How Alyssa Bloomquist PR'd by 5min to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Trials
This is the ACTUAL training Alyssa did to improve her personal best from 2:41:24 to 2:36:29 to qualify her for her 3rd U.S. Olympic Trials.
As a full-time employee and momma of two... you can imagine that very little went according to plan. You'll be amazed at what her training actually looked like to successfully complete her 7th marathon with a huge personal best!
Proceeds go to supporting Alyssa's trip to the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials!
See below to read the note from Coach Hayden Cox on how best to use this plan!
Note from Head Coach: Hayden Cox
As the name implies, Alyssa’s training program was made for Alyssa specifically. Like all of Railroad’s custom training plans, it was changed constantly throughout the cycle as result of weekly, sometimes daily, communication between Alyssa and me. What you are seeing is the final result: what Alyssa actually did to improve her PR by five minutes and qualify for her third U.S. Olympic Trials.
It will not take you long to see that A LOT of things did not go according to plan during Alyssa’s training cycle. She missed mileage, we made adjustments, and she took some unexpected days off. Some weeks were planned super wonky due to work, travel, and kid-activities. Other weeks went haywire due to unforeseen circumstances.
I want to stress something: that was all OK. Alyssa has made it this long in the sport for a reason… she listens to her body and knows the line between being tough and pushing too far. She also communicated excellently throughout the cycle and we were constantly making a Plan B, and sometimes a Plan C, to help her achieve her goals.
While imperfect, there’s a lot in this plan that should help you, whoever you are, learn more about distance running and the marathon especially.
First of all, it is ok when things don’t go according to plan. No plan goes perfectly and the best athletes know how to handle that emotionally and how to work with their support crew to create a Plan B. It is ok to miss some mileage. Your body needs to recover to perform and overtraining accomplishes nothing.
Second, it’s ok not to do crazy high mileage during a cycle. With two kids and a full time job, I have no idea how Alyssa squeezes in even 60 miles/week. Any more and she would have been seriously pushing the line on what her body can recover from.
Lastly, if you remember anything from this note, remember this: running fast is not about what training you can do, it’s about what training you can recover from.
Alyssa’s buildup is proof that you can run really fast if you hit the major pieces: (a) consistent running, (b) quality workouts, and (c) listening to your body and make intelligent decisions on that information. It’s also proof that a perfect race can result from an imperfect plan. So be patient, work hard, and most importantly, trust yourself. Your goals are right around the corner.
Hayden CoxHead Coach, Railroad Athletics