Montgomery Half-Marathon Training

It was exciting to hear the Hyundai Half-Marathon will now benefit the Joy to Life foundation. I'm sure the 5K and Half-Marathon races will attract even more support and participation, if the success of the local Walk of Life 5K is any indication.

Running in our communities is becoming more popular the longer I live here. The number of races, and the numbers of runners participating in those races, is steadily increasing. When I first moved Montgomery, I rarely saw other runners out in my neighborhood, now I rarely see a day where I don't see several runners (and walkers) while I'm out on my daily training runs.

Are you a runner? Do you run at least three times a week?

Starting this week (July 12) you will be able to follow and participate in training with me for the upcoming Montgomery Half-Marathon. In order to allow more participation, I will be following Hal Higdon's Intermediate Training Plan.

The reason I'm doing this is to help myself while helping others in the local community. I need you to help me maintain my focus and motivation to complete my goals for this race. I'm not looking for a PR (Personal Record), but I do hope to improve my performance from last years race and increase interest for this event.The first Sunday "long" run will be July 18, will be five miles or longer. The length of the long run will gradually increase until we are doing 12 miles the Sunday before the Half-Marathon.

I'm open to suggestions on places to meet. Last year's training Sundays started at the Alley to take advantage of the actual route used for the race.

I only recommend this training for people who are in good health and can run at least 3 miles comfortably. This time of year will be warm and humid, so we will be having early Sunday mornings runs to deal with the heat. I hope I can convince some to join me to start the Sunday long runs at 5:30 or 6:00 AM, so we will miss the hottest parts of the day.

The training schedule has a 5K race scheduled for the third weekend, and a 10K race on the sixth weekend. I will be swapping the 5K weekend with the fourth week of training so it coincedes with the Woodstock 5K (30th Anniversary) in Anniston. The sixth weekend's 10K Race will be the Woodland Wallahatchie 10K in Pike Road.

I hope to see you out there.

Road Running is a potentially hazardous activity. No one should run unless they are medically able and properly trained. They assume all risks associated with running, including, but not limited to, falls, contact with other participants, the effects of the weather (including high heat and/or humidity), traffic, and the conditions of the road, all such risks being known and appreciated by the participant.

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