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Another related thought: Weekly long run. Why weekly? Because it's just tooooo convenient right? Why not very long every 10 days (35-40k?) and moderately long 5 days later, every 10 days. (28-32k?) Would that not be a better way to distribute key runs?
Cheers
Skuj
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I was just talking to someone about this the other day. The primary reason a weekly long run is recommended is because our lives are built around that ubiquitous 7-day cycle known as the week. It's simply easier to routinize our training around the way we live. But i also notice that in many of the training programs, there's almost always a cutback on the long run every fourth week — so as to save the legs and allow for better recovery. With this model i've always felt a little constrained. If i do the long run on Sunday i don't feel sufficiently rested to do, say, hills on Tuesday. If i do the hills then i don't feel rested by Thursday to do a tempo run. If I postpone the tempo run until Friday then i'm not rested for the long run on Sunday.
What i like about a 9-10 day training cycle is that you can have a good 2 days of recovery between hard workouts and not need to cut back on the long run. Yesterday, in fact, i sat down and sketched out the next month of training based on a 10-day cycle. The drawback, however, is that it takes more planning and more adjustments to the schedule. Doing a long run on, say, a Wednesday morning isn't all that convenient. Fortunately, i have a good bit of control over my work hours.