First things first, I must address you crazies who love Bit-O-Honeys. There is a support group for people like you. It’s located in the comments section of last night’s post.
Workout
Today as I got dressed for the gym and bent over to put on my socks, my hamstrings still felt sore from Monday’s leg workout. (Those 100 squats are legit!)
I decided to flip flop my scheduled leg workout with the five mile run I had planned for tomorrow and trucked along on the treadmill for just under 46 minutes.
I’m not gonna lie, I’m kind of nervous for Saturday’s long run. It will be the first time I’ve run a double-digit distance in more than a year.
Runners, I’d love your take on the upcoming long distance runs I have on my half marathon training plan…
For the previous two half marathons I’ve completed, the longest I ran before race day was 10 miles and I felt fine. Well, I have 10 miles on the schedule for Saturday but after that I still have four more long runs on the agenda before the Savannah Rock ‘n’ Roll half marathon on November 5.
Ryan and I are thinking of running 11 and 12 miles for the following two weeks and then dropping it back down to 10 for the final two. Thoughts? I don’t want to do the full 13.1 miles before race day because I love saving the full distance for the big day and I don’t really care about my time at all.
Breakfast
Breakfast = Banana bread protein pancakes
Whenever I make these pancakes I always think of the song “Banana Pancakes” by Jack Johnson. Such a fun song to listen to in the morning. His voice is so pretty.
Time to get to work.
Today is a very special day in our house and I want to have a completely FREE evening to enjoy it!
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When I trained for my half marathon the longest run I did the whole time was 10 miles. And I think I only did it one time. If you can run 10 miles, then you can definitely run 13 miles!
the bit o honey post made me laugh, i actually really like those candies!
I’ve done three half marathons and i’ve never done a 13 mile training run while in training for any of them (i have done 13 miles just for fun, while not in training, lol, im a little crazysauce)
if you have four more long runs left, i think it sounds perfect because thats my usual training plan. i usually do 11.5, 12.5, then drop back down to 10 the week before the race. my legs still felt good and strong, since I stuck to an actual taper. good luck, i’m sure you will do awesome!
A double digit run! I shake in my boots just thinking of something like that! GO YOU, Julie! 🙂
It sounds like your plan will work out just fine. If you can run 10-11 comfortably, you should have no problem completing the half mary distance. If you care about your time I do recommend starting as far up in front as you can. It’s just so hard to get into a good running groove I’m such big races. That way your legs will not get tired from bobbing and weaving dur to a congested starting position.
Aw, love Jack! His songs always remind me of my boyfriend. 🙂 Okay, no more sappiness from me, but those pancakes- !! Way better than my bfast of peanut butter toast this morning enroute to work haha.
I think going up to 12 is good — but I would drop it down to 8 and 6 (for a taper) the 2 weeks prior. You want fresh legs! That’s what the MarathonFest peeps are doing (for marathon we drop it down to 10 and 8).
love this idea!
might I suggest listening to some half celeb’s book on mp3? It’s pretty great listening to someone quasi famous pretending to be really famous and then complaining/bragging about it.
The most I did was 12 miles then dropped to 8 then the week before the most I could run was 2 because I broke my toe.. but I finished it! This time I have done 10 miles, and hopefully this week I will do another 8-10 before Sunday!
Good luck!! And most importantly, have fun!
I believe you are going to do great and have nothing to fear about! Once you start running those miles and your adrenaline gets going and the miles will fly by like nothing!
Ooo I’ve only run 7 at most, double digits are super scary, why is that? I’m sure you’ll rock it.
And Happy Birthday to Ryan!!
Banana Pancakes is in my top 5 songs! I have to go put it on repeat for the rest of the day!!
Agreed with some of the comments from above. You will feel much stronger in that last 5k if you build up to 11 and 12 for your long runs. Then I would definitely cut the taper back to 10 two weeks before the race and 6-8 the week before. Even though you aren’t worried about pace, you can try to run those 6 – 8 at whatever pace you want to run for your race. This will give you a good idea of what that pace feels like so its easy to find on race day. Good luck! I will be in Savannah too!!
I love Jack Johnson too- seems like most people here do! We had banana pancakes on our cocktail hour playlist- along with 1 or 2 other JJ songs. 🙂
I have to say again- I LOVE YOUR DOG PHOTOS!!! They always make me smile!!
are you sad that the urban running conference is cancelled?
yes – i was really looking forward to meeting other bloggers and readers! but i’m a little relieved at the same time b/c i was really nervous about speaking!
Love that song!! I love most any jack jackson songs! Breakfast looks awesome, btw! Good luck on your run and have a good day!
I find that it works best for me to run as close to the distance as possible during training. For all three of my half-marathons, I ran at least one 12-mile long run. It wasn’t just a fitness thing but a confidence thing as well. Cutback weeks are also great because it gives you a much needed mental and physical break.
First I totally got up this morning only because of your post the other day about how it never gets easy to workout in the morning but its so worth it to have it done by a certain time in the am. So thank you for planting that in my head!
And secondly I love that song,1.) because its about pancakes 2.) my ex-boyfriend and I saw him in concert and he played this before the song was released. Good memories.
I think the fans of Bit-O-Honey are actually dentists masquerading in disguise trying to drum up business, trying to get people to eat those awful candies and damage their teeth in the process!
Jack Johnson is awesome. Whenever I listen to him, I think about my trip to Hawaii and how I can’t wait to go back!
ha! yes!! i feel like they murder my teeth.
Hey! I just stumbled upon your blog and im in love already. Banana pancakes look sooo delicious. im going to copy your recipe, that is for suuure!
Good luck on your half marathon training!! im sure you will do great. have a good day!
I always do a 12 before my half-marathons. It makes me feel more prepared 🙂 If you are doing an 11 and 12, I would suggest doing a 10 and then an 8 the week before. Give your legs a little break before the big day. Good luck!
That sounds like a good training plan. I think getting a 11 and 12miler in there will help you both physically and mentally come race day, because really if you can run 12 you can run 13…..what’s one more mile. I know lots of training plans have runs up to 16 miles before going into a half so I do not think that doing 12 will be too much/over training! Good luck…run hard!
YAY! Can’t wait to see what you have planned for Ryan tonight!
Can’t really comment on the plan, but it sounds sound enough to me.
I tend to treat my long runs as a sightseeing run, so I will chose an interesting route maybe with several sights or just a way to explore a new place in the city.
(Expect me to be somwhere along the Regents Canal and the Thames on Saturday, clocking up a 20 miler before NYC marathon. I think I might include isle of Dogs too or maybe Canary Wharf, never been either places…)
I say make your way up to 12 and then drop back to 10…it will make the 13.1 seem much easier. I am doing my first full on Sunday….and did a half just over a month ago. The 13 seemed so short after the 20 miles the weekend before! Enjoy!!
I would suggest slashing your number of long runs and putting in some ‘cut back weeks’. Say, run 10 this weekend, do 7 next weekend, and then 11 or 12 the weekend after that.
i like that idea!
I totally think that when I make banana pancakes:
http://btypes.com/2011/09/18/eat-your-heart-out-jack-johnson/
Good luck on your long run! You will do great! I am training for the Richmond Marathon and have the same long run anxiety each week, but it has been great.
For your first double digit run I would take it slower than normal for the first half and if you’re feeling good then do the second half at your normal pace.
I’m so excited you’re doing a half. I love them, I think they are the perfect distance to race. For my first race I built up to 13 two weeks before the race and then droped to 9 the week before. I liked knowing that I had done 13 miles once. in my mind, if I can do it once, I can do it again!
That said, you’ll be fine if you stop at 12, adding one more mile to 12 is not bad. And for your first race I would definitely taper the week before. This includes strength training your legs, you want those babies to be fresh and bursting with energy on race day. I’ve noticed HUGE differences in races that have included a taper and those that didn’t.
Good luck and have fun tonight!
I’d totally go with Ryan’s suggestion. It seems like a totally reasonable taper and comparable to what you would do in a marathon training schedule.
If you are able to do long runs of 10, 11, and 12 each week, you’ll totally dominate the 13.1 on race day.
There are two “rules” about the long run that you don’t want to violate, but otherwise there is no problem going up to 11 or 12 in training. First, do not increase your overall weekly mileage by more than 10%. If you’re only going up a mile or two, this shouldn’t be a problem. The second is do not make your long run more than 50% of your weekly mileage. So if you are only running 20 miles/week, I wouldn’t go over 10 miles for the long run. That said, we are only talking a difference of a mile so it’s not going to be a big deal. If I were you, I would do 10 this weekend and next, then 11, then back down. You don’t need to do more than 11 for a half marathon if you don’t have a serious time goal. Good luck!
thanks lara. this was very helpful!
i’ve run a couple marathons and plenty of half marathons. if it were me, i would run 11 this week, then 10 then 12 then 8. you definitely want to taper down the week before but want to make sure you have a decent long run within 2 weeks of the race.
Every saturday morning in college, the roommates and I would play that song while making banana pancakes. I miss those days.
I love that banana pancake song 😀
Happy Birthday Ryan.
But as for the long run, As I run 6 miles EVERY day, and run half marathons a few times a month, you best bet is to run atleast 11 or 12 miles the weekend before, and thoughout the week before I would run Monday-Thursday everyday atleast 6 or 7 miles, and then back off on Friday and lay low, but the night before, I have found eating a fairly light meal, but then if/when you wake up in the middle of the night eat TWO huge spoonfuls of peanut butter for some protein and energy and then in the morning, get up and eat an apple or banana with a tablespoon of peanut butter for dipping! Good luck!
pb in the middle of the night? sounds like a plan!
Ha..figured you get a kick out of that. Not just because it peanut butter, but I really do, do that. I havent found any other food that really gives you all you need for a race the night before. But yes, Ill wake up in the middle of the night to rollover or whatever and remind myself to go get a few tablespoons! Perfect amount of protein, and I feel it helps repair that muscle tissue that may feel sore!
We measure in km, so I will convert for you:)
My half marathon is this weekend and two weeks ago I ran 20km (12.4miles) and I didn’t want to do the extra kilometer just so the race didn’t seem anti-climatic.
For the past two weeks I have kept my runs and workouts pretty easy! I did 10km (6.2 miles) on Sunday and am going to do a 5 km(3.10 miles) tomorrow and then the race!
exactly! i feel like doing 13.1 before would definitely take away from the race day itself.
If you don’t care about your time, 10 miles is plenty. You do have a lot of time until the race though so you could try switching the runs up by increasing the speed- 7 miles easy and then pick it up for the last three. I also would recommend only running 8 miles for your last long run.
I’m working on training for my first half in December so I don’t have any long run advice, but I’m finding it helpful reading all the comments on here. Thanks for posting this!
I’m kind of in the same situation-this is my first half marathon (nov 6) but i had a 10 mile run last weekend, and i have an 11, and 12 coming up—after that it goes down to 9 & 8
you’ve already gotten a ton of advice, but i’d do something like: 11, 12, 10 or 9, 9 or 8. no need to do 10-10 the last two weeks. give your body a break before a big race! (i so need that advice myself…i’m running my 3rd marathon on 10/16) good luck! 🙂
Over the summer, I was training for a half marathon. I ran 10 miles 4 weeks out, 12 miles 3 weeks out, 10 miles 2 weeks out and 9 miles the week before. It was perfect. I even set a new PR in that half marathon!
I definitely think you should do 11 or 12. It doesn’t matter which distance, but try to get over that 10 mile marker. During the half, it may seem like running an extra 3.1 isn’t a big deal, but you never know how you’ll feel. I also find it helpful to know I ran almost the entire distance during training.
I’m so grateful you said that your last half marathon your longest run prior was 10 miles. My first half is in 11 days and my longest run has only been 10 miles – and I’ve been freaking out! I’m happy to know that those plans that only call for 10 to be your longest run are legit 😉
you’ll be totally fine!! the excitement of the race will push you through the final three. good luck!
Ohh those pancakes look so good! I love the idea of pancakes on a weekday- they are such weekend food that it feels especially decadent! And yay- happy birthday to Ryan!
I am running the Savannah Rock and Roll Half as well.. I just finished my first half this past Sunday. I did 11 and 12 miles but then dropped down to 6 in place of my normal long runs to taper .. it worked I finished under my expected time! Can’t wait for Savannah!!
What kind of syrup do you use?
maple syrup – it comes in a container shaped like a maple leaf.
I love the song Banana Pancakes! It always makes me swoon.
After listening to this song and looking at the rain outside my window, I was craving some banana pancakes!
It sounds like you guys are right on track for your long runs. You don’t need to do the full 13 before race day. 10 or 11 is plenty. Also, the last long run probably should be 8 miles max just so you have a little taper and your legs aren’t sore for race day.
I love Jack Johnson’s song Banana Pancakes! Everytime I make them I can’t help but hum that song. Doesn’t that song sound like the perfect day?
Speaking of banana pancakes, I haven’t made them in so long! Yours look delicious, I’ll have to try them out. 🙂
I agree with you Julie! I am only running 10 miles tops before the Savannah half and I’m ok with it. I know mile 8-10 is usually a trouble spot for me and once I hit 10, I’m just cranking on the last 3.1.
Speaking of Savannah- there are a ton of other bloggers running- we should totally do a meet up! Maybe for fro-yo? There’s a great froyo place right in downtown Savannah 🙂
Hi Julie! I didn’t take the time to scroll through the other suggestions in the comments, but here’s what I’d do in your shoes:
10 this weekend
7-9 next weekend
then 11
then 12
then 8-10, depending on how you feel. A little leeway is good the week before a big race!
That’s the step-back approach I use during marathon training, and I think it works really well.
i’ve never tried bit-o-honey, but now i wonder what team i’d side with…here’s hoping my nephew gets a piece of bit-o-honey on halloween that i can sample =)