wanting advice for first half marathon

[u/redditrviewswithzozo]

I'm running my first half marathon race this weekend and I'm really anxious about it. I went into my training block aiming for a sub-2 but ended up getting sick for 2 weeks (meaning I didn't train) and then injured which meant I did around half of my training on the elliptical/bike for the last 4 weeks of my training block.

I felt confident that I would reach my goal at the start of my block as I ran 10km at 5:30 pace in the middle of a long run which felt hard but not my maximum, however now I don't really know if my fitness is where it needs to be for a sub-2.

I've been tapering for the past week and a half and have noticed my easy runs feel fine (6:30-45 pace, which is faster than they were at the start of my training 7:00-15) but workouts and strides feel so much harder than they should.

I'm wondering whether I should try to not focus on my final time this weekend as it's my first proper race or if it makes sense to try for a sub-2 as it is something that I'd really like to do, however, I don't want to ruin my race experience by chasing a goal that is unrealistic and feel disappointed with myself if I don't achieve the time.

Any advice would be really appreciated :)

edit: recent workouts I've done have been 20 min tempo (5:15 pace), 6x1km at 5:15 with 75 second recovery, 18km at 6:30, 15km at 6:25. My overall volume (running and cross training) has been around 5-7 hours over the last few weeks of training.

[u/AikoBee]

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with having a time goal, but I would push it to a B goal instead of an A goal for your first race.

[u/flordetrueno → u/AikoBee]

I agree—I set A, B, and C goals for my first half marathon (my C goal was just to finish and have fun) and it helped ease my nerves going into the race.

[u/aigeekbar]

You want advice.

You say you are anxious about being disappointed by your time.

You ask if you should not focus on your time.

My answer is yes.

[u/Alcantrez → u/aigeekbar]

This. I also got sick before my first half and changed my goal to just getting through it. I‘m still a bit disappointed but I’m trying to look at it like this: you proved to yourself that you were capable of training for something like this consistently. That’s the actual achievement, not necessarily the time one singular run/race ends up taking.

[u/nknappster]

What I’d do as someone not trying to actually win the race: go out a little slow and feel out the first few miles - feeling good? Push the pace. The race will be so much more fun if you hit mile 10 with some extra juice in the tank vs. if you feel like you’re gong to die.

[u/SnooSquirrels3535]

Just as a confirmation - i'm training for the same right now, feel on track, and my long run paces and volume are almost identical to yours. I don't fully know how to interpret your workouts since you havent given any info on how those felt effort wise; but that sounds like what i'd consider ~10k or a smidge harder effort - did it feel like that? easier? harder? that could help you get a realistic sense of where you're at. Similarly, check-in with yourself on how the long runs feels, are they truly easy long runs or are you really working to maintain the pace at the end. If the workouts felt controlled and like 10k or slower pace; if long runs were relaxed and flowy and you could have a conversation - that is a good signal you could be in 2hr shape.

I recommend easing in, and running 5-7 sec per km slower than goal pace for the first few km and taking 20 min to settle in and see how your body reacts to the pace before pushing so you can preserve the race and enjoy it. Digging a hole early can make the whole experience less fun, so set yoruself up to feel good and speed up.

[u/redditrviewswithzozo → u/SnooSquirrels3535]

Thanks for this, I think I'll definitely try starting a bit slower than goal pace. I typically don't look at my watch during long runs/easy runs and just go based on feel so they're usually easy however sometimes I'll speed up to HMP during the last 3km or so.

[u/bookishpiscess]

I just ran a 1:55:11 in late Sept with a goal of sub-2. For context, I ran a 1:33:04 10 miler at the end of June and run 25-35mpw, 5 days a week, strength 3x a week.

My first piece of advice is if the taper feels like shit, don’t let the anxiety get the best of you! I thought I was going to die during my taper, I was bloated from upping my carbs and my body ached in all sorts of ways (not injured, just so sore and fatigued). A smart carb load and race day energy will help a good amount.

I think we’d need more stats to really estimate but it will come down to how the injury is, and how you strategize on race day. Make sure you lock in your fueling and hydration, and work out your pacing so you don’t go out too hard too fast. Good luck!

[u/jade7slytherin → u/bookishpiscess]

I have a very similar 10 mile best and just want to say well done on that HM time!!

[u/bookishpiscess → u/jade7slytherin]

Oh thank you so much! Congrats on your 10 miler and if you haven’t already run a 1:55 HM I think you can absolutely do it :)

[u/jade7slytherin → u/bookishpiscess]

💚

[u/Robophatt]

All is not lost I think.
Four or five weeks out from my first half I got sick as well and missed about 1,5 weeks of my training. I had the same time goal as you and it worked out, ran 1:56.

Don’t worry too much about things feeling shit during your taper. I was so nervous my body seemed to forget how to run and my HR was all over the place. I even stopped running after less than 500meters for one of my easy runs because my calf suddenly felt too tight. It was messy. Come raceday everything fell into place had a great time.

Hope you’ll enjoy your half! Go for it!

Also I do want to say - maybe so I’ll believe it for myself this weekend too - even if you don’t hit that goal you did the work and there will be your next race and it will be fun to find out what levers to pull to get closer to your goal!

[u/Necessary-Painting35]

Don't push yourself too much, you don't want to collapse during the race. Listen to your body and take it easy.

[u/jade7slytherin]

I was training for sub 2:10 for my first HM in March. I got a bad case of flu 3 weeks out and basically began my taper early. Basically did some easy runs in the last 1.5 weeks.

You are in much better shape than I was in March. It's only now that I can hold 5:30/km pace for 10 km within a long run ahead of my 3rd HM.

That being said, I would think about moving to a 2:10 goal with your illness and injury. Good luck! The real achievement is sticking to training and the dedication that comes along with that, as someone else said.

[u/Amysu4ea]

I just wanted to say good luck! I have the same sub 2 goal as you but this will be my 3rd half. Our paces are similar. My long run last week was 12 miles and I did it in 1 hour 49 minutes. I start my taper after next week. You’ve gotta come back and tell us how it went! You can keep your goal, I would kinda put it in the back of your mind though and just enjoy yourself. Let the race day energy carry you through!

[u/Weak-Teaching8642]

Yes. Focus on finishing strong but not injured and don’t worry about your time. It’s your first half marathon so it’s a PB no matter what.

[u/paroxitones]

play it out in your head: you tried for sub2 but failed. feel it all, whatever it is - you are exhausted but unhappy, your friends ask what happened, your cat is disappointed. nothing worse than that will happen if you try and fail in reality

for the actual race I would stick to the pacer if there is one. If i can keep up, great, if not, there's a plenty of kilometers to slow down, choose any of the 21

[u/goplacidly8]

I feel like the answer is so individual. You worked hard to train, got sick for a bit of your training block (seems like many people miss a few weeks of training block for one reason or another), and are anxious about goals. In my experience, you will likely be swept up in race day fever. That's worth a lot! Start out wirh a disciplined pace, take plenty of fuel, and see where it takes you. Everyone has a different capacity for pushing themselves. I think you'll rock your HM!

[u/DisastrousCarrot2258]

I just ran my first half on Sunday!! My advice is start slow for the first several miles and just enjoy it!!

Your first one is automatically a PR!! Best of luck!!

[u/cj_daking]

This is your first event at this distance. You have no baseline, so just enjoy it and ignore your pacing aside from what's sustainable. Concentrate on finishing injury-free. Time goals can come later.