I have signed up to the Manchester Marathon on 16 April 2023! I’ll be raising money for Sense – a charity for people with complex disabilities.
This is my first marathon! I have done a 10k before and a half marathon on September 2021 but have not run since. So I am giving myself a good 31 weeks to train to hopefully finish under 5 hours or dare I dream sub 4:30!
This is a training log to record how my progress!
Week 1 (12 Sep 22 – 31 weeks out)
This week I focused on coming up with a strategy. I set my marathon goal, established the paces and lengths for my tempo, speed and long runs and researched strength training for runners.
| Weeks | Focus | Goals by end of period | ||||
| 1-14 | Build my base (Follow a half marathon training plan) | Long run of 6 miles, weekly mileage 10 miles | ||||
| 8 – 14 | Continue Half Marathon Training Race on Dec 18 | One 10 mile run done, weekly mileage of 20 miles) | ||||
| 14-31 | 16 week FIRST Novice Marathon training plan including an extra week to give myself leeway for illness or injury | One 20 mile done, shorter long runs e.g. 10 miles done at race pace |
MON 1.52 miles tempo (10:33 mile pace);
WED 2 miles (11:50 mile pace) Note: I tried out low HR training for this run; trying to run at a pace where I could keep my HR below 150. I found this impossible. The only way I could was to stop and walk. So after looking at advice on The Marathon Handbook, I decided to park low HR training until I am a couple of months into my training.
THU – Leg Day – focused on running specific exercises.
SUN – 3.1 miles ( mile pace 11:32)