3-Days-Per-Week Marathon Traning Plan

You heard me right, 3 days per week. That is all I run when training for a marathon, which I am right now in case you haven't heard. I am running the London Marathon on April 21, 2013 for the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home (you can donate to my cause here).

I constructed my 3-day-a-week marathon training plan based personal experience training for triathlons, my natural injury prone-ness, and advice from Runner's World magazine. For my body, the MOST IMPORTANT thing is completing the long runs. All those other miles (shown as Run #1 and Run #2 in the table that follows) are there just so I can drink wine and have dessert. 

This really works for me. I used this same sort a plan a few years ago to qualify for Boston when I had to run sub 3:40 at the California International Marathon (I ran a 3:36 fairly comfortably there).

So here is my loose plan. I am technically on Week 2 right now.

Week	Run #1	Run #2	Run #3
1	6	6	14
2	6	8	10
3	4	8	12
4	6	4	16
5	8	6	12
6	6	6	14
7	4	4	18
8	8	6	8
9	SKI WEEK
10	4	8	12
11	4	4	18
12	4	8	14
13	4	4	21-23
14	6	8	13
15	6	6	10
16	2	2	RACE

There are a few caveats/important details involved in this plan since it is rather abbreviated. First and most importantly, all runs are done with a goal/structure. All the runs are done "fast" (well, in relative terms). 

For example, the Short Runs (#1 and #2) are done as:

• Fartlek workouts, generally running fast from one landmark until another with a comfortable pace in between.
• Track workouts involving 1/4s, 1/2s, and miles depending on my mood.

The Long Runs (#3) are done as:

• Tempo-style runs, e.g. 4 miles easy then 4 miles hard, and repeat.
•  Races like the Barcelona Half Marathon - and I hope to throw another few races in there for good measure.

There are no "easy miles" or LSD (long slow distance) runs. Also important, I had to carve out a break for my upcoming ski week in Zermatt, no long runs immediately before or after 6 days of skiing. That would be a recipe for disaster/injury. Plus Dave would probaly ditch me on the slopes if I couldn't keep up due to tired legs.

I also intersperse 2 days of swimming per week (from 1,500 to 3,000 meters per workout) and Bikram Yoga maybe every two weeks (I know BIKRAM, yucky - but it is cold here and the studio is very close to my house).

I don’t have a GPS unit or anything, really - I can barely remember to bring my keys when I head out the door. However, for mileage and pacing purposes here in London, I have recently taken to using my Ipod Nike fitness pedometer. It isn’t entirely accurate, but at least it is a gauge of  mileage and pace of some sort. 

So I am off. Happy running all.