Marathon after XC season?



R

RColeman

Guest
I'll be running cross-country in the fall for my college, however, I am also seriously considering
doing a november/december marathon. Would it be possible to maintain marathon training throughout
the season. I thought that perhaps I could run the races (5k most weekends) and consider it as part
of my speedwork. Am I faulty in this thinking? Any help would be appreciated!
 
In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] (RColeman) wrote:

> I'll be running cross-country in the fall for my college, however, I am also seriously considering
> doing a november/december marathon. Would it be possible to maintain marathon training throughout
> the season. I thought that perhaps I could run the races (5k most weekends) and consider it as
> part of my speedwork. Am I faulty in this thinking? Any help would be appreciated!

Your big issue would be working in your long runs within the framework of the training your coach
gives you. You'll want to build up to 18+ miles about 3 weeks from the Marathon, and that may not
fit in with your coach's plans. However, you may be able to talk to your coach and see if you can
extend your long runs (e.g., if he has you doing 8 miles for a long run one week and your
marathon training program has you running 12 that week, you keep going for 4 more miles after the
team quits).

Really, if you get your long runs in, the rest of your XC training will be perfect.

--Harold Buck

"I used to rock and roll all night, and party every day. Then it was every other day. . . ."

- Homer J. Simpson
 
"RColeman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I'll be running cross-country in the fall for my college, however, I am also seriously considering
> doing a november/december marathon. Would it be possible to maintain marathon training throughout
> the season. I thought that perhaps I could run the races (5k most weekends) and consider it as
> part of my speedwork. Am I faulty in this thinking? Any help would be appreciated!

Hmm, I wouldn't try to add on miles for a marathon during the cross country season, simply because
you may wear yourself out and be very tired for the end of the cross country season, which is when I
would assume you would want to have your peak performances. Maybe their is a marathon in early
spring you could aim for, which you could have a chance to have a rest period after your XC season,
and then you could be able to build up your miles in December - March. This could also serve the
double purpose of building great base mileage for your next XC season and then you could use a lot
of the summer for speed work, instead of having to worry about mileage.

-Aaron TheYAM.net
 
In article <[email protected]>,
"Aaron" <[email protected]> wrote:

> Hmm, I wouldn't try to add on miles for a marathon during the cross country season, simply because
> you may wear yourself out and be very tired for the end of the cross country season, which is when
> I would assume you would want to have your peak performances.

Well, I don't think the LSD would really kill him--he'd likely be doing some anyway--but I
definitely think he should talk it over with his coach. I think people "wear themselves out" with
speedwork more than with weekly LSD.

--Harold Buck

"I used to rock and roll all night, and party every day. Then it was every other day. . . ."

- Homer J. Simpson
 
"Harold Buck" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> In article <[email protected]>, "Aaron"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> > Hmm, I wouldn't try to add on miles for a marathon during the cross
country
> > season, simply because you may wear yourself out and be very tired for
the
> > end of the cross country season, which is when I would assume you would
want
> > to have your peak performances.
>
>
> Well, I don't think the LSD would really kill him--he'd likely be doing some anyway--but I
> definitely think he should talk it over with his coach. I think people "wear themselves out" with
> speedwork more than with weekly LSD.
>
> --Harold Buck
>
>
> "I used to rock and roll all night, and party every day. Then it was every other day. . . ."
>
> - Homer J. Simpson

(Judging from the e-mail address and distance of races, I think we are dealing with a 'she' and not
a 'he.') True, but I would also be concerned about injuries that could come from too many miles too
soon, such as knee tendonitis. From my perspective, I think it would be better to incorporate
marathon training to an off season training regimine, because the rewards for the next XC season.

-Aaron TheYAM.net
 
>I'll be running cross-country in the fall for my college, however, I am also seriously considering
>doing a november/december marathon. Would it be possible to maintain marathon training throughout
>the season. I thought that perhaps I could run the races (5k most weekends) and consider it as part
>of my speedwork. Am I faulty in this thinking? Any help would be appreciated!

I ran my first 'thon at the end of track season. Looking back, I'd say the goals of training for
track and training for a marathon weren't compatible -- not enough long runs. I was in fairly good
shape anyway and finished in just under 3:15, but that's after hitting the wall at 22 miles and
plodding in. (I was on pace for about a 3:05 until then.)

Your training this fall may be different -- more intense, more miles. So it could work, though you
won't be in optimal marathon condition, having spent months training primarily for shorter
distances. What I'd look at is what's after the marathon -- would a 26-mile race effort set you back
for spring track season? If that's not an issue, or if you'll have ample time to recover, and if
you're willing to accept a 'thon result that doesn't quite reach your potential at that distance,
then go for it.

--
Brian P. Baresch Fort Worth, Texas, USA Professional editing and proofreading

If you're going through hell, keep going. --Winston Churchill
 
Guys used to do it in college; if you are going to run in college, I would suggest you talk with
your coach. I think someone coming from a program like Colorado's could do it since there is an
emphasis on developing an aerobic base.

"RColeman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I'll be running cross-country in the fall for my college, however, I am also seriously considering
> doing a november/december marathon. Would it be possible to maintain marathon training throughout
> the season. I thought that perhaps I could run the races (5k most weekends) and consider it as
> part of my speedwork. Am I faulty in this thinking? Any help would be appreciated!
 
"Brian Baresch" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> >I'll be running cross-country in the fall for my college, however, I am also seriously
> >considering doing a november/december marathon. Would it be possible to maintain marathon
> >training throughout the season. I thought that perhaps I could run the races (5k most weekends)
> >and consider it as part of my speedwork. Am I faulty in this thinking? Any help would be
> >appreciated!
>
> I ran my first 'thon at the end of track season. Looking back, I'd say the goals of training for
> track and training for a marathon weren't compatible -- not enough long runs. I was in fairly good
> shape anyway and finished in just under 3:15, but that's after hitting the wall at 22 miles and
> plodding in. (I was on pace for about a 3:05 until then.)
>
> Your training this fall may be different -- more intense, more miles. So it could work, though you
> won't be in optimal marathon condition, having spent months training primarily for shorter
> distances. What I'd look at is what's after the marathon -- would a 26-mile race effort set you
> back for spring track season? If that's not an issue, or if you'll have ample time to recover, and
> if you're willing to accept a 'thon result that doesn't quite reach your potential at that
> distance, then go for it.
>
> --
> Brian P. Baresch Fort Worth, Texas, USA Professional editing and proofreading
>
> If you're going through hell, keep going. --Winston Churchill

It really depends on the program the college uses. Having read and talked with Mark Wetmore at CU-
Boulder, his belief in building a large volume of miles (very much a Lydiard disciple) would work in
the context of developing good XC runners using high mileage (there is some argument that they might
not be prepared for this load when they get there in the fall, but that is another matter that goes
into their HS prep). Running a marathon in Nov/Dec (assuming one skips the ridiculous indoor season)
should not have a negative impact on a spring track season for a distance runner. Hell, they should
be doing lots and lots of miles over the winter anyway (IMHO).

The one thing I did neglect was if this person is a freshman, I would suggest against running a
marathon off the first year of collegiate running. Brian is on to something that the training load
will more than likely be higher than experienced in most high school programs (which is a real
shame IMHO).
 
Spring/Winter track aren't a problem for me. Too boring to run around the same area 8+ times, so
I won't be doing those. Thus, I will be able to concentrate on building mileage from now until
XC season.

I currently run an average of 30 miles a week, with a long run of about 9-10 miles. Still not too
long, but I'm getting over winter lazyness (which I could kick myself for).

My one problem with choosing a marathon is that being a college student I am limited on travel funds
and time, so in session time I can only attend one in the Philadelphia region, and off-time in the
Altanta area. But I suppose I could figure out a way to do it elsewhere..

Given last season, the long runs got up to around 8 miles (with the more experienced runner breaking
off when we swung back into the college), and there was one day most weeks that we did a bit of
speedwork (800m-1000m repeats), but not too often. That might be a little rough having two days a
week working at top speed (meet and repeat days)...

Now that I think about it a marathon after the season is sounding ill-advised for one running
their first!

So... Is there time to aim for a marathon in July, early august? Would it also give me time to
recup for XC season? Btw, 5k is not a distance I want to focus on.. it seems too short.. but that's
what a college offers for us girls! And it gives me a chance to work on pacing with someone other
than myself.

-Rachel (being bogged down by all the factors in planning... how do people keep all of this
straight?)
 
RColeman <[email protected]> wrote:
> Spring/Winter track aren't a problem for me. Too boring to run around the same area 8+ times, so
> I won't be doing those. Thus, I will be able to concentrate on building mileage from now until
> XC season.

> I currently run an average of 30 miles a week, with a long run of about 9-10 miles. Still not too
> long, but I'm getting over winter lazyness (which I could kick myself for).

> My one problem with choosing a marathon is that being a college student I am limited on travel
> funds and time, so in session time I can only attend one in the Philadelphia region, and off-time
> in the Altanta area. But I suppose I could figure out a way to do it elsewhere..

> Given last season, the long runs got up to around 8 miles (with the more experienced runner
> breaking off when we swung back into the college), and there was one day most weeks that we did a
> bit of speedwork (800m-1000m repeats), but not too often. That might be a little rough having two
> days a week working at top speed (meet and repeat days)...

> Now that I think about it a marathon after the season is sounding ill-advised for one running
> their first!

> So... Is there time to aim for a marathon in July, early august? Would it also give me time to
> recup for XC season? Btw, 5k is not a distance I want to focus on.. it seems too short.. but
> that's what a college offers for us girls! And it gives me a chance to work on pacing with someone
> other than myself.

> -Rachel (being bogged down by all the factors in planning... how do people keep all of this
> straight?)

---I would not advise running it. #1, in college XC you are part of a team and trying to focus on a
race outside of the season that is far removed from your XC distance will likely erode your
performances for the team. Are you going to run track? If not, train for the marathon then and run
one early in the summer. You can always run one after XC, just don't expect to set a world record or
anything. You can use it for experience. There will be plenty of time to run marathons after
college; but once college is over you miss that running opportunity. Andy Hass
 
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