In Hanson's I Trust, In Hanson's I Trust, In Hanson's....

I'm trying really hard to keep repeating that phrase these days. It is in reference to a training plan I'm following for the first time for my upcoming race, the Philadelphia Marathon. I decided this summer I was feeling pretty good after hitting a 1:49 half marathon PR in July, and one of my running partners had signed up for Philly, so I thought I would join her and go for my sub 4 hour marathon.

I wasn't sure after running 4:00:30 at the Tokyo Marathon in February that I'd be motivated to do all that training again to take off 31 seconds. But my girlfriend's Boston qualifying time is now 3:55 and so I thought if we could train together aiming for a 3:50 time, I would be helping a friend through most of the race get her own PR, and hopefully breaking the 4 hour mark myself - with plenty of wiggle room down the stretch.

My sister bought me the Hanson's Marathon Method, which says "Run Your Fastest Marathon!" on the cover. Hey - that's a pretty convincing statement. I was in. Why not? I've only used one other training guide for an actual time goal (rather than the generic finish programs I have used) and both times it was the 4 hour program that was xeroxed from a friend, from a magazine years ago. I like that plan...I mean...I worked...but I definitely felt up for a new challenge.

See...it says so right on the cover! It must be true!

Well 16 weeks later, I'm now firmly in "taper" mode (more on why I used quotations in a minute) and praying this actually works. It is so completely different than any program I've ever seen that I can honestly say I have absolutely no idea if I am ready for this.

Unique facets of the Hanson's method:

1. Speed early, and slightly slower speed later...but always speed
I've seen (and done) speed work as part of marathon training before, but it's usually in a chunk of the 18/20 week program. With Hanson's you start at week 6 and end in week 17, just a week before marathon week. And, the mileage is significant. With all the warm-up/cool-down activity I'm putting in 10 miles on my speed day. And have been...for weeks.

So. Much. Track.

2. Marathon pace only once mid-week and never on long runs
This is probably giving me the most anxiety. I have always attempted to run most of my runs at marathon goal pace. But this book is pretty specific as to why you should not do that. I'm buying in, as I've said, so I am strictly obeying. But only one run a week at marathon pace is messing with my head. It is between 8-10 miles, again...during a weekday.

3. Serious time commitment down the stretch with several 10-11 mile runs mid-week
See above reference to 10+ miles on speed day and "tempo" run day which are both mid-week. When you have to be running at 5:30 (or earlier) to get that kind of mileage in...it takes a toll on your energy. And I have been dragging.

4. Long runs no longer than 16 miles
At first this seemed awesome. No run longer than 16 miles? (insert laughter) Easy peasy...sign me up! But I can't help but feel like I'm missing something without my grueling 20 & 22 mile runs. How can I be ready? If I hadn't run a bunch of these before, I think this would be a big mental hurdle. Fortunately I know how it feels, and I know I can finish. But it still is nagging at me a touch.

5. Lots and lots of miles
In my prior race programs I peaked around 45-48 miles. And usually only had about 4 weeks over 40 miles per week. Well....this time I was at 39 miles in week 6. And you're well over 45 miles for the entire last 10 weeks of the program, peaking at 57 miles.

6. TINO. Taper in Name Only
By the time I hit the peak of my programs and sliding into taper mode, I'm usually swearing under my breath at the end of runs, crawling into ice baths, and just wanting the whole thing over. But this time...I've had to keep my head together because it turns out...this 3 week taper program isn't really too much of a taper. I'm "down" to 51 miles this week, with a massive drop to 49 next week. Marathon week is 50 as well (including the race). Seriously. WTH. Still doing speed and still doing long tempo runs. Still running at dark-o-clock.

7. No real flexibility
This program has you running 6 days a week. I've always done 4 or 5 day plans which work nicely for people who need flexibility for you know, life. But this time, I've had to find a way to get those runs in. Also, because of the nature of the specific workouts, you can't really play around with changing days. I tried once and it didn't turn out well (see reference to bloody ankles below)

Saying all this, I am feeling pretty strong. I'm actually surprised I've been able to handle the miles. I've hit all my time targets in the past 16 weeks, with one exception that included a hot sunny midday run with new shoes and two bloody ankles.

I'm kind of approaching this as an experiment in two ways. Can I even get close to the 3:50 finish on race day? I have no idea. But, if I can get close to the 3:50 time target with this plan...could it help me go a little further and get a BQ (sub 3:45)? That's what I'm really hoping to see come race day. I've never dedicated so much to a training cycle, and I'm curious how different it will be and whether it will light my fire to go for a BQ.

Until then, I'll be setting my alarm at a time that makes me angry, eating as many salty potatoes with ketchup I can get my hands on, obsessing over the weather forecast and silently chanting "in Hanson's I Trust."