You may or may not be thinking or asking what is Jeffing? If you already know you may want to jog on from this first bit, for those of you who are interested and no idea here’s a little bit about Jeffing, the technique I’m going to use to get me across the finish line of my first marathon.
A gentleman called Jeff Galloway designed the Jeffing method in 1973! Yup it really has been around all these years and yet still so many people haven’t heard of this amazing technique. It was designed to help beginners start running. Using strategic walk breaks allow each runner to control fatigue, virtually eliminating significant running injuries. Jeff now has a range of training plans and e coaching runners starting with 5k’s all the way to marathon training. If it’s something you are thinking i’d like to give that a go or find out more about it then check him out online.
After reading his Marathon you can do it book ( which I highly recommend), I was left feeling inspired and ready to change my Marathon training plan from running to Jeffing. So I sat down and put together a plan based on Jeffs Marathon plan in his book. As with all plans I know things might get moved around, you have to be prepared for that flexibility. Normally I would have holidays etc worked into my plan but under the circumstances majority of our main ones have had to be postponed till next year so if any breaks go ahead ill work them in as and when they occur. Putting together a plan based on Jeffs Marathon training plan has helped me refocus and given me an idea of millage to be covering each week to get me through that finish line.
So here it is Jeffing my way to a marathon blog section. I will blog week by week all 26 weeks worth of training and then do a full on the day blog of the big day.
At the moment my running routes are limited due to current isolation guidelines and are alone so i’m not promising blogs full of giggles or exciting stuff bur who knows what these weeks will bring and I’d love to have you following me.
Monday 6/4/20 – Just a short one to start the week off, I headed off down the track to the trail and decided to right once on trail away from Rothervalley for a change. Sticking to my 30:30 ratio (30 secs walk / 30 secs running) I ran up to the gap in the fence then went down onto the bottom track running back towards home. Covering just over 2.5 miles. It seemed so measly compared to the millage I had been doing a couple of months ago but I knew I had to follow my plan and not over do things.
Wednesday 8/4/20 – Decided to cover a bit further today and headed off down to Rothervalley. The weather was lovely and it felt good to be wearing my Capris and vest top as opposed to base layers and gloves. The only downside to the seasons changing is that my wheeze at the start of my runs was back. Although this soon disappeared a couple of km in I knew I needed to start slower bot to prevent the wheezing but also 26.2 miles was no walk in the park and I knew starting to quick could be the make of break of longer runs as the mileage increased so getting into good habits now would help me along the way. Keeping my 30:30 ratio I went down the trail and onto the lakes deciding I would go round both lakes, 5 miles covered and feeling strong! I have to say i’m really enjoying Jeffing.
Thursday 9/4/20 – Leisurely stroll day today. With the weather so nice it’s a shame to be stuck indoors so keeping social distances of course Suzie and I headed down for a gestalt stroll around both lakes. We really are so lucky to have all this on our doorstep and be able to get out during these tough times.
Saturday 11/4/20 – Long run day today as a family Birthday walk is planned tomorrow. By long run my plan states 3 miles which to be honest doesn’t feel like I am challenging myself or pushing myself at the moment but I need to remember I have gone back to the very start of a training plan and pushing too hard too soon will only lead to injury.
I have been covering an average of 4 – 5 miles on most days i’ve been out so I set out with the intention of seeing how I felt but doing no more than 6 Miles max.
I took my usual route, but decided I felt strong enough to add in an extra stretch by passing my usual exit and getting off at the second exit and coming back along the trail which I knew would cover the extra mileage. Another good run today finishing the week feeling pleased.
Sunday 12/4/20 – Today should have been a rest day, I know how important resting is but we had planned a family, social distanced stroll around Rothervalley for my birthday so we took a slow plod. It was a slow plod so no danger of over exerting myself today, with Stu, Suzie and Jaffa (the beagle). Suzie enjoyed stretching her legs and looking at the ducks, before climbing into the buggy ¾ of the way round just before the heavens opened and decided to soak us all. Typically it stopped when we reached our garden gate, a bit of rain never hurt anyone and it was nice to escape the house as a family.
