Half marathon with no training

[sunallsummer]

Probably a stupid question sorry but I’m not a runner so have no idea!

DH impulsively signed up to do a half marathon in 2 weeks and has done zero training for it. He’s slim and has normal fitness I would say but definitely not a runner and previously did a 5km and completed it but struggled

I know it’s his choice and he’s an adult to it’s up to him, but I’m just a bit worried about the idea of him running 21km with little to no training. I’m just not sure if I’m just being overly anxious but it seems so far to my non runner brain! Having said that, I know people do 10km without any real training and it’s fine, has anyone ever done a half marathon without any training and did it go ok?!

My concern is when he puts his mind to something he can be very stubborn and competitive so I think when the run starts he’ll actually go much faster than he should and it’s not like he’ll accept he’s not trained and take it at a slower pace. His plan was to drink a few coffee and get some pre workout for it and frankly I’m worried he ends up unwell after it

If anyone who knows anything about running can put my mind at rest and reassure me that I’m being silly and dramatic and he’ll be fine (other than a normal amount of tiredness afterwards) I’d really appreciate it!

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

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!

According to Google - rhabdomyalisis!

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?

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

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.

💯 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.

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!

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

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...

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.

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 did a half marathon with no training. I could run approx 5k at the time.
Honestly - the biggest part is the mental battle, I went into it with just wanting to enjoy myself and I did exactly that. When things felt hard, I slowed and walked. I think as your DH already has a steady fitness level, he’ll be fine. He may lose some toenails though.

Why do you need to be reassured? He’s an idiot and will struggle, let it be a life lesson for him.

I would mention it’s a terrible idea to load up on coffee but otherwise let him crack on. If he’s as stubborn as you say then he’ll not listen anyway.
To put your mind at rest my 11 year old did a 10 mile walking challenge a couple of weeks ago in hot weather. I was hoping it would be cancelled but because of the early start it they got to the checkpoints on time then they would be back before the worst heat of the day.
He easily completed it at a fast walk and was one of the first teams back, I would say he has probably the typical fitness levels of a child of his age that plays a team sport.
If your DH sets off at too fast pace he will slow to a more sensible one or have to drop out, hopefully he’ll stick at a sensible jog, walk a bit if he’s struggling and be able to finish!

Because she cares about the great buffoon!

I was going to ask this OP, where on earth are you that has scheduled a summer half marathon?! They are usually march /april or October time, and for a reason!

I mean frankly he just sounds like a massive dickhead doesn't he, arrogantly reckoning he can pull off a sub-2hr half with no training. What a bellend.
Former regular runner here and most women training for a first half marathon are aiming for 9.5 - 10 minute miles over the distance giving a time somewhere between 2hr 10 and 2hr 20. Blokes training for a first half are usually aiming to go under 2hrs but that is usually with 6-9 months build up increasing their distance by 10% each week and allowing for a taper towards the end.

There is a massive massive difference between running a 2hr half (and you'd not get that time if doing big stints of walking) and doing it in 3.5hrs doing loads of chunks of walking in there.

He’s not going to die! He’s an arrogant fool who will deserve his blisters.

Will he finish it? Yes
Will he run the whole way? No
Will he do it in under 2 hours? Absolutely not

The baffling question is why do it on no training? If he wants to run a half and wants a sub two hours why not enter in six months time and train for it and reduce the injury risk and learn how to fuel for it properly and how to pace it? What on earth is the point? If it’s just to say you’ve done it you may as well walk it. There is no way he will do it sub two hours. You don’t times your 5km by four - and think you’ll get faster you get SLOWER as fatigue sets in! You base a marathon pace on your half marathon time and double it and then add some time on - ie another 10 /15 mins. He’ll be lucky to do it in 2hr 30 and even then he will finish feeling broken and bloody stiff for the days that follow.

Not dying is quite a low bar if you care about someone’s welfare. Yes he’s a fool, but it’s not the worst trait to have in a partner.

Normally fit people can walk a half marathon no problem, even if a bit of a boring walk, so if he gets too tired he'll just walk 😂

What's more likely to happen is injuring himself and being unable to do any running any time until he properly heal.

Might be worth booking a physio before and after.

Under 2 hours? No chance, but he can blame the wind. Saying that coffee will make him run faster is stupid, where did he get that from?

Heat is an issue as you can over heat and debydrate quickly, even at tempwratiess that are comfortable for walking.

Training is not just about getting faster, for distance running you need to learn how to take on water and electrolytes. I have seen experienced runners suffer badly from dehydration if it is hotter than expected or if they get their hydration wrong.

Mr Monkey ran Boston marathon a couple of years aho and it was an unseasonably warm day, more pertinently they used Gatorade which is more sugary than Europeans are used to and the on course water was in open cups, something he had not trained for.

He got round but was pretty sick (literally) at the end. Luckily I am an experienced marathon support team, so was there to meet him at the end with hydration tablets, water and salty crisps.

Footballers can run several miles during the course of one 90 minutes. Even defenders cover around 5 miles and a midfielder can cover 8 or 9. They’re doing it in short sprints, but that’s actually more challenging than a steady jog - a football match is basically a 90-minute HIIT workout.

The OP’s husband has previously struggled to jog 3 miles. He’a not as fit as a bloke in his 20s who plays football and squash and he’s not going to perform well running 13 miles. He’s going to end up walking most of it.

he can walk it! He won’t be doing sub 2 on no training.