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Ching Lancaster HM is early November, good flat fast course, couple of small hills and always people running sub 1.15.
Hi all, still doing a bit here although not raced since a disaster at the frankly horrible Edinburgh marathon in May. That put me off marathons for a bit and hence I stopped posting here, still look in every now and then. Hope you're all doing well.
Another quick question. I'm just about 1 week away from Berlin now and have been tapering for the last couple of weeks following a P+D schedule. I'm still HATING the taper - it's left me feeling much more tired and much less fit than usual, doubtless looking like a total madman as I avoid all snifflers on the tube (despite which I'm STILL starting to get a cold!) and also, a bit bizarrely, craving sugar much more. Consequently, I'm desperate for some reassurance that all my fitness hasn't just vanished and would be tempted to run the bulk of tomorrow at MP as a confidence boost. Is this a bad idea though?
Thanks and sorry to inflict what is most likely standard taper paranoia upon you all...
Lev
MtR, best wishes to you and your family.
Lev - you'll get your MP fix in a week with 26.2@MP. Don't be impatient!
Lev - taper madness, just look back at your log and the stuff you've been writing on here for confidence boosters, like those 35 min 10k tim trials and those monster MP efforts in the long runs. You're not going to get any fitter now so just get yourself to the start line. Probably looking at Berlin myself next year so looking forward to hearing your take on it
Ching - welcome.....the Fast GFA start at the front of the red is pretty bloody good to be fair so all is not lost if you don't get a champs start, far from it. Others on here will be able to give the proper marathon advice I'm only a "paltry" 2.58 so far and haven't got near to converting my half time yet, lol. |Sounds like you've got a cracking potential target with the right endurance built.
Really sorry to hear that news Matt
So I've been off here for aeons for which big apologies. Moved house and went to Africa to film but the big reason is ongoing hip issues. It first began at VLM but wasn't actually hurting when I ran afterwards. Assumed it was just a bit of soft tissue damage. But I began to realise I had lost rotation movement in the right hip: it was very painful. Assumed it would go away but it hasn't changed at all in five months.
Anyway to cut a long story short: saw sports injury physio this week who has referred me straight to hip orthopaedic surgeon. She wrote this 'On examination today I was able to bring on his symptoms with flexion, medial rotation and adduction and also in abduction. He had very poor gluteal activity on his right side with both gluteus medius and posterior gluteus maximus very difficult to recruit. Whilst I am sure this is contributing to his pain I am anxious that we have further investigation to exclude causes of hip impingement such as a cam or pincer lesion and/or labral tear in the hip, given his history of intense loading during his marathon training.'
I've no doubt the loss of muscular activity in the right is due to the hip restriction.
Oh dear.
Fortunately I have private medical insurance until end of December so am getting in there now. Should see them in the next couple of weeks.
Anyone know if a hip resurface, which is what I suspect I'm heading towards, will end my days of reasonably serious running as I suspect it will?
Lev - sounds like a standard taper, don't worry about it! And don't try to do too much, trust the plan.
HR - sorry to hear your injury problems. No idea on the hip resurface I'm afraid.
Chingo - I didn't really do any tempo runs, but over the winter cross country races are almost weekly so I used them as tempo runs. I tried to also do some marathon pace within the midweek medium-long run. Long runs at the weekend tended to be fairly slow (MP+90s at least), except for the last few where I put some faster efforts in, and a couple of progressive 20M races which I ran progressively (e.g. each 5M 2 mins faster than the previous one).
Just done an easy 7M, saving myself for the tri club champs tomorrow!
Chingo -- welcome. I was also targetting a sub-75 min half this autumn (current PB 75:55), and had 3 potentially fast HMs lined up round here: Grunty Fen, Peterborough (Gt East Run) and Norwich "City". Unfortunately I'm injured so I missed Grunty Fen, and am unlikely to shine in Peterborough in 3 weeks, so I'll be left with just one egg in my basket so's to speak. I'm an old codger (41) trying to get scrape my best times before I get too old, whereas you have years of gains ahead of you by the sound of it, starting from an impressive level now -- enjoy!
In the VLM championship start by the way (my first this year, but will be there again next year having again scraped the marathon time), you don't quite line up alongside the elites -- instead you're slowly walked down to the start by a chain of officials who hold you just back from the true elites (who get introduced to the TV cameras one by one in the last few mins) until moments before the start. Definitely within shoulder-tapping range if you're at the front though (few hundred champs entries, spread across maybe 15 or 20 metres width).
Edit: I forgot to say the thing about the VLM start that gets me is the contrast with every small race where, having lined up at the front, it only seems to take seconds until the race is all about the few guys around (or ahead) of me and the mass is forgotten. At VLM, you're running as one of a crowd for a long time at my pace (2:42 last year), not boxed in but never alone. (By contrast, threadites at 2:30 pace have run over Tower Bridge alone...) I think it's actually an excellent race to PB with the crowd support, others to slipstream if its windy, plentiful drinks, and no real hills.
HR -- good luck with the hip. My current woes affect muscles in the same area, but I don't think I have any joint problems.
Lev -- for goodness sake don't hurt yourself now! Having said that, a few short bursts of MP should keep your muscles 'tuned' in the last week. On the day, MP should feel effortless for the first few miles -- think of it as a 4 mile warm-up jog followed by a 22 mile run. And resist the temptation to go faster early when it feels too easy! Hold on until at least 18M before upping the pace, if you think you have anything in reserve, but beware "wall" experiences at 22+M. I've only managed one marathon where I didn't have the wheels fall off to some extent (out of 6 or something), and blowing up late costs considerably more time than you will ever save going a little faster early on, as well as feeling appalling.
Matt - Best wishes for your mum
Quiet on here. Hope everyone is out racing fast or training hard.
Hello there,
i havent read all 84,341 posts just the last 15 or so.
you all have some usefull advice and ideas going on here,
Joolska- well done on your 3:03 marathon, i tried to break 3hours on April 10th (Llanneli marathon) but collapsed at 24.00miles in 2hrs 44mins (EPIC FAIL) this was off 41 mpw over 10 weeks proir to taper.
Am i right in thinking you did your pb off approx 65miles a week or was that the peak miles.
for my 4th marathon i hope to get a ballot place in london 2012 (serious sub 3 attempt)
what are other peoples hopes/plans.
Still running OK but I can feel myself slowing as I get fatter and older. Good to see {b]Running Bear back on the thread but sorry to see he wont be doing Abingdon.
MtR I hope things work out for your mum. LS21 sorry too to hear about your hip problems. I hope you get back to the big mileage very soon.
Sorry to anyone that I've missed.
Dull
Dull I'm not sure if LS21's going to be happy to be mistaken for me with my hip problem, but I agree that he runs like an old codger.
Just debating whether to go for another pointless 30 min bimble: that's the max I'm permitted to do. Referral to the hip consultant should be in the next week. I know I have a major problem. Bollocks. Was hoping to nail a 2h45 too
p.s. Real apologies again for absence on here. It's so hard when you're on the bench and even wondering if you'll ever make a decent race again.
12.17 miles in 1:15:40 HM+35secs a mile pace (6.06+35secs a mile) felt good.
Gosh that was sudden Matt, take it easy now -- as far as you can at least.
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Was anyone racing in the Gt North Run?
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On a trivial note I've twanged a calf muscle and will be bench warming for a little while. I've had a long spell with no problems, so can't complain.