Just 7 months left

LITTLE ROCK — Training for the Little Rock Marathon begins next Monday.

Um, but the marathon’s not ’til March.

That’s right, the seven months between the dog days of summer and the 2013 event is the training program sanctioned by marathon organizers.

Maybe the real “Heartbreak Hill” isn’t the steep incline at mile 25 but signing up for the training itself. When else is a 20-mile run begun before dawn just practice?

For someone who has never run a marathon, or never run much at all, the time and distance involved — even the minimal gear — might boggle the mind, so let’s for a moment invite some veterans of all 10 previous marathons to put the newbies at ease.

Here’s what some of them have to say about the training process and why it’s a feat that almost anyone can accomplish if they want to.

Do you have any essential tips for novices? One piece of advice for the new kid?

“Start slow. Don’t increase your mileage too quickly, and if you need to walk, then walk,” says Robert Hanle.

“Don’t get discouraged with a bad run, because everyone has good and bad days,” Anna Hubbard says, “and don’t worry if you miss a few runs.”

“Go to the race with a goal just to finish the first one. The final time does not matter,” David Samuel recommends. “You will never forget the moment when you cross that first marathon finish line.” Alan Stone adds, “Keep moving, whatever you do.”

What are the training groups like? Bill Rahn says people new to the official LR Marathon Training Group will not feel intimidated joining this group. “I run with the LR Marathon Training group, which welcomes runners and walkers at all levels for Saturday morning long runs.” Hubbard says if you’re going to get crazy, get crazy in a crowd. “You can run on your own or become friends with like-paced pals. It makes you feel less crazy to be up before the sun comes up on a freezing Saturday when you are surrounded by a bunch of other crazy runners doing the same thing.”

How do you make time for training runs?

“Fit it in wherever [you] can,” Ronald Earles advises. “I’ve run at lunch, at night after my kids have [gone] to bed, early morning on the weekend.”

“I throw a load of clothes in the dryer and run until it is done. I put a lasagna in the oven and run while it cooks. I wake up early to run before the kids have school, or volunteer to drive them to somewhere like Sunday School where I know they will be for a few hours so I can run while they study,” Liz Reichman says. “You do have to get creative to fit the runs in.”

Most of the runners offered the same tip: Get up early.

“It’s not uncommon to start at 5 a.m.,” Stone says.

Why do you start training so far ahead of the race?

“Time plus miles equals distance,” Blair Dean says. “If you do the training (the hard part), the marathon should be the easy part.”

“We train so far in advance to give our bodies a chance to adapt to the pounding of the marathon. I think pretty much anybody can complete a marathon but has to train properly to do so,” Reichman says.

“Right now a 20-mile training run sounds impossible,” David McCormick says. But “by starting out slow and easy a runner can build a base and slowly teach [his] body to adapt to the miles necessary to complete a marathon. Whereas a 5- to 6-mile run now seems impossibly far, by March it will merely be an ordinary daily run.”

Do you need special shoes? Clothes?

Bentley Blackmon says, “I’ve seen people run in just about anything, but I would suggest a comfortable running shoe with a wide toe box ... not wearing cotton shirts or shorts ... and use one of the many wicking fabrics available.”

Jim Hays says, “For training you will need to account for cold weather, wet weather, dark time running, and running with some type of pack to store your food and drinks in while on long runs.”

“A woman needs a good bra,” Reichman says.

Oh, and “a good pair of shoes.”

How do you stay motivated during training?

“What has kept me encouraged, motivated, and accountable for so many years is the friends that love doing the same thing that I love doing,” Dean says.

“They have held me accountable on those days when I just didn’t think I could make it.”

“Training with friends or a group is fun and keeps you both motivated and in check,” Hays agrees. “If someone is expecting you to be there to run with them for 16 miles at 7 a.m., then you better be there.”

Blackmon says, “Only focus on the very next workout. Don’t get caught up in thinking weeks or months away, unless it is to picture how great it will feel at the finish line.” “I choose scenic training courses,” Samuel says. “In addition, I like to challenge myself in shorter races and trail runs.”

Are there any safety concerns that you have or precautions that you take when training?

“I have been training on the River Trail for years, and while I have seen some pretty interesting stuff, I have never felt like my safety was a concern,” Chris Baldwin says. “I would encourage everyone to carry a cell phone with them.”

“I don’t listen to music,” Hubbard says. “It is very important to listen and be aware of cars, bikes, and your surroundings.”

“I try to run on trails or on roads that have a bike/pedestrian lane,” Hays says. “At night I run with a strobe light attached to my hip.”

“I always tell my wife where I’m running and what time I should return,” Samuel says.

Do you have to keep training every year after you’ve done it once?

“I imagine most of us run year-round but with less weekly mileage when not training for a race,” Rahn says. “It is accepted wisdom to devote at least 16 weeks preparing for a race.”

“I have to start over every year,” Earles says. “I really don’t run that much after the marathon and really only run to [train].”

Hubbard advises that “you have to train for each marathon to condition your body. It is like with any exercise — it takes a long time to get in shape but just a short time to get out of shape.”