Marathon 2013 too soon?

[irishtwins1112]

Hi! I wanted some advice. I finished the Disney marathon in 2008. Since then I have done two goofy's(DNF both times but I was close) and a handful of halves were interspersed in there. For the last 2 years (approx.) I have not done any races because I was pregnant until April 2012. I have walked occasionally but not with any regularity. I am currently walking and signed up for a half marathon in November with no time limit. I was going to do the John Bingham Marathoning for Mortals Walking program.

My question is : Do you think it would be okay to do the Disney Marathon in 2013 or would that be too many miles too soon. I was just reading what I wrote in my journal about when I did the marathon in '08 and I really want that again. Is it too soon to think about a full marathon?

 

[cewait]

Hard to say. You are currently walking and training for a November half. That says you have a goal and are results driven. What I do not know is how well you are doing with your walks. i.e. distance and speed. I am thinking a half is definitely doable and honestly the marathon may be doable.

Here is what I would consider doing... I would start the marathon training plan as though you were doing the marathon. By doing this, you are allowing yourself time to train for the full. The November half would make a great training race. Though I would ask you to not 'just finish' but put a stake in the ground for a 3:18 half. a 3:19 is equivalent to a 7:00 full. Give yourself some time to think about the full in the interim. The race is now over half full and I would expect that number to jump fairly fast once it pushes between 75 and 80% since the race is a the 20th. If you see that it is time to make the final decision on entry and you feel like you are not where you need to be, then simply do not enter and continue with your fall half.

Hope this helps

 

[irishtwins1112]

Thanks for the advice!

 

[irishtwins1112]

My mom was talking to me and I mentioned maybe doing the full and she offered to go ahead and register me : ). Do you think I should just start with the full training program as advised before or do you think I would be more prepared if I do the half training program up until November 12th and then switch to the Marathon one?

 

[cewait]

My mom was talking to me and I mentioned maybe doing the full and she offered to go ahead and register me : ). Do you think I should just start with the full training program as advised before or do you think I would be more prepared if I do the half training program up until November 12th and then switch to the Marathon one?

You need to move to the marathon plan aiming for January. Just sub the half into the schedule on that weekend. The issue with the other way is that you miss you 'teens' runs.

 

[John VN]

Hi! I wanted some advice. I finished the Disney marathon in 2008. Since then I have done two goofy's(DNF both times but I was close) and a handful of halves were interspersed in there. For the last 2 years (approx.) I have not done any races because I was pregnant until April 2012. I have walked occasionally but not with any regularity. I am currently walking and signed up for a half marathon in November with no time limit. I was going to do the John Bingham Marathoning for Mortals Walking program.

My question is : Do you think it would be okay to do the Disney Marathon in 2013 or would that be too many miles too soon. I was just reading what I wrote in my journal about when I did the marathon in '08 and I really want that again. Is it too soon to think about a full marathon?

Having had success with the halves and one marathon indicates your dedication to training and the desire to complete a full. Going Goofy can not be compared to finishing a Mickey by itself so my take as a walker is that you would have little trouble completing the Mickey if you follow coach's advice and train for the marathon with the November half thrown in. I have gone Goofy in 2011 and 2012 with the Space Coast Half at the end of November thrown in as a pre-Goofy leg stretcher.

Please don't set an unrealistic goal as far as a finishing time because that can pressure yourself into causing an injury.

Go for it , by taking up on your Mother's offer and HAVE FUN.

 

[irishtwins1112]

Thanks!

 

[FireDancer]

You need to move to the marathon plan aiming for January. Just sub the half into the schedule on that weekend. The issue with the other way is that you miss you 'teens' runs.

I second this. Set your goal race as the January full and use the November half as that weeks long run no matter what distance is on the schedule.

I used two halves when training for both of the fulls I've completed and I will almost certainly be using at least two for the one I'm training for this fall.

 

[escape]

Mostly walker here. I have three halves planned for this fall and I might add more. I will start off with the marathon training and count these halves as part of my training. And no, it's not too soon to think about a full in January. I also use the Marathoning for Mortals plan. Just make sure you follow the schedule as much as possible. You can do it!