My Marathon Training Program

[ERCougar]

Originally Posted by bluegoose

Do you have a link to your program? 18 weeks sounds like a long time to get ready for a half.

Yeah, that's what I thought about it. I noticed they've changed their Runners World link--which is where I think I got my program I'm using.

[ERCougar]

Originally Posted by bluegoose

Do you have a link to your program? 18 weeks sounds like a long time to get ready for a half.

I found the link: http://www.furman.edu/first/Half%20M...%20Program.pdf

So far, this is a great program. I've gotten much faster and have had ZERO knee issues so far (rare for me). I've only done the first five weeks, but I've never felt this good.

[SteelBlue]

This program is great for me. The intervals are brutal but I need them. The first run for this week was 5 1K intervals with 400m rest in between. Doesn't look too tough on paper but you're asked to run them 45 seconds faster than your 10k race pace. I can see that if nothing else this program will make you faster.

[bluegoose]

Originally Posted by ERCougar

I found the link: http://www.furman.edu/first/Half%20M...%20Program.pdf

So far, this is a great program. I've gotten much faster and have had ZERO knee issues so far (rare for me). I've only done the first five weeks, but I've never felt this good.

So whats the philosophy behind your using this program? I assume its not only to finish a half, but to finish fast, considering you do several runs longer that 13 miles during your training.

As someone who has never run a marathon before, my goal is to finish and feel fairly well at the end. I've also got a goal for time, but I understand that could be a little ambitious for a first timer.

I have never personally understood programs like Galloways where he has you running up to 32 miles to get ready for a marathon. It seems like a waste of time to me. Thats why I like the Furman full marathon training program. The longest run is 20 miles getting ready for it.

[ERCougar]

Originally Posted by bluegoose

So whats the philosophy behind your using this program? I assume its not only to finish a half, but to finish fast, considering you do several runs longer that 13 miles during your training.

As someone who has never run a marathon before, my goal is to finish and feel fairly well at the end. I've also got a goal for time, but I understand that could be a little ambitious for a first timer.

I have never personally understood programs like Galloways where he has you running up to 32 miles to get ready for a marathon. It seems like a waste of time to me. Thats why I like the Furman full marathon training program. The longest run is 20 miles getting ready for it.

My philosophy is that this was a program that lets me run only three times a week while promising to improve my speed. If I had come across your version first, I probably would have done it instead, but I was already into mine. I do think 18 weeks is a little excessive for a half-marathon, but I had that much time until the one I was running so it didn't matter much.

I don't think it's overly ambitious to have a time goal for a first half-marathon. A half is a lot less than half of a marathon's impact on your body, so I don't think you have to proceed quite as carefully. Just my opinion.

EDIT: Also, no, I don't get Galloway's philosophy either. My wife followed that program last year for St George, running the Logan marathon as her last "long run" before St George. I think that long of a run hurt her in the end, despite the fact that she tried to run Logan really slowly. In a half-marathon, I think it does make sense to go longer than 13 in your training because you're not beating down your body nearly as hard.