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Seven months is a long time to prepare. Here are seven reasons why that added time can be beneficial and help make training easier next spring.

1) Build a Base Before Winter

Once winter hits, it’s decision time. You can get in the gym and hit the treadmill, but committing to the goal now – while you can still take advantage of some cool running weather – is a great way to get started.

2)  Gradual Increases

The most common half marathon training plans usually consist of a 12-week focus. If you’re starting at zero, that’s more than a mile increase each week. Starting 7 months out – nearly 30 weeks – almost triples the time you have to increase distance.

3) Creating the Running Habit

Starting a plan, and finishing it, is difficult. We’ve all jumped into a training program and flaked out before accomplishing our goal. Give yourself more wiggle room to get that habit started.

4) More Rest!

With more gradual increases comes more flexibility for rest days. And let’s face it; you’re going to need those days in the winter.

5) Holiday Indulgence

The holiday season is not the most motivational time for half marathon training – unless it’s a couch-lounging, sweatpants-wearing, binge-watching marathon. Time and time again, potential half marathoners don’t get things started until after the holidays, the turkey, and the football. They’ve dug a hole to start their training. Simply put – get started now, continue through the holidays, and when the turkey has been digested, you won’t be starting from scratch.

6) New Year’s Resolutions

We’ll all have big plans for 2018 when January 1 rolls around. And by February 1, life will likely throw a metaphorical wrench in those plans. By starting now, January 1 would nearly signal the halfway mark in your training.

7) Race Day Ready

There will always be plenty of people who can hyper train, show up, and knock out a half marathon. If you’re not one of them, commit now and develop long-lasting habits to get yourself race day ready.

And have fun!

commit Now!

Members of the 500 Festival staff and the producers of the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon will travel to Chicago over the weekend to experience the second largest full marathon in the nation, the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. With more than 40,000 finishers in recent years, Chicago claims more participants than any race with the exception of the TCS New York City Marathon.

 

Our staff members are excited to experience Chicago’s race and witness hundreds of Indiana’s own take on 26.2 miles. Be sure to reach out on social media and let us know if you’re in the Windy City conquering the largest full marathon in the Midwest! Follow along on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for updates all weekend from our neighbors to the north.

 

Then, make us your next challenge in spring 2018!

 

Register for the 2018 OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon

Proposals. Tattoos. And yes – even more running. No matter how, when, or with whom you celebrate, doing it your way is important.

 

Finishing a race is like reaching the end zone, but there are no flags for excessive celebration. If dodging tacklers in a field of 100 yards is cause for a dance, then what about dodging participants over the course of 23,000+ football fields?

 

Thousands finish the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon each year. And those thousands know how to celebrate. We usually catch the proposals at the finish, but we miss a lot of other great stories. So we asked our participants how they’ve basked in the glory of their big accomplishment in recent years. How did you celebrate?

 

Erin visited one of Indianapolis’ most delicious stops for donuts. You earned one, Erin.

 

Danielle supported a good cause at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. A two-for-one day at the track!

 

About as pedestrian as it gets for Brienne, but certainly three essentials; hugs, food, and sleep.

 

Erica did what all visitors should do when in town for race weekend; experience our beautiful city!

 

And then there’s Derek.

 

Tell us how you celebrated and you could be featured! Comment below or leave a comment on social media. Whether your celebration was crazy or common, let us know!

#IndyMini

Registration for the 2018 OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon is officially open!  Mark the calendar for May 5, 2018, when the 42nd edition of The Greatest Spectacle in Running returns to downtown Indianapolis. Whether a seasoned pro or a rookie Mini-Marathoner, here are a few items to watch for in 2018:

 

New in 2018 is The Greatest Spectacle Challenge, a compilation of all three of the 500 Festival running events; the 500 Festival Miler Series, presented by OrthoIndy, the Finish Line 500 Festival 5K, and the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon. It’s a total of 35.2 miles and includes FOUR sets of gear – each individual running event, plus a fourth for completing the challenge.

 

Check out the new and improved Indy Mini Merchandise Store for all the gear to get you through your training. Don’t wait until May to look Indy Mini ready!

 

Want to get your coworkers involved in your 2018 training? There are some massive benefits to the Employee Wellness Challenge; a competitive office vs. office challenge with awards for speed and participation, as well as discounted group rates and an unforgettable team-building experience.

 

Don’t forget to check out the VIP Experience in 2018, with additional gear and race weekend perks like VIP parking, private gear check and a private, specialized post race party in Military Park.

 

Whether walking or running, solo or with friends and family, make your 2018 race weekend special, and thanks for making the Indy Mini the nation’s premier half marathon.

Another winner has been announced in the Employee Wellness Challenge for the 2017 OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon. Congratulations to Cork Medical! Their exceptional group claimed the award for participation with an incredible 30 percent of their staff joining this year’s race.

The Mini-Marathon’s corporate competition features numerous Indianapolis-based organizations. Awards are given to the top companies in performance and participation. After announcing Rolls-Royce as the winner in the performance category, we were pleased to deliver the participation trophy to this dedicated organization on Indianapolis’ north side.

To learn more about the Employee Wellness Challenge or how your organization can get involved, click here.

Alright challengers – the latest and greatest addition to the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon makes its debut in 2018. If you’re all about gathering as many medals as possible, get ready to conquer EVERY 500 Festival running event next season for the ultimate bragging rights; 35.2 miles.

In 2017, you could take on a series of Indy Mini training races known as the Miler Series, presented by OrthoIndy. These races consisted of a 3-Miler, 6-Miler, and 10-Miler in February, March and April, to prepare you for the Mini. If you completed the Milers, you earned yourself the Podium Finisher medal.

However, registering for the Mini Maniac Challenge and combining the Miler Series with the 13.1 miles of the Mini-Marathon (32.1 miles total) earned you the additional Mini Maniac medal. You could also couple your Mini-Marathon with the Finish Line 500 Festival 5K, a total of 16.2 miles in one morning, and take home the Mega Mini medal, as well as the 5K and Mini-Marathon medals.

Each challenge offered three shirts and medals, including the selected challenge, the Mini-Marathon medal, and either the 5K or Miler Series. All of these challenges and challenge medals will be available again in 2018 with one additional opportunity; The Greatest Spectacle Challenge.

When you sign up for The Greatest Spectacle Challenge, you’ll train with the Miler Series AND conquer the 5K and the Mini-Marathon on May 5, 2018. In doing so, you’ll take home FOUR shirts and medals! That’s one for each event and a fourth for conquering every part of the Greatest Spectacle in Running.

One spring. Four medals. Make 2018 count!

Check out the challenges before registration opens in September, and start making plans today!

 

500festival.com  |  IndyMini.com  |  @500Festival  |  Facebook.com/500Fest  |  Facebook.com/500FestivalMiniMarathon  

Unfortunately, not all of your summer training runs can include a lap around Indianapolis Motor Speedway. They can, however, be an experience that feels like that first Saturday in May, giving you an Indy Mini vibe no matter the distance!

Here are five ways to mini-mize (see what we did there?) the pressures of continuing to run in that summer heat:

1. Run With Friends

Thousands of OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon participants travel to downtown Indy each May for the friendliest and most encouraging half marathon in the nation. Make that Hoosier hospitality part of your  running experience and run with friends to encourage each other and enjoy the glory days of summer!

2. Listen to Music

The Indy Mini boasts the largest number of entertainment groups of any road race in the country, and it’s a big reason why our participants come back year after year. Don’t run solo and pop in the headphones like any normal training session. Play tunes from your phone or strap on a wireless speaker and blast your favorite tracks for you and your friends. You might get more smiles from the runners you pass along the route!

3. See Something

It won’t be a lap around the Speedway, but see something during your run that rivals that feeling. Wherever you live, find landmarks or a scenic route that takes you out of the monotony of neighborhoods or treadmills. Dodging cars and counting mailboxes can get redundant when you’re trying to squeeze in a quick summer run. Grab a group of friends and go conquer a park, trail, or somewhere new!

4. Stop the Clock

Don’t worry about beating yesterday’s time or outdoing yesterday’s distance. There’s a time and a place for the competitor in all of us, but it’s good to change it up, especially in July and August. Just being active in the summer heat should count as a win. So hydrate, run for the joy of running, experience the beautiful summer weather and leave the stopwatch at home!

5. Wear Your Indy Mini Gear! 

If you go for a run in Central Indiana, there’s a good chance you’ll come across another runner who’s conquered the Mini. They’ll be proudly donning the gear to prove it.

 

500festival.com  |  IndyMini.com  |  @500Festival  |  Facebook.com/500Fest  |  Facebook.com/500FestivalMiniMarathon