Boston Marathon Training – The Final Update

Race day is now officially 7 days away (Did I just admit that?) and since last weeks’ workouts were chaotic and unspectacular because of my week long bout with the flu (totaled 26.4 miles for the week at average of 7:02 min/mile pace), I thought I’d forgo the weekly format in favor of a general review summarizing how this marathon training cycle has gone for me. I figure it’ll give you an idea of how I planned, approached and executed my training plan while at the same time give me added confidence next Monday that I’ve indeed trained long, hard, and smart for this race.

The Numbers
Week 1 – Planned 25 Miles, Ran 28.1 Miles, Avg Pace 7:06
Week 2 – Planned 27 Miles, Ran 29.0 Miles, Avg Pace 7:05
Week 3 - Planned 30 Miles, Ran 34.2 Miles, Avg Pace 7:08
Week 4 - Planned 33 Miles, Ran 33.6 Miles, Avg Pace 6:54
Week 5 - Planned 37 Miles, Ran 36.9 Miles, Avg Pace 7:12
Week 6 - Planned 30 Miles, Ran 34.5 Miles, Avg Pace 6:39
Week 7 - Planned 39 Miles, Ran 41.5 Miles, Avg Pace 7:23
Week 8 - Planned 44 Miles, Ran 45.0 Miles, Avg Pace 6:58
Week 9 - Planned 46 Miles, Ran 46.5 Miles, Avg Pace 6:56
Week 10 - Planned 37 Miles, Ran 39.3 Miles, Avg Pace 7:20
Week 11 - Planned 49 Miles, Ran 60.4 Miles, Avg Pace 7:20
Week 12 - Planned 51 Miles, Ran 35.5 Miles, Avg Pace 6:45
Week 13 - Planned 54 Miles, Ran 55.7 Miles, Avg Pace 7:10
Week 14 - Planned 42 Miles, Ran 35.6 Miles, Avg Pace 7:04
Week 15 - Planned 30 Miles, Ran 26.4 Miles, Avg Pace 7:02
Totals – Planned 574 Miles; Ran 581.8 Miles, Avg Pace 7:05

The Analysis

In the initial planning for this marathon training cycle, I had separated the weeks into three distinct phases-a mesocycle of sorts-each with a specific purpose and agenda. The first five week phase was the preparatory phase. Since I was coming off a month long break in running when training started, I wanted a steady diet of lower mileage weeks to get the legs back up and moving again. Although I suffered a loss of motivation many times during these early training weeks, I somehow still managed to stick to my plan and hit my mileage and time goals each and every time. The second five week phase was the speed and racing phase. During this phase, I exclusively focused on developing efficiency and maintaining speed during training. Since I knew I wanted to break 3 in Boston, I knew focusing my energies on becoming a faster runner would be a top priority for me. Running drills and hard tempos led to some good success in local road races, including a 15K PR and a sub 19min 5K. The last phase, termed marathon success phase by me, included some high mileage weeks designed to build endurance stamina. Unfortunately, I was not so focused on these last few weeks and got sidetracked with multiple nagging injuries and then the flu bug. Still, the work for the most part got done and I can happily go forth from Hopkinton with the utmost confidence in the training I’ve had.

By the way, the Defyance 2 treated me well during my last double digit run before the marathon. I ran 11 miles with first six at a pedestrian pace of 6:59 and the last five a bit faster at 6:44. (FYI, the overall pace was 6:53) My feet, even the day after, had no complaints - no blister, pain, or performance issues whatsoever to speak of. I’m so grateful. Now, as long as I get rid of my hacking cough and runny nose by race day, I’ll be ready.

Boston in Sub-3? Who’s with me?