Hi cakses, I swim and run too and I've found that they compliment each other but the results from swimming don't necessarily show up right away in running and vice versa. I know when I started running I was surprised at how sore and tired my legs and really, my whole body got, after a pretty short run, though my cardio fitness from swimming meant that I wasn't gasping for breath. I just couldn't make my legs go any further. Took time for my body to adjust to running so that I could take advantage of my swimming fitness.

I can also tell in swimming now how much stronger my legs and lower body are - I get a lot more out of my kick esp. in butterfly and backstroke. I'm even thinking of trying a Masters meet now (still just thinking...we'll see!)

I think if you give it a chance you'll see a breakthrough. I agree with maybe slowing down and seeing if that will extend your distance. That tactic did help me a lot. My running kind of hovered around the same level for a while and then suddenly got better. I think I just had to adjust to the new demands? Keep going, you'll get there!

Race update - I did the women only 5K xcountry this weekend and it was a lot of fun. Beautiful cool day, sunny, the course was quite hilly with a little creek crossing and some steep rocky ground to cover plus a long hill into the finish, why, oh why??? Very fast group of ladies on this event and mostly in their 40's and 50's, it was really great to see. Although the girl who was 3rd over all was 10 years old and ran like the wind. I did 25:18 and was more than thrilled with that, as previous cross country runs have been more like 28 to 30 minutes and I was hoping to get into the 27's. I really think the other women pulled me along.

I really enjoy this format, more challenging than being on the road, but not as dangerous to the near-sighted balance-deprived as a trail run. Looking forward to next summer and finding more of them around here.

I decided to shake my routine up a little bit. I ran 1 mile then I did sprints, hills and grapevines. Thurs. I'll run my normal 3.2 but I just wanted a little change tonight.

Pink, you are just coming up with awesome times for your 5K's. Congrats on another great run!

Great job Nelie!

Does anyone know where Kimpossible is? My computer was sick last month and I haven't seen any posts from her during this month. I hope all is well Kim!

Thanks everyone for all the nice compliments and encouragement about my 5K's. I find this group really inspirational esp. since no one else I know runs and many think I've gone kind of nuts with this fitness thing, anyway (except my husband, but then he's also into this health and exercise life now, too, and that makes his opinion just as out there as mine). I appreciate the help.

This morning I ran 6.25 miles on a neighborhood park track, 1 mile around. Very peaceful as the sun came up! I am trying to make this distance 3x a week, with one session maybe a little bit longer. My first 10K is in 3 weeks and now I think I'll be ready for it.

Pink Geranium-good luck with ur 10k!

i jogged 2 miles on the bike path, on monday i had to stop a couple times cause i wasnt used to jogging on anything but a treadmill but today i didnt have to stop, also my path has a couple baby hills that i am also new too and boy it makes a difference lol

Jenguin and Tyler, belated thanks for the running advice. I will definitely try not to start off too fast. My Mum runs a slightly slower pace than me so I will start out running with her and then maybe speed up after a couple of miles.

Well done to everyone else, you all seem to be doing many and varied types of activity. I like swimming but my pace is rubbish. I think I should have a couple of lessons. It takes me about 40 mins to swim a mile.

cakses - I'm a big fan of run/walk intervals and/or just slowing down to build endurance. I've found that for me run/walk intervals worked better and actually made my per mile time faster.

Pink - I'm totally jealous of your 5K times! It's awesome that you are doing so well. I have a couple of friends that run, but most of my friends think I'm crazy too. They may be right, but it's probably not because I like running - lol.

Runner chicks that have marathoned or plan to marathon...

Do you use an 18 week training plan or the 30 week plan? (I'm asking after spending some time on Hal Higdon's site)

I want to do a may marathon in New Jersey. I want to preserve my joints so that the marathon is not my last running experience. I want it to be the first of more to be completed in my lifetime.

Thoughts, advice??

I just reread that ideally a marathoner, even a first timer should have been running for a year and should run occasional races (5k and 10k). This is not my situation. It is hard for me to get to real races b/c I am running with my kids- all over town. Also, while I have been an on and off runner, my recent stint has been since end march of 2008.
whadya think? too much for me?

kitty - what is your current running level? How many miles do you run on a regular basis? (per week?)

I went to my running class and I had the most horrible side stitch! It was horrible.

Well, Nelie, I'm trying to figure that out right now. I run anywhere from 15-25 miles per week. (this is for the last 4ish months)
My goals in training and completing a marathon are fitness and weight control as well as the pride of doing it.

Those side stiches are a real biatch. How did you handle it?

kitty - I think it is possible, but I wouldn't shoot for a time goal. I'd also consider signing up for a half marathon or 20K somewhere between now and May. If you're worried about preserving your joints you might want to consider Jeff Galloway's training plan, which incorporates planned walk breaks into both your training plan and your race. In one of his books he also lays out a training plan for either weight loss or weight control (I can't remember which).

Right now there's a weekly(?) first time marathoners thread on the beginners forum at runnersworld.com that has some good tips from people sometimes. You may want to check that out.

Side stitches are no fun. I read that it helps to push in where the stitch is with your fist. I've also read that exhaling while stepping down with the foot that is on the opposite side of the side stitch works. I've tried the first one and sometimes it helps. I'm not coordinated enough to get the second one down - lol.

kitty - if you are already running 15-25 miles per week, I think the 18 week plan would work for you. If you find it too much for some reason, you could always switch to the 30 week plan.

As for the side stitch, I slowed down my running a bit and tried to stretch it out. My coach said that I should firm the side of the stitch like preparing for a punch, then lean over to that side.

Kittycat -- when I did my (one and only) full marathon, I trained for approximately 6 months, loosely following a plan that was a hybrid of Hal Higdon and Jeff Galloway's beginner schedules. I had already been running for a couple of years and had done several shorter races, including 2 or 3 half marathons, before I decided to go for a full.

I don't think that doing other races is necessarily a pre-requisite for marathon training. The main thing that it gives you is race experience -- learning what it's like to participate in an actual event, which is very different from regular training. I think you could certainly go out and do a marathon as a first race, but doing others helps give you experience on pacing yourself, handling the crowds, fueling/hydrating, clothing, etc. It's an advantage, I think.

I think most anyone of reasonably good health can complete a marathon given sufficient motivation AND preparation. Training for and completing a marathon is a huge goal and a very rewarding and worthwhile one! But, 26.2 miles is a very, very long way. You have to respect the distance. As a relative beginner, it's hard to know yet how your body will respond to the series of progressively longer long-runs each week, and how much time that will demand from your schedule.

You are already running 20-25 miles per week, which is a good amount. But what is your long run distance ... that is the key to distance training. If your longest weekly run is 10 miles or so, then extending it by a mile every week or two isn't so bad. But if your longest run is 5 miles, then you've got a long way to go. And depending on your speed, those 15-20 mile long runs may take upwards of 3-4 hours. Also consider, when you're done with a 20 miler, frankly, you'll be pretty wiped out, which impacts what you can physically do the rest of that day. You have to make time for that in your schedule. And, I don't know where you are physically located, but also consider that you will be training over the winter. If outdoor weather conditions aren't favorable, do you have an indoor-running alternative for long distance runs? Your longest runs will occur in the Feb/March/April time frame.

Bottom line - what is your goal? If it is to finish a full marathon, then you just need to construct your training schedule based on your timeline, and decide if now is the time to go for it based on how you feel and ability to put in the training time. If your goal is fun, fitness, weight loss, and the incentive to step up your training ... then there are other race distances to consider that may offer the same benefits, like a half marathon or a 10K. Another option to consider is to start the marathon training schedule, with the half marathon as a fall-back, if the full distance turns out to be a bit too much.

I have to give the disclaimer that my favorite race distance is the half marathon. I found the marathon distance to just be a little too much, it got to be more like work than fun. I did it, and I work full time, am married with 2 school age boys, AND with a busy volunteer schedule (I was music director at my church at that time). I'm glad I did it, wouldn't change a thing, but I have no overwhelming desire to go out and do a full marathon again. So you have to take what I say with a grain of salt, because I do have a bias.

But, I know others that do several marathons a year and love them! If you do decide to go for the full, I'd also recommend hooking up with some kind of training group (formal or informal) if at all possible. It really helps the long runs go faster when you've got a group to talk to, and they can help with training advice and moral support. Good luck!!

THX cool runners. I appreciate the advise.

I'll update with progress as usual

Kitty -- how exciting! Someday I'd like to do a full, but I have to admit that every time I've started training for one the really, really long runs suck the joy out of running for me and I started to dread them. So I decided to give myself a couple of years of steady running with the half-mary as my long race distance and then try again.

I can't wait to hear how it goes, I bet you'll do great!