Earlier this year, in a moment of extreme hubris, I signed up for the Great North Run. There were a number of reasons behind signing up for Britain's biggest half marathon, apart from the usual burst of misplaced enthusiasm in the face of a lot of pain and regret. I survived by gaining 10kg the year before because I was stressed out with a move and had a little extra space around my belly button, along with some deserving charity work. I also ran the Royal Parks Half Marathon 8 years ago and definitely part of my mentality was to prove that I am not getting old and that my gray hair was an aesthetic decision. I was determined. The final straw was seeing Lil Nas X run a half marathon in Coach's basketball trainers. If he can run 13 miles in those trainers, then I can do it in real running shoes, too.
Thankfully, this February's Great North Run saw the most votes in its 43 years of existence. Every week, a new half marathon appears on my timeline. The latest was a lively hackney half that looked more like a jogging rave than a running event. It's not just algorithms jumping on the bandwagon. There are currently over 500 official half marathons. Marathon events are held in the UK, with 500,000 strong people attempting to take part in marathon events each year.
Why is distance so popular? If you're like me and hundreds of thousands of other runners, the big draw is the combination of a reasonable challenge and an achievable goal. “As a personal trainer, I have witnessed firsthand the growing popularity of these races,” says PT Federica Gianni. “More and more people are drawn to the half-marathon distance because it allows them to achieve significant results without the daunting effort of a full marathon.” 13.1 miles (21 km) is quite a distance. distance, but a significant proportion of the population, or at least a viable distance. sound It's doable enough to give it a try.
“In terms of distance, it's an achievable distance for most runners,” says Alan Wardle, founder of No Club Running Club. “For the average runner, it's not a distance that you have to keep walking next week like John Wayne, but for a less experienced runner, it's a distance that you can easily train in without losing a lot of freedom like running. It's a full marathon.
“It's also not that far to walk the rest of the way if you don't do well on the day, but if you don't do well in the marathon, you either get a 'DNF' or spend the rest of the day on the road.” Walk the rest of the way until you catch up with the people collecting the fallen cones. ”
The half-marathon boom has brought about diversity in the world of running, and clubs like London-based charity and running club Outrunners have noticed the change in recent years. “The door is open to people who have never run before, and they see the half marathon as a platform for them,” said the 20-year-old, who made his half marathon debut at Hackney Half. says Tyler Williams Green, founder of Outrunners, which employs human runners. “Running culture has grown tremendously over the past few years, and the half marathon has become a place for these communities to come together and celebrate.”
Social media has played a big role in spreading the half marathon craze, encouraging beginners to take the first step and making failed runners feel guilty and lace up their shoes again. “My social media feed is full of people proudly holding up their medals, wrapped in aluminum foil blankets, red-faced and grinning at the camera. Their enthusiasm is contagious. ” says Niklas Brandrup, co-founder of Neurogan. “We all know exercise is good for us physically, but now we're starting to understand how important it is for our mental health as well.”
The Great North Run is at the beginning of September, so you have just under four months to prepare for the race. I'm already starting to feel the physical and mental benefits of running (more energy in the morning, a brighter mood, and improved self-esteem, to name a few). This is a benefit I had forgotten about while bending over during the long winter. She appears on the screen with her running shoes hidden, like shameful evidence of her past life. I recently felt a whole new sensation. I never believed it existed outside the realm of Nike ads and Sir Mo Farah. “I was looking forward to running.” If that's not evidence of the appeal of half marathons, I don't know what is.