June 1 - 7 Training Schedule

Sun: Rest
Mon: 2-3 miles, slow
Tue: 4-6 miles, easy
Wed: 8 miles including 5x2 min. @ Critical Velocity (CV) pace [7:15] with 2 minutes active recovery (jog)
Thu: 2-3 miles, slow
Fri: 4-6 miles, easy (Doctor)
Sat: 10 miles, the first 8 miles EZ and the last 2 miles at Marathon Pace (MP) [7:59]


I seemed to do much better when I laid out my week's training schedule in advance. I followed that approach religiously for last year's St. George marathon. However, after St. George I didn't blog my weekly training schedule in advance. I had it in writing but it wasn't the same. So I'll be blogging my training schedule in advance again.

Of course, I've toyed with several training systems in the past. The only one I've ever fully committed to was Runners' World's Smart Coach. I did start the Furman Institute of Running & Scientific Training before Thanksgiving but pulled off it after getting injured. Based on my observations, I'm not getting enough mileage to achieve better marathon results. I've been running just enough miles (i.e., the minimum) to complete a marathon. I need to get my mileage up this training cycle but I need to be very careful about how I go about it due to my fragile knee/IT band. High mileage isn't going to mean the same thing for me as it does for others. It's a relative concept. I've run my prior two marathons after peaking at around 35 miles per week. That's not enough for the result I'm seeking. The number of miles matter. It's been confirmed over and over to me by Jack McClintic, Sasha Pachev, and Jonathan Bennett. Jack's and Jonathan's performances really took off once they upped their mileage. And Sasha is adamant that unless you're running at least 50 miles per week, you shouldn't be running a marathon. So I'm going to work on stretching my mileage out.

As for a plan, I'm somewhat following a Jack Daniels approach with some seemingly practical modifications I've culled from various blogs. In other words, I'm making this up as I go. This first week will be a test run. I'll observe how my body is responding and recovering. Over the last two weeks I've run 14.5 and 21 miles as a "reverse taper" coming off the marathon. This week's schedule takes me back up to 30-36 miles. I really need to focus on the slow and easy runs being just that - SLOW and EASY or else I'm sure I won't recover in time for the next run. The focus right now is on miles not speed. All of the conversion tables suggest I have plenty of speed to achieve my desired marathon time. But as I move up in distance, my equivalent marathon time slows dramatically. Therefore, I need endurance. By increasing my mileage, I should be able to increase my overall endurance. If I need to circle back later in the cycle to build speed, I think I'll be able to.

Finally, since this is a trial run, if I'm not responding well, I'll adjust. Ultimately, I necessary I'll pull back to one of the minimal mileage plans but that's not the plan for now.

Also this week, I'll be visiting Dr. John Cianca on Friday. I look forward to seeing him and am hopeful of getting a course of action that will clear up my knee once and for all.