An Inside Look Into Clayton Young’s Preparation For The Olympic Marathon

If you’re like most of us mere mortals, the following thought might cross your mind from time to time: “What training are the pros doing to make them so darn fast?” And considering most pro runners keep their Strava accounts pretty secret, they must be something doing differently, right?

Well, thankfully, there’s one runner you can always count on to post about what he’s up to in training (and even outside of training): Clayton Young. As it turns out, there isn’t actually any secret sauce; he’s just really good at the basics.

Additionally, Young posts weekly updates on his YouTube channel, documenting his training and life, including all the highs and all the lows of preparing for the Olympic Marathon.

So, what does the life of an Olympian really look like?

What Crazy Workouts Do Olympians Do?

The truth is, there is no crazy secret superhuman workout that acts like a magic speed potion.

Young, under the watchful eye of coach Ed Eyestone, typically runs between 100 and 120 miles a week. He does this mileage running only six days per week, leaving sundays for full rest, unless he is racing.

Young’s 16-Week Olympic Build

Week 1 (100 miles)

1. 5-mile tempo run (mid 4:50s pace)
2. “Fatigue Mile Repeats” – 6 miles steady (5:20 avg), followed by 3 x 1 mile (4:32, 4:30, 4:30)
3. 18 mile long run at 5:55 pace

Week 2 (110 miles)

1. 2 x 3 miles (4:41 – 4:50)
2. 2x (1600, 1200, 800) – cut down pace for shorter intervals (4:30 mile to 2:02 for 800)
3. 20-mile long run at 5:50 pace

Week 3 (105 miles)

1. 6-mile continuous tempo (around 4:50/mile)
2. 12 x 1k (avg 2:50), 60 sec rest
3. 22-mile long run at 5:44 pace

Week 4 (115 Miles)

1. “Fatigue Mile Repeats” – 8 miles steady (5:29 avg), followed by 3 x 1600 on the track (4:31, 4:28, 4:24)
2. 4 x 2 miles (avg 4:40/mile) 3 minutes rest
3. 25-mile long run at 5:55/mile

Week 5 (98 Miles)

1. Double threshold day
   • Morning: 4-mile tempo, 3 min rest, 2-mile tempo (av. 4:50/mile)
   • Evening: 8 x 1000 (~3:00/k)
2. 1600, 1200, 1000, 800 at tempo pace (they got faster each rep 4:40 mile to 2:03 800)
3. No long run this week (Bolder Boulder 10K on Monday)

Week 6 (115 miles)

1. Bolder Boulder 10k (29:38) plus a 9-mile cooldown after the race
2. 5 x 2k; then 1k – on grass (3:00/k pace) – Clayton described on Strava as “marathon-like pace”
3. 25-mile long run at 5:50 pace (3 pick-up miles 20-23; in the 4:40s/mile)

Week 7 (120 miles)

1. Hobble Creek run (15 min below marathon effort, 15 min at marathon effort, finish the run hard [about 15 more minutes]).
2. 12 x 1k (between 2:50 and 3:00)
3. 23-mile long run: 15 miles; 4-mile pick up (4:40 – 4:50/mile); cool down

Week 8 (110 miles)

• 8-mile PMP (predicted marathon pace) – basically 8 miles at goal marathon pace (high 4:40s)
• Fatigued mile repeats (8 miles at 5:19/mile; 3 x 1 mile at ~4:20/mile)
• 18-mile LR (6:00/mile) with a 4 mile pick up on hills (low 5:00/mile)

Week 9 (100 miles)

1. 1600, 1200, 1000, 800, 400 (4:24 down to :60) described as “trying to make 10k pace feel smooth on marathon legs”
2. Tempo 1600, 800, 800 (4:39, 2:10, 2:04)
3. Boston 10K (28:32) – 7-mile cooldown after

Week 10 (120 miles)

1. 12 x 1k (right under 3:00), 60 sec rest
2. Hobble creek run (same as last one, but faster)
3. 20-mile long run (5:52/mile) with 6 miles at 4:50s; second run of 6 miles in the evening

Week 11 (120 miles)

1. 12-mile marathon at predicted marathon pace – 4:47 avg
2. 3 x (1 mile, 800) at tempo pace (avg 4:40, 2:05)
3. 25-mile long run with four pickup miles 19 to 23 (4:56, 4:57, 5:00, 4:30)

There really isn’t anything too extraordinary here. Young does the bread and butter workouts, just like any other runner. He just does them a bit faster and a bit longer (considering he’s training for the Olympic marathon, I wouldn’t say that’s too crazy).

What Can We Learn From Clayton Young’s Training?

Now, we may never become Olympians or run as fast as Clayton Young, but there are some key takeaways from his training and video series that we can use to make us better runners.

When I watch Young’s video series one thing that stands out to me is how little they complicate it. Nowadays, a lot of runners, especially young talents, seem to place a lot of focus on these extravagant workouts they see social media influencers doing or on niche products like green powders, bicarb, and ketones.

Don’t get me wrong, there is a time and place for challenging (not extravagant) workouts and for those products that will make you half a percent better. But, for most runners like you and me, where you’re going to see the biggest improvement in performance is being consistent with the basics.