Running Training Plans

In order to make systematic progress towards our goals in running, jogging, or walking, we need a training plan. We all have times when we suffer from a lack of motivation or burn-out, and a training plan will help us through those difficult periods. In addition, a good plan will help us avoid over-training and injury that may follow. There are, basically, two types of training plans.

Static Plans

There are books and web sites, including this site, that have training plans for beginner runners or walkers, plans for intermediates, and so on. If the plans are authored by experienced athletes, they will probably contain good suggestions and schedules for your training. I call these plans static plans because they are frozen in print and we take them as-is. Many runners and walkers get into trouble following static training plans, especially if they are new to running or walking. They believe they should follow the plans as they are written because the plans were written by world-class athletes or other well-trained persons. For example, suppose you find a plan for beginners, and you decide to follow that plan. You may do OK, but you may not. That plan was written for a particular stereotype of a beginner, and you may not fit that stereotype.

Dynamic Plans

There is a type of training plan that I call a dynamic plan. The word dynamic implies that the plan can be changed as you implement it. For example, suppose your plan has you running this many miles in week 1, that many miles in week 2, and a different number of miles in week 3. And, suppose you discover at the end of week 2 that you're tired and don't feel like running at all during the next week, much less increasing your mileage. If you're following a static plan, you may ignore your tiredness and force yourself to advance to week 3. But, if you're following a dynamic plan, you'll modify the plan to fit your body condition, perhaps having week 3 be a repeat of week 2, or having week 3 be a rest week with a reduction in mileage. One person may consider a plan as static while another person may consider the same plan as dynamic. Thus, the difference in the two types of plans is the attitude of the person. Dynamic plans are modified on a day by day basis according to your body condition. Some of these plans encourage you to modify your plan, while other plans don't encourage you, but I think that authors of all plans assume you will modify your plan as needed.

Modifying Your Plan

OK, how do you modify your plan? By listening to your body! Your body will let you know when it can't handle the stress you're giving it via your running. Your body will let you know when it needs more rest. These changes to your plan may be temporary -- you take an extra rest day and then continue with your plan, or the changes may be permanent, you reduce your distance by half and then continue your plan with the new distance.

Here are some of the signals that tell you that you need to modify your plan a bit to reduce stress.

• Feeling overly tired, sluggish, or fatigued at the end of a run or walk.
• Certain muscles are experiencing pain.
• Waking up in the middle of the night and can't get back to sleep.
• Losing motivation and excitement for your running or walking.
• Doing dumb things while driving.
• Suffering an injury

How do you modify your plan? By giving your body more rest. Keep in mind that running or walking destroys body cells, and it is during rest that your body reacts to that stress and becomes stronger.

• Reduce your distance.

• Reduce your pace.

• Following the 10% rule (or less) in increasing your distance and/or pace.

• Alternating heavy stress and light stress days. Light days can be reduced running, cross training such as light cycling or swimming or no exercise activity. Your body needs 48 hours or more to recover from a heavy stress run or walk, and following the heavy day with a light day gives your body that extra time it needs.

• Take a rest week every month with reduced running.

• Go to bed earlier and/or take naps.

One day while working in Massachusetts, I came in from a noon-hour run and the security guard called me over to talk with him. He told me he had recently started running and felt very tired at the end of his runs. That tiredness stayed with him throughout the day. I suggested that he reduce his distance by half and then make small weekly increases of 10% or less. He told me later that he had made those changes and now felt great during and after his runs.

 

Getting a Dynamic Plan

Where can you get a dynamic plan? A good source is from a book or web site or a training center that publishes training plans. Another good source is to create your own plan, following counsel from other runners, books, and web sites. That is, you get a good static plan that looks like it might work for you, and then you modify it as you use it. This approach works well as long as you have the emotional strength to actually modify the plan and not become a slave to it. A third source is from a person whom you admire and trust. This person could be another runner, a coach, or a professional trainer. Be aware, however, that unless the person is skillful in working with runners or walkers, they may give you a plan that would work for them but not for you. This occurs when that person is unable to come down to your level of needs. The person may author a plan based on their needs, and since that person is probably more experienced than you, they'll give you a plan that requires that you do more than your body can handle. Coaches especially have this problem, because they have a fixed competition schedule and don't have time to treat each runner individually. If you use a plan from another person, be sure that that person encourages you to modify the plan according to the needs of your body. By listening to your body and using signals from your body as indicators that your plan needs to be modified a bit, you will have enlisted the best trainer of all, your body, and you will reduce the stress on your body.

 

Published Training Plans

There are a lot of training plans given in books, magazines, web sites, and training centers. It is common for new runners (and experienced runners, too) to try to follow those plans, and often we discover that those plans "aren't for us". Let's look at this situation.

It takes a lot of faith to follow a plan given by someone we've never met, someone who doesn't know the current condition of our bodies, someone who is giving recommendations based on his/her experience with other runners but not with us. If we try to blindly follow such plans, we're putting our running career into the hands of a stranger who doesn't know us and who doesn't know the capabilities of our bodies to handle stress. If we do this, we'll likely be heading towards pushing ourselves too much in our training, and that can lead to injury. Symptoms that we are over training include heavy breathing during and after a run, cramps or stitches, sore throats, fatigue, excess soreness, feelings that we should give up running, difficulty sleeping at night, doing dumb things while driving (sorry, officer, I didn't see that light). Does this mean that we should ignore plans from the books, magazines, and web sites that we read? No. It means that we should operate less on blind faith and more on actual evidence from our bodies.

 

The Foundation of our Training

There are three principles that are so basic that they should form the foundation of our training, and everything we do in our training should be based on these principles.

1. Running subjects our bodies to stress. If we put too much stress on our bodies, injury will occur. Our bodies can handle small increases of stress better than they can handle large increases. This principle is the basis for the 10% rule that is described in running literature.
2. Stress destroys body cells. Thus running is destructive and does not build strength. The strength that we develop as runners comes from rest, the rest we have between our runs. This principle is the basis for the heavy/light method of training.
3. Our bodies know when we're pushing ourselves too much in our training, and they send us signals to back off and give them more rest. They also send us signals that we're OK in our training and to keep it up. The signals to back off were given above as symptoms of over-training. The symptoms that we're "on track" with our training are the opposite of the signals of over-training, including the so-called runners high. Keep in mind that these signals can change with every run.

Principle 3 means we should listen to our bodies and vary our training accordingly. By doing this, we can learn to run without pain and without injury, and our running will be a joyous and positive experience. Principle 3 is also the basis for our having actual evidence for how we train rather than having blind faith in recommendations from strangers who don't know the limits of our bodies

Some people are adept at listening to their bodies, and these fortunate folks are capable of establishing their own training plans, or of modifying plans from others to fit their bodies. Other folks have a hard time listening to their bodies, often due to strong drives to get fast improvement or to compete with everyone they encounter. These folks need to be especially careful in their training since they often "drive blind" in deciding how much to push themselves in their training. It would be wise for these runners to get training advice from someone who knows them and knows the capacity of their bodies to handle stress.

A Plan For Beginning Running

You want to run or walk. Maybe to lose weight, maybe to have better health, maybe to fulfill a half-buried dream. For whatever reason, you've decided to run, and you are excited to get started. Here is a plan to get you going. This plan is a suggested approach that will help you become a runner or walker. This plan observes both the 10% rule and the heavy/light rule, and it includes a monthly recovery week of reduced running/walking that is followed by a week of the time you ran just before the recovery week. Because of the relatively small increases in time, this plan takes longer than some of you might want to spend. Feel free to adjust the plan to fit your interests and body condition. As you follow the plan, focus on completing the time and don't worry about speed. Just run or walk at a comfortable pace. In fact, this caution about focusing on time not speed should be your guide later on as you advance to longer times.

Do all of your running at a comfortable pace in which you can talk with a running buddy. No huffing or puffing or gasping for air. No sore throats. No pain in your side. All of those symptoms are signs that you've exceeded the capability of your body to handle the stress from running. Take relatively small steps, such that your feet hit the ground behind your knees. It's common for people to take larger steps when they walk or run, and this causes their feet to hit the ground in front of their knees. This is called over striding, and it can lead to shin splints or pain in the front of their legs.

 

Measurable Goal

1. You will first walk but not run three times a week, making small increases in the time you spend each week, until you are walking for 30 minutes. You will be walking approximately a mile, but you are walking by time not distance. This will help your body adjust to the increased stress of walking without having a high risk of injury, since walking is much easier on your body than running. Take as many weeks for this phase as you need. Be sure your feet hit the ground behind your knees.
   
   
2. Next, you will add small amounts of running, or a continuation of walking, a comfortable pace while continuing to walk the same amount of time that you did in the first phase. When you are finished with this phase, you will be running or walking for 10 minutes and walking for 20 minutes. Some runners may want to split the walking into two parts and put all of their running as one block between the walking. Other runners may want to mix the walking and the running in small segments. For example, walking for a minute and then running for a few seconds. The length of the running or walking is increased until it is equal to 10 minutes. The length of the walking is not changed. Take as many weeks for this phase as you need.
   
   
3. Third, you will continue to add small amounts of running or walking at a comfortable pace until you are running or walking for 20 minutes. You are still walking for 20 minutes. Take as many weeks for this phase as you need.
   
   
4. Finally you will slowly increase the amount of running at a comfortable pace and decrease the amount of walking until you are doing just running or walking and are doing it for 30 minutes. You are welcome to include short walking breaks with your running if you would like. If you do take walking breaks, it is your choice whether or not you include the time spent walking as part of the 30 minutes. I take short walking breaks every mile when I run. I enjoy the few seconds of walking, and I feel invigorated when I resume running. Most importantly, I have more energy for the final part of my run. Take as many weeks for this phase as you need.

All of the increases in time that you make should be small, typically about 10% or less of your time. Based on how you feel, you may make smaller increases in some weeks and larger increases in other weeks. At the end of this plan, you will be ready to graduate to the Intermediate plan for running. That plan will take you from your 30 minutes of running or walking three times a week (approximately 9 miles or 14.5 km a week) to 24 miles (38.6 km) a week.

It is important that you modify this plan to fit both your interests and the capabilities of your body. For example, you may decide to do more running and less walking. Or, you may decide to run/walk more than three times a week by adding additional days in which you run/walk about half the distance you do in the main three days of your training. These additional days could be days of cross training, such as light swimming or cycling. Remember that this plan is just a guide to help you manage your training. It is not something rigid that you must slavishly follow. As you modify this plan to be your plan, keep in mind the two rules of running or walking that should govern all of us as we run or walk: the 10% rule in which we make small increases in our distance or speed, and the heavy/light rule in which we follow days of heavier stress with days of lighter stress (easy running, walking, or cross training) to give our bodies the 48 hours (or more) that it needs to recover from the days of heavier stress.

 

Fall-back Weeks

It is critical that you give your body sufficient rest after your heavy days such that your body can repair the damage to its cells and in so doing become stronger. In many cases, running and walking heavy/light will not give your body sufficient rest. It is thus advisable to include fall-back weeks in your schedule such that once a month or so you reduce your weekly time by 20 - 50%. At the end of each fall-back week, take one or two weeks to return to the time you were doing before the fall-back week. Then continue with your training.

 

Deciding How Much Distance to Add

Some of you will be concerned that this plan doesn't tell you exactly how much to walk or run each day. Instead, the plan tells you to follow the 10% rule and the heavy/light rule and to make wise decisions about how much time to spend each day. For some of you, having this amount of freedom will be a new experience, and it may take you a few weeks to adjust to this freedom. Hang in there and do the best you can to slowly increase your distance while listening to your body, and you will soon enjoy the freedom. When you have reached your goal of 30 minutes of running you will be thrilled with your ability to manage yourself, not having to be told exactly what to do. After all, by listening to your body, you are listening to the greatest coach you will ever have. Remember, you don't have to run or walk for exactly the number of minutes given in the plan. On days that you feel fine, you may want to run more and walk less. On days that you are tired, you may want to walk more and run less. Listen to your body and react accordingly.

 

Be a Runner not a Slave

Don't feel like you must follow this plan, or any plan, exactly as it is written. You are different from all other people on this planet. This plan should serve as a guide but not a blueprint. Modify this plan to be your plan -- your plan becomes your blueprint. Learn to listen to your body and to make decisions about your walking and running based on how your body feels.

My page on Over Training has a nice list of symptoms that indicate you are doing too much in your training and need to back off a bit (see left-sidebar),

 

Graduate to the Intermediate Plan

When you are able to run for 30 minutes (approximately three miles), and you feel comfortable with that distance, you are ready to graduate as a beginner and to begin training as an intermediate runner (see left-sidebar). Congratulations!

Intermediate Plan for Runners

Suppose you're running three miles (1.6 km) three times a week, and you're anxious to increase your distance. What do you do to increase your distance and maybe the number of days per week that you run? Perhaps you want to run a half-marathon or a marathon. Maybe you've chosen a marathon plan and are excited to get started. But....you have a problem. The plan says you should be running approximately 24 miles (39 km) a week, including a 6 mile (10 km) run, and you're only running 3 miles (4.8 km) three times a week. Should you start the plan anyway? If the plan says you should be running approximately 24 miles (39 km) a week and you're running less than that, you can expect trouble if you start the plan now. So, you really have only one feasible option: continue to run until you've met the conditions specified by the plan. If you organize your running, it probably won't take long to get yourself ready to start training for your half-marathon or marathon.

The basic idea that you should follow to increase your distance and/or the number of days per week that you run is to make small increases in your weekly mileage until you reach your goal. Just be careful that you don't rush into it and injure yourself. The running literature suggests that your weekly increases in distance be 10% or less of your weekly distance. In addition, follow the heavy/light rule by alternating heavy runs with light runs, where "heavy" and "light" refer to the stress applied to your body not to your effort in completing the runs. Doctors tell us that we need at least 48 hours for recovery after a heavy run, and the light run the day after, if it is a slow, easy run, satisfies that condition. Of course, you can take a rest day with no running for your light day if you wish, or you can do light cross-training such as walking, cycling, or swimming.

Here is a suggested schedule that will help you increase your distance. This schedule observes both the 10% rule and the heavy/light rule, and it includes a monthly light week and a monthly recovery week (distance ran before the light week). Because of the relatively small increases in distance, this plan takes longer than some of you might want to spend. Feel free to adjust the schedule to fit your interests and body condition. As you follow the schedule, focus on completing the distance and don't worry about speed. Just run at an easy, slow pace. In fact, this caution about focusing on distance not speed should be your guide later on as you follow your plan for your marathon or half marathon. Adjust the days of the week to fit your schedule. The chart gives distance in miles (kilometers). The kilometers are rounded to be whole numbers.

Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Sat
3 (5)	0 (0)	3 (5)	0	3 (5)	This is your starting base
3 (5)	1 (2)	3 (5)	0	3 (5)	11% increase for the week
3 (5)	1 (2)	3 (5)	1 (2)	3 (5)	10% increase for the week
3 (5)	0 (0)	3 (5)	0	3 (5)	This is a light week
3 (5)	1 (2)	3 (5)	1 (2)	3 (5)	This is a recovery week
4 (6)	1 (2)	3 (5)	1 (2)	3 (5)	9% increase for the week
4 (6)	1 (2)	4 (6)	1 (2)	3 (5)	8% increase for the week
4 (6)	1 (2)	4 (6)	1 (2)	4 (6)	8% increase for the week
4 (6)	0 (0)	3 (5)	0 (0)	3 (5)	This is a light week
4 (6)	1 (2)	4 (6)	1 (2)	4 (6)	This is a recovery week
4 (6)	2 (3)	4 (6)	1 (2)	4 (6)	7% increase for the week
4 (6)	2 (3)	4 (6)	2 (3)	4 (6)	7% increase for the week
5 (8)	2 (3)	5 (8)	2 (3)	4 (6)	12% increase for the week
4 (6)	0 (0)	4 (6)	0 (0)	4 (6)	This is a light week
5 (8)	2 (3)	5 (8)	2 (3)	4 (6)	This is a recovery week
5 (8)	3 (5)	5 (8)	2 (3)	5 (8)	11% increase for the week
6 (10)	3 (5)	5 (8)	3 (5)	5 (8)	10% increase for the week
6 (10)	3 (5)	6 (10)	3 (5)	6 (10)	11% increase for the week
This plan ends with a weekly distance of 24 miles (39 km). Continue running close to this weekly distance for several weeks to get really used to it, but vary your daily and weekly distances so your body doesn't get used to doing the same thing every week. Take a light (rest) week followed by a recovery week every month to six weeks. The recovery week is to take you back to the distance you were running before the light week. For example, suppose you finish a week with 22 miles. Then, you do a light week of 16 miles. Then, you do a recovery week of 22 miles. Then, you vary your daily and weekly distances until it's time for another light week.

One thing that will really help is to take walking breaks of 1 - 3 minutes each mile or every 2 km. If a particular week seems difficult for you, repeat that week until you feel comfortable with it. Since you'll probably be running outside for as much of this as possible, use your car to measure markers from 1 mile (2 km) to 6 miles (10 km). At each marker, locate an object, such as a tree or a telephone pole, that you can recognize as you pass it during your runs. High accuracy isn't needed, and you can vary the distances slightly to have your markers end at intersections or other noticeable landmarks if you're close to them. If you have a treadmill, use it during bad weather, when getting home late, etc.

Low Stress Training Plan for First Half-Marathon

The purpose of this training plan is to help you master the half-marathon distance, that is, master the stress of the distance. The plan does not include speed training, because I think the stress of speed should not be part of your first half-marathon. Think of the plan as a series of enjoyable training runs that get progressively longer until you feel comfortable with the half-marathon distance. The plan uses the 10% and heavy/light rules as its basis for increases in the weekly distance.

Prerequisites

To begin the plan, you should be running for several weeks about 24 miles (39 km) per week with 6-mile long runs, and you should feel comfortable with that distance.

Overview

Total time. The plan requires 12 weeks for a half-marathon. This is a longer time than that required by some plans in common use. The extra time is due to smaller increases in distance, smaller jumps in distance after the fall back weeks, and higher weekly distance.

Number of days per week. The plan is set up for six days of running per week. The plan can easily be modified for three or four days of running per week by eliminating days. However, to have a successful experience in a half-marathon, try to maintain 25-30 miles per week.

Length of runs. The plan has you running three different lengths of runs: one long run, one medium run, and four rest or recovery runs. Some runners run more than one long run or more than one medium run, but doing that puts significantly more stress on your body.

Increases in distance. The increases in the distance of the runs are based on the assumption that you can handle 10% increases in your weekly distance. Some runners can't do that and will need to allow additional time to let their bodies adjust to the increased stress. During the week, listen to your body to see how you feel after that day's training. If you feel tired, dragged out, or have excessive soreness, allow another week at that same or reduced level. When you return to the scheduled increases, don't try to catch up; just continue from where you are. If your tiredness continues, consider reducing your increases in subsequent weeks.

Fall-back weeks. After three weeks of increases, the next week is a fall-back week of reduced distance; that week is followed by a recovery week of the distance you were running before the reduction. This recovery week is to give your body extra rest. The fall-back weeks are denoted by FB.

Comfortable pace. Run at a comfortable pace, especially during the light weeks. Your first half-marathon is not the race for setting a new personal best! Choose a pace that will allow you to talk to a running buddy (or to yourself) and to feel fine at the end of the run.

Walking breaks. As you train, and later as you run your race, consider taking short walking breaks of 1 - 2 minutes every mile (2 km) during your runs. Walking uses muscles differently than running, thus giving your running muscles a rest, and the breaks help you to be invigorated and avoid slowing down during the last part of the run. Walk at a comfortable, restful pace. During the race do your walking breaks while passing the water tables. If you can do the shorter rest runs without stopping or slowing down much or being overly tired, you can omit the walking breaks during those runs, although you can do them if you want. If you're running hills, high temperatures, or high humidity, take walking breaks more often.

Using the plan. The charts give distance in miles (kilometers). The kilometers are rounded to be whole numbers.

1st Goal: Increase long run to 8 miles (13 km)

Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun	Weekly	Done
Week 1	3 (5)	4 (6)	6 (10)	3 (5)	4 (6)	6 (10)	off	26 (42)
Week 2	4 (6)	4 (6)	6 (10)	4 (6)	4 (6)	6 (10)	off	28 (45)
Week 3	4 (6)	5 (8)	7 (11)	4 (6)	4 (6)	7 (11)	off	31 (50)
Week 4 FB	3 (5)	4 (6)	5 (8)	3 (5)	3 (5)	5 (8)	off	23 (37)
Week 5	4 (6)	5 (8)	7 (11)	4 (6)	4 (6)	7 (11)	off	31 (50)
Week 6	4 (6)	5 (8)	8 (13)	4 (6)	5 (8)	8 (13)	off	34 (55)

Stay at these distances until you feel comfortable with them.

2nd Goal: Increase long run to 12 miles (19 km)

At the end of week 12, you will have run a long run of 12 miles (19 km) and will be ready for the half-marathon distance of 13.1 miles (21 km).

Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun	Weekly	Done
Week 7	4 (6)	5 (8)	8 (13)	4 (6)	5 (8)	9 (14)	off	35 (56)
Week 8	4 (6)	5 (8)	8 (13)	4 (6)	5 (8)	10 (16)	off	36 (58)
Week 9 FB	3 (5)	4 (6)	7 (11)	3 (5)	4 (6)	8 (13)	off	29 (47)
Week 10	4 (6)	5 (8)	8 (13)	4 (6)	5 (8)	10 (16)	off	36 (58)
Week 11	4 (6)	5 (8)	8 (13)	4 (6)	5 (8)	11 (18)	off	37 (60)
Week 12	4 (6)	5 (8)	8 (13)	4 (6)	5 (8)	12 (19)	off	38 (61)

Congratulations! You've conquered the half-marathon distance, and you're ready to run the half! Allow one week to taper your mileage before your race (two weeks if you're older) so you'll be rested when you run the race. Consider a taper that reduces all of your runs by about one-third. It's important that the 12-miler (19 km) occurs one week before your race (assuming you are rested on race day). If the 12-miler (19 km) occurs before that, you may lose some of the effect of the peak distance when you run the half-marathon. If it occurs later than that, you may not be fully recovered from your training when you run the half-marathon.

After you finish the race, walk around for a few minutes before you sit down to help keep blood from pooling in your feet.

Last Goal: Take a Week or More to Recover

After the race, take a day or two off to help your body start its recovery. During that time, don't just sit & watch TV. Be active by walking, swimming, biking, etc, but do those activities in moderation. When you feel ready to run, do a reverse taper to return to your pre-race distance. Begin with short distances at a slow, easy pace to help your body continue its recovery. Listen to your body during this time and avoid pushing yourself to do longer distances and faster paces. Let your body dictate how often you increase.

Low Stress Training Plan for First Marathon

The purpose of this training plan is to help you master the marathon distance, that is, master the stress of the distance. The plan does not include speed training, because I think the stress of speed should not be part of your first marathon. Think of the plan as a series of enjoyable training runs that get progressively longer until you feel comfortable with the marathon distance. The plan uses the 10% and heavy/light rules as its basis for increases in the weekly distance.

Prerequisites

To begin the plan, you should be "fit" as a runner.

• You should be capable of completing a half-marathon and enjoying the run.
• Your weekly long run should be about 12 miles
• If you're running less than 12 miles, consider using the half-marathon plan to prepare for this plan (see left-sidebar)
• If you're not ready for half-marathon training, a plan to bring you up to the point where you can do that training is the intermediate plan (see left-sidebar).
• Read my marathon page to get the "big picture" of training for a marathon (see left-sidebar)
• Read my marathon stress page to better understand the impact on your body of running a marathon (see left-sidebar)

Overview

Total time. The plan requires 13 weeks for training for a marathon. This time is used for making small increases in distance, smaller jumps in distance after the fall back weeks, higher weekly mileage, and additional weeks of approximately 45 miles per week. The additional weeks are to help your body adjust to the long distance, thus avoiding possible damage to your heart, and they are a key factor to running a pain-free race.

Number of days per week. The plan is set for six days of running per week. The plan can be easily modified for three or four days of running per week by eliminating days. However, to have a successful experience, try to maintain 45 miles per week. It is important to reach that figure before you run your marathon. That figure can be reached with either five or six days of running per week. Be aware that reducing the number of running days will increase the stress on your body.

Length of runs. The plan has you running three different lengths of runs: one long run, one medium run, and four rest or recovery runs. Some runners run more than one long run or more than one medium run, but doing that puts significantly more stress on your body.

Increases in distance. The increases in the miles per run are based on the assumption that you can handle 10% increases in your weekly distance. Some runners can't do that and will need to allow additional time to let their bodies adjust to the increased stress. During the week, listen to your body to see how you feel after that day's training. If you feel tired, dragged out, or have excessive soreness, allow another week at that same or reduced level. When you return to the scheduled increases, don't try to catch up; just continue from where you are. If your tiredness continues, consider reducing your increases in subsequent weeks.

Substituting cross-training for light runs. The purpose of a light run is to give your body more time for recovery from the previous heavy run. You may want to substitute light cross-training for some of the light runs. (see left-sidebar)

Fall-back weeks. After three weeks of increases, the next week is a fall-back week of reduced mileage; that week is followed by a recovery week of the mileage you were running before the reduction. This recovery week is to give your body extra rest. The fall-back weeks are denoted by FB.

Comfortable pace. Run at a comfortable pace, especially during the light weeks. Your first marathon is not the race for setting a new personal best! Choose a pace that will allow you to talk to a running buddy (or to yourself) and to feel fine at the end of each run.

Walking breaks. It is suggested that as you train, and later as you run your race, take short walking breaks of 1 - 3 minutes every mile (2 km) during your runs. Walking uses muscles differently than running, thus giving your running muscles a rest, and the breaks help you to be invigorated and avoid slowing down during the last part of the run. Walk at a comfortable, restful pace. During the race do your walking breaks while passing the water tables. If you can do the shorter rest runs without stopping or slowing down much or being overly tired, you can omit the breaks during those runs, although you can do them if you want. If you're running hills, high temperatures, or high humidity, take walking breaks more often.

Using the plan. The charts give distance in miles (kilometers). The kilometers are rounded to be whole numbers.

1st Goal: Increase distance to a long run of 15 miles (24 km) and 45 miles (72 km) per week

Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun	Weekly	Done
Week 1	4 (6)	5 (8)	9 (14)	4 (6)	5 (8)	13 (21)	off	40 (64)
Week 2	4 (6)	5 (8)	9 (14)	5 (8)	5 (8)	14 (23)	off	42 (68)
Week 3	5 (8)	5 (8)	10 (16)	5 (8)	5 (8)	15 (24)	off	45 (72)
Week 4 FB	4 (6)	5 (8)	9 (14)	5 (8)	5 (8)	13 (21)	off	41 (66)
Week 5	5 (8)	5 (8)	10 (16)	5 (8)	5 (8)	15 (24)	off	45 (72)

Slowly increase your long run to 15 miles (24 km). The distances in Week 5 will be your new base, and they will give you 45 miles (72 km) per week.

2nd Goal: Maintain a long run of 14-16 miles (23-26 km) and approximately 45 miles (72 km) per week for 4 additional weeks (or more)

Research by sports scientists shows that runners who don't train enough for their marathon may suffer cardiac problems after the race. The following is from The Boston Globe.

Among marathon runners, the biggest cardiac risk seems to arise in people who train the least. People who worked up to a marathon by running at least 45 miles a week for at least three to four months ''were golden. They didn't get into any trouble at all," said [Dr. Malissa] Wood. ''If they trained less than 35 miles a week they were in big trouble."

Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun	Weekly	Done
Week 6	5 (8)	5 (8)	10 (16)	5 (8)	5 (8)	15 (24)	off	45 (72)
Week 7	4 (6)	5 (8)	10 (16)	5 (8)	5 (8)	15 (24)	off	44 (71)
Week 8	5 (8)	5 (8)	10 (16)	5 (8)	5 (8)	16 (26)	off	46 (74)
Week 9 FB	5 (8)	4 (6)	9 (14)	5 (8)	5 (8)	14 (23)	off	42 (68)

3rd Goal: Increase your long run to 20 (32 km) miles and 50 (80 km) miles per week

Beginning at 7 weeks before your marathon, lengthen your long run to 20 miles (32 km). The 7 weeks will give you time to reach 20 miles and do a three-week taper. In addition, Consider adding three or four more weeks to your training so you can increase your long run to 21 miles (34 km) and then to 22 miles (35 km). If you go to 22 miles (35 km), take four weeks for your taper. However, if you hit the wall during this phase of your training, stop and focus on getting more energy into your cells via carbo loading and taking gels or sports drinks while you run, and on increasing your VO2max. You want your training to take you to the wall, but you shouldn't try to go through the wall, because that is when the impact of the marathon hits your body.

Week	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun	Weekly	Done
Week 10	5 (8)	4 (6)	10 (16)	5 (8)	5 (8)	16 (26)	off	45 (72)
Week 11	5 (8)	5 (8)	10 (16)	5 (8)	5 (8)	16 (26)	off	46 (74)
Week 12	5 (8)	5 (8)	10 (16)	5 (8)	5 (8)	18 (29)	off	48 (77)
Week 13	5 (8)	5 (8)	10 (16)	5 (8)	5 (8)	20 (32)	off	50 (80)

The 20 miler (32 km) gives you a 50 mile (80 km) week, your peak distance for your marathon training. It's important that the 20-miler (32 km) occurs three weeks before your race. That three weeks is your taper to give your body additional rest before the race. If the 20-miler (32 km) occurs before that, you may lose some of the effect of the peak distance when you run the marathon. If it occurs later than that, you may not be fully recovered from your training when you run the marathon. During the taper you will recover from the 20 miler (32 km), and you will rest for the race.

During the last 3 - 4 miles (5 - 6 km) of the race, you can skip the walking breaks if you feel fine and haven't slowed down much. After you finish the race, walk around for a few minutes before you sit down to help keep blood from pooling in your feet.

Last Goal: Take a month to Recover.

Congratulations, marathoner! After the marathon, take a week or more off to help your body start its recovery. During that time, don't just sit & watch TV. Be active by walking, swimming, biking, etc, but do those activities in moderation. When you feel ready to run, do a reverse taper to return to your pre-race mileage. Begin with short distances at a slow, easy pace to help your body continue its recovery. On the first day that you run, do 1/4 to 1/2 mile (1 km). Add a little distance each time you run. By the end of the first week you might be up to something like 1 1/2 mile (2.4 km). By the end of a month, you'll probably be close to your normal weekly distance. Listen to your body during this time and avoid pushing yourself to do longer distances and faster paces. Let your body dictate how often you increase.