The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 4 Update

September 9, 2024

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 4 Update

The 2:49 Project Week 4 was an OK week. It hasn't been without its challenges, but in spite of these, the work is getting done. Most of the weekly metrics are trending in the right direction, however, not all. I am struggling to put my finger on what is missing or what is going wrong and I have my theories which I will discuss in this post. There is still plenty of room for optimism and this isn't a cry for help...yet .

By the way, if you are following along with the training, I'd love to hear how your training went last week. Even if you are following your own plan, I'd appreciate seeing your progress. Please comment 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 4 Update: The Daily Updates

Let's start by taking the 2:49 Marathon Project Week 4 Update of the running sessions. These were fine and that is where I am happy enough with the progress. In total I missed out on a paltry 2.43km's, less than 2 miles. That is OK and I had a very good excuse. But, it must be said, I am very seldom under when it comes to weekly volume. I believe it is a slightly negative omen, especially when combined with the rest of the week. Here is how the week went day-by-day.

Monday:

Monday was a rest day. Once again, I did do my bodyweight routine in the morning, but otherwise it was a pretty chilled day. I did some work around the house, but nothing strenuous.

Nutrition 1891 kcals
My nutrition was good, fairly disciplined. I was a little low in protein and a little low in water consumption but I ate consistently throughout the day. Not having run, I did not take a protein shake which would have got me to my protein target for the day.

119g of Protein
185g of Carbohydrates
79g of Fat
2500ml of Water

Strength & Conditioning:

Although it was a rest day, I did my 20 minute bodyweight strength routine. As it is short and low impact.

Sleep:

On Sunday evening I was in bed at 22:05 and up Monday morning at 05:10. The sleep breakdown looked like this:
0:26 Deep Sleep
4:41 Light Sleep
2:18 REM Sleep

Total Sleep: 7:25

Tuesday:

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 3 Tuesday was an 8 mile (13k) tempo run. This consisted of 2 miles (3k) easy + 4 miles (7k) hard + 2 miles (3k) easy. I ran a decent tempo session and my pace was OK, but not spectacular.

Time of Day: 08:52

Temperature: 25 degrees (77 F)

Shoes: Nike Zoom Tempo Next%

Nutrition 1991 kcals:

154g of Protein
181g of Carbohydrates
67g of Fat
3000ml of Water

Strength & Conditioning:

20 minute bodyweight routine done.

Sleep:

On Monday evening I was in bed at 22:25 and up Tuesday morning at 06:59. The sleep breakdown looked like this:
1:00 Deep Sleep
5:38 Light Sleep
1:56 REM Sleep

Total Sleep: 8:34

Wednesday:

Wednesday had me doing a double session. The morning run was a 6 miler (10k) easy effort followed by an evening run of 4 miles (7k) easy effort. Both runs were similar in pace at just over an 8:00/mile (5:00/k). The morning run was at 09:17am and the evening run was at 18:28. It was 26 degrees for both runs (79 F).

Time of Day: 09:17 | 18:28

Temperature: 26 degrees (79 F) | 26 degrees (79 F)

Shoes: Saucony Endorphin Shift 2

Nutrition 1909 kcals:

This was another good day of eating.

156g of Protein
172g of Carbohydrates
62g of Fat
3000ml of Water

Strength & Conditioning:

20 minute bodyweight routine done

Sleep:

On Tuesday evening I was in bed at 21:51 and up Wednesday morning at 05:34. The sleep breakdown looked like this:
0:44 Deep Sleep
5:05 Light Sleep
1:52 REM Sleep

Total Sleep: 7:41

Thursday:

Thursday's session was an 8 miler (13k) easy run with the last 2 miles (4k) at a steady effort. Well, I felt pretty strong on this run and actually ran the whole thing at a steady pace except I pushed the pace a bit on the last 2 miles (3k) This was probably my best run of the week when it comes to how I felt and how mentally prepared I was. At 9:05am when I went out for this run the temperature was 23 degrees (73 F).

Time of Day: 09:05

Temperature: 23 degrees (73 F)

Shoes: Nike Alphafly 1 (old pair)

Nutrition 2157 kcals:

183g of Protein
199g of Carbohydrates
68g of Fat
3500ml of Water

Strength & Conditioning:

20 minute bodyweight routine and 20 minute yoga session done

Sleep:

On Wednesday evening I was in bed at 22:26 and up Thursday morning at 05:54. The sleep breakdown looked like this:
0:39 Deep Sleep
4:30 Light Sleep
1:59 REM Sleep

Total Sleep: 7:08

Friday:

For the 2:49 Marathon Project Week 4 Update, the Friday session was another double session, the second one of the week. This usually kicks off with my 5k social run in the morning. However, this Friday I had a very early airport run and went to the seaside for my first 5k of the day. I just caught the sunrise coming up over the Mediterranean.

The second run was later in the afternoon. It was supposed to be a 4 miler (7k) steady run. I decided that my dog had been spending too much time on his own and so I took him for the run with me. It was a little too hot for him and I could tell he was tiring, so at 4k we walked the remaining bit of the run at a nice gentle pace. This was where I lost my mileage for the week and is the reason I dipped under my weekly total. I could have made this up, but it just wasn't worth it this week.

Time of Day: 07:19 | 15:58

Temperature: 23 degrees (73 F) | 30 degrees (86 F)

Shoes: Nike Revolution 6

Nutrition 2166 kcals:

88g of Protein
242g of Carbohydrates
93g of Fat
2250ml of Water

Strength & Conditioning:

20 minute bodyweight routine done.

Sleep:

On Thursday evening I was in bed at 21:52 and up Friday morning at 03:31. The sleep breakdown looked like this:
0:49 Deep Sleep
3:26 Light Sleep
1:17 REM Sleep

Total Sleep: 5:32

Saturday:

Saturday of week 4 of the 2:49 Marathon Project was another tempo run. This was a 7 miler (11k) run at 2 miles (3k) easy + 3 miles (5k) hard + 2 miles (3k) easy. I got the work done, but after the second consecutive night of under 6 hours of sleep I found it hard. Additionally, my nutrition discipline slipped for the second day in a row.

Time of Day: 10:37

Temperature: 29 degrees (84 F)

Shoes: Hoke Rocket x 2

Nutrition 2120 kcals:

117g of Protein
227g of Carbohydrates
87g of Fat
2000ml of Water

Strength & Conditioning:

No S & C today

Sleep:

On Friday evening I was in bed at 22:38 and up Saturday morning at 04:05. The sleep breakdown looked like this:
1:10 Deep Sleep
2:28 Light Sleep
1:47 REM Sleep

Total Sleep: 5:25

Sunday:

For the 2:49 Marathon Project Week 4 Sunday Long Slow Distance run was 20 miles (32k). The week hadn't really been one of my better ones to be honest and I woke Sunday lacking a bit of motivation. However, like most marathon runners, I know the work needs to get done, so I put the trainers on and went for my long run.

Because I was feeling a bit low, I thought it best to run where I enjoy it the most so I headed up towards the mountain gap and got a few of the early miles on the trails. I'm sure I looked like quite the wanker with my sunglasses on when it was a bit cloudy Sunday morning, but the forecast was for warmer, brighter weather as the morning wore on. So, wanker or not, I just got on with my run.

As with most runs, I did feel a little better when I returned and knew I had the miles in. That is nearly always the benefit of going for the run. I will feel better mentally after the run. The harder the work, the better I feel. So the 20 miler was just what I needed on the day.

Time of Day: 09:23

Temperature: 24 degrees (75 F)

Shoes: Saucony Endorphin Shift 2

Nutrition 1840 kcals:

102g of Protein
162g of Carbohydrates
79g of Fat
4250ml of Water

Strength & Conditioning:

20 minute yoga session done in the morning

Sleep:

On Saturday evening I was in bed at 21:17 and up Sunday morning at 05:10. The sleep breakdown looked like this:
0:39 Deep Sleep
4:55 Light Sleep
2:14 REM Sleep

Total Sleep: 7:48

Body Weight

The 2:49 Marathon Week 4 Update showed a positive result on the scale, even if I feel like I lacked some discipline. Weight is a funny thing and as has become obvious, the scale just shows a snapshot. It is the trend down that is more important than the actual number on the morning. I do, however, try my best to keep my weigh-ins consistent as far as not drinking my water or coffee before jumping on the scale and weighing in at the same time each Friday. This week I didn't have that luxury though.as I needed to get it done before my trip to the airport. Anyway, it was a positive weigh-in at 158 (72 kg) and bang on my weekly target I set at the start.

Strength & Conditioning

I did my 20 minute routine 4 out of 5 weekdays this week. Friday threw a lot of my routine out the window, but one day won't be the end of the world. If you would like to see my current morning Strength and Conditioning routine in a somewhat comical 1-minute video short, click here. I kept my repetitions of each exercise at 40.

I managed to get 2 x 20 minute yoga sessions done this week.

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 4 Update Lessons Learned

I can't say I learned any lessons this week. But once again, I need to remind myself that things aren't always going to be smooth. I have been spoiled in my last two marathon training blocks where mental health was high for the vast majority of them. This week was a little bit more of a battle for mw. I think there are a few reasons for this.

For one thing, because I am documenting this process on all the different social media platforms, I'm spending so much of my time with my face stuck in my phone. This is not healthy for me. For another thing, I've been undisciplined in my eating and this always brings me down. Lastly, I lacked a bit of sleep this past week. I have found that good sleep is the key to a happy and contented self. When I'm tired and don't feel like dragging my ass out of bed, I can struggle for the entire day. I am at my best when I wake up early and jump out of bed.

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 5 Running Sessions

This week's sessions are described in this post and on YouTube. This is my first cutback week. I think it comes at an interesting time and may be a blessing or a curse. All I can do is find out. The Week 5 Training Sessions in brief look like this:
Monday: No running day
Tuesday: 8 mile (13k) hilly run
Wednesday: No running
Thursday: 7 mile (11k) progression run
Friday: 5k (3 miles) easy effort
Saturday: 9 mile (15k) tempo run
Sunday: 22 mile (35k) LSDR

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 4 Update Summary

The 2:49 Marathon Project Week 4 Update is a good example of how hard a sustained training block can be. I'm only finished with 4 weeks and my head is slipping out of the game. Week 5 will require more discipline, more dedication, less time on the phone and better habits. Most of the work was done in week four, but success depends on the whole thing coming together. A personal best marathon is made harder when we aren't training at our peak. I know I can afford a slightly off week, but I certainly won't be able to accommodate too many of them.

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.

If you are on any of these platforms, I would very much appreciate a follow. It would be a huge boost to my chances of reaching my goal.

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.

#MarathonTraining #RunningTips #EnduranceTraining #RunningCommunity #FitnessJourney #249MarathonProject

Weekly Metrics:

This is the Week 4 Updates

Friday Weigh-in Pounds: 158 lbs (-2.4)
Friday Weigh-in Kg: 71.7 kg (-1.1)
Average Resting HR: 40 bpm (-)
Average Nightly Sleep: 7:04 hours (+30 minutes)
Average Daily Protein: 131g/day (-29g)
Average Daily Water: 2929 ml/day (-821ml)
Total Weekly KM's: 95.57 km (+7.9 km)
Total Weekly Miles: 58.4 miles (+4 miles)

Click here to see last week's metrics