Tips for a ROOKIE REGISTERED for a FULL MARATHON
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I would not think you would need any sort of fueling strategy at this point in your c25k. I would only bother with fuel if you are out there for > 60 minutes. Otherwise you can just refuel after you get back. Your body does not need fuel during your run until you get to longer distances. Even 60 min might be a bit low.0
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But just wait for your next cut!
Good point. The calorie burn from beating a dead horse is nearly zumba-like.0 -
Be prepared to cry at the finish line
It is such an overwhelming feeling of pride and joy! I have not done a full, just a half, more power to you! I think if you are fully committed, TAKE YOUR REST DAYS, use the foam roller, get the shoes, follow the training guide..you can finish the marathon! It's mind over body, just keep remembering your goals! Everyone's body reacts differently to running, and I know others have mentioned fueling your body and the night before can make a difference on long runs. If I do not have a proper meal with carbs the night before a long run I will get lightheaded and see stars. Happens every time. Start paying attention to your bodies signals with that. Also, you're going to have bad runs. Some days just SUCK. It happens. Just push through, get the distance in even if it's slower than your normal pace. The next run could be your best, who knows! A lot of people have given you some good advice though, and having a family member that has been through it multiple times is a great asset! Good luck! 0 -
So at what point in your overall training plan do you intend to transition from treadmill to running outside?
I already have. 0 -
I would not think you would need any sort of fueling strategy at this point in your c25k. I would only bother with fuel if you are out there for > 60 minutes. Otherwise you can just refuel after you get back. Your body does not need fuel during your run until you get to longer distances. Even 60 min might be a bit low.
good point. I guess I more meant eating something light before I jog. I have been doing a piece of toast with honey..and then go and run.0 -
Be prepared to cry at the finish line It is such an overwhelming feeling of pride and joy! I have not done a full, just a half, more power to you! I think if you are fully committed, TAKE YOUR REST DAYS, use the foam roller, get the shoes, follow the training guide..you can finish the marathon! It's mind over body, just keep remembering your goals! Everyone's body reacts differently to running, and I know others have mentioned fueling your body and the night before can make a difference on long runs. If I do not have a proper meal with carbs the night before a long run I will get lightheaded and see stars. Happens every time. Start paying attention to your bodies signals with that. Also, you're going to have bad runs. Some days just SUCK. It happens. Just push through, get the distance in even if it's slower than your normal pace. The next run could be your best, who knows! A lot of people have given you some good advice though, and having a family member that has been through it multiple times is a great asset! Good luck!
I can only imagine that feeling at the end. Ill probably be bawling once I see my fam. lol......Thank you for the advice. Note taken 0 -
How is your distance now?0
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good point. I guess I more meant eating something light before I jog. I have been doing a piece of toast with honey..and then go and run.
Na, you don't need to worry about fuel till you get to the half marathon distance. Your body has plenty of energy and water stores to keep you going for up to 90 minutes with no problem. Now if you're walking this distance you'll probably want to bring something. A 4 hour walk to do a half marathon will make you regret not bringing a snack or some water.0 -
How is your distance now?
Well Im doing the Couch to 5k Program and do 2.25 miles in 30 min. After the 30 min program, I just finish off walking (to complete my hour) and usually finish 4.1-4.2 miles . This week I am starting week 3 which has me doing 2 repitions of Jogging 90 sec, walk 90 secs,Jog for 3 min, walk for 3 min for a total of 28 min.0 -
Na, you don't need to worry about fuel till you get to the half marathon distance. Your body has plenty of energy and water stores to keep you going for up to 90 minutes with no problem. Now if you're walking this distance you'll probably want to bring something. A 4 hour walk to do a half marathon will make you regret not bringing a snack or some water.
I knew that my body had enough "energy" to complete what I was doing but had no idea about going up to 90 min. Learn something new all the time! 0 -
Sure boss. To make you happy. You are right. You are the all knowing. Thank you for gracing this forum with your knowledge. LMAO. You are soooooooooo right, I mean heaven forbid that I move after I run the C25k day, because ANY activity after, before, on the same day as..would just be crazy.
I agree. A lot of C25kers have dogs. That's a daily walk before/after the run program. If it's something you are used to doing, it's NBD.0 -
I knew that my body had enough "energy" to complete what I was doing but had no idea about going up to 90 min. Learn something new all the time!
There's a couple of things. First, you burn roughly 100 calories/mile. So, you can make up the entire calorie burn of a 5k with a banana and a glass of chocolate milk. Or an apple with peanut butter. Or nothing and just let your daily calories take care of it.
The second thing is the glycogen in your muscles. You have enough stored in your muscles to last about 20 miles. Using your reserves starts affecting performance earlier than that, though, so some people choose to fuel during half marathons.0 -
There's a couple of things. First, you burn roughly 100 calories/mile. So, you can make up the entire calorie burn of a 5k with a banana and a glass of chocolate milk. Or an apple with peanut butter. Or nothing and just let your daily calories take care of it.
The second thing is the glycogen in your muscles. You have enough stored in your muscles to last about 20 miles. Using your reserves starts affecting performance earlier than that, though, so some people choose to fuel during half marathons.
The body is so amazing isnt it! thanks! 0 -
I agree. A lot of C25kers have dogs. That's a daily walk before/after the run program. If it's something you are used to doing, it's NBD.
it's not that a 30 min walk is crazy hard and killing her recovery. it's that she's got a short window of time to execute a plan and she's given herself ZERO margin for error or injury...and here we are at week 2 and she's already veered off course. it's more that it's indicative of a personal flaw where she refuses to listen to reason and then won't follow plans that have lead to success for others. if she's already winging it in week 2, what's she going to be doing 5 months from now?
having a personal flaw isn't a big deal. we all have them and i certainly have mine. but not recognizing them and adapting strategies that minimize them is a route that leads to failure more often than not. but hey, more fun to keep blaming things on all the haterz.0 -
it's not that a 30 min walk is crazy hard and killing her recovery. it's that she's got a short window of time to execute a plan and she's given herself ZERO margin for error or injury...and here we are at week 2 and she's already veered off course. it's more that it's indicative of a personal flaw where she refuses to listen to reason and then won't follow plans that have lead to success for others. if she's already winging it in week 2, what's she going to be doing 5 months from now?
having a personal flaw isn't a big deal. we all have them and i certainly have mine. but not recognizing them and adapting strategies that minimize them is a route that leads to failure more often than not. but hey, more fun to keep blaming things on all the haterz.
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Hey I think it's awesome you are doing this. I'll admit I didn't read the entire thread, but I did notice some naysayers in the bunch. I truly believe that if you train properly you will accomplish your goal!0
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it's not that a 30 min walk is crazy hard and killing her recovery. it's that she's got a short window of time to execute a plan and she's given herself ZERO margin for error or injury...and here we are at week 2 and she's already veered off course. it's more that it's indicative of a personal flaw where she refuses to listen to reason and then won't follow plans that have lead to success for others. if she's already winging it in week 2, what's she going to be doing 5 months from now?
having a personal flaw isn't a big deal. we all have them and i certainly have mine. but not recognizing them and adapting strategies that minimize them is a route that leads to failure more often than not. but hey, more fun to keep blaming things on all the haterz.
It's not benefiting her in any way either. There is no way to increase her fitness to run past her physical constraints and she's already at an adequate level with C25k. Although I am a new runner, I would think that cross-training with running or swimming would be better since it would increase cardio fitness while using different muscles (allowing the ones used for running more recovery).
I think we're seeing more misinformation about the best way to effectively train than a real personality failure.
It's like somebody who looks at the MFP set-up and thinks "I can lose 2 pounds a week!" not realizing that it's not ideal for their situation.0 -
Hey I think it's awesome you are doing this. I'll admit I didn't read the entire thread, but I did notice some naysayers in the bunch. I truly believe that if you train properly you will accomplish your goal!
So, what do you think is proper training, if it doesn't allow for the physical conditioning that can only come from time on your feet over an extended period of time?0 -
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I have completed 4 full marathons, about 25 half marathons and several other races. Find a training group or a partner to train with you. You must have good shoes. Pay attention to refueling and maintaining hydration.:happy:0
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I think we're seeing more misinformation about the best way to effectively train than a real personality failure.
It's like somebody who looks at the MFP set-up and thinks "I can lose 2 pounds a week!" not realizing that it's not ideal for their situation.
the person that signs up and tries to go the wrong route just doesn't know better, and that's not a failing at all. we're all here to learn. i didn't create an MFP account because i knew everything, I created it because I needed help to lose weight.
but her situation isn't just "i didn't know better". hers is the equivalent of the new MFP'er setting up for 2 pounds per week loss when they only have 10 pounds to go, starting a thread asking for advice, and then getting 150 replies from people that have successfully reached goal weight that say "set your goal for half a pound" and despite all that good advice, tells the people that they're all haterz and she's gonna stick with the 2 pound per week goal anyway and we can all support her gurney or get out. that's the character flaw. getting good info and then willy nilly discarding it for no good reason.
i mean, who WOULDN"T want to lose 2 pounds of fat per week. hell, how bout 5? but once it's explained to you why it's not a great idea, then you back it down a bit. so if the next thread by someone says they haven't run in ever, but they want to run an ultramarathon 6 months from now, what do we say to them? "Go head grrrrrrl!" seems to be the only acceptable answer.0 -
the person that signs up and tries to go the wrong route just doesn't know better, and that's not a failing at all. we're all here to learn. i didn't create an MFP account because i knew everything, I created it because I needed help to lose weight.
but her situation isn't just "i didn't know better". hers is the equivalent of the new MFP'er setting up for 2 pounds per week loss when they only have 10 pounds to go, starting a thread asking for advice, and then getting 150 replies from people that have successfully reached goal weight that say "set your goal for half a pound" and despite all that good advice, tells the people that they're all haterz and she's gonna stick with the 2 pound per week goal anyway and we can all support her gurney or get out. that's the character flaw. getting good info and then willy nilly discarding it for no good reason.
i mean, who WOULDN"T want to lose 2 pounds of fat per week. hell, how bout 5? but once it's explained to you why it's not a great idea, then you back it down a bit. so if the next thread by someone says they haven't run in ever, but they want to run an ultramarathon 6 months from now, what do we say to them? "Go head grrrrrrl!" seems to be the only acceptable answer.
I agree with Dav.
I certainly is possible to go from zero to full marathon in a year but the likeliest road that is both successful and enjoyable is one that reduces the risk of injury and burn-out. There are specific methods and ideas around that that might work - and "winging it" isn't the best one.
Personally, I'd be concerned about going beyond a marathon goal - nothing sucks more than getting into something and having to give up because of induced injury.
The idea "I'm going to do this even if I have to crawl" is great. I've been there - some of my "hold my beer, my papers are in order" adventures are of the same mentality. And if you tried to talk me out of them I'd probably give you the short rope but ...
... But, it's always better to think, "I'm doing this - even if I have to crawl - I'd rather do it injury free and have fun doing it." Good prep is staged and involves risk management.0 -
I hope you have a few thousand dollars set aside for all those office visits with your sports med doc and physical therapy. (Coming from someone in good physical shape and isn't overweight, who injured herself running from doing too much, too soon, against the advice of everyone else, because I thought that I was just so special and dedicated and none of that applied to be, and my "I believe in myself, wheeeee!" attitude somehow trumped my body's actual limitations)
Seriously, injuries are expensive. Even the minor ones. And you know you're setting yourself up for injury.
From a purely practical point of view, be financially prepared.0 -
the person that signs up and tries to go the wrong route just doesn't know better, and that's not a failing at all. we're all here to learn. i didn't create an MFP account because i knew everything, I created it because I needed help to lose weight.
but her situation isn't just "i didn't know better". hers is the equivalent of the new MFP'er setting up for 2 pounds per week loss when they only have 10 pounds to go, starting a thread asking for advice, and then getting 150 replies from people that have successfully reached goal weight that say "set your goal for half a pound" and despite all that good advice, tells the people that they're all haterz and she's gonna stick with the 2 pound per week goal anyway and we can all support her gurney or get out. that's the character flaw. getting good info and then willy nilly discarding it for no good reason.
i mean, who WOULDN"T want to lose 2 pounds of fat per week. hell, how bout 5? but once it's explained to you why it's not a great idea, then you back it down a bit. so if the next thread by someone says they haven't run in ever, but they want to run an ultramarathon 6 months from now, what do we say to them? "Go head grrrrrrl!" seems to be the only acceptable answer.
I'd say the equivalent would be maybe 50 pounds to lose. 2 pounds a week isn't a good idea...but it's kind of on the edge.
And the next guy who wanted to run an ultra? I'd tell him that the fastest way to get there is to back off for now. Take it slow and let his body adapt. Learn to love running. Listen to CarsonRuns. I'd provide him my experience from when I was at the point he is at (slow down, s-l-o-w d-o-w-n).
I wouldn't tell him that walking after doing the Couch to 5k program was going to result in injury.
The bottom line is that you can kind of wait it out with new runners. Running is going to give them perspective on running. If they aren't going too far, too fast, too soon, that first 8 mile run is going to be a lesson in distance all by itself.0 -
The bottom line is that you can kind of wait it out with new runners. Running is going to give them perspective on running. If they aren't going too far, too fast, too soon, that first 8 mile run is going to be a lesson in distance all by itself.
Oh goodness, this. I had been running short distances for a while, worked my way through a 10k plan, and then went without a plan for a while and was just trying to add distance. I don't even know how many tries it took me to get past 8 miles. I could do 7 no problem, but it took a solid month for me to get past that 8 mile mark. I had the same problem again at 11.5, and couldn't get past it until I HAD to get past it in a half marathon.0 -
I have completed 4 full marathons, about 25 half marathons and several other races. Find a training group or a partner to train with you. You must have good shoes. Pay attention to refueling and maintaining hydration.:happy:
Great advice!:)0 -
Oh goodness, this. I had been running short distances for a while, worked my way through a 10k plan, and then went without a plan for a while and was just trying to add distance. I don't even know how many tries it took me to get past 8 miles. I could do 7 no problem, but it took a solid month for me to get past that 8 mile mark. I had the same problem again at 11.5, and couldn't get past it until I HAD to get past it in a half marathon.
When I finished C25k, I felt like I could run forever. I did a plan and all of a sudden was running 6 miles - no problem. Signed up for a half and learned EXACTLY how far forever was: 8 miles. Every long run after that it was (longest distance I had to run) - 1 mile.0 -
I finished my first (and so far only) marathon in October 2013. I used Hal Higdon's Novice 1 training program (I highly recommend that you find and follow a training program that works for you, but one that includes long runs on the weekends). The Novice 1 program was sufficient to get me across the finish line in 5 hours, but if you are looking to do better than just cross the finish line, you will want to up the ante with weekly mileage. The more miles you can pack into a week, the better, especially in the final few weeks leading up to your two-week taper (you will want to ease back on the miles and give your body a chance to recover two weeks prior to your race).
Do your miles SLOWLY, with the exception of one or two speed workouts per week (interval training works well to improve your speed). If you overdo it in your first weeks of training, you risk injury, which could put you out of commission. You need to build up a solid base for running.
I also recommend that if you have never done a race before, or at least a long race (like a 10k or half marathon) register for and complete a few of those before your marathon so that you know what a race feels like. You don't want your first race to be a marathon -- you need some experience.
One more thing -- you are doing a May race, which could be HOT -- carry your own water and gels so you can keep your body fueled and hydrated during your long runs and on race day. You might want to invest in a running belt (you can find them at any running or sporting goods store). Also, the tips about shoes are right on -- you will want to get a size up from what you are used to because your feet swell, especially on long runs. You also might want to pick up some KT tape (for sore spots and potential blister areas) and body glide to prevent chafing.
Okay, one more and I think this is the last one . . . get a Garmin to track your miles and your progress, or at least join dailymile.com or runkeeper -- it will help keep you on track if you log your miles.
I hope this helps! Good luck!0 -
One... I applaud you for taking a step and making a big commitment. That's awesome.
Two... just because you don't like the answers- doesn't mean you need to get snarky with people trying to help you.Sure boss. To make you happy. You are right. You are the all knowing. Thank you for gracing this forum with your knowledge. LMAO. You are soooooooooo right, I mean heaven forbid that I move after I run the C25k day, because ANY activity after, before, on the same day as..would just be crazy.
Because you're missing the point.
But you don't have room for tinkering. You've committed to a big undertaking, that requires training- specific training.
You've chosen to do a few programs. But you are already saying you aren't doing the program- you seriously do NOT have room for not doing the program if you want to succeed. The program exists for a reason- follow the program.
If it says rest. then rest. You're GOING to need it. You might not feel like it now- but you will- so get in the habit of resting when it says rest.
If that means foam rolling for you- then roll.
Light yoga and stretching? Going for an easy walk with the dog- sure...
doing nothing on the couch but eating doritos and drinking a cold one- go for it.
REST. don't make up extra work. You don't need it.0 -
Oh goodness, this. I had been running short distances for a while, worked my way through a 10k plan, and then went without a plan for a while and was just trying to add distance. I don't even know how many tries it took me to get past 8 miles. I could do 7 no problem, but it took a solid month for me to get past that 8 mile mark. I had the same problem again at 11.5, and couldn't get past it until I HAD to get past it in a half marathon.
I just completed my first 18 mile run this past sunday. It's in the lead up to my first marathon after taking up the sport in 2012. 18 miles seemed daunting when I saw it on the training schedule as equally daunting as the 20 I'm doing in 2 weeks or finally the actual marathon but since I've been running regularly for 2 years now it's an effort but it's not anywhere near above my head.
I'm getting excited but I'm staying mostly to plan. There's been a few random races above and beyond my training but there's only one left between now and my marathon and it's a 10K on a day where the training schedule calls for 5 miles so not a huge deviation.
When I started running I went wholehog not knowing anything and never asking for advice. I got a scortching case of planar faciatias. Everyone here is giving you quality advice because we've all made or at least seen the over enthusiastic mistakes beginning runners make and we're hoping to help you avoid the pain.0
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