Ask the Penguin: Having it all

Dear Penguin

I have just completed your book on Marathoning for Mortals and have decided to take the step to do a half marathon. Before embarking on the training program my workouts consisted of a minimum of an hour of cardio. I noticed that most days of the run/walk training program only have 30-35 minutes of cardio.

On my short run days can I incorporate some cross-training to get an additional 30 minutes in? My gym offers an abundance of things to do from organized classes to wall climbing and I would like to continue doing these things, if possible. I know that I have 2 cross-training days, and they too are for no longer than 35 minutes.

Can they be extended to an hour (I would like to do a spin class on those days) and then of course there are the REST days, which I now fully understand means exactly that – no exercise. Looking for some clarification and understanding.

Thanks in advance!!

Yours is an important question and one that many runners – new and experienced – have to confront. Restated, it sounds like the question is: “Can I train for a half marathon and still do all the other things I like to do?” I know that’s not exactly what you’re saying, but when someone writes that they want to do something NEW [train for a half marathon, for example] but don’t really want to stop doing what they’re already doing, the question is not easy to answer.

For most runners – and walkers – training for a half marathon is a major commitment. It takes time, it takes energy, it takes a physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual energy. Done well, a half marathon training program is a process of enlightenment into all of those energy limits.

For others, the half marathon training program is simply an adjunct to everything else they’re doing. The event, the distance, is just a check mark in their life of activity.

What you need to decide is what the half marathon means to you. If you’re willing to commit 100% to training for, preparing for, and taking the risk of trying to do the best half marathon you can, then something has to give. The half marathon will have to be your top priority and the training program will have to become your absolute guide.

If, on the other hand, what you want to do is integrate the training program into your life, to increase the distance that you’re running as you continue to do the other activities that you’re doing – well – then that’s what you should do.

So, there’s no right answer. It’s just a matter of what YOU want to experience.

Waddle on, John

John “the Penguin” Bingham, Competitor Magazine columnist Author, The Courage to Start, No Need for Speed, Marathoning for Mortals and Running for Mortals.

Have a question for John? E-mail it to thepenguin@johnbingham.com.