First Half Marathon! Excited!

Congrats on signing up for your first marathon! I've run 5 half marathons and 3 full marathons. (3 Goofy Challenges) I'm training for my first Dopey Challenge but struggling to find my love of running again. I use the Jeff Galloway program 3:1 or 4:1. I'm not fast and my PR (personal record) is 2:19 for a half. I'll be running a half on Nov. 9th at WDW! Good Luck and happy training!

I've done 2 half's myself & have another one this fall. 13.1miles is a long way. While I'm certainly no expert like some of the others I can say that you shouldn't underestimate the importance of eating something before & along the way. I like the GU before & then a couple along the way. For me the peanut butter GU just didn't work as it was too sticky & just didn't go down well when trying to eat it n keep running. I liked the chocolate n raspberry chocolate. Whatever you do try them before race day. You don't want to find out the hard way something you just ate gives you the squirts halfway into a race.

Hydrate before hand & during the race. I'll switch back n forth between water N a sports drink along the route.

One thing that caught me off guard.. you'll chaif. I mean really bad like red raw.. in places you didn't expect n don't want to be red/raw. Nipples & well you can guess where else. A+D First Aid Ointment was recommended & worked for me. It's not greasy like vasoline. Sure made a difference for me.

have fun & enjoy it. Remember, run thru the finish line & not to it

Awesome! Go get it!
If you are at all like me? You will sign up for a full marathon training almost as soon as you finish your half! :-)

Have fun training and on your run!

Whether you are training for your first or 10th, you need a training plan for gradually adding miles. This will also help you figure out what you need to do in terms of fueling and hydrating, and help you figure out gear and personal issues like chaffing. There are LOTS of training schedules online, lots of good articles in running mags with expert advice - read them. Take what works for you. Set yourself up to succeed! Do not make big jumps (more than 2 miles or so) past your longest distance on a training run - that's a good way to end up injured, and it's no fun.

For me, I take a calendar and work backwards from the race day in scheduling my runs. (I do boot camp 4 days/week, which involves 2-3 miles a day and only do long runs on the weekends) Then I alternate weeks of increasing my miles, and backing off a bit. So, my long runs from now until the race are:
8 miles (tomorrow)
6 miles
9 miles
6 miles
10 miles
7 miles
11 miles
7 miles
12 miles
8 miles
5 miles
Race day

(This schedule started at a 5 mile distance a few weeks ago, so we also hit 6 & 7). Put together a gradual plan, and hit the road!

(PR = personal record!)

Good luck to all doing Halfs - I have my first one on October 6th so know how you are all feeling! I've run the distance once but haven't used gels, etc., just kept hydrated. I know that isn't what's recommended but think this works for me - might stick to energy drinks.

My fist is September 21. I don't know what the GU is that everyone keeps talking about, but I found some gel packs by clif that I am using for refueling on my longer runs, along with water as recommended on the pack. The race that I signed up for says they will pass them out at the 8 mile mark on race day, so that might be a good goal to try to refuel at. I am using the hal higdon plan (someone else mentioned above with a link) and it's been wonderful. Ran 11 on Saturday, right on track for race day and feeling great!

I may have missed a post or two, but I didn't see anyone mention your running every day. The plan I'm following has 2 rest days in addition to one cross training day. I have always heard that the legs need a rest day and I'm wondering if that is contributing to your shin pain. Just a thought. You research and make your own decisions, but I think that especially as your miles increase you may find you need those light days or full on rest days.