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Yes, You Can Train for a Marathon Running Just 3 Days Per Week

Take notes from experts and runners who have found success with just three runs a week.

Finishing a marathon is a bucket-list item for many runners, not to mention it can seriously boost your confidence and your fitness. But with work, family, and other obligations filling up your calendar, it can be difficult to fit marathon training into your schedule... unless you have a three-day-a-week marathon training plan that makes it easier to get prepped for the starting line.

So before you write off marathon training as too time-consuming, consider this program for conquering your first or fastest 26.2. It’s the secret weapon for those of us who work odd shifts, have kids, travel often, or are injury-prone. No matter what stands in your way, your next PR is possible.

Does a 3-day-a-week marathon training plan actually work?

Yes! It turns out focusing on three key runs: a long run, a tempo run, and an interval workout each week with cross training in between provides you with all the opportunities to get faster, meet your mileage goals, and train injury-free. And research backs this up.

With a training plan backed by The Furman Institute of Running and Scientific Training (FIRST), any runner can conquer 26.2 miles by running just three days a week. Trust the three exercise science experts and avid runners who created this program about 20 years ago: Scott Murr, with a doctorate in exercise physiology, Bill Pierce, former chair of Furman’s Health and Exercise Science Department, and Furman exercise physiologist Ray Moss, Ph.D. (Murr currently teaches in the Health Science Department at Furman University in South Carolina, and has been for 25 years. Pierce and Moss have since retired.)

In 2005, these experts gathered eight women and nine men between the ages of 24 and 52 to test out the three-day-a-week plan for 16 weeks. The results showed that 12 out of the 14 runners who had previously run a marathon with alternative training plans set a new PR after the three-day-a-week marathon training plan.

The results suggest that training for a marathon with only three runs a week is not only possible, but could actually improve running performance and make you faster.

Almost two decades after creating this training plan, Murr and his former colleagues

You build a sustainable relationship with running

Life is all about balance, and running can naturally be part of the mix. But logging too many miles at once can lead to burnout, so it’s important to find other activities to supplement your marathon training.

Running three days each week provides you the freedom to enjoy other activities that you love on your days off from running, like cycling, lifting, or swimming.

It improves key performance metrics

Many runners swear by two training metrics to help them measure their improvement: VO2 max and lactate threshold. The three-day-a-week program can help you zero in on these metrics and improve them, making you a more efficient runner.

Your VO2 max is the measure of how efficiently your body takes in oxygen and converts it to energy for your muscles to use, according to Roberto Mandje, Olympian and senior advisor on engagement and coaching for New York Road Runners. The higher your VO2 max, the higher your endurance level, meaning you can run farther and longer, Mandje explains.

Your lactate threshold is the exercise intensity level you reach when lactate accumulates in the blood faster than you can remove it, leading

You’ll know if you’re meeting quality efforts by looking at your heart rate, paces, and/or RPE, so it may be helpful to keep a training log.

Heart rate is relatively easy to track, as most running watches give you an estimated heart rate, but keep in mind that your heart rate can be affected by temperature, hills, and hydration.

However, the most realistic way to monitor your progress, Murr says, is by tracking your pace. “If your 5K race time this weekend was faster than the 5K race you ran two months ago, that would indicate an improvement in running fitness,” he says.

Rate of perceived exertion (RPE) is also a reliable way to track progress, as it rates your effort on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being all-out. Murr explains that if you ran a five mile tempo run a month ago at a 8:15 pace and it felt like a 6 or 7, but running a five mile tempo at 8:15 pace now feels like a 5 or 6 on the same scale, you can be confident that your running fitness is progressing.

1. Interval Workout

Why it works: Intervals help

1. Swimming

Why it works: Swimming is a low-impact option for runners that can increase upper-body strength and endurance. Many runners struggle with ankle mobility, explains Murr, so the kicking in the pool can unlock some of that flexibility that you don’t typically get to achieve when you’re pounding the pavement.

How to do it: According to Murr, a reasonable goal for runners in the pool is to stay in the water for 30 minutes, doing as many laps as you can. But you can also mix in some harder efforts, like going for an RPE of 6 to 7 for two laps, with short rests in between of about 15 seconds, in order to up the intensity. Beginners don’t have to worry about intensity in the pool, Mandje says, and should instead focus on having the best form possible.

2. Cycling

Why it works: Mandje is a big fan of cycling for marathon runners, as it can be done outdoors or on an indoor trainer. He explains that cycling is non-weight bearing, low-impact exercise that’s easy on the joints. Cycling can also help reduce knee pain, according to a review and meta-analysis published in

Specific exercises that target running-specific movements include squats, step-ups, single-leg deadlifts, bent-over-rows, curl-to-press, bird dogs, clamshells, and single-leg glute bridges.

How many rest days should you take in a 3-day-a-week program?

Everyone should take at least one rest day a week, according to Mandje, even three-day-a-week runners. Rest days should consist of only light exercise, like walking, stretching, or yoga.

Murr recommends taking a rest day particularly before a long run to prepare for the high mileage you’ll tackle. But every runner is different. “For whichever key run a runner finds the most challenging, I would encourage them to take a rest day prior to that run so that they are rested,” he says.

Both Mandje and Murr agree that the three-day-a-week marathon training plan is based on the belief that runners should train hard, and recover harder, considering performance gains are made during the recovery period. “If you don't prioritize recovery, you're not going to make the gains,” says Mandje.

(11/02/2024) Views: 141 ⚡AMP