Week 2 of marathon training and I am feeling good. Transitioning to a 5-day run schedule has been seamless so far. I assume it has to do with the fact that I’ve already been working out daily for a while and I am just switching some of my cycling workouts to more running. Cycling and running are different kinds of workouts but both are cardio and overall it doesn’t feel like a ‘volume’ increase on my body yet. This will probably change when the weekly mileage goes up.
Focus for the week:
I had a 5K time trial run this week (‘run a 5K as fast as possible’) to calculate my training paces for the training intensities of the training plan: repetition, interval, and threshold (which I think equates to anaerobic capacity, V02Max, and threshold that other pace calculators use). I asked my coach to change the training sessions from RPE (rate of perceived exertion) cues to pace because I am more familiar with pace (ranges) from the previous Team Wilpers Run Challenges. It’s also easier for me to program the training runs into my Garmin this way, and I was happy to see that the paces compared.
WORKOUTS
Monday – 20 min yoga + 10 min core work + 15 min meditation
Tuesday – 20 min bike warm up + 4.75 mi easy @ 9:23 min/mi (morning temp: 59°F) + stretch
Fuel/water: Fasted, didn’t carry water.
Wednesday – 5.16 mi @ 8:39 min/mi including 5k trial @ 7:55 min/mi (morning temp: 63°F) + 30 min strength for runners + stretch
Fuel/water: Apple-Mango Fruit Crusher pre-run, didn’t carry water.
Thursday – 30 min cycling + 30 min strength for runners
Friday – 4.11 mi easy @ 9:46 min/mi (morning temp: 63°F) + 30 min strength + 30 min bike bootcamp + 30 min yoga
Fuel/water: Fasted, didn’t carry water.
Saturday – 8 mi easy @ 9:46 min/mi (morning temp: 64°F) + 20 min cycling + 10 min Pilates
Fuel/water: Graham crackers pre-run, carried water + electrolytes.
Gear: I ran with the hydration vest again.
Sunday – 5.65 mi easy @ 9:44 min/mi (morning temp: 64°F)
Fuel/water: Graham crackers pre-run, didn’t carry water.
TOTAL: 27.7 mi/ 44.6 km
Marathon Nutrition
This is going to be interesting. If you recall from last week, I calculated my daily macro needs and came up with the following:
| Protein | 105 g | 4-5 servings | 25g/serving |
| Carbs | 462 g | 18-19 servings | 25g/serving |
| Fats | 66 g | 6-7 servings | 10g/serving |
According to MyFitnessPal (MFP), my daily average was 104g protein, 211g carbs, and 80g fat last week. (Ignore the percentages in the graphic, they make no sense in this context and are merely based on daily calorie intake.) I am trying to go by the macros in grams that I calculated. I feel that protein and carbs are easier to “focus” on, but fat is tricky. I am also apparently not getting enough carbs at the moment. I’ll have to try and tweak that.
I have also been experimenting with pre-run fuel before my speed and long run. I used some apple-mango fruit crushers this week (which I have used in the past), and I also bought some Graham crackers and had them about 30 minutes before my workout. Some nutrition plans suggest you should eat 2-3 hours before your workout but because I am a morning runner, that doesn’t really work for me. If you have <1 hour before your run, 20-30g easy-to-digest carbs for short runs (or 50-60g for long runs) are recommended. The Graham crackers fit that bill perfectly.
How I refueled after my long run
TL;DR – summary of the week:
I was very pleased with this week. I hit all my prescribed workouts and felt good running 5 days. Despite a little bit of ‘test anxiety’, I completed my 5K trial run with a PR. There was no mileage increase this week and I felt comfortable with the distances. I did experiment with Graham crackers as pre-run fuel a little bit and I think I can put them on the list of things that will work for me.
Do you have “test anxiety”?
J
August 20, 2024 at 8:24 pmYou’re doing great with your training! I have never been a runner, but my dad and one of my sisters have both run marathons, and have told me how much work goes into that. It looks like you’re being very scientific about it. <3
San
August 23, 2024 at 2:07 pmThank you, Julie. I appreciate this :)
coco
August 20, 2024 at 10:28 pmthis is a good anxiety mixed with excitement, right? I get excited by speed/tempo workout because it’s like a mini test. Glad you are enjoying the training.
San
August 23, 2024 at 2:08 pmYes, absolutely “good anxiety” :) I am enjoying speed work!
Melissa
August 21, 2024 at 9:04 pmWell done on your 5K PR! It’s so exciting to start training for your first marathon. I’m glad it’s going well. I’m sure you have excellent underlying fitness from all your cycling. I have a bit of an iron gut with food and running, but if you’re looking for some other options I have found a small piece of toast with almond butter before runs to be quite good, and for a long run I add in a banana.
San
August 23, 2024 at 2:09 pmThanks so much for the suggestion, Melissa. I don’t really have a sensitive stomach, so I’ll try a lot of different things!
NGS
August 22, 2024 at 6:53 amI have “Life Anxiety.” Every stupid thing stresses me out, including pre-tests for things I’m doing for fun. *sigh* Why am I like that?
It’s so interesting and fun to read these posts. I have no idea how to go about training for a marathon, so this is super educational!
San
August 23, 2024 at 2:09 pmUgh, “life anxiety”. I have some of that too although I am really good at talking myself of the ledge(s) ;)
Ernie
August 22, 2024 at 8:16 amI’m here for that after workout breakfast, but I think I’d enjoy it more if I didn’t have to run 5K to eat it. Ha. It looks like you are doing a great job with your training, getting a PR even? You’ve got this. If I added graphs and percentages into my weak-ass runs, I think I’d fizzle and not run. So much to think about. Like you, I run right when I wake up, so I don’t eat before I run. I so prefer it that way. It seems like if I have any food in my system, my run is challenging and I feel even slower than normal. (which is hard to imagine, because I run like a 10.10 min mile.)
San
August 23, 2024 at 2:11 pmHappy to hear that there are other runners who prefer to run fasted. It’s been working for me but I know it’s not sustainable for the really long runs.
And please don’t put your pace down… we’re all different and I love that you have a regular running routine!
Sarah
August 23, 2024 at 4:20 amI love the training precision here. You make it seem so easy, but I can barely keep up with your rest days ;)
San
August 23, 2024 at 2:11 pmThank you, Sarah. You know, I don’t have all these kids that you do ;)
Rachel
August 23, 2024 at 11:37 pmOh I love your recapping! This is so methodical and also so interesting to read. I am SO EXCITED for your marathon journey. And congrats on a 5K PR! That must feel great and exciting to have more PRs on the way.
San
September 1, 2024 at 3:37 pmThanks so much, Rachel. I appreciate it.
Lisa’s Yarns
August 24, 2024 at 7:47 amNice work on your 5k PR! We did a 2 mile test to determine our training paces but it honestly never worked for me. I am terrible at running fast over short distances, so even with a warm up, my 2 mile pace would predict a really slow marathon so I just used my marathon goal to determine my paces and that worked well.
San
September 1, 2024 at 3:39 pmYes, I know that these short speed tests don’t always work for everybody and that the calculated paces might not be what you’re capable of during a longer run. But how did you determine your marathon goal for your first marathon? Did you base it off a shorter race distance?
Tobia | craftaliciousme
August 24, 2024 at 1:39 pmYou made me laugh when say you don’t hit your carbs… Do you wann switch maybe? I never manage my protein intake. Carbs I can eat all day. Its easy fuel and my migraine brain craves it often enough…
I am agreeing with Julie, you are very scientific in your approach.
San
September 1, 2024 at 3:40 pmHaha, yes, I am a scientist… what did you expect? LOL
BTW, I also love my carbs and just think that the calculated number is way to high and that’s why I don’t hit the number… I eat carbs every day, and lots of them. :)
Anne
September 2, 2024 at 1:55 pmLove that you are trying fuel (so hard for those of us who work out fasted…) and glad the graham crackers were okay (so far). You could think about the little bear versions (Teddy Grahams, I think?) if you want something smaller for when you’re actually running.
And now I am craving graham crackers. ;)
San
September 2, 2024 at 2:10 pmOh! That’s a fantastic idea! Thanks for the suggestion, Anne!