Training for a marathon... please help! About This Page:

[jenblondie]

I am looking for some help, and I didn't quite know where to post, so please move if this is not the correct place.

As you may, or may not know, I had Roux-en-y Gastric Bypass surgery on July 31, 2007. To date, I have lost 125 pounds. I set a goal for myself last year that I wanted to run a Disney Marathon in 2010. I know the marathon and the half marathon are some time in January. I have heard on some podcasts that there were other "runs" that take place at Disney. (My extra week of vacation comes in 2010 so I thought that would be the perfect time to take off!)

So that leaves me a year and a half to get into shape and start training. Being overweight my entire life, I never really did any "running". And I have no idea where to start!

Anyone know of any good places / resources to get started? I am not a real good "reader" either; you give me a book to read, I get half way through it and find other things to do. (I still have not made it through "The Gun Seller"!!) So any audio books, videos, trainers in the eastern PA area (I'll even pay for consultation, if you happen to be a trainer!!) that anyone found useful, please post them.

I am really die-hard on doing this. I have come this far and running a marathon was the one goal I set for myself... and I want to fulfill it.

[*Pixie*Dust*]

Congrats on your weight loss!! I lost 85 lbs with Weight Watchers in 2005. I know a lot of members who have used the Couch to 5k program and were very happy with it.
Cool Running :: The Couch-to-5K Running Plan

[AmyJune]

Do you belong to a gym? See if they have a personal trainer. Tell them what you want to do and they'll work up a plan for you. Even if you only buy a couple of session with them they should be willing to do this for you.

I do know that if you run 5 miles on a treadmill it is not equal to 5 miles on the road. Distance wise it is but the impact is more on road running and will tire you out more.

[Starla4436]

Originally Posted by AmyJune

Do you belong to a gym? See if they have a personal trainer. Tell them what you want to do and they'll work up a plan for you. Even if you only buy a couple of session with them they should be willing to do this for you.

I do know that if you run 5 miles on a treadmill it is not equal to 5 miles on the road. Distance wise it is but the impact is more on road running and will tire you out more.

this is good to know b/c i have done 4 weeks of my 5k training on a treadmill...guess i better get outside.

[disney_duke]

Personally, I find that running a treadmill is harder than running the road! But everybody's different!

I trained for the Disney half marathon and finished it this past January. I was never a runner either, a casual jogger at best. The furthest I ever regularly ran was 1 mile. Then I had 3 kids in 4 1/2 years, so exercising was not my top priority! After having my 3rd in Nov. 06, I started getting ready for the Jan. 08 half marathon. My best advice is something you're already doing - take your time in training. Listen to your body and don't rush yourself and get an injury. On that same note, also challenge yourself to do more than you think you can. I can't tell you how many times I set out to just do 2 miles, and then I'd feel so good after the 2 mile mark that I'd just keep going. Your body is resilient, once you get it into shape.

I followed the training guidelines of Hal Higdon. Here's a link to his program for the novice marathon runner: Hal Higdon's MARATHON TRAINING GUIDE I followed his program for the Half and it was great. As you'll see, it starts with being able to run 3 miles comfortably. So you have lots of time to work up to that 3 mile start, and then build up from there. Lots of good tips from his site too. There's actually a message board dedicated strictly to running at Disney - Disney Running (DisneyRunning.com)- Your Guide to Running at Walt Disney World You might find some good tips there as well.

My second largest advice is this - if you do run on an indoor track in the winter, try to run off the rubber mat if at all possible. I didn't run outside at all in Nov/Dec/Jan. I hate the cold! So I found a place with an indoor rubber-type material running track, which was great for my long runs on weekends. But I still used the treadmill for all runs up to 6 miles. After finishing the Half marathon at Disney - running on concrete and asphalt - my hips were sooooo sore, they hurt more than anything else! My body wasn't used to the harder impact from the concrete on those long runs, so I paid for it after the race. I still managed to shop at DTD and go out to dinner, and hit 3 parks the next day, but my hips were killing me!!

Anyway, sorry to ramble. There's my 2 or 3 cents. If you have any other questions feel free to PM me! BTW, I'll be training for the full marathon in 2011 and plan on using the novice Higdon program too!
Best of luck!

[disney_duke]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I absolutely did not run the entire race. I walked a good 5 or 6 miles of it. In fact, there were lots of folks who set out to walk the entire thing. Disney allows a generous 16 minute per mile pace. So if you can find a running/walking combo that fits in under that 16 minute pace, and keep it up for 26 miles, you'll be fine!!!! I think my pace averaged about 12-13 minutes per mile, and I finished with time to spare. You also want to enjoy the race, the scenery, the characters along the way. It's so much fun too!!!

[Starla4436]

Originally Posted by disney_duke

Personally, I find that running a treadmill is harder than running the road! But everybody's different!

I trained for the Disney half marathon and finished it this past January. I was never a runner either, a casual jogger at best. The furthest I ever regularly ran was 1 mile. Then I had 3 kids in 4 1/2 years, so exercising was not my top priority! After having my 3rd in Nov. 06, I started getting ready for the Jan. 08 half marathon. My best advice is something you're already doing - take your time in training. Listen to your body and don't rush yourself and get an injury. On that same note, also challenge yourself to do more than you think you can. I can't tell you how many times I set out to just do 2 miles, and then I'd feel so good after the 2 mile mark that I'd just keep going. Your body is resilient, once you get it into shape.

I followed the training guidelines of Hal Higdon. Here's a link to his program for the novice marathon runner: Hal Higdon's MARATHON TRAINING GUIDE I followed his program for the Half and it was great. As you'll see, it starts with being able to run 3 miles comfortably. So you have lots of time to work up to that 3 mile start, and then build up from there. Lots of good tips from his site too. There's actually a message board dedicated strictly to running at Disney - Disney Running (DisneyRunning.com)- Your Guide to Running at Walt Disney World You might find some good tips there as well.

My second largest advice is this - if you do run on an indoor track in the winter, try to run off the rubber mat if at all possible. I didn't run outside at all in Nov/Dec/Jan. I hate the cold! So I found a place with an indoor rubber-type material running track, which was great for my long runs on weekends. But I still used the treadmill for all runs up to 6 miles. After finishing the Half marathon at Disney - running on concrete and asphalt - my hips were sooooo sore, they hurt more than anything else! My body wasn't used to the harder impact from the concrete on those long runs, so I paid for it after the race. I still managed to shop at DTD and go out to dinner, and hit 3 parks the next day, but my hips were killing me!!

Anyway, sorry to ramble. There's my 2 or 3 cents. If you have any other questions feel free to PM me! BTW, I'll be training for the full marathon in 2011 and plan on using the novice Higdon program too!
Best of luck!

This information is so helpful! And congrats on running a half marathon thats amazing!