A little late this week, but writing this to the tune for the London Marathon on the radio.  Good luck to all runners.  To my mind, the marathon is the ultimate endurance race for club runners, where time over extreme distance counts.  It is totally different to 10K or even half marathons.  In these if you don't get your pace judgement spot on, you can manage to regroup.  This doesn't work for the marathon.  If you are a regular club runner, you could certainly do a 10K at the drop of a hat, and it does not take a lot of extra/different training to do a half.  However, a marathon requires focus in your training over several months.  Competing in one of the great marathons such as London going for a good time is probably the closest most of us will get to knowing what it is like preparing for, and competing in, the Olympics.  The support from the vast crowds sends a tingle down your spine, and when that is combined with achieving a challenging target crossing the finish line to deafening cheers, there is nothing like quite it.


So I hope this inspires you and I better get out for a long run..........


Plan for the week
Mon (7:30) - 45's Four sets of four 45sec efforts with 45 recoveries.  St Georges Park
Wed (6:30) - 1/2K and tempo:  3 X approx 500m efforts then tempo.  Route – Allery Bank to level crossing.  1st effort level crossing to Park House.  Track to Guidepost road.  2nd effort to Hepscott Red House.  Down to junction and hard left.  3rd effort to farm track on right.  To Shadfen.  Slow group - Tempo Shadfen to Jewson’s (1.4m).  Fast Group Shadfen to Whorral Bank via Bothal and Pegswood Bypass (2.6m). 
Thurs (6:30) - Track (5K):  1000m at 5K pace, 5X(400m, 100 recovery, 200m, 100m recovery – efforts faster than 5K pace), 1000m faster than first. 


I'm away in the big smoke on Wednesday and Thursday (you never know - may be running a bit of the route run by 38,000 today!).  Any questions about the sessions, drop me an email (r.h.mcallister-williams@ncl.ac.uk)

​Plan for the week
Mon (7:30) - Track 400's.  8-12 X 400m with 45s to 1:30 recoveries
Wed (6:30) - 6 mins.  This is an alternative to a tempo session, but works a bite better for a mixed group running a route rather than just round and round an estate.   Steads route either via water tower or Clifton.  6 min efforts from the junction in Mitford with 2 min recoveries.
Thurs (6:30) - Track pyramid.  200m, 400m, 600m, 800m, 1000m, 800m, 600m, 400m, 200m efforts with 200m jog recoveries
 
Slightly unusual week since there are two track sessions.  This was just an anomaly of trying to mix things about and have a short, medium and long effort session each week.
Fingers crossed, I should be able to make all of the sessions.

​Plan for the week
Mon (7:30) - Track (800) - 4-6 x 800m efforts with 2 to 1 min recoveries
Wed (6:30) - 45's.  Four sets of four X 45sec efforts with 45 recoveries.  Run around St Georges Park.  I'll be away.  Don't shout "Time" too loudly otherwise we get complaints from Hospital staff.
Thurs (6:30) - Surges.  This is a tough session, that we usually do through Clifton and Hepscott.  Depending on who is running we can do alternate routes though.  Efforts are: 4 min faster than steady then 40s hard with no gap; 3 min recovery; 3 min quick + 60s hard; 3 min recovery; 2 min quick + 80s hard; 3 min recovery; 1 min quick + 100s hard.