Hey guys,

I¡¯ll be using Daniels¡¯ marathon training plan A as well. I live in Australia and my marathon is on 3 July 2006. My present PBs are 3:17 for marathon (Oct 05) and 39:38 for 10K (Nov 05). I¡¯d say that I am now probably in the 52 VDOT shape. Depending on how my training goes, I¡¯d like to target a sub-3 marathon (requires VDOT 54?)

This week marks Week -24 from the race date and the official beginning of Phase 1. However, I am a bit naughty and will not follow Jack¡¯s guidelines on Base Training. I have a handful of races to do in the couple of weeks: 5K on 22/01, 8K on 26/01, 16K on 29/01 (three races in 7 days, yikes!) and 10K on 12/02. I¡¯m currently incorporating 2 speed sessions a week. Last week I did 4x1200m @ 5k pace and 5k continuos run @ T-pace to prepare for these races. My mileage last week was 75k (47 miles).

I¡¯m planning approx. 60 mpw (100 kmpw) as peak mileage (could be 70miles if I¡¯m up to it). For the marathon training last year, I did a few weeks at 50 miles, hence I do not think ramping up to 60-ish mpw a big issue.

My training plan for Phase 1 is as follows:

Week 24 : 40 miles (incl. 4x1200m T-pace & 5miles M-pace mid-week & 5k race on 22/01). Hence, around 30 miles of E-pace running
Week 23: 43 miles (incl. 8k race on 26/01 & 16K race on 29/01). Hence, around 28miles of E-pace running
Week 22: ~50 miles, mostly E-pace running (incl. 2-hour long run & some M-pace running)
Week 21: 40 miles (incl. 4x1200m T-pace mid-week & 10K race on 29/02). Hence, ~30miles of E-pace running
Week 19-20: ~50-55 miles, mostly E-pace running (incl. 2hr long run & some M-pace running)

Not really a typical base training, but I love races and learn a lot from them.

All the best to you all.

http://This message has been edited by TheNeedToRun (edited Jan-15-2006).

I live in Perth, Western Australia. It's now summer time, with temp around 25-32C. The Perth marathon is a small event, with 300 runners competing last year. The weather should be good in July at 10-15C, but note that Perth is on eof the world's windiest city.

I did a 5k race today in 19:10 (14secs PB). Was aiming for sub-19 but the course was slightly hilly and my shoe lace was loose after km 2. Jack's table puts me at 52-53 VDOT - in line with my 10K PB of 39:38 and indicates potential <3:04 marathon.

I've been training at 52 VDOT pace for the last few months (albeit 3 weeks break in December), so will aim to upgrade to 53 VDOT training pace next month.

I also have a 8K and 10 milers race this week, so my Week -23 will consist of slow, recovery runs. Not a typical marathon plan that Jack Daniels envisages, but I really love PBs.