Will I be ready to run a Boston-qualifying time in 6 weeks?

[Tamy]

I've been following Sasha's advice to run 6 days a week.  I'm transitioning from 8 milers to 9 milers now and will be up to 6  X 10 in a few weeks.  I've read the posts about not worrying too much about tapering since my weekly mileage will max out around 60.  Can I run a Boston-qualifying time without doing any long runs?  Should I just start doing some long runs before getting to the 6 X 10?  The marathon in 6 weeks is a nice flat course that I'm familiar with, and there aren't any other good marathons around me in the following months; that's why I don't just wait.  But if it's clear to everyone that I'm not ready to run a PR, I'll skip the Oct. marathon.

[Jon Allen]

First, a question- did you do many long runs before your previous marathons?

I personally would not suggest running a marathon without at least one recent 20+ miler, and preferably 3 or more.  With only 6 weeks to go, it seems a bit late to try building up that much.  If you are determined to do a marathon and had a few extra months, I would recommend cutting back a bit in your daily mileage and building up to a long run (i.e. 10-6-10-6-10-20 = 62 mpw).

You really have 3 options. 1- do your marathon with 60 mpw but no long run.  2- try to add some long runs in the time you have (i.e. do a 15 mile run this weekend, 18 next weekend, one week off, then 20).  3- delay your marathon.

If it were me, I would choose option 2 over option 1.  But I would seriously consider option 3.  I would think option 2 gives you a better chance to BQ than option 1, but that is just unfounded speculation.  Only you know what is working well for your body.

[Tamy]

Thanks, Jon, for your reply.

Yeah, I've done 3 marathons with your option 2, which is the traditional way.  I usually got up to about 22 mile runs before previous marathons.  But I also dealt with overuse injuries before each marathon. 

I am only trying this new way because of the advice I got on this website, and I'm almost doubling my previous weekly mileage average without pain or injuries.

If I follow your suggestion for cutting back the dailies to get in a long run, do you think I can go straight to a 20 miler this week without doing something else between 10 and 20?

[Jon Allen]

The consistent daily mileage that Sasha preaches is great for getting you in good shape.  But, if you don't do anything over 10 miles, it isn't too great for marathon.

As for a 20 miler- hard to say.  I guess you could just try to jump right to 20 (if you go easy enough), but do it near your house so you can bail out if it gets ugly.  Personally, I would maybe do at least one intermediate run (15-17 miles) this week, then 20 in a week or two.  You have experience running that far, so you should have a good feel for your body.

[Tamy]

Thanks for all your input!! 

[Michelle Lowry]

I agree with Jon on all.  I wouldn't hop straight to a 20 miler, but I would work up to one.  The marathon will be long and nasty without some long runs.  I would also consider option 3, but that's the hardest to do.

[Tamy]

Thanks, Michelle.

And Jon, so glad you changed your picture!!!!

[Jon Allen]

You don't like Hulk?  That's been my avatar for 2 years! 

[Sasha Pachev]

If you are running at least 8 miles a day six days a week, one 20 mile run followed by a day of rest should not kill you. The purpose of running decent mileage daily is to prepare you to absorb the long run.

My thoughts on the long run for marathon conditioning is that it is important, but overrated. If (for the purpose of the marathon) I had to choose 4 miles a day five days a week + 20 on the sixth vs 8 miles a day 6 days a week I would choose 8 miles a day 6 days a week. Because the choice is between nice solid aerobic conditioning lacking only the stimulus in the "zone" vs breaking your body down with the "zone" stimulus (the 20 mile run) for which it is not ready on a weekly basis. Of course, ideally I would choose 8 miles a day + 20 mile long run. Then the 20 mile run could actually be absorbed.

I would not worry too much about how many miles exactly you are running and/or how many more miles you are adding over a certain period. Just go by the body response. If you have run for three weeks at 48 miles (6x8), start the next week, run 8 miles each of the five days with absolutely no sign of anything wrong, it is safe to go 20 in the long run even if that means you will have 60 miles for the week with a 25% increase.

Injuries happen not because you break some arbitrary mileage or shoe rule, but because you train above what your body is fit to do. There are some rules of thumb, but runners are like irregular verbs in Spanish.  You cannot figure those out with rules, you just have to be familiar enough with the language to know how those verbs are conjugated. It never ceases to amaze me how a semi-literate Mexican construction worker is able to put those verbs in their correct forms in a rich variety of tenses without even having to think. Runner's bodies just like irregular verbs like to defy simply formulated rules. Thus, I will repeat what Lydiard told his runners - rule number one is Listen To Your Body!

[Tamy]

Sasha, muchas gracias!