Half Marathon.....Done!
Half Marathon.....Done!
Author
Discussion

NordicCrankShaft

Original Poster:

1,956 posts

144 months

Wednesday 9th March 2016
quotequote all
So after deciding in mid January me and 5 of my mates decided we where going to run the Newport half marathon in South Wales (my home town)on 6th March which was Sunday just gone, we all did very little training, a lot less than we should have but we did it and managed to raise 1,500 in the process.

Now my time Sunday after a lot of men tally digging deep and 3 lots of energy gels was 2:16:31 which I was extremely happy with given how little training I did and I was aiming to just finish in around 2.5-3 hour mark. After sunday I think we've all got the bite and I'm going to do the Bergen half at the end of April and the Cardiff half in October but this time I want to take it more seriously, are there any good websites or apps I can use that will help me nail the training?

ewenm

28,506 posts

274 months

Wednesday 9th March 2016
quotequote all
Runnersworld.co.uk have decent beginner plans.

Other than that, I'd recommend finding your local running groups/club and signing up to ParkRun (free!).

944fan

4,962 posts

214 months

Wednesday 9th March 2016
quotequote all
Well done, fantastic effort.

Running is very open and there are lots of free plans available as ewen has said. Swimming on the other hand there is fk all avaialble, but I digress

running.about.com also have some good ones which are nice and simple. Also my coach does online tailored plans. You can email him your times, when you can train, goals etc and he will send you a tailored plan. £60. Let me know if you want the details.


Colonial

13,553 posts

234 months

Thursday 10th March 2016
quotequote all
Good work. Similar time as my first half as well.

It's massively addictive isn't it?

I did 2 last year and have 5, maybe 5 booked this year. Next year I want to get into ultra trail running which is a whole other level of crazy.

DervVW

2,223 posts

168 months

Thursday 10th March 2016
quotequote all
Well done
I'm doing my own this sunday. I hope that the regular running I have done sets me up for a similar time as you op.


mep

88 posts

227 months

Thursday 10th March 2016
quotequote all
I've used this book in the past Run Less Run Faster.

Basically it suggests running three times a week, one interval run, one tempo run and a longer run at a steady pace. The book says you should also do some form of cross training twice a week but I didn't always stick to that. The suggested run/interval distances and pace are all in tables the book, and your target pace is determined by the 5k time you can currently run.

You'd need some way of knowing your running pace like a gps watch to do the runs accurately. The book suggests running the intervals on a track but just did them on my usual running routes.

I've only run two half marathons in the past so not very experienced but I managed a 1:54 for my second after following the book. My first half marathon time was 2:20 although I was slightly injured so didn't run the whole thing.


944fan

4,962 posts

214 months

Monday 14th March 2016
quotequote all
I have entered the MK half on May bank holiday. Also entered a half ironman for July.

The run is my weakest discipline so will be good to test the distance first.

Think I will be lucky to break 2:15 though.

DervVW

2,223 posts

168 months

Tuesday 15th March 2016
quotequote all
I did the Ironbridge half the weekend. My first. It was a good day for it, I expected loads of rain or it to be cold.

Weird running with others!