Start Training for my 1'st Marathon Now.

Hey yall,
Me and my professor decided to run in this years marathon. anyway he did his first one in october last year and i have really never run over 1 mile my entire life(as i stick to lifting,and H.I.T). anyway we are in both decent shape do u think 5 weeks is enough time to train to be able to run a marathon. also any tips would be greatly appreciated. good luck to everyone this year

Anything is possible. But it does not sound like much fun.

A lot of the fun of the marathon is in the training, and you are going to miss that. Without proper training, the marathon becomes one long day of survival while you watch those around you celebrating the accomplishment.

I would recommend running the 5K or 10K on Saturday and watching the marathon on Sunday. Better yet, volunteer to help out on marathon day and train for next year's Pig.

that was the dumbest reply i have ever heard. go ahead and reread that and think before you type

so you automatically assume i will not finish? believe me i will finish even if im the last person to cross the finish line. i will be celebrating with everyone else, not watching them. the fun is in the training? i can assure you i will hate every run i go on while training for this marathon. im doin this to push myself to the limits and pursue an accomplishment i never thought i would try or accomplish. you were right on one thing, anything is possible

improbgonnadie
so you automatically assume i will not finish? believe me i will finish even if im the last person to cross the finish line. i will be celebrating with everyone else, not watching them. the fun is in the training? i can assure you i will hate every run i go on while training for this marathon. im doin this to push myself to the limits and pursue an accomplishment i never thought i would try or accomplish. you were right on one thing, anything is possible

Echoguy is really just trying to be helpful, I agree with many of the points made. If you had absolute confidence in finishing, I can't imagine you would have posted in the first place. I ran for the first time last year and decided to go with the half rather than the full. Of course you could finish if you put your heart in it, but without proper training everything after the first 5 miles will be absolute hell and you will probably wish you had started smaller. The 5/10 k and half-marathon are great accomplishments too! You also risk injuring yourself badly without enough training. Anyway, I wish you luck in whichever race you choose, it will be a fun day!

So, my biggest tip would be to definitely get in some longs runs before the race day. At least one 15-20 mile run per week. That way you have an idea, mentally and physically, what 26.2 miles will feel like.

Also, since you said you have barely run more than a mile before, you need to know how your body will respond to long distances. Pretty much everyone experiences some sort of pain from running long distances. Some people experience foot pain, some shin splints, some hip pain, etc, so after a few long runs you will know what your specific issues are and you can learn how to deal with them appropriately so that you can finish the race.
This issues can get bad enough that if you do not regocnize them and prepare for them, they can keep you from finishing the race.

Edited Wed 2nd Apr 2008 6:01 am by sietseld

Another thought to mention:

The routes for the half- and full marathon are the same for about the first 9 miles. At that point they split. This is about a third of the distance for the full marathon. Keep in mind that if you really aren't feeling it at that point in the race, you can go off and finish the last four miles of the half marathon. But hopefully you are doing great and decide to go right!!

Wow. Five weeks of training. I agree you REALLY need to try a long run (more than 15 miles) and see how you feel. The people who die while running marathons are the ones who underestimate them.

The suggestions to try shorter distance races are good ones.

i know 5 weeks is short but i was in great shape b4 i started training. i feel now i have gotten used to the long runs. i have run 2 12 milers in 3 days and feel really good. i plan to run 18 this weekend and go from there. my cardio is great just have to get my joints use to the pounding. cant wait to cross that finish line

Where do you go to school?

Siets,
I am a college student at Bowling Green State. By the way thx for the tips earlier

Coolness. I go to Miami University. Are you just coming down to Cincy for the weekend?

thats the plan. r u trying to hit on me?

Maybe. How old are you?

21, if your not a stalker, what is your facebook

u can search Miami Ohio for the name Sietsema

I decided to run my first marathon the Friday before the race, which was the Pig and was Sunday. I had been a casual 5 mile runner since high school. I had run a few long runs, about 15-20 miles, recreationally years before. I signed up, ran the Pig, finished, and celebrated with everyone else. If you're in reasonably good shape and your doctor would clear you, you should be fine.

Either...

1) You won't finish.

OR

2) You'll be hobbling around for a week afterwards.

Either way will be an experience...

Just thought I would pop this back up to the top to give the original author the chance to tell us what a great experience they had at the Pig.