others have to say about upping your calories. Good luck 0
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I never lose weight whilst training but my legs do get super toned!0
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I've consistently lost weight while training, although it has slowed a I've bumped up my half training.
I blame it on the extra carbs I eat to fuel the long runs. But I am not worried about it as I've lost inches during the process.
After my half in 3 weeks, I'll get back to a regular running routine and adjust my calorie intake.
Good luck on your half!0 -
I am not a good example since I was already at goal when I started training (my first half is in one week). I have lost a half inch in my hips and belly area, but no weight (maybe a pound...).
I average about 1900-2000 cals per day (1620 base, plus all my exercise calories).0 -
I'd like to know too... I'm training for my first half marathon and reckon I've put on weight though perhaps not inches. I'm definitely allowing myself to eat more than I normally would, thinking I'll 'run it off' and think that this is the classic mistake runners make! everyone says you never see a fat marathon runner, but I'm starting to wonder as I do read that people tend to put on when they train for a half or marathon.!0
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Thanks for your input, everyone!
So far in the process I have neither gained nor lost weight, but we'll see how it turns out as the weeks go on. My legs are definitely getting steadily more toned, which makes me super happy.0 -
I gained weight, but I admittedly wasn't counting calories and it was summertime-so both my kids were out of school, we did more fast food than usual, etc. That said, when I took the girls to school, several people commented on how I had "lost weight". So apparently I toned up;-)0
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Hello! I'm new to this group and today is my first day of a 20 week program to train for my very first half marathon in January!
I really hope I can continue to lose weight while training. Reading through these comments about gaining weight scares me a little! I'll report back in 4 week increments to let you know if I lose any weight and/or inches! :bigsmile:0 -
I am currently in week 4 of a 10 week half marathon training program. My half is in October. So far I have lost 6lbs since starting but I am very meticulous about counting my calories and I don't eat back all of my calories burned (although I am trying to remedy this). This may be due to the fact that I still have 50lbs to lose. I have been losing at a steady 2lbs per week.
My marathon is in January so we will just have to see if I continue to lose while training.0 -
I have found that if I am cutting too many calories in an effort to lose weight, I don't have the energy for the harder workouts - speed and interval days. But in general, as long as I stick to a slight deficit, I have been losing weight (slowly). I am not really overweight, just trying to get off the last 5 lbs, so I don't have much to lose.
Some things I have read in regards to running and not losing weight - overestimating calorie burn is a big component, and also if you go on a long run, you may be more sedentary the rest of the day than usual "I just ran two hours now I can sit on the couch and watch TV the rest of the day" - so some of the calories you burned off are countered by the fact that you are less active than usual the remaining hours. Or the "I just ran two hours so I totally deserve this cookie", etc.
If you are just starting out and converting a lot of fat to muscle, I can see losing inches, not pounds. But if you are truly eating at a deficit, I think you would have to lose some weight. I have to be very honest and meticulous in my tracking to see modest drops - I wear an HRM to get my calorie burn (the estimates on MFP can be way off) and I just bought a food scale.
Edited to add: where I may see weight gain is the final week or so before the race, your mileage tapers off, but I tend to still eat the higher amount of calories to make sure my body has sufficient glycogen stores for the race.0 -
Since I started running in April, I have lost a grand total of 8 pounds. But I have lost 4 inches around my belly, 2 inches from my hips, 3 inches around my thighs...my top abs are starting to stand out and I have dropped about 10% off my body fat percentage. So I am no longer worried about the scale. I eat to run, so I have a fair amount of carbs. If I have too much of a deficit, I can feel my performance screech to a halt. I usually net around 1500 calories a day, except on long run Sundays where I probably dont even net my BMR. I have found that the more I run the less hungry I am and where I used to die if I didnt have my mid morning and mid afternoon snacks, now I have to force myself to eat them (else I wouldnt have good workouts or net my BMR).
My first half marathon is in 3 weeks and my second is 3 weeks after that. Afterwards, I plan on continuing to train at half marathon distances, maybe start to inch towards marathon until my wedding in April. Then, I am really going to push for the full marathon...but I am not worried about weight anymore. I watch what I eat, everything I eat has a purpose, usually to fuel runs (although chocolate is to keep my sanity). And I try to keep moving after long runs. As tempting as the couch is, I only let myself sit down for 30 minutes after the run, then about 2 hours total for the rest of Sunday. The more I sit on the couch, especially with football on, the more I eat lol.0 -
I am consistently losing 1 pound per week while training for my 1/2 marathon.
I feel like i"m always eating, but I'm trying to eat smart foods that will give me energy and fuel my runs.
The biggest change this time around is that I have added Yoga on my off/non-running days. It's made a HUGE difference in my running, weight loss and overall health.
I do have quite a bit to lose though, that could make a difference.0 -
My half is on October 7th. I started training in mid-July and I've gained about 3.5 pounds (which I consider to be a lot for a 4'11" frame). Totally worth it, though. My training plan went out the window weeks ago, but my runs are getting faster and easier. I'm in much better physical shape now at a higher weight than I was 3 months ago at a lower weight. I've heard that with the added carbs and sodium I've been eating, it could be a lot of water retention (and maybe some muscle, as I've added more strength training to my program). I haven't done measurements though. Not sure where I'm at with those.0
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My 1/2 is in less than 4 weeks and I have been eating at my TDEE maintenance level since June. I've steadily lost a 1 lb each week the last 3-4 weeks so I've upped my calories and recalculated my TDEE as it was higher with my long runs getting longer. Some folks are carb sensitive and gain; I'm lucky and don't have issues I guess. Carbs hold water; it's to be expected for most if you are higher on the carbs you will hold onto to more water weight. My macros are 50/25/25 and 60% on the days before my LR. I know I've lost BF but I'm afraid I probably lost a bit of muscle in my upper body too even with my strength training; even though I knew that to be expected as you are not going to gain much lean muscle in marathon training; this much cardio is counterproductive. I say it is possible to lose some but I wouldn't expect a drastic loss. I much rather be prepared and fueled properly than worry about the scale.
Edit: My maintenance calories at the beginning of training were 1800-1900. They are now 2000-2100 with a spike day each week of 2200-2300. I'm 5'2 and 112 pounds.0 -
I agree that it still fundamentally goes back to calories in/out. I eat more on my long run days (and the day after!) but rarely go beyond my limit, which is currently set to maintenance + eating back calories burned. On average I'm about 100 cals under this number, and so over the course of the summer I have lost a few more pounds while still doing long runs of 7-10 miles weekly. Upping my protein seems to make me feel better overall. I don't specifically carb-load for these distances, but probably will 1-2 nights before my race.
Good luck everyone!0
