Marathon training: planning a 30-day running programme

How should you train during the last four weeks before your marathon? The answer to that question will of course determine how well you do on marathon day. In fact, the last four weeks can play a larger role in deciding your marathon finishing time than the preceding 16 weeks of training. You can do some popular and traditional - but devastatingly wrong - things during those last four weeks which will harm your chances of having a good race. Or, you can bring all of your hard work together and advance your fitness to its highest-possible state in that final month. Which will it be?

When you decide what to do during those last key four weeks, it’s important to remember that they represent an opportunity to recover from the hard marathon training which has gone before. This of course means you should usually do less training than normal during the final four-week period, giving your muscles a break from the rigours of relentless training and letting them synthesize the new enzymes and mitochondria which will make you a better runner. If you were to train very hard, your muscles would have to cope with the demands of the strenuous work and could not divert adequate energy into constructive processes.

The four weeks before the marathon are actually one of those pleasant times when training more easily will make you fitter. To express it in traditional terms, they represent an appropriate tapering period for the marathon. The marathon requires a longer tapering programme than other races (one week is about right for a major 5K and 10 to 14 days are fine for a 10K), because marathon preparations usually produce more muscle damage (and thus create a greater need for repair), compared to shorter competitions.

Although recovery is emphasized, the final month is also a time to finish uncompleted work. By the time runners reach their last four pre-marathon weeks, they should have completed training ’blocks’ designed to optimize lactate threshold, VO2max, economy, strength, and power during the preceding months. However, it’s possible that their hill training (for strength and economy) didn’t go very well; if so, they can spend the first two weeks of the last month completing missed hill workouts or just shoring up strength with reasonable amounts of inclined running. If their lactate-threshold sessions were not completed successfully (because of weather, fatigue, pressures from work, or other reasons), they could fit several LT-advancing workouts into the first two weeks of the final month.

Now is the time for intensity

It’s also clear that the basic foundation of the last month should be intensity, not volume. Running lots of miles and fitting in last-second long runs would further stress already wounded muscles. It’s better to let muscle fibres recover by gradually reducing their weekly dose of impact forces. Although at first glance the principle of running intensely during a recovery period seems peculiar (why wouldn’t rapid running also stress the muscles?), it works well for several reasons. First, research has demonstrated that intensity is a much more potent producer of fitness than mileage. Since you are trying to boost your fitness dramatically in the last month, intensity is the more attractive option.

In addition, intensity produces a number of physiological adjustments which are very attractive to marathon runners. First, it expands blood volume to a greater extent than slower running; the increased blood volume ensures both better fuel and oxygen delivery to muscles during the marathon and a superior supply of blood to the skin for cooling - and also reduces the risk of dehydration. Intensity also enhances nervous-system coordination of the gait cycle, improving running economy and therefore lessening glycogen depletion during the marathon. In addition, intense running makes marathon pace feel much easier by comparison (while slow running makes marathon speed feel comparatively harder), a not inconsequential factor when one is faced with the daunting task of running more than 26 miles at a particular pace.

How often to be intense

Bear in mind that this does not mean that one should be running very intensely every day. Although intense running, which we’ll define as efforts which take place at 15K race speed or faster, should increase as a percentage of total weekly miles throughout the four-week period, the actual number of intense miles per week remains reasonable, to ensure recovery. Plus, not every workout can be intense, simply because there are other things to do in the last four weeks, the most notable being the continuation of the ’MP’ work which was initiated during the main portion of marathon training.

An MP (marathon-pace) workout involves warming up and then running from three to 12 miles at one’s planned marathon pace. There are many reasons to complete such workouts (and to include them in the four-week, pre-marathon period): ⁽¹⁾ they increase confidence that one can run comfortably at goal speed during the marathon, ⁽²⁾ they improve efficiency at marathon velocity, reducing the ravages of glycogen depletion on marathon day, and ⁽³⁾ they dramatically improve pacing sense, so that one can avoid the serious mistake of starting the marathon too fast and also avoid losing time by running too slowly between mile markers or splits. Twelve miles is usually the upper limit for these workouts, because running longer than that at marathon pace boosts muscle damage, increases the need for recovery time, and makes it difficult to complete intense workouts in effective fashion.

In fact, during the final four weeks, the full-bore MP efforts should probably be limited to around eight to nine miles, and these should be carried out during the first two weeks of the final month only - not during the last two weeks before the race. The reason for this is that the eight- to nine-milers can be somewhat draining, and there are things which will better fine-tune fitness during the last two weeks. In effect, as the race draws closer and closer, the MP efforts become ’reminder’ workouts, rather than dramatic fitness boosters. They remind the nervous system how to control the muscles efficiently at marathon pace, and they remind the conscious brain exactly how moderate and comfortable that pace feels. Most of the improvement in economy at marathon pace has already been made; the inclusion of the final MP sessions is just to maintain that economy, and not a lot of MP work is required for that.

What NOT to do

Those are the general principles for the last four weeks before a marathon, and these precepts - recovery, intensity, MP running, and finishing uncompleted work - of course mean that there are lots of things that marathoners should not do during their final preparations. We have listed the key errors below. You may be surprised at the presence of certain elements in the list, because several of the goof-ups are very popular with marathon runners:

Big Mistake no. 1: carrying out yet another long run during the last four weeks. One of the most beloved marathon training experts, Jeff Galloway, recommends the completion of a 26- to 28-mile training run about two to three weeks before the actual marathon (Galloway’s Book on Running, Shelter Publications, 1984). Indeed, most runners seem to try to fit in one last 20- to 22-miler within three weeks of the big day, and half-marathons and even 30-K events are scheduled three weeks or so before a marathon and are billed as ’marathon-preparation’ races. The idea here seems to be that if you don’t carry out a long run shortly before your marathon, your body will forget what to do, ie, it won’t hold on to the endurance which is necessary to cover 26.2 miles at one crack.

That’s a very bad assumption. As long as you are training regularly, you can go many months between long runs - and yet still run 26 miles at a time without stopping. Your body doesn’t ’forget’ its ability to go long.

Of course, many runners think they need to do the long run because it is ’so much like the marathon’. The truth is that the long run is not very much like the marathon at all. The long run usually occurs at a much lower intensity than the marathon itself - often a minute or more per mile slower. Expressed as a percentage of VO2max, the intensity of the long run is about 10 to 15 per cent lower than marathon intensity; in terms of heart rate, it is often about 15 beats per minute slower. So what does one actually accomplish with a long run? One simply reinforces the ability to amble along at a modest pace, not to race a marathon.

The truth is that the 18- to 22-mile long run (and even the 28-mile effort, à la Galloway) is not a huge fitness raiser. Intensity is a much more potent producer of fitness than volume (miles), and the intensity of the long run is quite low. Completing four miles of hard work (at 5-K to 10-K intensity) is much better for your fitness than slogging through 20 miles. And, believe it or not, high fitness - not a high number of long runs - is the key factor which produces good marathon times.

Don’t forget, too, that the 18- to 28-mile long run has a strongly negative effect. It induces leg-muscle damage, and if the long run occurs within four weeks of the marathon date, this damage will not be healed in time for the race.

We know about the lingering effects of long-run-induced damage because of the useful research carried out several years ago by investigators at the Harvard Medical School and Tufts University. That work demonstrated that after a very long run, runners’ leg muscles were seriously incapacitated. Portions of some muscle cells had disappeared, other cells were swollen, blood vessels near the muscle cells were damaged, glycogen was absent, and mitochondria (tiny structures within muscle fibres which are absolutely necessary for aerobic energy production) had degenerated. It took about a month for the muscle fibres and their associated structures to get back on the job (in fact, the repairs weren’t complete for 10 to 12 weeks), which tells us that fitting in a long run within the month before your marathon ensures that you won’t run the race as well as you possibly can. It’s pretty hard for muscles to work optimally when they are under construction, yet the long run, carried out within a month of the marathon, remains on a high, high pedestal, recommended often by the ’experts’.

Big Mistake no. 2: completing a big interval workout within the last two weeks before the marathon. In his book, Galloway actually recommends completing 12 to 13 one-mile intervals at about 20 to 30 seconds per mile faster than marathon pace two weeks before the marathon. The rationale for such a workout is unclear, but the effects it would have on a runner are very evident. It would produce a significant amount of fatigue and muscle mayhem during a time period in which recovery was supposedly being emphasized. Occurring one week after the 26- to 28-mile run, as it does in Galloway’s system,this workout is a disaster.That’s not to say that interval sessions are a bad idea during the pre-marathon month. In fact, they have real value. The correct philosophy, however, is to do enough interval training to spur fitness - but not enough to retard recovery. 12 to 13 one-mile intervals won’t spur recovery; they will zap your leg muscles. A much better interval workout would be 3 x 1 mile at 5K pace, 4 x 1200 at 5K pace, or 3 x 2000 at 10K pace. Longer intervals (1200s to 2000s) are preferred over shorter ones (200s to 800s), because one is focusing on sustaining good paces, not developing bursts of power over short distances. Research suggests that the utilization of 5K pace for the intervals carried out within a tapering period appears to promote the ’peaking’ of fitness.

Big Mistake no. 3: running a 10K race one week before the big day. Runners often do this, but they are seldom successful at running a sizzling 10K and then a fine marathon the following week. Often, if their marathon training has been going well, they will run a really good 10K, because their fitness level is high, but they will then have trouble with the marathon. The simple truth is that a hard 10K requires several days (perhaps four to six) of recovery, and you really don’t want to do anything which requires lots of recovery during the final week of your pre-marathon tapering period. The optimal strategy is to foster recovery, not increase the need for it.

While a 10K is forbidden one week before a marathon, a 5K is not such a bad idea. For one thing, the shorter race requires much less recovery, which is of course important. In addition, running a 5K can have a quick, dramatically positive impact on both VO2max and lactate threshold. Pushing those two key variables upward can only improve marathon performance.

Things you should do

As we mentioned earlier, there are a number of things you should do during the last four weeks. You need to carry out a certain number of intense workouts. You need to obtain adequate recovery, which means less total miles. You need to maintain your efficiency and confidence at marathon pace. And of course, you should try to strengthen any weaknesses which have appeared in your preceding training.

Of course, what you actually do during the four weeks does depend on what your previous training was like. Some runners come into the pre-marathon period with 20 full weeks of great preparation and have few worries for the last month. All they really need to do is to carry out two to three decent workouts per week, avoiding recovery-retarding long runs while focusing on a balance of MP, VO2max, lactate-threshold, and hill efforts. Others may have encountered problems during their training or may have been able to prepare for a considerably shorter period of time. In such a case, their final month will be quite a lot different.

For example, a runner came to me in May this year asking for help with her preparations for the new San Diego Rock’n Roll Marathon, which was to be held on June 21. Her marathon PB was 3:37, and her 5K best was 20:30, but she was running the 5K in around 21:30 when she contacted me. Her key problem was that she had not had much time to get specifically ready for San Diego. Although she had been running about 40 to 50 miles per week in March and April and thus had been building a pretty decent base of mileage, she had done almost no running at all at marathon goal pace, nor had she focused specifically on optimizing lactate threshold, economy, or VO2max. To make matters more complicated, her schedule kept her from doing very much training at all during the first half of May. In fact, we were only able to begin working together on May 21 - just one month before race day. In such a short time, how could she properly prepare herself for the race?

In a situation like that, there’s no sense in dreaming about running the ultimate marathon; rather, the focus should be on doing the things which can quickly improve marathon potential. I reasoned that she needed to build up her general strength, since enhanced strength would improve the fatigue resistance of her muscles, helping to compensate for her limited marathon preparations. Along the same lines, she also needed some workouts in which she would be forced to run hard in the face of mounting fatigue - the exact situation which would prevail on race day. And of course, she also needed a goal pace - and some experience running at that pace before she toed the San Diego starting line.

Settling on a marathon goal pace was not the most straightforward thing in the world to do. Her current 5K time was 21:30, which represented an average pace of about 6:56 per mile. Using that as the basic indicator of her fitness, I reckoned she could run a 10K at about 7:12 per mile (16 seconds per mile slower than her 5K speed). That meant that her half-marathon tempo would be 7:28 per mile, and her predicted marathon speed would be 7:44. Still, her marathon preparations had been less than perfect, so I conservatively suggested we aim for 7:50 pace, which would bring her home with a nice PB of 3:25:09, and she agreed.

I then created her 30-day schedule, as follows (the marathon was to be held on the 31st day):

Day 1: 2-mile warm-up, and then a ’Speed-Strength Circuit’ designed by Walt Reynolds, which proceeds as follows:

1) Run 400 metres in 1:44 (her 5K pace)
2) Complete 12 squat thrusts with jumps (burpees)
3) Do 3 chin-ups
4) Perform 12 press-ups
5) Do 30 ab crunches
6) Complete 24 body-weight squats
7) Run 400 metres in 1:44 again
8) Do 10 squat and dumbbell presses with 10-pound dumbbells
9) Perform 8 feet-elevated press-ups
10) Complete 12 bench dips
11) Do 30 low-back extensions
12) Complete 15 lunges with each leg
13) Run 400 meters in 1:44
14) Repeat steps 2-13 one more time (for two circuits in all), and then cool down with 2 miles of light jogging (for 5.25 total miles of running)

Why do this workout at all - and why ’lead’ with it with only 30 days left before the marathon? Because it includes 10 different whole-body exercises, the session is excellent for building general strength, which is important for the marathon. In addition, the 400-metre intervals at 5K pace are great for increasing VO2max. Research also reveals (and logic suggests) that circuit training is good for lifting lactate threshold, aka LT (logic suggests that LT improves because workouts which build general strength should enhance stability and coordination while running, which therefore decreases the energy cost of running, diminishes carbohydrate ’burning’, and therefore lowers lactate output). And there’s one final bonus: by doing the circuits, one is forced to run at a quality pace in spite of the fatigue produced by the back-to-back exercises, mimicking the situation which prevails in a marathon, when one must tick off mile after mile at quality speed despite increasing weariness.

Day 2: 4 miles of easy running, to permit recovery from the previous day’s circuit (indeed, the runner was - to her surprise - quite sore after the exercises and 400-metre intervals).

Day 3: a modified MP session, which consisted of 7 miles of easy running, followed by 3 miles at goal pace (7:50 per mile), and then 2 easy miles.

Of course, one of the merits of this workout is that it includes a nice chunk of marathon-pace running, which improves efficiency and mental comfort at goal marathon speed. Placing the three marathon-paced miles after seven preceding miles also gets a runner used to running at marathon pace while somewhat tired. And a 12-miler is a decent long run, yet it is not so prolonged that it produces extraordinary stress on the leg muscles during the 30 days before a marathon. Only a portion (in this case 25 per cent) of the workout is actually conducted at goal pace (that’s why it’s called a ’modified’ MP session) - in order to keep the lid on leg-muscle wear and tear.

Day 4: 4 miles easily (to recover from the previous day’s modified MP session).

Day 5: Speed-Strength Circuit (merely a repeat of the workout from Day 1; the rationale for this workout is explained above). Repeating this kind of workout fairly frequently is absolutely necessary to significantly expand strength and bolster LT.

Day 6: 6 miles of easy running.

Day 7: Modified MP again, but this time with 7 easy miles, followed by 4 miles at 7:50 per mile (goal-marathon) pace, and then 3 easy miles (14 miles in all). The rationale here was to continue to boost her confidence in her ability to manage 7:50 pace (and also improve her economy at that speed). After completing this workout, she felt strongly that she could maintain goal pace even after running a significant number of miles.

That may appear to be a pretty tough week! After all, she completed four quality workouts, which seems like a lot for a so-called recovery period. However, none of the four workouts was debilitating; in fact, the quality running in this quartet added up to just 9.5 miles (quality miles are defined as those completed at marathon pace or faster), or 19 percent of the 50.5 total miles she ran during the week. The 50.5 miles were relatively easy for her to handle, because of her previous experience with 50-mile weeks. In addition, I didn’t wish to drastically curtail her mileage because she had already trained lightly during the two preceding weeks. Meanwhile, the two strength-circuit workouts gave her a great start on her general-strength development. By the end of the week, she was already feeling stronger - and confident about her 7:50 goal pace (both MP sessions had gone well). Things were off to a great start!

Here’s how the rest of her training went:

Day 8: Rest day with no training at all (she was definitely ready to take a day off). Ordinarily, it’s best to have at least one rest day within every seven-day training period, but she was able to wait a bit longer because of the holiday she took prior to embarking on this regime. The positioning of this rest day was ideal, because she really needed to recover after her 14-mile jaunt on day 7.

Day 9: 5-mile easy run (continuing her recovery from the 14-mile effort).

Day 10: A progressed Speed-Strength Circuit Workout. With circuit workouts, progression means increasing the total number of circuits, expanding the number of reps of the exercises, and/or elongating the lengths of the running intervals. For this session, I chose to advance the running intervals from 400 to 600 metres, which forced her to run further at good speed in the face of mounting fatigue and also increased the VO2max benefits accruing from the session (reps of the exercises remained the same, as did the total number of circuits). Shifting to 600-metre intervals expanded the total miles covered during the workout from 5.25 to 5.875, with 100 per cent of this increase consisting of quality running at 5K pace.

Day 11: 6 miles of easy running.

Day 12: 6 miles of easy running, plus 2 sets of the entire array of exercises included within the circuit session. The idea here was of course to continue with strength development, but there were no running intervals because I wanted her to complete some ’pure’ lactate-threshold (LT) workouts, in addition to her LT-boosting circuits. The ’straight’ LT session was planned for the following day, so the running on this day had to be pretty easy.

Day 13: An LT session, consisting of 2 easy miles, 3 ’tempo’ miles in 22:15 (7:25 pace), and then 2 light miles. Actual LT pace is usually about 10 to 15 seconds per mile slower than 10K pace, which we estimated to be 7:12 per mile, so this session - at very close to LT speed - should have been very good for LT advancement. In addition, covering 3 miles continuously at 25 seconds per mile faster than marathon pace makes marathon tempo feel easier.

Day 14: Modified MP - 9 miles at easy pace, 3 miles at MP, and 2 miles easily (to give her experience running at MP after an even larger amount of preceding running; the previous modified-MP session had included only 7 pre-MP miles).

Increasing the quality

This second week added up to 43.875 miles, as her total mileage began to wind down. These 43.875 miles included 7.875 miles of quality effort, or 18 per cent of the total, about the same as the previous week (the percentage of quality work would increase in the next two weeks as the marathon drew closer).

Day 15: Rest day.

Day 16: Speed-Strength Circuit (just like day 11’s session, with 600-metre repeats and two circuits overall), but with about a 10-per cent increase in the number of reps of the exercises).

Day 17: 6 miles very easily.

Day 18: Speed-Strength Circuit, but with 800-metre reps at 5K pace, rather than 600-metre intervals, and a slightly increased number of exercise reps (the total number of circuits remained at two). Obviously, I was depending heavily on the circuits to augment her strength, VO2max, and LT simultaneously - and quickly. The circuits are great for that, and post-circuit recovery is quick (because there is not a voluminous amount of running involved). Note, however, that with five running intervals per circuit workout (three during the first circuit and two on the second), the quality running per session has increased from 1.25 to 2.5 miles since day 1.

Day 19: 6 miles easily.

Day 20: modified MP again, but this time with just 4 easy miles, 3 MP miles, and 1 cool-down mile. The total quantity of training is decreasing; this is simply a ’reminder’ workout, as described earlier.

Day 21: Speed-Strength Circuit again (basically the same session as on day 18, with 800-metre intervals).

Lowering mileage, upping intensity

This third week consisted of only 38.875 total miles, with 9.875 quality miles, the highest amount of quality work so far, and of course the highest percentage of total (25 per cent). Three of these quality miles were reminder miles at marathon pace; the rest were very high-quality exertions at 5-K velocity. As total mileage declines, and intense running climbs, the mix of better recovery and intensity allowed this runner to begin approaching her peak of fitness. Here’s how the rest of the training went:

Day 22: Rest day.

Day 23: MP session, consisting of a 2-mile warm-up and then 5 miles at goal-marathon (7:50) pace, followed by a 2-mile cool-down. She also practised the optimal sports-drink-intake pattern (10 ounces 10 minutes before running, five to six ounces every 15 minutes while running) during this workout.

Day 24: 6-mile easy run, again practising the optimal sports-drink pattern.

Day 25: 1 hour of easy bicycling to further promote recovery, again using the sports-drink pattern.

Day 26: Speed-Strength Circuit (back to two circuits using 400-metre running intervals rather than 800s, to promote recovery).

Day 27: 5 miles of easy running while practising sports-drink intake.

Day 28: 2-mile warm-up, just 3 x 800 in about 3:20 each (which I estimated would be her new 5K pace if she chose to run a 5K instead of the marathon), with just 2-minute jog recoveries after the first two 800s and a 1-mile cool-down at the end. The purpose of this workout - pure and simple - was to use intensity to spike fitness, while keeping the overall workout abbreviated to further maximize recovery.

Now there is a recovery week! There were just 30.25 total miles, with 7.75 (26 per cent) of those miles being quality. She was beginning to feel really strong - and ready to ’Rock’n Roll’. Day 29 was a day of total rest, and day 30 (the day before the marathon) consisted of a 2-mile warm-up, 1 reminder mile at marathon pace, and a 1-mile cool-down. Overall, she ran just 9 miles during the three days leading up to the marathon.

The result

Is this programme unconventional? Yes; there wasn’t a single run over 14 miles during the month, and the mileage levels were relatively low. Was the programme productive? Also yes, because the circuit workouts advanced her strength, VO2max, and LT, the MP sessions heightened her efficiency and confidence, and the tempo runs and 5K intervals helped her ’peak’. Although the start of the San Diego Marathon was delayed by 40 minutes and unusually warm temperatures prevailed during the race, she managed to finish the marathon in 3:25:07, a new PB by 12 minutes. Note, too, that 3:25:07 represents an average pace of 7:50 per mile - her exact goal pace. She had successfully carried out her race plan!

She was so excited with her results, especially given the limited training time, that she immediately reserved a place in this autumn’s Chicago Marathon. Her goal for that race will be 3:12, and her ultimate target is 2:59 at the Boston Marathon next spring. What amazed her the most was her ability to handle the last six miles of the marathon without problems, despite her lack of long runs (this was due to her upgraded strength and fitness) - and also her quick recovery following the race (she had only a tinge of post-marathon soreness, also because of her enhanced strength).

Back in March and April, this runner had completed long runs of 20, 18, and 16 miles, but in the last seven weeks before her PB, she completed nothing over 14 miles. She worried considerably about this, espec