Training Plan Weekly Archive Week 12
FatDog 120 Training

Week 13 Review

June 29 to July 5, 2026. SPECIFICITY. Week 13 of 18. FatDog 120, Manning Park, BC. August 7-9, 2026.

Week 13 Targets vs. Actuals

Week 13 opened the specificity phase, the biggest block of mountain-specific running before the taper. Targets were a step up from the deload: 85-90 km run, 2,200m vert, a 5-6 hr long run, and 2 strength sessions. Run volume and vert both cleared target by a wide margin, the long run landed inside the window, and strength missed both sessions again.
Run Volume
113.2
km / target: 85-90 km
Vertical Gain
3,520
meters / target: 2,200m
Longest Run
5:31
hrs:min / target: 5-6 hrs
Strength Sessions
0
of 2 target / none logged

Week 13 Activities

Garmin Connect data, June 29 to July 5, 2026. Seven runs, anchored by two five hour mountain efforts, one to open the week and one to close it, with a shorter run the day after each. A big, front-and-back-loaded specificity week between the Columbia-Shuswap and Canmore.

Running

Mon Jun 29
Columbia-Shuswap / big mountain long day
24.3 km / 5:05 / 1,434m / HR 136
Tue Jun 30
Canmore / FatDog-Easy-45 / HR crept above 150
7.2 km / 45 min / 97m / HR 151
Wed Jul 1
Canmore / FatDog-Easy-60 / HR crept above 150
10.0 km / 60 min / 85m / HR 153
Thu Jul 2
Canmore / FatDog-Progression-75 / quality day
13.1 km / 75 min / 117m / HR 153
Fri Jul 3
Canmore / FatDog-Easy-45 / shakeout
7.2 km / 46 min / 71m / HR 141
Sat Jul 4
Canmore / the long run, back-to-back day 1
36.8 km / 5:31 / 1,292m / HR 139
Sun Jul 5
Columbia-Shuswap / back-to-back day 2 on tired legs
14.6 km / 2:00 / 424m / HR 135

Strength and Recovery

Strength #1
No session logged in Garmin this week
Not logged
Strength #2
No session logged in Garmin this week
Not logged

Readiness Metrics

Garmin Connect biometric data, July 5, 2026, the morning after the 5:31 long run. The readiness score reads the acute fatigue of a big weekend, while the underlying HRV and resting heart rate stayed steady, showing the load was heavy but well absorbed.
Training Readiness
1
Poor / day after 5:31 effort
HRV (Weekly Avg)
63
Balanced / last night 45
Sleep Score
42
Poor / midweek nights near 79
Resting Heart Rate
57
bpm
Body Weight
65.3
kg / last logged Jul 2

Reading the Signal

Readiness bottomed at 1 on Sunday morning, which is exactly what a 5:31 mountain run the day before produces. This is acute, not structural. The workload ratio scored good all week, the HRV factor read good at 80 percent, and the HRV weekly average held at 63 with BALANCED status. The engine took a large dose and the autonomic system stayed inside its normal band, which is the pattern you want to see coming out of a heavy weekend.

The soft spot is sleep. Sunday night landed at 42 after the long run, dragged down by only 5:57 in bed and a lot of restlessness, while midweek nights were far stronger near 79. Resting heart rate sat at 57 bpm and body weight was last logged at 65.3 kg on July 2, lean and steady. The read heading into Week 14 is simple: the load was real and mostly banked, so protect sleep through the front of the week and let the readiness score climb back on its own.

Fueling Assessment

Cronometer data, June 29 to July 5, 2026. The nutrition log could not be retrieved for this report because the Cronometer connection returned a not-logged-in error. The numbers below are flagged as pending rather than estimated.
Avg Daily Calories
N/A
log not retrieved this week
Avg Daily Protein
N/A
log not retrieved this week

Data Pending

The Cronometer export returned a not-logged-in error when this report was generated, so the week's calorie and protein totals are not available here. This is a connection issue and not a missed-logging issue. Reconnecting Cronometer will restore the daily breakdown in the next report.

This is the week where the log matters most. With 113 km, two five hour mountain days, and a back-to-back weekend, the fueling demand was the highest of the block. On a week this big the priorities are fueling long runs on schedule, hitting a strong post-run refuel inside the recovery window, and keeping protein high to protect the legs across the load. Getting the export flowing again is worth doing before the next specificity week so those demands are actually tracked.

Week 13 Signals

Volume and Vert Both Blew Past Target

Week 13 came out of the deload swinging. Run volume hit 113.2 km against an 85-90 km target, roughly 25 km over the top of the range, and vert reached 3,520m against a 2,200m target, a full 1,300m clear. This is the largest running week of the entire FatDog build so far, and it landed right where the plan wants the biggest specificity load. The engine that carried you through Tahoe is clearly still there.

Two Five Hour Mountain Days

The week was built on two big efforts rather than one. Monday opened with 5:05 and 1,434m in the Columbia-Shuswap, and Saturday closed with the target long run at 5:31, 36.8 km, and 1,292m, comfortably aerobic at 139 bpm. Sunday then added a 2:00 back-to-back on tired legs. That is exactly the specificity pattern FatDog rewards: long time on feet, real climbing, and the discipline to keep moving the day after a big one. The longest run landed inside the 5-6 hr window, so the headline session hit its mark.

Strength Is Now the Standing Gap

Strength missed both sessions again, 0 logged against the 2 target, extending the run of light strength weeks through the deload and into specificity. With running this heavy the gym is understandably hard to prioritize, but this is the durability work that protects the knees and quads on the steep FatDog descents. The good news is the plan eases here: Week 14 drops the strength target to a single session as the taper begins, so the ask gets smaller. Landing that one session, even bodyweight, would break the streak at the right time.

Keep the Easy Days Easy

One thing to watch inside a huge week: two easy runs drifted above 150 bpm, Tuesday at 151 and Wednesday at 153, while the big long runs stayed appropriately controlled in the mid 130s. On a 113 km week the recovery runs earn their keep only if they stay genuinely easy, which keeps the aerobic system building without adding cost. Reining the mid-week easy days back under about 140 bpm is a small adjustment that pays off as the load stays high through the rest of the specificity phase.

Proposed Schedule

July 6 to July 12, 2026. SPECIFICITY continues. Targets: 75-85 km run, 1,800m vert, a 4-5 hr long run, and strength tapering to 1 session. A slight step down from Week 13's blowout, holding real mountain-specific load while giving the legs a touch more room after two five hour days.
Phase 1 proposal. Final Proposed vs. Scheduled comparison added after Monday scheduling session.
MON
Jul 6
Easy Run: 45-60 min
Recovery run off the back-to-back weekend, flat or gently rolling, HR genuinely easy and under 140 bpm. After a 113 km week the only job today is to move blood and keep the legs loose, not to chase pace.
TUE
Jul 7
Quality Run: progression 60-75 min
The speed day. Easy first half, then a controlled progression to steady tempo over the back half. Keep it honest but leave gas in the tank, since the weekend long run is still the priority session.
WED
Jul 8
Easy Run 45 min AM / Strength PM
Easy run in the morning. The single strength session of the week in the PM as the taper begins: full body, single-leg and core focus, 45-60 min, moderate weight. This is the one to land after the recent gap, and logging it in Garmin closes the streak.
THU
Jul 9
Hills / Mountain Run: vert day
The vert day. Sustained climbing on mountain terrain, roughly 800-1,000m of gain. Hike the steep pitches, run the runnable grades. This is the mid-week climbing stimulus that feeds the 1,800m weekly vert target.
FRI
Jul 10
Easy Run: 30-40 min shakeout
Short and easy, legs deliberately a little tired before the weekend. No second strength session this week, since the taper drops strength to once. Keep this one loose and stop if anything feels off ahead of Saturday.
SAT
Jul 11
Long Run: 4-5 hours
The centrepiece. A long mountain run on big terrain, easy effort, fueling on schedule. A touch shorter than last week's 5:31 but still deep into the fatigue zone that FatDog demands. Time on feet and vert matter more than pace or distance.
SUN
Jul 12
Rest
Full recovery, or an optional easy walk or yoga if the body wants to move. After holding heavy load for two weeks running, a true rest day sets up the next specificity block.

Training Progress

Week 13 complete, the biggest running week of the build in the bank. Week 14 continues the specificity phase with a slight volume step down and strength tapering to one session before the block winds toward the taper.
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BASE (1-4) BUILD 1 (5-8) BUILD 2 (9-10) PEAK (11-12) SPEC (13-15) TAPER (16-17) RACE (18)