Halstead marathon

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  • unlucky david i did see the final five, good luck to them and will be following all their progress.

    im in a bit of a rut at the moment i dont know what to do for the new years marathon training. some advise would be good image

    im currently at 4 days a week training after work (working 8-5:30 sometimes 6). so dont get out until say half 6/7. Not the most demanding job (im a car mechanic) but on my feet for atleast 8 hours in the day.

    my question is....shall i start later running after eating, or early running before work before breakfast? i dabbled with the idea of early running but that means more showering, which seems like a waste of water in my opinion!

    also its absolutely chucking it here in sunny great dunmow (essex)

    would be nice to meet you at halstead aswellimage

  • Hi guys,

    just thought I'd join this thread as I too have entered the Halstead marathon. Jason, I see you run for GFDR and have been doing x/country racing? I run for Mid Essex Casuals and am really looking forward to your clubs race this coming Sunday at Stebbing.

  • DS2DS2 ✭✭✭

    Welcome to our little thread, Leighton!

    Have you run the Halstead marathon before?

    Jason - I used to run quite late in the evenings years ago at about 9 at night but it was hard to switch off afterwards. I think if I was you I'd think about straight after work before dinner. Might be worth having a snack mid-afternoon on that basis.

    It's quite a difficult time of year. Once you get into the New Year and you can see the marathon on the horizon you'll find it easier to get out there. It's worth looking at the RW schedules when they come out. Your times are promising. What are you aiming to do the marathon in?

  • hello leighton pull up a chair as they say,

    have you run halstead before?

    yes ive been a member for 3 months now and havent looked back since. yes been in 3 XC races so far and loved how fun they are. really enjoyed little baddow even if it was a bit brutal.

    good luck on sunday its going to be my first and ive seen the pictures and it looks VERY messy image

  • david- i thought the same with running that late especially if im running a few miles!

    stick with the after work schedule then i thinksimage 

    i guess just keep with the running for now and see what comes out of the new year and gradually build up the miles per week.

    i dont have a time as yet...well i do but its sub 4 but i think nearer the time and continued training i should get a respectable time image

    just to finish would be fantastic tho as it is my firstimage

  • DS2DS2 ✭✭✭

    I think that sub 4 is more than acheivable if you are running 10 miles in 71 minutes!!!

    When I did my first marathon I had run 71 minutes and then trained for 3 months for the marathon and ran 3:09!!! Aim high and set your training accordingly. Build up gradually but keep some quality. How old are you again?

  • How do you all cope with icy roads ?  I'm a real coward as far as black ice is concerned and don't go off road in case I twist an ankle etc and mobile reception here is useless.

  • thanks thats really encouraging image i also think im faster than that already image as the training is improving me all the time.

    isnt it the endurance that can get to most people? speeds irrelevant (ive heard)

    yes its going to be a fun journey image im 23, 24 next month.

  • Hi teresa its a touchy subject for me. i personally dont take the risk with ice.

    there is other ways keep the fitness up.

    some say just 'man up' and run but they obviously dont take it seriously and dont care if they break an ankle or injure themselves.

    off road i have run when its been frozen, and let me tell you its very hard, and hurts the ankles (all personal accounts) but when you get on the flat mud/grass its fine.image

  • Short fast run out the way for tonight image



    Think it was approx 3-4 miles at a considerable paceimage as haven't got GPS yet it felt like 6-7 mm, but wouldn't quote me on that.



    Had faster bursts with 20-30s recovery between.



    That's all for now until Sundays race image
  • Hi Jason

    No, I've not run Halstead Marathon before but I have heard so many good reports that I thought I would give it a go.  I did London in 2006 in 3:46, so this will be my 2nd marathon and am hoping to get through between 4:00 and 4:30 at Halstead.

    I'm looking forward to Sundays race, I did it last year and it was wet and muddy but great fun!

  • Wow good times Leighton, good luck.



    XC today image it's going to be a messy morning!



    At least the weathers nice and mild image



    Post later if I'm still alive to tell
  • Good luck! I actually don't live far from you, Halstead is my local marathon (9 miles away), I've done it 4 times now, would've been 5 but I had an annus horribilis currit this year! lol

    When I saw your post about the XC I thought about doing it, but i've got 16 miles with 10 miles at mp scheduled today (P&D) so I couldn't really cross the two together.

  • XC completed image what a race!!!



    Thanks lardarse, if you want see pictures they are on GFDR homepage later! Absolutely filthy but comically fun.



    Good luck on the training, ill be starting mine in the new year image what's your MP?



    Halstead will be a challenge I've heard! How did you find it? A bonus as its so close.
  • DS2DS2 ✭✭✭

    Great fun by the sound of it Jason.

    Lardarse - I love this race. So well organised and a lovely, but challenging, course. I'm entered for the third year in a row and this time I'm giving  it a really good go!

    Still 21 weeks to go, I think, so for me still in base building mode. Up to 35-40 miles most weeks for the past month.

    Did 10.88 miles at 7:30 average earlier including 6 at MP or below (7:17 - 7:25mm). Feeling pleased with myself.

    Normally, I get a bit distracted at this time of year and somehting gets lost. I'm determined to keep it going through this period despite so many other commitments!

  • Oh yes I've never had so much fun!



    Sounds like marathon training is going well image ill be building up to that soon. Still got plenty of XC races coming up soon.



    Also doing something called braintree boggle in February, which is 26.2 miles but with stopping checkpoints, so won't be too bad for me image



    Love the festive name btwimage
  • What time did you get? And how long is the xc race??! I don't even know, I was just going to turn up and run it lol

    My current mp is 8.58 m/m as of 4 weeks ago, so that's what i'll train at, for now, though i'm hoping I can get close to or beat my pb come 3 months time at Rome. I need to run under 8.27 m/m to do this.

    I don't find Halstead anynore challenging than any other of the marathons i've done, in all honesty it's not really what you'd call "hilly", yes it's undulating, but it's run on roads that have the same topography as where I run and have lived all my life. I imagine if you're from or near Dunmow then you'll find it the same, it will be no different to where you train.

    I also saw the Braintree Bog-gle the other night and contemplated entry, but it's only some 5 weeks before Rome, and even running it as an extened lsr I thought might be a bit much that close, i'm also already doing the Tarpley 20 near Bury which is two weeks after the Bog-gle, though I plan on "racing" only about 10 miles to set a pace for Rome, then have 3 weeks to recover.

    I don't even know yet if i'm doing Halstead, I've been invited to go on holiday about the same time, though no definite dates as yet, but I probably will do Halstead and maybe go on holiday but for a shorter durration than the others, besides, did I mention i'm going to ROME! lol

  • I didn't time this one image just went out to have a laugh, and I tell you it was hilarious.



    You say turn up and run, running is allowed but sometimes it involves wading through rivers image and bogs image



    I did finish 54th but it was irrelevant to me.



    It's nice to hear that you didn't find halstead challenging, and yes I will be training around dunmow so the hills round here are quite challenging.



    Also entered braintree on a bit of a challenge, it's the miles but not if you know what I mean. It's got a 7 hour time limit so finishing is going to happen eventually image



    O yea it's a trail marathon aswell so should be fun!



    Jealous about Rome!! Hope it's not too hot out there ATM. I've always wanted to go there.
  • It's March 17th, I'm imagining from past Med experience the weather at that time will be similar to our summer, nice days, crap days, never particularly hot, never cold, actually quite nice to run in. I much prefer the heat anyway. You're 23, I didn't even leave the country for more than a day untilI was 26!

    You're cross country sounds like some of the farm tracks round here, 18" deep wheel ruts that fill with water and then cover the central part of the track too, I'm sticking to the road! lol

    Any other year I would've done the Bog-gle and another marathon 5 weeks later, but I really want to do my best at Rome, i'll be 40 six days after, so it would be nice to set a final pb before I leave the senior catorgary and join the geriatrics! lol

  • Oh it should be good then image maybe one day ill be running in an interesting marathon image I quite like the sound of New York!



    I much prefer the road so far but for sheer fun it's the XC all the way. I fell in a river half way through and just thought it was hilarious. Someone said on the forum that it sounded like a proper XC. Free refreshments at the end and complimentary river wash down to top it off image



    Wow 40 doesn't that class you as a vet? Certainly would be good to set a PB.
  • No reason why you shouldn't do a foriegn marathon is there? I've done Dublin, Athens, Amsterdam and Monaco. Many have done many, many more than that, I don't have a well paid job, races like Amsterdam can be done cheaply, others incorporate into a holiday. Rome has been a "want to do" for a long time. Others on the bucket list are San francisco and Bangkok, both have personal reasons and history behind them which make them something I want to do.

    Falling in a river in December isn't fun! lol I think you're showing your age, or maybe I am mine! image

    I know to you 40 sounds ancient! But I don't think it's very old on this forum, besides, time has a nasty habit of creeping up on you...

  • DS2DS2 ✭✭✭

    Indeed lardarse - I'm 49 in April and getting faster again!

    Jason - I meant to say a few days ago to be careful what others think you are capable of. We are all different and you are young. Much of the advice will come from old gits (like myself). It's always good to listen to experience but many marathoners come to it later in life and haven't benefitted from youth in their running. Consequently, their advice will be tainted by their own experience.

    You are young and have good speed and if I was you I would look to run inside 3:30 at least. From a 71 minute 10 miler much faster than that is possible if you can get the long runs in.

    If you train to run faster you will run faster!!! I am at about 72 min for 10 miles at the moment but am expecting to run inside 3:15 at Halstead. I think you could achieve that sort of time as well. Take a look at the RW advanced training plans for sub 3:15 or 3:30 and see if you could fit the training in.

    I'm a great believer in anyone can achieve what they set out to achieve with the right planning and training. I still think that in time I may get close to the time I ran back in 1994. Most people will think I'm mad - I may be!

  • RFJRFJ ✭✭✭

    DS2 - ref your earlier question for me its a PB course, because I tend to run better and faster on undulating courses..... its not a hard course, but its not the easiest either.

    But in terms of support its an excellent race and good for fuel stops with esp if you wnat your own drinks as they are put out for you if you drop them off in time in the morning, plus as the bulk is on a figure 8 you pass the same point 4 times ideal if you have a small support team, made all the difference for me...

  • DS2DS2 ✭✭✭

    Agreed RFJ. I loved the race. I live on the North Downs in kent so everywhere is hilly so I found the undulations of Halstead quite acceptable.

    This year I hope my endurance will be much better and I can run to my potential. What I need to do this year is avoid falling off my bike cycling to work 8 weks before and ending up in plaster!!!image

  • 5 miles out the way for 2night image not going too hard as got training 2moro with the club.



    Easy pace (again a guess at 8mm). Got a slight groin pain AGAIN, but got the foam roller out afterwards and sorted all the muscles out.



    Thanks David, it's promising to hear that. I'm looking into some training plans at the mo. I think I've got a faster 10miler in me already.



    I'm thinking of trying to go for a sub 3:15. It's going to take some serious training but heck I know I've got it in meimage

    Just build up me miles graduallyimage



    I like the way you think positive about it all. I know I've sort of started backwards in terms of marathon first and all. I haven't even competed in a half yet !! But I just love running image so I know I've got plenty more years ahead of me.



    How's your day to day activities going are you training much?



    RFJ I've heard the water station rumour and that sounds excellent. And yes I will be bringing a support party along image maybe it will push me even more
  • RFJRFJ ✭✭✭

    Its no rumour, unless they change it, but would doubt that as its a big sell for the race....

  • DS2DS2 ✭✭✭

    Agreed RFJ - one of the things I love and how I sell it to others.

    Jason - that sounds a proper target for you. If I can think that way you cetainly can!

    I'm doing about 40 miles a week at present. I get up early and run before work most days. My long term aim is to run Sub 3 on my 50th birthday at London in 2014!

  • Jason,

     

    glad you enjoyed the cross country, have you seen the photos on www.facebook.com/KellysRunningPhotos ?

    I managed a 9.6 mile run today including two runs up the hill at Braintree Discovery Centre.  Think I will have to start doing more hill work though.

  • Damn I can't look at them as I don't have Facebook image



    Such a laugh though.



    Been out 2nite around the 6 mile mark. Slow steady run with burst intervals up hills, very nice in the rain image had the head torch out as it was on trails for some parts. All in all good night training.





    Good training run Leighton as I know discovery well that's quite a challenge image
  • 3miles approx for tonight's session image



    Fartlek training I suppose it's called;) really didn't want to push it too much as its been a bit of a hecktick day! Think a cold is on the horizon for me image



    Usually happens around christmas, I think the body shuts down when working stops. Could do without it this year!!



    Next runs Sundays LSR, I think 10miles is on the cards, hmmm shall have to see about that oneimage



    Nice bowl of spag bowl to wrap the night up and chilling out wrapping the OH's presents with the pooch image
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