Howdy, Stranger!
Categories
Options
The Middle Ground
The materials in this website are in no way intended to replace the professional medical care, advice, diagnosis or treatment of a doctor, qualified personal trainer, therapist, dietitian or nutritionist Runners's World, Part of the Hearst UK well-being network © Copyright 2017
Comments
Sounds like you are progressing well, Alehouse. Must be a great help having that level of kit available to you.
Dr Dan, I seriously couldn't walk properly for over a week after London with my blister. I never imagined that a blister could have caused so much pain!
Sounds like you are back into the swing of things, JGav.
Easy 10 miles yesterday lunchtime, at 8.05mm. Barely seemed to touch the sides, such is how things are going right now. Need to start tapering back for Sundays half. Just want to get 5 at mp in today. Conditions look reasonable for Sunday as things currently stand.
JGav - good to see you are back. Hope you get no reaction from the injury to that session.
DT - another good session, hope last night's went ok and you can now focus on Sunday's race.
I started my 10k plan last night with a relatively easy tempo session to break myself back into it lightly. Easy miles planned today and tomorrow and then a 5 mile race on Sunday.
I still need to spend some time following a 10k plan, just for a phase of sharper work.
Last nights run went well, given my recent training load. I usually consider an average hr around 160 to be the right effort level for mp, which is where it was at over much of Londons training and the first half of this schedule. Last nights 5 miler came out 6.46 average pace and 155 average hr, which doesn't sound much but 5bpm is a considerable difference with each bpm usually worth 2-3 seconds per mile.
Sunday to Wednesday I have run 48.5 miles. Today is a rest day and massage, though annoyingly my legs feel fresher today than they have any day since Sunday. Worcester half Sunday. Conditions look pretty good. Planning 4 miles with strides Friday lunchtime between now and Sunday.
Andrew, yes it is generally taken that improvments in shorter distances should filter down to mp (if you are appropriately trained for the mara). If your LT pace moves from 6.30mm to 6.15 then 6.50 should feel that much easier.
In fact McMillan running (who I follow on facebook) often post these short sharp advice statuses and one of them is along the lines of 'if you've found your times over longer distances have plateaued, spend a training cycle training for a 5/10k as the gains will almost certainly filter down'.
> JGav - good to see you are back. Hope you get no reaction from the injury to that session.
All feeling good, got the foam roller back out to relieve some tightness. Did a cycle yesterday following by intervals today. Feeling pretty good and so it's time to start building in some distance at easy pace.
> Andrew, yes it is generally taken that improvments in shorter distances should filter down to mp (if you are appropriately trained for the mara). If your LT pace moves from 6.30mm to 6.15 then 6.50 should feel that much easier.
>
> In fact McMillan running (who I follow on facebook) often post these short sharp advice statuses and one of them is along the lines of 'if you've found your times over longer distances have plateaued, spend a training cycle training for a 5/10k as the gains will almost certainly filter down'.
Does the opposite work? Mara training for 5k times?
Conditions look great for racing sunday, at least up this way.
Rest day yesterday then 4 miles very easy with strides over lunch. Legs were feeling pretty loose. Rest day again tomorrow.
JGav - sounding like good news.
Andrew - hope yesterday went well.
Compromised week for me due to the blisters and having to drop my son off at Uni yesterday. Feet eventually healed up mid week, but I only managed 11.7 miles after that, including a 20:18 parkrun. However, it's not as bad as it sounds as I'll be leaving work early to do my long run this afternoon/evening. It will be 20 at least but hopefully further. Then it's officially taper time.
Well done DT! Excellent performance - looking forward to reading the report!
As for me - a DNS! Managed to ping something in my lower back on Saturday morning whilst getting my daughter into her pushchair! It wasn't terrible (I've had much worse back injuries/spasms) but was incredibly stiff the next morning and frankly the thought of driving 45 minutes each way to then not even know if I'd be able to run didn't seem sensible, especially as it wasn't a target race.
It had loosened up a little by the afternoon, so did a slow 3 mile jog which was ok but still sore, so vindicated my decision I think.
Shame on the DNS, Andrew but no point taking the time to turn up for it to be a disaster and to make yourself worse.
Dr Dan, the work is done now, so just enjoy the taper.
I managed a slow 6 mile recovery yesterday, may take a rest today today as then a busy few days coming up with14/15 planned Thursday evening, followed Sunday by the Robin Hood half which WILL be run at mp.
See, it's when I read comments like some of the above from DT and Dan, detailing the runs you are doing (eg. DT doing all those miles and sessions the week after a flat out pb half marathon) that I realise I am a complete lightweight! If I had run a pb half marathon (unlikely, as I don't think I could ever stay bloody fit enough for long enough to train for a race of that length) I think I'd have the next week off to recover!!
5 miles last night. back felt ok, but overall a bit sluggish. 10k plan already feels like it is on the rocks.
Andrew- my week this week looks a bit like this (if it all happens)-
Mon- 6 recovery
Tues- Rest.
Wed- 14/15 miles
Thurs- spin class am - 7-8 miles pm- followed by bodypump
Friday- 8 ish miles with 5 at some sort of tempo
Saturday - spin class followed by bodypump
Sunday- 16 with 13 at mara pace within the Robin Hood half.
It's taken me quite a while to get to that training load without falling apart. Also, that isn't a normal week.; It is the final week before taper begins so is a peaking week.
spin this morning followed by 7 miles tonight at recovery pace of 8.20. Feeling a little more tired this week.
DT - someone else also feeling tired!
So am I!! So far it's 42 miles on the bike this week, plus the 20 on Monday and yesterday's 6.6 @ MP, but I feel like it's been more. Just a 1 mile race to go tomorrow and then we're down to 2 weeks to go!! Hopefully I will feel more energetic next week.
Got up to 95% bodyweight on the Anti-gravity treadmill so after a short run on an ordinary treadmill the physio has said I can now start to run/walk with 1.4k actually run yesterday with no apparent ill effects. Will start with easy running on alternate days: the other days will still be putting large (for me!) weights through the Achilles. Bumped into the consultant on Thursday and he reminded me that this should be the maximum I can bear and it needs to be painful or it isn't going to work! Onwards and upwards!
Wish I was sluggish in training: this would be back to normal!
Complete rest on Tuesday and Wednesday, then did a 9km with my wife as a leisurely 6.20m/km pace and then a 6.5km this evening a little quicker. Both times I could feel the calf but it did feel manageable.
@DT19 Enjoy that taper, you've put in some big miles and deserve it.
Jgav- you need to keep it easy until you can't feel it.
Alehouse- Still moving in the right direction.
I did robin hood half yesterday as an MP session with a friend. Came in 1.29.24 with 6.47 average pace. Was rather warm and my legs were shattered from the off from a big week, off a full tilt half. Aerobically it went well as we chatted the whole way round and encouraged runners to draft in behind us in their quests for a pb. Slightly stiff today, like I did a big session yesterday. Managed a 2 mile wu as well but slipped cool down as wanted to get out of the city before the masses finished.
JGav - take care with changing gait. I did this back in about 2010 and it took quite a while to recondition my calf muscles.
I had good fun at the 1 mile track race on Saturday afternoon. There were 12 heats based on predicted times and I was in heat 8. Each race is separate, with its own prize and Po10 cat, but the over-all times are also ranked ... and in addition, we use this as one of our club champs races. So there's a dilemma between racing and time-trialling ... I wanted a PB (5:56.0). At the gun I tucked behind everyone on the first bend and then tagged onto the back of the young lad who was leading down the back straight and just stayed on his tail. Lap 1 (409m) was 1:30.9 (145/165 bpm) ... felt comfortable and pretty much on target. Stayed behind the leader for lap 2 (1:31.3 at 166/169 bpm) ... working hard and we were dropping the rest, as far as I could sense. Sub-5:56 pace slipping away though. I felt the leader was starting to flag on lap 3 but decided to stay behind and get some shelter in the headwind on the home straight. Lap 3 was slower (1:33.6 167/170 bpm) and my club-mate in 3rd made contact. Being the oldest in the race by some way, I couldn't leave things to a sprint finish, so I took off with 300m to go ... felt strong all the way in and ended up with a final lap of 1:17.3 (171/173 bpm) and a shiny 5:53.8 PB. Bottle of wine as a prize ... and 44th out of 124 over all and 9th Hyde Park Harrier (3 club-mates under 5 min!).
Sunday morning was 10.3 miles at "MP" (7:46/mi).
Dr Dan, excellent mile racing. That intensity really leaves me a little edgy!! I doubt I would do a mile race.
I don't think I would have completed it at that pace if I wasn't in a race situation. On a plus, despite wearing racing shoes as well I feel largely loose now that I have moved around for a few hours.
> Progress Alehouse!
>
> JGav - take care with changing gait. I did this back in about 2010 and it took quite a while to recondition my calf muscles.
>
> I had good fun at the 1 mile track race on Saturday afternoon. There were 12 heats based on predicted times and I was in heat 8. Each race is separate, with its own prize and Po10 cat, but the over-all times are also ranked ... and in addition, we use this as one of our club champs races. So there's a dilemma between racing and time-trialling ... I wanted a PB (5:56.0). At the gun I tucked behind everyone on the first bend and then tagged onto the back of the young lad who was leading down the back straight and just stayed on his tail. Lap 1 (409m) was 1:30.9 (145/165 bpm) ... felt comfortable and pretty much on target. Stayed behind the leader for lap 2 (1:31.3 at 166/169 bpm) ... working hard and we were dropping the rest, as far as I could sense. Sub-5:56 pace slipping away though. I felt the leader was starting to flag on lap 3 but decided to stay behind and get some shelter in the headwind on the home straight. Lap 3 was slower (1:33.6 167/170 bpm) and my club-mate in 3rd made contact. Being the oldest in the race by some way, I couldn't leave things to a sprint finish, so I took off with 300m to go ... felt strong all the way in and ended up with a final lap of 1:17.3 (171/173 bpm) and a shiny 5:53.8 PB. Bottle of wine as a prize ... and 44th out of 124 over all and 9th Hyde Park Harrier (3 club-mates under 5 min!).
>
> Sunday morning was 10.3 miles at "MP" (7:46/mi).
A 1 mile is a great distance to run. It's so close to being flat out yet you have to keep enough back to finish strong. Congrats on that PB. I broke 6 minutes earlier this year and was so chuffed when I did.
As to changing gait, yes I think I will learn my lesson ease into my first HM in 2 weeks and aim to just complete it rather than set an ambitious target. Then I'm going to go away over the winter and get strong for the run and target an early 2018 HM, see if I can build up distances and intensity slowly.