Sub 2 Hr HM Finish

When I started running 5 years back, being a science student and used to extrapolations, it was easy for me to arrive at my estimated 21km time based on the 5ks I was doing then – 2hrs. It seemed like a nice rounded off number and sounded good too. And then somebody said why not a Sub -2 and I said – why not? All I had to do was run that last 1km faster than the average (and working it all out on excel, it didn’t seem like that big a task!!). However, my first half marathon on a hot dusty Sunday in August of 2010 in a 2:57 sent my maths flying out of the window (at a speed at which Kenyans run or may be faster!!!). So the road to a sub 2 hr finish seemed like a long one but I wasn’t the one to give up. I kept making progress and kept improving my timing, looking for that one race where I would get a sub 2 hr finish - the one with the finish time which has a big figure of “1”.

ADHM 2011 was a good run, I managed to better my HM time to a 2:01. Still not there but close, close enough. There were a few more of us chasing that dream of a sub 2 hour and we agreed that the next race – which was the Mawana Marathon 2012 would be the one – where we get that sub 2 finish. We put together our own bus and got ourselves a “pacer” as well. And on that perfect February Sunday morning, accompanied by a light drizzle, running that flat route from India Gate to Connaught Place and back, with the “Chak De” song playing in the background, I crossed the finish line along with a friend in 1:58 – thanks to the “param” kripa of our pacer. And felt light!!!! A milestone had been achieved, a dream realized, monkey off the back, nirvana attained and that’s when I also for the first time felt like a “fast runner”.

Now it was just another fast time. I had improved from a 2:57 to a 2:01 in a year, and that 56 minutes drop was Huge but it was not as satisfying as that 4 mins shave off to get to a 1:57. What is it about a Sub 2 hr HM finish that most of us set as a target for ourselves? What is about it that achieving it makes us heave a sigh of relief, gives us a feeling of satisfaction, and makes us celebrate our running as never before?

The fact is that a majority of us are amateur / recreational runners and are just happy to be chugging along till we get stronger and “want to get faster”. Then every minute counts, we want to shave off minutes in each and every run that we do. We start setting goals, time targets for ourselves. Self-improvement is a fun and exciting adventure. And as we engage with others more, we become more knowledgeable, we – the middle of the pack runners - become hungry. We, the ones who make up the biggest crowd in any running event and who jostle our way in that thick crowd of sweaty smelly runners, want to break away. There is that desire to STAND out. And more importantly, have that sense of accomplishment, a sense of having arrived and by what - by being able to run fast enough by getting a finish time starting with a big “1”. It’s as if with the big figure change from “2” to “1”, we cross a threshold – the threshold to qualify as a fast runner, a serious runner, an accomplished runner!!! It’s a hype we as runners have created, a goal post set for every new runner – it’s the ticket to the exclusive club of “sub-2 hour finisher”. And I am glad we have done it and created this big hullaboo – it keeps us motivated, this is what you think of when your body on that 5th 400m interval wants to stop but you continue and do 5 more, this is what gets you on top of that long 1km hill again and again, this is what gets you out of the bed be it rain, sun or cold. And when you get your “sub 2”, its sweet !!!! Trust me !!!

How to Train for a Sub 2 hour finish

There are enough training manuals and plans to help one train for a sub-2 hour finish. Each of those are good and cover the essentials. I am giving below what worked for me :

1. Loads of attitude – believe that you are a Sub-2 hour runner and run like that

2. Hill Training – I personally have benefitted a lot from that and love the hill repeats

3. Run Longer – Do your long runs for 24-25km. More you get your legs used to the pounding, less you will struggle in the final leg of the race

4. Cadence – This one needs a full post of its own. But this is nothing but your “foot turnover”. Higher the cadence, less the impact or the shock the foot feels and therefore lesser chance of an injury and a stronger you.

5. Progressive Runs – I swear by them. Run each Km faster than the previous one.

6. Discipline – Be disciplined about your training.

I will do a separate detailed post on training for a sub-2 hour HM and also cover the training program I followed. Till then google away as I am doing right now (to read up on how to get a 1:45 finish time for a HM !!!)