The idea of adding strength training into marathon training can sound daunting. You are running more miles than normal, with longer long runs and harder workouts. The sheer volume of running alone is tiring. However, it’s worth taking the time and energy to strength train during marathon training, even at the expense of a few miles. I’ve talked plenty before about the benefits of strength training for runners - and those benefits are even more applicable for the physical demands of the ...
Marathon
Training for a Hilly Race in a Flat Area
Specificity is an essential aspect of training for a race. You want to prepare your mind and body for the unique demands of the event, including the distance, terrain, climate, and elevation gain. But specificity can be tricky - such as training for a hilly race when you live in an area without any hills. However, tricky does not mean impossible - it just requires intention and creativity. Whether it’s a hilly half marathon, a destination trail race, or the Boston Marathon, it is possible to ...
Common Marathon Training Questions
No matter how many times you complete it or how fast you run, the marathon is always a challenge. Likewise, marathon training is always a puzzle of figuring out exactly how hard to push yourself to improve - without pushing yourself so hard that you overtrain or resent running by race day. On one end of the spectrum, you have cookie-cutter plans or overly rigorous methods. You must run six days per week, 60 miles per week, to run a marathon. You must spend 18 weeks training. On the other ...
How Far Should You Run Before a Marathon?
Marathon training has many nuances, but one of the most common questions is also one of the most basic. How far should you run before a marathon? What’s the longest long run you need to do in order to finish, PR, or qualify for Boston? If you look at popular training methods, you will receive answers ranging from 16 miles (Hansons) to 26 miles (Galloway). Other plans follow the framework that a long run should not comprise more than 25% of the overall weekly mileage nor exceed three hours in ...
Should You Do a Shakeout Run before a Race?
When I first started racing, I thought a shakeout run was absolutely necessary. It’s ingrained in racing culture; many races or groups even offer hosted shakeout runs before major races. Every single plan out of Runner’s World or Hansons included a shakeout run. But what is the purpose of shakeout runs, exactly? Should every runner do one in their training? I will preface this post with a disclaimer: I do not do shakeout runs before half marathons or marathons. Sometimes I do a shakeout run ...