The Great North Run is now done and dusted and I’m happy to say that I completed it, I beat my goal time and I surpassed my fundraising goal. A massive success all in all. The GNR had a great atmosphere about it, and it ended up being super friendly, even though it’s the largest half marathon in the world. (Close to 60,000 people ran it this year.)
Here are my tips for running the Great North Run:
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- Get to Newcastle the night before. You have to be there fairly early in the day and public transport can always go awry so try to be in Newcastle on Saturday night for the Sunday race. Luckily we had friends to stay with, but be aware that hotels book up about a year before the run so they can be hard to find. (Similar to finding a hotel during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival).
- During the run, so many kids will hand you snacks. (Cookies, Jelly Babies, Haribos that you don’t really need to bring your own snack). Ditto water.
- The end of the run finishes in South Shields and it takes forever to get back in to Newcastle. It literally took Sam and I longer to get back in to Newcastle to our car than it took us to run the race. We had to queue for an hour and a half to get on a Metro train back in to town, so if you have a friend or family member that can park somewhere to whizz you away after the race, opt for that.
My Great North Run Training Plan
I modified a lot of training plans in preparation for the Great North Run. Here’s what I ended up doing. If you’re starting at running zilch (you don’t run at all), I’d follow the breaks shown as an asterix for non-runners (NR). I considered myself a hobby runner, in that I ran a few times a week, but for never more than 30 minutes and at a super leisurely pace.
Week 1:
Monday: run for 30 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 30 minutes *
Saturday: run for 3 miles
*NR: run for 1 minute then walk for 2, repeat
Week 2:
Monday: run for 30 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 28 minutes *
Saturday: run for 3 miles
*NR: run for 1 minute then walk for 2 minutes, repeat
Week 3:
Monday: run for 28 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 28 minutes *
Saturday: run for 4 miles
*NR: run for 2 minutes then walk for 2 minutes, repeat
Week 4:
Monday: run for 28 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 30 minutes *
Saturday: run for 4 miles
*NR: run for 3 minutes then walk for 2 minutes, repeat
Week 5:
Monday: run for 30 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 30 minutes *
Saturday: run for 4 miles
*NR: run for 3 minutes then walk for 2 minutes, repeat
Week 6:
Monday: run for 30 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 30 minutes *
Saturday: run for 5 miles
*NR: run for 3 minutes then walk for 2 minutes, repeat
Week 7:
Monday: run for 30 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 30 minutes *
Saturday: run for 5 miles
*NR: run for 4 minutes then walk for 2 minutes, repeat
Week 8:
Monday: run for 30 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 30 minutes *
Saturday: run for 6 miles
*NR: run for 4 minutes then walk for 2 minutes, repeat
Week 9:
Monday: run for 30 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 30 minutes *
Saturday: run for 6 miles
*NR: run for 5 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 10:
Monday: run for 30 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 30 minutes *
Saturday: run for 4 miles
*NR: run for 5 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 11:
Monday: run for 36 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 36 minutes *
Saturday: run for 7 miles
*NR: run for 5 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 12:
Monday: run for 30 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 35 minutes *
Saturday: run for 8 miles
*NR: run for 5 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 13:
Monday: run for 35 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 35 minutes *
Saturday: run for 5 miles
*NR: run for 6 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 14:
Monday: run for 35 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 40 minutes *
Saturday: run for 9 miles
*NR: run for 6 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 15:
Monday: run for 36 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 36 minutes *
Saturday: run for 7 miles
*NR: run for 5 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 16:
Monday: run for 36 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 36 minutes *
Saturday: run for 7 miles
*NR: run for 5 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 17:
Monday: run for 36 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 36 minutes *
Saturday: run for 7 miles
*NR: run for 8 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 18:
Monday: run for 45 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 45 minutes *
Saturday: run for 10 miles
*NR: run for 8 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 19:
Monday: run for 45 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 45 minutes *
Saturday: run for 6 miles
*NR: run for 10 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Week 20:
Monday: run for 45 minutes *
Wednesday: run for 45 minutes *
Saturday: rest
*NR: run for 10 minutes then walk for 1 minute, repeat
Then the race!
Have you done any races before? What are your running tips?
