Thursday, January 22, 2009

Half Marathon Countdown

It is so appropriate that this week's Take It and Run (TIaRT) topic is the half marathon. I am running a half marathon on Sunday that I trained pretty hard for. I didn't run miles and miles (only about twenty miles a week), but I think I trained pretty smart adding tempo runs and speedwork.

What I like best about half marathons is the fact that it is long enough to feel like I have really accomplished something that most people would not or could not do. I feel proud just finishing it. I love getting comments like, "you ran 13.1 miles..... in a ROW?" On the flip side, it doesn't overtake your life while training for it. The long runs are a couple of hours on the weekend and some hour-long runs or shorter mid-week. I don't have to pay a babysitter, my husband still has a wife and I feel like my life is not really affected negatively.

I have only run one half marathon and it was hard. I actually ran a marathon before running a half. During my marathon training there was only one half marathon that I could have done. The La Jolla Half Marathon was in April and we considered it. We decided against it for two reasons 1) it is difficult and hilly and none of us wanted to get injured and 2) it is difficult and hilly and none of us wanted to lose our confidence. When I ran the AFC in August, I think I was relying a lot on my residual fitness from the marathon. The Carlsbad this weekend is a race I trained specifically for and I am looking forward to it.

Since I am relatively new to this distance (although I am pretty sure it will be my favorite in the long run), I don't have a ton of advice. I will share my approach to Sunday's race: train smart and try to have fun. In the end, it isn't worth it if I don't enjoy myself.*


*I have been sort of obsessing over my sub-two-hour goal and I am trying to focus these last days on having fun. I need to trust in my fitness and training... :-)

7 comments:

RunnerMom said...

I like the half marathon distance for those exact reasons! I can still be a present wife and mommy, accomplish something pretty major, and running doesn't completely overtake my life.

Unfortunately, I'm training for a full right now. :-)

That speed/tempo training will totally pay off. Good luck for a sub-two-hour finish!

MCM Mama said...

Yep, I like the half for the same reasons as RunnerMom.

Good luck this weekend!

Unknown said...

I have never run a full marathon so I can't really compare the two, but so far I really am a big fan of the half for the same reasons you listed. The training is never too overwhelming, the distance is doable, and you feel great afterwards. Good luck!

Alissa said...

Are there hills in this half marathon? If its flat, I think you will have your sub 2:00 easily. Even if it's hilly you still have a good shot!

So can I cyper-stalk you? Will they post times on the net? :)

I believe in you!!! Good luck!!

Janet B. said...

Good Luck on Sunday Lisa! I'm so super proud of you!

Anonymous said...

I also ran a full marathon before doing a half. And I'm going to run my first official 10K next month.... I do these things in all the wrong order! :-) But I like the half marathon distance too.

I'm really excited to hear about your race this weekend. I have such high hopes for all of my online friends who are racing this week, just because I want everyone to have better experiences than I did! If I can take the brunt of any bad luck that had to occur for racers right now, then I guess my fall was good for something!

Aka Alice said...

Despite my ridiculous hip, I'm going to be there. You are completely going to be doing the sub-two hour finish! I'll be waaaay behind you. I know it's going to be much easier than AFC (no hills, no heat!)

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