OT Runners - First Half Marathon

First order of business is 13.1 sticker on your vehicle.

Relax and enjoy it.

Don't chase the rabbits or let the adrenaline force your pace too fast at the beginning.

What's the longest you've run before? The key for long runs is to keep your heart rate in the aerobic zone (especially at the beginning... don't go too fast early on) so you don't bonk. Have you run other races? What distances?

Whatever worked while you were training is what you do for the race. No new shoes, clothes, eating habits etc.

It sounds silly but Ive seen lots of people break down because they changed things up, dont do it.

Don't be afraid to "walk" an aid station. You get caught up in wanting to "run" the whole thing, but taking 15 to 20 steps to make sure you get proper hydration goes a long way. Plus sometimes it will knock your heart rate down a little to give you a better boost to keep on going. You certainly don't have to, but if you are borderline, I find it helps me in longer races, especially if it's hot.

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I'm a casual walker(~10:30/mile)

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FIFY.

No, honestly, good job on stepping up to the plate and pursuing this. You'll love the feeling of crossing that finish line, regardless of time.

If I could offer one piece of advice, though, it's this- if you're at a 10:30 pace then just hang back and don't get caught up in sprinting out of the gate. That's the hardest part for runners in their first race. The adrenaline, the natural drive to be away from mobs of people, etc, will break you out of your normal routine.

Also, don't eat or drink anything out of the ordinary the night before the race. Now's not the time to be experimenting with new protein shakes, etc. And for a half marathon you don't really need to carb load.

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So I'm doing my first half marathon this Saturday (Jazz Half in NOLA). I'm a casual runner (~10:30/mile) and I'm not looking to set any goals other than finishing.

Any suggestions/tips for a fir

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My suggestion: learn to run. Build up to racing the distance. Get faster at shorter distances. Then consider a half marathon. Slogging through a two-and-half hour half-marathon sounds fricking miserable.

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So I'm doing my first half marathon this Saturday (Jazz Half in NOLA). I'm a casual runner (~10:30/mile) and I'm not looking to set any goals other than finishing.

Any suggestions/tips for a first timer?

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Walk the mile marker water stations starting at about mile 4. These little breaks will help a lot.

Start at the back of the pack. There are so many people at the Jazz marathons that you will be fighting for position and people will be passing you like crazy if you start in the front. Also, you will likely pass some slower people who started in the front, so you will get some boosts of confidence along the way.