I've been jogging very consistently now for several months and am thinking about participating in a half marathon. I've been jogging 5mi 3x a week for several weeks now and want all of that sweat to have more purpose than a smaller number on the scale and on the size tags in my pants. I've heard a lot about Team in Training and am thinking about signing up. Any Suggestions? what about getting a book and training on my own?

I'm not familiar with Team in Training...Sorry ... But we do have a Cool Runner's thread where I'm sure you'd get a lot of suggestions from our seasonned marathon runners... I, just like to run 5-8ks 3x/week....

Team in Training totally depends on your team. . .I started marathon training with them several years ago. I wasn't in a small town, but apparently was the only person in my city to sign up. . .so they ended up having a coach drive down every other weekend just to work with me, and then I was supposed to drive to St. Louis (2 hours) if I wanted to work with the "team" for my other runs. . .plus all the nutrition seminars, etc. were in St. Louis. If you live somewhere that has a big group doing it, I think it could be very fun & motivating.

The other thing is the fundraising aspect - you have to fundraise A LOT for some of the runs. They make it sound easy, and maybe for some people was, but for me, it wasn't.

I ended up not completing the program - I had a hip injury, but really, it was more just feeling discouraged about the fundraising and the lack of the support/companionship that I had envisioned.

I haven't done Team in Training either, I'm not much of a fundraiser. If you're interested in training with a group, try and find a really good local running store. They usually have training programs, often for free. You can also check out Jeff Galloway's website. He has a program for training for the half. I really like his run/walk method:

http://jeffgalloway.com/training/half_marathon.html

I don't know my Arizona geography well, but if you're close to Phoenix, they have a USA Fit program there. I did the Austin program my first year and it really helped build my confidence. Almost everyone was a first timer and the cost was very reasonable.

http://www.phoenixfit.net/

I've gone from being completely inactive most of my life to completing 2 marathons. It is a great goal you've set for yourself!

Thanks for the info ladies, I'm kinda nervous even thinking about training. It's good to know the there are alternatives to the team in training deal.