Let me preface this by saying I am not a strong runner. Done 4 half marys in the last 7 months, two of them in HIMs, fastest stand alone is 2:04. Signed up for IMAZ, and was considering a mary in November, as I like the idea of having gone the distance. Would be able to take the remainder of November low key before IM training in December
I’ve gotten advice from it’s a good idea to train for it but run a half mary instead to reduce recovery time.
What’s the common ST wisdom on this?
Good discussion here.
Thanks Cathy
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I am presuming you’ve never done an IM to clarify ?
As you have stated you are not a “strong” runner. I think if you were , you could easily slip in a marathon 5 months prior to an IM. I believe it all comes down to your base and hence your ability to recover.
I would suggest , as you have already been advised , to do a half-mary or two up until 6 weeks prior and use them as training buffets.
If you still feel so strongly about running a marathon schedule one for 3-6 weeks after your IM if there is one.
For what it’s worth, I ran a marathon 3 weeks after IM Malaysia this year, and felt I ran at my potential. Granted I have a fairly large running base and recovery rate.
Best of luck in your IM mate !
If you really want to run one before IMAZ, do it like 2 months before, dont taper before it and just use it as a long training run, go nice and easy, if you run a marathon at what would be your full out pace (with a taper and everything) you could be wrecked for weeks. doa 100 mile ride the day before and jog the marathon.
I ran a marathon last May, and will do IMWI for my 1st IM in 8 weeks. I feel like it did me a lot of good- I focused on running throughout the winter (in northern IL, where its easy to just do nothing b/c the weather sucks), and it gave me a much stronger running base this year- I took 16 minutes off my HIM run time, and this was 5 weeks after the mary.
Your mary is far enough out that it won’t affect IM training, and could be a great springboard for a stronger run. Go for it!