If I regularly run 10k, can I prepare for a marathon in 2 weeks?

[54321nought]

I've been offered a place in a marathon in 2 weeks time, which I want to take, but realistically, I am not sure I can finish it within the time limit ( 6 hours)

Any advice on diet and training to give myself the best shot?

Well. You might get round but you won't be running it.

As a marathon runner it pains me to say this, but yes you can do it. I convinced three non running friends to run a marathon with me a few years ago. The training they did was diabolical, one did 5k, one 10k, and one 10 miles as their longest runs, and certainly were not doing two runs a week. I thought it was going to be catastrophic but I was proved wrong. They all finished - in 7, 5.5 and 5 hours

@Cockle1234

As a marathon runner it pains me to say this, but yes you can do it. I convinced three non running friends to run a marathon with me a few years ago. The training they did was diabolical, one did 5k, one 10k, and one 10 miles as their longest runs, and certainly were not doing two runs a week. I thought it was going to be catastrophic but I was proved wrong. They all finished - in 7, 5.5 and 5 hours

well, that is encouraging! Thank you

Yes you can do it. I did virtual London last year off the back of only 7 training runs ever. It definitely wasn’t quick or pretty, but it was ok. I didn’t have your level of fitness or base mileage at all. Flat half ASAP, run:walk maybe 60:30 then get your legs as rested as possible

@Pushmepullyou

Yes you can do it. I did virtual London last year off the back of only 7 training runs ever. It definitely wasn’t quick or pretty, but it was ok. I didn’t have your level of fitness or base mileage at all. Flat half ASAP, run:walk maybe 60:30 then get your legs as rested as possible

Thank you - I am going to try a half marathon distance as soon as I wake up tomorrow, and take it from there

I’m an ex-runner - my knee is sadly too knackered for me to run any more, but I fast-walked a marathon last year and did it in a bit over 6. If I could have run-walked any of it I’d have easily been inside 6 hours. I obviously did no running training beforehand (I am a regular hiker though and upped my distances for some urban training hikes in the couple of months beforehand), and beyond some sore hips and a couple of blisters I escaped injury free.

I think you’re mad and it depends how much you care about your future fitness!

If you want to give it a go and don’t care whether you end up out injured for the next 6 months you can probably do it with run/walk strategy and just know it’s going to hurt! But the risk of injury is high!

If you care about being able to run in the future without injury, I would give this a miss and sign up for next year!

I’m up to 16 miles in my current marathon training cycle (London in 6 weeks, my 3rd) and I can tell you it HURTS!

Yes I would do first 1/4 no faster than 11 min miles next 1/4 10 min miles walk a bit then pick up the pace to finish.
perhaps try 1 long run 2 weeks before but don't over do it the week before .

I wouldn’t. I’ve run over 20 marathons & would say by about 16 miles you’ll be totally exhausted - going from 12 miles a week to 26 in one go is a really bad idea. Your muscles just won’t be ready for it & your whole body will hurt & the last 10 miles could easily take 3 hours.
Find another one in 4 months time!

I think you seriously risk giving yourself a bad injury that could take months and months for you to recover from.

Is it really worth it? If you want to do another Marathon then enter one for next year and start your training now.

You should be tapering your runs down at this point and getting more rest in - not trying to increase the distance!

Oh gosh I don't think so.
I'm a regular 10ker and I spent months building up for a half marathon. I frequently got stuck at the 18k mark and that's what happened at the end of the half. Kind of hobbled the final few ks

The thought of doing twice that is . As a PP said you would be tapering by now.

Aside from that the mental resilience needed to run for 4 hours is astonishing and is a key part of the training which you will have missed out on

If you can walk run it might be worth a go but hell it will be hard.

I agree with @icedcoffees - this is a really bad idea. You could do yourself an injury. Your 10k time is really decent, you could jeopardise running again in the future if you put your body through something you haven't trained for.

I think you’re setting yourself up for injury. Good luck!

Even 10k straight to half marathon is too big a jump. I assume you're a post - menopausal woman considering your age - it's such a bad idea at this time in your life to push your body beyond what a training plan would suggest.

ok, I've taken on board what people have said abut injury, and I am not going to make it a priority to finish. I will stop if anything hurts! I have been warned!

I tried a slow half marathon distance this morning, mixing walking and running as suggested. I took more than 3 hours about it, but that's because I was taking it easy. I ran a mile and walked a mile for the first 10 miles, then speeded up at the end. 3 hours 10 minutes, but I feel like I have lots of scope for going faster, and I am not tired or achy at all- I may be tomorrow! I deliberately didn't push myself at all, until the very last mile, which I ran much faster than the others.

I’m a regular runner than runs most days (commuting) and run 7-10 miles on Sundays. I’ve done a few marathons and have always needed at least three weeks just to taper.
The first marathon I ever did I only got to 17 miles in training. I hit the dreaded wall at 20 miles and had to shuffle the remaining distance.
You could probably do it but it will be miserable and you risk injury.

So this is my plan

firstly, a rest tomorrow

then short fast hill sprints on Sunday

followed by a rest day

followed by a long slow run

then a re evaluation, but probably more days of short runs and hill sprints

lots of protein for two weeks

plus lots of carbohydrates in the 3 days before

plus , I will stop and pull out if I get any physical pain anywhere

And the run itself will be run a minute/walk a minute, or possibly run a mile/walk a mile

And I will pull out if I get any pain anywhere

I am open to further suggestion and changes to the plan

@54321nought

ok, I've taken on board what people have said abut injury, and I am not going to make it a priority to finish. I will stop if anything hurts! I have been warned!

Well you haven't really taken it on board, most advice is it's risky and foolhardy.

The reality is that in a race you WON'T stop when it starts to hurt, you will push on beyond when you should stop because of the race environment and not wanting to let people down and wanting to finish. We are all guilty of this in races even when fully trained. Also by the time you stop damage might well be done. Someone above mentioned stress fractures - even more likely if its on road and these can take ages to heal for example.

If you are adamant (and I don't recommend it) I strongly recommend an early run/walk strategy from the outset or early on, this will reduce the risk of injury and also conserve energy for later on. I speak as an experienced race pacer.

Why are you planning on doing hill sprints so close to the race day?

Honestly this sounds like a recipe for disaster

As you already have a decent level of fitness it would be possible to run a marathon in under 6 hours. You are only talking about 13 minute miles. I would run 13 miles as normal and then see how you are feeling. You could then go into a slow jog (preferred) or run/walk. If you didn't achieve it then so what, you gave it a go.

@icedcoffees

Why are you planning on doing hill sprints so close to the race day?

Honestly this sounds like a recipe for disaster

because I want to get a bit faster, is this a bad idea?

What's your diary like for the week or so following?

It's very likely you'll trash yourself, and might have a longer term injury to deal with

But, to aim for a 5hr 30ish time (giving you a bit of time spare before the sweeper) then you are aiming at a pace of about 12:50 (mins per mile) and I think that's do-able

Have you got your kit sorted - sure that you have clothes that won't chafe and shoes you can rely on?

I don't think any training will help I've the exceptionally short time available. Just do what you feel like and hope that mental strength gets you round.

If you have any doubts at all, the tell the team now, so they have a chance to ask someone else.

Any kind of speed work will just knacker you at this point. You've a good 10k pace anyway and what you need is stamina to keep going not speed.

Do the long run. Do walking for long distances if you have the time. It won't have the impact to recover from and will give you a better sense of your stamina reserves.

I keep 10k as my base fitness and can ramp up to running 10mi or HM in a short time, but it's rarely been more than a few months without longer distances. I haven't done a marathon yet and I am aware that it's a different beast.
Under a normal plan you need to taper to recover from the longest runs in training, normally about 20 mi. OP doesn't have this built up fatigue. Leave the last 5 days clear of running and major distance, just do one or two gentle miles the day before to "warm up".

It's not the best idea ever, but if it's a major event you won't be the worst prepared person either. With marathons being shifted to autumn, uncertainty over them actually going ahead and normal summer disruption, there will be a lot of marathoners that aren't brilliantly prepared this autumn.

@icedcoffees

Why are you planning on doing hill sprints so close to the race day?

Honestly this sounds like a recipe for disaster

Terrible idea! You seem hellbent on doing the marathon as you are ignoring all the people telling you not to do it. Any training effects of interval/strength/anaerobic type running (which hill sprints are) take >2 weeks to have any impact on your fitness level. One session won't make and difference AND a marathon is an aerobic rather than an anaerobic type of exercise. Plus if you don't usually do hill sprints you may strain your achilles ! 🤔🤔 Gosh if you're really dead set on doing it, just rest, get decent sleep and hydrate well the next couple weeks. you can't make any fitness gains in 2 weeks