A Beginners Guide to Master Running Your First Half Marathon Pain Free
For the beginner runner, running a half marathon can sometimes seem daunting. However, with a little preparation and planning, you can successfully run the race without pain or injuries. In this beginner’s guide, you’ll learn tips for preparing for and running your half marathon. From training and nutrition to ways to stay motivated leading up to race day.
Establish Goals and Choose a Race.
It’s important to set goals and have a plan for achieving them if you want to be successful when running a half marathon. Start by deciding which race you would like to run. Do your research, look at the courses, consider the location and determine the difficulty level. Once you’ve registered for a race, it’s time to make a training plan. This will help you reach your fitness and performance goals.
Parts of your plan will be based around your current fitness level, along with what you think is an achievable finish time.
Start with a Training Plan.
Before beginning your half marathon preparation, it’s essential to start with a training plan that fits your needs and experience. Choose one that gradually builds up your mileage, weekly miles, and intervals over the weeks or months leading up to the race. This will help you build strength and endurance so you can run the race distance comfortably and pain-free.
Most training plans will be between a 12 to 16 week block. However this can be longer if you are starting from a non running point. I can help with a personalised training plan- click here for further info
It will typically include the following types of runs and workouts:
- 1 long run
- 1-3 easy runs
- 1 speed training session
- 1 strength training session (e.g. tempo running or interval training)
- 1 cross training session (e.g. walking, swimming, cycling)
- 2 rest days
Start Gradually with Small Goals.
Start small and work your way up. Pick a goal like a 5K race or completing a certain mileage each week and build up from there.
Focus on building up distances, not running fast times at shorter distances. Start short and progress slowly, increasing your distance by 10 percent per week as tolerated. Start by walking for 10 minutes at a comfortable pace. Increase your distance by 10 percent each week, as tolerated. For example, if you walked 10 minutes the first week, walk 11 minutes the second week and 12 minutes the third week.
Make sure to listen to your body and take breaks when needed. This gradual build up helps you stay injury-free over the long haul. It will also give you time to adjust to the new challenges associated with running a half marathon.
Incorporate Cross-Training in Your Regimen.
Cross-training is another essential part of successful half marathon preparation. Running a long distance such as a half marathon puts significant strain on your body. So it’s important to give your body balance and rest days by incorporating different forms of exercise in your weekly routine
1. Strength Training: Incorporate strength training into your weekly routine by doing exercises such as squats, lunges, push-ups, and pull-ups. Aim to do two or three sets of each exercise with 8-12 repetitions per set.
2. Cross training. This can include swimming, biking, yoga and strength/resistance training. Doing other activities will help you build endurance, activate all your muscles and improve your overall performance at race time.
Take Your Recovery Periods Seriously.
To ensure that you make it to the start line without pain and injuries, it’s important to take your recovery periods seriously. Make sure you’re consistently stretching and foam rolling to help maintain flexibility, mobility, and range of motion.
Stretching helps to lengthen the muscles and tendons, while foam rolling helps to break up adhesions in the muscles and fascia. Both of these activities should be done consistently in order to maintain optimal performance and reduce the risk of injury.
Do this after your runs to keep muscles loose, prevent any overuse injuries, and help recover faster. Additionally, be mindful of how much rest and sleep your body needs so it can reach maximum performance for each run. Proper rest is also essential for muscle recovery and injury prevention.
Nutrition Tips for Your Half Marathon
Running a half marathon requires proper nutrition and hydration to have the best chance of success. Improving your half marathon time begins well before the race: you need to plan ahead and follow a few simple nutrition tips that will ensure you’re fuelled up and energized for when it counts the most.
Do: Refuel During Training Runs.
Runners should practice refuelling partway through their long runs. This helps runners become accustomed to refuelling on the go, so they know exactly what and when to eat during a race, preventing midrace bonking or hitting a wall.
As with pre-long-run fuelling, try eating something small and easily digestible (like a sports gel or banana) that contains simple carbohydrates for an extra energy boost.
Practising with gels during your training will help you find the types that you like the taste and texture off, which ones your stomach gets along with. Typically most runners practice with the brand that is available on race day
Aim for Carbs, Not Calories.
Consume carbohydrates during the days leading up to the race to fill in your glycogen stores, which should result in increased energy levels for race day.
This only needs to be small increases above your normal intake, as it takes a number of days for the extra glycogen to build up. Dont forget to hydrate properly these days also as glycogen storage increases with water storage, and dont be alarmed at minor bodyweight increase due to this.
Eating small meals and snacks made up of complex carbs like wholegrain bread, oats, fruit, and vegetables will help sustain your body over longer races. Just be careful not to overload on carbs—you need a balance of proteins and fats too!
Hydrate Properly
During the race, it’s important to stay hydrated. Make sure you know where the water stops are along the course and plan accordingly.
Hydrating with a sports drink has its advantages over only drinking water due to its electrolytes and added sugar for energy. However this isn’t a necessity as water and gels with electrolytes will do the same thing.
Sip lightly throughout your race so your digestive systems doesn’t become overwhelmed.
Check out this Article by Runner’s World on Mistakes with Hydration
Dont Skip Breakfast Before the Race
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by nerves the morning of your half marathon, but it’s important to eat breakfast before you start. Choose something with complex carbohydrates and some protein for sustained energy— peanut butter on bagel/toast, some porridge oats or a smoothie are all great options.
Just make sure to go light on the fibre so not to upset your stomach, and something that you haven’t tried before race day! Normally you would want to eat your last food between 1-2hrs before the race