Marathon too quick?

Member

OK, I know i've posted alot the past few days, but I need some advice. I've just completed a half on Sunday with a 10min/mile pace. Was able to complete it without walking, but mile 11 and 12 were pretty tough...

I didn't have a chance to train much for the half though due to shin pain. Two weeks before the race, I did next to nothing...before that, 8 miles was my longest.

I was planning on running a marathon in Jan in Vegas, but my running partner is moving and I'd like to run with him before he leaves. Was thinking of 5 Dec in Sacramento. Is that too quick for me to train up after having completed a half?

Last marathon was 19 years ago at 18 when my body could take anything!

Member

To reasonably get through a marathon, you really need to get your long runs (or run/walk) up to 20 miles, or at least 18. People have finished marathons with shorter long runs, but it has rarely been pretty.

You only have 6 weekends before the December 5th date. Generally the last weekend would have a shorter long run since you would be in taper mode. That means your next 5 weeks would need long runs like 10, 12, 14, 16, 18. That is a very aggressive ramp up, while still leaving you poorly prepared. Even the Los Vegas marathon looks too close to me. And the fact that both Las Vegas and Cal International are downhill races won't help much.

Personally, I would skip both marathons and look for one next summer instead. But if it is really important to you to run it, the first thing you need to do is start adding walking breaks. It is highly unlikely you could run an entire marathon by December, and adding walking to your training can help you jump up your long runs significantly. For example, if you alternate 3 minutes of easy running and 2 minutes of fast walking, you could probably do a 14 miler in training right now. Roughly 10 miles of it would be running and 4 miles of it would be walking. With the alternating, this would be significantly easier than running 10 miles straight through. This would give you a big jump start, and give you a good shot of doing a 20 miler in practice before November. If you've done 20 miles in practice, you can get through the extra 6.2 miles in the race as long as you stay conservative and stick with the run/walk plan.

Member

I agree with Craig. If you're planning on running most of it, you're putting yourself at risk for injury. You don't really have enough time for a gradual ramp up.

Member

Member

I don't see the hurry to run those marathons. You've got that first under the belt...albeit a long time ago. I'd settle in for improving that half time. I would NOT run Sacramento until I was ready to race (fast course and I want those courses when I'm in tip-top shape)...from what I hear LV will hurt big time if not in shape (downhill pounding)...plus LV is not fun (no crowd and boring scenery)....do the half.

I'm with Craig....summer or fall next year and I'd probably pick one that has great crowd support. I waited 8 months from my first half to my first full.....and ran at least 14 miles every weekend and recovery was still a beeych

Member

Not to mention that you get NO recovery time inbetween long runs. If you do a long run everyweekend, you are bound to get injured.

I'm with everybody else, wait.

Just to let you know if you really want to do a marathon, we have a bunch here in Florida in late Jan early Feb. That is a more doable time table.

Sheldon

Member

There is a Jan. 30 in Las Vegas, but it has a lot of downhills. I'm sure I can find one here on the West coast where I dont have to fly out to run. Hell, I'm military...I dont have the cash to be flying all over to run. Wish I did.

I'm leaning towards not doing it, even if it means my running buddy and I will not be able to run a marathon together. He is moving to Arizona though, and *could* drive his butt to LV to run. Thanks for the advice!!

To continue a conversation though....right now I have a time I'd like to hit of under 5 hours. Is that too slow?

Member

Member

If you had no problems whatsoever while training for the half marathon, even if you didn't get in the ideal mileage I would consider the full marathon doable as long as you either ran it very slow or incorporated walk breaks into the event.

But since you are susceptible to shin splints and probably cannot get in at least 2 20 mile runs between now and the time to taper, you are probably putting yourself at serious risk of injury. There is a BIG difference between the half marathon and full. It's not as simple as running two half marathons. The distance between 20-26 is a killer. I'm a slow runner, anywhere between 3:50 to 4:45 in a full marathon. Even when using walk breaks I make sure I am able to get my mileage in to avoid injuries.

It would simply be more wise to choose a later marathon to run with your friend. And while you're training for your marathon pick up Jeff Galloway's "Book on Running" second edition. Even if you don't want to use the walk breaks I find his books very helpful in my planning.

Member

I actually have that book. Sounds crazy to walk starting at mile one...but I can see the advantages. I'm sure alot of runners dont like that idea either. The way I look at this, it isn't like I am jumping in not having already run *some* distance. For instance, the training plans I have seen only go to like 12 miles in the first 4-6 weeks of training. Being in the military, I have consisently run 6-10 mile runs every week. The half was rough at the end, about mile 11 I was wishing it was over. I know I'm not in shape for a marathon right now, but I'm going try 15 this weekend and see how I feel. I'm sure I'll be sore (my knees were hurting after the half) but I'm sure I can do it. I then plan on doing 8-10 for a long run the next weekend, and depending on how I feel with 15, I'll try to 17 the next weekend. Ulitmate goal is to run 22 NLT Xmas. If I can do that, I think 26 by the end of Jan should not be a real problem. As far as the shins go, I haven't had a relapse in pain yet. I've been icing then alot more, using Ben-gay type adhesive patches, and I bought a stick (www.thestick.com). With all this combined, I think I'll be ok. I just need to get some warmer running cloths and a new MP3 player, mine only holds music for just over an hour.

Hey, if nothing else, it's a good excuse to buy more toys. Evening looking at wireless headphones!!!

All in all, if I feel pain or it hurts too bad on the long runs, I wont do it until early next fall.

Thanks for the advice.

Marathon too quick?

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