The Galloway plan could reduce your training stress significantly, but if you're not used to Walking Breaks you will have to ease into this gently. While walking may seem trivial compared with running, the transition between the two states can cause some unexpected stress. Advanced Marathoning has 18- and 12-week plans with different weekly distances, depending on your level. They recommend using the 18 week plan unless time truly doesn’t allow for it. Wednesday – Rest. You will take additional rest days every 5 weeks. This will give your muscles and connective tissues an opportunity to recover from the stresses of hard training. As you will notice, they are both slightly different values but remember, this is just a guideline. Tweaks I made to the training In case you’re not familiar, a medium long run (or MLR) is pretty much what it sounds like. It’s medium long: the second longest run of the week. Here you’ll find out:

The long run will take up the highest percentage of your weekly mileage, and your medium long run will come second. Long runs often take up too high of a percentage of a runner’s total mileage, however, and it’s better if you can space out the mileage over the course of the week a bit better.I wouldn’t consider myself an advanced marathoner considering I’ve only run four marathons. But, this plan really pushed me and helped me feel strong when all the conditions on race day were not in my favor. And if you’re racing this fall, the conditions likely will not be what you’re used to since races have “new normals”, so you’ll want your fitness dialed in to help support your mental game since you’ll be pushing outside of your comfort zone. I decided to write this blog in case it helps anyone, as with my other blogs. I’ll also take the opportunity to mention my fundraising here though too, in case anyone feels generous 😉 https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/jed2020challenge

Advanced Marathoning provides a focused purpose every day so that you get to race day fit enough, rested enough, and healthy enough to have a great experience.” Curious about the different phases of marathon training? Read: “How Many Week to Train for a Marathon – And Great Plans to Use.” Speed of the Medium Long Run I used Pete’s 55mile week for my 3h8m marathon at age 59. It was my 5th marathon. I was aiming for the 3h10m so got my PB and goal. I agree with your comments and found the mid week medium long run as he puts it the hardest to fit in before work or after work (shift worker here).

I reviewed my training log when I was using this plan and there was a note in there that I thought was telling: “My running feels the best it’s felt in a LONG TIME. I feel tired but strong.” And nearly all of my long runs had positive notes, e.g. felt great, could have gone further, pace felt easy, etc. My body definitely responded well to the variety of training. The bottom line is that these Pete Pfitzinger marathon training plans work – but they are not for everyone.