It's Almost Marathon Training Time!

Hello, all! I know I’ve been a little MIA lately and I only have myself to blame for that. I’ve been super tired after work lately and have been pouring all my energy into running and spending time with John and family. Time has just been flying by. Can you believe it’s already basically the middle of July aka close to the end of summer?! Something else significant about this time of year is that training for the Philadelphia Marathon begins for me! I do a 18 week training scheduled which makes my training schedule begin on July 16th! I’m pretty pumped to get back into a training schedule. That seems to keep me motivated because I hate not following closely along. Now there are times that I do switch around my schedule due to not feeling well or schedule conflicts, but otherwise I’m pretty good at keeping on plan!

This year I’m switching things up and following the 3plus2 training program from the book Run Less, Run Faster. I read this book a couple months back and really liked the sound of improving my pace with just 3 key runs a week! With my busy schedule, more than 3 runs a week isn’t  always possible. By following this plan, I’ll hopefully never feel like I’m not running enough. Plus, I’m hoping to improve my pace and run a faster marathon than my previous two.

The 3plus2 training program consists of 3 key runs: track repeats, tempo runs, and long runs. Each week you do one of each run, in that order, following the pace charts in the book based off my goal marathon pace. My goal marathon pace is 10:30, making my goal finish time 4:35:18. I’m not entirely sure how possible this is for me given my previous marathon finish times, but the training plan seems doable and I’m a #GoalDigger always looking for a challenge!

My track repeats will range from 400 to 1600 intervals, focusing on paces under 9 minutes. I’ve never really followed a specific speedwork plan, I usually just make it up as I go, so I’m eager to try this out! Tempo runs will range anywhere from 4 to 10 miles and be paced between 9:24 and 10:30. My long runs are nothing different than I’ve done in the past, mileage wise, except this time I’ll be more focused on my pace. My pace will be my marathon goal pace + 20-45 seconds. Towards the end of training I will do a few “shorter” long runs that will be at marathon pace.

Super pumped that it's the 25th anniversary!

This schedule will be a little different than I am used to but I think it’ll be for the best! In years past, my goal has just been to finish, which is the best goal for any first-time marathon runners. Now that I’ve gotten my feet wet a bit, I’m ready for bigger goals and more challenges. I’ll be posting weekly about my training and my thoughts on how the plan is going for anyone interested! And also with  my ownmarathons being the only thing on my mind (okay, maybe asides from my wedding and house hunting), a lot of my posts in the next 18 weeks will be focusing on marathons, from training tips to my own personal thoughts and everything in between!

Question of the Day: Have you ran a marathon? If not, are you currently training for one?