Yes.

Yeah, I would not do that. If your longest ever run is 7 miles, and your longest recent run is 5 miles, then you would be totally trashed after a half marathon. It would probably take you at least a week to recover back to your training routine, unless you really go slow in the half.

 "I only do sprint tri's so my run workouts are basically no more than 5 miles 3x per week."

Your conclusion doesn't follow from your premise...Just because you do "sprints" doesn't mean you need to half-ass your run training. People who are training to run a mile will often spend time running 60+ miles/week. If I were in your shoes and wanted to do a half, I would train for it first.

Thanks. Kinda bummed but 5k it is then.

Everyone's body and capabilities are different but I ran my first HM having my longest run being 6.5 miles at the time. Up to that point I was only doing sprint tris with most of my runs 3-4 miles with one "long" run of 6-6.5 miles each week. I was in decent bike and swim shape at the time, swim workouts were 3,000 yards typically and I could ride 20-30 miles at 19-20 mph average.

So my thinking was that I had done some sprint tris that had 750 m swims that took me 1:15 or so and all I had to do was go 30 minutes longer. But ALL of it running of course. So I looked at my typical pace for those 6.5 mile runs and added 30 seconds per mile to that pace as a HM race pace. So I took the first 10 miles of that HM at a respectable pace. It worked like a charm for ME. I ended up running a pretty fast last 5K and was really happy with my performance.

The trick was to pace accordingly and also a very honest assessment of my own fitness.

So for some people I would say YES, this is doable.

I recovered in a couple days and was back at it.

You could do it and finish, sure no problem.

But your body would need more time to recover with you never running more than 7 miles before.

If it is a goal to do it and you would have fun, then you could do it. If your goal is to not interrupt a week + of your training then I would avoid the 13 miles.

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"If it costs you 30 minutes at Maryland so what" -dwreal

Sheesh! Well I hope I'm not half -assing, I train 11 hrs a week! 3x SBR plus twice a week in the gym.
And I'm not just moping around . I follow trainer roads sprint program to a T plus the two days of strength in the gym. I just thought the half would be nice to just get one in. I'm serious about competing in the sprints. Not so much the half. Just thought it would be fun to try.

If you are truly serious about competing in sprints, ditch the gym so you'd be running 5X/week and start slowly building mileage. My 5 runs a week would look something like:

4 easy
8 w/2x15' tempo or, if I were inclined to go to the track instead of doing tempo, 4x1200m@5K pace
4 easy
8
10-12 w/2x15' tempo

It would take quite a while to build up to that from where you are now, but if you got your running to that point, you'd be able to run a half decent half.

Another thing to think about long term would be taking a period of time and switching from doing 3xSBR and doing a run focus for 3-4 months. The Fall is often a good time for this.

However fast you are running now at 3x5 miles, I believe you would be quite shocked at how much faster you would get.

How old are you? I could have done this in my 20s and early 30s and come back after a couple days rest. If I tried this now, I would likely be down for a week or more.

A reminder that this is ST. Where people who know nothing about you, your background, your race history or your goals tell you your training plan is garbage and you are doing it all wrong. Even when the question you asked isn't even about your training plan!

 


IMHO, if you're already fit and have run 7, you can listen to the above pacing advice and do a half without issue. I wouldn't use the same logic to jump from 14 miles to 26 in one go (using the same percentage jump) as things get hinky above 16 in my experience.

Agree with this. I have been taking oct through dec off except for gym because the peak of my work season is then. I'm gonna start the Barry P run plan next oct. Id have a hard time permanently ditching the gym though. Having some physic is still important to me.

41 lol

Go for it! Your time to recover will depend entirely on how hard you run it. Go out to enjoy the experience at a comfortable pace, i.e. one that will still allow you to easily talk, and you'll recover just fine. Go out to try to smash a record and you'll take a lot longer to recover. Your recovery time is in your hands!

As an aside, I'd counsel you to add longer steady state runs to your training anyway. There's nothing wrong with a solid aerobic base underpinning the rest of your fast efforts.

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Trust me I’m a doctor!
Well, I have a PhD :-)

do it. you only live once. I did my first half with my longest run being 8 miles. With Achilles tendonitis. Yeah I was sore after, but I'm still glad I did it.

Hmm, some good feedback here. I think I may be leaning towards going for it.

Ditto to that. In my late teens no problem and I could run under 130. Now 145 and takes a week to recover even with 10-12 mile runs in my 20 mile weeks

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They constantly try to escape from the darkness outside and within
Dreaming of systems so perfect that no one will need to be good T.S. Eliot

So much negativity! Of course you should run it!

if you can run 5 miles, you can run 10. If you can run 10, you can run a 1/2 Marathon...

You pace of course should be slower, but with plenty of fuel and water along the way you will stay fresher. I'd start nice and conservative, 30-60 sec / mile slower than your 5K pace. When you get to 7-8 miles, take a lunch break. By that I mean have a gel or other favorite food and take a little walk for a minute or two, let your HR come down a few beats, catch your breath, walk a bit further, maybe re-tie your shoes. Then, off you go, keep it steady and when your get to the last mile or two, pick it up if you feel like it.

Look at it this way, you are guaranteed a PR if you do the half and you will prove to yourself you can do it. if you take it nice and easy this time out, you will be able to beat this time by 5-10 minutes in your NEXT Half mary.

Good luck!

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" I take my gear out of my car and put my bike together. Tourists and locals are watching from sidewalk cafes. Non-racers. The emptiness of of their lives shocks me. "
(opening lines from Tim Krabbe's The Rider , 1978

Last season I trained raced three sprints with my longest run coming in at about 7 miles. The week after my last race I decided to see how 10 miles felt at my cruising speed based on heart rate. I felt good after 10 miles and signed up for a half marathon that night and raced 6 days later. Keeping a slower pace than I would in a 5k (8:10/mile for 5k, 9:20 for half) was hard but my Garman and heart rate monitor kept me honest. I race Clydesdale in tri and am generally pretty slow. I came in a little over 2 hours on the half and felt fine afterward other than my feet hurting for 4 or 5 days.

As far as training, I don't think you are doing yourself any favors for April jumping up in distance on the run, you might even injure yourself adding too much distance too fast.

It sounds like you were kind of looking forward to it, so I say go for it. It's not like you don't have a running base of some sort. I agree with other posters that a marathon would be stupid, but a half-marathon is doable, especially if you're just out there to enjoy it. If you've got an aggressive time goal in mind, then be prepared for a potentially serious injury (or at the very least, an unpleasant recovery).

I went out and ran a ten-mile race a few weeks ago having done very little running recently and it was fine. Just be smart about it.

I'd do it.

I did the Barrelman relay on basically no training last year as the swimmer and runner; thanks to STAC development time commitments I basically had no time to train running. But since I had my biking buddy depending on my running performance, I had to really give it on the run. Result: 13km at my planned race pace, followed by 8km of pain. As has been said, the Barrelman course is surprisingly hilly given that the bike is pancake flat.

Immediately afterwards we flew to Vegas for interbike, and I spent 3x8-hour days playing Zwift while plugging the Zero PM's wonderful attributes, and walking everywhere. I didn't injure myself during the half-marathon, but I did injure my ankles in Vegas because I was walking gingerly on my destroyed quads.

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STAC Zero Trainer - Zero noise, zero tire contact, zero moving parts. Suffer in Silence starting fall 2016

Do it.

I ran my first ever 5 miler (turkey trot) in Nov '15, first 13.1 in Jan'16 & first 26.2 in Feb'16 (10 weeks later). Not the best idea & there was some walking in the marathon but I survived.

I'm sure you'll get to the end, some injury risk but take it easy & you'll probably be fine.

13.1 is not that hard. If you are running 15 mi/week and overall training 11 hours per week you will have no problems. Go out easy and reassess your pace at the half way point. If you are feeling good pick up the pace. At 41 years old you will recover just fine and won't miss a workout.

Even when I was 23 years old (28 years ago), I did around 14 runs of 18 to 21 miles before I even thought of doing good at a half marathon.

I ran a 1:26 half marathon as a training day building up for an Ironman and I laid on the floor of my house for several hours after.

I would say you're not really trained for a half but that doesn't mean you couldn't manage it. You might do just fine.
However, I probably wouldn't do it. The risk of an injury is much higher if you suddenly jump to a longer distance. If it was your target race or the end of the season and you found yourself under-prepared for an event you really wanted to do for some reason, it might be worth risking it. But at this time of year, when your focus is sprint races, why risk injury for something that appears to be just a whim?
It's obviously your call, but if you're not very confident you can do the distance comfortably, I wouldn't push myself and risk injury.

I like tridevildog's strategy. I know I can finish and probably recover rather quickly that way. Maybe re- arrange the following week like Anna mentioned.
This risk of injury some of you have brought up is now lingering in my head. Didnt suspect that would be an issue if I took it easy ,short of a freak accident. I do have an ankle that gets sore after lots of abuse. I broke it about 15 years ago . Should have had surgery but I was young , hard headed and opted for a four month cast instead.
I dont know why this is bugging me so much. I do 5ks all the time. This one just happens to be lumped in with a half. The half course takes you through a beutiful scenic course while the 5k is just out to the highway and back.
Must think it over some more :(

The much longer distance gives you time to fatigue and therefore lose form/posture. This is especially likely since you're not used to anywhere near that distance. Taking it easy later in the race could even exacerbate this as some people have worse posture when taking it easy.
So, its posture rather than exertion that I think is the potential cause of injury and the reason most people build distance gradually.

I'll play devils advocate and say GO FOR IT!!

Sure you'll need a few days catch up. You could swap a few swims for runs Early in the week.

Why do it? You'll feel like a badass when you finish. You'll be pushing the envelope of what your brain deems "possible" and thus expanding your horizons for future distances. Lastly... after a few days your legs won't be sore And

you still ran a half marathon.

Life is short!

That would be ill advised. As my previous QT2 coaches said, race the distance you're trained for

I did a half marathon in January and the longest run I did in the lead up was 9 miles, but I was averaging 25 miles a week for a couple months and that was enough to get me through it. My best half marathon time is 1:29 (6:50 pace) and in January's race my goal was just to get through it. I started at 8:00 min/mile pace and stuck at it, imagining that mile 8 was half way. My calves got pretty tight in the last 3 miles (back into a headwind) but I held the pace for a 1:44. I think with your lack of run training you would have to go a little slower relative to your 'well trained' pace, and you would probably have a major fall off in pace in the last couple miles (especially if you start too fast), but you could get through it. Probably better to target a future race and train better for it though.

But 9 miles is 70% of the race distance. You're not there but you're in the same order of magnitude.
I've done halves on about the same without any real difficulty. However, the OP has NEVER run more than 7 miles (<55% race distance) and is currently only running 5 miles (<40% race distance). I think that's a lot different.
With a month to go I'd say add 1 or 2 miles per week for the next 3 weeks and then go for it. But a straight jump from 5 to 13.1 seems like a major injury risk to me. I wouldn't do it unless I was willing to be injured for a month or two afterwards.

I would say the risk of injury will depend on a) how well trained as a triathlete he is, and b) his age. If the answers are, not very and over 40, then I would agree the risk of injury should be a bigger consideration.

You guys are bumming me out. Signed up for a 13.1 next month with a duathlon the next weekend. Never ran a stand-alone 13.1 in my life and today's 5 mile run was the longest since august when I did 6.2. Oops.

Just view it as a hard training session - run at your comfortable pace and see how you feel around mile 10. Give it a shot....

...keep in mind that there are a lot of STs that if (1) their "country-club local pro" equivalent coach does not advise them on or (2) it is not in the training plan they really lose their sh**.

Definitely don't over do it, but there is a happy medium of "winging it" and being too structured / scared.

Do it. I'm in the same boat as you as far as run training volume, and decided to run the half the night before. I've been racing 6:35-6:40 for 5-6.2 miles and averaged 6:58 for the half. Probably could have used more carbs (Gu?) around halfway since my pace dropped around 7:20 the last 2 miles due to light cramping. I'll know for next time. Follow up and let us know how you do, good luck!

FFS! Stop overthinking it! You're young, You're fit. You're capable. Don't aim to race it. Curb any ambitions. Swallow any pride you might have if you elect to walk. Just go out there and enjoy it!

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Trust me I’m a doctor!
Well, I have a PhD :-)

Overuse is the biggest cause of injury and 15 mi/week doesn't fit that definition. OP indicated he is training 11 hours a week. This is enough to finish 13.1. Early 40's is not old. OP will do fine if he runs to finish rather than for time.

Lol! You sealed it ... Im in!

Good luck, have fun, I'd be interested to find out how it went.

Thanks everyone here for all the advise. My plan is to just take it easy , enjoy the race and finish in just under 2hrs.
Will let you know how it goes.

It'll all end in tears, don't say I didn't warn you.....nah ;) you'll probably do great.
Have a good race.

Good luck and enjoy your race.

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"If it costs you 30 minutes at Maryland so what" -dwreal

Lol , tears of joy I hope ! I will be thinking of your advise to aid in keeping my foot off the gas as I get passed by runners pushing strollers :-)

I've been passed by a runner pushing a stroller while I was going full gas, so I like to think there's no shame in it!

So , 1st HM off the check list ! Took it easy . Maybe a little too easy for the first 3 miles . Hydrated at every water stop and smashed a gel at mile 8 ( kinda nasty but easy to take). Finished in 1:58.14.
Knees and ankle where pretty sore right after but there feeling better already. Didnt schedule any work tomorrow just incase but I think I'll probably feel good enough to hit the pool.
Thanks again everyone for all the advise!

Well done. If your knee and ankle a re a bit sore you might want to look at replacement running shoes.

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Trust me I’m a doctor!
Well, I have a PhD :-)

My ankle pain is due to a bad break about 15 years ago that never healed properly. I walk on pitched roofs pretty much very day for work. Its usally pretty tender by the end of the day. I just deal with it. The knee pain comes any time I run over six miles. Only the left one , same side as the ankle. I wonder if my form suffers once the ankle starts to ache.
My running shoes are cloud surfers and have been very happy with them so far. I am quite inexperienced when it comes to selecting shoes though. I just randomly picked those and went with them.

If you only run in the one pair, then you should consider at least one other pair and alternate. Keeps the wear pattern from getting too extreme on one pair before you change them. I have at least 2 pairs, roughly half a life apart so that when one pair reaches death the other pair is on half life.

Form likely does suffer as you deal with the discomfort from the ankle. Consider also whether you favour one side or the other during work and perhaps think about evening the loading a bit more.

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Trust me I’m a doctor!
Well, I have a PhD :-)

Well done and that is a respectable time even when taking it easy. I think you did a good job and saved yourself for your future training that you wanted to jump back into this week. I agree, check it off the list, well done.

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"If it costs you 30 minutes at Maryland so what" -dwreal

Unfortunatly , without getting into boring detail about my work... I have to walk backwards counter clockwise and I cant deviate from that. It puts my left foot in a constant 15-20 degree + camber.
I will definitely take your advise on a second pair of shoes though. 90% of my running is on a treadmill so my shoes wear a little slower. Mine are right about half life now so perfect timing! Thanks!

Kay Serrar wrote:

I would say the risk of injury will depend on a) how well trained as a triathlete he is, and b) his age. If the answers are, not very and over 40, then I would agree the risk of injury should be a bigger consideration.

Yeah.

If you're young, not injury-prone and don't get sore at all from your longest runs, do the race.


If you often feel on the edge of injury, or feel little tweaks and soreness from running, or are "old" don't do it.


I'm saying this as a non-runner who a few times went much longer than what I'd trained for when I was in my late teens (like nearly zero running over a couple miles to weekly 11 miler runs in a few months) and it was no big deal - just got a bit sore for a number of days afterwards.

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http://www.jt10000.com/

If you run 5 times a week, how many times do you swim? and bike?

I swim 4 times, ride 4 times, and run 3 times, and I'm using all 7 days of the week (Monday's I use as an easy recovery swim, and possible day off, but since swimming is my weakness, I try to always get my 4 swims in).

I wouldn't know where to put 2 extra runs, unless I run OTB.

I do double up sessions am and pm on Mon - Thurs. Friday off. Often swim, bike, run, Saturday and bike, run Sunday. Usually gives me 6 runs, 4 bikes and 3 swims.

I'm not a competitor, I'm a completitor so I am not overly worried about being a crappy swimmer, cyclist and runner. I just hand over the money to complete events.

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Trust me I’m a doctor!
Well, I have a PhD :-)

If you run 5 times a week, how many times do you swim? and bike?


3 swims, # of bikes/week varied from 3-10 from season to season, but always 5+ runs. Running OTB is still running so if you are time challenged it is an option.

If your goal is optimizing performance, I would never swim 4 days and run only 3.

Ah I see. My week usually looks like this:



Maybe eventually I can add an easy run on Thursday.