30k on stacktrace.run

How this works: an AI coach, org-mode, and some plumbing

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 00:00:00 -0400

The 30 km program wasn’t downloaded from a training site — I built it in conversation with an AI (Claude), and the same AI stays in the loop as a kind of coach. A small summary of how the pieces fit.

Building the program

We started from data, not a template: my Strava history (volume patterns, the fast-flat runs that reliably preceded flare-ups), my injury history (calf / quad / plantar), heart-rate numbers, life constraints (young kids, volatile sleep). From that came the principles — injury-first, 100 % Zone 2, one variable at a time, deload every third week — and the 18-week structure, leaning on La Clinique du Coureur’s methodology. The program is completion-driven: the October 24 date slides before I break.

The plan: 30 km without breaking

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 00:00:00 -0400

On October 24, 2026, I want to run 30 kilometres in one go. That’s farther than I’ve ever run — my longest efforts so far have been half-marathon distance — and the date matters less than the manner: I want to arrive there without getting injured on the way.

That ordering is the whole plan, really:

Don’t get injured.
Don’t regress.
Reach the goal.

A slower, healthy path beats an aggressive one that breaks down. If the build needs more time, the date slides before I do.

The program — as designed

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 00:00:00 -0400

This is the 18-week program as it stood on day one (June 29, 2026), before contact with reality. The current version tracks every amendment since. Frozen here on purpose — the diff between the two pages is the story.

The goal, in priority order

Don’t get injured.
Don’t regress.
Run 30 km on October 24, 2026.

Completion-driven, not calendar-driven: the date slides before I do.

The weekly template

Day	Session	Intensity
Mon	~6.7 km easy + strength A	Z2 130–145
Tue	optional easy	Z2
Wed	medium-long, 8→12 km	Z2
Thu	~6.7 km easy + strength B	Z2
Fri	rest	—
Sat	long run (or race)	low Z2
Sun	rest or short recovery	Z1–Z2

Only the four core sessions (Wed ML, Sat long, two strength) are non-negotiable; Tue/Sun are the adjustment variables. Everything at heart rate, nothing at pace. No speed work anywhere in the 18 weeks.

The program — current

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 00:00:00 -0400

The living program — execution parameters, the week-by-week table updated live, and a dated changelog of every amendment.

The strength program

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Two short heavy-slow-resistance sessions a week (≤15 min each), built for a runner in zero-drop shoes with a history of calf, plantar and quad complaints. Heavy means the last two reps are hard (RPE 7–8); tempo is written as down / hold / up in seconds. Always after an easy run, never the day before the long run. On flare-up days: drop to the isometrics, lower the load — don’t stop.

Program calendar

Mon, 29 Jun 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Every scheduled session of the 18-week program, ✓-marked as it happens (today is outlined). Colors group session types; races in green are run controlled, not raced. Details: the program · run-by-run log.

Easy Medium-long Long run Race Strength

June 2026

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

Sun

29✓ Easy 35′Str A

July 2026

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

Sun

1✓ ML 48′

2✓ Easy 35′Str B

4✓ Long 72′

6✓ Easy 35′Str A

8✓ ML 54′

9✓ Easy 35′Str B

11✓ Long 81′

13✓ Easy 35′Str A

15✓ ML 36′

16Easy 35′Str B

18Long 60′

20Easy 35′Str A

22ML 54′

23Easy 35′Str B

25Long 90′

27Easy 35′Str A

29ML 60′

30Easy 35′Str B

August 2026

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

Sun

1Long 102′

3Easy 35′Str A

5ML 36′

6Easy 35′Str B

8Easy shakeout 25′ Z1 (optional/rest)

9UTFS 10 km trail

10Easy 35′Str A

12ML 60′

13Easy 35′Str B

15Long 114′

17Easy 35′Str A

19ML 66′

20Easy 35′Str B

22Long 126′

24Easy 35′Str A

26ML 48′

27Easy 35′Str B

29Long 96′

31Easy 35′Str A

September 2026

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

Sun

2ML 66′

3Easy 35′Str B

5Long 138′

7Easy 35′Str A

9ML 72′

10Easy 35′Str B

12Long 150′

14Easy 35′Str A

16ML 48′

17Easy 35′Str B

19TRAIL 18 km

21Easy 35′Str A

23ML 72′

24Easy 35′Str B

26Long 156′

28Easy 35′Str A

30ML 42′

October 2026

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

Sun

1Easy 35′Str B

4Half 21.1 km

5Easy 35′Str A

7ML 72′

8Easy 35′Str B

10Long 168′

12Easy 35′Str A

14ML 54′

15Easy 35′Str B

17Long 132′

19Easy 35′Str A

21ML 48′

22Easy 35′Str B

24GOAL 30 km (180′)

26Easy 35′Str A

28ML 36′

29Easy 35′Str B

31Recovery long run 90′

Training log

Mon, 29 Jun 2026 00:00:00 -0400

One entry per run, newest week first — goal and execution keywords on each. The plan behind it: as designed · current, with changelog. Generated from intervals.icu data; the notes are mine.

Week 3 — deload (Jul 13–Jul 19)

Target ~28 km · long run: 10 km / 1:00 · ran 19.2 km so far

Wed Jul 15 — Medium-long 36’ Z2
6.65 km · 37:30 · 5:38/km · HR 138 avg / 150 max
medium-long deload 78% Z2 ✓
Execution: plan 36′ Z2 → ran 37:30 (+4 %) · 12 % Z1 / 78 % Z2 / 11 % Z3 · HR 138 avg (Z2 cap 145)