Am I mad to think I can do this.....(run a half marathon in summer when previously couch potato!?)

[mimimilk]

Hello All

Anyone who is a runner or knows something about running/fitness, I would really appreciate your thoughts.

I read something in a newspaper over xmas which really shocked me and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it.....the upshot is I have decided to raise some money for the cause involved.

Have given it a lot of thought and have decided that I will (hopefully) run a half marathon or something very similar this year. There are lots of things I could do to raise money I know, but I think because this is so outside of my comfort zone the people I will be asking for financial support from will be more likely to give generously, which is what i am after.

Anyway, to get to the point, before I 'go public' with this thought I had better find out if it is in fact FEASIBLE lol!! I am in my 30's, do absolutely no deliberate excersise (haven't really since school). I don't smoke (used to)and as far as I know have no major health probs. Am very unfit tho (have high resting pulse) and couldn't run for the proverbial bus at present.

Can I get to the level of fitness i will need in 4/5/6 months (to run half marathon or similar) and if so how is the best way to get started/go about it? has anyone on here done something similar?

Any tips/thoughts /advice really appreciated!

here you go it says start with the 5km training first

you need proper/good running shoes

Of course you can. I trained for a half marathon in about the same time. I could only run a few hundred meters to start with and just built up the distance gradually. I loved it and felt really good about myself. The best thing to do is to put an entry in and then you have little choice but to start training! Good luck!