Half marathon two weeks after a full marathon - stupid idea?

Well, if you still have this great idea a couple days after the half-marathon then just go do it. I've had similar "great ideas" that didn't happen because right now you are in a eurphoric zone because you finally get to race and you feel great. The day after a marathon is a different story. If you decide to do it you should do as little running as possible, 2-3 miles a day. 4-5 days out from the race go warm up a mile, run a mile at race pace, cool down a mile. If you can hit your pace then my all means go ahead and try. The worse that can happen is that you'll be on pace for 6-8 miles and then die a horrible horrible death...:)

Alan

Well, if death is the worst thing that could happen it's a risk i'm willing to take... ;-)

Thanks for the advice. I kind of figured it was a bad idea, but just thought i'd check. Will hold off entering until the week before (if at all).

In 2007 I ran 2:53 at a marathon in Mid February and 3 week later I ran a 1:21 half marathon on a hilly course. Both were PR's for me at the time.

The first week I just jogged a few easy miles each day to recover from the marathon. The second week I ran slightly reduced mileage but got in a quality day mid week and steady state long run on the weekend. I was ready to go by the following weekend and felt good during the half.

last year i raced long between the beginning of march through mid-august: marathon distance or longer (up to 70 miles), usually spaced three weeks apart, but only two weeks apart on one occasion. (note that most of these races were on trails, which don't beat me up nearly the way that roads do.)

my primary observation is that i have it ready to go again in three weeks, but not after only two (although i did win that two-weeker, along with several of the others -- if i recall correctly, i won four of the races, set a masters course record in another, and won my age group in two more (i'm female and was 47 during this period), my point being that it is possible to race often and recover reasonably). alan's expectations sound appropriate. i also recommend holding off on preregistering, and, if you do the half, take it as it comes and don't be surprised/disappointed if you don't quite have the umph you hope for -- but, hey, you never know.

note that i'm not planning on keeping such a tight schedule this year, since i had to spend too many weeks either recovering or tapering to have enough time to be out playing in the woods or attending to more structured training.

finbar wrote: I'm really tempted to enter my local half marathon two weeks afterwards and try and beat my pb. Is that a really dumb idea?

I'll go with the "it's a really dumb idea." Can it be done? Sure. Does it make sense in any sort of smart training and racing plan? Assuredly not.

For a few weeks after a marathon, while your body is trying to recover and rebuild from the damage you've recently inflicted on it, you're at a much higher risk of injury. If you want to nearly guarantee injury, then race a half marathon after two weeks.

No doubt people have done it (and some have already chimed in to say they have), but I will wager that for every one who's survived that kind of double, there are a hundred who either sustained a serious (possibly chronic) injury or flamed out horribly.

That's what I think, anyway.

If your 1/2 PB is fairly soft maybe you can do it. If you have a tough PB it probably won't happen.

PB is 1.19 and change. I'm going to leave it, y'all have scared me off (for the best i'm sure). Don't really want to do the race just for the sake of it after all.

In Indy, there are several people that do Boston, and then do the Mini (half) each year. I have never known anyone that's tried it, that hasn't regreted it after.

the marathon is usally the more important race, so this seems like a no-harm idea.

Just be alert for signs of injuries. Many times you can be running through a slight pull or strain and not know it while you are warmed, and after the run/race, you will cool and the injury with tighten and become worse.

Best is to be alert, and drop out or the slow down.

Yes.

Why do people need to say "full marathon" and "full mile"? A marathon is only one distance and so is a mile.

Joy of lex wrote: Why do people need to say "full marathon"

You need to read more "marathon cheaters" threads.

Just run the marathon faster. If you really race you shouldn't feel the need to race two weeks later.

I don't see this as being a good idea. I ran my half PR (1:18 and change) about 10 weeks after my marathon PR. Two weeks after it would have just been about survival.

hahaha yeea. For the majority of us, the first week after a marathon is all about being tired and sore. Going for a PR during this time would be like a death march. The second week some of us are o.k, some of us are still in the revocery process. If it was me I wouldnt sign up until either race day morning or the night before. But if your like this guy I would say you should have no prob:

http://www.chuckengle.com/Events/TheSchedule.cfm

Bump.

Just ran Boston. Did not race it.

Looking to run a fast half within 2 months.

Any advice on how to capitalize on my current marathon fitness and get a PB?

15y old thread. God damn.

Yes, because i did ask how old the thread was. Thanks man.

What was the point of building marathon fitness if you didn't race Boston? You spent months following a training plan just so you could do an extra long long run?

In any case, you should give yourself 3-4 weeks after your longest long run before a race, more if you need more than a few days to recover from the long run. That gives you time for some HM pace-specific work one you've recovered. I don't know enough about your training history to say anything more than that.