Stevie, I was going to ask what weekly mileage you had in mind for that consistant 12-24 months. 40 sounds like a lot to me (pre-training), but maybe it's necessary. You asked good questions. For me, I really want to. Just want to... in the same way I want to run. Scratches an itch. I'm ok with it if I can't... I'm just going to do the best I can short of breaking & see where it ends up. Otherwise it would seem like missing the whole point.

I don't think it needs to be 40 for pre-training, BUT "more mileage is good" so there's certainly nothing wrong with 40. Personally, I don't think there IS a defined minimum for everyone. Depends on a person's goal and how long they've been doing it. A year of consistent 15-20 miles is probably better than 11 months of zero and one month of 30. More than 15, less than 120. I'm totally not being scientific, of course . There's the physiologic goodness of getting the muscles and bones used to the pounding. But there's also the psychological goodness of getting used to going out there each day (whether that's 3, 4, 5, 6, or even 7 days a week) to do it. Irrespective of weather, irrespective of "I don't wanna". Also, it always helps to eat pie. Incidentally, I wasn't saying that I personally believe that a person needs to pre-train for 12 to 24 months before starting a program. That's just the common range you'll see when you hit up the programs in books and online. What I get out of all of that is simply that you need to have "some months" of consistency.

These are all good points. 56 is no way too old. I had no intention of running a full marathon until I could do a half in under 2 hours. Once I realized that might take awhile to achieve, or even might never happen, I said what the heck. I had the time to train, not everyone does. This was probably the number one reason I gave it a shot. I was always very excited to extend my long runs by a mile or two. It was a new accomplishment in and of itself. I would plan out my long run on Monday for the following Saturday, that's how excited I was. I was contemplating doing the Seattle full in 4 weeks, squeezing in 2 20 milers before then. When I got up on this past Sunday to a cold relentless downpour, my motivation went down the toilet. No sense in doing a full marathon without being fully prepared, it would be miserable. Half marathons are the perfect distance. It feels like an accomplishment, but you can jump into one with just a 30 mile/week base and do pretty well. Unlike Tim, I feel you can start marathon training with 30 miles/week. If the motivation is not there, it is not going to happen. It is a big committment and a lot miles and a lot of long runs. After my first and only marathon, I only had a bit of a sore knee for a few days. But my motivation to do anything longer than 5 or 6 miles was shot. I just couldn't face "long" runs again for a long time. Don't do it just because everyone else is. But if you feel that someday you'd like to do one, why wait?

Enke, I just threw 40 miles a week out there because to me it seems doable for a good base for a Marathon training cycle. Heck, this was my first year of "long" distance running, so what do I know. But motivation I do know. You Have to be willing to run when you don't feel like it, 5 6 7 days a week. There are some mornings you wake up and have a long run facing ya...and you may not feel like doing it. But, a true motivated person ties up the shoes and goes out and gets it done...day after day....no excuses. Then the almost "puke" track workouts, that you need not to worry about or do. I guess sometimes I am OVER motivated, but has carried me through many many cycling races, Triathlons, and run races, which I have done mostly good at. Yeah, I DNF'd my first Marathon attempt. But I limped and toed myself up to the start line because I was motivated to succeed. Smart, don't know, but like the song says..."live like you are dying"...I did that and wouldn't change a thing. How many real chances in life do we get to do something extraordinary...not many. I can count 56 reasons why she should go for it...ONLY with a good base and a good training program. Jlynne, I would love to come to Wisconsin to help...do you have an "old man" that is bigger than me, lol. But seriously, it has to come from YOU like a fire burning within your soul... I run by myself all the time, and love it...don't like to be caught up with what someone else is doing. I remember not that long ago when I was fat - out of shape and lazy, I couldn't even walk a mile without getting out of breath. Over 100 pounds lighter, I can acheive anything I set my mind to...you can too. Me, DNF...Did Not Finish....Yet! Girl Fren, empty that bucket out... Whew, I need to get back to running to burn off some energy...but can't yet, sigh. TimBo

Let me start by saying this has to be the world's best running support group! Thank you everybody for your kind words in spite of my non-RR report. Today I logged a total of zero miles so I am on track so far for the week! hopeful4ever an early and then off as an early day voter. No lines I hope. Oh, I see no lines! Did you collect any of the free goodies merchants have been offering today? I tried to get a free cone at Ben and Jerry's but it turned out to be available only between 5 and 8 pm and there was no way I was traveling back to town to get fat even if for free! Also, good luck if you run the Milwaukee marathon. Should be fun. biketm no scratching until the foot is fixed! If I can hang you can hang! breger1 good luck with the HM if you go for it. Nice prep work today so why not? perchcreek hope you feel less sore soon. Want to have a sore race? That I can do at the moment. Peter NC 10 minutes! Hardly seems fair. Good double digit run today. Boy am I going to miss those sometime next week. For now, no problem! Holly S. another few victories like that and I may need a charity bib to run Boston after this year! But thanks. Hmm, maybe I should try your ibuprofen load and then run strategy? Seems to work well for you! Great 9 miler. Next time bring warmer hands. Jlynne good 7+ miles. So did you get your free coffee? What are you kidding me! Is it ever too late to train for and run a marathon? Nope. You will not win it but you will run it! The first step is to really want to do it. The second is to get ready for several months of serious training to make the first step go from hope to reality. Or, just read what hopeful4ever wrote. Once upon a time I swore I would never run anything longer than 3 miles and look what happened! Ok, maybe don't look. But there is no reason you cannot run a marathon! Teresadfp apparently it depends on the state. I heard on TV that in some states merchants can give free stuff to voters, in others they cannot. Good double digit run today! lyndenrunner fast rainy run. tselbs thanks Tom. I too have cold hands in what most think of as warm weather. For me it started last winter after I lost weight the prior summer. Who would have figured the two were connected? Good 8 miler. I will second your hope the winner (like Obama as I write this) does a good job. henrun I am not sure why all those people ran to the polls early. Seems like your experience was typical across the country. If you just wait to vote on good old election Tuesday there are a lot of polling places and no lines. If you vote early there are relatively few polling places and long lines. rochrunner ahhh, 70° running weather I remember it fondly. Sniff, sniff . . . Mariposai I cannot believe you outed my non-RR! I will have vengeance! Ok, maybe not. You are such a sweetie! DickyG I am sure I can dig up some old stereo equipment from the basement that I have been saving for who knows what to send you. Just give a minute . . . Good little run. Wish I could once again post about runs when it is "warm out there." Now my best hope is, "well it was not freezing out there." Dopple Bock I hear that in some places you can run once and vote 3 times. Better though that you do what you did! wildchild no race is ever as good as I wish! I guess if one was I could quit running! Fortunately I figure I will never win a major race so I will always have a new goal to set! Ah, the benefits of being a hack! I hope your ankle feels better. Yep two days off is hard. I can really, and I mean really, empathize! Oops. I see your ankle recovered enough for a 3+ mile run. Well at least the snow will keep the ankle on ice which will prevent it from swelling up. No? Oh well. Do you like skiing? Tramps maybe add loose women and drugs too? At least that was the training goal of my youth! Glad never to have to relive those years though! Nice of you to volunteer at the polls. You get two day's running credit just for that. munchkn883 next time wear your Garmin while chasing the kids on the playground and count it as intervals! tetsujin209 if you send me some extra tapering can I knock a few days off my hiatus? evanflein rats you are back! Now nobody is going to take my complaining about the local weather seriously! Have you thought about a few days in say Arizona? It was great to meet you and your DH too. But wow! A BQ on a "bad day!" Wish I could pull that off! I know how you feel about doing a RR in a case like this though. But like you after some races there seems more to report about the festivities around it than what I did or thought while in it. enkephalin ok, ok, the Verrazano bridge. Good to see somebody other than me do a run and then come back to complain about the weather! Made my day. Nice 5 miler. Aamos they are encouraging us to get flu shots at work too. Mine is coming tomorrow. Ah, it was you that asked about my sugar fix! Sorry! I am terrible about remembering those things. I forgot to ask though was there something you were counting on consuming post race? I still cannot believe they let Boston fans actually run NYC though! They should really screen you folks out! wildchild why run your first marathon? Well, I guess one answer is that if you have to ask you probably should not. There really is no "good" reason to do one. Any more than there is a good reason to run any race. You should just do these things because you want to as a form of entertainment. But FWIW once I got up to the HM mark I too swore that was it. Back then if anybody told me at the end of a race that was just the first lap I would have decked them, if I could actually get my hands high enough to actually do any damage. More likely I would have just stood there very depressed. But, then I kind of stumbled into running one and found it was a lot of fun. One thing a marathon has over a half is that most of it is a jog with some friends. If the first 20 miles are not easy you are done. So, you get to have long talks along the way with all sorts of people. Plus, marathons can be destination events in ways that HMs never seem to be. As to the injuries, it all depends on what you are trying to do. If you just want to run a marathon and do not care about your time you can train with a very low chance of injury. To be honest the injuries you read about here have less to do with marathon training than with PR pushing. Same with the sore stuff. Run a marathon to just run one and you will be back up and running a few days later. Yes you will be a bit sore for the first day or two post race, but not in a bad way. Sort of like a hard workout sore from the gym. Now back to, do you want to do one? eliz4015 nice 3+miles and then off to vote. Glad to hear it was uneventful with what sounds like a quick process. Careful about the sneakers. If they are responsible for your feet hurting a new pair is cheap compared to injured feet. Since the "what do you need to do to train for a marathon" has come up a lot I want to suggest the numbers quoted by most of the people here are too high if the goal is just to do one. The "problem" with the RA community here is that we are such running fanatics! Ok, maybe a good problem but not the ideal group to get "what are the minimum I can do and still run a marathon from." May I suggest that the folks on this board do not just want to finish a marathon they want to feel like they ran one! Yes, RA poster are different. Heck, that is why there are here! How many people who post here run 3 miles twice a week? How many runners do more than that? Judging from the people I know not many I bet. Back to the topic at hand just finish a marathon means just that: finish. No goal of under X hours. No thought of where you will place. Nothing but "I will finish." If that is the goal then it is possible to do one with a training schedule that is not too much harder than that for a HM. There is a guy by the name of Galloway who must be the oracle of "I just want to finish a marathon" runners. If you follow his plan you can "run/walk" or "Gallo walk" your marathon. Like I said you will finish. You will do so with just a bit more than the training that goes into a HM but the training will be different and yes more time consuming. You do need to practice your run/walk over a long distance several times before your race. But you do not need to run 5 or 6 days a week for months prior to your race. I have seen people Gallow walk a marathon that look like they can barely fit in an airline seat let alone travel 26.2 miles by foot. But they do. I can pretty much guarantee they did not put in the miles and days most people here do that are not training for marathon! Anybody that is skeptical should go to a mid-sized marathon and then watch who comes into the finish area just ahead of the sweepers. End Twocat's running sermon for the day. Night all!

Twocat...you rock buddie...really. So sorry I didn't cross over the finish line dead...I was there before you waiting... Tim

Tim...I think you owe Dark Horse an apology...enough is enough

Mariposai I cannot believe you outed my non-RR! I will have vengeance! Ok, maybe not. You are such a sweetie!

Sweetie or not... I was hoping to inherit the books...darn it.........I have to wait now until the next near death experience. .