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12 miles comes up and it's at this point I start thinking that something isn't quite right. We have to do a loop around an industrial tank farm which I've ran round plenty of times including during the bonkers 5K and I'm pretty sure the loop is around 3/4 of a mile long and I'd be surprised if the finish line in park was only 0.3 of a mile away from the tank farm. It must have been somewhere round this point that I lost touch with the unofficial pacing group as suddenly they're 30-40 metres up the road. Rats, I now have to deal with the wind blasted bit of the course by myself. My breathing is fine but I can't seem to get my legs to go any quicker than 6:45 pace. I cross the 20k mat, change my watch setting to elapsed time and it's on 1:24:x which gives me 6ish minutes to do the last km and a bit, which is doable if the course is right.
The last km seems to take forever but eventually I can see the turn into the park where the finish is, one last check of the watch as I turn into the field, 13.2x miles and elapsed time of 1:29.4x...'Good grief this is going to be close, why is the finish line so far into this bloody field?' After what seems like another km I cross the line and stop the watch...1:30:02. Bollocks!
Make my way through the finish, asking all and sundry what distance they made it, I keep getting answers in kilometres which doesn't help although most seem to be getting around 21.4/5k which is roughly what my watch measures it at. Catch one of the people in the 1:30 pace group and they've finished nearly a minute behind me, yikes.
Not long after I finish, the leading marathon runners are in, with the top 2 separated by a few seconds in what sounds like a good race with a decisive breakaway around 38km. Hang around at the finish and chat to a few people I recognise from parkrun and the bonkers 5K before heading off.All in all I'm pretty pleased with how it went despite the course length (if I believe my watch and those of others around me). Average pace according to my watch for the 13.35 miles was 6:44 which would be by second fastest half marathon time at 1:28.1x. As it is, it's my third so doesn't really make a difference. A few more longer runs and some HM specific training and I'm confident I'll be able to get my half PB to closer to 85 mins.
When you say you think I should adjust my goal time, do you think I should be going for a quicker time? If so I am not sure I'm experienced enough at that distance just yet. I'd be happy to bag a 1:35 and then look to improve on this. What do you think?
David, nice going. when is the target half?
Yes I was thinking you could probably aim for 1:32-33 off your 5k time but you're probably right to be a little more cautious.
DT - the toughest part was getting up and getting to the start! The course was challenging with the early inclines and the climb over the bridge but in retrospect I did enjoy it.
I think you're probably right that the pacers knew it would be long so were trying to get ahead of schedule. However, I think all they ended up doing was running the legs off most people who had stuck with them as they did appear to be crawling along when we overtook them with our unofficial pacers.
The problem is if your half pace is 6.50 and you are running sub 6.40 you are into threshold pace so bound to go wrong after 10 miles.
David, a lot can happen in 5 months. I wouldn't get entirely set on a pace yet. My first half was 1.30.12 and the week before I ran a 5k PB of 20.33. I had never run further than 12 miles before that day either.
That is also far too early to be up and thinking about running too Tommy. I would have been a zombie.
David - it depends what you're good at. I'd run 7 sub 1hr35 half marathons before I managed to break 20 mins for a 5k. It was getting embarrassing.
What is your 5k pb literatin?
As someone's mum at training told me 'you've only really got one pace... I mean, it's quite a fast one, but it's always the same'.
(I would probably have needed to keep your prize box up to date too).
I've just reread that and it made me chuckle. Lit's prize winning box
David, Lit missed a thread rule. She should really have pointed out that she beat me to obtain that 5k pb
Another quiet week for me last week. No session to speak of, easy running and a cut back long run of 11m. I had hoped to do a 10 mile road race but a cold struck at the backend of the week and as the race would've incurred a long road trip I decided the extra sleep was a better option. 8m yesterday as a 5+3 felt nice and quick on fresh legs - this week will front load the mileage ahead of a 10k on Sunday.
8M easy yesterday followed by 4 (perhaps 5) easy today. I am going to give 5m @ HMP a go tomorrow with a mile easy either side.
Muddy, hope the cold doesn't get too much worse.
Skinny, you're filthy.
Cheers Muddy, I refrained from calling it hard yakka, even though that would be quite an apt description.
I'm surprised Stevie G hasn't popped in to tell you that sounds like quite hard work!
There's definitely two schools of thought on this on the thread and we've been through it a couple of times...in summary I would find 5 miles at HMP a pretty tough effort whereas DT has the ability to crush a session like that on his lunch break. I've concluded that I am a bit weakly.
Gentle recovery run for me yesterday (Tuesday) that was slightly interrupted by some bloke called Harry and his police friends turning up at the park I was running around.
It used to be a staple weekly session and I think if you can do it then you are well on your way to a good half. I seem to have dropped it to 5 at mp recently which is pretty much the same pace as what 5 at hmp was. I've become lazy!
I'm on holiday this week but went out this morning for an easy 5. I'd had quite a lot to drink last night but found myself by mile 3 in an unplanned progression run. 5 came in at 7.39 with a 7.11 mile 5.
10k Sunday being the race I set my pb last year. Not great prep this year but I'll have a go. if it goes tits up I'll probably crawl in just sub 40.
mace - I'm on 8-5-0 and I thought that was dedication!
9 + 11 for me so far this week. Just a short one planned for tonight though ahead of a medium long run tomorrow. I am front loading the week as I hope (sniffles/sore throat permitting) to do the same 10k as DT on Sunday. I was second last year and it was unexpectedly my fastest of the year in 35.35.
When DT was cranking out the 5 @ HMP as part of his weekly work it was within a 2 hard runs plus a Long Run training regime (I think in year two he added an Easy run into the mix to gain miles).
This year he has done more traditional marathon mileage and has found that 5 @ HMP drift to a 5 @ MP.
Coincidence? I think not.
London 17 the 5 became a 10 so a proper mlr plus a 3 mile recovery. It was that point I struggled to hit the paces. From summer 17 I all but abandoned that plan for more traditional training. my fastest long run this campaign was 7.39mm. Bearing in mind my race pace was nearly 20 seconds a mile faster, I've no idea how I could hit those long run paces.
But thanks for confirming my memory as roughly reliable.
Cheers
I know somebody who has yet to go sub3 despite several attempts and does all his runs at around 7.20-7.30/M but fades badly in a marathon. If he slowed it down to 8.00+/M he'd be able to do more miles (as he's not fecked from flying around all the time) and would get his sub3 for sure. But he never changes it.
A pal has just text me to go for a run with him tonight .... DOUBLE DAY !!!?