Half marathon in 5 months time? is it possible

[whieldon]

so basicly ive lost 2 and half stone in 2 months im now 16 stone and 5ft 11", lost most of it through hard times and not eating over last few months

but for the past 2 weeks ive started jogging 5 times a week using couch 2 5k app and doing a hiit workout from youtube 5 times a week also

im thinking of setting a target of doing a half marathon which is in june is that possible for me to do or am i being to optimistic?

 

[Jrahien]

It's possible, but whether or not it's a good idea is a different story. You may very well be in good enough cardiovascular shape in 5 months to run 21K, but there's a good chance that the framework of your body (muscles, joints, and bones) won't quite be up to running for that long and coming out uninjured. I myself have been running long distances for years, and I still have a tendency to injure myself when upping my distances and have to force myself to step back and go at things more gradually.

Just from a safety and health perspective, you may want to look for a city 10K run to do instead, just to start with, and then if that goes well, shoot for a half marathon either near the end of this year or some time next year.

 

[simplesol]

It is certainly possible for you to be able to run a half-marathon after 5 months training. I have helped many people to do this with few adverse effects.
But there are a few points to make first!
Congrats on losing the weight! You've lost a lot of weight in two months and you said this was mostly due to not eating/hard times. Whilst I am very sympathetic and can empathize with you after having a rubbish year in 2012 too, I would advise you to look at your eating plan - you will need to eat well to be able to train hard enough to run a half-marathon!
If you do not look after yourself you'll just end up injured and discouraged then you'll give up.
You're still a big lad at 16 stone and 5'11" and so again I'd say make sure you have decent shoes and that you stretch properly after each run. I am 6'2" and I always stretch and so far have avoided injury. I am a British Cycling Coach who has won national fitness awards and I would advise you to get checked out by your doctor before upping your training.
Having said that I have a 20 week plan included in my own 30 page book for people just like you. It costs about the same as two coffees but which may save you a lot of grief! Here is the address - - It is a marathon training book but all you need to do is run half the mileages in the schedule as all the advice is applicable to a half marathon.
Good luck and let me know how you get on!
Sol.