This weekly message keeps active members informed of the Dashing Whippets training activities for the next seven days.

At last, the big day is near for NYC Marathoners. It’s an exciting time, and this is a friendly reminder that you risk doing more harm than good by pushing yourself to run hard or long this close to race day. All the work has been done, and now it’s just a matter of watching the clock tick down to November 1.

First-time marathoner this weekend? You’re in for a treat — although certainly not an easy course, NYC is an amazing place to do your debut. If this is your first, be sure to check in with teammates about any last-minute questions you might have — there is a lot of collected wisdom among our fellow runners. (Here’s a free tip to marathon newbies:  Is it normal to spend roughly 90% of your waking hours thinking about the race in the days leading up to the event? Answer: Yes, it’s normal to obsess over the marathon, especially when you haven’t done one before. It would be abnormal if you weren’t fixated on it right now.)

For our non-marathoners, this week begins a new training plan to help you do well at the mid-December NYRR Ted Corbitt 15K. Come out on Tuesdays, Thursdays and the weekend long run to develop your speed with fellow runners.

Schedule change! For this week and next week only, our Manhattan Thursday evening workout has relocated to Central Park to allow non-marathoners to get some hill work in.

Dashing Whippets Training Plan for the Week

This is the final week of an 18-week NYC Marathon training program, and week 1 of a 7-week plan for the Ted Corbitt 15K.

Please click on the links below to RSVP if you are planning to come out to one of these training events!

Note: Almost all training paces, such as 5K, 10K, half marathon, should be your estimated pace if you ran the race today — not your goal or PR pace. (Exception: Marathon pace is your goal pace or best guess of your well-trained marathon speed.) You can use the Daniels VDOT calculator to estimate your pace from a recent result.

Monday 10/26: Easy day

• NYC marathoners should run 30 minutes easy, followed by 5 repeats of 100m strides
• Recent marathoners (past three weeks) should take the day off, or limit yourself to 20-30 minutes easy
• Everyone else should run 30-45 minutes easy
• Monday Morning Mileage (Central Park) option: http://www.meetup.com/dashing-whippets/events/225867468/
• Monday Evening Easy (East Village) option: http://www.meetup.com/dashing-whippets/events/226197573/

Tuesday 10/27: Long speedwork day: Warm up 1.5-2 miles. Then…

• NYC marathoners: 30-40 minutes of easy running.
• Short distance (5K-15K) specialists: 3 miles at marathon pace, then 2 miles at half marathon pace, with no break between pace changes. Finish with 1 easy mile to cool down.
• Recent marathoners (past three weeks) and Runners who are building a base (not much recent speedwork): 3 miles at marathon pace, then 1 easy mile to cool down.
• Manhattan group workout in Central Park at 7pm: http://www.meetup.com/dashing-whippets/events/226146654/
• Brooklyn group workout in Prospect Park at 7pm: http://www.meetup.com/dashing-whippets/events/226143359/

Wednesday 10/28: Recovery day

• NYC Marathoners and recent marathoners should rest
• Everyone else should do 25-40 minutes of easy running or aerobic system cross training
• Morning group run, Central Park: http://www.meetup.com/dashing-whippets/events/226214774/

Thursday, 10/29: Short speedwork day: 20-minute warmup, including jogging/drills/strides, then…

• Short distance (5K-15K) specialists and Runners who are building a base: 8-16 repeats of 200m uphill at 5K pace. Walk/jog back downhill after each to recover, and add a 15-minute cooldown jog at the end. If you are still building your base, stop at 8-12 of these. If you are well trained, aim for 14-16.
• NYC marathoners and Recent marathoners (past three weeks): Take the night off, or do 20-30 minutes of easy running
• Morning Manhattan group workout in Central Park: http://www.meetup.com/dashing-whippets/events/226255473/
• Evening Manhattan group workout — MOVED TO CENTRAL PARK at 7pm: http://www.meetup.com/dashing-whippets/events/226031187/
• Evening Brooklyn group workout in Prospect Park at 7pm: http://www.meetup.com/dashing-whippets/events/226193363/

Friday 10/30: Very easy day

• Everyone should rest
• New York Marathoners: Eat well and get to sleep early on Friday night.

Saturday and Sunday, 10/31-11/01:

• Best of luck, NYC Marathoners! Rest or do a short shakeout run on Saturday. Enjoy the experience on Sunday, and look for your fellow Whippets to be cheering for you in the Bronx!
• Everyone else: On one day, do 35-55 minutes of easy running followed by 4 repeats of 100m strides. On the other day, do a long run…
• Short distance (5K-15K) specialists (with a solid base): 1:15-1:30 at long run pace
• Recent marathoners (past three weeks) and Runners who are building a base: 1:00-1:15 at easy or long run pace
• Long run pace is 45-60 seconds per mile slower than marathon pace — a little faster than easy pace, but still not challenging.
• There are weekly team long runs around the city. To see all options for weekend training runs with the Whippets, please view the calendar: http://www.meetup.com/dashing-whippets/events/

Training Calendars

• Dashing Whippets NYC Marathon training plan (18 weeks): http://files.meetup.com/1454408/DWRT_NYC_Marathon_2015.pdf
• Dashing Whippets Ted Corbitt 15K training plan (starts THIS WEEK): http://files.meetup.com/1454408/DWRT_TrainingPlan_LateFall2015_15K.pdf