Let me start off by saying I AM NOT A PROFESSIONAL. I am NOT a trainer. I am an average person who figured this weight loss/exercise thing out (with lots of research and common sense) and I only want to share my experience, tips, tricks, and fumbles.
how proud I feel when I finish a
9 mile run at that pace. When I first started walking/jogging, "wogging" as I called it, I would close myself up in my parents basement, get on the treadmill, turn on Eminem's "lose yourself" and try my hardest to run (at 5mph) for the entire song... it was MONTHS before I could run for the entire 5 minutes... months.... I was so out of shape! I can now keep that pace for over 2 hours, success, I'd say. Anyway, there you have it, that's my fitness resume/experience, take my advice at your own risk. :)
My last training plan was a bit of a struggle... I had copied one of those 12 weeks to a half marathon and it was definitely a struggle for me to keep up with, each week the long run increased by a mile, which was 1 pretty hard to do every week and 2. if you miss even ONE long run you feel like you're behind... try missing two? you're either cutting your distance or your tapper and I needed both... This training session is going so much better I had to share.
Tips, Tricks, and Honest Facts for the Average Person Who is Also an Aspiring Long Distance Runner
(you see why the title was "how to train for a half"?)
1. Be able to jog 3 miles... if you're wogging your 5k's....13.1miles is gonna seem like forever - DOABLE but forever...
2. Realize the magnitude of your commitment - You should set aside 4 months for training.... that's right ladies and gentleman... the average joe shmoe over here would recommend FOUR (4) months to gradually increase your runs, allow for life happenings, and ultimately lower your stress levels (maybe I'm just too high strung?)
3. It is manageable. This is a non-competitive sport; this is something where you just have to consistently show up and put in the work and you WILL be able to finish. No doubt about it. No matter how long it takes you - You are going to finish.
4. Pick your season wisely. Remember, this isn't just one race day... this is 4 months of training... 4 months of running outside. Think about your schedule, the weather, do you mind running in the dark? I didn't think about those things... Thankfully we had a beautiful fall but as we got closer to December and the days got shorter and wetter, I would have traded those crunchy leaves under my feet for an 8:00 sunset any day. This Spring training is working well for me... enjoying all the evenings as the sun started staying out... now I find myself waiting a bit longer so its not so hot after work. Anyway - THINK ABOUT IT!
5. It's okay to slow down, its not okay to stop. Don't get discouraged if you have to slow down. It's too easy to let being tired trick you into being done. Of course you're tired, you're rounding out your 8th mile and you still have two to go, and you have a blister, and the sun's too hot, and you forgot your chapstick... but I guarantee you'll regret it more if you don't finish. I bet if that long run was race day you'd finish...(because what kind of person drops out 2 miles from their goal!?)
6. Don't be afraid to be a slow runner... I used to feel like every time I got passed by someone my form was off, I felt like a turtle crawling through molasses, my chest got tight, I'd try to go faster because I should be going faster, right? WRONG. This is you time... this is about FINDing YOUR PACE. The pace that you can run at and forget you're running... It might sound like horse shit but its there... find it!
7. Salt and Water. Let me just say, I'm a sweaty mess when I run... its gross (as it should be) and when you are someone who sweats as much as I do, you are losing a couple important things, water obviously, and sodium (see I'm an average person, not some super athlete so this thought never crossed my mind, and yes I really didn't make the connection between the sodium in sports drinks until this late in life - see previous comment about not being into sports). Simple solution - hydration pack and gummy snacks. For some reason I felt like I would be a dweeb for carrying a hydration pack, yes most people don't race with them "because there are water stations" and they hand out snacks and yada yada yada. but I have control issues, I'm a sweaty, salty mess (gimme snacks now!), and I enjoy the convenience. All of that was enough to make my runs more enjoyable and thus make me say "Screw what everyone else is doing? this works perfect for me". Bottom line - listen to your body, stay hydrated and energized, even if you have to tote around a waterbottle and mini snack pack.
8. Invest in quality gear. Don't skimp yourself. Shoes are most important. Socks are right up there because there's nothing worse than blisters on weird parts of your sweaty feet. I spent a lot of time looking at the tread on my shoes to see where they were wearing down. The Nike's I wore prior to my first pair of Asics showed signs of over pronation (they were worn on the outside of the shoe). After a little research about shoes that would help cater to that and factoring in my weight and distance running I picked up a pair of Asics Kayano 19. I LOVE THEM. I don't have knee pains, my shins don't hurt and they have worn almost perfectly on the ball of the foot which means my form has DRASTICALLY improved. I'm not saying that's the shoe for everyone, I'm saying take time to get to know your feet and your form and cater to that. If you need help they have great running shops that do the work for you.
9. Its a mind game. The only thing that will stop you from not finishing is you thinking you cant. When you don't want to run, put your shoes on and just head out for one mile... during that mile think about all the reasons you enjoy running, the reasons you signed up for the race... Also whenever you reach the halfway point - is there really a reason to not finish? you've finished the hardest part. Or my favorite game - The victory mile - I always find myself struggling to finish the last mile of a long run but sure enough I get my final wind when I remind myself of race day... how that last mile will feel and how it rounds off the journey, how it makes it the end... imagine running 4 laps around a stadium with a crowd cheering... the last mile count as my "victory laps"
10. YOU ARE AN AMAZING MACHINE - You're body will not give up on you if you work with it, if you cater to it, if you take care of it. Your legs were designed to run, your lungs to breathe. Don't be afraid to push yourself each day to the point you're struggling. YOU CAN DO IT!
