Run a half-marathon

and then that’s it before the half on sunday. wow it is here already.

I ran 12 miles this weekend. I’ll do another long run next weekend and the following weekend is the 1/2 marathon!

this half-marathon is a done deal!

I never used to run until I graduated elementary school. I was lazy from ages 1-12. In grade seven, I made the basketball team. That changed things forever for me.

After I started playing sports, there were no reasons not to run. If I was running all the time in sports, why couldn’t I do it out of sports?

My mother has run 4 half-marathons. Unfortunately, she injured her ankle and now cannot run. It is very frustrating for her. I am going to run this half-marathon for her.

Currently, I can run 9 miles no problem. I am pretty sure I am well on my way. I have until May to build up my endurance to run that extra four miles.

So far, half-marathons I’ve found in the right time range look to be mostly on May 2, 2010. They include:

In Southern California

The OC Marathon (Newport Beach)
The PCRF Cinco De Mayo Half Marathon (Irvine)
_{Not my favorite places or types of courses, but convenient compared to other options I’ve found so far.}

In Northern California

The Avenue of the Giants Marathon (Humboldt) _{much cooler but harder to get to from here – gorgeous place though!}

In Washington

The Tacoma City Marathon_{Would it really be worth traveling there, then to VT for Capstone, then to Vancouver Island for Edge to Edge though?!}

And then a bunch on the east coast, but the time isn’t convenient for Capstoning anyway, not that I know dates for that nor whether I’ll actually be ready on time. So it’s all just speculation at this point. And maybe I’ll find more races with a more comprehensive search.

found this advice on running a half marathon before a full marathon:

If you are building up to a full marathon then I would suggest you race a half seriously four to six weeks before the main event. You could still run other half-marathons in the build-up but as training runs at marathon pace or with marathon-pace segments built in.

Alternatively, if you are not racing a full marathon in a season, I would suggest you could possibly race two half-marathons seriously in the spring and two more in the autumn. This is all very personal though. Most athletes require an easy week after racing their half, and after two or three big races, the body often needs a break mentally, as well as physically. I would certainly leave about four weeks between your half-marathons if you race more than one seriously.

http://www.runnersworld.co.uk/news/article.asp?uan=3020

So I should look for a half-marathon sometimes between May 2 and 16th, 2010. That should be right before I fly to VT for my Capstone seminar if all stays on schedule!

I decide to do the full marathon in mid-June next year, does it make sense to run a half some time before then, and if so, when?!

See my entry under “Run a marathon”:
http://www.43things.com/entries/view/4265309

I could either run a half-marathon on the way to this marathon in June, or do the half then…......

Insane or inspired?

Ran 4 miles yesterday and climbed 90 stairs between each mile. (The half-marathon I’m training for is hilly.) I’m not nearly as sore as I thought I would be – only a little twinging in my calves when I flex.

Yesterday I ran 3.5 miles, with stair repeats between every mile. Also did pushups and held the plank position for 1.5 minutes as part of my “tone my arms” goal.