2 x 3M, 2 x 2M, 2 x 1M
2 x 3 Miles, 2 x 2 Miles, 2 x 1 Mile
Designed for 26.2 runners
Intensity
3M at 13.1 effort
2M at 15K effort
1M at 10K effort or better
Recovery
3 minutes between reps
Exertion
8/10
Periodization
General Period
Context & Details
I have 2 rules regarding the Marathon:
Rule 1 — Respect the Distance
Rule 2 — See Rule 1
A lot can happen in 2-3+ hours of hard running: blisters, cramps, stitches, chaffing, missed fluids, pulled muscles, and much, much more.
What unfolds during a marathon is like the stock market — wildly unpredictable at best.
Marathon training is different than preparations for shorter footraces. For most the distances I coach, 800m - 13.1 Miles, success largely depends on upgrades to your offense (maximum cardiac output, lactate tolerance, running economy, speed reserve, maximum power output, etc.).
Those factors do impact marathon performance to a degree. However, successful marathoners know that no matter how good training goes, every marathon will be a dog fight.
So it’s better to think about marathon training as upgrading your defensive abilities to fight the good fight for as long as possible before breaking down.
The best marathoners tend to be antifragile.
Racing a marathon is fundamentally unpredictable and volatile, and unplanned events, blisters on the ball of your foot, a new mystery ache in your shin, hamstring cramps, digestive issues, not enough calories ingested, etc. tend to have a disproportionate impact on your outcome that day — no matter your fitness going in.
Those who can are neutral or benefit from volatility and unpredictability tend enjoy better, more consistent outcomes. Think Desi Linden winning Boston Marathon in a spring storm or Kipchoge winning Berlin one year despite a severe footwear malfunction which caused intense blistering early in the race.
We celebrate these champions, not because those victories necessarily resulted in the fastest marks, but because of their perseverance, grit, and determination in the face of extreme, unplanned obstacles.
When training for a marathon, remember you’re training not to conquer the distance so much as not be conquered by it.
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Today’s workout is a “let’s-see-what-can-go-wrong” as the runner attempts to run faster as they fatigue.
This session is designed to primarily result in improvements to fatigue resistance. It’s placed in the General Period, as a first look of where the runner’s fitness, both mental and physical, are at. The reps are all run on effort. So let the watch record, not direct the running.
Instead of a long slow run to get the miles in, substitute this session to elicit upgrades in running economy, lactate threshold, fatigue resistance, and muscle fiber recruitment.
You’ll still get the miles in, with 12 miles being of higher grade quality, but more importantly add to the callousing needed not to succumb to the unknown difficulties awaiting you on marathon day.
Any questions? Direct Message me on twitter.
Thx. | jm
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3 Good Books on Marathon training
Advanced Marathoning by Peter Pfitzinger
From Last to First by Charlie Spedding
Endurance Training: Science and Practice edited by Iñigo Mujika