Yesterday I posted about the major themes of my new training plan. In just 26 weeks I will be toeing the line at my first 50 mile race. That's not a distance you joke around with. I want to be really prepared for this race, which is why I'm training for 26 weeks instead of 20 or even 24. Running 50 miles will hurt, no question. The point is though, that I don't just want to "get through" 50 miles. I want to destroy them. I want to beast those 50 miles and obliterate them. Hopefully I've designed a plan to allow me to do this.
I've spent a couple of weeks putting this plan together. I drew inspiration from a 50-mile training plan I picked up from the UltraLadies Running Club and tweaked it to my specifications. Their original beginner's plan looks like this:
As I said, my plan is 26 weeks long. I could probably get away with a shorter plan, but the truth is that I have my first 50k race in just five weeks and I don't want to go into that unprepared. I feel that my two weeks "off" since the marathon have been an adequate enough rest period. At this point, if I jump back into training I will hopefully still have retained my marathon-level fitness, which will carry me through 31-some miles on January 7th.
In both January and March I have a 50k and half marathon so these months will actually have me reaching lower overall mileage. And while the thought of stepping back on mileage is always hard to absorb, I need to have some sort of taper and post-race recovery period in each of these months to ensure that I perform well.
Presenting my "How to Beast a 50 Miler" Training Plan!
I know it looks crazy and all over the place, but I promise there is actually a method to the madness!
Monday: REST always
Tuesday: short run (4-6 miles) and/or crosstrain
Wednesday: longer run (6-12 miles)
Thursday: short run (4-8 miles) and/or crosstrain
Friday: REST or crosstrain
Saturday: super long run (12-26 miles) or 10 mile cutback run
Sunday: long recovery run (10 miles)
This pattern isn't followed exactly every week, but for the most part it stands. Weeks that look particularly odd are that way because I have a weekend trip or a race taper/recovery that interrupts the normal flow of things.
In terms of the types of runs, I'm going to focus more on building high mileage endurance and less on speed than I have previously. That said, I would still like to get in some mile repeats or a tempo run once a week.
Could I probably do more with this plan and earn a stronger performance on race day? Yes, absolutely. But after this semester I've learned just how much I can handle between working full-time, graduate school, and planning the wedding. I'd say all that consider this is a pretty ambitious plan!
I've spent a couple of weeks putting this plan together. I drew inspiration from a 50-mile training plan I picked up from the UltraLadies Running Club and tweaked it to my specifications. Their original beginner's plan looks like this:
As I said, my plan is 26 weeks long. I could probably get away with a shorter plan, but the truth is that I have my first 50k race in just five weeks and I don't want to go into that unprepared. I feel that my two weeks "off" since the marathon have been an adequate enough rest period. At this point, if I jump back into training I will hopefully still have retained my marathon-level fitness, which will carry me through 31-some miles on January 7th.
In both January and March I have a 50k and half marathon so these months will actually have me reaching lower overall mileage. And while the thought of stepping back on mileage is always hard to absorb, I need to have some sort of taper and post-race recovery period in each of these months to ensure that I perform well.
Presenting my "How to Beast a 50 Miler" Training Plan!
 |
| Red = Race |
Monday: REST always
Tuesday: short run (4-6 miles) and/or crosstrain
Wednesday: longer run (6-12 miles)
Thursday: short run (4-8 miles) and/or crosstrain
Friday: REST or crosstrain
Saturday: super long run (12-26 miles) or 10 mile cutback run
Sunday: long recovery run (10 miles)
This pattern isn't followed exactly every week, but for the most part it stands. Weeks that look particularly odd are that way because I have a weekend trip or a race taper/recovery that interrupts the normal flow of things.
In terms of the types of runs, I'm going to focus more on building high mileage endurance and less on speed than I have previously. That said, I would still like to get in some mile repeats or a tempo run once a week.
Could I probably do more with this plan and earn a stronger performance on race day? Yes, absolutely. But after this semester I've learned just how much I can handle between working full-time, graduate school, and planning the wedding. I'd say all that consider this is a pretty ambitious plan!
WOW! Good Luck!
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