Last pre-London Marathon long Sunday run, what you doing? Is 22 miles too long?

So  for most people it's the last long Sunday run this weekend, whats your distance going to be? I'm looking to do 22 miles, did 20 last week, I did 21 last month so looking to gain an extra mile, or is that too far. Then week after im doing 18 or again 2 weeks before the race is that too far. Im aiming for 4 hours  20 minutes.

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Comments

  • PhilPubPhilPub ✭✭✭

    How did you feel after the 20 mile and 21 mile runs?  How did your training go the following week?  If you said you'd only run up to 18 miles so far and you're just aiming to get round, then I'd say 22 is too far.  But since you've near enough done the distance IMO it's definitely doable.  There really isn't an awful lot of difference in training effect between a 20 mile run and a 22 mile run, but I do know from experience that psychologically it is nicer to get that bit closer to the full distance in training.  For the record my longest run for my first marathon was 21.5 miles and for subqesuent ones I've gone up to 23, but for a quicker target so less time on feet. 

    The taper is important and you want to concentrate on decreasing the volume sensibly whilst maintaining the quality.  Given your target time, 18 miles is a lot of time on feet just two weeks out, I'd probably aim for 14 - 16 tops, then maybe just 8 - 10 the week before.

  • And it depends on the speed you take them at. 22 miles at race pace will take some recovery.
  • OK thanks, great advice. I felt shattered after my 2 long runs before but have a rest day monday then tuesday feel fine and back at it, infact last week after the 20 mile run  the monday i felt ok and would have gone to the gym if i didnt have to wait in for a parcel all dya.

    Today I usually do 8 miles but im thinking of just doing a 10k run at steady pace for 2 reasons, 1 its hot here now and warm and 2 im trying to have a mini taper before sundays last longest run. I usually do 5miles friday and 4 miles saturday but this week im not doing any running saturday just free weights.

     Sundays run id probably do it at a seady pace, a syou say, getting to 22  miles or even 21 will help with the mindset on the day. I wont do full marathon pace, just steady away really.

  • we did 22 last Saturday and the last 2 miles were hard but glad I did it
  • mark

    just take it steady

    how expereinced are you BTW

    BTW, i agree with Phil

  • Did 2 marathons last year , london and new york, london was a failure as my running partner was not ready and didnt train and fell ill so my time was 6 hours 50 as she ended up in hospital. New York I was a stone overweight and only had 2 months training and did it in 6 hours 18 despite jet lag, being up for 24 hours, masisve migraine and also day before walking 10 miles round new york. Plus its a hard course, lots of hills, shocked at how many hills there was.

    Im fit now, faster and leaner and ill be at my lightest ever 13 stone 8 for london, my 20 mile time was 3 hours 15 at a steady pace not marathon pace.

  • Getting close now and definitely want to taper. Doing 21m on Sunday as my last biggy but doing it really slowly as I don't want to do anything at this late stage. Just getting the miles in, done 3 x 20 milers already, think I sort of know my pace I want to aim for. Just going to go out there and enjoy it, don't care how long it takes me. I have my mind set on Sunday lunch! Decided, to make a celebration, declaring the end of training and the start of taper! Salut!
  • Really don't recommend doing 22 3 weeks out, Mark. No tenough time to recover from it fully ESPECIALLY if you are doing another 18 the following week. I'd cut both of these runs down. You've done a 20 and a 21 (at least) so would do absolutel max of 20 this weekend (try to start easy and speed up to marathon pace over the last quarter or third) and no more than 14 the following week. It's all about the recovery now.image

  • Just did 10k in the heat, OMG how hard was that, took me 55 minutes.
  • I follow a RW schedule that includes a 22 three weeks out, 18 two weeks and 12 at steady the week before. 

    You should be good to do 22 but at a slow pace, not steady.  I look to run marathons at steady pace anyway, so I try to keep it slow on the long runs.

    I did a 21 on Monday and will try for a 23 on Sunday but will just see how it goes.  Nearly there image

  • kaffeegkaffeeg ✭✭✭

    Well I'm doing 18 image  I've been injured.  Completely undertrained.  But amazed at my determination and insanity.  Did 15.6 last sunday which was my longest so far.  Had DOMS for two days but fine now. 

    Will try 18 this sunday with an additional 1 mile walk to start up and perhaps a one mile walk at the end to cool down (or perhaps run it if I can).  So all in all I hope to cover 20 miles (with a bit of luck) but run 18 of them.

    Then it is taper.  A two hour run next sunday (12 miles) and a 1 hour the week before (6 miles). I'm going to need the time to recover given that it's taken me a couple of days to recover from the 15.6 mile run.

    Good luck to all you properly trained people out there! I'm very jealous of 20+ mile runs.

  • Good luck all.

    VLM is my first Mara too and I'm excited / nervous all at the same time!

    I've been injured as well but managed to crank up the long runs so that I ran 14 miles a week ago, 18 miles Sunday just gone and have marked out 22 miles this weekend - whether I manage to run it all is a different question!  They do sound like big leaps but I'm only running twice a week as my calf keeps flaring up and needs time to recover.

    I'm contemplating making the 22 miler my last run although I may go for something big ish the following weekend as I don''t have an overtraining danger doing just two runs a week.

    I'm aiming for sub 4 hours / 9 minute miles.  Ran the 14 miler @8.20m/m and the 18 miler at 9.20 m/m (intentionally). 

    Anyway, given the above, I think it's doable Mark.  Good luck mate!

  • Am on a get you round schedule so 16-18 miles this sunday, then taper off
  • last two long runs were 18 and 20 (for the second time in the scedule) and doing 22 as my last one this weekend. Then 12 in firat week of taper, 8 in second.
  • MillsyMillsy ✭✭✭
    My best 2 marathon times have been off the back of 22 - 23 miles 3 weeks before, but run a lot slower than marathon pace  ( approx 1min/mile slower) . For me i think it`s a mental thing as if I can do 23 miles then you know it`s only 5k more and that will be easy on the day with a full taper. The year i only did 20 miles i really struggled on the actual day as that extra 10k of effort really hurt.
  • Got a friends girlfriends  30th birthday party tonight, not sure what to do. If i dont take car and have a drink will no doubt turn into a few, or i can take car and not drink at all.  Too close to Sundays big run day to drink I think.
  • If you are aiming for a finish time of over 4 hrs, 22miles at a genuinely slow pace takes a hell of a long time- bit too muc htime on feet, I think. There is said to be little to gain from training runs morethan 3hrs long, and you have aleady got a couple of good LSR's in the bag.

    I'd cap it at 3and a half hours max. 

    18 2 weeks before is a bit much too- more like 14 seems sensible, especially if you've done 2 very long runs the 2 preceeding weeks.

  • I ended up doing 22 miles, felt ok doing it. Ill just rest and carb up right now. Next Sunday (or Saturday Ill do 17 is hat too much?)

    I might change my long runs to Saturday now, would that be ok?

  • Glad you've done that. You've done two runs in two weeks. Let your body recover now. PhilPub gave some good taper advise immediately you first posted. Time to drop back, otherwise you will start tired. I know I've done enough now, nothing will be gained in these last weeks. My schedule says 15m but I'm feeling shattered, think it will be more like 12-13m. Then for the last week, it says 8-10m. Definitely will be the 8 rather than the 10m for me.
    Relax, you're nearly there, don't jeopardize all that hard work for the sake of a few extra miles.
  • 13 miles for me next week I think, maybe less ... can't see the point in going further, after a great LSR this weekend it just seems like inviting injury.
  • yep, done my 22 and it's 12 for me next week. might keep my jeans on
  • Well done all those that managed 22.  Only spluttered my way to 20.2 miles.  Felt totally depressed as some of it was walking so managed it in 3 hours 15 mins.  Then, I got to work and read my schedule and realised that, due to injury, I only ran 4 miles on February 29th!!  So I've gone from 4 miles to 20+ miles in a month!  That, and having ran 18 miles the previous week, might explain the spluttering!

    Anyway, well done all again!  I'm doing 14 next week, 9 the week after and then it's party time!

    See everyone in 20 days time!!
  • So this Sundays run, 17 miles ok after 22 last week and 20 the week before?
  • Should be fine Mark as long as its slow pace.  I'm on a similar plan.
  • I did 18 at pmp last weekend. And I did 12 faster than pmp last night (instead of sunday as I'm busy).

    Next weekend I'll do 10.

    Someone posted a link a few days back which suggested that the taper should be 20% off your weekly mileage in week 1 and 40% off in week two.

    I'm doing about 25 mpw so I'm interpreting it as 21 this week 15 next and probably about 6-8 in the final week, with nothing 3 days before the marathon

  • Good link Johnny, I like the "During this final week, you can't under-do. You can only overdo." saying!
  • Hi guys so final week almost, im trying to decide what length run to do tommorow, i was thinking 8 miles then sunday 12? Ill do 5 today on the treadmill, 4 friday on teh treadmill and 4 saturday on the treadmill too after my weight sessions.
  • Mark,  remind me what time you're aiming for?

    This seems alot to me.  I'm aiming sub 4 and will be doing 10 miles maximum this Sunday and probably 7 miles tomorrow (4 miles easy and 3 miles @ fast pace). 

    Above you're doing 33 miles in 5 days....that seems lot to me at this stage plus a weights session.

    If you're worried about losing fitness, you shouldn't be.  I'm running just twice a week and ran 16 miles last Sunday in 2.20.  I'd start to back off.  Knock at least one of those treadmill sessions on the head - have a light swim instead or just sit in the Sauna!  Note, don't sit in the Sauna too much next week when you want to be hydrating!
  • im aiming for 4 hours 20 though if it all clicks who knows, a sub 4 hour even if its 3 hours 59 will be amazing. Your right i might knock saturdays treadmill run on the head.
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