Former Bad Ass
Good luck! Let me know which one you decide.
PS: I didn't know you were running it. FE! Finally!!!!
Damaris
5K Specialist
I never run negative splits. I faded some in my only HM because I only did one run of 13+ miles going into it. I am a 5k runner and didn't expect much out of it. It was still a pretty good time.
1 - 7:13
2 - 7:27
3 - 7:23
4 - 7:28
5 - 7:32 (damn water)
6 - 7:24
7 - 7:17
8 - 7:26
9 - 7:32
10 - 7:32
11 - 7:43
12 - 7:44
13 - 7:20 (second wind)
.1 - 6:50
Overall time was 1:37:24.
Personal Bests:
800M - 2:38 (5/28/13) | 1 Mile -5:54 (5/28/13) | 3K - 11:55 (12/29/12) | 2M - 13:00 (12/1/12) | 5K - 20:00 (4/12/13) | 13.1M - 1:37:24 (2/3/13)
Smaller By The Day
I think that as my experience level increases, my level of planning will decrease. I think to start running by feel in a HM or longer at this point in my young running career would fall under the catergory of, "failure to plan, is planning to fail". I like to have a goal pace based on a previous race, and go in with the plan of even splits. Once I'm at or near the 7 mile mark, I feel comfortable adjusting my pace if necessary.
I've never had a huge negative split, but both of my HM's have been slight negative splits. I think this is the result of increased fitness between races. I do tend to "wing" 5K's, and I truly mean "wing it". I don't have a goal pace, and don't know my pace unless hear someone yell a time out at a mile marker. I'm comfortable doing that in a shorter race. When I base a HM pace on a 5K that was 6 weeks ago, I'm probably capable of shaving a few seconds off of that goal pace.
Now, if I had the experience to go by feel from mile 1, then maybe I could put up a slightly better time. Does that bother me? Nope. I've PR'ed every race I've run, and by large margins. I've taken anywhere from a minute to almost 10 minutes off of almost every race I've run. See the results in my signature. So, what are we talking about? Would an additional minute win me my age group? No. Would an 11 minute PR make me that much happier than an almost 10 minute PR? Probably not.
With only to HM's under my belt, would "winging it" have a higher potential for reward or a higher risk of disaster? I'd argue that if I'm confident that my plan will result in a huge PR, then the risk of "winging it" outweighs the potential reward. Does this mean that I'll never run a half completely by feel. Absolutely not.
At some point, I'll probably be like some of the runners on this forum that are shooting to shave off a few seconds as I approach my potential. At that point, I'll know more about my runner's body, and how the distance feels. I'll have to be more aggressive, and take more risks to meet my goals. Then, it will make more sense IMO, but many of us on this forum are beginners. I don't think that its a good idea for someone in their first, second or even third HM to decide that the first mile feels slow and pick it up until it feels challenging.
So, I'd recommend having a goal pace. Know the course. If you aren't good on hills, be prepared to adjust for that. I personally seem to be loving hills because I catch a LOT of people. If you use gels of any kind, make sure you have a plan as to where you want to implement that. If you think you might make an adjustment, have a plan as to when you want to make that decision. Know what you want to wear based on the forecast. Try it out on a similar day in training. If it's going to be windy, have a drafting strategy. I'm all for planning when you've had as few races as I've had. It actually calms my nerves.
Some day, I'm sure I'll wing it at a HM, or marathon, but I'll stick to my guns for runners that haven't had a ton of experience at a distance. I don't even like the theory that first time marathoners shouldn't have a time goal. I'm all for time goals. I want to know what pace I should be running, and I want to stick to it. If circumstances arise that justify adjusting that pace, that's fine. Just running at whatever feels good in the moment though seems risky. It's easy to forget about the other 12 or 25 miles.
That's my $.02.
Improvements
Weight 100 pounds lost
5K 31:02 Sept. 2012 / 23:36 Sept. 2013 (Same Course)
10K 48:59 April 2013
HM 2:03:56 Nov. 2012 / 1:46:50 March 2013
MARATHON 3:57:33 Nov. 2013
Hmm.... I guess we'll just see how things go from start to finish... for the first time since 2010 I am not injured, I am not pregnant, I am healthy and I have trained very well for this and I feel ready to kick ass ..... anybody know of something that will "empty" your bowels a couple of nights before the race?
Hmm.... I guess we'll just see how things go from start to finish... for the first time since 2010 I am not injured, I am not pregnant, I am healthy and I have trained very well for this and I feel ready to kick ass
..... anybody know of something that will "empty" your bowels a couple of nights before the race?
Having recently had a colonoscopy, I can answer that question with a definitive "yes" although I'm not at all certain it's something you'd want to go through during race week.
Short term goal: 17:59 5K
Mid term goal: 2:54:59 marathon
Long term goal: To say I've been a runner half my life. (I started running at age 45).
Runs4Sanity
If it kicks you ass, then no I don't want to do it. Nope nope nope.
In January and February I did my long runs in the hilly parts out by my house, and I definitely have seen the improvement and results from it, but it just bugs me that I don't know this hill and they keep saying it's a steady incline from mile 6 to mile 8....... and that is driving me crazy. For me I normally take 3-5 miles just to warm up (normally, though that hasn't been the case for 2 weeks now) and get into my stride. I will definitely try to keep some sort of plan or goal pace to stick to, but I can only promise to stick around it within a 30 second range.
This is my goal time and pace that I hope to stick to:
http://tazrunning.com/marathon-map-mo-st.louis2.nsf/0/FA6E8F95F4CA5FDE85257B37007CA312?OpenDocument
*Do It For Yourself, Do It Because They Said It Was Impossible, Do It Because They Said You Were Incapable*
PRs
5k - 24:15 (7:49 min/mile pace)
10k - 51:47 (8:16 min/mile pace)
15k -1:18:09 (8:24 min/mile pace)
13.1 - 1:53:12 (8:39 min/mile pace)
26:2 - 4:14:55 (9:44 min/mile)
Steady inclines? Pffffttt, that's nothing. They could be the steady LA inclines at 15% for 2 miles or just 1-3% inclines and be nothing. Can you google the elevation for your race? Maybe there is something somewhere about it.
If it kicks you ass, then no I don't want to do it. Nope nope nope. In January and February I did my long runs in the hilly parts out by my house, and I definitely have seen the improvement and results from it, but it just bugs me that I don't know this hill and they keep saying it's a steady incline from mile 6 to mile 8....... and that is driving me crazy. For me I normally take 3-5 miles just to warm up (normally, though that hasn't been the case for 2 weeks now) and get into my stride. I will definitely try to keep some sort of plan or goal pace to stick to, but I can only promise to stick around it within a 30 second range. This is my goal time and pace that I hope to stick to: http://tazrunning.com/marathon-map-mo-st.louis2.nsf/0/FA6E8F95F4CA5FDE85257B37007CA312?OpenDocument
I keep looking for something that will actually tell me the elevation gain and stuff, but nothing. I have seen at least 2 videos one of the race in 6 minutes and a 1 minute video talking about the hill and it doesn't look big but it doesn't look like 2 miles or whatever... I am trying not to think about it.
Are you talking to me D, or someone else?
As to the googling? Yes, you. It might be huge or it might be a small inclination. Maybe finding more about it might help. If you know the route, try googling the address. If it's a bridge, the elevation will be easier to find.
I keep looking for something that will actually tell me the elevation gain and stuff, but nothing. I have seen at least 2 videos one of the race in 6 minutes and a 1 minute video talking about the hill and it doesn't look big but it doesn't look like 2 miles or whatever... I am trying not to think about it. Are you talking to me D, or someone else?
The link you gave has an elevation chart, so you can get a estimate of the grade from that. Miles 6-8 seem to be 1-2%.
5k - 25:15 (11/18/12)
10k - 1:01:51 (2/14/15)
10mi - 1:33:18 (3/2/14)
HM - 2:06:12 (3/24/13)
Upcoming Races:
Benched until further notice. :/
Everything you need is already inside. [[Bill Bowerman]]
You can see it? All I see is the times on the left and nothing else. Damn IE!
The elevation profile is all the way at the bottom. Definitely one of those charts where they exaggerate the y axis so you can see any variation. If you're used to 0 elevation change, you'll notice the variation. If you're used to hilly terrain, it might slow you slightly, but you may wonder where the hill is - fairly gradual.
In response to OP, I generally have approximate time goals that I set by landmarks - stream crossings, tops of hills, trail intersections, etc. They are based on what I feel I can run on that course taking hills and footing into account. (Note: avatar is from my favorite HM.) If I've never been on a course, it's a SWAG. 2nd time for a race I've usually got a better idea and can train specifically as needed - assuming the trail hasn't changed that much. In one case, the first time I ran the course was a couple years after a fire. The next time was about 3 yrs later - when all the saplings had grown larger and some erosion had taken place down the center of the trail, which created an ankle twisting situation hidden by brush. So time estimates were really off on the downhill of that.
PS: If I could "wing it" up the first 3000ft in 4mi, I'm sure I'd use that method , but since I'm earthbound, some effort management is usually in order.
Are we talking about the elevation charts on the link I gave, sorry I am sleep deprived, lost, hungry and distracted.
yes - it's just under the map Depending on screen size, you might need to scroll down a little bit.
An half marathon with the largest hill being a 100 foot climb? I would kill for that!LOL