How much harder is a full marathon compared to a half?

Congrats on your finish! That's a great time, even if it's not your first go at it.

As for the difference between the half and full, well, they're different beasts.

A full marathon is harder in different ways, because you physically will hit points where you just feel like stopping; that never happens to me in a half. I might get tired, but I never feel like I literally just don't want to go on. For me, miles 18-22 were just gawd-awful. I got there, and felt like I was barely shuffling along, even though I was still running. Once I got to about 23, I think mentally I just said "Fine, 3 more miles. You are NOT going to stop with three more freaking miles left." And then I was able to pick up the pace, and finish strong, but it was a mental battle.

It's much more of a mental game than a half marathon, because physically, you just get completely fried, and have to mentally ignore that, which is pretty effing hard. But it's so rewarding once you finish. I'm aiming for another next year, so long as my knee cooperates.

x

Put it this way...during my marathon training, I remember running from home to work in the morning, and later that day my boss swung by my desk and asked me 'So how far did you run this morning?'. My reply 'I did 22km this morning on my way to work, so just over a half marathon'. I think his jaw hit the ground. And the scary thing was, it was my medium length run for that week...I was going to do a 30km run a couple of days later. That is the difference with a full...a half is something you just do as a normal training run.

And this is from someone who is not a 'runner'...when I first started running, I couldn't even gor for one minute without gasping for breath. So from a non-runner, my tips are:

1. Follow a good beginner's guide. If you can run 30mins non stop, then you have a base level good enough to start training. Don't be scared of a full marathon, you can absolutely do it! I used "The Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer" (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Non-Runners-Marathon-Trainer-David-Whitsett/dp/1570281823/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337550157&sr=8-1) and it took my only 14 weeks to train, running 4 times a week.

2. You need to get your body physically ready for that distance...adding that much more mileage into your legs will start to show up any physical issues you might have with your running style/gait that you might not see very much during a half. Like sore knees, ankles, calves etc. You will probably have to manage an injury of some sort, so make sure you have a good physiotherapist etc.

3. You need to get much more serious about fuelling your body correctly. If you don't, you will know about it when you go to do a long run. Get a camelback so that you stay hydrated properly on long runs. Also recommend getting serious about electrolytes and gels....much more than you need for a half.

4. Pick the right marathon to run for your first. I live in London, so all my mates were like, you must do the London marathon! Actually, no. It runs in April, so to do all the training, it is through the dark depths of winter. No thanks. My first marathon was the Berlin Marathon in September...all my training was over summer. This made it much easier (to get up at 6am on a Sunday...at least it was light and not snowing!). Berlin is also a very flat course with no cobble stone...yes please!

5. It takes a lot of time to train. Luckily my husband was incredibly supportive, but for those 14 weeks my whole life was taken over by the training. No going out late, no drinking alcohol, eating very clean, lots of washing, lots of sleep. You get the idea.

6. But at the day, when you actually run the full, it is an amazing experience - both physically and also mentally. I felt pure joy when I crossed the finished line. It redefined what I thought my body was capable of doing. You really have to experience it to understand it. You won't regret doing it.

I've been wondering the same thing.

I just began training for my first Marathon (Marine Corp) in October. Have only been a "runner" for a year, so I may be going into this blindly, but I am determined and focused, so we will see.

You'll do fine! The first one is so exciting! Just don't expect to feel as good as you do after a half marathon!

Thanks!! I ran my first Half at Disney World in January. Felt really good afterwards. Wound up with an IT Band issue in my left leg, but I have rested it for a few months while doing other stuff to stay fit (elliptical, weight training). Started running a few weeks ago and leg feels great (thanks to the foam roller).

I just began training for my first Marathon (Marine Corp) in October. Have only been a "runner" for a year, so I may be going into this blindly, but I am determined and focused, so we will see.

You'll do fine! The first one is so exciting! Just don't expect to feel as good as you do after a half marathon!

This was my first one. Well supported. Lots of spectators. Many good aspects to this one.

bump

I am so glad to read that everyone else hits mile 22 and gets whacked with the Bonk Board. Because no matter how I've trained for a marathon, at mile 22-23 I want to turn to the friend I'm running with and say, "Save yourself...go on without me." (I actually did precisely that on my last marathon, which was a grueling, horrible, terribly run marathon, because I just couldn't take it any more. I walked the last 3 miles, which I swore I'd never do.)

I've been wondering if *more* pre-marathon training is the answer -- running 30 miles before a marathon, just to train my body that it *will* get through the 23rd mile, darn it.

To be honest, I never bonked...cramping is not bonking. Bonking/"The Wall" are glycogen depletion. I've hit that on a 5 mile run when I experimented to see how low I could go with my carb intake. Many people run entire marathons without bonking--the trick is getting enough simple sugars into the system early enough to carry through those last miles. The slower a person runs, the more they are fueling their system with stored fat, rather than glycogen, too.

I'd be careful trying to run more than 22 miles or so in training. The more miles you do in your longest runs, the more time you will need to recover. Most training plans max at 20 mile for a reason. Much more than that and you risk not being recovered for subsequent long runs and race day.

bump.. good info in here

The HM and the full are two completely different animals, from both a physiological and a psychological perspective.

The human body, when properly fueled, can store enough glycogen to run about 20 miles. So, you simply have enough stored fuel to run a HM and you don't for a full. So, with the full marathon, you not only are contending with fatigue, but fuel issues. So, if you happen to go out too fast and start to get tired at the end because you don't have the fitness to sustain your pace, you also have to deal with the lack of fuel for your muscles. This creates the classic bonk, where you just can't go any longer.

Psychologically, it differs because in most novice and intermediate training plans, your longest run prior to the race will be 20 miles. So, at a 9 minute mile pace, you will still have nearly another hour to run longer than you ever have when you hit the 20 mile mark in the race. Also, it's very difficult to convince yourself that a specific pace is what is right for you. You will have done so much training that you feel fantastic for the first 10 to 15 miles. You start to think "I'm running at x:xx pace right now like I planned to, but I feel great so I'm going to go 15 seconds per mile faster". Then, you hit 20 and those additional 15 seconds per mile catch up to you and you hit the wall. Had you kept your intended pace, as determined by your training and build up races, you probably would have been fine.

If you want to do it, just make sure that you continue to run consistently and that you have the buy-in from any family members. The last 8 to 12 weeks of marathon training will consume you. You will nap on long run days and be pretty useless around the house. It's a big commitment, but it's extremely rewarding.

Well said!!

Twice

I've done a marathon, a bunch of half's, and lots of long course triathlons.

The trouble with the "a marathon is two half marathons back to back" thinking is, imagine STARTING a 13 mile run when you're already sore, hungry, pukey, dehydrated, cramping, and close to giving up. That's the second half of a marathon.

I'll say this also, at the risk of offending the hard core runners reading this: I'd rather race a 70.3 mile half ironman (which includes a 13.1 mile half marathon to finish) than a full marathon any day. It takes a lot longer, but the recovery is so much easier.

Good luck, I hope you give it a try. Crossing a marathon finish line is one of the great moments of an athlete's life. What you can remember of it.

If you are trained for the distance and race it you can finish a half feeling tired but still good. After the full you feel like somebody beat you with a bat and dumped you on the side of the road.

Yep. That's how I feel today. And DURING yesterday's marathon I WISHED that I was dumped on the side of the road because at least there was some shade. At the half marathon marker, I was on pace and doing great (much cooler in the first half and lots of shade). In the second half, it started to spiral downhill for me as the temperatures rose and there was less shade. I felt like I was being roasted. And I had to walk by mile 18... something that I had never had to do in my previous 4 marathons. Very humbling experience. The course was beautiful and volunteers were wonderful but the temperature really put the brakes on my PR goal. I was just happy to cross the finish line.

On the upside, marathons are typically a great experience and I will continue to do them because I like that distance challenge. I feels great when you cross that finish line. It's always a great accomplishment, no matter what your pace is. I highly recommend trying one sometime... just be sure to be adequately prepared. And sometimes being prepared includes doing what you never imagined... like walking. hehe

Congratulations to the OP on your half marathon!! Also a great accomplishment!!