Warm up for the Chevron Houston Marathon with race series – Houston Chronicle

If experience is indeed the best teacher, Houston runners preparing for the Chevron Houston Marathon on Jan. 19 are in luck.

The area offers a unique chance for on-the-road practice with the Warm-Up Series. The races, spaced roughly a month apart, are staged by three local running clubs under the auspices of the Houston Area Road Runners Association.

First is the Houston Half Marathon and Relay Oct. 27, presented by the Houston Striders. That event will be followed by the Houston Masters Sports Association’s Classical 25K on Dec. 1 and the Fort Bend Kia 30K in Sugar Land on Dec. 15.

“Whether it’s your first marathon or your 15th, it’s the perfect way to build up your race distance,” says Ron Morgan, a local running activist and fan of the series. Morgan, who was formerly president of HARRA, says he knows of no other city in the country that offers an opportunity designed to prepare runners for a particular marathon.

The series was the brainchild of Tom and Mary Anne McBrayer, pioneers of Houston’s running scene. Mary Anne McBrayer said the idea was launched in 1986 as a way of of drawing more runners to three existing long-distance races — 20K, 25K and 30K respectively — scattered throughout the calendar.

Assuming your primary goal is to run your fastest marathon possible in January, Kenyan Way coach Sean Wade recommends these approaches to the Warm-Up Series.

Houston Half

If your longest run is 15 miles or farther, you are OK to race.

If your long run is less than 15 miles, run at goal marathon pace or treat it as a training run with a large negative split, which means the second half of the race is faster than the first.

If your long run is less than 11 miles, jog the course at 45 to 60 seconds slower than your marathon pace.

25K

Treat this race like your marathon. Run your goal pace the entire way, from first mile to last. Do not try to put time in the bank early, this never works for the marathon. Your goal is to practice patience.

A negative split, which follows, will give you better recovery:

First 5 miles, run 45 to 60 seconds slower than marathon pace

Second 5 miles, run 30 seconds slower than marathon pace

Third 5 miles, run marathon pace.

If your long run is shorter than 12 miles ,then should jog 30 to 60 seconds slower than marathon pace.

30K

If you decide to run this race you must either negative split or jog at a conversational pace.

First 10K, run 45 to 60 seconds slower than marathon pace.

Second 10K, run 30 seconds slower than marathon pace.

Third 10K, run marathon pace.

Race schedule

HOUSTON HALF MARATHON

6:45 a.m. Oct. 27

Sam Houston Park, 1000 Bagby

Houstonhalf.com

FLEET FEET HMSA CLASSICAL 25K

7 a.m. Dec. 1

Prairie at Bagby, Downtown Houston

hmsaclassical25k.com

FORT BEND KIA 30K

7 a.m. Dec. 15

Sugar Land Town Square

slfinishlinesports.com

“And it certainly did that in just the first year. We were amazed at the participation increase,” she said. The race fields jumped from several hundred into the thousands.

In 2007, the Houston Striders lengthened their event from 12.6 miles to 13.1 to capitalize on the half marathon’s exploding popularity. This year the event will host the Road Runners Club of America’s Half Marathon Championships and include an expo race weekend.

Unlike the national elites who will race the half marathon, runners training for the Chevron Houston Marathon should approach each event with their current level of fitness in mind, says former Olympic marathon runner and Kenyan Way coach Sean Wade.

“You should treat the warm-up race as a practice to what you will do come marathon morning in January — from the gear you wear, the food you eat race morning, your ability to fuel during the race and the pace you run,” Wade says.

Remember your ultimate goal: the January marathon.

“The longer the warm-up race, the more dangerous it is if it’s run too hard,” Wade says. You can either get hurt or be out of gas come marathon time.”

Andy Stewart, who has been the race director of the 30K in Sugar Land since its inception 32 years ago, says the 18.6 mile event is ideal for giving runners a realistic idea of what their pace will be on marathon day.

“I consider us like the final exam before the marathon. It’s been a reality check for a lot of people over the years.”