4 Tactics To Prepare for Half Marathon and Half Ironman Racing, While Staying Healthy and Enjoying Pain Free Running
It's been 22 weeks since my return to running (chart above)
I'll walk you through my data and give you some benchmarks to consider with regard to your own training.
7-week average
longest single workout
My 7-week average is 23km per week (chart below)
I'm tolerating 3 hours per day on my loading days and managed a broken Half Ironman over a weekend in November.
The two areas where I have been most conservative:
Intensity - nearly everything is easy/steady (30-60 beats below max heart rate). I wasn't tolerating my sprints/bounding so dropped them.
Duration - my longest main set is 12km/7.5M
Right now, the longest I could see myself racing is ~5 miles / ~8 km
I'm not going to race => why take a risk of screwing up my progression.
The "just stay healthy" plan has been working.
Four things have kept me healthy
1// No back-to-back runs
With the exception of my Broken Half Ironman Workout (Sat AM / Sun PM runs), I have avoided running on back to back days
I let soreness be my guide, if I need more recovery then I take it
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2// Eccentric (Pre)Hab
The program I put together for my posterior chain was fun to do.
Unfortunately, it didn't deliver the results I wanted - a pain free increase in run load.
So I changed the plan.
Simple plan - get eccentric load into the areas troubling me
Two Exercises (Prone Leg Curl, Seated Calf Raise)
Two Sets of 10 reps per side, each exercise
The moment pattern is "Up with Two, Down with One"
Full range of motion
When I go to the pool (non-running day) I do the exercises.
It takes 12 minutes, done 2-3x per week.
Relief happened from the FIRST session.
It's not necessary to progress the weight.
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3// Habit of Daily Mobility
Since my first run, I have scored 150/154 (days) with my mobility habit.
It works.
It is simple.
4// Build Stamina on the Bike
Since July, I've been riding ~8 hours per week
With my 5:2 loading, the 8 hours breaks down as 4 rides a week of 3/2/2/1 hours duration.
Cycling has benefits for runners:
I can train duration without impact stress - faster recovery from 'long' sessions
I have an "easy" zone on the bike - I'm only starting to develop this ability with my running
I can keep training when I'm recovering from a run session
Extend duration, low-end intensity control and greater total endurance load
What does this mean in practice?
Since July, I have completed more than 50 bike workouts >=2 hours
Compared to my longest running main set => 60 minutes, done once
I can prepare myself for a race that's much longer than my current run workouts.
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Linked Resources
Supplemental Videos on My YouTube Channel
I create my charts and track load over at Training Peaks