Calorie average held at 2,320 kcal/day, down ~170 from Week 3. Range was wide: 1,798 Monday up to 3,064 Tuesday. Tuesday's spike sits well — a celebratory day during the grad week. Sunday's 1,958 on a rest day is appropriate.
Protein averaged 142g/day, down from 190g in Week 3. Three days under 130g (Mon, Sat, Sun). For a deload week with no strength sessions the absolute floor is forgiving, but this is a marker to watch — Week 5 starts BUILD 1 and protein needs to climb back to 180g+ to support strength returning.
Hydration improved — ~1,143g/day average versus ~580g in Week 3, nearly double. Three days over 1.6 L logged. Tuesday and Friday were thin (296g and 502g) — likely driving and travel days where logging slipped. The trend line is the right direction.
Zero alcohol all seven days — strong on a grad week with celebrations. Caffeine: 40mg on Saturday only.
Five runs, 41.3 km, 1h22 long run — a clean BASE deload executed inside a non-training event (son's university grad in Halifax). Volume landed right at the top of the 35–40 km band, long run came in just under the 1.5h target. Running stayed on the plan despite the trip — that's the win. Wednesday became a walking-only day with the family, which is appropriate for a deload week.
Zero strength sessions vs. 2 prescribed. Last strength session was Apr 24 — by Mon May 4 that's a 10-day gap. Understandable given the trip schedule, and arguably fine for a single deload week. The watch-out: BUILD 1 starts Week 5, and the plan keeps strength at 2x/week through to Week 13. Week 5 needs both strength sessions hit to keep the rhythm intact and avoid a two-week strength gap stacking with rising run volume.
Vert came in at 760m against a 400m target — almost 2x. Thursday's 10.7 km / 408m run alone hit the weekly target. Halifax has more terrain than expected and you found it. Avg HR 154 on that session is controlled and well within deload zone. No concern: the body absorbed it without quality intensity stacked on top.
Week 5 is the first week of BUILD 1. Plan target: 60 to 65 km, 3h long run, 1,000m vert, 2x strength, progression run Tuesday. Volume jumps ~50% from Week 4. Travelling all day Monday May 4, so today is a rest day. In Canmore the rest of the week — back to Canmore strength templates (FatDog-CAN-Wed and FatDog-CAN-Fri), and the mountains will deliver the vert without forcing it.
Base (Weeks 1 to 4): Re-establish aerobic base, introduce 2x strength per week, moderate volume ramp. Deload at Week 4.
Build 1 (Weeks 5 to 8): Increase run volume, introduce tempo and progression runs, vertical progression. Deload at Week 8.
Build 2 / Peak (Weeks 9 to 12): Highest volume and vert. Longest training runs (7 to 8 hours). Strength at maintenance. Deload at Week 12.
Specificity (Weeks 13 to 15): Mountain-specific long efforts, back-to-back weekends, race simulation. Strength tapers to 1x.
Taper (Weeks 16 to 17): Volume cut, maintain sharpness. Strength drops to 0x at Week 17.
Race Week (Week 18): August 7 to 9, 2026. Manning Park. 120 miles. 29,000 feet vertical.