Two months today and I'll be running my very first half marathon.
The above is a sentence I never thought I'd write, say or have anything to do with if I'm honest. Even after my first 5k in May 2012 and then my first 10k last year I thought it was an impossibility. I mean part of me still worries about the fact I've signed up to the race, but now that I can't go back and the Surrey Half Marathon is a matter of weeks away I'm determined to do my best. In my head that means finishing it (I'm not worrying about my time) and if I do that I'll be immensely proud of myself, even prouder if I run it all. But let's not get too carried away! To help me reach the goal that I've set myself I've gone and done two things. The first thing I've done is to buy some decent trainers that work for my running style and feet - and here they are. Aren't they lovely?
This is a big step for me as my usual attitude is to buy the cheapest trainers I can find that fit. That's how I got my last pair of trainers and don't get me wrong those worked for me over the last 18 months, but I've decided that if I want to take this running malarkey more seriously, which I do, I need to get proper decent shoes. After all I plan to be wearing them a lot, so it's stupid if they don't fit properly or aren't doing my feet any good! Over the Christmas break I headed to Sweatshop and got my shoes properly fitted, which involved computers, treadmills and molded insoles, quite an experience! Yes they were expensive, well the special insoles were (the trainers were actually in the sale), but the insoles are molded to my feet and should last 1000 miles, plus I can wear them in different shoes. And honestly I can totally tell the difference without them. My foot feels much better supported and they will help me run at the correct angle and hopefully that will benefit my joints and muscles. Which has got to be a good thing, right? I never thought I'd be one of those people who would get excited by trainers but I totally am!
This other thing I've done to help me with the half marathon training is to sign up for a training plan from Runclub, this was free when I bought my shoes, which I'm very pleased about. I had been (well actually I still am) a little concerned about how I was going to get to the 13+ miles distance I'll need to be able to run from my base of an almost 10k, as it's double the distance - eek! But with the plan I get something to work towards, based on three runs a week. I'm hopeful that this will work for me as after all I used this sort of a plan when I trained for the very first 5k I did, so in theory this should work again! Fingers crossed anyway! Even if it doesn't work it'll be good to at least mix things up and do new things - like yoga, pilates and cross training.
Has anyone else trained for a race before? Any top tips you can send my way? I'm all ears as I fear I'm going to need all the help I can get, even with the new snazzy trainers and the running plan!
The above is a sentence I never thought I'd write, say or have anything to do with if I'm honest. Even after my first 5k in May 2012 and then my first 10k last year I thought it was an impossibility. I mean part of me still worries about the fact I've signed up to the race, but now that I can't go back and the Surrey Half Marathon is a matter of weeks away I'm determined to do my best. In my head that means finishing it (I'm not worrying about my time) and if I do that I'll be immensely proud of myself, even prouder if I run it all. But let's not get too carried away! To help me reach the goal that I've set myself I've gone and done two things. The first thing I've done is to buy some decent trainers that work for my running style and feet - and here they are. Aren't they lovely?
This is a big step for me as my usual attitude is to buy the cheapest trainers I can find that fit. That's how I got my last pair of trainers and don't get me wrong those worked for me over the last 18 months, but I've decided that if I want to take this running malarkey more seriously, which I do, I need to get proper decent shoes. After all I plan to be wearing them a lot, so it's stupid if they don't fit properly or aren't doing my feet any good! Over the Christmas break I headed to Sweatshop and got my shoes properly fitted, which involved computers, treadmills and molded insoles, quite an experience! Yes they were expensive, well the special insoles were (the trainers were actually in the sale), but the insoles are molded to my feet and should last 1000 miles, plus I can wear them in different shoes. And honestly I can totally tell the difference without them. My foot feels much better supported and they will help me run at the correct angle and hopefully that will benefit my joints and muscles. Which has got to be a good thing, right? I never thought I'd be one of those people who would get excited by trainers but I totally am!
This other thing I've done to help me with the half marathon training is to sign up for a training plan from Runclub, this was free when I bought my shoes, which I'm very pleased about. I had been (well actually I still am) a little concerned about how I was going to get to the 13+ miles distance I'll need to be able to run from my base of an almost 10k, as it's double the distance - eek! But with the plan I get something to work towards, based on three runs a week. I'm hopeful that this will work for me as after all I used this sort of a plan when I trained for the very first 5k I did, so in theory this should work again! Fingers crossed anyway! Even if it doesn't work it'll be good to at least mix things up and do new things - like yoga, pilates and cross training.
Has anyone else trained for a race before? Any top tips you can send my way? I'm all ears as I fear I'm going to need all the help I can get, even with the new snazzy trainers and the running plan!
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