The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 Update

August 19, 2024

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 Update

In The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 Update I'll go through how each day went. I have included a breakdown of the weekly metrics to show progress on how I'm adapting to the training. With the first week down, I have to say it feels great to be back into the marathon training routine. It hasn't been all smooth sailing however, and I've had one or two hiccups to report.

By the way, if you are following along with the training, I'd love to hear how your first week went. Please comment below at the bottom of this page or on any of the social media accounts. Let's do this together.

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 Update: The Weekly Sessions

The first run of the week was superb and set the tone for the remainder of the week. It was a 10k easy effort. This was followed by a no running day and then a 8k steady effort run on Wednesday. Thursday had another 10k at an easy effort and Friday another no-running day. So far so good 😊. Sunday's Long Slow Distance Run was also quite enjoyable and I tackled a 16k route in a single loop around the town. Saturday's session, I must say, was anything but an enjoyable session.

Saturday Blowout:

The week was going well and then came Saturday's 10k tempo run. This was 2k easy, 6k @ target marathon pace (4:02/k / 6:28/mile) effort, and then 2k easy. to finish I had a lot of work to get caught up on and didn't manage to get out until 11am, by which time the temperature climbed to 31 degrees (88 F). Normally, I enjoy running in full sunshine and heat. However, I've never really taken into account the impact of a hard session in this weather. It quickly took it's toll on me. As a matter of fact, my heart rate was skyrocketing from the start of the 2k easy warmup.

10k Tempo Run Pace Breakdown
1k: 4:58/k (7:59/mile)
2k: 5:02/k (8:06/mile)
3k: 3:55/k (6:18/mile) - start of tempo effort
4k: 4:15/k (6:50/mile)
5k: 4:08/k (6:39/mile)
6k: 4:08/k (6:39/mile)
7k: 4:09/k (6:41/mile)
8k: 4:30/k (7:14/mile) - last of tempo effort
9k: 5:06/k (8:12/mile)
10k: 4:42/k (7:33/mile)

At first glance, these splits might not look too far off, especially considering this is week 1 of the 16 weeks. However, in that 8th kilometre I had to stop to throw up. I was physically spent at that point. So, The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 was of to a tough start when it comes to the first tester of a session.

I like to lay down a few benchmarks in my first two weeks of marathon training and for the 2:49 Marathon Project, this was going to be important to judge progress as we go. This 10k tempo session was the first. However, I come away from this rough day with a lesson learned.

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 Update Everything Else

Regarding everything else involved in the 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 Update, it mostly went extremely well. However, there is room for improvement, as always.

Nutrition:

Let's look at nutrition first. I ate extremely well and I must say, I enjoy this part of the program. Many people struggle when it comes to eating with discipline, but I have to say, I love the results and therefore don't mind at all. This first week I averaged 1773 Kilocalories per day. This is broken down as such:

Kilocalories Per Day: 1773
Protein Per Day: 148g
Carbohydrates Per Day: 175g
Fats Per Day: 53g

For hydration, in week 1, I averaged 3.786 litres of water per day. With average temperatures reaching low-to-mid 30's here, this is extremely important.

If anyone has any interest seeing my daily food diaries, just let me know as I'm happy to share them.

Body Weight

As far as body weight goes, it was a big success in week 1. From Friday, August 9th through Friday, August 16th I dropped 3.6 lb's (1.7 kg) of body weight. This was done in a healthy and sustainable way. With this being the 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1, this is probably a little expected. I hadn't been eating deliberately for a couple of months, so a little discipline goes a long way when first starting out. Progress will be slower over the next few weeks I'm sure. Although, I am quite happy to be on the right road towards 138 lbs.

Strength & Conditioning

I've gone through this in all my previous posts, so if you would like to see my current morning Strength and Conditioning routine, click here. I completed this each workday without fail. The fact that it is only a 20 minute routine makes it easy to make the right decision and get it done. It is over and done before I know it.

I try to get my 20-minute yoga for runners routine done at least three times per week. I hate to say that this week I only managed it once. There's really no excuse for this. All I can say is that when starting into this routine once again it will take some time to remember to do everything. I will get there!

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 Update Lessons Learned

What would the 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 be if I never learned anything? If you have been running a long time, you know every day is a school day. I learned two important lessons this week. Watch the weather conditions for the sessions and work to the plan.

First and foremost, watch the weather conditions. I thought I was pretty well heat adapted when it comes to running in hot temperatures. However, Saturday's tempo run told me a different story. Going forward, I will get out earlier and do the hard work before the temperature soars into the 30's. I have a 1k rep interval session on Tuesday and will get out early and see if I feel better.

Someone on the Sub-3 Hour Marathon Facebook group shared a study showing that 5 degrees was the optimal temperature for marathon running. This was a very interesting read. I don't like running in that kind of cold, but maybe my human body does?

Secondly, working to the plan. I planned on getting three yoga sessions completed last week. However, I only managed to get one done. There is really no excuse for this other than I didn't prioritise this. I should have and will make every effort to do better this week.

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 2 Running Sessions

This week's sessions are described in this post here, but here they are in brief:
Monday: No running day

Tuesday: 1k rep intervals
Wednesday: 10k easy effort
Thursday: 16k run with 12k easy effort and 4k at steady effort
Friday: 5k easy effort
Saturday: 8k tempo run
Sunday: 21k LSDR

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 Update Summary

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 1 Update can be summed up briefly. It was a solid first week. I took away some lessons but I enjoyed the routine and the discipline. I am looking forward to week 2.

Where Can You Follow the 2:49 Marathon Project?

I accidentally pushed out the week 1 video on the wrong YouTube channel. The correct channel is this one here: JMRunCoach

Daily updates will be shared on my Instagram account and Tiktok account. Weekly updates will be in longer form on YouTube , my Facebook page, and here on the A Heart for Running blog. Also, for anyone who wishes to get email updates, please subscribe to the mailing list at the bottom of this page and the weekly updates will be delivered directly to your inbox. Ensure to check your junk box and allow the emails from here through.

#sub3hourmarathon #runningmotivation #runningcoach #2024valenciamarathon #the249marathonproject1 Update

Weekly Metrics:

This is the Week 1 Updates

Friday Weigh-in Pounds: 159.4 lbs (-3.6)
Friday Weigh-in Kg: 72.3kg (-1.7)
Average Resting HR: 42 bpm (-3)
Average Nightly Sleep: 6:54 hours (-30 minutes)
Average Daily Protein: 148g/day
Average Daily Water: 3.786 ml/day
Total Weekly KM's: 54.89 km
Total Weekly Miles: 34.1 miles

Click here to see last week's metrics