Just started training for the Louisiana Marathon

If you are a generally fit person and you have 6 months to train and your goal is to just finish a marathon, then that should be easily obtainable, considering that you follow a plan.

Things get a little trickier when you set specific time goals.

As for worth, I think anytime you set a goal and achieve that goal is worth something. The question is whether or not you deem a marathon a worthy goal.

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Cardio is bad for my heart? Learn something new every day!

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Pubmed

Listen to this Peter Attia Podcast

#134 – James O’Keefe, M.D.: Preventing cardiovascular disease and the risk of too much exercise

These guys are reasonable experts who have trained as elite athletes. Dr Okeefe thinks training for a marathon is good and that you should do it once and then stop to avoid the proven risks.

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“If exercise were a drug, it would be the best drug we have for preventing heart disease . . .. But like with any drug, you've got to get the dose right.” — James O’Keefe

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Knock it out the park! You got this.

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I then really got into hot yoga for a a few years. There were just limits to the amount of flexibility I could achieve.

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I think I know what you mean there.

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For the last year I trained for a 70 mile trek in the Southern Rockies by doing a lot of rucking with a heavy pack

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Care to share more info about this? I may be interested

I went from never running in my life to running a half marathon in 11.5 weeks. My first training run was 3.1 miles & I was exhausted when I finished. 11.5 weeks later (race day) I was just getting in my grove at 3.1. Incremental improvement was so gratifying for that training.

Nothing to full marathon is not impossible, but going to be tough. Over-use injury is highly likely. It took me several years for my body to fully adjust to regular running. I doubt you’ll permanently hurt yourself, though, so go for it if you think your body can handle it. Get good shoes, get a training plan, be ready for your body to push back, stretch good after, eat clean & easy to digest food the night before long runs, buy compression socks to wear on long runs, dial in your pacing.

Half marathons are easy to bullshite your way through. I could run a half at pretty much any moment. Fulls you cant really bullshite through. Good luck!

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Did you use a specific plan when you first started training for your half?

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I'm using a Hal Higdon plan with three days of running and a cross training day.

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Incremental improvement was so gratifying for that training.

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That's what got me hooked on running. The first time I ran I think I got half a mile. Seeing that go up every run was addicting.

Same, I didn't think I could ever run much. But decided to start trail running like a week ago after getting in decent shape for a Mt. Rainier climb this spring. First run was 3 miles, did 5 miles a couple days later and then hit 6 miles a few days after that. Really the only thing holding me back right now is that my left leg started getting pretty tight at 6 miles so I had to shut it down. I guess I need to work on stretching and I'm probably also trying to push my running progress too quickly. But to my shock I actually really enjoy trail running.

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Did you use a specific plan when you first started training for your half?

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I looked up a 12 week plan then loosely followed it, paying most attention to the long run at the end of the week. The mid week training was a bit all over the map because of my busy work schedule. I used the long run as a dress rehearsal for race day, especially towards the end of training. Example: I used the clothes I planned on wearing, I woke up the same time as I would race day, I ate the night before & morning of as I intended, etc. This “practice” for race day allowed me to dial in every detail. On race day, I knew exactly what my plan was & how to do it. It was just a matter of execution. It helped me stay focused & not get anxious. Any race I take remotely serious is done this way. For this reason, I’ve always enjoyed training more than the actual race. It’s fun, but almost anticlimactic. The training is where all the excitement happens, especially for a new distance or event. Thus far, the destination trail races have been my favorite