Running Tip Tuesday

I can not believe that there are just 6 weeks and 5 days until my marathon!  Training is going pretty well.  I got 50 miles in last week, including a long run of 20 miles.  This week is a recovery week which I am greatly enjoying thus far.

Running Tip Tuesday: Pick a plan that works for you

After being in the running world for awhile, this one seems obvious to me.  If you set a goal of running a 5k, marathon, or just getting into better shape then, think about what works well for you.  Personally, I like to do my long runs on Saturdays or Sundays.  I enjoy taking my day off during the week.  I do not feel confident lengthening my long runs by more than a few miles at a time.  I know myself as a runner.  I know my weekly schedule.

When I was looking for a marathon training plan, I thought I had struck gold with a training plan that gave me Fridays off, a medium-long run on Saturdays, and a long run on Sundays.  It seems so perfect to have Fridays off.  Usually we do not have to leave for church until 1:30 or so on Sundays, leaving plenty of time to do my long runs in the morning.  The plan did not work well for me at.all.  

So I tweaked it.  I moved my day off to Thursday.  I do my medium-long on Friday and go long on Saturday.  I love my training plan right now.  If I ever run another marathon, I will probably pull this training plan back out and use it again.  I have found that a training plan that does not work for me ends up making running feel like a chore and not as enjoyable as it should be.

Happy running!

What do you think- what components do you consider when picking out a training plan?