Half Way There (well sort of)

[tedhowe]

Today I ran 6.55 miles (half of a half marathon) for the first time.

I ran it non-stop and completed it in just about exactly 80 minutes - about a 12:12 pace.

It was a challenge to be sure, but other than being out of gas and needing to fuel I felt really great the rest of the day.

I'm going to hold at this distance (or really slightly less) for quite a while building my base... I start HM training in earnest in July/August of this year to prepare for the Philly HM in November... that will be my first and I'll make the WDW HM my second.

I'm SO excited by reaching the milestone... I only started running 13 weeks ago when I did the first day of C25K and could barely make it through the 1 minute running intervals... to run for 80 minutes non-stop was mind boggling, but I never even came close to stopping until I ticked off that 6.55 miles.

Ted

 

[jmasgat]

Ted Congrats on reaching your half a half! You've come a long way in a short time. And it's wise to build your base slowly. Good luck over the next few months. Maybe you can consider running a 5k or 10k just to get some race experience.

Maura

 

[snickerboo]

Great job, Ted! It's nice when you start seeinga ll your hard work paying off.

 

[liznboys]

Way to go!

 

[hops&dreams]

Way to go! Great job!!! Before you know it, you'll be a half marathoner!!!!

Keep it up!

 

[John VN]

Congratulations on your success. Nothing much better than achieving a distance and feeling great after.

I would suggest a different approach to your training. Slowly increasing your miles between now and July will be much better for you than, I'm going to hold at this distance (or really slightly less) for quite a while building my base....

Without increasing the distance, you are not really building your base. Increasing the distances at an injury free pace will allow your body to increase your speed safely when July comes. Too many people try to go faster too early into their training and far too often injuries follow. The body needs time/distance to build muscles and endurance resulting in faster speeds.

Good luck.

 

[tedhowe]

John,

Thanks for the advice.

I am going to stay at approximately this distance until early July because of my other fitness endeavor... I am also in the final stages of preparing to test for my black belt in taekwondo in the middle of June.

The 18-20 mile per week training until then dovetails pretty well with the TKD without interfering or worrying about overtraining.

I'm sure I'll extend the long runs a little bit in that time, but the serious training for the HM won't really get started until July - which still leaves me plenty of time to extend the distance and be prepared as the first HM for me isn't until late november.