BankTrust First Light Marathon training begins

I began training for a marathon earlier this week.

I have a long row to hoe, but I’m going to do my best to stick with a training plan that I found and get ready to complete the BankTrust First Light Marathon in Mobile on Sun., Jan. 9.

I’ve run in a number of organized foot races over the years, but the longest I’ve ever run was the Escape from Arifjan Half-Marathon (13.1 miles). That race took place in the Kuwaiti desert in 2004, and I ran it with my good buddy, Al Webb.

I’ve always wanted to cross the marathon off of my life list, and I figured that I’d better do it before I get too old. I’m 34, and I don’t know how long this 6-3, 217-pound body will hold up to the kind of abuse that I put it through.

I really committed to this after reading a recent issue of Outside Magazine, which included “The Plan,” a week-by-week routine to get you ready for a marathon. The plan was designed by Hal Higdon, a 111-time marathoner and writer who has contributed to Runner’s World magazine more than any one else. He’s the author of 34 books, including the best selling “Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide.”

Higdon’s plan in Outside Magazine is a 30-week plan that’s “designed to fit into your already busy life and allow for cross-training (hiking, cycling or swimming). The first 12 weeks condition you for training and culminate with a 10K race to test your fitness. The next 18 put more emphasis on running as you build toward the big day.”

I started at the beginning of the last 18 weeks since I knew that I could already run a 10K comfortably. I wrapped up my first week of the program earlier today with a 6-mile run. Of course, I would have liked to have run it faster than 1:02:46, but I tried to take it easy and enjoy the unseasonably cool morning. Plus, I didn’t want to risk injury since injuries caused by overtraining stop more marathoners than any other obstacle.

I see this as an exercise in “see-what-you’re made of,” and I doubt that I’ll run more than one marathon after the first of the year. But who knows, maybe I’ll run a few more after I see that I can complete a 26.2-mile run without collapsing into a quivering mound of chewed bubble gum.

In the end, I’d like to know how many of you have completed a marathon. Was the first the hardest? How’d you get ready for it? Any suggestions for me as I begin to train for my first marathon? Let me know in the comments section below.

For more information about the upcoming BankTrust First Light Marathon in Mobile, visit www.firstlightmarathon.com. For more information about Hal Higdon and his training plans, visit his Web site at www.halhigdon.com.