Train for a Marathon and Earn College Credits

One surprising bit of information gleaned from the previous year's data was that the biggest predictor of marathon time was the students' two-mile time. "I would have thought weekly mileage was the best predictor," Lundstrom said. -thats fit.com

As for assignments and grading, students must design a fuel plan detailing what they will eat and drink, along with a mental plan that explains the "techniques and tools they'll use to get through the tough parts of the marathon." They will take a few quizzes and also be graded on attendance, but 40 percent of the grade rests on completing the Eau Claire Marathon in Wisconsin on May 2.

MY COMMENT: Chris Lundstrum (a 2:17 marathoner) is heading up this class at the U of Minnesota. While this is not the first marathon training program for college credit, this is the first time I've seen this much detail and data collection. I agree with Chris- I find it interesting that 2-mile time is a better predictor than weekly mileage of marathon performance.