Spiral Half Marathon Training

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Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Spiral » Sun Nov 13, 2011 8:59 am

This is my journal of all of the things I am doing (and thinking about doing) in order to complete my first half marathon on May 5th of next year.

I live in Indianapolis. And the half marathon held in early May of each year is the most attended half marathon in the country, with over 30,000 people participating. It gets filled up about 5 to 6 months in advance, which is why I signed up early.

I welcome the comments and thoughts of others in this journal, especially those who doing an exercise program that could in some way be relevant to what I am doing. In other words, if you have decided to train to run your first 5k race or ride in your first biking or swimming competition or if you have been running, swimming, biking, mountain biking for a while, I welcome your comments. Also, if you know someone who participates in activities like those I described, I welcome your comments.

Some background on why I have decided to run in a half marathon.

I have never been a runner at all. I have often thought of running as boring and I have often thought of myself as a slow runner.

But about one month after I started on the McDougall diet (about one year ago), some relatives of my mine mentioned that they had just completed an Olympic Triathalon, which involves swimming, biking and running a 10k consecutively. They then said that they wanted to invite the entire family to participate in the Turkey Trot 5k race held on the morning of Thanksgiving in California. I decided to run in this 5k and despite a slow 11:35 minute/mile pace, I was hooked. I wanted to run more 5ks and improve my speed.

But whenever someone found out that I have become "a runner," they would ask, "Are you doing the Mini?" The Mini is the short name for the very popular half marathon held in early May here in Indianapolis. My response was always, "I only run in 5k races, some 8k races and maybe a 10k race. But a half marathon is way too long. Not good for the joints. Hard on the body. I enjoy my 5ks."

Well, I have finally given in. The "Mini" just seems way too exciting. Part of the 13.1 miles is a 2.5 mile run around the Indianapolis 500 race track (which is apparently very boring because the scenery does not change and you are running on a slope).

So, I'm in. I have signed up and paid my money. I have about 5 to 6 months to train.

I will be running in the Jingle Bell Run 5k race in early December. And I have already signed up for a 8k race which is two weeks before the half marathon. I figure that I won't start training for the Mini (half marathon) until after I am done with the Jingle Bell Run, four weeks from now. I'll have to figure out how to modify my training program for the half marathon in order to run the 8k.

But I'm excited and, again, welcome comments from others. Tips and what not.
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby nomikins » Sun Nov 13, 2011 9:26 am

Get the book: Marathoning for Mortals, by John Bingham. It has half and full marathon training plans that are very accessible and really breaks everything down into a non-intimidating program.
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Chile » Sun Nov 13, 2011 12:40 pm

Thought about both of you this morning while standing in the rain waiting for hubby to finish running his first half-marathon. He walked one with me in '06 and has done a 50K trail run, but this was his first half.

I'm sure you'll be hooked even more, Spiral, after completing your half-marathon in May! Looking forward to following your progress here.
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Spiral » Sun Nov 13, 2011 2:20 pm

nomikins,

I'll have to check that book out of the library, although at the moment I am not too intimidated about the half marathon. Maybe I should be. I might be a bit overconfident. But we'll see what happens when I start going beyond 6.75 mile runs, which is my longest training run so far.

Chile,

I think you are right. This whole running thing is very addictive. It's like I try to structure my whole day's activities around my runs.

So your hubby ran a half marathon, eh? So, maybe you can post a comment here describing a typical week or two of his training and maybe you could decribe his hydration/fueling strategy.

I'm interested in the gory details, including how experienced a runner he is and if he had an success/failure with other hydration/fueling stategies.

Here's some recent running history of mine. Just so you know about where I am. I'm still a novice runner, but I'm a somewhat experienced novice. :D

On November 5, about a week ago, I ran a 5k race with a total time of 24 minutes and 31 seconds, a 7:55 minute/mile pace. This was a personal record for me. My previous personal record was set in October with a 25:51 finish, a pace of about 8:20 minute/mile.

I have a GPS heart rate monitor and have it programmed to tell me how fast I am running. Usually I have it brake it down by half-mile "laps."

I was surprised during the early part of this 5k race that I was running at a 6:50 minute mile pace. I thought, "Could I be taking this too fast?" For me, an 8:15 minute mile pace is somewhat high intensity. But I ended up finishing the first mile of the race in 7:10. Then I ran the second and third miles at about a 8:02 pace. I ran the closing part of race a little faster, maybe at 7:45 pace. I don't know for sure because I forgot to stop my GPS when I crossed the finish line. :o

But the official results were that I ran at a 7:55 pace. I was thrilled to have finally crossed the 8 minute/mile pace threshold. I was beginning to wonder, during my training, if I would ever be able to do it.

I took 2 days off for rest after the race. I usually take at least one day off a race.

On November 8, I ran 3.25 miles at a relaxed 9:30 pace.

On November 10, I ran the longest I have run, a 6.75 mile run at a 9:10 pace. It was this run that convinced me that maybe I should give the half marathon a shot because I was not tired at the end of this run. My GPS heart rate monitor showed that my heart rate was steady and sustainable throughout the run

On November 11, I ran 4.4 miles at a 9:10 pace. I did this exact same workout again on November 12 (yesterday).

Today, the 13th of November, I am taking a day off.

Tomorrow I plan to do a tempo run or maybe some interval training. Something to get me to run faster, but for a shorter distance because I have my eyes on the Jingle Bell Run 5k in 4 weeks.

Anyway, let me know if you have anything to throw into this journal. If you know someone who runs, bikes, swims or if you run, bike or swim, I want to know the details. So, I can learn from it and not feel like I am reinventing the wheel.

Bye for now.
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Spiral » Sun Nov 13, 2011 3:54 pm

I am baking up some russet potatoes for an early dinner. I'll have some green salsa as a topping. This is one of my favorite, quick meals.

I agree with Dr. McDougall that potatoes are a near perfect food. I eat about four russet potatoes almost every day. And I am now trying to include more sweet potatoes in my diet. I had a couple of those today too.

This morning I had oats (oatmeal) with ground flax seed, brown sugar and lots of mixed berries. That's my standard breakfast. I hardly ever eat anything else for breakfast because it's so easy to make and it's so satisfying.

Today I also made a black bean salad from Dr. Esselstyn's "Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease" book. This is one of my favorite Ann Esselstyn recipies. I tried it over brown rice and it was really good.

I am also going to stir fry some veggie so I can have brown rice and steamed veggies for lunch at work tomorrow.

I have a fairly simple diet. Not much variety. I want to learn about some of the Indian recipies that the PCRM folks have given out in their Kickstart program. I just haven't made time for it yet.

I bought new running shoes. Can't wait to break them in tomorrow.
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Broadbean » Sun Nov 13, 2011 6:57 pm

Hi Spiral,
Okay, I am right there with you. I have been running for a long time (since I was 10, which is *gulp* 30 years ago!), but have never really run more than 6 miles... usually I only run 3 miles. I dream about running a half marathon. I get bored easily and have no running pals here in town so that goal seems out of reach... but maybe I can do it. What's your training plan look like?

I have been doing one 5K, one day of sprints, and one long run every week, though since the weather has gotten cold I've been wimping out.

Isn't it great how the McDougall diet makes endurance easier? I feel like I never run out of energy.

I'm going to follow you for inspiration!!
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Spiral » Sun Nov 13, 2011 7:51 pm

Broadbean wrote:Hi Spiral,
Okay, I am right there with you. I have been running for a long time (since I was 10, which is *gulp* 30 years ago!), but have never really run more than 6 miles... usually I only run 3 miles. I dream about running a half marathon. I get bored easily and have no running pals here in town so that goal seems out of reach... but maybe I can do it. What's your training plan look like?

I have been doing one 5K, one day of sprints, and one long run every week, though since the weather has gotten cold I've been wimping out.

Isn't it great how the McDougall diet makes endurance easier? I feel like I never run out of energy.

I'm going to follow you for inspiration!!

Broadbean,

I don't seem to get bored when I run. And I don't even listen to music when I run either. I always run alone. I guess I find my Garmin GPS heart rate monitor so entertaining, with all of the detailed displays of heart rate, average pace, lap pace and current pace. Also, I tend to just let my mind drift.

Training plan? Well, for right now, I am training for a 5k race in early December. So, I am using Hal Higdon's 5k training plan right now. But once that is out of the way, I will be using this training plan for the half marathon in early May.

This is Hal Higdon's training plan for novice half marathoners.

I was thinking of mixing and matching the novice half marathon training plan with the one for intermediate runners. We'll see how it goes.

I think the main goals for both of us should be:

[a] Don't get injured
[b] Get the training miles in

And while it is darn near impossible for me to not focus on how fast I am running, that really shouldn't be the focus. The focus should be getting the body accustomed to running longer distances. And this can only be accomplished gradually, or so I have been led to believe.

Good luck.

And feel free to post your training progress on my journal here, if you would like.

Hey, this is going to be a load of fun, provided neither of us get injured in the process. :shock:
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Broadbean » Mon Nov 14, 2011 8:33 am

Spiral, you came along at just the right time for me. It's getting cold here and my workload at school is ramping up and I was thinking about slacking off on my running. Or, slacking even more, because I've only been going about twice a week lately.

Also, I've been discouraged because I can't get my times down. It shouldn't matter but I need goals to work toward and I've hit a wall: can't get under 29 minutes for a 5K. (I am also stuck at 130 pounds: every week I weigh and do a test run on Fridays, every week it's 130 and some ounces and 29 minutes and some seconds! Grrr!) (I ran my first 5k in 1978: 29:29! :lol: )

So, you are a lot faster than I am and I'm envious: did you do anything special to get increase your speed? I've been doing quarter miles sprints (which I kind of hate) and a 5 or 6 miles slow run on weekends which really tires me out. I often just fall asleep afterwards. This program brought me down from the 11 minute mile I was running in the spring, but I haven't seen progress in a couple of months.

Looking at Hal Higdon's program, I see that my problem is that I'm just not putting in the miles. You mentioned injuries -- I'm terrified of injuring myself. I've done it over and over and each time it ruins my progress and I have to start over and then it's winter and blizzarding and in spring I'm back to barely being able to jog a mile.

Tell me about your Garmin. Should I get one??
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Spiral » Mon Nov 14, 2011 4:41 pm

Broadbean wrote:So, you are a lot faster than I am and I'm envious: did you do anything special to get increase your speed? I've been doing quarter miles sprints (which I kind of hate) and a 5 or 6 miles slow run on weekends which really tires me out. I often just fall asleep afterwards. This program brought me down from the 11 minute mile I was running in the spring, but I haven't seen progress in a couple of months.

Looking at Hal Higdon's program, I see that my problem is that I'm just not putting in the miles. You mentioned injuries -- I'm terrified of injuring myself. I've done it over and over and each time it ruins my progress and I have to start over and then it's winter and blizzarding and in spring I'm back to barely being able to jog a mile.

Tell me about your Garmin. Should I get one??


Well, I have been averaging about 4 to 5 runs per week for the past 10 months or so. Some of these workouts have been high intensity, but many of them have been relaxed runs. I think the relaxed runs are great because the risk of injury is reduced and you still get well conditioned, which will lead to faster running in a race. I think Hal Higdon believes that the novice runner should avoid sprints and rely more on the long, slow, relaxed runs for improvement.

I am sure that you will improve your speed it you just run more, even if you didn't do any sprinting. And if you want to avoid injury, you might want to be a little careful with the sprinting. If you do sprint, I think you need to either "cool down" afterwards with a slow jog of a mile or two. Or stretch out your muscles, to make sure your muscles don't get too tight. I'm not an expert, but I know that when I run fast, my muscles tighten up and that means I am at risk of pulling muscle if I am not careful.

I have a Garmin 305 GPS Heart Rate Monitor, which I purchased at amazon.com at the beginning of this year. It works sort of like the GPS in cars, it can determine your running speed. Now, the "real time" speed readings might be less accurate than the "average pace" readings because of the "sampling error."

In other words, if it says you are running a 5 mintute mile pace one second and then a few seconds later it says you are running a 10 minute mile pace, that might not be too accurate. But when it says that for the last "lap," begun 0.19 miles ago, you have run at a 9:25 minute mile pace, I think that those readings are accurate.

It's a great gadget. It has lots of features, some you won't even need, like the biking features. I am a numbers guy. So, I enjoy going over my "stats" after I workout. And you plug the GPS into your computer. It transfers the data to your computer and you get to see a graph of the path you ran. It shows your heart rate changes as you ran, your pace changes as you ran. I really like it. I think it adds alot to the enjoyment of running. It does take a little bit of time, however, to learn how to make use of the features.

It costs about 150 to 200 bucks though. There might be some other less expensive options, but probably without the fancy features. Maybe you should get one.

I ran 3 miles today, even though the weather was a bit iffy, periodic winds and some rain. Felt good though. Tomorrow I might do some quarter mile intervals, with one mile relaxed jogs in between. Maybe.
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Chile » Tue Nov 15, 2011 4:46 pm

Hi. Hubby's fueling/hydration was pretty well outlined in the thread you started elsewhere (Lounge?) Besides what the various posters (Nomikins, myself, veganontherun, etc.) suggested in that thread, he also recommended you practice drinking from a little cup on the run.

Why? Because on his regular runs, he uses a water bottle or a Camelbak. Works great. He decided not to use either during the half-marathon, instead planning to grab water at the aid stations along the course. The only problem was he couldn't drink the water while running. He had to slow to a walk. Now, they used to put the water in little paper cups, he says, and one could squeeze the top to make a little spout - easier to just pour in your mouth while running. However, now they are using little plastic cups and they break if you squeeze them.

So...he recommends that you have someone stand outside holding a little cup of water out to you as you run by so you can practice grabbing the cup on the go and drinking the water while maintaining a decent pace.

Have fun! :D
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Spiral » Tue Nov 15, 2011 7:08 pm

Chile wrote:Hi. Hubby's fueling/hydration was pretty well outlined in the thread you started elsewhere (Lounge?) Besides what the various posters (Nomikins, myself, veganontherun, etc.) suggested in that thread, he also recommended you practice drinking from a little cup on the run.

Why? Because on his regular runs, he uses a water bottle or a Camelbak. Works great. He decided not to use either during the half-marathon, instead planning to grab water at the aid stations along the course. The only problem was he couldn't drink the water while running. He had to slow to a walk. Now, they used to put the water in little paper cups, he says, and one could squeeze the top to make a little spout - easier to just pour in your mouth while running. However, now they are using little plastic cups and they break if you squeeze them.

So...he recommends that you have someone stand outside holding a little cup of water out to you as you run by so you can practice grabbing the cup on the go and drinking the water while maintaining a decent pace.

Have fun! :D


Wow. This will be a challenge. I always pass the water stops on the 5ks that I run. But I won't be able to get away with that on a long race. :shock:

Today I ran 5.75 miles, skipped interval training. But I did run the 4th mile faster than the other miles. I decided to take it easy for some reason, not that 5.75 miles is easy. I just ran at a slow, relaxed pace.

I ate my standard oats, berries, ground flax seed breakfast and my standard russet potatoes, brown rice with veggies lunch. Had some spaghetti with marinara sauce and some beans and corn for dinner.

Let's hear it for carb-loading. :D
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby nomikins » Tue Nov 15, 2011 7:16 pm

Unless you are in to win, don't worry about running through the aid station. It's safer, especially in larger races to walk though the aid station. I have seen people go down due to sliding in the sea of discarded cups. And a race as big as the Indy Half, you will best be served to walk the aid stations. At your pace, you'll be solid mid-pack. Just my two cents.

From what I'm reading, you are going to kill this race. Can't wait to see how well you do.
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Caroveggie » Tue Nov 15, 2011 9:27 pm

wow you take to running like a duck to water. You are inspiring me to start up again. Although I'll take it slow since I'm afraid of injury. I have only done 1 5K. The other one I did I was injured so I walked most of it. Good luck with your training!
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby Spiral » Thu Nov 17, 2011 4:19 pm

I decided to take yesterday off and today off as rest days.

I found Jeff Galloway's Half Marathon Training Guide online and I noticed that this training plan is less demanding than the ones suggested by Hal Higdon.

This sort of persuaded me to take an extra rest day since I was feeling just a little bit sore from my Monday and Tuesday runs. Nothing major. Just thought I'd take an extra day off, especially since it's 40 degrees here in Indianapolis this afternoon.

My aunt, who is a triathalete, emailed me a few days ago. She told me that for my Christmas present she would register me for the Mini-Marathon on May 5 next year. She also said in her email that she was hiring me a coach, the same coach who helped her get ready for her olympic triathalons and half-ironman triathalons.

I quickly emailed my aunt back, telling her that I had already registered for the Mini. After all, there's nothing worse than getting a Christmas present that you already have. :mrgreen:

Luckily, my aunt had not yet spent the money on the registration. But she did purchase me a "custom" training plan and access to her coach for 23 weeks. This coach of hers is female and has run in many triathalons, doing extremely well in them.

I hope she isn't disappointed to have to coach someone who is so new to running. I also hope her training plan isn't too difficult. I'd like to be able to follow it. But I especially don't want any nutritional advice to eat whey protein or other junk in preparation for this half-marathon.

In fact, given Jeff Novick's advice in running, I feel just a tad bit guilty for running in this half-marathon. I take what Jeff Novick says about too much running being possibly unhealhy very seriously. And I don't like disregarding his advice. But I figure that I probably won't make a habit out of running half-marathons. I'll try it, enjoy it and then try to be more "moderate" in my exercise program.

I'm still waiting to see this new custom training plan and see if it's overwhelming or something I can deal with.

Tomorrow, I want to be back on the track, running, maybe 3 to 5 miles. Nothing too strenuous though.
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Re: Spiral Half Marathon Training

Postby hazelrah » Fri Nov 18, 2011 6:11 pm

Spiral wrote:This is my journal of all of the things I am doing (and thinking about doing) in order to complete my first half marathon on May 5th of next year.

I live in Indianapolis. And the half marathon held in early May of each year is the most attended half marathon in the country, with over 30,000 people participating. It gets filled up about 5 to 6 months in advance, which is why I signed up early.

I welcome the comments and thoughts of others in this journal, especially those who doing an exercise program that could in some way be relevant to what I am doing. ...


Hi Spiral,

I haven't run a marathon in twenty years, but I'm thinking about doing Napa the first weekend of March. My mileage is pretty dismal right now, But I think if I have 3 months I should be able to work up to it.

I remember my first half marathon. I had done a couple of 10Ks, but never any mileage like that in a bib. I took it extra slowly, and I ended up talking the whole run to a woman from South Africa who had done Boston before. It went by so easily it surprised me. The transition to marathons was much easier than I could have imagined. I think it's because I stayed at a pace where converation was comfortable. Hope you have as good an experience next May.


Mark
...the process that creates this boredom that we see in the world now may very well be a self-perpetuating, unconscious form of brainwashing, created by a world totalitarian government based on money, ... Wallace Shawn
http://www.anginamonologues.net
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