Half marathon with no training

I’m with you OP, I feel instinctively that doing this without training is dangerous, and that’s probably because I myself have low-average fitness. I think people who are saying it’s no big deal are likely people who are very fit. My OH hadn’t done any training 3 months before his and I told him he needed to start. To be fair to him he did and he managed the half marathon but it was very hard going and his toenails and feet are still a mess 🤣

I think it depends on his base level of fitness which may not be that great from what you've said of him struggling previously? I absolutely think some of it is about mental stamina. As soon as something feels uncomfortable for me I stop. My ex military husband on the other hand ran an ultra marathon with a week's notice, and yes, had a decent level of fitness but he just seems to have this stubborn mind set which I wish I had 😂 I did cycle the London to brighton route pregnant with 0 training so it can be done!

A bit of training may help but it may also be too late.

It's along time since I was a runner, but based on my experience I would say one of two things will proobaby happen here.
1)He will set off far too fast, buoyed by over confidence and the excitement of the day. That will catch up on him fairly quickly and he'll realise his mistake and end up jogging and walking but eventually manage to get to the end. After all, lots of unfit people or people in crazy costumes do complete half marathons and even marathons but it takes them a long time and they need to pace themselves properly.
Or
2)He will set off far too fast, buoyed by overconfidence and the excitement of the day. That will catch up with him fairly quickly but he'll be too pig headed to acknowledge mistake and will plough on. His lack of preparation including his probable lack of a fuelling and hydration strategy will lead to cramp and/or "hitting the wall" and he'll give up.
Hopefully it will be the former.
But I will be very surprised if he completes a half marathon in under 2 hours from what you say. A lot of fairly reasonable regular runners would find that a challenge. There's quite a lot to consider when running that far, not least, your feet. I'd get some blister plasters in if I were you...

Well OP needs to tell us WHICH half it is so we can come and watch check out the loo situ!

Running makes the body want to poo so combining it with coffee is a terrible idea! Tell him if he struggles then to walk it. He’ll be fine walking it!

💯 this.

I’m always supportive of anyone doing any competition or race - if they have trained. Even if they have to go slow, take breaks etc - they’ve done the preparation, it will be an achievement and they’ll be fine.

Egotistical men (it’s always men) doing silly things like this is just a waste of everyone’s time.

You should see some oriole that get around the marathon, he may not break any records but if he’s not carrying half a hippopotamus around his middle is just a half, he’ll be fine.

Ah I missed that bit! He could probably squeeze in a 10 miles but not too close to the date!

I do ultra-marathons: I’ve done around 50, plus lots of regular marathons and a ton of half-marathons. I don’t really understand why he wants to do this, to be honest. He’s highly unlikely to enjoy it. It’s just arrogant and frankly disrespectful to the demands of distance running. He reminds me of the men (and they were all men) who were featured on a Jeremy Vine show a few years ago, themed around people who ran a marathon on no training. Most got round eventually, but some picked up lifelong injuries. If he’s set on doing this then, ideally, I’d say that he needs to have a good running pack, so that he can fuel and hydrate his way around and not be reliant on checkpoints. He’ll need salt tablets. If he just drinks a ton of water and doesn’t take salt tabs, he’s at risk of hyponatraemia. No ibuprofen before, during or after the race: it puts too
much pressure on the kidneys. And the coffee is a dreadful idea: he’ll shit himself and the caffeine will wear off about an hour in, leaving him feeling even worse. He’ll likely finish, but in pain and in a foul mood and possibly with long-lasting injuries. If his current 5k time is 35mins, I can’t see how on earth he’ll finish in sub-2hrs. As I say, I can’t see why he’d want to do this. There’ll be no joy, and where’s the sense of achievement, if he hasn’t trained for it?

This is a terrible way to calculate your time! My best 5k is 19.19 (yes I am still smug) and my best half is 1.42 with training, you get slower not quicker.

I think he'll get round but he'll walk most of it and then say he was on for a sub 2 but he pulled something, men do this all the time.

Please let us know how he goes!

Myself and dh did this, it was tough and we had to walk a lot but we knew we weren’t ready and so walked when we had to. Sun cream and hydration and tell him to stop when he has to but make sure to keep going as finishing is amazing but also to especially pace yourself at the end

Maybe if they're city ones? I don't recall any loos on ones I've run (in the countryside).

It’s in 2 weeks time.
The training ship has sailed!

Hahahaha a sub 2 hour half marathon with no training 😂😂😂 👍 he will end up walking most of it in between stops to shit because of all the coffee. And those portaloos are…something.
He may well finish eventually but if he starts off too hard there’s a good chance of DNF. Oh well, please come back and let us know how he gets on!

Not read all the replies but I'd make sure he has his phone and make sure your volume is up for when he calls for you to collect him from mile 6 when his energy will be spent.

I've done 3 half marathons when a fit, regular runner and they are draining & require prep if you're not running decent distances regularly.

A completely different beast than a 5k which anyone with ok fitness could do.

Heat makes everything hard. I’m very fit and an experienced runner - days when I’m competing / running in hot weather are very tough, even having trained. You need to adjust your hydration plan and increase gels etc due to sweating, and especially the loss of sodium. (I’m in Ireland so clearly we don’t cope well with the (usually rare!) heat).

So if he’s not ready for the race and it’s a hot day, he may well collapse or faint. It’s not uncommon. First Aid will be available but it’s not ideal.

Most larger ones will have loos along the route.

I am a runner and have ran numerous halves and several marathons. I would say it's doable, but highly unlikely he will get anywhere under two hours. He should try and train as much as he can though and get a long practice run in. My biggest pieces of advice:

1. Get some decent running shoes, loads of new runners cheap out on this and then get injured. I use Mizuno Wave riders, which are very reasonably priced and provide great support.

1. Eat plenty of carbs and proteins (something like chicken pasta the night before), a high protein breakfast (my go to is poached eggs and spinach).

1. Absolutely do not drink loads of coffee/ try any workout supplements he's never tried before, he will be cramping/ shitting through the eye of a needle. SIS electrolyte tablets are good for a bit of a boost pre race though, one before a run normally works for me and you can also get electrolytes chew bars. Lots of runners like energy gels but personally, I think they are disgusting and am yet to find one I like that sits well, after over a decade of running.

Good luck!

Whats the worse thing that could happen? Sore feet and take longer than planned?

Yeah, I've seen people talking about having a double shot of espresso before a workout as it boosts your workout - and that's okay - gyms have toilets. A half marathon course? You'll get toilets at the start/finish, but rarely otherwise.

I used to have a partner who was seriously into running. One time he was doing a cross-country race and several people turned up ‘unprepared’. One guy just had a normal pair of office shoes on. Needless to say he didn’t last long 😂

OP, I’m sure if there is a lesson to be learned here, your partner will learn it.
Also, can’t wait to find out how he gets on…

I’m mean you can’t decide to run really fast to get round in under 2 hours if your body isn’t able. Sure, there is a lot of mental strength needed, but in conjunction with a body that is capable.
We’ve all heard about dads’ race at sports day where grown, overweight men who haven’t so much as run to chase down a loose trolley in a supermarket car park THUNDER down the track. You can’t do that for longer distances. Does he think caffeine will give him bionic powers? If he struggled with a 5k why does he think he’ll be ok over 13 miles?
I do hope it motivates him to train to run one properly. It’s a distance that doesn’t dominate your life like marathon training does.

You are.not being dramatic. It is not dramatic to care about the people we spend our life with.

I agree with @Kerri126 in what's likely going to happen.