Lesson Learned: Slow Down During Long Runs!

I've read this piece of advice in many places. I guess I thought they were talking to someone else. That was until I burned out running my optimal race pace over 9 miles in my second week of training. In the past I had always run about the same pace during all my runs. Running a faster clip expends much more energy that cannot be sustained over the course of an eighteen week training program.

The Boston Athletic Association wrote this advice on their web site: (http://www.bostonmarathon.org/BostonMarathon/MarathonTraining.asp)



6. Long Runs - We're all very familiar with the weekly long run, which is an important piece of the marathon training puzzle. The long run can be the most beneficial, but also can cause the most damage if done too hard, too long, and too frequently. The program cycles the long runs in three week cycles (shorter to longer). One of the keys to marathon success is doing some tempo running within the long run. Most of the long run pace is done 30 seconds to a minute or more slower than projected marathon pace. It is important to do some running at your projected marathon pace during your long run, usually in the middle or to conclude the run. That way, when you hit the 20-mile marker during the marathon your legs will be somewhat familiar with maintaining that pace. Long runs do not necessarily need to be done every week throughout the program. It may be beneficial to take one week off a month from the long runs.

posted by jim @ 6:22 PM Permanent Link |