No scheduling conflicts against the commitments on file.
Sessions
Mon 19 OctLong run + strides1 h 15 min · about 12.8–13.3 kmstrides includedLong run + stridesCatalog AB3
1Long runThe same effort gets slower by the end. That is the session working, not you fading.1:07:206:01–5:38/km
2Strides — 5 × 20sRelaxed and controlled at repetition effort, never a sprint.Break1:30 very slow jog, at 6:01/km or slower — full recovery is the point6:00 in total1:40 of work3:52–4:01/km
Limit
No faster than 5:38/km.The slow end of the range is always fine. This is a ceiling, not a goal.
You run
5:43–5:52/km— your last six weeks, which sits inside it.
Shape
The week's long run, moved off the weekend by the 23-25 October holiday, as you asked for a blocked weekend. 75 minutes, a quarter shorter than Sunday's 100: this is the cutback, and the long run is cut with it. Monday is the only day the week leaves for it: Tuesday keeps the threshold session two days clear of Sunday's long run, Wednesday runs after heavy legs and stays easy, and the day after heavy legs is not a long-run day. All easy, by the talk test, with 5:38/km as a ceiling only; slower is correct, and the day after 100 minutes expect the first ten minutes to feel stiff. Five strides at the very end, relaxed and never all-out, full recovery between, as on recent Mondays; no economy claim attaches to them [D]. This morning's upper-push gym carries none of the day-after constraints [D]. Under 90 minutes, so nothing beyond a normal meal beforehand.
Shoes
Adidas Supernova Rise 3 Silver— proposed for this session: your regular pair, 119.1 km on it against a conventional 500–800 km window [D].
Why
Durability — still running well late in a race. Capped by time, not distance. A time cap binds hardest on slower runners, and that is the correct answer rather than a compromise.
Tue 20 OctThreshold, cruise intervals1 h · about 11–11.5 kmwarm-up includedTempoCatalog LT2
1Easy jogLoosen up. None of this is the session yet — run it at whatever pace lets you talk.12 min
2Warm-up0–2 min drills → 2 × 15 s strides → then start the tempo within 3 min.5–8 min
3Main set — 3 × 9:00At threshold effort.Break1:30 slow jog, keep moving, at 6:01/km or slower3:00 in total27:00 of work4:32-4:43/km
4Cool-downOptional. A few minutes of easy jogging if you want the transition — but it is not prescribed, and there is no recovery case for it: no effect on next-day performance, soreness or injury rate.
Shape
The same session as the last three weeks, at last week's dose: 3 x 9 min with 90 s slow-jog recoveries, same band. A cutback cuts volume and keeps the quality session at full intensity, so this session does not step up this week and does not come down either. Effort leads and the band checks it: comfortably hard, conversation down to short phrases. Last Tuesday's 4:34, 4:34, 4:36 is exactly the execution to repeat. Expect each rep to feel harder than the one before: lactate rises through a threshold session rather than levelling off [B], and that is correct, not fading. Yesterday's 75 minutes may leave the legs a little heavier than a usual Tuesday; if so, hold the effort and accept the slow edge of the band rather than forcing it. A faster rep is not evidence the band should move; only a race or time trial changes it. This morning's gym is Friday's upper pull, moved here this week: upper body only, so it carries none of the gym constraints on this session [D]. Tomorrow's heavy legs come the day after this session, which is the order that costs it nothing.
Shoes
Adidas Adizero Evo SL— proposed for this session: your speedy pair, 249.9 km on it against a conventional 500–800 km window [D].
Fuel
Pre-session carbohydrate, and not fasted: 27 min at threshold trips the 20-minutes-at-threshold-or-above trigger. A normal carbohydrate-containing meal or snack one to four hours before [B]. Nothing needed during: the session is well under 90 min. Drink to thirst, never ahead of it.
Why
Threshold — raising the effort you can hold for about an hour. Cruise intervals rather than one continuous block: short breaks cut blood lactate at the same workload, so you get more quality work for the same cost.
Wed 21 OctEasy50 min · about 8.3–8.8 kmEasyCatalog AB2
1Easy runYou should be able to speak a full sentence without gasping.50 min6:01–5:38/km
Limit
No faster than 5:38/km.The slow end of the range is always fine. This is a ceiling, not a goal.
You run
5:41–6:16/km— your last six weeks, which sits inside it.
Shape
Runs after the morning heavy-legs session, so easy only and no strides. Running costs more for up to 48 h after heavy lifting [B]: it is inefficient, not dangerous. Judge it by effort and do not chase pace. Tomorrow's run is easy as well.
Shoes
Hoka Mach 6 Black Black— proposed for this session: your regular pair, 416.9 km on it against a conventional 500–800 km window [D].
Why
Aerobic volume, and recovery from the hard days around it. The most common error is running these too fast, which is the single biggest cause of chronically elevated easy-run HR. If you cannot hold a conversation, you are running a different session.
Thu 22 OctEasy45 min · about 7.5–8 kmEasyCatalog AB2
1Easy runYou should be able to speak a full sentence without gasping.45 min6:01–5:38/km
Limit
No faster than 5:38/km.The slow end of the range is always fine. This is a ceiling, not a goal.
You run
5:41–6:16/km— your last six weeks, which sits inside it.
Shape
Day after heavy legs, which bars threshold, intervals, race pace, a long run at meaningful effort, and plyometrics or hill sprints [B]. Easy aerobic running is explicitly acceptable and is all this is, no strides. Expect it to feel heavier than its pace says; judge by effort. No gym today. Last run before the holiday; the next is Monday 26th.
Shoes
Adidas Supernova Rise 3 Silver— proposed for this session: your regular pair, 119.1 km on it against a conventional 500–800 km window [D].
Why
Aerobic volume, and recovery from the hard days around it. The most common error is running these too fast, which is the single biggest cause of chronically elevated easy-run HR. If you cannot hold a conversation, you are running a different session.
Why easy, marathon-pace and long runs get a range, not a target. Easy pace is a ceiling plus the talk test, never a target.
When these get faster. After a race or a time trial, and not before. Paces are never raised because a session felt easy — that is how a plan drifts upward until every run is slightly too hard and none of them work.
Where the time goes
Rolling four weeks to 2026-W42 · Z1 slower than 5:38/km · Z3 faster than 4:32/km
Easy92.1%935 min/4wk
Moderate6.6%67 min/4wk
Hard1.4%14 min/4wk
Easy running outweighs the rest, every week.The most reliable thing on this page, and it is holding.the one distribution rule with consistent support
Moderate running is 7%, under the 20% mark.The best-evidenced number here, and it is where it should be.strongest evidence here — a controlled trial
92% of your running is easy, above the 77% mark.weaker — observational studies only
Hard running is 1%, inside the 12% mark.well evidenced
Your shape is pyramidal — most easy, less moderate, least hard.Pyramidal and polarised work equally well — this is described, never scored.no evidence either way — reported, never judged
Nothing here changes your plan or raises a flag — these describe what you have been doing, they do not grade it. The grey line under each one says how much evidence sits behind it, so you can tell which is worth acting on.