Full Marathon?
How long does a rookie need to train for a full marathon? I'm not too worried about the prospect of my first 1/2 (maybe I should be?), but in the back of my mind I keep wondering if I could do the whole thing. I need some help..
When? October 2005
Fitness Level? Well I ran 5 miles last Sunday and I felt it a little bit the next day because I'm heavier now than I really should be (my right knee felt a little goofy the next day). I can run 3 miles in my sleep. I plan on taking my short runs to 4 by the end of this month, but it might be tougher than I think. I'm running 4 tonight or tomorrow so I will have a better idea at that point. So this is obviously no where even near 13 miles at once but hmm.
Current Miles Per Week? I've been getting "back in the groove" since the beginning of the year so my highest mileage has probably been around 10 miles (3 runs/week). This week it will be more like 12 miles. But at the moment I'm not following any specific plan so I haven't been trying to go further necessarily.
Pace? I guess I don't consider this a factor for finishing but it should be noted. The problem here is that I haven't pushed it enough to really know where I'm at--I don't know how to go faster actually. Do I just run really fast for 1 mile until I fall over? Anyway...10 minute miles for 3 miles are a little bit of work for me at this point. You can see in a previous post that I did a 5 mile run at an average of 11:30 pace--it was a very comfortable pace (I wasn't panting or anything like that), and I put the towel over the numbers on the treadmill until the run was over so I had no idea how fast I was going...I just wanted to run 5 miles. I did 2 miles at 9 minute pace couple days ago but I'm not sure I can maintain that for any more than 3 miles max at this point. 12 minute miles would be about 5.3 hours for the full...uggghhhh.
I feel like I'm in perfect position to work up to the 1/2 by October. But what if??? Is it too big to tackle?? Is there some sort of milestone that would help me figure out if the full is too big?? hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
Finally, if any previous/current marathoners are reading this...could you please recommend 1 or 2 good marathon training books. Muchas Gracias Chicas. and Chicos.
When? October 2005
Fitness Level? Well I ran 5 miles last Sunday and I felt it a little bit the next day because I'm heavier now than I really should be (my right knee felt a little goofy the next day). I can run 3 miles in my sleep. I plan on taking my short runs to 4 by the end of this month, but it might be tougher than I think. I'm running 4 tonight or tomorrow so I will have a better idea at that point. So this is obviously no where even near 13 miles at once but hmm.
Current Miles Per Week? I've been getting "back in the groove" since the beginning of the year so my highest mileage has probably been around 10 miles (3 runs/week). This week it will be more like 12 miles. But at the moment I'm not following any specific plan so I haven't been trying to go further necessarily.
Pace? I guess I don't consider this a factor for finishing but it should be noted. The problem here is that I haven't pushed it enough to really know where I'm at--I don't know how to go faster actually. Do I just run really fast for 1 mile until I fall over? Anyway...10 minute miles for 3 miles are a little bit of work for me at this point. You can see in a previous post that I did a 5 mile run at an average of 11:30 pace--it was a very comfortable pace (I wasn't panting or anything like that), and I put the towel over the numbers on the treadmill until the run was over so I had no idea how fast I was going...I just wanted to run 5 miles. I did 2 miles at 9 minute pace couple days ago but I'm not sure I can maintain that for any more than 3 miles max at this point. 12 minute miles would be about 5.3 hours for the full...uggghhhh.
I feel like I'm in perfect position to work up to the 1/2 by October. But what if??? Is it too big to tackle?? Is there some sort of milestone that would help me figure out if the full is too big?? hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
Finally, if any previous/current marathoners are reading this...could you please recommend 1 or 2 good marathon training books. Muchas Gracias Chicas. and Chicos.
posted by brent at
5:59 PM
5 Comments:
when i council people that want to run a marathon for the first time, i urge them to start out slowly. build up to a base of 10-15 miles a week and keep that base for about a month or more. build up to that base S.L.O.W.L.Y. once you feel very comfortable putting in 15 miles a week with a long run in the range of 5-7 miles, THEN step into your training program for the race. once that base is established, it would take about 4-6 months to prepare for the full marathon.
so, reading what you've written about your fitness levels, i'd say that a full by october is absolutely doable. continue your current mileage, increasing slowly and then start training sometime in may/june on one of the 16/20 week training programs and you'll be set.
this is all IMHO and YMMV of course =)
By
Unknown, at 7:49 PM
I never read a book to train for my marathon, but I can honestly say that I OVERtrained myself...I'm really surprised that I still love running!
When I started training, I was already running 5-7 miles/day for 6-7 days/week. Then, when I started training, I maintained my 5-7 miles during the week (4-5 days) and then did a longer (10, 15, 18, 23) run(s) on the weekends. There were some Saturdays when I'd run 15 miles and then turn around and do 12 miles the next day...I don't recommend this. I was training with my ex-boyfriend though so it wasn't so lonely & boring. I really didn't take enough rest days though. My longest run was 23 miles (non-stop) and that was about 3 weeks before the marathon. I didn't run for 4 days before the marathon. I was happy with my time (4 hours, 15 minutes), but I'm not sure if I'll ever do another one...I'm thinking 'bout it (I'll be thinking for a while though! lol).
By
lainb, at 8:14 PM
I can’t offer any advice about a full marathon, but I can tell you that I trained for the Hartford ½ in 4 months (starting with a 15 miles/week base—if I remember correctly). You could definitely complete a ½ in October and you probably wouldn’t have to really start training for a few months.
As far as the pace goes I would follow Hal’s advice, “Don't worry about how fast you run your regular workouts. Run at a comfortable pace. If you're training with a friend, the two of you should be able to hold a conversation. If you can't do that, you're running too fast. (For those wearing heart rate monitors, your target zone should be between 65 and 75 percent of your maximum pulse rate.)”
Good Luck with your decision and your exam. When is the test? I have one tomorrow at 6pm—worth 40% of my grade. I am so nervous, so I plan to study all night and all day and sleep all day Saturday. Can you tell I am a procrastinator? :)
By
April Anne, at 8:38 PM
The half in October should be no problem. Doing a full, w/o a few years of regular and moderate mileage (25+/week) under your belt is likely to be a burden. You do have enough time to prepare and could finish it, but if your goal is to do it well, then stick with the half for now. As you've likely heard, the halfway point of the marathon is 20 miles. If you don't have any idea what it's like as you go long, you may be in for a world of hurt. I underprepared for my first, and had the wheels fall off at 23. My next one was done without real training and I was only a bit over a half-hour slower (an indication of my level of suffering in my first). After a decade away, I ran two a bit over a year ago and PR'ed in both, but did not qualify for Boston (my real goal). I missed this past fall due to an injury, but have decided to train through the winter for a spring marathon (and am questioning my sanity as I write). I advise against the full marathon, but it can be done.
By
Scooter, at 1:47 PM
I think you could do either a half or a full by October. It's good to actually run a half along the way just for the experience. Make sure not to increase your weekly mileage by more than 10%, and don't try to run too fast in long runs-- both of these factors can lead to injury. It's really surprising how much slower you have to run as the miles increase, but I also think a good goal for the first marathon is just to finish. I tried to have a time goal but when I felt how difficult it was, I didn't care anymore-- I just wanted to finish!
I really like Bob Glover's "Complete Runner's Handbook," but Higdon is also good. I did a marathon training program created by our coach in Team In Training that involved basically 3-4 short runs of 3 miles each during the week, cross training to build strength, and one long run that gradually increased, then backed up-- i.e. 10, 12, 14, 12, 16, 12, 18, 12, 20, 12, 10, and then 8 miles for the long run just before the marathon (or something like that). That gave me time to rest each week because once we got up to 14 miles for the long run, it started to become noticeably more difficult.
Good luck!
By
Rachel, at 8:42 PM
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