[TrainingTalk] Training log 2025
This is my training log for 2025.
I am mostly writing it for me, as a diary, but please feel free to comment or engage in conversation should you have any questions. This is how we learn and grow.
I will keep editing this post every Sunday evening or Monday morning.
Profile
This year I’ll be 41 years old. I have been running since 2009, and I have been building very gradually over the years. Below is an overview of my training volume over the past 10 years (since I started using Strava):
In terms of performance, in 2024 I ran personal bests in the half marathon (February), 50 km (twice, April and September), and 100 km (May). The year before (2023) I ran my first sub-3 marathons (Manchester and Amsterdam):
Year Races and Goals:
This year, my focus is only on the 100 km (Passatore), even though I will try to get a bit better in the 50 km as well (Winschoten) and I will start getting more familiar with racing on trails, something I’d like to do more in 2026 and beyond.
April 5th, B goal: Maratona del Lamone
Part of the Trittico di Romagna, which includes also the 50 km di Romagna and 100 km del Passatore. I will not really race this but run it at high-end zone 2, most likely.
I could not race as I was sick with a viral respiratory infection.
April 25th, A goal: 50 km di Romagna
May 24th, A goal: 100 km del Passatore
Aiming to race well, the time will depend on how hot it is, but I would like to race at least sub-10, ideally closer to 9 hours. I think I have sub-9 in me on a perfect, cloudy day.
DNF. I could not get over a few muscular issues I had since the 50 km personal best 4 weeks prior to Passatore, tried till the last day and started the race but called it a day after Passo della Colla.
September, A goal: Winschoten 50 km
Aiming for a personal best.
October, B goal: Big Rock Morenic 50 km
I’d like to race hard and see how it goes as I start to approach more (runnable) trail races.
November, A goal, Florence Marathon
Aiming for a personal best given the recent progress with metabolic flexibility, or at least to be back to running sub-3 after 2 years.
There will be a few other C events in there, to be taken as training.
Training Periodization
I am currently using a non-linear periodization with a 3-week microcycle which is modulated by how close I am to the main race of the year, in terms of specificity and types of workouts used.
I opted for this approach to address some of my limiters (i.e. poor economy and durability, high rate of injuries), while trying to get better at the long distance and remain injury-free (more details about this periodization, here).
Below is an overview of the high-level plan I put together:
See also:
Week one
This week is BASE, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 3
Training: 12 hours
Running: 100 kilometers, +3000m
Workouts: strides, hill sprints, long at z2
Cycling: none
Strength: none
Injuries and rehab: left foot and right knee still troubling me a bit
Weight: 72.1 kg (down from 76.4 kg 3 weeks ago).
HRV: stable baseline, acutely suppressed in the last few days after an overshoot due to the caloric deficit.
Score: 6/10
First week of the year, following the new plan I recently put together (some of it is discussed here). As this was the third week of the microcycle, I didn’t have any big workout scheduled, but more z2 and some neuromuscular work. In terms of execution, hill sprints and strides were fine, with some minor discomfort at the knee, while z2 was a struggle due to the weather here in Tenerife. I find myself running a lot slower at the same heart rate (a 10-15 bpm difference wrt before coming here), even if it’s been 3 weeks already (and I was even heat-adapted when arriving here). Direct sunlight is the main problem, more than the temperature, but that’s how it is now. I will try to see if I can do some more shorter doubles, and fewer longer runs.
Overall it’s all good though, I am mostly focused on the diet (something I will blog about later on, shifting to lower carbs to initially lose weight and later on possibly become less reliant on carbs for Passatore - an experiment that is however motivating me again and putting me in the right mindset to take care of myself better). This focus means also that it will take a few weeks to understand better how to adjust in order to train well, e.g. having more carbs before / after workouts or else. Given that I wasn’t really training well since the Florence marathon due to physical issues or the weather, I feel like this is a good time to experiment and see how things go, without really missing out on anything. Time will tell if it helps me or not.
Full week:
Resting physiology:
Week two
This week is BASE, MICROCYCLE 2, WEEK 1
Training: 15 hours
Running: 110 kilometers, +3500m
Workouts:
10 x 90” hard, 90” easy
10 strides, 10 hill sprints, 90’ at z2 with 10’ harder
Cycling: none
Strength: none
Injuries and rehab: left foot and right knee still troubling me a bit, but not limiting training.
Weight: 69.9 kg (down from 76.4 kg 4 weeks ago).
HRV: suppressed below normal values since I started to eat low carb (reasons for the diet here, and for the suppression here).
Score: 7/10
A decent week. The workout was really slow, but the effort was just right. The other days were better than average, with good energy, and a bit of extra work here and there (strides, sprints, strong finish during a z2 run), I won’t complain even if good fitness feels far.
Weight loss proceeds well, as I am dropping some more but I have good energy levels, much better than a few weeks ago. I went on three adventures on trails, one solo, one with Ale (beautiful coast to coast), and one with Sophie and Ben, which was also a lovely day with some extra scrambling on a trail I hadn’t seen before here in Tenerife.
For next week, more of the same, but with a threshold effort instead of a VO2max session. Curious to see if I can hold the intensity. As per the diet, I will eat more carbs the evening before the session, and a bit more also on the morning of the session, and see how that goes.
I’ve booked a lab test with Melvin back in Amsterdam on February 28th, so I can check fat oxidation (and lactate) and see how things are proceeding after two months of dieting.
Full week:
Normalized HRV (see here):
Week three
This week is BASE, MICROCYCLE 2, WEEK 2
Training: 13 hours
Running: 115 kilometers, +2000m
Workouts:
4 x 2000m hard, 2’ easy (Threshold)
10 strides, 10 hill sprints, 90’ at z2 with 10’ harder
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Injuries and rehab: left foot and right knee still troubling me a bit, but not limiting training. The knee is the main concern among the two.
Weight: 68.9 kg (down from 76.4 kg 5 weeks ago, 1 kg in the last week).
HRV: suppressed below normal values since I started to eat low carb (reasons for the diet here, and for the suppression here).
Score: 8/10
Maybe by best week in a while. Happy with the structure of training, execution of workouts, and the longer run. Nothing too exciting yet, paces are slow, distances are short, but I feel like this week was another step in the right direction.
In terms of diet, I am eating mostly low-carb but also periodizing carb intake depending on training. For example, I had 50 grams of carbs the evening before the 2k reps (pasta) and 50 grams of carbs on the morning of the workout. The other days I had mostly a low carb diet as intensity was limited (see example below from Friday).
I ate low-carb also before the z2 workout, which was quicker this week, but had a gel before the last 10 km in which I ran harder (4’10”/km this week). For the long run, I had 2 snacks, one each hour, for a total of 28 grams of carbs in 3 hours.
Here is the threshold workout:
And the full week:
My night HRV has fully renormalized and overshoot above normal range this week. On the other hand, the morning data is still suppressed. I have also noticed some issues when I stand up during the day, feeling dizzy and almost fainting despite no energy issues and no issues when running, even running hard. Maybe still readjusting in a way, my body has changed a lot in a short time (dropped more than 10% of my weight at this point). Let’s see next week.
Week four
This week is BASE, MICROCYCLE 2, WEEK 3
Training: 12 hours
Running: 105 kilometers, +1500m
Workouts:
20 x 45” hard, 60’ easy
20’ tempo
8 hill sprints, 80’ at z2
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Injuries and rehab: left foot and right knee still troubling me a bit, but not limiting training.
Weight: 68.5 kg (down from 76.4 kg 6 weeks ago, -0.5 kg in the last week).
HRV: Re-normalized.
Score: 7/10
This week was okay. Probably I’m loading too much in the third week of the microcycle, when I skip the workout but do more z2 and tempo. I did well on the short intervals on Tuesday (just an extended version of a strides workout), and then also ran well at z2 the following day, but I was tired when I was supposed to do a longer run with a faster finish (2h 30’ with some tempo). Eventually I ran only 2 hours, then went out in the afternoon again and felt strong, so I did the tempo at that time. Obviously, not the same stimulus. I’m getting a handle of the periodized carb intake, but still experimenting a bit, and I think I did not have enough that morning before the long and hard run. I’ll try again with more and see how it goes.
I’m feeling better and stronger, doing a weekly double, good z2, etc. - I think it’s time to step up a bit the workouts and I have higher hopes for the next 2 weeks, where I’d like to start hitting better paces. Let’s see if my body is on the same page.
Full week:
Week five
This week is BASE, MICROCYCLE 3, WEEK 1
Training: 14 hours
Running: 130 kilometers, +2000m
Workouts:
8 x 3’ hard, 2’ easy
10 strides, 10 hill sprints, 80’ at z2 with 2 km harder, one double
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Injuries and rehab: left foot (discomfort 1/10) and right knee (2/10) doing better. My left hamstring has been tight since I started training properly around last week (4/10).
Weight: 67.6 kg (down from 76.4 kg 7 weeks ago, -1 kg in the last week).
HRV: Re-normalized, all good.
Score: 8/10
This week was good. A proper workout, and feeling good all other days, accumulating some more volume than in the past week, but without compromising quality. The only warning sign is the hamstring, need to be careful there.
I feel like the weight is where it should be now, even though I lost some more this week. I feel good and running is finally getting a bit quicker, even though not particularly exciting yet. I’ve started playing around with some data for an upcoming blog post (something I’ll put together when I also have lab data for fat oxidation). Nice to see how intake follows well expenditure, and the macros periodization is also based on training demands. Periodized nutrition:
Here is the main session of the week, a classic VO2max workout for me:
My zone 2 pace is also getting back where it should be, after a few months of struggling even at this intensity, as shown below in terms of aerobic endurance in HRV4Training Pro:
Full week:
Week six
This week is BASE, MICROCYCLE 3, WEEK 2
Training: 15 hours
Running: 150 kilometers, +2000m
Workouts:
4 x 3000m hard, 2’ easy
10 strides, 10 hill sprints, 35’ at z2, one double, one long run at (ultra) race pace
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Injuries and rehab: left foot (discomfort 1/10) and right knee (1/10) doing good. My left hamstring has been tight since I started training properly around two weeks ago, but this week was better than the previous one (2/10).
Weight: 67.6 kg (Stable in the last week).
HRV: Normal, all good.
Score: 10/10
Finally a great week. With no more caloric deficit, I can train properly and test how everything is taking shape with the many changes in training, diet, and metabolism of the past 2 months. I was confident the hard sessions would start to click, as those were good even when I wasn’t doing well in terms of gut health or long runs, but I was more uncertain about the longer runs, as I’ve struggled with those since last May after Passatore. This week I put that to the test as well, with 50 km of hills (+1100m) at (ultra) race pace. I’m really happy with how it went, as I felt good during the run and even in the last 30’ after a long descent, where I could still run well and not have muscular issues, cramps, or abnormal fatigue. This gives me the confidence I was lacking to get into the right mindset for Passatore.
In terms of diet, I had a typical low-carb week with a high-carb morning (and previous evening) when I ran the threshold workout on Tuesday. Given what was coming up on Sunday, I had “lots” of carbs on Saturday (300 grams, my highest for a single day in the past 2 months), and my “performance breakfast” on Sunday (the same I also had on Tuesday), which is overnight oats (10 spoons of oats, 1 piece of dark chocolate, blueberries, blueberry jam, greek yogurt, and soy milk).
During the run, I had 1 gel after 16 km (+20mg caffeine), 1 bar at 26 km, another gel at 36 km (+20mg caffeine), and another bar at 44 km, for a total of 80 grams of carbs in 4 hours and a half.
Tuesday’s workout:
The long run:
And grade adjusted pace (GAP), quite even at 5’06”/km:
Full week:
On a side note, what I like the most about the current training I put together for myself, is how good I feel on days when I’m not running a hard workout, but I’m doing “some quality”. I used to do really big sessions and just fill the days between sessions with 3-4 days of “feeling terrible while running”, and I have finally shifted to even fewer hard sessions (at this point, just 1 per week), but with plenty of “extra work” (strides and hill sprints done well, high-end z2 also done well and weekly, etc.). I am enjoying the change.
I think I was too afraid of letting go of these big workouts that have always worked well for me in terms of performance improvements, but after the Florence marathon, when reassessing the situation, I figured it was time to do something different this time. The caloric deficit + recent small injuries sort of helped out as big workouts weren’t an option anymore.
Below is another “side effect” of the diet, apparently I need less sleep now. Curious to see how things will evolve in the next weeks.
Week seven
This week is BASE, MICROCYCLE 3, WEEK 3
Training: 12 hours
Running: 110 kilometers, +2000m
Workouts:
20 km tempo on the hills.
10 strides, 10 hill sprints, 35’ at z2, one double, one long run, another 5 strides.
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Injuries and rehab: left foot (discomfort 1/10) and right knee (1/10) doing good. My left hamstring has been tight since I started training properly around three weeks ago (4/10).
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: L L L H H L L (High carb intake the evening before Friday’s workout and on Friday morning), all other days Low.
Weight: 66.6 kg, lost another kg this week, not intentional. Need to make some adjustments.
HRV: Stable, all good.
Score: 8/10
Good week. For week 3 of the microcycle, I normally skip the VO2max or Threshold workout and do only one long tempo run, with the usual extras on the other days (strides, z2, sprints, etc.). The idea is to focus on my main weaknesses more regularly, and therefore touch on this intensity every third week. In the past microcycle I could not really execute the long tempo, as I probably packed too much in the previous day, hence this time I made some adjustments: I reduced the number of strides, and reduced the time spent in z2, then managed to do a good tempo run on Friday.
The pace wasn’t as exciting, but it was the first workout at this intensity in a long time, hence I take it positively.
My left hamstring is a bit annoying, hence I’ll decide next week if I need to skip a session or if I can proceed as planned (ideally, I’d give another shot at a hard 8x3’, which could give me a good idea of recent progress). Let’s see. It’s an interesting phase with many moving pieces, but I’m really enjoying the experiments, the changes, the learnings, etc. in other words, the process.
Full week:
Tempo run, grade adjusted pace:
Resting physiology:
Week eight
This week is SUPPORT, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 1
Training: 11 hours
Running: 110 kilometers, +1000m
Workouts:
8 x 3’
10 strides, 10 hill sprints, 90’ at z2, one double
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Injuries and rehab: all good apart from some left hamstring tightness on some days.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: L H H L L L H.
Weight: 67.5 kg, stable.
HRV: 3 suppressions in a row but feeling good, unclear what’s up, maybe just the trip to Gran Canaria.
Score: 9/10
Great week. Very happy with the hard workout, as it showed I made plenty of progress since I started with the diet and periodized nutrition approach about 2 months ago. I hadn't hit a 3'40"/km average for this session (8x3) in over 2 years. Saturday’s Z2 was also pretty good, I felt strong, and ran not far from 4’30”/km grade-adjusted pace, for an effort just below LT1. There’s nothing like intentionally taking a step back to take two steps forward, and with racing season around the corner, I’m finally excited to see what I can do. After so many months of poor confidence, this feels like a good change of mindset.
The workout:
90’ Z2 (147 bpm):
And full week:
While here is my resting physiology, which I’m hoping will re-normalize soon as I was coming from a good, stable phase:
This week is also the beginning of a new PHASE, the SUPPORT one, where I will start doing longer runs with intensity, and do work that is closer to what I will need at Passatore. I will also train through a few races (marathon and 50 km), probably holding back and running at Z2, as a good training stimulus. This phase will likely require some adjustments with my periodized nutrition, as I will be expending more energy per week, and will need to support the training a bit differently. At the moment I aim at doing ~3 days low, 2 days high (workout and longer run at moderate pace or with intensity bocks), and the remaining 2 days I will see how things go and if I can still execute (e.g. strides or Z2) while staying low, or if the bigger sessions will require higher carb intake also around those days.
Week nine
This week is SUPPORT, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 2
Training: 14 hours
Running: 130 kilometers, +1500m
Workouts:
4 x 2000m, 2’
10 strides, 10 hill sprints, 75’ at z2, two doubles
Cycling: none, but I am back home and aiming to make some changes.
Strength: one session.
Other: started with another round of passive heat protocols. The goal is to do it 3-5 times per week, 20-25’ at 40-41C, post-training, until Passatore.
Injuries and rehab: left hamstring tightness at threshold pace.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: H L L L H L L
Weight: ~67 kg, stable.
HRV: back up, feeling good.
Score: 10/10
This was finally the week of testing. Testing performance with a good workout, and testing metabolism in the lab. Passed with flying colors, it seems. The workout, and progress over the past months:
As well as my metabolic changes:
And with respect to published data in different populations:
As I’ve covered all of this process in my latest Substack, I will simply link to it here.
Here is my full week:
As per the next steps, I am looking forward to seeing what I can do next week for a first marathon pace workout, and then I would like to add a double on the bike for some extra intensity without injury risk. We’ll see if that’s in the cards or not.
I have also re-introduced a day off running on most weeks, as the load is higher now, and I would like to stay healthy and injury-free. This is a phase in which I shifted my focus from volume to quality and structure, quite different from the past autumn. I have been thinking a lot about cycling as well, to do it, not to do it, etc. - and eventually, I will try to use it strategically for quality (e.g. a hard session after a hard running session), to avoid ending up just doing volume for the sake of it, which would not be the first time for me. The focus on the diet helps also from this point of view, less mindless or poor quality eating “because I train many hours” (and less “feeling like I need to train many hours because I ate lots of crap”).
In this context, something else I have been thinking a lot about, and also gradually changed, is the type of carbs we eat when we do eat carbs, now shifting to lower glycemic index food, less processed carbs, etc. it’s a process, but definitely making an effort (my gut health seems to benefit too, as this is likely to reduce inflammation). I think that adding hours of training doesn’t help in this context. At the end of the day, I do not think I have the capacity to turn that training into actual fitness or performance improvements the way an elite athlete can, nor I have the time to train the required volumes on the bike, on top of the running, right now. I am excited to keep pushing my limits, training at a high volume and high intensity, but at the moment I do not believe that maximizing training volume the way I tried to do other times would be best for my (health and) performance.
Week ten
This week is SUPPORT, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 3
Training: 16 hours
Running: 130 kilometers, +2500m
Workouts:
2 hours tempo
10 strides, 10 hill sprints, 40’ at z2, one doubles
Cycling: none, decided to park this idea for the season. Back at it in Summer.
Strength: one session.
Other: heat protocol, 5 days.
Injuries and rehab: left hamstring tightness at threshold pace.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: L H H L L L L
Weight: ~66.5 kg, stable.
HRV: stable, feeling good.
Score: 10/10
At the third attempt with the new (training) periodization, I finally managed to get it right and perform really well for the key workout of these ~10 days, which is a long tempo run (previously, I got to that day too fatigued). This week for the tempo run I ran 2 hours at marathon intensity, which ended up being 4’13”/km GAP (4’17”/km on rolling hills), something I was not able to do for almost two years. Needless to say, I am really happy with my current fitness. The rest of the week was decent. I managed my usual hill sprints and a bit of zone 2, no issues with the heat protocol, and just some minor hamstring tightness with the hard finish of the tempo run (pacing shown below):
Grade adjusted pace:
For the run, I had only 1 gel (22g of carbs, half after 12 km and half after about 21 km, see here). I think I am again in sub-3 territory, even though I will not have opportunities to run longer at this pace before the Maratona del Lamone.
This week, I have also decided to park the idea to ride more, I do not feel like I have the mental or physical energies at the moment to go there, nor I feel like it is needed given that running is going really well and my capacity is almost maxed out.
Full week:
Finally, I would like to go out for a really long run soon, if not next week, then the one after. As I discussed earlier, I prefer to limit long runs to 40-55km with high intensity segments (e.g. hard climbs), which I think are the optimal training stimulus for me, but I also need one really long run (~6 hours) quite far from the race. I find this very long run to be key for confidence and very useful to test race nutrition, shoes, and other details (despite the different temperature). Let’s see when I can fit that one in and how it goes, I’m quite curious to test the limits of my “new” metabolism (see here and here).
Week eleven
This week is SUPPORT, MICROCYCLE 2, WEEK 1
Training: 19 hours
Running: 175 kilometers, +3000m
Workouts:
6 hours at race pace (70 km, +1400m, 5’13”/km, 4’57”/km grade-adjusted)
10 strides, 10 hill sprints, 30’ at z2, one double
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Other: heat protocol, 5 days.
Injuries and rehab: left hamstring tightness at threshold pace.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: H H L L L M M
Weight: ~66.5 kg, stable.
HRV: stable, feeling good.
Score: 10/10
What a week. On Tuesday, I went out for my longest run pre-Passatore. I like to do only one very long run, a race simulation, which I use to 1) refine/test things (eating strategy, shoes, caffeine, etc.) and 2) get more confident. In the next two months, I will instead go for shorter workouts but with intensity, which I think provide a much better training stimulus, without the associated risk for injury and mental burnout (some of my favorites are 40-50 km runs with hard, long climbs at threshold).
Race simulation learnings:
The race simulation was useful from a few points of view: in terms of shoes, I will go back to the Saucony Tempus. I tried the Endorphine Pro 4, which are the most stable supershoes on the market, and have used in 50kms before, but after 5-6 hours I started to feel unstable, that’s an issue I don’t need on race day. Fueling: I tried alternating SIS gels (another attempt to limit GI problems, as I am going glucose only and no fructose) and energy bars from Decathlon, and this also went well. I had only 1 of either every 9 km, for a total of about 24g of carbs per hour. For the race, I might try to do the same (especially on a hot day), or go for 1 every 8 km (or maybe shift from 9 to 8 as it gets less hot). I had a sodium pill with every gel and 2 caffeine pills total (100mg+100mg), which also went well. Pre-race I had done a few low carb days apart from the evening before, and the morning of the workout, definitely no issue there. Training: what I did feel was a weakness were my quads after running relatively hard and not holding back much for climbs and descents. At the end, they were fried. That’s okay at this time of the year, considering I haven’t been much in Brisighella yet, and trained mostly flat in Tenerife, but the issue prompted me to add some proper downhill running in the next months. I will be pushing a few long downhills and see if it helps, even though I won’t be able to test it for very long runs until race day. For the rest, fitness is definitely there and this was my best long run over this distance, really excited about how I bounced back from being in such a poor shape most of the second part of last year.
Pace:
Grade-adjusted pace:
Very happy also about the recovery from this simulation. I kept running every day as I was feeling relatively good even the day after, then towards the weekend I was back to normal and ran a double and a longer easy run. A good sign that I trained for the fitness I have, and did not overdo it.
Full week:
Next week will be lower volume and high intensity, while managing the usual hamstring tightness. Great response so far:
Week twelve
This week is SUPPORT, MICROCYCLE 2, WEEK 2
Training: 19 hours
Running: 150 kilometers, +4000m
Workouts:
VO2max: 6 x 1000m (3’38”/km)
Threshold: 2 x 3km + 5 km (hilly trails)
10 strides, 10’ at VO2max, 3 doubles
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Other: heat protocol, 5 days.
Injuries and rehab: left hamstring tightness at threshold pace.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: H L L L M H L
Weight: ~66.5 kg, stable.
HRV: stable, feeling good.
Score: 9/10
Closing a big block of training in which I tested everything from VO2max to 100-km race pace, both in terms of performance output, and metabolically. It went really well, I don’t think I’ve ever performed this well on the full spectrum. I do need to be a bit more careful as I started to have some new niggles (adductor first, then glute), the usual difficulties of pushing my limits while trying not to break. Next week I’ll slow down, as I’ve maxed out both in volume and intensity in the past two weeks, and there is really no need to risk it more. Looking ahead I mostly plan to do more specific work on the hills, some eccentric loading, and keep my hard workouts mostly on climbs, which tends to be less risky in terms of injury.
I have also decided not to race the Lamone Marathon, but to run in zone 2 and finish hard if feeling well. I was really tempted as I think I am again in sub-3 race pace territory, but the risk is too high at the moment. I prefer to get to Passatore strong and healthy and give all I have for that sub-9.
This is Monday’s 1km reps session:
For this session, apart from getting a different training stimulus, I also wanted to test lactate at the end of the session. Despite eating fewer carbs these days, lactate was higher than at the end of VO2max tests when I was chronically eating high carb (!). Cho metabolism is clearly working really well and does not need any chronic load, just proper periodization depending on the demands of training.
I then ran the threshold session at Chianti, it was on hilly trails and in a storm, not the best day, but eventually it was a good effort. The highlight of the day was seeing both Kilian and Jim racing the 120 km race, and spending time with Davide and Mari of Destination Unknown. What a day.
Full week:
Week thirteen
This week is SUPPORT, MICROCYCLE 2, WEEK 3
Training: 12 hours
Running: 95 kilometers, +2000m
Workouts:
10 km Z2 + 22 km marathon pace / tempo
10 strides, 10 hill sprints
Cycling: none.
Strength: two sessions.
Other: heat protocol, 6 days.
Injuries and rehab: left hamstring tightness at threshold pace, right glute discomfort since last week’s downhill threshold.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: L L L H H L L
Weight: ~67 kg, stable.
HRV: suppressed, sick.
Score: 7/10
This was a bit of a shitty week but with a great workout in the mix, hence the seven. I had an extra niggle (right glute discomfort since last week’s downhill threshold) which has been worrying me quite a bit, and then also got whatever bug Ale had caught last week (happens!), hence at the moment I am sick. No drama but next week is a big one, hence I need a quick comeback or I’ll have to adjust plans accordingly.
On the bright side, marathon pace and metabolic flexibility are really improving beyond expectations, I don’t recall ever running this well and finishing feeling strong (4’10”/km GAP for the last 15 km), as opposed to with cramps and lots of physical issues. Again, what I needed couldn’t be fixed by eating more carbs, as my fat oxidation was so low that no amount of ingested carbs could prevent complete depletion for efforts as long as a marathon. A totally different story now, thanks to a properly periodized nutrition:
Full week:
Physiology, highlighting sickness (no sign in night data, which remains rather useless to me, despite wearables’ marketing efforts to convince you otherwise):
Let’s see if I can comeback quickly. My plan for next week is 7 hours with Ale on Tuesday, then the Maratona del Lamone on Sunday, ideally as a high-end Z2 effort, but I do not exclude racing it if I do make a comeback and feel good. I am too tempted to see if I can break 3 hours, honestly.
Week fourteen
This week is SPECIFIC, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 1
Training: 10 hours
Running: 70 kilometers, +2000m
Workouts:
none
Cycling: none.
Strength: two sessions.
Other: heat protocol, 3 days.
Injuries and rehab: left hamstring tightness at threshold pace, right glute discomfort.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: H H L L L L L
Weight: ~67 kg, stable.
HRV: suppressed, sick.
Score: 2/10
Rough week, which included a trip to the hospital, fever, and a bad bronchitis that might take a while to heal. I had to skip the first stage of the Trittico (Maratona del Lamone). Not making other plans at the moment, I need to see how it plays out next week and what’s the damage when I get back to training. Pity, but what can we do, shit happens.
Full week:
Resting physiology:
Week fifteen
This week is SPECIFIC, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 2
Training: 14 hours
Running: 105 kilometers, +2500m
Workouts:
2 km uphill (9%) at VO2max
4 km downhill at threshold
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Other: heat protocol, 6 days.
Injuries and rehab: left hamstring tightness at threshold pace.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: L L L L H M M
Weight: ~67 kg, stable.
HRV: bounced back, normal.
Score: 7/10
Back from the dead. Moving slowly for the first part of the week, but then feeling much better over the weekend, hence I added some short intensity to the mix. Hopefully the respiratory infection is behind me and I can focus on training well for this last block before Passatore. Next week Daniel (Rowland) and Davide (Grazielli) will be in town and it’s probably going to be a big volume / low intensity week, which I think is what I need now. Hoping to feel strong and get ready to race at the 50 km di Romagna, which would be a great test.
Full week:
Resting physiology:
Week sixteen
This week is SPECIFIC, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 3
Training: 22 hours
Running: 165 kilometers, +5000m
Workouts:
Threshold climbs (~50 minutes)
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Other: heat protocol, 5 days, Yoga, 1 day.
Injuries and rehab: left hamstring tightness at threshold pace, right glute tightness (probably high volume related).
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: L L L M M H M
Weight: ~67 kg, stable.
HRV: high end of the normal range, I think overly high parasympathetic activity due to the volume (goes together with suppressed heart rate during exercise).
Score: 10/10
Strong week, with Daniel visiting, we ended up doing quite a bit of volume and also some intensity on the last day of our mini training camp. Very happy with how I bounced back from sickness, even though I do feel the fatigue from the week today!
I’ve also started doing yoga with Ale, now that we have our lab here in Brisighella. I’m looking forward to the opportunities that will also bring for the future.
Full week:
Main workout, with three hard climbs at threshold:
And an overview of my recent physiological data:
The plan for next week is to take it really easy for 4 days, and then race hard on Friday at the 50 km di Romagna. Let’s see how that goes.
Week seventeen
This week is SPECIFIC, MICROCYCLE 2, WEEK 1
Training: 12 hours
Running: 85 kilometers, +1500m
Workouts:
50 km di Romagna (Race), 10-minute personal best (3h 47’).
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Other: heat protocol, 4 days, Yoga, 1 day.
Injuries and rehab: left hamstring tightness at threshold pace.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: L L H H H L L
Weight: ~68 kg, slight increase probably due to dietary changes on race week as well as reduced volume.
HRV: high end of the normal range, I think overly high parasympathetic activity due to the volume (goes together with suppressed heart rate during exercise), renormalization during taper, then back to overly parasympathetic after the race.
Score: 10/10
This was the week I had been waiting for a long time. It all came together on race day, the training, the diet, the progress, and I’m elated to have raced hard and well and finally finished an ultra feeling like I raced near my limit, and not only went out to save my legs and be happy with the usual underperformance (with respect to what I can do in shorter distances). More days like this, please.
All the details about my training and nutrition for the race, are covered in my race report, here.
[TrainingTalk] 50 km di Romagna: Training, Nutrition and Race Report (2025)
![[TrainingTalk] 50 km di Romagna: Training, Nutrition and Race Report (2025)](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!R_sU!,w_1300,h_650,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Feb13965f-ec77-453f-b32d-6ba1af448166_2106x1422.jpeg)
Yesterday I ran a personal best at the 50 km di Romagna, which is also the first personal best of my forties (gotta take the wins).
Full week:
Now the plan is to recover, and then push volume and specificity to the limit, for at least ~10 days, ideally 14, before Passatore, which is only 4 weeks away.
I’m excited as I hadn’t been in a very long time.
Week eighteen
This week is SPECIFIC, MICROCYCLE 2, WEEK 2
Training: 26 hours
Running: 190 kilometers, +6000m
Workouts:
15’ at threshold uphill
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Other: heat protocol, 4 days, Yoga, 1 day.
Injuries and rehab: a bit battered by a long week.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: M L L M H H H
Weight: ~67 kg, stable
HRV: stable.
Score: 6/10
This week I struggled quite a bit due to last week’s 50 km race. I was incredibly sore up to Friday, barely able to run for an hour, and almost unable to run downhill. For these reasons, I opted for a weekend of long days out on trails, as opposed to the race-specificity I had planned for Passatore. I thought this was the best way to still get to test a few things: fueling (my plan this year will change as the race progresses), and hydration strategy (water, electrolytes), caffeine, running in warmer weather, race clothes, and also do some mental training when spending many hours out with the legs hurting. It all went well, but I remain mildly disappointed that I could not do what I had originally planned. The 50 km di Romagna is a hard race with all the steep up and downs, and it definitely left a mark, still feeling it after 10 days.
Full week:
Let’s see if I can get my legs fresh by the end of next week and do some proper running on long climbs, before I start to deload.
Week nineteen
This week is SPECIFIC, MICROCYCLE 2, WEEK 3
Training: 15 hours
Running: 130 kilometers, +3000m, 5 days
Workouts:
4 hours at race pace (47km, +1100m, 4h 08’)
Cycling: none.
Strength: one session.
Other: heat protocol, 6 days.
Injuries and rehab: a bit battered by a long week.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: L L L M H L L
Weight: ~67 kg, stable
HRV: stable.
Score: 6/10
This week I was able to do the main thing I intended to do, which was some race specificity. I ran most of the week near race pace, with a 4-day block (Tue-Fri) of ~30 km/day with a long run at race pace that went well, despite the difficulties I’m still having with soreness and in particular adductor pain. I then opted for an easy weekend (day off + short trail run) as at this point the main priority is to get the legs in a better state for Passatore. Next week I’ll train every other day, hoping things start to feel different towards the end of the week. I feel very fit, but I’m starting to get a bit of a confidence hit as I have not felt good while running since the 50 km di Romagna, which left a mark.
Notes from the long run at race pace:
Fueling: alternating one SIS gel (glucose only, 22g cho) and one energy bar (19g cho), starting at km 16, then every 8 km, so 22+19+22+19 = 82g cho in ~4 hours, or 20g / hour).
Hydration: 1 liter of water (what I could carry, but not enough) + 3 sodium pills, 600mg total.
Caffeine: 2 pills, 200mg total.
I felt my gut wasn't great, not sure if it was the loading (dinner + breakfast), the fueling or the caffeine, but I was hoping to feel better from that point of view. Given I wasn't really well in the night either, I think I need to change the type of carbs when I load (i.e. reduce grains, for which I seem to have a small intolerance).
Weather: ideal running temperatures, maybe a bit cold at ~1000m, but no issues.
Legs: best day in the past 2 weeks (since the 50 km di Romagna), but I am not ready for the distance yet, too sore and weak despite running well today. This run concludes a 4-day mini-block with 114 km +2000m mostly around race pace.
Full week:
13 days to race day.
Week twenty
This week is TAPER, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 1
Training: 10 hours
Running: 50 kilometers, +500m, 4 days
Workouts:
4’ hard uphill.
Cycling: 2 hours.
Strength: one session.
Other: heat protocol, 6 days.
Injuries and rehab: adductor issues, unable to run for a few days (physiotherapy)
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: L L L L L L L (I don’t remember 100%, I did no intensity or long runs so likely stayed low most of the time)
Weight: ~67 kg, stable
HRV: stable.
Score: 1/10
Rough week. I cycled on Monday and felt that the adductors weren’t doing well. Then I ran on Tuesday, for an hour, and had sharp pain, which seemed a deal breaker for the race. I then went to see a good physio, and did some therapy, on Wednesday, before resting on Thursday (just a hike with no running at all). On Friday I tried to run a bit and still felt the adductors, but it was more of a dull - but very present - pain, as opposed to the sharper pain I had on Tuesday. Saturday I ran 40 minutes and pushed a bit a climb, again I was making progress but feeling very very far from being able to actually run well or long. Sunday I was in Rome and went for 2 hours flat, I felt no pain, but fatigued really quickly, and struggled towards the end. Between Wednesday and Sunday, my heart rate at any given pace was really high.
This was probably the worst week I've had in the past 6 months.
Week twentyone
This week is TAPER, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 2
Training: 13 hours
Running: 100 kilometers, +2000m, 6 days
Workouts:
Passatore, DNF
Cycling: none.
Strength: none.
Other: heat protocol, 2 days.
Injuries and rehab: adductor injury.
Diet: Periodized nutrition, energy balance
Periodization: L L L H H H H
Weight: ~70 kg, (+3kg in a week)
HRV: stable.
Score: 2/10
DNF at Passatore. I’ll start by saying that thanks to friends and Ale’s incredible race, I had one of the best weekends ever, despite my DNF. Maybe I had already accepted a while ago that I wasn’t going to make it. I spent the last 4 weeks trying to get over muscular issues that eventually didn’t really improve, and I could not see how being in those conditions would allow me to race a race that already pushes my muscular system to the very limit of what it can sustain. During the race, I fatigued too early, and felt at about 20km, that I wasn’t going to make it. I stayed positive and kept going (you never know after all), passed in Borgo in 2h 49’ (1 minute quicker than last year) than at Passo della Colla in 4h 34’ (also the same time as last year), but at that point I felt quite drained and as soon as I started running downhill, I had lots of pain, felt heavy, could not move my legs quickly, and it made no sense to continue and make it worse. That was it for my Passatore.
At that point I went back home by car, got my bike, and followed Ale for the rest of the race, which she closed in 12h 52’. What a night.
Below are a few things to remember or improve (or keep as they were) for next year:
Food intake / Fueling:
Pre-race: I felt a bit bloated and gained too much weight in the 2-3 days before the race. For next year I’d like to maintain my exact same diet until the last day, and just have a bit more carbs on that day, without overdoing it like I probably did this year.
During the race: I had 1 gel (SIS) every 8 km, and alternated 2 gels and 1 energy bar. After 3-4 hours I started feeling the usual stomach cramp when having a gel, which lasts about 30 seconds, and then I felt okay. Probably another 2-3 hours and it would turn into the usual issues. I hope that this lower frequency of eating helps in getting me to have issues maybe around 80 km instead of 60 km, but I didn’t get that far this time. I never felt low energies, blood sugar dips or hungry. I think the intake works well for my current metabolism.
Hydration:
It was relatively cold (not really at the beginning, but certainly after the first 3 hours), and windy, which made me drink less, and I think it was a mistake. I felt very thirsty later on, probably because I drank almost nothing for 2-3 hours, due to the cold wind. I was however sweating a lot and losing a lot of sodium, and I should probably try to drink more next time even if I don’t feel like I need it.
Intensity management / Pacing:
I was at my limit for the distance, which is the whole point of racing, and I would do this the exact same way. I was careful on the climbs, but still running well, and then I was taking it easy on the downhills, to allow for my heart rate to lower and to limit muscle damage. All good, I think, just not possible to continue while having muscular issues as I did this year.
Weather / Gear:
This year I learned that it can be cold at Passatore. I never thought I’d say this but I was freezing at Passo della Colla and had to get changed and wear gloves. Something to remember for the next years. A difficult race from this point of view, as it can be boiling hot in Florence, and then quite cold when reaching ~1000m, and in the night.
Training buildup to the race:
Training went really well up to the 50 km race, short bout of sickness aside. Racing is always complex, we push ourselves beyond what we do in training, and sometimes it can leave a mark. For a week or two I thought I was just particularly sore, maybe just lots of DOMS, but eventually, it was clear I was actually injured, and while I tried different things (physio, not running, etc.), I could not turn it around in time. I felt I was always a bit in pain, and I would fatigue too quickly. I have no regrets as I changed so many things in the past 6 months, especially with my diet and metabolism, that I wanted really badly to race hard and see what I could do and if all the changes “worked”. I had an incredible day at the 50 km di Romagna, which at that time, to me it mattered more than Passatore. I think that says everything already: I had changed priorities as I needed a good day after a year of struggles. Then it went the way it went, and I am sure next year the priorities will be different, and it will be all about Passatore, but for this year, that’s how it went and I am overall happy with my racing season.
Full week:
Now I’ll take the time it takes to get better, recover from the injuries, and start building again for next year. Needless to say, I’m hungry for more.
But first, the off-season.
Week twenty-two
This week is TRANSITION, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 1
Training: 22 hours
Running: none
Cycling: 14 hours, 330 km, 4500 m, 6 days.
Strength: one short session.
Other: hiking 2 hours / day for 4 days.
Injuries and rehab: adductor injury, making some very slow progress (I feel more strength and less pain during isometric exercises, but I cannot run).
Diet: back to periodized nutrition towards the second half of the week. Slight caloric deficit
Periodization: H H H H L M M
Weight: ~68 kg, (-2 kg in a week)
HRV: stable.
Score: 4/10
A decent week considering that I wasn’t sure what I could do to stay active while not making the adductor injury worse. Cycling seems fine, which allows me to maintain aerobic fitness and do some intensity as well. Towards the end of the week I also added hiking, more from a muscle tone point of view - also because when I start cycling a lot I end up not doing any weight bearing activity, which is far from ideal. Running is still off the table even in small amounts (I tried twice but stopped right away as I could feel the adductor being overworked and even some sharp pain). On the bright side, the weather has been incredible, which makes this whole process so much easier. Next week it will probably be more or less the same, with cycling in the morning and hiking around dinner time, maybe with a few minutes of running here and there, if I keep progressing. Let’s see, I have zero rush and no short term event that matters more than being healthy and able to train well.
Full week:
Week twenty-three
This week is TRANSITION, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 2
Training: 25 hours
Running: maybe an hour, only uphill during a longer hike
Cycling: 17 hours, 370 km, 4500 m, 6 days.
Strength: rehab sessions for the adductors.
Other: hiking ~6-7 hours.
Injuries and rehab: adductor injury, making some very slow progress
Diet: periodized nutrition. Slight caloric deficit
Periodization: L M H L L L H
Weight: ~68 kg, (stable)
HRV: trending high
Score: 7/10: reframing this in the context of what it will look like for the next 2-3 months as I heal from the injury
A good week on the bike. I had another chat with the physio, and we seem to be quite well aligned on what to do and how long it might take. I’m keeping up the aerobic fitness (and mental health) with the bike while trying to also maintain some level of muscle tone (and more mental health!) with hikes in nature. The weather has been incredible, 30C and sunny every single day, which helps a lot. I am doing a little running here and there, but only if it doesn’t hurt, which at the moment means only uphill. I am trying to maintain one hard session per week on the bike, plus also a few minutes of intensity while running uphill, which does not seem to impact the injury negatively, as long as it’s steep. Hence the week is in a way a typical Base week for me, with high volume, low intensity, and one or two very hard sessions (VO2max type of effort). Overall I am enjoying it, and cycling starts also to feel more enjoyable after ~30 hours (I had done none for the previous 8 months). In terms of diet I am back to my regular periodization, which is rather easy during Base training, even though I am now fueling more during exercise, as I tend to stay out many ours due to the shift to cycling (I am eating about 20g of carbs per hour on rides longer than 2 hours).
Week twenty-four
This week is BASE, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 1
Training: 22 hours
Running: 4 hours, 3 days
Workouts:
25’ hard uphill (threshold)
2 hours Tempo (on trails)
Cycling: 14 hours, 6 days.
Workouts:
3 x 10’
Strength: rehab sessions for the adductors.
Other: hiking ~4 hours.
Injuries and rehab: adductor injury, making some very slow progress, but progressing nonetheless
Diet: periodized nutrition. Caloric balance
Periodization: H M L L L H H
Weight: ~68 kg (stable)
HRV: trending high
Score: 8/10: Reframing this in the context of what it will look like for the next months as I heal from the injury
Fun week with some actual running, and less pain in the adductors. I did a 5km threshold workout on Monday, running almost a minute personal best for the segment, which says a lot about how much fitness can be retained (or even improved) when doing lots of cross-training (cycled about 45-50 hours in the past 20 days). Then I took a few days off running, and ran 30 minutes feeling decent, just some minor discomfort at the adductor, on Thursday, and went back to cycling the following two days as I had planned a longer hike/run for Sunday at the CH4 Trail, which we have sponsored with HRV4Training.
Eventually I did one third of the race nice and easy, and two thirds pushing hard in the heat. It was a really fun day out, with minor discomfort at the adductor. The plan originally was an easy run with Ale but after the first hour she decided to go for the shorter route given the heat, and since I had no pain, I decided to start racing.
Fitness wise I felt pretty strong on the climbs, even though 3 weeks with almost no running meant poor muscular endurance, especially on steeper downhills, where I went pretty slow and lost a bit of what I was gaining on the climbs (did I say that I love the climbs?). Even earlier in the week, after the hard run uphill, I was sore in my quads for 3-4 days, with the first two days feeling really sensitive to touch. I hadn’t felt like that after a hard run in a while.
The heat on race day was brutal (34C and often in direct sunlight), but I felt strong and really well adapted after 45-50 hours of training with 30+C on the bike in the past three weeks (plus months of passive heat acclimation beforehand). As someone who could barely sit in the sun a few years ago, I’m truly amazed by the body’s ability to adapt to repeated exposure to this stressor, and how on Sunday, I was turning a weakness into an advantage.
Full week:
Week twenty-five
This week is BASE, MICROCYCLE 1, WEEK 2
Training: 26 hours
Running: ~2 hours, plus 6-8 hours of trail running (+4000m)
Workouts:
20’ hard uphill (threshold)
Cycling: 9 hours, 4 days.
Workouts:
2-3-2-3-2’ hard
Strength: rehab sessions for the adductors.
Injuries and rehab: adductor injury, making progress
Diet: periodized nutrition. Caloric balance
Periodization: H H M M M M M
Weight: ~68 kg (stable)
HRV: normal
Score: 8/10: Reframing this in the context of what it will look like for the next months as I heal from the injury
Fun week with some good running and many hours on trails, first in Tuscany where we went to check out the Tuscany Crossing course, which we will be running next year, and then also at home as this is the last weekend in Brisighella before heading to Amsterdam. In between, a few hours on the bike as well. Step by step, things are getting better running wise, but I am still delicate and I’ve lost much durability, which I could see well on Sunday when I staied out about 7 hours. All normal of course. Day by day we’ll get it back. Full week:
To be continued.
Other resources
Marco holds a PhD cum laude in applied machine learning, a M.Sc. cum laude in computer science engineering, and a M.Sc. cum laude in human movement sciences and high-performance coaching.
He has published more than 50 papers and patents at the intersection between physiology, health, technology, and human performance.
He is co-founder of HRV4Training, advisor at Oura, guest lecturer at VU Amsterdam, and editor for IEEE Pervasive Computing Magazine. He loves running.
Social:
first off, nice PRs! I am hoping to break 3 in the marathon at some point in 2026 and will spend most of 2025 getting faster at the half. Regarding your injuries, from 2009-2015 my training was pretty dumb (way too hard, way too often) and I wound up with posterior tib strains/injuries way too often.
Since then, I've made two big changes: heavy, low volume strength training (trap bar deadlifts, belt squats, etc) and training my feet and lower legs! I use three devices: the Toe Pro, the Mobo Board, and more recently have incorporated the Blackboard (well, the cheap amazon knockoff version) to help with better movement at the calcaneus.
The Mobo board and Toe Pro are key, and I highly recommend them. As Jay Dicharry says, don't put on a better shoe, put a better foot into your shoe! I also have been running in Altras since 2012 and find them to be the only shoe I can tolerate these days.
But shoes aside, really recommend the Toe Pro and Mobo. Fantastic.