This week I begin my 18 week training program for the Martian Marathon April 5th, 2009. The Martian Marathon is a two day event that begins with a 5K (3.1 miles) and 10K (6.2 miles) on Saturday. The Full Marathon (26.2 miles) and Half Marathon (13.1 miles) take place on Sunday.

For this race I will be using Hal Higdon's Novice Training Program. This program consists of four training runs per week, averaging 15 to 25 miles each week. I don't have any strong reasons why I chose this program over others. I can only say that it worked with my schedule and that it filled the need to have specific goals every week.

Based on my recent Half Marathon results, my goal is to complete this race in 4:45 (hh:mm). That's an average of 10:50 (mm:ss) per mile. Although, since this is my first Full Marathon, just crossing the finish line will be in itself a personal victory.