Week 10 Training For The London Marathon

Previous Weeks

Just a couple of things to start with. Before reading about my week 10 training for the London Marathon, you should start at the beginning. To read the opening story about my training for the London Marathon please start here or click on the links for the previous week’s training updates. Secondly, I’d love to hear what you are training for, how it is going and any questions you may have. Please comment below.

Week 10 Training for the London Marathon

Week 10 training for the London Marathon was another solid week of the 16 week training block. I’m feeling pretty good, or at least as good as I should feel at this point. The week saw me complete just over 62 miles, with some pacy runs thrown in. There were still two rest days which I was particularly grateful for. It’s hard to overestimate the mental benefit of rest days when making these plans out. When hitting 60+ miles per week, although not huge for some runners, my 54 year old body likes its rest. 

I continued doing yoga every morning and as yet, I haven’t added my strength work back in. This is something I plan on doing this week. Even if it is every other day, I will need to do this. In addition to the running and yoga, I got two sports massages and one reflexology session. Self-care plays such an important role in training.

My right quad started to niggle a bit after my mid-week 14 miler. A single brief massage seemed to work that out quickly and that pain subsided. Personally, one of the reasons I love focussed training with purpose is the soreness my body experiences. It reminds me I’m working hard. So when I walk around with general soreness in my feet, ankles and legs, I know I’m doing something right. I found the reflexology helps to relax my muscles and my feet are particularly happy.

So, in a nutshell, things are still trending in the right direction. I’m pleased with where I’m at after 10 full weeks.

Monday

This was a complete rest day. Apart from yoga, I worked at my desk. The closest thing to running I did was taking the ERC club session.

Tuesday

On Tuesday the plan called for a 6 mile tempo run, with a target pace of 6:40/mile. I have to say that I found this a tough session. It was far harder than it should have felt. I managed the miles at an average 6:46 in decent running conditions. Still, I’m fully aware that not every run will be a great run. This one was close to target pace and made me work hard. So I suppose I’m grateful to have got it done so close to what I set out to do.

Wednesday

Wednesday was supposed to be an easy 6 miler. I met someone for company on this one and I ended up with 8 miles at an overall 7:55/mile pace. It felt good, much better than the day previous. We ran in Castle Coole which was great because it didn’t get dark until we finished close to 7pm. The longer evenings are coming.

Earlier in the day, I managed to get up to Jenkin Forest for a walk with Chief. A nice wee break for both of us. This was also the evening when I got reflexology done, Needless to say, I slept particularly well this night. 

Thursday

Thursday of my week 10 training for the London Marathon was a 14 mile steady state run. I was really pleased with the hard effort and with the result. My overall pace was 7:28 on a cold and windy morning. The term Baltic comes to mind. This was the day the weather turned for the worse and we got a few inches of snow. Luckily, I got out before the snow began. This was also the day that my quad started niggling. I felt fine on the run, but afterwards when walking I could feel it. 

Friday

On Friday, I got a 20 minute massage on my quad and almost immediately felt the benefit. It was a rest day on the plan which couldn’t have been timed any better. I’m fortunate to be married to a sports massage therapist, who also does reflexology.

Saturday

I took part in a 5k Fun Run in Derrygonnelly. As I had Parkrun + 8 miles on the plan, I decided to support this run and add on miles. Arriving early, I completed 9 miles before the start of the run. When the event started, it was just a matter of getting the miles in. I ran with friends and enjoyed the craic on the way around the out and back course. The wind and rain were an issue for everyone, but it was still a good, fun morning of running.

Sunday Runday

Week 10 training for the London Marathon culminated in a 22 mile long slow run. I ran with Roisin where we did our normal route from the house. There is a house along this route that has three large Rottweiler dogs. These three are left loose in the homeowner’s garden. The gates are normally closed and these beasts usually just intimidate runners as we go past. However, on this morning, the gate was open. They didn’t notice us until we were past the gate entrance and so we got by without incident. Although the three of them did come out onto the road and start the chase. They soon stopped and returned to their home. 

Our plan was to do two laps of this 11 mile route. We had this run mileage planned out perfectly and wanted to stick to the plan. So we decided we would try to go past the house again in the hope the owners closed the gate. They hadn’t, and the three dogs caught wind of us sooner and blocked us from getting past. Needless to say, the entire neighbourhood got an earful of profanities as I turned around. We met a fellow runner later that morning who ran into the same pack of thugs and had to turn as well. 

OK, rant over. My 22 miler was done and in the bag. We got mostly decent running conditions until about mile 18 when the wind and rain picked up. After an epsom salt bath, a steak and eggs breakfast, and a short lie down life was good. 

Week 10 Training for the London Marathon Metrics:

The numbers from week 10 are starting to stack up a little better. Well, all but one. My weight was up a bit on Friday’s weigh-in. I need to focus more on when I eat and do a better job of portion control. There’s still 6 weeks to get down to racing weight, so I’m not overly worried. 

My protein intake is OK, but only 23% of my daily calories are from protein. I like it to be higher. There needs to be a better balance of protein, carbs and fats. As for water, I’m still getting nearly 4 litres a day, which is grand. 

Sleep has been a big improvement as far as quantity and quality. Of the daily average of 7 hours and 20 minutes sleep, 3:22 of that is deep sleep. That is obviously a good sign of a healthy routine. My average daily resting heart rate is seeing the benefits of good sleep, as well as the bigger miles.  A daily average of 45 bpm is not far off where I should be come race day. 

I did a total of 3 hours and 30 minutes of yoga. This has been a big contributor to an ease in my back pain. 30 minutes every morning is a good balance for me. 

For week 11, I’d like to see protein higher, a few strength sessions and my weight trending back down.

Upcoming Week 11 Training for the London Marathon:

Monday: 5 miles easy
Tuesday: 8 miles easy
Wednesday: 10 mile progression down to 6:40
Thursday: 6 miles easy
Friday: 7 mile tempo @ 6:40
Saturday: Parkrun 
Sunday: 31 miles long slow distance run (yes, 31 miles)