The difference between too much and not enough??

career_move

I did the Limerick marathon 2 weeks ago and recovered well after it. I did 8 miles this morning and it was grand. Could have done more if needed. I'm signed up for the 50k in Portumna in 4 weeks. My dilemma is how to structure my training programme between now and then. I'm doing an 8k race next fri and have planned to do a lsr of 10m on the Sunday so next week is sorted but for the two weeks after that......how long should my long runs be? I'm planning on doing MP miles for midweek sessions.....how long should they be? 4/8/12 miles? Should I include w/u and c/d or just head straight into them when I go out the door?
Also is it realistic to expect to run the same pace in Portumna as I did in Limerick?

Krusty_Clown

Didn't you follow a P&D plan for Limerick? Have you looked at the P&D multimarathon plans? Think they have plans covering a number of different periods. Realistically, there is little training you can do over a four week period that will offer any significant improvements over your pre-marathon form. The intervening period should be all about recovery and maintenance. If memory serves, Hal Higdon also has some multi-marathon plans, so worth taking a look.

As regards your goal in Portumna, it would be unrealistic to expect to run at the same pace. Firstly, it's a 50k, versus a 42k. Not a massive difference (20% longer), but after you finished Limerick, could you picture yourself running an additional 8km at the same pace? Secondly, because Limerick was likely your A goal, you will have trained optimally for that race. A 4-6 week break between your A goal and your next (even longer) race is sub-optimal. Few people manage to improve their performance in a subsequent marathon a few weeks after the initial marathon (unless they didn't run to their limits in the first race, or some other reason (like weather or illness prevented a maximal performance).

If it's your first 50km, you should set your sights on finishing it comfortably and enjoying the experience. Pushing yourself too hard during the race and you might find it a very, very long run! Best of luck.

career_move

Thanks Krusty. I had a look at the p&d multi marathon plans alright but I didn't like them....they seemed very high mileage! I'll just keep doing a small bit and adjust my pace

opus

I did a marathon in Leipzig two weeks after the Connultra back in April so just had a look at my spreadsheet to see what I did in the two weeks in-between. It was ~40 miles the week after Conn & then 53 miles the week of the marathon (including the marathon itself). Felt grand for the marathon but was pretty wrecked for a week afterwards and caught two colds straight after each other so it certainly knocked me back a bit.

The reverse of what you're doing I guess but hope it helps...

career_move

opus wrote: »

I did a marathon in Leipzig two weeks after the Connultra back in April so just had a look at my spreadsheet to see what I did in the two weeks in-between. It was ~40 miles the week after Conn & then 53 miles the week of the marathon (including the marathon itself). Felt grand for the marathon but was pretty wrecked for a week afterwards and caught two colds straight after each other so it certainly knocked me back a bit.

The reverse of what you're doing I guess but hope it helps...

Thanks Opus. I did 8 miles in total the week after Limerick. 40 miles sounds very harsh!! P&D had 24miles in the multiple marathon plan and I thought that was too much