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Q1: Depends upon how much you trained. My first HM was a 2:13 in March 2014 (after running two full marathons and preparing for the third) and was relatively flat. My second HM in May 2014, was 2:06 (after completing the thrid full marathon and a 10-miler). The course was relatively hilly. The third one was in June 2014 on…

Congrats on your first HM! There are couple of ways of handling this: First, if you have a specifc race date in mind for the half (and it seems you do), you could just pick up the training at the appropriate point, working backwards from the race date and do that. But the thing I'd recommend is this: you already have the…

Yes, you did indeed race! I'm not sure I can offer much from the "old folks" perspective. Mine is not so much distance as it is time, with specific elements to be worked in for each time out the door. Because the distance varies with the pace (either because of the specific workout or the overall increase of speed with…

A couple of things: I encountered the same thing a while back. I leveled out about 20 pounds above where I am now. Couldn't seem to change that. Of course, what was happening was the inches were coming off, not the weight. But I couldn't seem to get off that plateau track. Two things did it. First, a "step-change." I was…

LOL! I ran my best half-marathon ever, came in first in my age group and was eating fresh pizza at 9 AM (see #1). I came up with a new saying based upon a line from "Apocalypse Now" "I love the taste of fresh pizza in the morning! It tastes like VICTORY!"

RACE 13.1 - Fayetteville, NC (September 7, 2014) Half-marathon: 2:05:01 Weather was warm and extremely humid on a relatively flat course, I was 5th in my age group (M 60-64), but I also set a new PR (for 2 weeks). I had run a 26 mile training run just 6 days earlier. RACE 13.1 -Raleigh Midtown Fall (September 20, 2014)…

Get there early to park, pee, and warm-up. The less hassle you have getting to the start, the easier it will be on you. Eat lightly before the race. Maybe a muffin with jelly or a bagel. Whatever you typically consume before a "distance run" that does not cause you any problem is workable. Don't try new stuff on race day.…

You've got a lot of great advice (I'm running my next half-marathon on 9/20). In addition to not going out too fast, adjust your pace according to weather conditions. I set a new my PR just a couple of weeks ago in really humid, muggy conditions. It was the first race of the "fall season" so I had not run a half since…

There are two ways to handle this. You are correct that FB just accepts whatever comes to it from whatever program. First, you can adjust the calorie value from MFP and FB will accept them. The other alternative is to go over the FB and delete the workout from the activities reported by MFP. I can't remember for sure but…

"I've met somebody..." An alternative is, at that critical climatic moment rather than an "OH, GOD!"moment, she calls out someone else's name. Is it worse that she calls out a woman's name?

WOW! That is a lot of caffeine. It would probably make me want to walk on a ceiling ( a little tough to do outside! LOL!). Once you find what works, I agree with you, stick with it.

I'm in!

To the OP: Glad slowing down helped. Here's a dirty little secret. Those elite runners turning in those low two hour times don't run their long training runs anywhere near their race pace (more like 3-5 minutes per mile slower than their race pace). Granted, their slow running pace may be faster than your race pace, but if…

Caffeine in the gels is like caffeine in Excedrin, it acts as a selective vasodilator. However, as far as protein is concerned, it requires blood to your digestive system that probably is not "available" during a marathon run (same problem for complex carbs). No problem afterwards (maybe) depending upon how soon. Simple…

Harry: if you've medical clearance, you can do this. Trust me. I ran my first marathon at age 60. For many years I ranged from basically skinny to in a kind of weight sweet spot. And then my life changed and I gradually put on the weight. Fianlly decided I needed to do something and started losing weight. A bit up and down…

My knee pain came from something that occurred during walking/hiking. Some minor damage to the meniscus. A simple wrong step caused me a great deal of pain for several years. It took several weeks for the worst of the symptoms to reduce to a very manageable level. It has never gone "completely" away. However, when I…

While treadmills can be useful when the weather is bad or you can't otherwise be outdoors, it is also a completely different experience. Where my treadmill is in my house, you can't really run on it as it shakes the upstairs too much. So, its much more useful for walking rather than running. Personally, it has no chance of…

First, it does get easier. I think you have to have one or two training runs that really challenge you mentally and physically. My worst run ever was my first run at 14 miles. When I finished at the end of my street, I had to grab the street sign to stop the world from spinning around. Of course, part of that had to do…

No, not at all. I use the liner in the shorts. Anything to keep cool in the summer. Rarely anything under the tights in the winter (though unless its less than 30°F, I'm usually running in shorts...with the liner).

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I started out, after losing about 60 pounds, running at about 12:00/ mile (actually 11:40). After working up to a marathon last year I was down to about 8:40 for a single mile. I can now do a single mile at 7:15 and I've run recent half marathons at approximately 9:40/mile pace. My most recent 5K was run at a 8:13/mile…

For me, it is always the second day after something new or more strenuous that is the worst. If it persists beyond the third day without diminishing, it definitely is time to back-off a bit.

Let me add my experience. I walked for nearly 3 years before I even thought about running (again). I found that after that period of time I was comfortable running at about 11:40 - 12:00/mile pace on a consistent non-stop basis over a 10K course. That was a surprise. I could carry on a short-phrase conversation with…

Welcome and congratulations. Each small step contributes to progress. I remember when I finally passed back through200 on my way ( or weigh) back to my current weight. There may be ups and downs, but there are always supportive people and tools for you to use. Keep at it...one step at a time.

It was "the picture." Third row, third from the left.

On the 5K level, I am signed up for the Gail Parkins Ovarian Cancer 5K and walk on September 13th. We have a team that I participate with in honor of one of our coworkers who died from ovarian cancer a couple of years ago. I want to run the Hilton Head 5K on July 4th, but it doesn't look like I can fit in all the…

I would concur that its somewhere after 20 pounds. For me, starting at a max of 252, it was probably around the loss of 25 pounds. IAfter hitting a temporary minimum of 214, I gradually floated back up to about 230. When I started losing weight (again) from that point, it was another 20-25 pounds before people noticed a…

So a few words from an old guy to the OP. I didn't do my first marathon until November 2013...at age 60. The last real race I entered to run for time was a 10K race in 1985...that was before your were born. I entered a 10K in April 2013, not to run it but to walk it (I ended up running most of it, just because). The real…

It is not surprising. You might want to take a set of body measurements now as well. You might not see much weight loss, but may see inches lost. I went through a whole year of that. I have also found that after a particualrly long or stressful step-up in my running level (even though I might have a huge calorie deficit),…

First, you should really be doing this for you...everything else is just secondary. OTOH, I lost nearly 30 pounds before anyone really noticed or asked. Here's what's really interesting. In the year that I plateaued, I dropped 4inches everywhere and to people I looked like I was still losing weight. I have been at my…