What a special block is
A special block is a double quality day. You run one session in the morning, rest about 6 hours and run another in the afternoon. The day adds up to more work than one big session, and neither session takes you to the limit.
Canova-style training uses it as an occasional stimulus in the special and specific phases, every 3 to 4 weeks.
Who it is for
A block needs three conditions:
- A training base. At least 8 weeks of consistent training before the first block.
- Volume and years. Runners who already train 6 to 7 days a week and log 70 km a week or more, with several years of running behind them.
- Room to recover. Time to sleep, eat and keep the afternoon free. If your job blocks that, skip the block.
In PaceSpan plans, the block belongs to the advanced level. An intermediate runner can do a reduced version at 80% of the volume. At base level, two separate sessions on two days give a better stimulus.
Why it works
The second session starts on tired legs, which rehearses the last kilometers of a long race. The block trains you to hold pace when glycogen drops and your legs feel heavy.
It also concentrates the fatigue into one day and leaves the rest of the week for recovery.
Structure of a block
There are three common variants:
- Extensive: both sessions at endurance paces (90-100% of marathon pace).
- Mixed: the morning at endurance pace and the afternoon with speed (104-105%).
- Intensive: fast repetitions in both the morning and the afternoon. This is the middle-distance format.
An example mixed block for the marathon:
- Morning: 10 km at 90% of marathon pace + 8 km at 100%.
- Afternoon: 10 km at 90% + 6 x 1 km at 104-105% with 1 km floats at 90%.
For a runner with a 4:27 marathon pace, the paces are: 90% is 4:54, 100% is 4:27 and 104-105% is about 4:15.
The day adds up to about 40 km of work, and close to 45 km with warm-ups. That is a lot for an intermediate runner, so use the reduced version.
Reduced example for a 40:00 10K
Race pace is 4:00/km. An intermediate runner preparing for a 10K who handles six days a week can do this in the specific phase:
- Morning: 3 km warm-up + 4 x 2000 m at 100% (8:00 each) with 400 m jogging between + 2 km cool-down.
- Afternoon, 6 hours later: 20 min easy + 8 x 400 m at 105% (1:31) with 200 m jogging + 10 min easy.
That is 8 km of intervals in the morning and 3.2 km in the afternoon. Total work for the day: 11.2 km, within the range of a 10K.
How to prepare for a block
Two very easy days before. Arrive rested. Run easy for 30 to 50 min at 75-80% or slower, and skip strides if they leave your legs loaded.
Swap the block if you arrive tired. If the previous week went wrong or you are sleeping little, run a single session. A block on top of existing fatigue loses quality.
Food and fluids. Between sessions, eat carbohydrates with an easy-to-digest protein and drink water. Eat 1 to 2 hours before the afternoon session.
How to recover
After the block, four to five easy days with no quality work:
- Next day: 40 to 60 min very easy, or a double of 30 + 30 min.
- Days 2 to 3: easy runs of 50 to 70 min at 75-80%, with 4 strides at the end of the second one if the legs allow.
- Days 4 to 5: volume returns to normal, always at easy paces.
- Day 6 onward: restart quality with a short session.
Judge recovery by how your easy runs feel. If easy pace still costs more than usual after five days, add a day.
During recovery, sleep as much as you need and keep easy paces easy. A run at 85% “to keep fitness” delays your recovery.
Calendar around a block
A ten-day example for an advanced runner with the block on day 0:
- Day -3: normal easy run.
- Days -2 and -1: very easy runs of 30 to 50 minutes, or rest on day -1.
- Day 0: block, both sessions.
- Day +1: easy double of 30 + 30 minutes, or one 45 minute run.
- Days +2 and +3: easy runs of 50 to 70 minutes.
- Day +4: medium easy run with strides.
- Day +5: rest or a short run.
- Day +6: first short quality session.
Days +1 to +5 stay easy. Shorten the day +6 session if the day +4 run felt heavy.
Signs to skip the block
- A niggle that changes how you run.
- A week averaging under 6 hours of sleep a night.
- Fewer than 8 weeks of continuous training.
- An important race in less than 3 weeks.
What to include in your plan
An 18-week marathon plan for an advanced runner places a block 5 to 6 weeks before the race, with the hardest work on that date. In a 10K plan, it can be the only double of the cycle, somewhere between weeks 9 and 12. The rest of the time, one well-run quality session pays more.
The calculator gives you the paces for each percentage, and the home page builds a plan that places the blocks for you.
Frequently asked questions
What is a special block?
Two quality sessions on the same day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, about 6 hours apart. They give you more total work than a single session, at lower intensity per session.
How many recovery days do I need?
Two very easy days before the block and four to five easy days after it, with no quality work. If easy pace still feels hard after five days, add a sixth.
How many blocks belong in a plan?
One or two in the specific phase of a 16 to 18 week plan, 3 or 4 weeks apart. Put the last one 5-6 weeks before the marathon.
Does it work for a 10K?
Yes, in a reduced version and for runners who already handle six training days a week. A 10K block holds fewer kilometers of work than a marathon block.