Question:Are you running the Kentucky Derby Festival Mini-Marathon in Louisville?
Answer:
I'm training for my first mini marathon, scheduled for May. I've been
training every day for the past two months. Can anyone give me some
advice as to what I should or shouldn't be doing to better prepare myself?
Any tips would be greatly appreciated!
Are you running the Kentucky Derby Festival Mini-Marathon in Louisville?
There is a peculiar habit of Louisville-area runners (and I noted you are
from Evansville) to call half marathons "mini marathons" because the Mini
is a half. People outside that region haven't got a clue what kind of race
a mini marathon is.
Having made my point, my advice is: Do a weekly long run. Build up your
mileage gradually. If you just want to finish, shoot for 10 miles or so in
training. If you want to go faster, make your long runs longer. Do some
training on hills. The Mini course goes through Iroquois Park between 3
and 7 miles, and it's hilly. Finally, do a faster-paced run once a week.
It can be a sustained run at race pace or faster, or a series of pickups
with short rests.
I read Jeff Galloway's book on running,and following his training
schedule for a marathon enabled me to complete my first marathon last
October in Detroit. It was fun, too!
I'm not a fast runner, so maybe you will have a different experience.
I ran my first half marathon two years ago and another this past fall.
I can say that it is a significantly different experience than a 10K run.
Dont skimp on you training. Building up the length of your long runs
is probably the key ingredient.
You say you are running every day. Instead change two days every two
weeks: one to go on a long run and the next dat to rest(no run). If you
run daily for short distances, you body will adapt to that and you will
run out
energy before the end of the half marathon. So longer runs are very
important.
Also, you may want to consider not running every day. As has been said
in this group and elsewhere, your body develops under the combination of
stress and rest. And always take my advice with a grain of salt.
I'm no expert.
