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The marathon is a very popular distance. Last week we chatted all about the importance of building a proper marathon training plan. This week we want to dive into the details of what type of workouts really matter when it comes to success in the marathon. We often see runners doing speed workouts during marathon training. This is not often the most effective way to become faster at the marathon. The marathon is 99% aerobic in nature, so it is very important to work on building that aerobic system. We are going to chat about the 5 workouts that are the best for marathon training. Here is a brief overview of what they are: the long run, easy runs, steady state runs, threshold runs, & medium long runs. 

WEEKLY MILEAGE: We want to look at the history of an athlete

Mileage is key and becomes very important in the marathon training basket

You can BS a 5k

“I am not a high mileage runner”

EASY RUNNING should comprise 80% of your training plan

80% of weekly miles should be 2-3 min slower than 5k pace


45 miles per week→ 36 miles easy


40 miles per week→32 miles easy



LONG RUNS should typically be done at an easy pace unless there is a workout portion in the long run in which only part of this weekly long runs will be fast.

If you run 45 miles per week and your long run is 15 miles, we cannot run the full 15 miles at marathon pace because this would be 33% of your weekly mileage as a hard effort. Within a 15 mile run you may do 5 miles at marathon pace and this would be 50% of your weekly workout mileage.

A long run is a stress day already- when you add pace work it makes it even more stressful!

MEDIUM LONG RUNS There is a lot of talk about long runs when you are marathon training, but what about the medium long run or the med week long run? This is a run that is shorter than your longest run but a little longer than your weekday run. Let’s say you are running 45 miles per week with a 15 mile long run. You have 30 miles to split between the remaining 5 days of running. Sure, you could run 6 miles every day, but where we find people have more success is doing 1 medium long run mid-week. This might look something like rest, 5, 10, 4, 7, 4, 15. The 10 mile run in the middle of the week is a medium long run. This run helps to build endurance and your aerobic base. 

Tempos & Steady State Runs

This is where the fun comes in. The 20% hard efforts. Some of these workouts might be mixed within a medium long run or long run. 

20% of weekly mileage can be workouts

Best workouts are tempos

45 miles per week → 9 miles can be workout 

2 workouts per week could be: 2 x 2 mile tempo + 5 x 1 mile

40 miles per week—> 8 miles can be workout

2 workouts per week could be: 2 x 2 mile tempo + 4 x 1 mile

Threshold workout vs tempo workout

Marathon pace vs steady state

Fall Races are just around the corner and many athletes are gearing up for events that are over 90 min in duration. Did you know that fueling becomes more important as your race gets longer? Many ultramarathoners attribute ‘fueling’ as their biggest barrier to finishing. When it comes to the marathon distance, fueling allows you to reach your potential on race day running faster paces for a longer distance as shown by research. We often hear about bro science of the benefits of fasting or we have heard people talk about fasted cardio… If your goals are to run to your potential going faster & further, fueling is a critical part. You will not run as fast in a fasted state over a long distance. Now we are approaching the season of long runs getting longer, it is important to start to train for how we will approach the race. You don’t want to wait until race day or a few weeks before your race to practice fueling. You need to start NOW. 

Races are great because they provide water cups you can grab on the course without the need for you to carry water (unless you want to) or plan out how you will stay hydrated. It seems like this would make things easier for you on race day but how do we expect to be able to ace the water stops in a race running at race pace if we have not practiced this skill in training. Today we are going to be talking about practicing our water stops/fueling. 

Research the course offerings

1- What will the race be serving?

2- How frequent are the water stops?

3- Am I allowed to run with water during the race?

4- Are they self served or manned by people handing them out?

Practice fueling on the run

1- Training the gut to take in fuel while running

2- Training the gut to run with water

3- Start NOW so body has time to adapt

4- Do you stop for a long run?

5- Can you run and drink?


Pinching the cup



Neurotic you don’t always need to run through the water stops

Putting it together

1- Mile by mile fueling plan

2- Gu every 30-45 min

3- water sips at every stop

4- walking or running through the stops?

A lot of our content is catered around the marathon distance. We know that the marathon is super popular and many people when they first start training for marathons will start to follow more specific training as the distance is super daunting THUS we have a lot of content to reach those people. However, did you know that most elite marathoners actually focused on the 5k distance first? That is right! Focusing on the shorter distance races can actually make you a better marathoner. Today we are going to shift focuses on shorter distance races for a bit because it IS an important topic. Training for shorter distances races might be all the rage this time of year if you are not gearing up for a fall marathon. Many athletes set their sites on local 5k races during the summer months. Is training for a 5k significantly different than training for a marathon? There are a lot more similarities than differences, but today we are going to go over exactly what these differences are and how YOU can capitalize on your potential in the shorter distance races while still having a great base to ramp up for marathon training.

Training Differences


More speed endurance training/intervals 


More racing in general



If you haven’t reached your potential in the 5k or raced the distance often, one might be in good 5k shape after or during a marathon training cycle. Aerobic development is transferable. 

Give up on the old mentality and go into something new

So many fun distances

Stomach felt weird running that fast

I was not used to the pain

“That is it?”

Race Day Approach


What does the warm up look like?


Mental readiness



Set Realistic Expectations & Have a Proper Pacing Plan


1- Do you think pacing is important?


2- Can you race without pacing correctly??


3- What happens if you go out too hard?


4- How can you ensure the best chance for a negative split and to hit your goal?

It is HOT outside! It is that time of year again where the heat, humidity & dew point  is really starting to drag us down. We wanted to do a podcast chatting about this weather and what it all means for us. We should all be adjusting our paces in this heat anytime we run in over 60 degrees. There are temp conversion calculators out there created specifically for this. Have you ever heard the phrase, it’s not the heat, it’s the humidity? We will chat specifically about the humidity and dew point factors.


What is the common theme you hear this year from athletes?



It depends on the intensity of the summer


Checking the weather and being aware but analysis paralysis 


Knowledge is power 



Humidity is the measurement of moisture in the air. 60 degrees with 30% humidity vs 99% humidity is completely 


I know there are a lot of calculators out there to adjust paces: is it more variable than that?


What are signs you struggle more in the heat than others?


Should you keep a log of temps and workouts?


How do you survive a full summer of training?



Midwest is ideal for fall marathon training


Not ideal for spring marathon 



Starting workouts at 5am or taking them inside?


Adjust training to have the hottest weather days be easy days?


How much is too much adjusting?


How does the humidity make things harder than the heat?


Is the humidity typically better later in the day so those early morning workouts are even harder?


Dew point is the temp at which the air is 100% humidity: so if it’s only 78 degrees but the dew point is 72, that means that at 72 degrees it is 100% humidity which is insanely humid


Humidity above 70 degrees is going to start to feel very hard and pace adjustments need to be made


Does this mean you are losing fitness?246


Will this actually make you more fit in the fall?


What if you keep bombing workouts? Should you skip to more of an effort based approach?


Should you ignore HR and paces?


What are some last min tips for staying cool?

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Training for a marathon is a big deal! We want to make sure your training cycle is framed up with the best shot of success at performance. At the time of this release we are about 17 weeks away from the Chicago marathon. Lots of questions pop up over the course of training. How long should my longest long run be? What if I have to miss a week because I’m sick? Should I increase my long run every weekend? Should I race a half marathon 3 weeks out from my marathon?  We will be going over the entire cycle of the marathon including the key long runs and workouts. We also want to chat about the timing of your races


How many weeks should I train?
Working backwards from your goal marathon date
give yourself at least 16-20 weeks to build up from your longest run of 12 miles up to 3 hours
Every other week or 2 weeks build, 1 week cut back
3 weeks build, 1 week cut back


Should you do 20+ milers or opt for back to back long runs?
2-2.5 hours is the sweet spot for long runs
3+ hour long runs take longer to recover from
What pace?

Add in workouts when you are at the level
Most long runs should be done at an easy pace




When should you schedule races?
Closest half marathon RACE 6-8 weeks out
Could use a half marathon as a workout at GMP
5k-10k either in the build up or as a tune up 4-6 weeks out

Doing these races as a cut back week


Be aware that racing to frequently during a marathon cycle makes it challenging to hit peak mileage week after week

Limit racing so you can maximize training


Still want to have practice pushing yourself


Should you make up any long runs that you miss? & building long runs every week
Usually not but if it was a major long run, you may opt to have your sick week be your cut back week and move things around
This is why cutback weeks built in in-advance are helpful
Building every week is not wise


Should you train using goal paces or at current fitness?
Current fitness not where you want to be


Best workouts to do
Threshold– less volume

5 x 1 mile
8 x 1k
6 x .75 mi
4 x 2k
3 x 2 mi
4 x 1.5 mi


Steady State or MP work- more volume

3 x 2 mi
4 x 2 mi
8 x 1 mi
5 x 1.5 mi

We did a podcast about postpartum and pregnant running back in spring of 2021, and we decided to do another episode about this topic to answer questions we have gotten from our listeners. In this podcast Coach Mary will be joining me in chatting about her 2 pregnancy and postpartum running experiences. I am a mom of 3 kids 6 and under myself. Together we have had our share of struggles and triumphs during this stage of life. We hope sharing our experiences can help you navigate this season without feeling so alone. We will be talking about lots of pregnancy and postpartum related things in this episode, so if that isn’t your jam, probably best to skip this weeks episode :) We also are not medical professionals and just sharing our our experiences. Please consult with your doctor before starting any exercise program or advice on your specific situation.

Pregnancy Experiences:


Pre pregnancy & TTC



Lots of messages about how long it takes to get pregnant


Does running impact fertility?


Have you ever lost your period from running





First Trimester



Symptoms 


How does training change


Fear?



Second Trimester



Symptoms 


How does training change


Unsolicited advice?



Third Trimester



`Symptoms 


How does training change




Birth Experiences:


“Does training help with birth”



C section vs vaginal


Spontaneous vs induction


Epidural vs no epidural


Birth = so many unknowns




Recovery timeline


Rest/Healing 2 weeks


Walks 4-12 weeks


Core engagement exercises expecting and empowered 


Pelvic floor PT


Walk/Runs 6-12 weeks



What is postpartum like?


Everyone’s situation is different



Sleep


Help/support


Recovery


Desire to train



Is postpartum running harder than pregnant running?



Expectations vs reality 


It took you a long time to build the fitness before pregnancy, so it will take awhile to get back to old levels


Pregnancy takes 9 months to make the baby… give yourself time to get back to feeling like yourself




Breastfeeding


How do you ‘maintain your supply’


Best breastfeeding sports bras


pumping/feeding before and after runs


Mastitis



Training


How long does it feel to get back to norma


How long does it take until you sleep again?


How do you find the time to train?