rock 'n' roll marathons training plans

[Heather!]

hey there dears. so i've decided to run rock 'n' roll phoenix in january.... i've heard a wide variety of responses to the rock 'n' roll marathons, some great and some not so great. i have my own pre-conceived notion of paying extra for music i won't be slow enough to hear, but has anyone hear run one?

also! i have never followed a training plan, but i think it's time i do just that. my first marathon was finished in 3:13 and i want the next one to be under 3. what plans have you all used? any you can recommend?

[Parker]

Well... I suppose this is not helpful at all, but my last marathon was 3:12, and like you, I am trying to significantly cut off time, at a minimum the necessary 2 minutes to qualify for Boston. So... instead of helping you, I guess I'm just saying that I'm planning on following a training plan as well, and if you find a good one, would you be kind enough to share.

I'm using one right now that a friend sent to me, but I'm not to happy with it so far, I don't think it will get me to 3:10, much less 3:00. Oh, and my marathon is in February.

Also, outstanding first marathon time.

[Heather!]

everything i've found so far is useless. they all seem to peak at 65 miles per week... which, as far as i'm concerned, is more along the lines of a valley than a peak. i don't know if i can just pick one and add more miles or...? one said "if the advanced plan is too easy it's time for you to get a coach" so i'm kind of thinking about that. i know a few folks so we'll see...

[Parker]

That's kind of what I did, is pick one and add more miles, but I feel like at that point, I'm not really following a marathon plan, I'm sort of following one, and making the rest up.
Eh... if you do the coach thing, let me know how that works out.

[Beau]

If you want some good high mileage training plans you might want to take a look at Advanced Marathoning by Pete Pfitzinger and Scott Douglas. They have a variety of plans that follow sound periodization principals. Short of that, it sounds like you are ready to get a coach to create a specified program.

Also, I have run the pf chang's rock 'n' roll twice. It is a fun large urban marathon. Both times the marathon was nicely produced. Loads of fans and the course is fast. Don't kid yourself about the music...it is there for the fans. It does bring people out. They also have tons of cheerleaders.

[Heather!]

yes! advanced marathoning. thank you! i mentioned that to a few folks that i run with and everyone was like "omg i swear by that!". so. off to buy it this afternoon! january 17 is coming up pretty quickly here so hopefully i'll have enough time to get as ready as i'd like to be :)

[Bryan Adams]

I would consider throwing in some doubles if you have time. They made all the difference for me when I was at higher mileage. I have done the PF Changs a few times it is ok, certainly not my favorite but doable. Having a good coach isnt a bad idea if you have the money. A good coach will be able to see your strong points as well as weakness and focus on what needs to be improved to make you a complete runner. I have seen some coaches work with runners almost 80% on speed and still their marathon time took a serious drop. It all depends on the person.

[Heather!]

i run twice a day three or four times a week depending on who all i'm running with. one of the girls i train with runs a coaching business so... hopefully she doesn't mind if i ask a few questions here and there :)