Coach Atul Godbole answers your training related questions…

Q. Surabhi asks: “My best time in a half marathon is 2:08, I am training for TMM and want to break 4:00. Is that possible?”

A. The general rule of thumb is to double your half marathon time and add 10 minutes to get a reasonable target which you can expect in a full marathon. Based on this, your full marathon target time comes to 4:26. However, this rule of thumb assumes adequate training in terms of mileage, long runs, tempo runs, etc. If you are not an experienced marathoner or if your training is not going well, you would be well advised to add 20 minutes instead of the 10 minutes. Setting a reasonable target is important so that you do not get overly fatigued or injured during training, as well as to avoid starting out too fast based on an aggressive target and then blowing up at the 30-32K mark.

Q. Sandeep asks: “I recently did a half marathon in 2:10. How can I achieve a time of 1:20 in the next few months”

A. Unless you have an extensive earlier history of running (maybe in your younger or college days) at a time close to 1:20 for the half marathon, its highly unlikely (I will go ahead and make the claim that its impossible) that you will jump from 2:10 to 1:20 in a span of a few months. If you try, you will only injure yourself or get burnt out (I will bet on the former before the later has a chance to manifest itself). I would advise that you set a more reasonable target , maybe break 2:00, over the next few months, then continue setting incremental targets over the months and years. Most runners take at least 2-3 years to make such a large jump, and that assumes at least some amount of talent (you are aiming for 1:20 after all!), and dedicated, structured and consistent training the entire time.

Runners and triathletes, have training, diet, nutrition related queries? Send email to askthecoach@motiv8coaching.com