Hello everyone, thanks for taking the time to read this.
1. I'm planning to do three (running) workouts a week for an upcoming HM. With one workout I'll be building (slowly, carefully) from 3 x 1 mile at HM to 4 x 2 miles at HM (400m jog rest). What should I do with the other two workouts? A long run isn't an option. I was thinking some combination of easy days, hill sprints, and intervals. More easy days as I get closer to 4 x 2.
2. Let's say this goes well and I do something comparable for a marathon in the fall. Say, build to 4 x 4 miles at marathon pace, 800m jogs for rest. Does anyone have any experience with this? The 4 x 4 will be my longest run.
Some background: I did a 10K in the fall in 41:30. My highest weekly mileage was 25 miles and I completed a session of 2 miles, 1 mile, 2 miles at 6:36 pace two weeks before the race, 400m jog rests. For this HM I'll be happy with a comparable perfomance, say 93 minutes, but breaking 90 minutes is the ultimate goal. I would appreciate it if this doesn't turn into a low-mileage/high-mileage debate.
Thanks!