Training Half Marathons Miles

Hello everyone, my name is Claudia and I am 16 years old. I am a trained cross country and track runner. I have been running for four years now and I mainly focus on long distance events in track such as 800m and 1000m and 5ks in XC but I have been more interested in half marathons for months now. I don't plan on racing a half marathon soon but I am very interested in training half marathon miles. I am now back to running after being off for a month due to a plantar fascia injury and I am still determined to reach my goal of running 13.1 miles. The most far I have ran without stopping are 8 miles. However, I am in a different continent for the whole summer (From USA to Europe) and I have anxiety about running for such a long time in a place that I don't really know especially when I'm only 16 years old! I want to train carefully so I don't injure myself again so I'd love tips and advices on how to reach 13.1 miles constantly and how to settle my anxiety about running in unfamiliar places. Thank you & keep on running!

[pinkaardvark Half Marathon]

Hi Claudia. Safety is important when running in familiar and unfamiliar environs. My best advice would be to join a local to you running club and do the miles with others if you can, also a great way to meet people.

[roseabi Ultramarathon]

A big warm welcome to the forum!!

I agree with pinkaardvark , it would be ideal if you could find a running club. If you are going to run alone, do some scouting and route planning first, to find the best and safest places to run - and always tell someone where you're going and roughly how long for. Take your phone, money, and/or credit card with you. There are also safety tracking apps available - Strava, for example, has a feature called 'Safety Beacon'.

Regarding training, build up your distances gradually, and don't worry about taking walk breaks as needed. Although your aim is to run 13.1 constantly, you will need to learn about your pace, and how you feel during a longer run. Keep a journal of some sort (I like to write stuff in my GPS app records), so you can remember and learn from each run.

Also, as an experienced runner I'm sure you are aware of the importance of cross-training and strength workouts

[misswobble Marathon in reply to roseabi]

You can find Running routes in the area on mapmyrun etc They will all be there, which gives you a heads up on the most popular ones.

I stick to a training plan, based on recent race times. A structured plan is good as it means you don’t over run You can ignore the various paces and just do them all slowly, just to get the distance nailed

Enjoy the process. Hydrate well, cross train, eat good and sleep! What fun 😃👍🏃‍♀️

[Sqkr Half Marathon]

It must be wonderful to be able to run in so many different places! I can understand the anxiety though, it's sometimes tough to balance the excitement of being somewhere new with the thoughts whirling about your head. It's one of the main things I love about running though, somehow the thoughts all quieten down for a bit.

The advice about running with others is perfect, I'm sure it's the best way to get to know a new area. Most of the clubs round here operate a casual drop-in type of attendance, and of course you can sneakily scout them all out online before turning up to get a feel for the group.

I love running alone, so maybe you're the same and group running might not be your thing. If not, from a practical perspective, taking a few security steps does wonders for feeling confidant when you're out and about. I'm a slight female so I know how people can be, or sometimes just how you perceive they might be, so this is the sort of thing I think about myself when I'm going out on a run. Stuff that I'm sure you already do like always running with your phone and a means of getting home—be it a bus fare, or a taxi app. Letting people know when you'll be back (approximately, part of running is about freedom so no need for hard deadlines—it's just about knowing someone will be looking out for you). These are steps that I'm sure you'll never need to rely on, but knowing you've got the bases covered means you can relax and enjoy yourself more easily.

There are other things that might help, say planning your route ahead of time so you know where you are going, you can even check it out on Google street view so the areas you run through will feel less unfamiliar. If you listen to music then running with just one earphone in or using bone conduction headphones like Trekz means you don't block out your surroundings, and it really helps you to stay connected and aware. And trust yourself. If you feel uneasy or your heart isn't in it, then stop, or go back to somewhere you felt more comfortable. These are little things, but they all help give you the confidence that you need to get out there and feel like you're in charge of your run and your self.