Tuesdays: Sustain speed
The goal: Improve your ability to maintain a target pace.
How: Walk the fastest pace you can maintain for a set time.
Weeks 1 through 5: Start with a 10-minute warm-up, then crank up to a swift pace for 15 minutes, finishing with a 5-minute cool-down for a 30-minute total workout time.
Weeks 6 through 11: Do 30 minutes of fast-paced effort for a 45-minute workout, including warm-up and cool-down.
Weeks 12 through 15: Bump up to 45 minutes of hard work for a 60-minute workout.
Note: In the final two weeks before the race, drop back to 30-minute walks, with just 15 minutes of fast walking.
Thursdays: Build strength
The goal: Increase leg power for a hilly, demanding course.
How: During a nonstop 60-minute walk, insert several bursts of brisk uphill walking, fast walking, or both.
Weeks 1 through 5: Begin and end by walking easily for 10 minutes to warm up and cool down. During the middle 40 minutes, do five total minutes of intense effort (uphill, fast, or a mix hard enough to induce heavy breathing) broken into 1- to 3-minute chunks. Between bursts, do at least one minute of moderate walking before the next effort. Each week, add 1 minute of intensity, so that by Week 5, burst time totals 9 minutes. Total workout time is 60 minutes, including a 10 minute warm-up and cool-down.
Weeks 6 through 11: Keep adding 1 minute of hard effort each week, so that by Week 11, you're mixing 15 minutes of hills or fast walking into your workout in 1- to 3-minute chunks. Total workout time and warm-up/cool-down times stay the same.
Weeks 12 through 16: Add a minute of speed each week, so that by Week 16, your 1-hour walk includes 20 minutes of very hard effort sprinkled throughout.
Note: Skip this workout entirely in the final week before the race.
Saturday/Sunday: Go long
The goal: Build endurance and reduce injury risk.
How: Each weekend, take progressively longer walks (see chart below). These walks are occasionally broken into two medium-long walks at a quicker pace one on Saturday, the other on Sunday as the short recovery time enhances the conditioning effect by giving the body less time to repair and re-energize the muscles. Be sure to drink water frequently on any effort over an hour, and eat a light snack on any walk over two hours.
Note: For maximum benefit, walk on Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings when Sunday walks are an hour or more; this shortens recovery times between endurance walks.
Week 1: Saturday: 40 minutes; Sunday: 40 minutes
2: Saturday: 50 minutes; Sunday: 40 minutes
3: Saturday: one hour; Sunday: 40 minutes
4: Saturday: one hour 15 minutes; Sunday: one hour
5: Saturday: one hour 30 minutes; Sunday: 20 minutes
6: Saturday: one hour 20 minutes; Sunday: one hour
7: Saturday: 2 hours; Sunday: 20 minutes
8: Saturday: one hour 30 minutes; Sunday: one hour
9: Saturday: Long, hilly day hike, at least 3 hours; Sunday: 20 minutes
10: Saturday: one hour 40 minutes; Sunday: one hour 20 minutes
11: Saturday: 3 hours 30 minutes; Sunday: 20 minutes
12: Saturday: one hour 45 minutes; Sunday: one hour 15 minutes
13: Saturday: All-day hike, off-road, more than 4 hours; Sunday: 20 minutes
14: Saturday: one hour; Sunday: one hour
15: Saturday: 4 hours 30 minutes; Sunday: 20 minutes
16: Saturday: 2 hours 45 minutes; Sunday one hour
17: Saturday: one hour 15 minutes; Sunday: 40 minutes
18: Race weekend! Walk 26.2 miles (and have fun!)
Note: These times assume you're walking in the 4.5-mph range. If you walk faster than that, assume that these times are for someone walking 4.5 mph, convert these times to mileage, and walk the resulting distances for the long workouts.