Training Plan - Week 6

Monday: rest
Tuesday: 3 mile run
Wednseday: 5 mile run
Thursday: 3 mile run
Friday: rest
Saturday: 7 mile run
Sunday: cross-train (~60 min.)

Monday: This is another week of comparative "rest," since the weekend mileage drops as part of our second "stepback." Total miles this week are 18 with a 7-mile run on the weekend. No running today. Consider the fact that your marathon training program will be one-third complete at the end of this week.

Tuesday: Three miles at your normal pace. What is "normal?" You be the judge. Remember: Tuesdays and Thursdays are good days to include some extra stretching in your workout to loosen your muscles. Ten minutes or so will do. But don't stretch too hard. Stretching should never feel painful, otherwise you risk damaging the muscles you're trying to protect.

Wednesday: Despite this being a stepback week, your midweek workouts continue their distance progression. Run 5 miles today, the same as last week, but next week you go 6. How do you feel after the first six weeks of your marathon buildup? The answer to that question will partly dictate how hard you run today.

Thursday: Three miles at an easy pace, then do some strength training. Learn to breathe right when you do your lifts. The worst mistake you can make while lifting is to hold your breath. That simply tightens the muscles that you want to keep loose. Inhale while you prepare to lift the weight, then exhale while lifting it, inhaling again while lowering it.

Friday: Rest is always an important component of any training program. Sometimes rest is important for the mind as much as for the body. Although I love running and find that my day is not complete without a run or some sort of aerobic workout, I realize that not everybody feels the same way--yet! So Friday is the day when you don't have to think about what course you're going to run or how to fit your workout into a busy schedule. You can even skip taking a shower, but if you brush your teeth, don't forget to floss. Relax. Take a day off.

Saturday: Run 7 miles. In a logical arithmetic progression you would have done "11" miles today. But since it's a rest week, you're only doing 7.

Sunday: Do some easy cross-training: 30 to 60 minutes of an aerobic activity. You want to exercise the body. Some cycling would be fine--as long as it's at an easy pace. Walking would do you good too. If you're combining a number of cross-training exercises, for example: cycling, swimming and strength training at a the gym, some easy jogging also might be appropriate.

Keep your blog posts coming....
These are a vital part of your training program. Writing down your workouts will help you chart your progress and how you feel. For each day, include how far you went (miles), how long it took, and how you felt. If you want, yo ucan indlude any other pertinent information (like, "I didn't get a lot of sleep last night" or "I'm really tired in general lately")