Thursday, March 5, 2009

Training Schedule

I got a question from Virtual Runner about my training plan. I love to drone on and on about every aspect of my running, so an open invitation to talk about my training plan is like a dream come true! Let's dive right in because I can hardly wait!

Ideally, I would be running 5 days a week. I would have one long run day followed the next day by a short recovery run. Then I would have a speed work day, a medium distance day, and another shorter run. Because I've had plantar fasciitis and shin splints in the last couple months, I am using a four day running schedule. For the fifth day, I am riding my bike on a trainer for 30-60 minutes. To complicate things, I do weight training three days a week and have started swimming one day a week to get ready for my summer triathlon.

So for me, I do speed work on Mondays and a medium length run on Tuesdays. On Wednesday I lift weights and try to swim afterwards (I just swam for the first time in a long time this week. I hope I can keep it up.) On Thursdays I do my long runs and on Fridays I do a recovery run and lift weights. Now that the running season is really getting going, my lifting on Fridays will probably just be core work. Saturdays I try not to do anything, and Sundays I ride the bike and lift weights.

If you are new to marathoning, Marathoning for Mortals by John Bingham and Jenny Hadfield is a great place to start. It covers everything you need to know and has several training schedules to choose from. RunnersWorld.com also has training schedules that you can generate by putting in information such as: how hard do you want to train, how many weeks, etc. I have also used the McMillan Calculator to figure out what pace I need to be doing my speed work and goal times for races.

I'm very lucky that I have time to train while my kids are at school. My husband works full time and travels a lot with his job, yet somehow he manages to fit his training in. Sometimes it seems like all I do is keep the kids alive, the pets fed and get my training done. I have so much respect and admiration for people who train and keep their personal lives going while they work at the same time. I know I'm very lucky to be able to put a lot of focus on training at this point in my life. I'm certainly trying to enjoy it!

4 comments:

Mel-2nd Chances said...

it's great that you spend that time on yourself, and have that luxury! That's amazing! I need to get back into the pool... have a great weekend!

Sunshine said...

Appreciated your comment.
Enjoyed your post.
Attractive new picture!

SingletrackJenny (formerly known as IronJenny) said...

What time are you doing speed work Monday? I have bible study at 9:00... So I could get there as early as 8:05 and go until 8:50.... otherwise I can do it at 11:15.

Jean said...

The best advice that anyone ever gave me about running was to find a training regimen that works for you. It definitely sounds like you are doing that, Beth! Keep it up!