A Training Plan For Me

When I started making my plan to do a half-marathon at the beginning of the year, I wanted a plan that would build up my running endurance with a lot of cross-training, and I came up with (somewhat wonky) plan.   What I should have done, was gone digging in my bookshelf for this:




The Runner’s World Guide To Cross-Training.  It’s got great information on why cross-training is important for runners, some good strength exercises and stretches, but what I was most interested in was the sample programs they have.  I looked at the Advanced 10K/Half-Marathon Program:



DAY 1
DAY 2
DAY 3
DAY 4
DAY 5
DAY 6
DAY 7
WEEK 1 BASE 1
EASY X
EASY RUN
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 2 BASE2
OFF
EASY RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 3 BASE 3
EASY X
EASY RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 4 BASE 4 RECOVERY
OFF
EASY RUN + STRIDES
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
FARTLEK
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 5 BASE 5
EASY X
EASY RUN + STRIDES
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
FARTLEK
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK6 BASE6
EASY X
EASY RUN + STRIDES
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
FARTLEK
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 7 BUILD 1
EASY X
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
FARTLEK
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 8 BUILD 2 RECOVERY
EASY X
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
FARTLEK
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 9 BUILD 3
EASY X
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 10 BUILD 4
EASY X
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE RUN OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR RUN | STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 11 BUILD 5 RECOVERY
OFF
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X STRENGTH
5K RACE
WEEK 12 BUILD 6
EASY X
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE RUN OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR RUN | STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 13 BUILD 7
EASY X
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE RUN OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR RUN | STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 14 BUILD 8 RECOVERY
OFF
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
10 K RACE
WEEK 15 BUILD 9
EASY X
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE RUN OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR RUN | STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 16 BUILD 10
EASY X
MP RUN (10)
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE RUN OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR RUN | STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 17 PEAK 1 RECOVERY
OFF
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
10 K RACE
WEEK 18 PEAK 2
EASY X
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 19 PEAK 3
EASY X
MP RUN (12)
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE RUN OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR RUN | STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 20 PEAK 4 RECOVERY
OFF
EASY RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI RUN
EASY RUN + STRIDES
EASY RUN OR EASY X
10 K RACE OR HALF MARATHON
WEEK 21 PEAK 5
EASY X
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE RUN OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR RUN | STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 22 PEAK 6
EASY X
AT RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG RUN
WEEK 23 PEAK 7
OFF
AT RUN
EASY RUN STRENGTH
MI RUN
EASY RUN OR EASY X
EASY RUN OR EASY X
ENDURANCE RUN
WEEK 24 PEAK 8 RECOVERY
OFF
EASY RUN
EASY RUN AND/OR EASY X
EASY RUN
RACE PREP
OFF
10 K RACE OR HALF MARATHON


Some definitions for this plan –
X REFERS TO CROSS-TRAINING OF SOME KIND (BIKE, ELLIPTICAL, SWIM, ETC.)
EASY=30 TO 60 MIN AT RECOVERY PACE
FARTLEK=40 TO 60 MIN WITH 6-10 30 SEC SPEED BURSTS
AT RUN=12 TO 40 MIN (NO MORE THAN 20 AT A TIME) OF WORK AT ANEROBIC THRESHOLD
SI RUN=SPEED INTERVALS 8-12X
ENDURANCE=MODERATE TO HIGH FOR 1 HOUR
LI RUN= 4-7x LACTATE INTERVALS 4-5 MIN AT AEROBIC CAPACITY
MP RUN= MARATHON PACE
MI RUN=MIXED INTERVALS (SPEED AND LACTATE)
STRIDES=4 TO 6 SPEED-INTENSITY RUNS OF ABOUT 100 YARDS, SEPARATED BY RECOVERY JOGS

It’s not worth going into too much detail in this plan, since what I really need to work on is my cycling.  I’m coming down from half-marathon conditioning, so my running should take a back burner.  What if I could take that plan and substitute a bike ride or spin for every run?

If I do a simple Find-Replace on it, and change the word “RUN” to “BIKE” and change the STRIDES Drill with Tabatas, I get this:


DAY 1
DAY 2
DAY 3
DAY 4
DAY 5
DAY 6
DAY 7
WEEK 1 BASE 1
EASY X
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 2 BASE2
OFF
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 3 BASE 3
EASY X
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 4 BASE 4 RECOVERY
OFF
EASY BIKE + TABATA
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
FARTLEK
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 5 BASE 5
EASY X
EASY BIKE + TABATA
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
FARTLEK
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK6 BASE6
EASY X
EASY BIKE + TABATA
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
FARTLEK
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 7 BUILD 1
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
FARTLEK
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 8 BUILD 2 RECOVERY
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
FARTLEK
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 9 BUILD 3
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 10 BUILD 4
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 11 BUILD 5 RECOVERY
OFF
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
5K RACE
WEEK 12 BUILD 6
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 13 BUILD 7
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 14 BUILD 8 RECOVERY
OFF
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
10 K RACE
WEEK 15 BUILD 9
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 16 BUILD 10
EASY X
MP BIKE (30)
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 17 PEAK 1 RECOVERY
OFF
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
10 K RACE
WEEK 18 PEAK 2
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 19 PEAK 3
EASY X
MP BIKE (35)
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 20 PEAK 4 RECOVERY
OFF
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI BIKE
EASY BIKE + TABATA
EASY BIKE OR EASY X
10 K RACE OR HALF MARATHON
WEEK 21 PEAK 5
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 22 PEAK 6
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
WEEK 23 PEAK 7
OFF
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE STRENGTH
MI BIKE
EASY BIKE OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE
WEEK 24 PEAK 8 RECOVERY
OFF
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE
RACE PREP
OFF
10 K RACE OR HALF MARATHON


Now I have a 24 week program for bike performance that shouldn’t leave my swim nor run in the cold.  Is that what I’ve been doing?



First of all, if the Bracebridge Triathlon is my big target, I have less than 24 weeks (I started playing with this in early March!) and the program should look more like this starting this week.


Mon
Tues
Wed
Thur
Fri
Sat
Sun
Week Ending on Date
WEEK 1 BUILD 1
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
5/5/2013
WEEK 2 BUILD 2 RECOVERY
OFF
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X STRENGTH
5K RACE
5/12/2013
WEEK 3 BUILD 3
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
SI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
5/19/2013
WEEK 4 BUILD 4
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
5/26/2013
WEEK 5 BUILD 5 RECOVERY
OFF
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
10 K RACE
6/2/2013
WEEK 6 BUILD 6
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
6/9/2013
WEEK 7 BUILD 7
EASY X
MP BIKE (30)
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
6/16/2013
WEEK 8 PEAK 1 RECOVERY
OFF
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
10 K RACE
6/23/2013
WEEK 9 PEAK 2
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
6/30/2013
WEEK 10 PEAK 3
EASY X
MP BIKE (35)
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
7/7/2013
WEEK 11 PEAK 4 RECOVERY
OFF
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI BIKE
EASY BIKE + TABATA
EASY BIKE OR EASY X
10 K RACE OR HALF MARATHON
7/14/2013
WEEK 21 PEAK 5
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE OR X + OPTIONAL EASY X OR BIKE | STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
7/21/2013
WEEK 22 PEAK 6
EASY X
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
MI BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X STRENGTH
LONG BIKE
7/28/2013
WEEK 23 PEAK 7
OFF
AT BIKE
EASY BIKE STRENGTH
MI BIKE
EASY BIKE OR EASY X
EASY BIKE OR EASY X
ENDURANCE BIKE
8/4/2013
WEEK 24 PEAK 8 RECOVERY
OFF
EASY BIKE
EASY BIKE AND/OR EASY X
EASY BIKE
RACE PREP
OFF
10 K RACE OR HALF MARATHON
8/11/2013


Looking back at April, I seem to be on a bike (usually my trainer or a Spin Class) about 3 times a week, with a swim and a run or strength session (including Crossfit).  The Long/Endurance rides are probably the biggest gap, and overall training volume could be higher (what else is new?)…. but I’m not too far off the general profile of what’s laid out.

If I’m honest, I probably won’t be getting any closer to the strict lines laid out by this program in the run up to the race season, but it’s nice to have a reference to consult in terms of what I can/should do.  I think working on the bike is the way to go for me: my swim seems strong, and working my legs on the bike will pay dividends into my run, so that I don’t have to do it as often overall (though I can’t neglect it completely).

Besides not having a plan at all, what’s the craziest variation on a formal training plan you’ve ever had?