Beginner Program:                                          Week 17:

Beginner Level: Week 17 Mileage Chart

Daily Training schedule

Day 1:

 An easy 5 miles is on the agenda today. Take it real easy. Stretch. Resist the urge to go hard.

Day 2:
Rest is all we have for you today. Friends/family walk in the Park and the necessary stretching.

Day 3:
You get to run again today. Four miles and make it more like a jog, followed by stretching.

Day 4:
Rest, rest, and more rest. Easy biking. Begin to load up on carbohydrates over these last 3 days.

Day 5:
This is another day of rest. Please do your stretching. Get as much sleep tonight as you can because you will probably sleep fitfully the night before the big event.

Day 6:
This is the day before your marathon. A 2 to 3 mile run is on the agenda, but it is optional. Stretch whether you run or not. Try to keep off your feet today for the most part. No major shopping, or 3 or 4 hours at the running expo. Have a relatively early pasta based meal (something tried and true) and begin to hydrate for the morning. Settle down early and get as much rest as you can.

Day 7:
MARATHON DAY IS HERE. Run 26.2 miles. Take your time building to your chosen pace and when you reach that pace stay with it. Do not try to go faster to make up for the time you feel that you lost at the start. You might be able to make this time up in the last 2 or 3 miles of the marathon.

Marathon Guide's Training Tips:

• Rest and relaxation is the ‘order of the day’ for the now. You can ruin your race if you try to do too much during this week. Make sure you get plenty of sleep. Try to keep your stress level low, by purposely avoiding the common ‘stressors’ in your life.

• Whatever you do, avoid the temptation (because you are feeling strong) to do a ‘last’ hard or long run before the marathon.

• After the race, (although you probably don’t feel like it) you should walk around the finish area for fifteen minutes or so. Do some stretching as well to help your muscles gradually relax. Eating some of the post race snacks like bananas and apples is beneficial. Make sure to drink plenty of water and a sports drink like Gatorade. You might want to take a warm bath after you return home, just to relax. However many experts say this can aggravate sore muscles. So if you do to take a bath, make sure the water is not overly hot.

Daily Training schedule

Day 1:

Today is the only day before the marathon that you will be required to carry your chosen marathon pace for 5 miles. Stay focused and do your stretching.

Day 2;
Rest today, but do take an easy walk and as usual stretch. It is also a good day to pay attention to the weather and how it may look on Marathon Day. Formulate strategies for pacing based on scenarios that may emerge. If it is a hot , humid day for example, then you may have to alter your pace in order to just finish the event.

Day 3:
Four easy miles today and we mean just that. Keep the pace very light and stretch after.

Day 4:
A day of rest is scheduled. Go for a walk and enjoy the scenery. Remember on marathon day not to worry about getting into your chosen pace too quickly. Large marathons in particular make it difficult to get up to pace early on, and if you try to, it is likely that you will expend a larger amount of energy early on and might experience something called “glycogen burst”. This is not good, as you may not have enough energy to finish strongly. You may even hit the “Wall”.

Day 5:
Guess what, another day to rest, stretch and get a good nights sleep. It should also be the second day that you are consciously loading up on carbohydrates in hopes of storing a bit extra for the Marathon.

Day 6:
This can either be your final rest day or you may choose to run between 2 and 3 miles just to work out some of the weeks’ inactivity. Whatever you decide to do, be sure to stretch lightly and continue to load up on carbohydrates. Also, stay off your feet as much as you can today. If you go to the Running Expo, get in and out in an hour or less.

Day 7:
This is the day you have been training for all these weeks. Our advice is to follow your plan and do not deviate from it except to accommodate the weather or any injury that you may be trying to manage. To reiterate, follow the pace you chose as closely as conditions permit. If you feel strong after 21 to 22 miles then go for it by all means.

• You need to drink plenty of water. Not just the day before – the whole week. A good intake (10 to 12 glasses) of water the day before will help make sure you are well hydrated at race time.

• Every little ache and pain seems to be magnified during the pre-race week. If you are a worrier, then you are going to spend a lot of time concerned about your health and readiness for the race. However, if you have made it this far into the training - don’t worry!

• After the race, try an ice pack on those sore muscles. An anti-inflammatory like Ibuprofen may help. Treat blisters and chafes right away to avoid any infection that could occur.

• You can look forward to a good dinner that evening with plenty of carbohydrates. Add some good quality protein like lean steak or chicken breast.

• In the days following the race, muscle soreness can actually get worse two or three days later. Watch out for this and lay off running if necessary.

Daily Training schedule

Day 1:
Today there is a 5 mile tempo run scheduled. One last chance to work on your pace. Please run this one at your intended marathon pace.

Day 2:
Rest day. Time to go for an easy bike ride on flat terrain, off the highways if possible.

Day 3:
Today you have an easy run of 4 miles. Treat it as a time to reflect on your training. Focus on the good only.

Day 4:
Rest day. Stretch. Walk. Begin the carbohydrate loading.

Day 5:
Another day of rest. Time to put up your feet and relax if you can. Get a good nights’ sleep especially tonight because you may not get much the night before the big event.

Day 6:
Today can either be another rest day or you can go for a very light run of from 2 to 3 miles, your choice. For many runners, this final short easy run helps get a few of the inactive type kinks out of the body.

Day 7:
Marathon Day, are you ready? A few notes for marathon day; continue to hydrate right up to race time, do not forget your Race Chip, bib number, sneakers, appropriate running clothes, a garbage bag for you, a change of clothes for later, UV protection, Vaseline or equivalent, energy gels plus any other essentials that you can think of. Please do NOT start too quickly as you may get something called “glycogen burst” which may cause you to use too much energy too soon and you may ultimately run out of energy before you finish and you may hit the “Wall”. The Wall is not much fun, trust us.
 

Marathon Guide's Training Tips:

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