Is two runs a week really going to be enough?

Well the REAL training starts here.

After much perusal, I downloaded a training plan from Asics - www.my.asics.co.uk

I had been umming and ahhing for a while about which schedule was best. I have tried a few different options online - for halves in the past and for my research for this marathon, from the likes of Runnersworld, from the Virgin website, however I found the Asics plan the most flexible - you can choose how many runs you want to do, what time you want to get in the race, what races you have completed before and in what time, and what is the best day for you to be out there running your socks off. You essentially have to describe your "Ideal Week" and then they tell you what you need to be doing.

It will then give you a  summary of the plan split up into sections. I really like these. They are:

PRE-CONDITIONING
GETTING FASTER
GOING FURTHER
RACE SIMULATION
TAPERING & RACE DAY
RECOVERY

As they write in the plan summary - "phases" such as the above bring structure and variety to your running and offer ways to improve your performance steadily, reducing the chances of injury.

I told Asics that I wanted to run two times a week. Now, of course, I know (or at least feel that) I should be running more, and in the past have ran 4-5 times a week - sometimes even more - in the run up to races. But this time I really wanted to incorporate lots of other exercise - this is for 2 reasons.

1. I am worried that overtraining by just running will knacker my knees, my foot, and other joints. This has happened before. Those aches and pains creep up slowly and it can be a pain in the ass to get rid of them once they start appearing.
2. I want to keep things interesting. I feel if I do a long weekend run, some shorter runs in the week to mix it up and then continue to follow my regular gym routine (3-4 times a week with lots of core stuff in there and other fun stuff - have you heard me mention anti-gravity yoga yet?) then I'm going to be a strong and efficient runner... and less bored.

Now that's my thinking. Of course, this is my first ever marathon so maybe I will be proved wrong and I really need to do a lot more miles so my body gets used to it. Needless to say, the plan adjusted happily to my 2 runs per week "Ideal" and I think it looks great - normally I have a Tuesday run that varies in speed (between 5-8 miles) and then I have a run with an increasing distance on Saturday (Sunday if I get drunk on Friday).

If I do more runs, then I can log these and feel good about it - (keep it on the hush but I'm going to AIM for more like 3 runs a week). But, surely it's better to achieve your mini goals than constantly missing runs and feeling permanently guilty?

If you would like to sponsor me for my race - you can donate on my Virgin Money Giving page. I am grateful for any donations however small. http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/jennifergraham130

I would also love to hear your thoughts on my training plan and any tips are forever welcome!

Thank you so much for your support!

This is Olly and I after the Royal Parks 1/2 marathon recently. It was a gorgeous day and great route. When I crossed the finish line, all I could say was "urgh, imagine if this was only just half way"