You will not do well on a schedule like that. You can only do one or at the most two quality runs.

If you only want to run 3 days per week I suggest you run Tuesday, Thursday and Sat or Sun. The two mid week runs should be in the 8 to 12 mile range, depending on where you are in your training schedule, and the weekend run should be your long run.

If you cannot run during the week I would suggest you do a longish run of up to 12 miles on Fri, with a good chunk of it at marathon pace or faster. Perhaps alternate MP one week and threshold pace the next. Second run can be short and sweet. Sunday can be long run.

If you can only run Fri-Sat-Sun, then I suggest you not attempt a marathon. It is very likely that you won't get the training in that you need and have a very painful marathon, but the more likely scenario is that you end up injured.

I also wonder why you can't run when it is dark. Early in the AM is a great time to run.

Victor


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Can you run on treadmills on other days?

treadmill miles, while not the same are better than nothing. I'd shoot for five days of mileage rather than 3, which seems likely to cause injury.

Give it up now and save yourself a lot of pain and aggravation. You won't be able to get the required mileage in on three days a week without breaking something.

You most definitely can run in the dark, we all do this time of year. All it takes is a headlamp and a reflective vest. Marathons take a LOT of time and if you want to run one badly enough you'll need to make some serious sacrifices, especially when trying to train for one when the days are so short. If you can't spread your training out over five days, I would suggest switching to a fall marathon so you can train through the summer.

Tom

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quote:<HR>Originally posted by lisa durand:
I'm about half way into an 18 week training program for a marathon in January. I've been running 4 or 5 days a week. Now that we are loosing day light I'm going to have to cram all of my training in on Fri, Sat and Sun. Any advice would be appreciated.<HR>

I guess first of all it all depends on what your goal is. If your goal is simply to finish (survive), 3-day-a-week may not be too terribly bad... It also depends on your background of training--if you've been running a lot and this is your 5th marathon, 3-a-week is fine. Of course, "3 days in a row" with "4 days in a row" of "recovery" doesn't sound too favorable. It's like flirting with stress related injuries followed by flirting with losing all the condition you've so far developed (well, it's not THAT bad). It would make heck of a better sense to do, as crunnerman suggested, spread out a bit and do it like every other day.

My suggestion would be Friday and Sunday (with a long run on Sunday) plus maybe Tuesday or Wednesday. So despite your time crunch issue, you may want to consider "sacrificing" whatever you may have to sacrifice for one workout during the week. The girl I'm coaching has the same time strain problem and we are doing once or twice an hour morning run at 5:15. It ain't easy; but it is what it is and you've gotta do what you've gotta do.

You get what you pay for. If you want to achieve something but you don't want to pay the price; it's a losing battle. I don't know what you do for work; lunch time run, club, purchasing treadmill or NordicTrack or stationary bike...

Assuming you're simply interested in "finishing" the marathon in, say, 4 hours or so; first of all, having completed 9 weeks of program, you're way ahead of the game. You're not going to lose that condition so quickly if you organize thte next 9 weeks wisely. Second; whatever the program you're following, don't try to stick to it to the tee (tea?). Understand what you need to achieve (develop), what you HAVE already developed and what you still need to develop. Concentrate on those within the spare time that you have. Applying the program to your own needs and own situation and environment is the name of the game. Following some "idiot proof" day to day schedule is the last thing I would recommend to anybody.