So that’s why your marathon PR is so much faster than mine – much higher mileage.
Looking at the few months before my final marathon PR (2:25:51), most weeks were at or just a little over 70 miles, and some were below that. It probably didn’t help that I ran a 30K race a week before the marathon and a half marathon the week before that, as well as several other races, including one of 20 miles a month before the half marathon (plus a 35-mile race at under 6 min/mile pace 4 weeks after the marathon, followed by a 10K PR 11 days later). Most of my best marathons came in blocks containing many races.
My first two sub-2:30 marathons were 4 weeks apart and between those I ran a 20-mile race, a 10,000m and 5,000m on the track (on the same day), and three 8Ks in about 26 minutes each. A week after the second of the marathons I raced a 10-miler and the week after that won a 30K race. I wasn’t taking it easy – for all the races I either finished first or set what was then a PR (the 5,000m time remains my PR – 15:35, after running 32:21 for the 10,000m earlier in the day).
My two fastest half marathons were a week apart, in very different circumstances. So, many of my best non-marathon races have also been in tightly packed periods, rather than spaced well apart.
So that’s why your marathon PR is so much faster than mine – much higher mileage.
Looking at the few months before my final marathon PR (2:25:51), most weeks were at or just a little over 70 miles, and some were below that. It probably didn’t help that I ran a 30K race a week before the marathon and a half marathon the week before that, as well as several other races, including one of 20 miles a month before the half marathon (plus a 35-mile race at under 6 min/mile pace 4 weeks after the marathon, followed by a 10K PR 11 days later). Most of my best marathons came in blocks containing many races.
My first two sub-2:30 marathons were 4 weeks apart and between those I ran a 20-mile race, a 10,000m and 5,000m on the track (on the same day), and three 8Ks in about 26 minutes each. A week after the second of the marathons I raced a 10-miler and the week after that won a 30K race. I wasn’t taking it easy – for all the races I either finished first or set what was then a PR (the 5,000m time remains my PR – 15:35, after running 32:21 for the 10,000m earlier in the day).
My two fastest half marathons were a week apart, in very different circumstances. So, many of my best non-marathon races have also been in tightly packed periods, rather than spaced well apart.