If you just ran your fall marathon, congrats! The first thing to do is take a couple weeks to rest and reset, physically and mentally. Don’t skip that part.
But after that, if you usually do a 16 week marathon build, you might have weeks or even months before your next one starts. That’s time you can use to work on whatever is holding you back from running your best marathon.
Here are three possible things to work on during this time.
Mileage. Maybe in your last marathon your breathing was under control, your stomach was fine, and your effort felt good, but your legs just didn’t have it in the last 10K. More volume could really help.
Speed. Maybe you can run 26.2 no problem, but running it fast is the hard part. Or you plug your marathon time into a calculator and it says you should be running a much faster 5K than you are.
Power. Short, fast hill repeats help you lengthen your stride and run more efficiently, and they work your heart and lungs too. If you feel like you’re missing that extra gear, try them.
Why does this work so well? Because you’re working on what you actually need to improve. Even if it doesn’t seem marathon specific, these things can all improve how well you can run a marathon. Training shouldn’t look the same all year. Knowing how it should change is a big part of getting better.
For the full details, including sample training weeks for each focus, watch mine and Sage’s full video on this topic: What to Focus on Between Marathon Builds: Mileage, Speed or Power?
Not sure what you need to work on, or how to fit it into your training on your own? That’s what Coach Rachael and Coach Jake are here for. They use your data to guide your training, and they also care about what you say and pay attention to how you’re feeling and what’s going on in your life. If you want a coach who knows you well and helps you go after your goals, you can learn more at higherrunning.com/individual-coaching or fill out our contact form.
-Coach Sandi