Advanced Marathon program 24 weeks

A good advice is to invest in a good running watch and download Strava App to log your running.

Introduction phase week 1-3

This phase help you recover from your last major race or building up to 60% of peak training volume with easy runs.

The purpose of the easy runs is to cumulative volume. These runs are done at easy pace, which means they should be run slowly as needed to maintain good form and relaxation throughout the session.

Base building phase

Weeks 4-9 will increase aerobic volume, introduce aerobic intensity, and improve your running skills.

• Workout 1 introduces short sprints on hills and the flat interval training.
• Workout 2 consist of short to medium fast continuous runs that increase in intensity.
• Workout 3: The long runs, becomes fast continuous run that increase in volume and aerobic intetnsity.

Support phase in Weeks 10-15

• Week 10 will be a recover week with lighter session
• Week 11-15 will continue aim for increasing volume and improved speed endurance, lactate threshold, lactate threshold speed and lactate clearance.

The three weekly session will have different purpose.

• Workout 1: V02 max intervals will be introduces.
• Workout 2 Fast continues runs becomes longer or in faster pace.
• Workout 3: The long runs will increase volume with more runs in marathon pace

Race specific phase in Weeks 16-21

This phase begins with lighter workouts in week 16 to aid recovery, then focus on aerobic intensity with paces between marathon pace and slightly faster than lactate threshold pace. The short continuous runs of workout 1 focus on LT pace, workout 2 the faster continues runs get longer, becoming medium to long runs and the workout 3 long continuous runs are marathon pace goal.

Taper phase in Weeks 22-24

The 3 week taper should kick start recovery after the peak training weeks. Week 22, the initial taper, drops to 50 percent training volume, week 23 maintains your fitness with workouts that do not overly stress the body; and week 24 prevent sluggishness with a couple of easy workouts before your race day.

Key word

1) Lactate threshold (LT):

Your lactate threshold (LT) pace is the highest possible speed you can run without causing an accumulation of blood lactate in your muscle. Training at LT pace raises this threshold, and your body adapts to perform aerobic cell respiration which clears lactate at faster paces.

Lactate threshold pace should stay just within the aerobic range of activity, which should feel like a "comfortably hard" pace that you can sustain for around 1 hour in race condition (LT pace is also called 1 hour race pace). RPE 4-5

2) RPE:

RPE rate of perceived exertion.

The relationship between RPE and heart rate and pace is relative between runners. However, by keeping a record of your RPE, heart rate and average speed you can learn what effort corresponds to a specific pace.

RPE pace equivalens

• RPE 0 = No effort, sedentary
• RPE 1 = Very very easy, Walking
• RPE 2 = Easy, easy pace
• RPE 3 = Moderate, marathon pace/half marathon pace (recreational runners)
• RPE 4 = Somewhat hard (half marathon pace (elite)lactate threshold pace/10km pace (recreational runners)
• RPE 5 = Hard, 10km pace (elite)
• RPE 6 = Harder, 5km pace (elite)
• RPE 7 = Very hard, 3km pace (elite)
• RPE 8 = Very very hard, 1500m pace (elite)
• RPE 9 = Extremely hard, 800m pace (elite)
• RPE 10 = Maximal effort, sprinting/final exertion, at the end of a race