Glenisk Gets You Running: Wk 3 – Prepare for 10K With Our 8 Week Running Plan

You have visions of running like a world class athlete. The reality is you have as much grace as Bambi on ice. Not to mention after a few faithful sprints you're gasping for breath and realising that the trek ahead is going to take some training. Well, we've signed up with Glenisk who are supporting the Marie Keating Foundation team at this year's Flora Women's Mini Marathon. Glenisk have gathered a team of experts including Aveen Bannon of the Dublin Nutrition Centre and the fitness trainers over at Bodybyrne to provide us with nutrition and training tips for the lead up to the marathon. From stretches, nutrition and posture to mapping your route - we've got you covered. Week 3 - Stepping Your Intensity Up a Notch Congratulations, you're now hitting week three of your training plan. We're increasing your intensity levels, but don't worry - you've been building it up and this is just the next step. You've got this - now all you need is to build up your distance. Beginners For beginners, we'll be introducing an extra session this week. Session 1 - For your first session this week, start your training week with a 45 second walk followed by 1 minute and 15 seconds and repeat the intervals for approximately 25 minutes. This session will continue to help improve your cardiovascular fitness. Session 2 - Like last week, the target here is to run continuously, so we won't be focusing on your speed. See the distance you can make without having to stop. The aim will be to cover 8km in this run with as little stopping as possible. Remember the point you had to stop last week? This week we want you to go that little bit further. Again mark this off so you have a reference point for your distance training. Session 3 - We're introducing an additional session for our beginner runners this week. This extra run will act as a recovery session. Take on a steady 4km recovery run to help keep the legs moving an extra day and to enhance recovery. Intermediate This week sees our intermediate/advanced runners replacing their recovery run by a 5km time trial. This little increase in intensity will set runners up nicely for another jump come week 4. For those who feel an extra kick, or have some spare time in their week, the recovery run is still an option as a fourth session. Session 1 - This week, the intervals will cover a distance of approximately 6-8km - 1 minute steady jog at about 60% of your max speed, followed by 30 seconds of jogging at a 75% of your full pace. This session again should last about 40 minutes including your warm up and cool down. Session 2 - This session acts as a time trial this week, and should last a distance of 5km. This is a hard session where you must record your time. The aim here is to record this, as you'll later be able to use and compare against it in week 5. Session 3 - Your third training session this week will act as your long run. Use this run for consistency and technique - this will stand to you come race day. Again, take note of your time so you can compare against this in the weeks to come. Session 4 - Optional - As mentioned before, this is additional to the required training but if you're feeling inspired - get moving! This should be about a 20 minute run, covering as much distance as you can comfortably manage. Nutritional Tips This Week: Keeping Your Body Refuelled This week, Bodybyrne's keeps us updated with top fitness and nutrition tips: 1) Leave at least a 1-2 hour gap between eating and running to save cramps or running with that bloated feeling. You want to run light for maximum performance. 2) Get a well-balanced recovery meal after (within 1 hour if possible) training. A mixture of protein, carbohydrates and fat is ideal. Grilled salmon, brown rice and spinach is a favourite of ours! 3) If you're planning to run at night, hydrate through the day - drink at least 2-3 litres of water. 4) Ensure you are running with good posture by getting an exercise professional to assess your technique, preferably on a treadmill in a gym where it is easy to make adjustments. Everything from shoulder alignment to foot strike should be assessed. 5) Are your shoes right? If you're planning to get anyway serious about running, why not do a gait analysis to find out what trainers are the right fit for you. This can be done in most sports shops. Feeling peckish after training? This week, check out Glenisk's recipe for chicken and prawn skewers with yogurt dip!