Hi All,
Just wanted to seek your advice on something and appreciate any tips or comments.
I've done one marathon before (2:55 in 2017) and ran it very conservatively until the final 4kms which were my fastest kms / miles by far.
I'm now hoping to break 2:45 having ran a 76:02 half last month and again moved through the field in the final 5 miles.
My training is basically some easy running on a Monday maybe between 7:00 min per mile - 7:30 approx. 9 miles.
Tuesday track sessions with long warm up and 5M easy run home - typical session 4* (2km + 400) or 6 * (1200 + 400). Generally I run those faster than 5km pace coming through 800M at between 2:40 - 2:52 although recently dipping under 2:40. It's a controlled hard effort.
Wednesday I do between 7 - 12 miles generally pretty relaxed but sometime slightly under 7:00 miles. Sometimes I will do an easy half at this pace. Friday I might do 6miles at a similar pace.
Thursdays I do tempo with the average session being 7-10M at approx. 6:00 mile pace - sometimes 3* 20 mins or 20,20,10,5,5. sometimes 30 mins plus 15, 10. with a warm-up and cool down the sessions are usually 17/18 miles. I've done a few ten km tempo efforts during lunchtime halfs (1:24) and also ten mile race too (58:55).
I tend to do a hill session with a group on Saturdays which are very intense and usually end up being 10-12 miles but with pretty decent recoveries.
I recently raced the above-mentioned half and did a 20M race which I ran at a controlled conversational pace for most of it, had to push during the last 5 miles to maintain the pace and then the final 2 miles were way up hill so dropped to 6:30 pace. Finished with 2:03:20.
My long runs have been 17M, 16M, 19 (including hill session) 20 (@ 7:30), 18.5 (@6:55), 20 @ 7:02, 18 including hill session, half at 6:35, half at 5:47 race, 20M @ 6:10 race, 21.5 @ 6:56, 21.5M @6:45. The last long run included 8 miles at sub 6:20 pace from miles 9-16 - I found the last mile of the effort very tough and ran at 7:15 for the next 5.5 miles.
I have been averaging between 65-70M per week since January with a few weeks in the 80s.
I am hoping to break 2:45. Any thoughts - should I aim for this / higher / lower?
Many thanks in advance.