March 2010

* Race pace is the pace you would like to run for the total distance of the relay leg you will run.

As you will be running a fraction of the marathon distance in the relay, then the time required for training is also a lot less. It is still important to set out a training plan and try to stick to it each week running at the same time and days each week and gradually increasing the amount of running that you are comfortable doing and the efficiency that you will run with.

So first things first you will need to figure out which leg you will be running, ½ marathon, ¼ marathon or less.

Then work out how fit and capable you are of running that distance today and if you want to improve your time or just feel fitter and run cimfortably and enjoy the day.

I would think for any serious runners that they could do a similar training program to the marathon with just not such a long Sunday run and planning to run 4-5 days per week rather than 5-6 days required by the marathon runners.

For the fun runners and walkers the main thing here is to remain fit in the lead up to the relay and to improve your ability to run more comfortably for the relay distance you decide to run.

You could half the sunday Long Run/Walk, and half the sessions and about 2/3rds of the other days. Mainly you are setting out a training plan that will commit you to improving your fitness at a fraction of the amount of training required to train for a full marathon.

I will fill in a sample training sheet for the relay runners and then also include a Blank sheet that you could print off and fill in the days with runs and sessions that suit your normal daily schedule so that you can see clearly your own personal plan. You can also easily print off an A4 Month to a page Calendar from any computer Calendar program.