Category Archives: Half Marathon

Demystifying the tempo run

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How To Run A Tempo WorkoutWhen I started running, I kept hearing about tempo runs. I thought they sounded intimidating so I never attempted one. I knew they would good for speed work, but my focus was distance. I knew they were good for strengthening, but I did weight training. I also knew they were good for building endurance, but my three-times-a-week cardio kickboxing class did the trick for that. What I didn’t know is that when you start working full-time, it’s not as easy to run long runs every other day with cardio kickboxing classes in between.

Tempo runs are perfect to throw into any consistent running routine because they have the benefits of endurance and strength training packaged into one workout. As I train for the half-marathon in September, I’m learning tempo runs will be the key to allowing me to run the full 13.1 miles without being as tired.

Distance runners use tempo runs not only to work on speed but to increase endurance. According to an article on Runner’s World’s website, the “best predictor of distance-running performance is your lactate threshold, which is the speed you are able to run before lactic acid begins to accumulate in the blood. ” After lactic acid is released into the blood, you start to feel fatigued and will have to slow down. Tempo runs help to slow down this process and in essence, speed up your run.

Traditional Tempo Run

If you haven’t tried a tempo run before, I would suggests starting with a traditional tempo run first. This consists of a 2-mile jog warm-up to loosen up your muscles and get your heart rate up. Then, you run for 2-miles at a “tempo” pace. This is NOT a sprint! Tempo pace is typically referred to as “comfortably hard.” You want to run faster than your normal pace but not so fast that it becomes difficult. After you finish the 2-mile tempo run, conclude your workout with a 2-mile jog/walk cool down.

As you start to get better at this, add a half a mile to your tempo run every two weeks. Pretty soon you’ll be able to run up to 6 miles at tempo pace.

Interval Tempo Run

If this is difficult, another option is to do a modified tempo run my uncle showed my cousin and me last weekend. This endurance-building run is easiest to do on a track. Start off with a 1-mile warm-up run around the track. Once you’re done with that, beginning at the 100-meter mark (the straightaways of the track) run at a fast pace, again NOT a sprint, but a pretty comfortably hard pace. When you get to the curve of the track, slow down to a jog to recover your breathe. Repeat this 8 times, equaling 2 miles. Then, do another 1-mile jog/walk cool down.

As always, don’t forget to stretch!

Half-marathon training update

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As I continue to train for the half-marathon I plan to write updates every week about the training, complications, new findings and whatever else may come up. This is the first update!

This weekend my cousin and I officially began training for our half-marathon in September. We started our training in southern Maine, along the coast, since our race will be on the coast of New Hampshire. The weather was perfect for running. The air was clear, it was sunny and there was a cool breeze coming off of the ocean. Not to mention the gorgeous views we had during the run.

We both ran separately on Friday evening but then did an easy 3-mile run along the ocean Saturday morning. We also did some conditioning and a tempo run at the high school track on Sunday.

It was my first ever attempt at a tempo run and it went pretty well. We did a 2-mile run, with sprints for every straightaway. We made pretty good time, despite the heat.

This week I plan to do another tempo workout, an easy 4-mile run and a longer run this weekend. The half-marathon will be the longest my cousin and I have ever run but we’re getting really excited for the race. We have about four months to train and we are staying positive. As one of my fellow sub-30 club members wrote, “Just keep putting one foot in front of the other and you’ll get there.”

That’s it for now but be on the lookout for a post about tempo runs soon! Also, don’t forget to “like” my Facebook page and follow me on twitter @FitHappyGirl.

Finding the perfect half-marathon training program

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Courtesy Runner’s World on Pinterest

Ok, so finding the perfect half-marathon training program is a little harder than it seems. Last week I registered for my first ever half-marathon and it without a doubt terrifies me. However, according to most of my research, if you can already easily run 4 miles, in less than 14 weeks you can build up to a half-marathon- I have four months.

When looking for any good training program it’s important to stay realistic. For example, if you have a full-time job and a fluctuating schedule like myself, running every day is probably not a very realistic goal. Most of the training programs I found have you running three or four days a week with strengthening exercises and rest days in between.

After asking around and posing the question in the Sub-30 Club on Facebook, I found a good training program for me. I chose to use the Runner’s World Smart Coach (free version). This training plan allows you to insert your information- including gender, miles logged per week and your latest race time- to develop a specialized plan to fit your schedule. This is important for me because I am a full-time reporter so sometimes I have to cover late meetings and can’t fit in my run, but the smart coach allows you to adjust the plan at any time.

Also, the smart coach, like many other half-marathon training program, has you run an easy run, a “tempo” run (speedwork) and a long run each week. As your training continues it adds in an extra easy run to help you build endurance to last those 13.1 miles.

This program might not be for everyone so some other suggestions I received were: