How I’m Surviving Half-Marathon Training
It’s a weird year to take up racing and running. Marathons are closing all across the country. Fires are making running in certain parts of the US difficult to accomplish outside. But pandemics have strange side effects. For me, taking up running was one of those. When I took up running in March, I don’t think I could have imagined myself volunteering to run 13.1 miles. In fact, I’m still in shock that I signed up.
But as the months have gone on and my runs have gotten longer, I’ve grown to love it. I eagerly look forward to Saturdays when I push myself for long runs and for other days of the week where I focus on speed and still others where I simply walk. So what’s a girl to do? Sign up for a virtual half-marathon Turkey Trot of course!
To give you a brief run-down of my training plan…
I will be the first to admit that my training plan isn’t following the general guidelines that I’ve read online. I’m only running 2–3 days a week and sometimes the third day is a power walk. But what I’ve taken away from starting this training and running as a sport during the pandemic is that everyone is different. People run differently, eat differently, and even train differently. It doesn’t matter if I Google “Training for a Half Marathon: Run every day” or “Training for a Half Marathon: Run 2 days a week” — I can find something that supports my position.
So I’m relying on my body to tell me what I should do. And honestly, my body is pretty good at telling me what I need. Here’s my plan:
- Monday: Boxing Class and Yoga
- Tuesday: Boxing Class and Yoga
- Wednesday: 3-mile run
- Thursday: 2/3 mile walk or run
- Friday: Boxing Class and Yoga
- Saturday: Long run (September 12: 10 miles → going up half a mile a week to reach 13.1 by Thanksgiving)
- Sunday: Relax
If you look at this and go, that’s crazy talk, you might be right. It’s a lot of exercises and certainly, most of it is considered high impact. So how am I surviving?
I have a dedicated long run buddy
Despite the fact that my husband hates running with a capital H, he is willing to get up with me on Saturdays and bike slowly next to me as I huff and puff my way for hours in the park. We talk occasionally to make sure I’m not going too fast. He motivates me by riding ahead, waiting until I reach him, and pretending as though I’ve crossed the finish line. He gives me water if I’m dying. In short, he’s the best kind of long-run buddy there is.
Not everyone has that kind of support system but if you do have it, I would highly encourage taking advantage of it. It makes all the difference.
If my body needs a rest, I take it.
If you know me, you will know I’m incredibly stubborn about doing something if I set my mind to it. But one of the things I’ve learned about running is that that particular mindset can really backfire. If you have burning pain in your knee and keep running on that knee for 10 miles — you are not putting yourself in a good position to continue your hobby. Because of that, I’ve learned to really listen to my body.
Sometimes I don’t go to boxing class because my body is incredibly fatigued. In fact, I used to only do strenuous vinyasa yoga. And now, I made the choice to focus on very slow and intentional yoga that allows me to recover in a purposeful way. Listening to my body and taking a rest when necessary has been a huge game-changer. And there’s no one better to know what your body is saying than you. So listen carefully!
Boxing and Running helps to activate different kinds of muscles
Naturally, I chose boxing as my alternate fitness activity because I love it. I love the intensity of punching, the HIIT style training my studio Beautifully Savage offers, and the way it really kills me. But there’s another reason I’m still keeping up with it. It’s the perfect alternative to running. My form moves all the time and I’m engaging those Fast Twitch muscles rather than the Slow Twitch muscles that running activates. It’s the perfect balance between two equally important muscle groups.
Eating all the food and drinking all the water
What cannot be understated is how important it is to fuel your body right. I will be the first to acknowledge that I didn’t have a very healthy relationship with food for most of my life. It was only three or four years ago that I really started to focus on nourishing my body with what it needed to refuel rather than counting calories and over-focusing on caloric deficiencies. With the fairly intensive routine that I’m following now, that’s more important than ever. Making sure I’m eating enough protein and starch along with hydrating every day is something that I really do make time to focus on.
In my opinion, you can train all you want but if you aren’t fueling your body the right way, it could all be for naught.
So in the end, half marathon training might be strenuous as hell, but with the right motivations and priorities, it’s more than doable. Onward to the Turkey Trot!
