SAP - Berlin Marathon 2009 Training program

Program Description

With 12 months lying ahead of us to prepare for the Marathon, we are positioned nicely to divide the training into manageable blocks.

The year will be divided into quarters, with each quarter having a goal at the end of it.

Goal 1 is a 10Km in Vancouver in Novemeber, 2008 

Goal 2 Paris Half Marathon in March 2009.

Goal 3 is to cover 30Km by late May - early June,

Goal 4 BerlinMarathon in September 2009.

This allows us more than enough time to ensure that the risk of injury be minimised thanks to acceptable increases in Volume and Intensity over the span of the 12 month program.

The first Quarter (September - November) will be dedicated to preparing the body for the longer milage that will be required in 2009.

We will be focusing on building up through a 5km run, to a 10Km by November (either a run / walk or a full run), with the focus in this phase of training being on settling into the routine of training regularly and sticking to the program.

The initial program will not require to much time and energy as we are building toward a 5Km distance, using walking and running to get you all upt to speed.

The time commitment will be 3 days per week, 1H15minutes per session, but be prepared to give a little more time in the coming months when the training distances start to get a little longer.

The 5km progression will be 6 weeks in duration, followed by another 6 week progression, leading us to the 10Km mark.

November will see us gathering in Vancouver, and we will be completing and amazing 10Km loop around the Seawall which circles around the world famous Stanley Park.

This will mark the completion of the Part 1 of the program.

The Training week for the first 4 month period will look as follows:

Monday: Educational day / Recovery Day (10 minutes)

Tuesday: Yoga session (60 minutes)

Wednesday: Off Day (month 1), Resistance Training (Month 2-4) (60 minutes)

Thursday: First Cardio-Vascular training session - A shorter running session compared with Session 2, but completed at a higher Heart Rate intensity.

Friday: Stretch Session aimed at the entire body (20 minutes)

Saturday: Off day - no activity planed for today

Sunday: Second Cardio-Vascular training session - a longer run but completed at a lower Heart Rate.

The second Quarter (December - February) will be dedicated to increasing the training to ensure we are ready for the Paris Half in March, and ensuring  the body is ready for the longer milage that we will be running in these months.

The third Quarter (March - May) are focused on taking the team through the 30Km place that is really no mans land.

There are no events for us to participate in, and the challenge of bridging the gap between the 21.1km and the 42.2km is pretty challenging.

The fourth Quarter (June - September) is focused on remaining injury free, pushing for the Berlin start line, and staying commited and focused to the main goal.

Program Prerequisites

The primary prerequisite is that you be prepared to commit to the process of training for the Half Marathon and the Marathon.

The ultimate goal of completing these 2 events is very important, but more important is the process of getting to the start line.

Obviously being injury free, free of any serious medical issues, and being physically (and mentally) capable of commiting to this program, is essential. 

There are 2 essential items you will require to be able to effectively complete this training program:

1. A Heart rate monitor to worn during the running training sessions and the Resistance training sessions.
2. A Prehab kits (Medicine ball, Resistance tubing, a yoga mat, a Swiss ball and pump) to be used for the Resistance training sessions, the yoga sessions and the stretch sessions.

This program contains a series of workout videos that you can view online as a rental or own and download to use over and over. For the compete list of this program's videos, add this program to your calendar or check out the program's video value bundles.

Required Equipment

Prehab Kits

6 ratings

Heart Rate Monitor

1 rating

Map my run

A great resource for plotting your training runs and recording your routes for use in later race preparation