Sad with my pace

I saw a similar post earlier today so I guess I'll throw my two cents in. I'm not a marathon runner, nor a running coach nor a fitness professional, so this is strictly my opinion. First read what you wrote:

.....I finished 2 half marathons so far . First one was really hard / hilly route so I don't feel sad for finishing in 3hr 30min but the second one was very easy and I put myself a goal of finishing before 3 hrs .But it took me 3hrs 12min to finish and I didn't achieve my goal.....

You finished two half marathons! That is an accomplishment! You missed your goal, so what? Something to work on. I'm a fairly slow runner and I have never participated in a half marathon, so you're an inspiration in my book. I used to get caught up in maintaining or achieving a certain pace but when it all comes down to it, if you finished you achieved much more than all those people sitting on their a$$es.

I'll echo the speed work. You can find speed work and tempo run workouts on the internet. But if you want to spend $3.99, download the Active 5k to 10K app. It's got a good workout and some are down right brutal. Another thing I like to do is just run a mile on "off" days. Meaning, I run three days a week that are structured. I have a particular training plan for each day. On days I don't, then I run whatever I feel. It's never more than a couple of miles but it's another day of running.

During the holidays I was doing the Holiday Streak where you ran at least a mile every day between Thanksgiving and New Years. If I was feeling it, I'd run that mile as fast as I could, just to see if I could bring my pace up. Try that. Try the telephone workout that an earlier poster presented. But most of all, don't let it get you down. Everyone gets so wrapped up in numbers and unless you plan on making the elite division of the Boston Marathon, I'm proud of you for just finishing!