I am sure you’ve heard of this method right? Well, in a nutshell it is based on the concept of cumulative fatigue. You train your body to run successfully when you are tired at the end of a race. These plans are 18 weeks and have you running 6 days (easy, speed/strength, tempo, and long runs) a week with one rest day. Sounds exhausting right? I know, I know.
I’ve heard so many great things about it and well I decided to go ahead and try it out. For now I am slowly getting into the groove of running so many days per week. My goal is to also implement this as I train for the 2016 Chicago Marathon which starts the first week of June. I finally registered!
Am I scared? Yes. Nervous? Absolutely! I’ve never run 6 days a week. During the last few weeks of my training for the RnR NOLA in February, I was running 4 days a week and I had days in which I was tired but then also had days in which I felt great.
A few weeks ago I put together my plan and added my runs to my calendar. I am two weeks into it and so far it is going good. Part of it could be that I was on Spring Break last week and was taking it really easy. This week I’ve been more tired than usual (I realized I need more than 8 hours of sleep each night). I do not feel sore and surprisingly am recovering better than I expected.
Have you used this plan before in your training? How did it go? Thoughts and/or advice?
14 responses to “Hansons Training Plan”
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Did a review of the newer book and liked concept but have yet to really test it out in training.
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I like the concept too but just a bit nervous about the high mileage because it is something I am not used to.
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I have used the Hanson’s marathon plan in the past. I really like the 16 mile long runs. After doing the plan for so long running every day has become my routine now! Good luck!
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Thanks Pete! I am still amazed that the plan only has long runs up to 16 miles. So different from what I’ve been used to as far as running up to 20 miles and/or running several of those.
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I’ve heard good things about the training method from other runners and it helped them shave a lot of time off their current PRs, but I know that it wouldnt work for me. I’m prone to injury so I think 6 days a week of running would flare up old injuries!
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I understand. I am hoping no injuries for me. Hope you are doing well.
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i have the marathon book but have yet to find a cycle to fit it in yet…i have read through it and am looking forward to trying it out – maybe for my final marathon this year which is still TBD…best of luck, so cool that you are running Chicago again…without a doubt, still my favorite marathon so far!
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Thanks. The Chicago Marathon is my favorite marathon too. Good luck in your TBD Marathon and in the training plan.
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I know a little bit about this, but it will be interesting to learn more from you and see your first-hand experience with it. I think the novelty of it should keep you excited about each run!
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Thanks Elizabeth. Besides an injury, I hope I do not get burnt out. So far it is going well but this is just the beginning. 🙂
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OMG your kitten looks exactly like my baby Stella, love her!!! Wow six days a week that is intense. I started running three days a week and I feel like that’s enough of a commitment. Good luck with your training I’m interested to see how it goes. http://www.runningtomilan.wordpress.com
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Thank you! I love Lola (my cat). She is adorable yet mischievous. 🙂 I agree that six days is intense but so far it is going well.
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Yay, we’re both running Chicago this year!!
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I am so excited for you! I wished I could join you for a run but you are way much faster than me. 🙂