Using PMC for Marathon Adjustments

PMC metrics describe accumulated training pressure. They do not decide whether a workout is safe, prove adaptation, or diagnose fatigue. In a marathon block, use them to protect consistency and the purpose of key sessions.

Before you begin

• Let the relevant activities finish processing so their load has reached PMC.
• Confirm running thresholds and the activity-load source priority in your profile.
• Link completed activities to their planned workouts.
• Choose one decision window, usually the previous 2–6 weeks plus the next 7 days.
• Identify the next key session: long run, marathon-pace workout, threshold session, or race.
• Record non-chart context such as sleep, illness, pain, travel, heat, and session RPE. PMC does not contain these facts.

1. Open the correct PMC window

Open Analysis → PMC, choose Running, and set a range that includes both the load build and the recent change you want to understand. Avoid judging a marathon block from a single day or an all-time chart.

Read the three signals together:

• CTL summarizes the longer load trend.
• ATL reacts more quickly to recent training stress.
• TSB is the relationship between longer and recent load; it is context, not a readiness guarantee.

Trainingload.ai

Marathon-block PMC window

Use one running-only range to connect CTL, ATL, and TSB with the recent overload and the next key workout.

Plan

4 week block

Load

steady build

Activity

matched

AI review

ready

2. Find the event behind the curve

Locate the date where ATL accelerated, CTL changed direction, or TSB moved sharply. Then open the activities and planned workouts around that date.

Check whether the movement came from:

• A planned overload week.
• A race, long run, or unusually hard quality session.
• An unplanned extra activity.
• A threshold or load-source change.
• Duplicate, misclassified, or incomplete activity data.

Do not adjust the plan until the chart movement can be explained by real training or a known settings change.

3. Compare load with execution

Use Calendar or the active plan to answer:

• Were the key sessions completed for their intended purpose?
• Is easy running still easy, or is execution quality deteriorating?
• Were sessions skipped because of schedule, fatigue, pain, or incorrect workout design?
• Does the next key workout still fit after the actual week?

PMC tells you how much pressure accumulated. Plan-versus-actual evidence tells you whether that pressure produced the intended work.

4. Choose the smallest useful adjustment

Use the pattern as a prompt for review, not as a rigid threshold rule.

Recent pressure rose and key-session quality fell

• Keep the weekly rhythm when possible.
• Replace one non-essential quality session with easy aerobic work or rest.
• Protect either the long run or the marathon-pace session instead of trying to rescue both.
• Review again after 24–48 hours or the next completed session.

TSB is lower than usual before a key workout

• Compare it with the athlete's normal successful range and current subjective state.
• Move the workout by 24–48 hours if the schedule allows.
• Shorten the session while preserving its purpose when delaying would disrupt the week.
• Do not infer injury or illness from TSB; use real symptoms and professional advice where appropriate.

CTL rises while completion quality deteriorates

• Stop increasing load for the moment.
• Review whether thresholds, source priority, or duplicate activities inflated the curve.
• Simplify one week before adding more volume or intensity.
• Use the next comparable key workout as the review point.

The curves are stable and execution is good

Leave the plan unchanged. A chart does not require an intervention merely because it is available.

5. Record the decision

Write down five items before changing the plan:

1. Observed pattern: what changed in PMC and over which dates.
2. Execution evidence: which activities or missed workouts support the concern.
3. Adjustment: the exact future workout and field that changes.
4. Protected intent: what the week must still accomplish.
5. Review point: the date or next session that will test the decision.

You can take this summary to AI Coach and ask for one conservative plan-aware draft.

Verify the adjustment

• The selected sport and date range match the marathon question.
• The curve movement can be traced to activities or a known settings change.
• Subjective state and key-session execution were considered alongside PMC.
• Only the intended future workout changed; completed history remained intact.
• A specific review point is scheduled.
• The adjustment can be reversed or revised if the next evidence disagrees.

Troubleshooting

• PMC is empty: confirm that activities are Ready, broaden the range, clear an incorrect sport filter, then use the page's calculate action once.
• Values changed after editing settings: identify the threshold or load-source change and reinterpret the full comparison window consistently.
• A single activity creates an extreme spike: open it and inspect duration, sensor data, sport classification, duplicates, and selected load source.
• The plan and chart use different dates: verify account time zone and the activity start time.
• The metrics and subjective state disagree: treat the disagreement as evidence to investigate, not a reason to discard either side. Keep the next change conservative.
• Pain, illness, or unusual symptoms are present: do not use PMC or AI Coach as medical clearance; stop or modify training and seek qualified guidance when needed.

Next steps

• Use Effective VO2max for Endurance Decisions to add a response trend.
• Follow AI Marathon Plan Adjustments to draft and confirm a change.
• Return to the complete Training Analysis Workflow.