After my lunch hour run on Monday there was a discussion happening amongst a couple of guys about one individual who is running the next Boston Marathon. The discussion was of course about the training program for such a race and the time and toll it takes to train
properly. This one individual made an interesting comment about running in general and the “perfect” distance to train for.

He said that the perfect distance to train for is the half marathon. The reason for this was two-fold:

1. It is easier on the body than a marathon is and the training is less “severe”.

2. The fitness level provided by being truly ready for a half marathon is perfect, and if you train for one half per year you will be in pretty good shape. It is a great trade off - the training program is not too intrusive and the fitness benefits are huge.

Thinking back on my own experience, I would have to agree. I have found a half-marathon training program pretty easy to integrate into my super busy life, and I have been in the best shape when training for one. More so than for the marathon - it was so demanding on my body I did not feel as “in shape”. Interesting outcome. However, I can still say I have run a marathon and I would not trade that for the world.