How I write a custom running training plan

For those of us who are back of the packers how does the longest run of 2 1/2 hours help in preparation for a marathon? I've come to realize that a long run of 10 miles or so is sufficient to complete a half, but I'm curious about how one prepares for more than double their previous longest time running in order to finish a marathon.

Much to learn I still have.
 
For those of us who are back of the packers how does the longest run of 2 1/2 hours help in preparation for a marathon? I've come to realize that a long run of 10 miles or so is sufficient to complete a half, but I'm curious about how one prepares for more than double their previous longest time running in order to finish a marathon.

Much to learn I still have.

I can explain it, but looking at the testimonials explains it just as well:

Name: Anisum
Marathon Weekend Race: Dopey Challenge
Training Plan Duration: 16 weeks
Continuous or Run/Walk: Continuous
Days per Week: 5 then 6 for remaining 8 weeks
# of Hard Days: 2 then 3
Peak Week Duration: 9:00:43
Peak Week Mileage: 38.25 miles
Peak Single Run Duration: 2:30:34
Peak Single Run Mileage: 11 miles
Testimonial: I would say that while I had read the research regarding cumulative fatigue I got many skeptical looks from others when I explained I maxed out at 11 miles when training for the Dopey. I think evidence from my training and that of others shows that it works. Billy wrote a plan with my schedule and needs in mind and I definitely got what I wanted. I spent time in the park each day and walked at least six miles between resorts and bus time when I wasn't running. Despite that aside from a little soreness in my feet and legs immediately following the marathon I felt great. I was able to walk without looking like something ran me over the next day. More importantly for my running as a whole Billy's plan taught me how to listen to my body and rely on my feelings which lead to a more successful race experience. Where before I may have rushed to stick to a certain pace leading to a crash at the end, I was able to pull back and run at a pace that made me comfortable without worrying about time because I knew I would finish strong. I didn't hit an insurmountable wall that I felt I wouldn't be able to run through, I always felt like even if my feet hurt it was more of an annoyance that could easily be pushed through rather than a showstopper. I had an amazing weekend experience and felt great because I was well trained. Thanks so much Billy!

Name: sourire
Marathon Weekend Race: Marathon
Training Plan Duration: 15 weeks
Continuous or Run/Walk: Continuous
Days per Week: 4 days, then 4 and 5 alternating
# of Hard Days: 2
Peak Week Duration: 7:45:52
Peak Week Mileage: 36 miles
Peak Single Run Duration: 2:32:19
Peak Single Run Mileage: 12 miles
Testimonial: I was nervous about so many things going into my first marathon, but I see now that there was no reason to be. [I was told by some friends who have run marathons before, that I'd cramp, that "the wall will come crashing down", that I would not be able to tow the line if I didn't do at least one 20 miler (one person told me to do at least three 20-milers), etc. Remind me next time not to consult with these people.] I am so happy and thrilled to report that I was more than able to "tow the line" on Sunday (and to continue to walk an additional 7 miles around EPCOT that evening)! No cramps and no wall! My goal was to finish my first marathon strong, happy, smiling, and uninjured. I started the marathon off near my long run pace (was afraid to start out too quickly), slowly got closer to my marathon tempo, and kept feeling good. I walked all of the water stops, was able to run the rest of the thing, and even ran the second half about 4 minutes faster than the first half! At some point around mile 18, I looked at my Garmin and realized I had been running more hours/miles than I had ever run before, and I got very nervous all of a sudden (even felt a little nauseated), but then thought to myself: "Billy knows you are going to crush this, so why don't YOU know that you are going to crush this yet?!" I seriously pondered that one for a few miles through WWOS, and by mile 23ish, I can see via the photopass evidence, that I was beaming. I felt strong at the finish, and was in absolute disbelief that I had done it, even in staring down at the medal around my neck. Billy was extremely patient with me and all of my questions and worries through this training cycle. I've gone on for longer than a paragraph, but the point is: I followed the plan and reaped the benefits. So grateful to you, Billy, for your time, energy, and patience, and so glad to have had the chance to meet you to say thank you in person.

Name: LikelyLynae
Marathon Weekend Race: Dopey Challenge
Training Plan Duration: 12 weeks
Continuous or Run/Walk: Run/Walk
Days per Week: 6 weeks
# of Hard Days: 2 to 3 based on week
Peak Week Duration: 9:20:24
Peak Week Mileage: 38.5 miles
Peak Single Run Duration: 2:58:23
Peak Single Run Mileage: 12 miles
Testimonial: Considering I started my Dopey training late (October!) I was very excited to try the cumulative fatigue idea. I was weary about the idea of only running 12 miles as my longest run, but the fact that I had minimal muscle fatigue and didn’t feel like I even had a long run is proof that the system works. I also PRed my marathon time by 35 minutes. Train slow to run fast. Trust your training. It works.

Name: Anon #3
Marathon Weekend Race: Dopey Challenge
Training Plan Duration: 23 weeks and then 10 weeks
Continuous or Run/Walk: Continuous
Days per Week: 5
# of Hard Days: 2 or 3 alternating
Peak Week Duration: 7:44:38
Peak Week Mileage: 36 miles
Peak Single Run Duration: 2:31:06
Peak Single Run Mileage: 12 miles
Testimonial: I have run two marathons before and was able to finish both but the last several miles were always terrible. I was excited to try a new way of training after hearing so many good things about Billy’s plans. Unfortunately, I broke my toe two weeks into training but Billy was great to make me a new plan as soon as I could run again. Other than missing a couple of days due to sickness-this was the first training plan I was able to finish and finish feeling good!! I was only able to run the 10k due to the winter storm and sickness. But it was the easiest 10k I have ever done!! Billy’s plan has really made me a better runner and has kept me injury free. I was able to train for the marathon without further injuring my foot. I am excited to start a new plan!

Name: Anon #6
Marathon Weekend Race: Dopey Challenge
Training Plan Duration: 15 weeks
Continuous or Run/Walk: Continuous
Days per Week: Extremely Variable
# of Hard Days: 2
Peak Week Duration: 6:35:14
Peak Week Mileage: 34 miles
Peak Single Run Duration: 2:15:41
Peak Single Run Mileage: 12 miles
Testimonial: Completed Dopey Challenge

Name: Anon #8
Marathon Weekend Race: Marathon
Training Plan Duration: 11 weeks
Continuous or Run/Walk: Continuous
Days per Week: 4 and 5 alternating
# of Hard Days: 2
Peak Week Duration: 7:26:27
Peak Week Mileage: 56.2 kilometers
Peak Single Run Duration: 2:31:00
Peak Single Run Mileage: 19.3 kilometers
Testimonial: Your training plan is truly something of brilliance. You have mastered the calculations that most people just can’t figure out and have somehow figured out how to personalize your method.

I finished my race at 5:30. Slower than I hoped, but I took it slow on my own accord, trusting what you had taught me and kept your words of positivity on mind throughout the race. I had the stomach bug on Friday night, so I kept it slow, but I am more proud of myself than I have ever been. I finished with energy left and absolutely NO pain! I started very slow and kept a slow pace until about mile 12, where I picked up a bit, but not too much. I stayed comfortable and did not get swept up by the flow around me and was so pleased by how comfortable my pace was.

Although I was a bit slow, I consider this race one of my greatest successes and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your dedication and time.



Name: Anon #9
Marathon Weekend Race: Dopey Challenge
Training Plan Duration: 12 weeks
Continuous or Run/Walk: Run/Walk
Days per Week: 5
# of Hard Days: 2
Peak Week Duration: 8:04:37
Peak Week Mileage: 34.5 miles
Peak Single Run Duration: 2:51:31
Peak Single Run Mileage: 12 miles
Testimonial: thank you so much for my training plan! All 4 of the races were great, I completely surprised myself and didn't struggle in the marathon! I kept to the intervals for all 4 of the races for the majority of the time (the start of the races were pretty congested). I didn't have too much soreness either which was a shock as I thought I might struggle to carry on the in the parks but I didn't have that problem! Again thank you so much for helping, I don't know how it would have gone if I had carried on training the way that I was!

This is 7 different runners that during their training for a marathon never ran further than 12 miles in training. Some even completed the Dopey Challenge (again without going over 12 miles in training).

So how is it possible to train at 150 minutes (or 12 miles) and still be able to run 26.2 miles (or 5, 6, and 7 hours)? It comes from the balance of the plan. This is not 3 days per week. And most of these are doing 5 days per week. They're doing lots and lots of aerobic training (slower than marathon tempo). Remember the goal of the 12 mile long run is not to train for miles 0-12 of the marathon. The purpose is to train for 14-26.2. This is accomplished by putting a 90 min run before the 150 min run every weekend. Keeps you from being 100% fresh entering the long run and helps make it just a touch harder. All of these runners were instructed to maintain their pace at or slower than what we trained at. That's the easy explanation.
 
Thank you so much. One of my biggest hesitations about a marathon is the time I fear it would take to train for it. Given my lack of speed, the weekend long runs take up a good chunk of my Saturdays to begin with. I'm just not all that excited about taking on a plan that would essentially eliminate any free time on Saturdays altogether.

To my way of thinking this sounds similar to principle to the back to back components of Galloway's challenge plans. Keep in mind that my current speed means I'm running a 10K in around 90 minutes anyways. I already know that I can handle consecutive long runs weekends.

Galloway First Order Challenge (note that week 1 refers to first back to back week, plan began roughly 6 weeks earlier.
Week 1: 1 mile Friday, 7 miles Saturday
Week 2: 4 miles
Week 3: 2 miles Friday, 9.5 miles Saturday
Week 4: 4 miles
Week 5: 3 miles Friday, 11 miles Saturday
Week 6: 4 miles
Week 7: 4 miles Friday, 12.5 miles Saturday
Week 8: 4 miles
Week 9: 5 miles Friday, 14 miles Saturday
Week 10: 4 miles
Week 11: Race weekend

Am I correct in assuming that in order to prepare the body fatigue wise for miles 14 through 26.2 there would probably be more intense run weekends (defined by the back to backs)?

If I were to do this, I can commit to 5-6 days running on most weeks. Assuming Dopey is the endgame, there would be 2-3 weeks in October where I would have to run fewer miles and maybe even only 2-3 days due to a work deadline, but after it's done I can resume 5-6 days.
 
Thank you so much. One of my biggest hesitations about a marathon is the time I fear it would take to train for it. Given my lack of speed, the weekend long runs take up a good chunk of my Saturdays to begin with. I'm just not all that excited about taking on a plan that would essentially eliminate any free time on Saturdays altogether.

To my way of thinking this sounds similar to principle to the back to back components of Galloway's challenge plans. Keep in mind that my current speed means I'm running a 10K in around 90 minutes anyways. I already know that I can handle consecutive long runs weekends.

Galloway First Order Challenge (note that week 1 refers to first back to back week, plan began roughly 6 weeks earlier.
Week 1: 1 mile Friday, 7 miles Saturday
Week 2: 4 miles
Week 3: 2 miles Friday, 9.5 miles Saturday
Week 4: 4 miles
Week 5: 3 miles Friday, 11 miles Saturday
Week 6: 4 miles
Week 7: 4 miles Friday, 12.5 miles Saturday
Week 8: 4 miles
Week 9: 5 miles Friday, 14 miles Saturday
Week 10: 4 miles
Week 11: Race weekend

Am I correct in assuming that in order to prepare the body fatigue wise for miles 14 through 26.2 there would probably be more intense run weekends (defined by the back to backs)?

The weekend long runs usually follow a pattern like the following (working backwards):

Race Week
60+60 min
90+90 min
90+150 min
90+90 min
90+150 min
90+90 min
90+130-140 min
90+90 min
90+120-130 min
90+90 min
90+120 min

and so on and so forth. All kept at very easy pacing (either Galloway + 2min or M Tempo + 9% dependent on run/walk or continuous).

Remember now that this represents only 2 of the possible 4, 5, or 6 runs per week. The runs mid-week are dictated by how much time someone has available, but I like to see another 90-120 min run mid-week as well. Look at the peak week in duration for the individuals above (9:00, 7:45, 9:20, 7:44, 6:35, 7:26, 8:04). That's some legit amount of training on a weekly basis (I personally stick to 8-9 hours of running per week for a marathon). So rather than a 5 hour run on the weekend, the time is spread across the week. All about balance.
 


Wow, this was really interesting! Thanks for the detailed write up of your process :) I get so nervous about the idea of doing less than a half marathon as the longest long run during marathon training, but I went up to 20 miles in training last time and that led to knee problems. And your testimonials speak for themselves! I think I saw you mention in one of your earlier posts that you would go longer than the 150 minute long run for people who do run/walk intervals?
 
Wow, this was really interesting! Thanks for the detailed write up of your process :) I get so nervous about the idea of doing less than a half marathon as the longest long run during marathon training, but I went up to 20 miles in training last time and that led to knee problems. And your testimonials speak for themselves! I think I saw you mention in one of your earlier posts that you would go longer than the 150 minute long run for people who do run/walk intervals?

Thanks!

Yes, I'm still trying to figure out that optimal balance between enough time and too much time in an individual training run for run/walk. Galloway doesn't seem to have a limit and Jack Daniels shot in the dark is 4.5 hours (in his book). For me, I settled on 3 hours for marathon weekend run/walkers. One of the people participated in Dopey, max of 3 hours (12 miles), and predicted marathon time was 5.5 hours under PR conditions based on current fitness when we started. This person ran the Disney marathon (after the other 3 races which were taken easier) in 5:02.

So until the results of some of the other run/walkers tells me differently, then I'll stick with a max of 180 minutes for run/walk marathon plans. But I stress, that while the max long run is reduced the other weekly mileage is increased to help settle the balance. I find that regardless of current fitness, if you're training at appropriate paces and doing about 7-9 hours of running per week, then you will be fully prepared to finish the marathon and in some cases comfortably.
 
For those of us who are back of the packers how does the longest run of 2 1/2 hours help in preparation for a marathon? I've come to realize that a long run of 10 miles or so is sufficient to complete a half, but I'm curious about how one prepares for more than double their previous longest time running in order to finish a marathon.

Much to learn I still have.

As always, @DopeyBadger will have the theory behind it, but I wanted to relay my real-life experience with what you are asking about. For my PR marathon in 2016, the 2 1/2 hour max run on my plan was 14 miles. I completed the plan at the prescribed paces and went into the race with a plan to hit my 4:15 time goal. Even though I had never exceeded 14 miles in training, I felt strong throughout the race and it was only some particularly brutal hills from miles 20-23 that kept me from hitting that time goal. As it was, I still ended up relatively close with a 4:20 and a negative split, to boot. I think that the negative split is particularly noteworthy when you ask about the uncertainty in running beyond your distance in training. The plan put me in a fitness state where I not only ran the first 13.1 miles of the marathon on my target pace, I was able to run the second 13.1, 12.1 miles of which were beyond any distance I had ever run in training, at a faster pace! I know it seems counter intuitive at times, these training plans really do work if you trust and execute them.
 


As always, @DopeyBadger will have the theory behind it, but I wanted to relay my real-life experience with what you are asking about. For my PR marathon in 2016, the 2 1/2 hour max run on my plan was 14 miles. I completed the plan at the prescribed paces and went into the race with a plan to hit my 4:15 time goal. Even though I had never exceeded 14 miles in training, I felt strong throughout the race and it was only some particularly brutal hills from miles 20-23 that kept me from hitting that time goal. As it was, I still ended up relatively close with a 4:20 and a negative split, to boot. I think that the negative split is particularly noteworthy when you ask about the uncertainty in running beyond your distance in training. The plan put me in a fitness state where I not only ran the first 13.1 miles of the marathon on my target pace, I was able to run the second 13.1, 12.1 miles of which were beyond any distance I had ever run in training, at a faster pace! I know it seems counter intuitive at times, these training plans really do work if you trust and execute them.

To me, it goes back to "Don't survive the training, thrive because of it." Sometimes doing multiple 20 milers in training is too much (given how much time at an appropriate pace it would take to complete it). You finish off those 20 milers and you might have felt as if you did really well with each. But then come race day, you feel flat and unable to have that negative split, even split, or PR like performance. One place I'd look is if you were that flat, maybe it's because your body was stuck in recovery mode come race day. Those multiple 20 miler efforts were the race day efforts and come the actual race it's as if you have recently completed 3 prior marathons in the prior weeks. I know that's the way it went for me when I trained using mileage as my guide. Since started to think about pace and duration more, that's not nearly been the case as often. So that would be my theory behind it. Train to much or for to long and it might become your race day effort before the race day even happens.

To add to your personal experience, but in addition to a negative split wasn't this also a PR by 60-80 minutes @camaker?
 
I find all of this fascinating - esp the peak mileage for a marathon discussion. And your approach makes a future marathon feel so much more attainable!

Totally doable. Right now you're on a 4/5 alternating plan with a 45 min M/W cap and 60 min F cap for your upcoming HM. If on a few occasions we could get you up to a 90 min run mid-week, then you'd be marathon ready for sure. Honestly, that's probably the only change I'd ask for going into a marathon plan for you. Over the course of a 16 week plan, that's maybe an occurrence 4 to 5 times total. But let's worry about crossing that bridge later. If you want it, I know you can do it.
 
Totally doable. Right now you're on a 4/5 alternating plan with a 45 min M/W cap and 60 min F cap for your upcoming HM. If on a few occasions we could get you up to a 90 min run mid-week, then you'd be marathon ready for sure. Honestly, that's probably the only change I'd ask for going into a marathon plan for you. Over the course of a 16 week plan, that's maybe an occurrence 4 to 5 times total. But let's worry about crossing that bridge later. If you want it, I know you can do it.

This is good to have in the back of my mind!!
 
Thank you for posting all of this great information!

I am a type 2 diabetic in fine control due to the fact I eat very few carbs, lost weight, and started running. What potential impact would this have on your thoughts of not using a carb supplement during most training runs. I currently take a GU gel packet about every 30-45 minutes during training runs and races. I do a few HMs a year (2:40 using walk/run) and will do a full marathon in the fall. Not looking for medical advice....just any thoughts or research you are aware of.
 
Thank you for posting all of this great information!

You're welcome!

I am a type 2 diabetic in fine control due to the fact I eat very few carbs, lost weight, and started running. What potential impact would this have on your thoughts of not using a carb supplement during most training runs. I currently take a GU gel packet about every 30-45 minutes during training runs and races. I do a few HMs a year (2:40 using walk/run) and will do a full marathon in the fall. Not looking for medical advice....just any thoughts or research you are aware of.

As you say, I'm not a doctor. So this is one runner to another.

On the spectrum of ways to improve performance I would put manipulation of nutritional supplementation during training lower on the list than some other things. Mainly, I think doing the slower training, appropriate pacing, appropriate durations at said pace, balance amongst the hard/easy, balance amongst the training plan in total, and amount of overall training are likely to have a higher impact in your overall progression than will whether you consume carbs on runs less than 90 min or not.

The purpose of withholding is to teach your body to use fat (more efficient and abundant energy source) over carbs. Since you don't eat many carbs in your daily diet you may already be more likely to use fat than carbs while running at certain relative paces. The only way to know for sure is to have a metabolic efficiency test (link) which would determine that relationship of pace and carb/fat use on an individual level. Here's the catch with metabolic efficiency testing though, it can be widely variable on a day to day basis based on several external factors. So unless you were truly trying to hone in, I'd just skip it.

So, I think there are plenty of other avenues I'd recommend pursuing (like slowing down training and the bevy of other concepts I covered earlier) before I'd worry about trying the nutrition withholding as well. If you've found supplementing on shorter runs works well for you and maintains your medical background, then I see no reason to stop. This would be a case like I stated earlier where it is certainly justified given a medical background to take in carbs while training/racing shorter distances.
 
This thread has become so much more than just an explanation about how you design custom training plans. And that's a great thing.

As a new runner, I spent a lot of time training on blind faith. I chose the Galloway runDisney plan because it was free and because it didn't involve running for 3+ hours every day. But I still had no idea how and why it worked. When I didn't follow it perfectly, I became scared that I would fail miserably in my first race even though I successfully finished all the long runs. It made for an interesting first race experience. If I hadn't wanted the Coast to Coast medal so badly, it probably would have been a first and last race of any distance ever. But every race since has been genuinely fun instead of a mixture of why did I sign up for this/what was I thinking/how insane am I and wow, I'm actually going to pull this off.

As I have to come to learn more about both how and why training plans mostly followed work, I have come to do things I once believed would never happen. Multi race challenges, training for a race in the worst time of year to train, and eventually hatching the insane idea to run a half on 3 weeks training despite having not ran consistently for 6 weeks beforehand. I went into that race 3 weeks after beginning training confident I would finish. And that's in large part because I had a better understanding of how training plans work. I believe that a lot of people talk themselves out of doing it because they don't understand how the training works and why it works.

The more you understand about how plans work, the more possible and even likely it becomes that you can achieve a running goal you once thought impossible.
 
Thank you for putting all this info out there. It's been amazing to read. I have one curiosity question? When some one comes back to you after having a plan and needing a new one for the next race/goal is it easier to put the 2nd plan together or do you go through all the same steps here and keep reinventing the wheel? Just wondering if it is just as much time/work writing a continued plan as a first timer plan?
 
What books/research/etc. do you think informs your training plan most? I read Hansons' Marathon Method just before Dopey and a lot of what was discussed there seemed to echo your training plans. I was wondering if there was any other literature you would recommend. Maybe you could just write your own book though. :D
 
This thread has become so much more than just an explanation about how you design custom training plans. And that's a great thing.

As a new runner, I spent a lot of time training on blind faith. I chose the Galloway runDisney plan because it was free and because it didn't involve running for 3+ hours every day. But I still had no idea how and why it worked. When I didn't follow it perfectly, I became scared that I would fail miserably in my first race even though I successfully finished all the long runs. It made for an interesting first race experience. If I hadn't wanted the Coast to Coast medal so badly, it probably would have been a first and last race of any distance ever. But every race since has been genuinely fun instead of a mixture of why did I sign up for this/what was I thinking/how insane am I and wow, I'm actually going to pull this off.

As I have to come to learn more about both how and why training plans mostly followed work, I have come to do things I once believed would never happen. Multi race challenges, training for a race in the worst time of year to train, and eventually hatching the insane idea to run a half on 3 weeks training despite having not ran consistently for 6 weeks beforehand. I went into that race 3 weeks after beginning training confident I would finish. And that's in large part because I had a better understanding of how training plans work. I believe that a lot of people talk themselves out of doing it because they don't understand how the training works and why it works.

The more you understand about how plans work, the more possible and even likely it becomes that you can achieve a running goal you once thought impossible.

Absolutely. Like many things in life, if you know the "why" behind it, then you find yourself more invested in it. When you're more invested in it, you flourish because of it.

Running can be simple. One foot in front of the other. Keep moving forward. Cross the finish line.
Running can be complex. Balance amongst days per week. 80/20. Carb consumption. Polarized pacing in training. Specificity. Progression of workouts. Pacing during races. etc.

Thank you for putting all this info out there. It's been amazing to read. I have one curiosity question? When some one comes back to you after having a plan and needing a new one for the next race/goal is it easier to put the 2nd plan together or do you go through all the same steps here and keep reinventing the wheel? Just wondering if it is just as much time/work writing a continued plan as a first timer plan?

Thanks for reading! It is absolutely easier to write the second plan than it is the first. The first usually involves as few as 5-10 back and forth messages to make sure we're on the same page. But sometimes it takes as many as 30-40 messages. It's all a matter of making sure that both myself and the runner feel comfortable with the ideas we come up with in attempting to reach their goals. Sometimes people will ask common questions which makes my life easier because I can copy and past previous conversations or posts I've made to answer the question.

But with the second plan, I already know their goals, their injury history, their recent training, their recent performance on my training, etc. Many of the runners I work with message me on a daily, weekly, or bi-weekly basis. Which means I've got tons of data saved for each as to how the last plan went. That helps me make quick decisions about what to do next for them. So the 2nd plan is usually as few as one message. I want a new plan, this is the race schedule, and I have the following availability. The actual writing of the plan itself is no faster though. To write a good plan still takes careful construction. So the Q/A cuts down tremendously. I'd estimate that a new person takes me anywhere from 2-6 hours of work. But a 2nd plan is more like 20-60 minutes depending on the number of days per week, time before the "A" race, and time they have available to train. The more time they have the more complex the plan gets.

I've always thought that if I were to start a business around writing training plans, that I would charge returning customers less than new customers. New customers require a lot of work. But the returning customers aren't nearly as much work. I feel my pricing of such would need to honestly reflect that.

What books/research/etc. do you think informs your training plan most? I read Hansons' Marathon Method just before Dopey and a lot of what was discussed there seemed to echo your training plans. I was wondering if there was any other literature you would recommend. Maybe you could just write your own book though. :D

Jack Daniels, Hansons, Seiler, Fitzgerald, and Gaudette all follow a very similar line of thinking. This makes their plans similar. But they all have different twists on their ideas that make them unique. At their core, they all follow a periodization on a weekly basis around 80% easy/20% hard. But what makes up the 20% hard makes them different.

Daniels - Rather then using races as training paces he uses physiological basis. R pace, I pace, T pace are based on things that occur physiologically at those paces rather than specifically being 10 mile, 10k, or HM Tempo. He believes in a 25% long run cap and typically caps his longest training run at 150 minutes.

Hansons - Focuses on races as paces. So they use M Tempo, HM Tempo, 10k Tempo, or 5k Tempo often. Their plan focuses on engraining a set pace into your memory so that you know what it feels like on race day. For their "book" plans, they offer standard long runs maxing usually around 180 minutes. However, their non-book plans offer a more advanced long run with the "hybrid" I discussed earlier. Advanced plans offer little recovery weeks based on weekly mileage or intensity. They believe in a 25-30% long run cap.

Gaudette - A Hansons disciple. His belief is that aerobic gains are maximized at 120 minutes. Anything beyond 120 min has diminishing returns. However, he believes that training beyond 120 min can be beneficial if the pace is faster than "long run". So he incorporates a lot of fast finish or hybrid long runs that Hansons reserve for their elite plans.

Blaser - What makes me different than them?
-I regularly schedule "blind" runs. I'm a big believer in internalizing the pace. It can be an extremely useful tool on race day. But you don't want to abuse the use of blind running because it can offset the goals of training. So it takes some days, others weeks, and others years before they really can decide on a pace and then without looking at GPS data just run it. I don't think any of them would disagree with this technique, rather they just don't regularly schedule it.
-I believe in scoring workouts. How many intervals did you get within a pre-scheduled window? Are you consistently not hitting either 80% for workouts or 70% for weeks? If so, a pivot may be necessary.
-I make more of an effort to periodize the high and low of weekly mileage to ensure proper recovery throughout the plan.
-I make plans for continuous running and run/walk based on the same principles. Relative current fitness pace and duration.
-I make a concerted effort to focus on the psychobiological model of endurance from Marcora.
-Additionally, I'm really big on custom plans. Again, I don't think any of them would disagree with me. But the key is that when a plan is pre-written in the book, then most users will default to that whether it's appropriate or not. For my system which is pace and duration based, it's really hard to pre-write any plan. Because then it wouldn't be custom to the user. But the opposite end of the spectrum is a book like Magness (Science of Running) which contains no plan at all. It makes the user really confused when trying to design their own plan (I know I was) because there's no minimal backbone to follow. Most people don't like math. So that means a custom plan based on pace and duration would be hard to get across in a book version without the back and forth with someone vested in it. Take for instance the Hansons 60/80 mile plan. A person could look at that and say, yea I want to do this plan because I finished the Hansons Advanced and felt good. Maybe the Hansons Advanced was 8-10 hours of running for them. Then the 60/80 plan might be 11-12 hours of running. Maybe those easy days go from 60 min to 90 min. It would be my belief that the person might be setting themselves up for some unintended consequences based on the duration of certain segments of training. Some people can handle that training load, but most can not.

These are some of my biggest influences for designing training plans:

Hansons - Principles of pacing, training plan design, during marathon carbohydrate calculations (Hansons Marathon Method)
Stephen Seiler - Principles of balance in training plans (80% Easy and 20% Hard) (Seiler; and Fitzgerald - 80/20 Running)
Jack Daniels - Principles of maximum duration training per session, 5K training (Daniels Running Formula)
Arthur Lydiard - Principles of Specialization
Steve Magness - Principles of Adaptation and Principles of choosing what type of training is best for an individual (Science of Running)
Jeff Gaudette - Running technique (foot strike, breathing, shoulders, arms, eyesight), Principles of Aerobic and Anaerobic running and why warm-ups are important (runnersconnect.net; podcast)
Samuele Marcora - Psychobiological Model (motivation and perception of effort) (Countless scientific articles; or Fitzgerald - How Bad do you want it?)
Benjamin Rapoport - During marathon carbohydrate calculations (Rapoport)
Timothy Fairchild - Western Australian carbohydrate loading procedure for pre-running carb loading (Fairchild)
Hadd - Principles of choosing what type of training is best for an individual (Hadd's Approach to Distance Running)
Pete Magill - 5K training (Runners World)
 
For anyone interested in how my training plans compare to the analysis from Ian Williams in his new marathon race predictor calculator:

LINK
 
I can't tell you how invaluable I have found your explanations to be! I've been running for 3-4 years now and starting to get discouraged with progress (or lack of progress). With responsibilities of full time work and full time family, many of my runs start between 4- 5 in the morning. Despite consistently doing them, it can start to wear you down when you aren't seeing much improvement with the hurdles I go through to have the time to run. I had been trying to piece this all together myself lately but there is so much information out there it can be overwhelming...it's not easy! I'm training for my 3rd marathon this fall and would like to make sure that I'm spending my time productively and getting the most out of my training that I can. So many things that I've read here have resonated with my training plans in the past which didn't work well for me.
 
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