In a previous blog, I already explained the how and why behind the rework of all training plans. Now it’s time to zoom in on this specific part.
It’s important to briefly explain how these plans are structured. You’ll also find this explained in the in-app FAQ. So, how is your training plan built when you set what the app calls an “ultimate goal”?
In the final 12 weeks before your race, you follow a specific plan. This plan focuses on the key fitness elements required to perform well at your chosen distance. To keep it simple: more volume for a marathon, more speed for a 5K.
Naturally, this requires a broad base of general fitness. Without a solid foundation, there’s no room for specific training. That foundation is built through a support plan. For the more advanced runners: this phase includes a greater focus on capacity training. This is the part that’s going live now, specifically for marathon goals.
Longer build-up with lower and higher volumes
Whereas the marathon support plans used to last 13 weeks, we’re now moving to a 16-week format. I use those extra training weeks to gradually increase the weekly volume so the transition from support to specific plan goes more smoothly. In return, most of you will start at a slightly lower volume and build up more gradually.
Sixteen plus twelve means that ideally you set your marathon goal 26 to 28 weeks in advance. The maintenance plan will be placed in between. If you set your goal 30 weeks ahead, you’ll receive two weeks of maintenance followed by 16 weeks of support and 12 weeks of specific preparation.
It’s important to stress that this does not mean you can be marathon-ready in just 28 weeks. My golden rules for setting a realistic marathon goal still apply. You can find them here.
2. Expansion of available plans
Also worth mentioning: Trenara now attracts faster runners as well. We didn’t quite expect that when we launched. Thanks to this update, we can now better meet their needs too. The foundation for a fast marathon isn’t laid only in the final 12 weeks but starts well before that. As mentioned earlier, that early phase wasn’t as well developed for sub-2:45 runners. With this update, it is.
3. More true threshold work
It used to be more difficult to determine your thresholds precisely, which meant I couldn’t always label sessions as threshold runs, even if they were.
Everyone knows that tempo run where the description says “this should feel manageable,” and yet you find yourself shouting for your mother halfway through.
That mismatch should no longer happen by design. This doesn’t mean there won’t be hard sessions anymore, but if they’re tough, it’s because they’re meant to be. Of course, a bad day can still make a session feel harder than expected. But that’s no longer something built into the plan by default.
