Runs 20+. There is some limited evidence that suggests that runs over 20 miles provide important adaptations for marathon running, and help prevent "hitting the wall". This column gives account of the number of runs that of 20 miles or more. Thursday – Standard warm up. Run 1 800/1600/3200/1600/800 meter superset. Run 800 meters at 5K pace, 1600 meters at 10K pace, 3200 metrs at goal marathon race pace, 1600 meters at 10K pace and 800 meters at 5K pace. Take no rest between distances. Cool down with 800 meters at an easy pace. More information can be found on tapering in our blog post from May 2018, Tapering your programme to improve performance for competition. How long should you taper for? Starting Mileage. A marathon training plan needs to start with an initial mileage that matches your current fitness. However, you can skip the first few weeks of a plan if you are fitter than the initial few weeks call for. In fact, it can be important to skip these weeks, otherwise you may become detrained.

One of my good running friends told me once, “It’s funny – the more you run, the better you get at running.” Definitely the truth.I tried to keep all my tempo runs to at least the calculated 15k pace , whether 4m or 6m, rather than slowing for the longer tempo Easy runs in this advanced marathon training plan should be run at a pace that feels fairly comfortable. You should be breathing hard, but should be able to carry on a conversation. If you are breathing so hard that you cannot talk, you are running too hard. If you can sing, you are running too easily. Rest

In addition to the many physiological benefits, tapering also offers positive psychological benefits. It can help improve in mood and reduce the perception of effort during training. An effective taper should leave you feeling mentally refreshed with increased motivation to reach that finish line. Photo by RF._.studio from Pexels Are you looking for a training schedule to get you through 26.2 miles and hit a new PR? Well here’s an overview of a great choice – the Pete Pfitzinger marathon training plan.

Thursday – Standard warm up. Run 5 x 2 minute repeats at 20 seconds per mile faster than 5K pace. Jog for 2 minutes between repeats. Cool down with 800 meters of easy jogging.