This Common Marathon Training Mistake Could Be Holding You Back | Nate

How a Run Coach Will Try To Fix This
Marathon Training Plan & Injuries
Watch, listen and read the full episode here
[00:00:00] This is a 79 minute half marathoner, and this is the training plan that
sidelined him. In this episode, I’ll show you how to fix common mistakes and build a
smarter strategy for running marathon success.
[00:00:12] Okay. So this is for the self-coach runner who. Wants to obviously coach
themselves, figure things out, learn, figure out how to even adapt training plans for
themselves. Et cetera, but they also don’t want to like have a coach do the plan.
They may not want to pay for it. They may just not want all that.
[00:00:29] Like the coach being all up on them. And you just need an expert to be
there for you to answer your questions, to help you out. If you get stuck.
[00:00:38] This episode is for you because I have found. A service.
[00:00:42] I think that might be of interest to a lot of self coach runners. And I’m
going to call it the coaching advisor, run coaching advisor. So this is the 1% better
run coaching advisor. So I am Darren D like runs and I have certifications in.
Running. Coaching [00:01:00] nutrition. Life coaching, et cetera. I’ve been running
for since 1996 and have done some three. Marathon ran track 400, 800 meters now
doing distance.
[00:01:10] Obviously some, there are a marathon, a bunch of marathons. I’m at 82
minutes for half marathon and I’ve done ultra distances events. 10 hour Ironman. Et
cetera. I help self coach runners. Get the most out of everything through habits,
consistency, patient’s belief, and that’s the whole 1% better runner theory and
ethos. Also, you could obviously live and run your absolute best.
[00:01:34] Like what a cool service, and I’ve actually been offering it to people for
free and just do. We audit.
[00:01:38] So this episode I am I’m. Doing. A live audit. With a. A guy that I met.
About a year ago on Instagram and. And I said, Hey, I’ll do an order for you. He
really wasn’t ready. Then he hit me up a few weeks ago and said, yo. Where’s that
audit can. You do one for me. And he kind of gave me a really, really intense one,
which was yo I’m training for marathons.
[00:01:56] I’ll get to that part in the screen. So Hey. I [00:02:00] talked early in the
year about marathon training and was wondering if you still open to giving me
advice on training plans? To me, it looks like a bit much, even though I’m a faster.
The runner and I want to see. What you would fix?
[00:02:09] I managed to get a 79 minute, one 19 half marathon last year, but got
injured right after when trying to continue to train for the full math on. I’m hoping to
try to either. Boston qualifier complete a full math on next year, but it’s really
dependent on how my body is. Doing during the training, disregard the data, sent
me a bunch of. Images, which I will put up here in a second on the screen.
[00:02:28] If you’re watching, I’ll try to read them out. If you’re listening, try to make
audio and video people happy. I always seem to struggle a bit. Around 60 miles per
week. So thinking about getting the mileage. And workouts to adjust a bit. So, it
took me a bit got back to him. It was right over the holidays.
[00:02:42] And I’ll try to get this out soon.
[00:02:44] I’ll just go over con the training plan. One thing I didn’t ask him was how
long have you been training? Uh, how long have you been running? Sorry. And that
was my absolute mistake because, uh, that would tell me a lot.
[00:02:55] And I think he might be a bit of a new runner might be having been
running in the past few years. I don’t know. [00:03:00] So this was the first week of
the training class. I’ll do a quick review of it. And it actually is a good training plan. I
like it starts at 60 miles, so it’s over 16 weeks and then it looks like it ends at 75
miles.
[00:03:11] So it’s only 15 mile per week. Different. So that’s 170 miles per week as

Kilometers per week, 115 kilometers per week. International people. I live in
Australia, Sydney, Australia.
[00:03:21] That’s only in 60 miles where we cause only a hundred, so a hundred
kilometers and then it looks like it ends.
[00:03:27] Where is that one?
[00:03:28] First week.
[00:03:30] All right. So this is the last week. I like to see the beginning and end.
And, uh, it looks like it’s about 15 week plan, 16 week plan. So he ends at 75, but
what he’s doing is 13 miles, medium long run, and it’s a 20 mile easy, long run. So I
liked that the medium long run is, I don’t know what pace it is.
[00:03:50] Maybe it’s at marathon pace. I just see a medium long run of 13 miles.
And I do like I’ll do like my medium long runs. But there was something really good
in here. I’m trying to find it [00:04:00] where he was basically doing. Like marathon
pace in the medium, long runs and building. And I think that’s great. He said it was
aggressive.
[00:04:07] It definitely is a bit aggressive, but actually I think that it’s quite tame
because the top end, it goes from 60, 75. That’s not very wide. Cause even went
from like 30 miles to like, 70 miles then that’s big, pretty wide. So that’ll be about
40, 50 kilometers a week to 110 kilometers a week. So, almost a double and it’s not
doing that. And my only issue is this 400 workout that. I do have another issue, but
there’s a, there’s a 400 workout that I will try to find. Uh, yeah, 12 by 400 at 5k
pace. I don’t like that. The rest is very long.
[00:04:39] That’s my issue. So I actually think when you do this workout FAK paste,
which is actually for 400, it’s not that fast. It’s about starts at a seven out of 10 ends
at eight out of 10. So it’s not hard. It’s a threshold ish workout. It’s a VO two max,
each workout kind of works both. I think it works more VO, two max, if you have a
shorter rest.
[00:04:57] And I think it does actually work threshold, if you have shorter rest, but
you’re not going [00:05:00] that hard. So 75 second rest, if he’s running a 79 minute
half, he should be able to run these in about 75 to 80 seconds. For the 5k and. That
means he should have about 40 seconds rest. And it’s 75 seconds versus two long.
[00:05:13] He doesn’t get his heart rate up high enough because it’s so short. And I
get that. Like, if you’re going to do 75 seconds for us, I think they should be like
closer to three K two mile pace or even one mile pace. You like to really get the
benefits 12. Hundreds at one mile, pace is a bit much. Probably 10, especially week
five, but if you go to week. Uh, 11.
[00:05:33] Sorry. Is it the last week here? Uh, yeah, he goes to 15 by 400 and the
same with 90 seconds rest. So. I don’t know, maybe it’s to kind of sharpen them up
and get them ready for the Saturday. Like. I probably wouldn’t have him doing this
VO two max style workout. This close to his main race, I would stop this style.
[00:05:52] VO two max workout. Eight weeks out, or I do it every two weeks. I’d
actually be doing more temple work and more math on past-focused work
[00:06:00] personally. In my opinion, everyone has different opinions about how they
coach, but I think getting more specific, the principle of specificity is very key for
marathon running the VO two max. 15 by 460 mile foreigners, 12 by four.
[00:06:11] Hundreds is great. Short rest. Is great early on, because that builds up
your top end aerobic system, which will help you in the marathon and will help you
get Uber fit early on. But it doesn’t really help later on the speedy stuff cause you
need to be doing marathon pace. But enough of that, I’ll kind of go to my answer to
him, which was on quick look.
[00:06:28] It’s pretty good standard, but good. Aggressive, what standards? Fine.
Um, absolutely fine aggressive, but yeah, it should be good. I think when you don’t
know someone, you can’t really get too intricate, you can only start really playing
with things. Once you have a baseline set of coaching them for two or three. Race
periods.
[00:06:42] You shouldn’t be like changing things up. You just got to figure things
out, figure people out. That’s something that I do a lot. I’m like, I don’t know where
you’re at. You’re new to this distance. Let’s back it down. So out a million questions
who gave it to you? Will you have them coach you? How much time did you have
between the half marathon? Uh, Y 14 weeks, where are you at now with your injury?
[00:06:58] If you have a history of getting injured at 60, [00:07:00] this is kind of a
little bit of advice. Uh, what I would do is I’d figure out what the injury is and I’ll get
to that in a second. And Bulletproof that
[00:07:07] hover at 50 ish. Miles per week. So 90. Uh, kilometers a week for a few
weeks. So hover there. And then increase your speed stuff, do math on pay stuff,
but like hover there and see if any Andrews come up. Didn’t get to 60 hover there
for the injuries come up.
[00:07:23] They have no issues. Go to 70. It’s not the best because obviously you
won’t be. A hundred percent ready for the race, but you’ll figure out where your
injuries are. So, um, that’s an Angel’s questions and I’ll get back to you. Uh, he then
said an old teammate. So answer number one is an old teammate. So it’s a friend
coaching him. Last time I worked with this, he was nine to 10 weeks out. Uh, I
guess injury when I did my half and I’m supposed to do my marathon, but he got
injured during that time.
[00:07:49] And then number three, answer ever since the injury, I’ve had something
new come up every couple of months. Standard. It started with issues around my
fibula, so I started to think that I needed to strengthen my calves [00:08:00] and
ankles.
[00:08:00] So he did that and it worked, but now he has it band issues, which now
he’s trying to deal with that. So he says it comes back, but it goes away and it
comes around when he does long runs.
[00:08:10] So now he doesn’t know. And he says it feels okay. Most runs went on a
couple near the end. I feel slightly irritation.
[00:08:16] the problem was with it bad.
[00:08:19] And again, I’m not a physical therapist, but usually most people it’s a,
too much too soon injury. I had it and it sucked. I couldn’t stand it. And I’ve gotten
out of it because I’ve now am smart and I slowly ramp up my stuff. I’ve also been
strength, training my ass off and I, you know, minimum two days a week, if not
three, and I hit all the, all the target areas and I have not had any it band issues in
the last. Seven years.
[00:08:43] So I’ve been smart about, about other issues that got Achilles issues. At
some runners and he did that. That was stupid, but the Achilles stuff is some other
stuff. But not saying I’m injury proof, but at the same time, I’m much smarter and it
banners usually too much too soon.
[00:08:57] Okay, I’m going to say, as I say, anyone sort, the [00:09:00] injury out
ASAP, stop messing around.
[00:09:02] That means you might need to Nate, I’m talking to you. That means you
might need to just take a few weeks off, get ready to take possibly four to six weeks
off. If it doesn’t fully go away. Now, what you can do is cross train. And I did a whole
episode on that up top, or there’s a link in the show notes. If you’re listening or
video description below.
[00:09:19] Cross-training is your best friend because you can keep your aerobic
fitness and your marathon pace fitness to a limit.
[00:09:27] You can keep that going. You can do elliptical and Aqua jog. I’d say, do
those two things StairMaster. If it doesn’t irritate, you do those two things, because
those are most run specific. And I’ll talk about that in the episode and do that so
that you’re not irritating it keeping your fitness and then go to a physical therapist,
physio therapist, wherever you live, have them assess you, do a diagnostic and then
give you a treatment plan and then follow it to a T maybe even get a personal trainer
to help you with certain exercises, they will give you exercises, lift heavy, lift off, then
lift three days a week.
[00:09:57] Yes. Do specific targets. I’d say full [00:10:00] body and then target your
kind of areas that you need to target that are. Troublesome with it, band it’s hips
and, and glutes. Usually I had some issues around my knee because it was pulling
out my knee. Cause that’s where it kind of starts. And then goes up to the side of
your, your hip. Uh, and then kind of wraps around.
[00:10:17] I’m not a physical therapist, so I will not even try to mess around with
that, but try to see someone. I did actually an episode on
[00:10:23] How to, from an internet perspective, with a certified. She has a master’s
in physical therapy, how to sort an it band. Injury’s syndrome injury. And that’s
actually up top on YouTube.
[00:10:35] If you are watching this, or if you’re on Spotify or you listening, uh,
there’s a link in the show notes or video description below about.
[00:10:42] It band issues and sorting it and just educating yourself, but go see
someone. And now that means that you have like pretty much, I think one option
that’s dropped on the expectations that you’re going to run. I think you have the
potential a one 19 half marathon.
[00:10:55] You could run a. Two 50 marathon, 2 49. I think you should drop that
[00:11:00] expectation on a three hours, three hours, five minutes. And give yourself
possibly eight weeks, eight weeks to just back the training down the running down,
but keep your cross training up. Give her a comfortable in the pool, Aqua jog and
elliptical, if you can.
[00:11:13] And then I would slowly bring the cross-training down as you get more
healthy and bring the running up. So you have ACL, let’s say you have 16 weeks.
You have eight weeks to then. Sort your injury out. Get Bulletproof Bulletproof
yourself, get a hundred percent. Then as you come back, you now have eight weeks
to maybe seven weeks to sort out your math on fitness.
[00:11:33] You shouldn’t have lost too much. Your body still needs to run on the
surface that it’s going to run for the actual event. You need to do that. That is you
can’t get away from that to run your best time, but let’s throw away your best time.
Let’s run the best time you can with everything you have throw away the
expectation that this is going to be the math on that.
[00:11:51] You’re going to kill it, but get through it, get through the training, do your
race. I think seven weeks is decent mounted special. If you do your cross training,
you do similar marathon specific. I [00:12:00] work during cross training and then do
whatever you can in the marathon. 3 0 5. Cool. Learn everything.
[00:12:05] Come back. A Bulletproof runner. The next training period. If you want to
do another marathon the year, you can, I guess if you want to do one in the fall, I
think you’re in the Northern hemisphere. I’m in Sydney, Australia again. So I’m
always, you know, kilometers here, even though I’m American, I’ve been here 13
years, but you can then. In, let’s say September, October, November, you then we’ll
have time over the summer because you’ve learned to then get your 16, 20 weeks
in. Of marathon specific training and you can kill it.
[00:12:30] So you might have to wait two years, maybe even might be a 20, 26
thing. Depending on your it band syndrome, depending on if any other injuries come
up. But it was a too much too soon thing.
[00:12:38] And you you’re going to be in this constant state of like kind of hurt, kind
of not kinda hurt kinda night.
[00:12:43] And you’re gonna hobble your way to the start line. And you’re going to
have possibly not a great marathon. And I think.
[00:12:48] If you just do it smart, you just delay the gratification. You apply the 1%
better at techniques. Like I said, you back it down, back down your expectations.
Believe in the process.
[00:12:56] Trust the process. Have some patients. You will be fine [00:13:00] moving
forward into the second period. Your second marathon of this year, if you want to do
one or next year.
[00:13:04] Again, back it down, sort yourself out, Bulletproof yourself three, three
days a week. See a physical trainer, three days a week of strength training. Cross
training.
[00:13:12] If you can and break it into two periods, eight, eight weeks of rehab
prehab, and then eight weeks, seven weeks of marathon specific work. Maybe
they’ll come together. Maybe you’ll naturally just crush it. Maybe you run a 2 59 and
maybe you were on the 3 0 5 and. And then maybe next year you can go to where
your ability is, which is a possibly a two 50 to two. 2 49 sort of marathon.
[00:13:32] And then see if you like the race, you might not like the distance. All
right, I’m going to end it there again. If you want, I’ve got a lot of different free
training plans, downloads habits, guides, et cetera. Uh, the base training plan is
probably the best one. Was applicable to anyone that’s watching.
[00:13:45] You can, there’s a QR code somewhere here, or as link in the show
notes. It’s or video description below. Or if you want to hit me up comment below,
I’ve got one on 5k running.
[00:13:56] VO two max, I’ve got one on cadence increasing your cadence. And I
got. Got one on [00:14:00] cross training. And these are like 30 day to six week to
six month. All different types of lengths of download plans that you can get for free.
You’ll sign up for my newsletter, which will give you. Uh, tips and tools and tactics to
run your best and live your best life. Uh, email newsletter free.
[00:14:17] You’ll just get it. It’s about once a week sell you’ll sign up for that. You
can cancel any time, but let me know if you disagree with me, this is my coaching
opinion and this is fun. It’s YouTube. Uh, this is just the internet. So let me know if
you disagree with me, what else you would do? Let me, Nate, let me know if I was
wrong.
[00:14:30] If I missed anything. Cause I’m sure I don’t have enough information.
And how long have you been running, man? I want to know that, so I feel like I
should have asked. You that first. I’m gonna end it there and not make this too long.
Appreciate everyone’s time. Peace.