Week 1 Update: Training for the London Marathon
To read the start of this article please start here and come back up for the updates.
The first week of training for the London Marathon is in the bag. It feels so good to be back training with a purpose and a target in mind. The first week is generally used to ease back into a programme and this was no exception. I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
This was the plan:
Monday: 6 miles steady
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: 5 miles steady
Thursday: 6 miles easy
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 6 miles tempo run
Sunday: 10 miles long slow distance run
Everything pretty much went to plan. I did have to move Monday’s run to Tuesday due to another commitment. I also added an additional 5 miles easy on Friday, so that was a bonus. As it is early in the plan, I’m not too worried about missing that rest day. I did a 20 minute circuit every weekday morning. I will need to improve on my daily protein intake as it is below what I’d like to be getting. I also need to start getting back to yoga. Otherwise, the metrics on the right are showing pretty good starting numbers.
The Sunday long slow distance run was completed as part of The Knocks 6k & 10k Fun Run. I ran 10k before the start and then the 6k event, plus a small bit to bring it up to 10 miles. It was cold and it’s a tough course, but doing the 10 miles was easy with such a great atmosphere.
Week 2 Plan:
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 8 x 1k reps @ 4:00/rep and 200m active recovery
Wednesday: 6 miles steady
Thursday: 7 miles easy
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Parkrun + 3 miles steady
Sunday: 13 miles long slow distance run
See Week 2 Update here
Training for the London Marathon
Just like so many other runners, it is time to start thinking about my spring races. For me, that means starting my training for the London Marathon. 2023 will see me lace up the runners for my first taste of this iconic event. Although I qualified with a good for age time for the 2019 and 2020 races, I didn’t get to take part. It’s been on my hit list for a while now and I can’t wait to get there in 2023.
The London Marathon is known worldwide as a fast course, with an amazing field of athletes. I have my daughter, Catraoine, and several friends and club mates also taking part. So it promises to be a weekend to remember. I spent quite a bit of time running off-plan since the Dublin Marathon at the end of October. This has me rearing to get back to good running shape for London. I’m usually in much worse shape by this point in January, so that is a great start. Now all I need to do is get through my 16 week plan, healthy and injury free.
Goals for London Marathon 2023
I had a very good year of running in 2022. Much more successful than I could have hoped for. In April I ran the Manchester Marathon in a finishing time of 3:00:29. I followed this up with my first sub-three hour finish in Kildare in June. Berlin was next in September where I struggled through and finished in 3:06. Dublin capped off an enjoyable year in October with a 3:01 finish.
This year, I have set my sights on a few different races. The first is London. I am training for the London Marathon in 2023 with the goal of a new PB. I’ve am targeting 2:54:59, but a finish even slightly better than 2:58:33 will be a massive success. I am confident that I can accomplish this and I’m full of optimism at this early stage.
After London, I have signed up for a 50 Mile Ultra in the West of Ireland taking place in May. This will be my longest race, ever. Later in December I have booked a spot in the Valencia Marathon, another bucket list race.
Training Log
Every Monday I will update the blog with my training from the week previous. As I continue training for the London Marathon you will get some insight into my workouts. I don’t suggest that this will necessarily have any relevance to someone else. I recommend personal training plans for all my athletes. However, this will give some insight into what my training for a sub-three hour London Marathon looks like.
I will include all the details I track in my running journal, and discuss my highs and lows. There are always highs and lows! I had toyed with doing a podcast with a club mate to discuss our training. If you would find this of interest, please do pop a comment below.
Please do keep checking back every Monday. If you want to be reminded of when updates are posted, please sign up for the newsletter.
Wish me luck…
