Beginners and Beyond

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Running a half 7 weeks before a full? (Read 81 times)

Nakedbabytoes


levitation specialist

    Bad idea, yes?

    Even if I ran fit just because it is scenic and would be "for fun"? Probably would mess up my wanting to be competitive for the full, yes?

     

    Half:

    March 16. Crushed rock flat trail.

     

    Full:

    May 5th. City streets and paved trail, some hills, not bad.

     

    Currently running 50mpw, have been slowly building since August when I was 25mpw. Never ran a half or full, last year was all small 5 & 10ks.

    No injures. Feeling Good. Mid range runs of 12-14 on Thursday nights and LR Saturdays of 18-22.

    What say you? Yes or no?

    Just B.S.


      I have done multiple halfs during training for all of my 5 fulls.  The closest I have "raced" them

      for pace testing is 6 weeks out. I  have done them as "last long runs" as close as 2 weeks prior

      with no issues.

       

      You would likely be doing a run longer than 13 miles at that point anyway so I don't see a problem.

       

      You say you are doing mid week runs in that range anyway. I often re-arrange my long runs to

      work around races or family life and it's never had a negative effect on race day. As long as you

      are getting in your weekly miles and have enough taper time I"m sure you will be fine..

      wcrunner2


      Are we there, yet?

        Bad idea, yes?

        Even if I ran fit just because it is scenic and would be "for fun"? Probably would mess up my wanting to be competitive for the full, yes?

         

        Half:

        March 16. Crushed rock flat trail.

         

        Full:

        May 5th. City streets and paved trail, some hills, not bad.

         

        Currently running 50mpw, have been slowly building since August when I was 25mpw. Never ran a half or full, last year was all small 5 & 10ks.

        No injures. Feeling Good. Mid range runs of 12-14 on Thursday nights and LR Saturdays of 18-22.

        What say you? Yes or no?

        Bad idea, no.

         

        It gives you a better assessment of your current fitness than any training run would. There's plenty of time to recover. You wouldn't be doing a full taper for it anyway so you don't lose much if any training time there.

         2024 Races:

              03/09 - Livingston Oval Ultra 6-Hour, 22.88 miles

              05/11 - D3 50K
              05/25 - What the Duck 12-Hour

              06/17 - 6 Days in the Dome 12-Hour.

         

         

             

        BruceD555


          7 weeks is an eternity. You're doing Pfitz, right? You'd be running 10k-ish tune-up races about that time anyway in most of his plans. The half will give you an even better gauge of how training has been going to help confirm your marathon pace.

          Train smart ... race smarter.

          runmomto3boys


            7 weeks is an eternity. You're doing Pfitz, right? You'd be running 10k-ish tune-up races about that time anyway in most of his plans. The half will give you an even better gauge of how training has been going to help confirm your marathon pace.

             

            This man is wise!

            meaghansketch


              Yeah, I think even 4-5 weeks before would be fine-- I like to run a half around that point to dial in my fitness and figure out a good goal pace.  Even if you're all-out racing you should be able to recover in time; if you would rather do it around your planned marathon pace (adding a warmup and cooldown) you can use it as a good long run with some 'quality'.

              Docket_Rocket


                I usually do one 3-4 weeks prior to the race and still recover well, so 7 weeks out is not a bad idea.

                Damaris

                 

                As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.

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                Nakedbabytoes


                levitation specialist

                  Sweet! Not what I expected to hear, but glad for it!

                  I signed up! My first half ever! And it is on a scenic trail which will be fun! I wanted to run this one last year on my measly 20mpw but we went to Disneyland for a family vacation, so I didn't. Probably would have been foolish then on such low mileage and I had just started running routinely. A year later, even if I do training paces, I should easily do decent.

                  Capped at 500 entrants total, full and half and the 10k. So small for sure! My kind of race, I love smallerSmile

                  runmomto3boys


                    Sweet! Not what I expected to hear, but glad for it!

                    I signed up! My first half ever! And it is on a scenic trail which will be fun! I wanted to run this one last year on my measly 20mpw but we went to Disneyland for a family vacation, so I didn't. Probably would have been foolish then on such low mileage and I had just started running routinely. A year later, even if I do training paces, I should easily do decent.

                    Capped at 500 entrants total, full and half and the 10k. So small for sure! My kind of race, I love smallerSmile

                     

                    I'm sooooo excited to see how you do!!!!!  You are going to throw down a mad fast first FM, my dear!!!  How is training going?

                    MJ5


                    Chief Unicorn Officer

                      I also agree, I think it's perfectly fine to do the half!  7 weeks is a long time.  Go and enjoy yourself.

                      Mile 5:49 - 5K 19:58 - 10K 43:06 - HM 1:36:54


                      delicate flower

                        I say it's not only not a bad idea, but it's a great idea.  Put that training to some good use!

                         

                        My last HM (3 minute PR) was four weeks before my last marathon (13 minute PR). 

                        <3

                        Nakedbabytoes


                        levitation specialist

                           

                          I'm sooooo excited to see how you do!!!!!  You are going to throw down a mad fast first FM, my dear!!!  How is training going?

                           

                          So far, so awesome! Putting in some solid miles and doing what the Pfitz program tells me to. It's nice when you feel like you are heading in the right direction. Signing up for this after seeking opinions was great! Heck yes, I can do this!

                          Edit:

                          And even more awesome.....my Tuesday night running buddy just decided to sign up for the half too! For sure, we are gonna have a great time now! Suh..weet!

                          BruceD555


                             

                            So far, so awesome! Putting in some solid miles and doing what the Pfitz program tells me to. It's nice when you feel like you are heading in the right direction. Signing up for this after seeking opinions was great! Heck yes, I can do this!

                             

                            You're going to rock your first half....I can't wait to hear the RR. It sounds like an ideal setting - scenic, flat trail, and small field. Sounds like you're doing great with Pfitz and you'll be enjoying the benefits come March ... and May as well!

                            Train smart ... race smarter.

                            So_Im_a_Runner


                            Go figure

                              How can we log stalk you and see how your mileage is going when you haven't filled it in?  Boo.

                               

                              Signing up for the race gets two thumbs up from me as well.  Hope you have a great time with your friend too!

                              Trying to find some more hay to restock the barn

                              Hipfan


                              Proud Calgarian

                                Yeah, definitely nothing wrong with racing a half up to 6 weeks before a full, you have enough time to recover and get a pretty good assessment of your ability. Any closer and it might be an issue if you're going for your best performance though.

                                 

                                And if you're just "running" them both, there's probably people on this board who do these in back-to-back weeks no problem...

                                2015 Goals and PRs:

                                5k - 17:59 (18:05);  10k - 35:59 (36:42);   HM - 1:19:19 (1:19:59);   FM - 2:49:59 (3:05:46)

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