Full-on Training Mode

 :)

Today I entered full-on training mode. 18 weeks to race day! My training calendar is divided into 4 blocks of 4 weeks each and then a couple of weeks for tapering. As of now, I have a skeletal plan for the whole 18 weeks in place and then as I progress, I will be fleshing it out one block at a time.

Weekly Long Run

Once a week I have me running a long duration run (ideally at an easy pace). Conventionally, training plans will have you running incremental long distances once a week till you build up to about 90% (typically) of the race distance. Typically HM training plans will have you start at 10 or 11K and build up to about 19 or 19.5K by peak week. And week-on-week the distance increment will be about 10% (not more). 

I like to look at my long run from a time-on-feet perspective than distance covered. This (supposedly) reduces chances of injury by reducing the possibility of overtraining. So for the first block my long run is going to be for 75 minutes, then 90 minutes for the next block, then 105 and so on. Consecutive weeks of running a fixed amount of time gets your body & mind used to being on the move for that amount of time and (theoretically) the distance covered in the duration starts to feel easier and easier.

Every 4th week is cutback week where I'll be reducing the time-on-feet and weekly mileage to help the body recover before jumping into the next block of higher training intensity.

Tempo & Interval Runs

Once every other week I'll be doing a Tempo run. Tempo runs are meant to be "comfortably hard". These will be shorter distances at goal pace to get the body used to running at that pace. And every other week I have interval runs scheduled. These are even shorter distances run at a pace faster than goal pace. The idea here is to improve overall running power. I found a 16 week HM training plan on one of my go-to running blogs called Run To The Finish and I've adapted the tempo & interval workouts from there. Have never tried these workouts before so this should be fun!

My weekly 7K runs

I've written about this before - one of my mental hacks to run a Half Marathon is to think of it as a 7Kx3 and then a little bit more rather than 21.1K. Looking at the distance as bite-sized mini chunks makes it seem much more doable. Its true what they say, that long distance running is more of a mental game than a physical one. If I can comfortably run 7K under 43 minutes, then I know that I can run the HM in my goal time of 2hrs and 10 minutes. So I've dedicated Tuesdays to working on my 7K time. Currently that comfortable time is 52 minutes (7'30" pace) I need to work this down to 42 minutes by Week 14 or so and then I'll know that goal time is a definite possibility.

Easy Runs

In addition to these runs, I'll also be throwing in a couple of easy runs during the week probably 30-45 minutes duration to make up the weekly mileage, and to maintain general aerobic fitness. Given my propensity to get injured, and to avoid possibly doing too much, these will most likely be done indoors - flat surface, controlled environment, less impact, lower heart rate and all that.

Swimming & Strength Training

Now that I have regular access to a pool and because I love it, I have scheduled 3 days a week of swimming. Swimming is a great cross training tool anyways and great for recovery. If I feel up to it, it may even be 4 or 5 times a week.

Because its absolutely essential and non-negotiable, and not because I love it, I have scheduled 3 days a week of strength training. In the past, I've not strength trained nearly enough which is one of the top reasons why I have had to go through so many niggling injuries. Of late though, I've found several workout videos (mostly fitness influencer reels on instagram) that are sort-of appealing and I have been trying them out for myself at home. This has had some mediocre success in keeping me interested enough to strength train consistently for at least 20 minutes a day, three times a week for the past few weeks. Hopefully this trend continues.

So thats the whole breakdown of my 18 week training plan. More updates on how I progress with it in the ensuing weeks.