Training for Atlanta

In 16 weeks I’ll be jogging around Atlanta on Thanksgiving morning for a hilly 13.1 miles. So today, I’m sharing my plan with you!

I’m combining two of Hal Higdon’s plans together for this training round. I will be merging the last 4 weeks from the 10K training plan with the 12-week Novice 2 half plan. What?! Why!? Well. I need more than 12 weeks to train for a half. Mentally, I would just feel more confident with a longer training plan and build my base mileage before jumping into speed work/hill repeats/long runs etc. This is just a personal choice so if you’re good with 12 weeks of training then, by all means, you go Glen Coco!

10K plan here

Half plan here

I usually tweak the order of the day arrangement in the training plan to better align with my schedule. Sometimes this means my long runs are on Thursday or Friday nights after work. Sometimes it means having to squeeze most of the training runs in at the beginning of the week and save the long run for a few days later. It all depends. We’re all busy. We all have other things going on and have to figure out what works best for each of us. I do some of my training in the mornings and some in the evenings. Obviously, some things will change in week 16 because the race is on a Thursday. I’ll deal with that week when it gets closer. I will also be traveling a bit in the next few months so I will have to adjust my training schedule around vacations/flights/driving for a few weeks. I don’t like doing my long runs on vacation because then I’m just a couch potato the rest of the day. That’s no fun for anyone. I don’t go on vacation to Netflix and chill. Sorry. But! I will absolutely be doing some of my shorter runs when I’m traveling to explore new cities by foot! It is hands down the best way to see a city!

Since it is August in Texas, most of my runs are on the treadmill, or outside when it gets below 90 and I convince myself it’s practically the middle of fall. Half a mile in and I realize that’s not so. If you’re still mostly running outside in the summer can you please send me your tips on how to not turn into a sobbing noodle when it’s 90% humidity at 5 AM and breathing feels like you just opened your mouth while running underwater in the ocean? Asking for a friend.

I have cut down to working out with my trainer only one day a week during the training plan to make sure I’m still getting in strength training, but am not so exhausted or burned out on gym life that I lose motivation. On shorter run days, I’ll be incorporating either an extra strength training session, yoga, or spin to ensure I’m well-rounded in my training. Or maybe eating a pint of ice cream and a side of Nutella by the spoon. Whatever. Balance.

I’m an engineer, Excel tables are my jam. See below for the merge of the 2 plans I’m using.

Thanks for stopping by!

Taryn