Can I do a 1/2 Marathon, Next month??

SASSYnCHICago
SASSYnCHICago Posts: 98 Member
in Motivation and Support
I started to run last July 2012 (thanks c25k), about 2-3 times a week and completed my first super sprint triathlon in August 2012. I continued training and did my first 5K race last month (finished time 27:32), and my first 8K last weekend (44:49) - I'm signed up for a 10K on May 19th - but there is an option to do a half. I'm wondering if this is possible. I've ran 10K distance twice in the last month without any problems - so i think I good to go with that, but now I'm thinking about moving up to the half. What got me thinking about this is that I join a team and I see that all the other participates are doing the half. (5 others), and I am the only 10K person.
I would have exactly 5 weeks to prepare for this - Is this doable or should I continue on my planned "incremental" runs to work up to this.
I plan to do a 15K next in November for sure (or maybe sooner - if I see one I'm interesting in) .

What are your thoughts?

Replies

  • mmk137
    mmk137 Posts: 833 Member
    a half is very different to a 10km.

    it's doable, but to be honest, you are cutting it short with training, and I wouldn't do it.

    You need to get the miles into your legs, yes you've run 10km, but you haven't run it regularly.

    you could be setting yourself up to fail.

    you'd be better off trying for one in July or later, that will give you plenty of training time.
  • gabcaron
    gabcaron Posts: 14 Member
    I tend to agree. Yes, you would probably be able to do it, but what's the rush? There are lots of half marathon in the autumn. You would have time to prepare properly and by doing this, to prevent a eventual injury.
    I understand your enthusiasm. I run half marathons and am now thinking about a full. If I only listen to my feelings, in may, I would change my half for a full but my body is not ready and he's the boss.
  • kellster111
    kellster111 Posts: 113 Member
    Last August I committed to doing a half marathon with only 8 weeks training, I was running 8-10k 2-3 times per week anyway. I worked with a running coach for the 8 weeks and completed the half in 2hrs 12mins. BUT it was such hard work, I was training 5-6 days a week so that I could build up to the time and distance, I wouldn't do it again, I really think that you need at least 4-6 months to build up gradually as I had injuries and fatigue that took its toll on my whole life.
    I would plan to do a PB for the 10k this time and then find a half in a few months time.
  • Zaria_Athena
    Zaria_Athena Posts: 56 Member
    a half is very different to a 10km.

    it's doable, but to be honest, you are cutting it short with training, and I wouldn't do it.

    You need to get the miles into your legs, yes you've run 10km, but you haven't run it regularly.

    you could be setting yourself up to fail.

    you'd be better off trying for one in July or later, that will give you plenty of training time.
  • Zaria_Athena
    Zaria_Athena Posts: 56 Member
    I agree.
    The big difference between the 10k and the half is that you will need extra nutrition because you will be running for more than 1 hour.
    There are lots of products (gels, beans, drinks etc) out there and every runner is different.
    Some products totally disagree with some runners (think stomach cramps, diarrhea etc)
    You need time to figure this out during training.

    There also isn't really enough weeks to increase your LSD runs. The weekend before the half should be a taper run.
    Most running plans only suggest a 10% increase in mileage per week.

    Increasing mileage too quickly can lead to injuries. IT band injuries are common among half marathon distance runners and you want to avoid those! Trust me.


    Yes, you could probably technically finish the half but it might be an extremely miserable experience.

    Take the time. Train properly. Increase slowly. Figure out the nutrition.

    Good luck.
  • AsellusReborn
    AsellusReborn Posts: 1,112 Member
    Can you FINISH one? Yeah. But it might not be pretty - it depends whether finishing is the important part (I've done races like that!) or if finishing WELL is the important part. Only you know the answer to that.

    One bit of advice, the runs where I was a little undertrained for the distance HURT. So don't let that surprise you - running is wear and tear on the body and if you drastically increase your distance you will definitly feel it.

    In the end it's your call - I have done both, done races where I just wanted to finish without finishing pretty and done ones where I trained my heart out for the best time possible. Both have their place :)

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