I'm mad aren't I? Half Marathon

[kansasmum]

I am very overweight and currently walking the dog is the only exercise I take:(
A Friend of ours has bought the rights to and is organising a local (big event) half marathon. It is in October.
I am dieting and need a goal so thought running this Half Marathon would be good idea.
So is it even vaguely possible to be ready for 1/2 marathon in 6 months when I'm totally unfit?!!
Be honest please! How many times a week would I need to run?
Couch25K seems good place to start?

I think you could definitely do it. Couch to 5k in two months then build up your mileage slowly from there. You need to get to around 10 miles in training and not the whole HM.

i went from completely exercise phobic to running a 10 k in 11 weeks.
couch to 5 km was way too slow for me, i needed to get running faster.
A half marathon is a big ask in 6 months but definitely doable..you need to run at least 3 times a week and quickly go up to 4 times a week to get fit .
I had a bad injury ( not running) 12 months ago and just back to running now.
I started with 1.5 km and aim to add 0.3 km EVERY run, not every week ...but every run, so should be up to 5 km in approx 3 1/2 weeks . then will steady out and aim to get to 10 km in another 6 weeks or so.

The simple answer is...YES you can do it, but you have to get on with it. I put my kit out by bed, set alarm and get up and go..no thinking about it or dithering etc...and you go out and run whatever the weather, however you feel....its very easy to make an excuse and then another etc etc

The up side is running is great for physical and mental health ...i love it ( once actually out there doing it !)

No, you're not mad and yes, you can do it :)
Take it slowly and start with Couch25k. It is also a good time of year to look out for local running club's beginners courses. We start ours next week.
Once you have got to 5k there are 5-10k apps/programmes and as Halle says Take It Slowly. The biggest cause of injury in new runners is that they do too much, too soon.
It might also be worth looking at the Jeff Galloway stuff, he does walk/run programmes right up to marathons. It might seem a little less daunting right now.
Then find a parkrun (actually do that now, I am rather biased!) and go along. We have lots of walkers, lots of walk/runners and lots of runners. Some people who started as volunteers then started walking and are now running - beware, it can be very addictive :o
Good luck with it, the feeling when you cross the line after your first half marathon is priceless.

You can do it! In 2013 I was a non runner, couldn't run at all and never had. I started Couch to 5k in the March, did a 10k in the July and a half marathon in the September and ran it all the way.
Doing a combination of walk and run is fine though, and no one worth worrying about will judge you for it.

Thank you so much for your encouragement! I think I'm going to sign up! If I take too long thinking about it I'll find a reason not to!

Yes ! You can do it. I did in 2014. Very overweight and started from scratch. I started training properly in the January and ran the half marathon at the start of the July. It was tough but worth it.

Make sure you invest in a really good pair of running shoes. Don't do too much too fast. Like the others have said , C25k is a good start.

And on how many times a week to run - I can only manage 3 times a week so that's what I do. Kara Goucher has programmes up to a marathon on 3 runs a week. I've done 4 half marathons using her programmes and have survived :)

Also , after completing C25K I found a beginners training plan on bupa's website after googling 'half marathon training plans'. That plan included 4 workouts a week. 3 were training runs and with the 4th you could either do a run or do cross training. It fitted in well with me.

I went from completing C25k in the March to a 8.5 mile race in the June, then got conned into a HM in the October. That wasn't consistent training so yes, it's possible.

Take it gently, don't increase by more than 10% a week. Every month have a more gentle recovery week. Allow time to taper and recover at the end.

There are appropriate plans out there as a guide.

You can probably do it absolutely fine. Start small and build up to avoid injury.

I built up my runs and got to half marathon in about four months, I didn't follow any plans I just ran a bit further each time.

Get proper shoes and a seriously supportive bra. Good luck!