11 Weeks to London: Last Week's Training

This was the first week of real high volume for this training cycle. Since there are still 11 weeks until London, Dave and I decided to keep the workouts a little on the lighter side with the emphasis on the Tuesday 10-mile tempo. This was done at Green Lake in Seattle which, other than the people dodging, is a pretty fast place to do a tempo. We decided to then got on the track on Friday for some quicker 500s. This spring marks the first time I have ever done two marathon build-ups in a row without some faster racing and training in between, so it's important for me to get a few shorter and faster workouts in during this block in order to keep from having a half-year of similarly paced workouts. I also feel like I'm getting fit very quickly, so we want to spread out some of the tougher, longer tempo efforts over the remaining time in order to be fresh for mid-April.

This week I will bring the volume back down to 135 and oscillate the mileage over the next few weeks before the Gasparilla Half-Marathon, and then mimic a similar block between the half and London.

My tickets are now booked for the London Marathon. I have done a lot of traveling to and from Europe over the last 7 years, so I know by now that my body takes about a week to get into a normal sleeping pattern when heading east. Because of this I'll be heading to Prague, Czech Republic 10 days before the race to recover from the jet lag in time for the race. My wife, Eva, won't be able to make the first part of the trip as it is right in the middle of her University of Portland Pilots' track season, but I'll be staying with her family until making the short flight to London 3 days before the race. It's going to be here before we know it. Thanks again for reading, and I'll continue posting my training log throughout the build-up.

Week 3	AM	PM	Strength/Drills	Mileage
Monday	14 + drills and strides	6	40 minutes	20
Tuesday	10 mile tempo in 49:47 (4:58-4:59)	6		22
Wednesday	14	7	40 minutes	21
Thursday	14	7		21
Friday	7	10 x 500 w/100 meter jog recovery (79-81)		21.5
Saturday	15	6.5	40 minutes	21.5
Sunday	Long Run, push miles 20-22 in 4:57, 4:57, 4:50	off		23
TOTAL				150

12 Weeks to London: Last week's training

I'm getting into the critical training phase now as we get inside 12 weeks until the Virgin Money London Marathon. I'm going to continue doing a faster workout each week for a few more weeks. This helps keep my legs and my mind from grinding out the same pace for 12 to 14 weeks. It also makes the pace feel much easier when we start the longer tempo efforts.

I have decided to run the half-marathon in the Publix Gasparilla Distance Classic Race Weekend in Tampa Bay on February 23rd as a tune-up race before London. It still gives me 7 weeks before the marathon, so plenty of time to recover and continue with marathon specific training. I chose this race mainly due to the timing. The NYC half or Gate River could have both been great options, but it is difficult to run as fast as required to be competitive in a race of that depth during marathon training. They would be great options next year when I will not be doing a spring marathon.

I'm excited to be heading to Seattle as we speak on a train to hang out with all the folks at Brooks for a 3 day conference. It's always fun to make the short trip and mix up the training and also have the opportunity to see the other athletes, interact with the employees, and experience the new products.

The mileage is heading up to 150 for this next week, so it's time to really start focusing on recovery and rest. I'll be busting out The Stick, taking some serious naps, and getting some massage work. Obviously eating the right food is essential as well. Protein and carbs immediately following training are a must.

Thanks again for reading, and I'll be posting again next week.

Week 2	AM	PM	Strength/Drills	Mileage
Monday	13	6	40 minutes	19
Tuesday	5 + drills and strides	11		16
Wednesday	5	8 x mile on hilly paved loop starting in 4:48 and working down to 4:29		20
Thursday	7.5	12.5	40 minutes	20
Friday	14	10 x 200 meters on track 29-32		20
Saturday	6	3 mile, 2 mile, 1 mile on track: 2 min, 1 min rest (all in 4:41-4:43)		20
Sunday	Long Run	off		20
TOTAL				135

Heading to the 2014 Virgin Money London Marathon

It's been a while since my last blog post, but I wanted to finalize my spring plans before starting up again. I've also been working with Starting Line Designs on the redesign of my blog and social media accounts. It's been fun tossing around ideas, and I'm pleased with what he's come up with. We'll have a couple more projects together in the future.

I'm excited to be part of an incredibly deep field for the 2014 London Marathon. There are a couple other athletes with similar goals to mine in the race, which makes it a perfect situation. I'll discuss more details on that later. Even though I'll be doing my first spring marathon, I also plan on having a short, late track season. I don't want to leave the shorter stuff yet, and I'll have plenty of time to prepare for a few races in Europe after London. I think it's important to maintain a balance between different types of training throughout the year.

I plan sharing my weekly log again for this build-up, starting with last week's training. It will not differ a lot in structure to the build-up for NYC. I was pleased with that block of training even though it didn't fully reflect in New York. I'm looking to take another incremental step forward between now and April 13th.

Over the last couple of weeks I have been seriously debating whether or not to go to altitude for the earlier segment of this build-up. I have never had a full stint of altitude training, so I am still a bit nervous of giving it a go before such an important race. I have to thank Robert Chapman for sharing his research with me this last week during my decision making progress. It certainly seems there is something to be gained, but Dave Smith and I ultimately came to the conclusion that we should stick with what we've been doing at least through London, and consider altitude more seriously in the spring, when there is not something as significant as London on the horizon. I think I still have a lot to gain in the marathon by continuing to pound out the miles and tough workouts at sea-level.

Here is last week's training, which was 14 weeks from London. The first few weeks will consist of some faster, shorter workouts to keep from getting stale through 3 months of the same pace. It will also help me prepare for a tune-up race which is yet to be decided. Thanks for reading, and I look forward to interacting with everyone again through my blog!

Week 1	AM	PM	Strength/Drills	Mileage
Monday	12 + drills and grass strides	6	40 minutes core	18
Tuesday	10 x 1 mile starting 4:57 and working down to 4:42	off		16
Wednesday	11.5	5.5		17
Thursday	10x200 meter hills	5	1 hour	17
Friday	4 mile tempo in 18:51	5		17
Saturday	11.5	5.5	40 minutes core	17
Sunday	20 mile long run, pushing miles 15 to 18 @ 4:58			20
				122