I ran two marathons this year. Yuengling Shamrock in March (3:22:46) and Chicago Marathon two weeks ago (3:26:03). That is the first time I’ve ever run two marathons in a 12-month period. And I did it using a “train less” approach.
Let me give you some history. Back when I was in college I ran three marathons on minimal training. The Flying Pig in Cincinnati in 2008 and 2011, and the Boston Marathon in 2009. I was young, too busy with school, and unafraid of the consequences that could come with running 26 miles under-trained. My longest runs were 16, 10, and 13 miles for those three marathons. Some people thought and verbally expressed that I was insane. Especially running Boston on 10 miles. But I ran 3:38, 3:31, and 3:23, respectively. And most importantly, to accomplish that I made it to the starting line healthy on each race day.
Fast forward a few years and my next two marathons were Prague 2014 and Boston 2015. For both races I decided to train much more heavily with longer training runs because I wanted to qualify for Boston and then try to break 3:20 at Boston. I had full training plans with running 5-6 days a week and long runs up to 18-20 miles. During Prague training I had major hip issues and on race day, despite the 3:22 PR, I had a major malfunction with my IT band that took me from breaking 3:20 to that 3:22 and change. My knee locked up and I was crying through miles 19-24. Then, my IT band flared up again while training for Boston. I never made it through my 20 mile training run and limped to a 3:44 on race day. That landed me in physical therapy and on over a month break from running a single mile. I thought my days running marathons might be over. I was frustrated and devastated.
Then my husband suggested I try my old college approach. Train less and see how it goes. His logic was sound – if I hadn’t gotten hurt and ran qualifying times when training less, but got injured training more, why not give it a shot. So that is what I did. For the Shamrock Marathon, 16 miles was my longest run and I ran 4 days per week with one of those being a hill or interval day. I ran Shamrock in 3:22:46, 20 seconds off my PR. (It is a flat course so I’m sure that factored in some!) It gave me a huge confidence boost. I finished injury free with a healthy IT band. I was able to return to running light mileage within a week of the race.
For Chicago, 13 miles was my longest run. I had a low mileage base because of the summer traveling, but I still ran 4 days per week with one track interval day. We ran 3:26:03 comfortably and other than some tight hips, finished injury free. I was able to run 5 days later and other than my usual physiological issues, I am OK. Now I have Boston coming up in April and I will probably follow a similar plan with a 16 mile long run and a few more hill sessions.
All of this lead me to realizing that I may just be an anomaly. A RUNomaly. But maybe there are others like me. Those of us who can’t do 70 mile weeks. Those of us who are injury prone but love to run. Those of us who want to run marathons but can’t do it the prescribed way. However, I think an important part of the train-less approach requires considering a few things:
1) I am injury-prone and making it to the starting line healthy is a bigger feat than getting through 26.2 miles.
I have physiological issues with my hips and back that lead me to having terrible distance running form and therefore prone to aches, pains, and injuries. For those with efficient mechanically correct form who CAN run 20 miles before a marathon this may not be as appealing to you and may not be necessary; stick with your training.
2) I have a good base to begin.
This partially works beause I run regularly throughout the year with 8-10 mile runs scattered on weekends. My mind-set is I should be able to sign-up for and finish a half-marathon at any given time and 8-10 mile runs will maintain that capability. If you are starting off with running a few times per week 3-4 miles, or this is your first run further than a half-marathon, then you WILL have to build up your mileage base before attempting a marathon on a train less approach.
3) I accept that this approach will not likely help me get faster, but maintain.
With this approach I will not likely break 3:20. My body and mind are very familiar with a 7:45-7:50 pace and I can pull that off with minimal training. But if I want to break that threshold I accept that I would need to train more; higher mileage at a faster pace. I can’t expect any more of my body without providing it the necessary training to run a 7:30-7:35 pace.
4) I know how to fuel during a race and embrace the mental aspect.
Hydration and fueling are so important to carrying your body through a race. For anyone who doesn’t like gels and goo and beans, etc. getting to 20-22 miles during training may be far more important. But I know that with fueling and hydrating my body can get through the race. And I am mentally tough enough to deal with some discomfort. I firmly believe anything after mile 17 is mental anyway. It is the mind willing the body. Its ok to feel crappy, there is a difference between discomfort/pain and injury. And that last mile, if you are blessed with a runner’s high, is worth every moment of discomfort.
I am not saying this is an approach everyone should take, but it worked for me. For an injury-prone person with good regular mileage, a firm fuel plan, mental toughness, and not chasing PRs (which are still possible, you never know) this approach could be something to consider. It is not the norm. This approach leading to success is the anomaly. But my husband has flat feet, is a toe runner, and looks like body builder AND he ran a 2:52 marathon with minimal training, that’s also an anomaly. So maybe its OK to shake things up and see how they work if the current approach isn’t working. Maybe you are a RUNomaly too!
-Shaina
