Week 6 Training For The London Marathon

Week 6 Training for the London Marathon

Just a couple of things to start with. 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 6 training for the London Marathon went well. I took my 2 rest days, knowing that it was going to be a tough week. In addition to my sessions, I gout out for 12.5 miles of walking the hills with Chief. Overall, although I didn’t hit all my targets, it has to be considered a successful week of training. 

I’m feeling relatively good. I’m sleeping relatively well. My metrics are trending in the right direction for the most part. I was meant to get back to doing some yoga. I haven’t done this yet. Otherwise, I’m still getting my circuit done in the morning. So all told, I have very little to complain about. Looking back at where I was last year in my Manchester training, everything is in far better shape.

Monday

Week 6 training for the London Marathon started with a rest day. I like Monday as a rest day because, 9 times out of 10, I had a long run on Sunday. So this week I was able to get out for a walk with Chief. This saw us back up to Crockngrally Forest. It’s actually tough terrain even when walking so a good bit of exercise on its own.

Tuesday

Tuesday was an 8 mile steady run. I ran this one in and around Castlecoole in Enniskillen. It was a nice, dry and mild morning for this run. I kept it steady with an overall average pace of 7:20/mile.

Wednesday

Wednesday called for a 10 mile easy run. I went into Enniskillen for 5 miles on my own before meeting up with a few others for another 5. I sometimes find running under the street lights disorientating, with some lights worse than others. For the first 5 miles I was not feeling it at all, almost nauseous. However, after getting back to start on the second 5, I came around and finished feeling fine. At the end of the day, it was 10 miles done at an 8:09/mile average pace. 

Thursday

Thursday of week 6 training for the London Marathon was 5 miles at 7:40/mile followed by 5 miles at 6:40. The first 5 went pretty well, maybe a bit too quick for the first 2, but I got them where I wanted for 3, 4, and 5. Then came the second half of the session. The road I was planning on doing this session turned out to be closed. So I had to turn around on myself and go back the way I came. When I hit mile 8 and turned the corner, I was facing a stiff headwind. No excuses, I should have pushed through it, I just didn’t have it in me. Still, a good session done.

Mile 1 – 7:15
Mile 2 – 7:16
Mile 3 – 7:37
Mile 4 – 7:40
Mile 5 – 7:39
Mile 6 – 6:55
Mile 7 – 6:44
Mile 8 – 7:07
Mile 9 – 7:03
Mile 10 – 7:13

Friday

Friday was the second rest day of the week. My 54 year old body was happy to have it too. I took Chief to Jenkin for 2.5 miles, just opposite the Coonian Ghost House. It’s worth a wee walk up there if you get the chance. Take a few minutes to watch the YouTube video showing Jenkin (and the ghost house). It’s well worth the watch. This is where i do a lot of running and walking, as you are probably aware.

Saturday

Saturday’s session was cut short due to family commitments. I was 3 miles short of my target, but I’ll not worry about a lost 3. Those will be found in the weeks ahead. It also meant I was unable to make it to parkrun. So instead of parkrun + 6 miles, it was just the 6 miles.

Sunday Runday

Week 6 training for the London Marathon saw my first 20 miler. It was actually 23 miles and it was a really positive morning. I started at my front door and ran the 5 miles into Fivemiletown. From there, it was up to Brookeborough, Maguiresbridge, Lisbellaw, Tamlaght and ultimately into Enniskillen. I stayed off the main road as much as possible, which made for a nice quite run with very little traffic. 

Roisin met me in town, where we grabbed some brunch at Bridie’s, part of Pat’s Bar. I had the perfect post long run meal of steak and eggs served on Tiger bread. Add a strong americano and it was ideal.

The run felt fine. I know it’s a big jump from the previous long run of 18 miles. However, my legs are well used these types miles. In addition to the London Marathon, I have the Wild Atlantic Ultra 50 miler I will be doing in May. I’ll be ramping up the bigger miles probably quicker than I would normally do for marathon training.

Week 6 Training for the London Marathon Metrics:

The numbers are looking pretty good. My weight is down. I like to be around 150lb’s on race day. At week 6 for my Manchester training I was nearly a stone heavier than I was this week. That bodes well for hitting my target in 10 weeks. My heart rate is still a little higher than I expect, but only marginally.  I’m sleeping well and getting plenty of water and protein. I need to add in my yoga and I’ll be feeling just that much better about London.

Upcoming Week 7 Training for the London Marathon:

Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 2 x 4 x 1 mile reps
Wednesday: 12 miles easy
Thursday: 7 miles steady
Friday: 5 mile tempo run (3 at 6:40)
Saturday: Parkrun + 5 miles steady 
Sunday: 26 miles long slow distance run