I ran a half marathon last month for the first time and trained for 5 months. Learn how I ran a half marathon with NO BREAKS, NO WATER AND CONSISTENT 8’30 pace! ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE my people.
There are two main parts to learning running basics: Mental Training + Physical Training. This blog is perfect for BEGINNERS & ACTIVE INDIVIDUALS, (also if you don’t have a health-impairing condition). Here's a quick peek at my stats:
Mental Training:
Time—first question to ask yourself is this the right time to start? Running takes a lot of INTENTIONAL PLANNING & time. If you plan on traveling a few times within the next three months or it’s a BUSY WORK SEASON/BUSY SCHOOL SEMESTER, this might not be the right time to start. You are going to need to set out at least 8 hours each week to train for this, BE REALISTIC WITH YOURSELF!
Consistency—is key!! You must be committed to putting in the work EVERY WEEK. If you have a running buddy or workout partner, make each other accountable! But don’t wait on them if they are not being consistent either. Remember at least 8 hours each week.
Motivation—need some motivation? Get yourself an accountability partner! This can be a personal trainer (book a free consultation with us here), a friend or family member.
Specific Goal—make a specific goal for yourself. Are you running for distance? Are you looking to run under a specific time/improve your previous time? When are you planning to run the entire event? These are some questions I always ask my clients BEFORE they start their training.
Determination—at the end of the day I DON’T BELIEVE IN EXCUSES and I don’t allow my clients to make or give me any. It’s all about how bad you want this or anything in life. If you really want something you will find a way to achieve it!
Physical Training:
Conditioning
2-3 months
If you are starting from scratch and have never run a race OR it’s been YEARS since you’ve had a consistent weekly workout routine, it will take you 3 months or longer to condition yourself. Once you get to this point or you are already here, you will still need at least a month of conditioning before you can start training for endurance.
PRO TIP: this can be a mix of endurance workouts (HIIT, Dance Fitness, CARDIO-BASED WORKOUTS) and of course jogging/running. As a personal trainer I recommend workouts 3-4x/week for 2-3 months including a cardio regimen 3x/week which you can do the same days as your workouts or other days of the week. Running/jogging should start the second month after conditioning.
Running/Endurance
2-3 months
This is the time where you will be upping your distance GRADUALLY.
You’ll have both long runs and short runs and at minimum COMMIT 3 days of strictly jogging/running PER WEEK.
PRO TIP: Because you will be hitting a lot of mileage these months DAILY STRETCHING is ESSENTIAL. If you neglect stretching, you will become excessively tight and possibly injure yourself.
Performance
2 months
Feeling confident? Now why did you first start training? You are 5-7 months in. You should have a specific goal in mind, maybe you want to complete it without stopping? Maybe you want to complete it under a certain time? Maybe you want to be in the top of your age-range/gender? Or maybe you wanted to increase your endurance to the point where difficult tasks become easy. Whatever it is now is the TIME TO KEEP GOING and RECOGNIZE YOUR PROGRESS. At this point too, you can start tweaking or training for your specific goal. This will mean you will push yourself more than ever MENTALLY, TIME INVESTMENT and SELF-MOTIVATION. Only you can a achieve and be proud of what you’ve accomplished.
PRO TIP: Training for SPEED? The best way to train is by using apps, fitness watches, stopwatches, and indoor treadmill training.
Training for ENDURANCE? It will be important that you train in an area whether it be outdoor or indoor without distractions or interruptions. This means NO PHONE CALLS, NO STOP LIGHTS, NO ADJUSTING YOUR SHOES OR FITNESS WATCH. Before your run BE READY and have all these things (that are important) already ready. Any little distraction can throw off your specific goal and more importantly your mindset, especially when you are training for something as long as 13.1 MILES!
Check out our Running Guide!
Due to popular request, we have created a 5K RUNNING GUIDE that will give you all the steps to running a 5K race (3.12miles) in 3 months or under! This guide includes daily workouts, a running schedule and a nutrition plan. The guide will be released February 2023!