I'm going for a half marathon, Help!!!

[sarz]

Ok, so i have never even been for a jog, but i have decided to do a half marathon! Its not until september so i have 32 weeks to train! But i want any tips, warning, advice etc ect before i quite literally kill myself!!

don't over do it at the start. lots of people use this method to get started. good luck.

start doing some brisk walking for a few weeks before you even start to think about jogging. The runners world website as Pesme linked is very good for advice and the forums for support.

Also join tthe runners thread here on Mumsnet.

most importantly get yousrelf to a proper sports/running shop (NOT something like JJB sports or sports world) and get fitted out with a good pair of running shoes.

take it easy at first and during the next few months before your half marathon enter yourself for some other races eg 5k . 10k to get a feel for what a race is all about.

well done !

Thank you for the advice! i do alot of brisk walking anyway (i'm always late and usually pushing a push chair!!) So i think i may be ok to start jogging soon, when i get some running shoes: Any adviceon where to find a shop for shoes? I went in Nike town in london and got very scared and came back out again!! I didnt see a runner thread! i looked for something like that when i posted this! must not have looked very hard!

Runnersworld has details fo good stores. Just don't overdo it, build up gradually. I am doing a 10k on Saturday and hope to do a half marathon later this year. Have you thought about joining a running club? I go once a week it is a good motivator to push yourself a bit further. Good Luck!

run and become are good for advice and fitting.

Are you in Cardiff pesme?

Hi Sarz. The runners thread is here - it goes in fits and starts - it's a bit sparsely populated at the moment but I expect that's becuase we're bearly out of January. might be worth scanning down it as there's various bits and pieces of advice for beginners. also there's a post I did before here for another beginner - it's got some useful links in it. to get yourself measure for proper shoes there's this place - there's one in Teddington and one in the City and I think a couple of others in London. ane there's this one in Victoria. 32 weeks is shed loads of time by the way - you'll be fine - hope you enjoy it.

runner thread here

Where abouts are you sarz , I can recommend Sweatshop in Teddington.

I'm on the essex london boarder, so can easily get into the city. I will also look at joining a running club, i def need motivational help, which i guess that will provide!

for motivation I do find that putting your schedule in writing works wonders. if I just say to myself, "i'm going to try to go 3 times a week" then k'all will happen. but if I sit down with a target, some schedules and my diary, and work it all out, and write it all down, I'm away. although I have to admit I've never done a 32 week schedule! You might think about doing some smaller races to keep your motivation going - you can break it down in a 2 or 3 schedules then - otherwise your target will seem a long way off.

Hatwomen, I think i will break it down into 2 or 3 smaller targets and smaller races. maybe a 5 k, then 10k then the half marathon. I actually did a 5k a couple of years ago, but it was more to raise money for cancer charities, than actual running ability and i didnt train for it and mostly walked it!!! But i think it wouldnt take me long now to train to run that (when i did it i was at Uni, and wasnt very healthy!)
My biggest problem now is that when something starts to hurt (like a good hurt not an injured hurt) i just stop! i lack the drive to push past it, and thats what i need to work on!! I train in Karate and its my biggest problem in that, so i'm sure it will be when i run!!