Once again posting for 2 weeks...
Week 15
5 Runs
54 Miles
20 Mile Long Run
1 5K Race - 2nd - 16:55
This was a pretty solid last week of real training before starting the taper. This week finally set up closer to the way I should set up my Marathon training. I had an early week mid-long run, this week almost 12 miles (goal was making sure to be over 80 mins) followed by a couple of faster workouts - 8 mile tempo on Wednesday and a fun fast run with the Hash on Thursday. I decided last minute to push my long run to Sunday and fit in a 5K on Saturday morning. It ended up being a good decision as I finally got below 17 on the same course I had run a 17:33 on last time - evidence that this marathon training has done something for my fitness level.
I followed the Saturday race up with a solid 20 mile on Sunday with the last 8 at Marathon Pace. The marathon pace miles didn't feel like I was really pushing, though I was tired from a short night sleep. The only worrisome thing is that I've started having issues with my right hamstring - I seemed to have done something to it a week or two ago (it may have been in Ithaca or just before...) and it just won't leave me alone. It seemed to be fine for most of the long run, but reared it's head about 13 miles in and made the decision not to push pretty easy.
Week 16
2 Runs
10 Miles
The nagging hamstring and a business trip to AZ lead to the decision to take most of the week off. I just put in a couple of short runs on the resort golf course to try to loosen up the legs after the 20 miler, but didn't really test the hamstring too much.
It's annoying and a little worrisome that I'm having this issue now, but 2 more weeks of light training, 1 little marathon, and I'm allowed to rest it completely for a couple of weeks before beginning the build up for the ING in January. I'm not going to lie, I'm nervous about Chicago, and excited about a little downtime and a little fun running before getting back on the schedule. The regimen and discipline of staying on the schedule was perhaps the most difficult part of this (my first) training cycle and the part I struggled with most. Hopefully I'll be more disciplined on the next cycle and I will be more experienced making the next schedule.
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Chicago Marathon Training Week 11, 12, 13 & 14
Opps, so maybe I've fallen a little behind in updating the blog... So I'll play catch up in one quick entry - luckily several of these weeks deserve very little if any recognition...
Week 11
5 Runs
48.5 Miles
20 Mile long run
I got a little behind on my millage this week due to a short notice trip to Mexico to deal with some issues there. I still managed 5 runs and my longest run ever - a 20 miler with 7 miles at marathon pace or faster during the last part of the run. I've been taking some longer water breaks during training (watch stopped) because of the killer heat and humidity. Some runs (like this 20 miler in 84 degree heat) they'll be around 20-30 seconds and other runs might see some last up towards a minute. I'm hoping that cooler weather in Chicago will offset these breaks in my training.
Week 12
4 Runs
38.8 Miles
13.8 Mile long run
This was my scheduled down week (39 planned) so I don't feel too bad about the low millage except that I've been way off schedule and scrapped the planned workout for the week. Veronica and I flew out to Ithaca NY on Friday morning to visit my parents and grandparents and spend a week on the lake, so the preceding week was a little weird. I was supposed to travel to Colombia but canceled my trip as Irene threatened to hit Miami and my schedule was a little thrown off as I prepped to go off the grid for a week. I did focus on getting a few 70+ min runs in and started a week of hilly runs in NY with a 9.5 miler with V up to Taughannock falls on Friday and a 13.8 miler route around the Taughannock gorge the next day. Running in sub 80 degree temps and sun is FANTASTIC by the way...
Week 13
6 Runs
56.2 Miles
15 Mile long run & Trail Half Marathon
I pretty much rewrote this week of training to take advantage of a trail half marathon on Sunday and the beautiful running to do in Ithaca. V and I moved our planned 23 miler to Wednesday and ended up changing it to a 7 miler after V twisted her ankle on the first 20 feet of trail and we discovered 23 miles of road running was not comparable to 23 miles of rough, hilly trails. We had planned on making up some miles in the evening on the road but that got nixed when V's ankle swelled up and it turned out she had run 7 miles on a probably sprained ankle. I did add a 15 miler on Friday to make sure my millage for the week was respectable, and with the half marathon on Sunday I had 4 runs of 80+ min for the week (2 of them were at a decent pace too!). Most of my running was done in 60-70 degree weather which was an amazing change from Miami and the only downside to the week (aside from V's ankle) was that I managed to tweak my hamstring during one of the runs and it's been lingering since.
The Monster Half Marathon in Virgil NY on Sunday was a beast to say the least. Miami running doesn't prepare you for 2780 feet of up hill on mostly single track trails. It was a handicapped start, so I went out with the last un-handicapped group (being a male in the prime of my life...) despite probably needing a major handicap to compete. I managed to stick with the leaders for the first mile of dirt road (6:30 first mile) but lost them quickly when we hit the trail and I started power hiking up the steep hill. I can honestly say I have never walked so much during a race before and the half marathon ended up taking me just over 2 hours. I saw all the marathoners heading out for their second lap and quickly decided no one could have paid me to turn around and head back out. I did manage to finish a semi-respectable 13 out of 89 and 5th in my age group (37 and under - the un-handicapped!)
Week 14
4 Runs
38.1 Miles
15 Mile MP long run
Laziness is the only thing I can blame this week on as I had trouble rolling out of bed at 5 after a whole week of sleeping in, and then when I ran in the evenings my stomach fell apart. I've now put in over 3 times as many miles this year as I have in any of the last 8 so I'm into new territory as far as motivation is concerned. It's been a while since I put in a competitive race and running on my own consistently is starting to get old. Not what I want to be happening at this point in training, but it did. Now I just have to refocus and get some solid work done in my final hard week before I begin my Marathon taper. I did manage a halfway decent run on Sunday - 15 miles with the last 13 at race pace (6:44 or under). It wasn't nearly as easy as I thought it should have been - not a good sign for the marathon, but I'm hoping it was more a factor of the temperature (84) than any issues with my fitness.
Week 11
5 Runs
48.5 Miles
20 Mile long run
I got a little behind on my millage this week due to a short notice trip to Mexico to deal with some issues there. I still managed 5 runs and my longest run ever - a 20 miler with 7 miles at marathon pace or faster during the last part of the run. I've been taking some longer water breaks during training (watch stopped) because of the killer heat and humidity. Some runs (like this 20 miler in 84 degree heat) they'll be around 20-30 seconds and other runs might see some last up towards a minute. I'm hoping that cooler weather in Chicago will offset these breaks in my training.
Week 12
4 Runs
38.8 Miles
13.8 Mile long run
This was my scheduled down week (39 planned) so I don't feel too bad about the low millage except that I've been way off schedule and scrapped the planned workout for the week. Veronica and I flew out to Ithaca NY on Friday morning to visit my parents and grandparents and spend a week on the lake, so the preceding week was a little weird. I was supposed to travel to Colombia but canceled my trip as Irene threatened to hit Miami and my schedule was a little thrown off as I prepped to go off the grid for a week. I did focus on getting a few 70+ min runs in and started a week of hilly runs in NY with a 9.5 miler with V up to Taughannock falls on Friday and a 13.8 miler route around the Taughannock gorge the next day. Running in sub 80 degree temps and sun is FANTASTIC by the way...
Week 13
6 Runs
56.2 Miles
15 Mile long run & Trail Half Marathon
I pretty much rewrote this week of training to take advantage of a trail half marathon on Sunday and the beautiful running to do in Ithaca. V and I moved our planned 23 miler to Wednesday and ended up changing it to a 7 miler after V twisted her ankle on the first 20 feet of trail and we discovered 23 miles of road running was not comparable to 23 miles of rough, hilly trails. We had planned on making up some miles in the evening on the road but that got nixed when V's ankle swelled up and it turned out she had run 7 miles on a probably sprained ankle. I did add a 15 miler on Friday to make sure my millage for the week was respectable, and with the half marathon on Sunday I had 4 runs of 80+ min for the week (2 of them were at a decent pace too!). Most of my running was done in 60-70 degree weather which was an amazing change from Miami and the only downside to the week (aside from V's ankle) was that I managed to tweak my hamstring during one of the runs and it's been lingering since.
The Monster Half Marathon in Virgil NY on Sunday was a beast to say the least. Miami running doesn't prepare you for 2780 feet of up hill on mostly single track trails. It was a handicapped start, so I went out with the last un-handicapped group (being a male in the prime of my life...) despite probably needing a major handicap to compete. I managed to stick with the leaders for the first mile of dirt road (6:30 first mile) but lost them quickly when we hit the trail and I started power hiking up the steep hill. I can honestly say I have never walked so much during a race before and the half marathon ended up taking me just over 2 hours. I saw all the marathoners heading out for their second lap and quickly decided no one could have paid me to turn around and head back out. I did manage to finish a semi-respectable 13 out of 89 and 5th in my age group (37 and under - the un-handicapped!)
Week 14
4 Runs
38.1 Miles
15 Mile MP long run
Laziness is the only thing I can blame this week on as I had trouble rolling out of bed at 5 after a whole week of sleeping in, and then when I ran in the evenings my stomach fell apart. I've now put in over 3 times as many miles this year as I have in any of the last 8 so I'm into new territory as far as motivation is concerned. It's been a while since I put in a competitive race and running on my own consistently is starting to get old. Not what I want to be happening at this point in training, but it did. Now I just have to refocus and get some solid work done in my final hard week before I begin my Marathon taper. I did manage a halfway decent run on Sunday - 15 miles with the last 13 at race pace (6:44 or under). It wasn't nearly as easy as I thought it should have been - not a good sign for the marathon, but I'm hoping it was more a factor of the temperature (84) than any issues with my fitness.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Chicago Marathon Training Week 10 Review & Beer Mile!
5 Runs
53.5 Miles
19 Mile Long Run
Another week of training in the books, another bench mark for longest run and highest weekly millage. I think my training took another solid, injury free step forward this week. The key workouts for the week were a 6 mile steady state run on Wednesday, a 10 mile marathon pace run on Friday and a 19 miler on Saturday.
The steady state run on Wednesday played out just the way it should, with all six miles coming in under 6:32 and the last 3 being faster than the first 3 (6:30, 6:30, 6:32, 6:25, 6:28, 6:25). The right knee did start bugging me at one point during the run and after the run it bothered me most of the day, but seemed to get better during the rest of the week. I'm still really struggling with consistent pacing, but getting through this workout without too much straining is probably a good sign.
Friday's run was again pretty solid as I averaged 6:42 for 10 miles (goal 6:44). Pacing was again a problem, and the pacing is being helped a little by quick stops for water where the clock stops, but I'll still take it. Stomach is still acting up occasionally as it did in the middle of this run - I need to get my eating situation figured out so I can figure out what I'm going to need to eat before the Marathon for an issue free race...
Saturday's long run turned out pretty good, all be it purposefully slow in the warm temperatures. The temperatures cracked 85 before the end of the run despite getting out the door at 5:40. A pop-tart and chea fresca before the run and a gu at mile 12 is all I used to get through 19, though I was dragging a bit at mile 12 - probably mostly due to the 5 mile stretch without water. However the gu and a short stop for a gut full of water kicked in a couple miles later as I was able to finish the run in relatively strong fashion with the last 5 miles being under 7:20 and the last being a 7:05. A confidence builder considering how easy I was still working at that point.
Saturday afternoon, when I thought my running week (or at least day) was over I was (maybe somewhat) reluctantly talked into running a beer mile with the HHH. Oliver and Chris wanted to go run it so Veronica agreed to be the DD for them and I decided to tag along at the last minute to check it out, not really expecting much on tired legs. Lucky I didn't expect much because I didn't get much - a 7:24 (which was good for tied for second). I had some serious doubts the first 2 laps as I fell way behind on the drinking. I was a full half lap behind an older (slightly bigger) gentlemen by the time I had finished my first beer and despite catching up during the lap fell almost as far behind on my second beer. The third and fourth beers surprisingly went down easier and I had more than a comfortable lead by the end of the mile, though I was beaten by someone in a later heat. Probably not the recovery I needed, but the beer mile followed by a delicious bbq was a fun way to end the day!
A good week overall - starting to look forward to running in cooler temperatures though!!
53.5 Miles
19 Mile Long Run
Another week of training in the books, another bench mark for longest run and highest weekly millage. I think my training took another solid, injury free step forward this week. The key workouts for the week were a 6 mile steady state run on Wednesday, a 10 mile marathon pace run on Friday and a 19 miler on Saturday.
The steady state run on Wednesday played out just the way it should, with all six miles coming in under 6:32 and the last 3 being faster than the first 3 (6:30, 6:30, 6:32, 6:25, 6:28, 6:25). The right knee did start bugging me at one point during the run and after the run it bothered me most of the day, but seemed to get better during the rest of the week. I'm still really struggling with consistent pacing, but getting through this workout without too much straining is probably a good sign.
Friday's run was again pretty solid as I averaged 6:42 for 10 miles (goal 6:44). Pacing was again a problem, and the pacing is being helped a little by quick stops for water where the clock stops, but I'll still take it. Stomach is still acting up occasionally as it did in the middle of this run - I need to get my eating situation figured out so I can figure out what I'm going to need to eat before the Marathon for an issue free race...
Saturday's long run turned out pretty good, all be it purposefully slow in the warm temperatures. The temperatures cracked 85 before the end of the run despite getting out the door at 5:40. A pop-tart and chea fresca before the run and a gu at mile 12 is all I used to get through 19, though I was dragging a bit at mile 12 - probably mostly due to the 5 mile stretch without water. However the gu and a short stop for a gut full of water kicked in a couple miles later as I was able to finish the run in relatively strong fashion with the last 5 miles being under 7:20 and the last being a 7:05. A confidence builder considering how easy I was still working at that point.
Saturday afternoon, when I thought my running week (or at least day) was over I was (maybe somewhat) reluctantly talked into running a beer mile with the HHH. Oliver and Chris wanted to go run it so Veronica agreed to be the DD for them and I decided to tag along at the last minute to check it out, not really expecting much on tired legs. Lucky I didn't expect much because I didn't get much - a 7:24 (which was good for tied for second). I had some serious doubts the first 2 laps as I fell way behind on the drinking. I was a full half lap behind an older (slightly bigger) gentlemen by the time I had finished my first beer and despite catching up during the lap fell almost as far behind on my second beer. The third and fourth beers surprisingly went down easier and I had more than a comfortable lead by the end of the mile, though I was beaten by someone in a later heat. Probably not the recovery I needed, but the beer mile followed by a delicious bbq was a fun way to end the day!
A good week overall - starting to look forward to running in cooler temperatures though!!
Monday, August 8, 2011
Chicago Marathon Training Week 9 Review
Step Down Week
5 Runs
45 Miles
13.75 Mile Long Run
I had a step down week on my initial schedule and even though some lower-than-planned weeks previously probably would have allowed me to comfortably increase millage at this point, I decided to keep to the plan as it's been keeping me happily uninjured thus far.
Wednesday I had a cruise interval workout planned, but a meeting at work required me to get in early so I switched things up and did a tempo from home to save myself the drive and rest time between intervals. I managed 5 miles tending towards the faster side of my interval zone and better yet, they were progressively faster as the workout went on (6:17, 6:19, 6:13, 6:10, 6:08). So despite working pretty hard for that last mile, I was pretty happy with the workout all things considered (in particular the constant battle with heat and humidity here in South Florida...)
Friday I put in a solid MP 8 mile run, the slowest mile being a 6:50 which included the uphill on the Rickenbacker right before the turn around. Several of the miles were closer to 6:30 (goal was 6:44) so again, pretty happy with the workout and how I was feeling during and after despite feeling like I was working for it on the last 2 miles.
I followed up Friday's run with a "short" long run on Saturday. Late Friday I was asked and agreed to lead the Running Company's long group run in the absence of the normal leaders. Normally this means significantly slower than normal pace but I got lucky and the only one to show up was a guy visiting from North Florida who's run Boston before and was probably in better shape than I am, so I got to enjoy running with a partner at the pace I wanted to run. We went through about 13.7 miles at a comfortable conversation pace of 7:43 while battling 88 degree temperatures and drowning humidity. It was definitely enjoyable running with a more evenly paired partner and certainly much easier to keep going when you're starting to get tired (I had neglected proper rest and food, opting for a Friday Happy Hour figuring on a super easy run so I was starting to feel things at mile 10.)
Over all a solid week, the legs are feeling strong and ready for another step up in millage climaxing with a 19 miler next weekend.
5 Runs
45 Miles
13.75 Mile Long Run
I had a step down week on my initial schedule and even though some lower-than-planned weeks previously probably would have allowed me to comfortably increase millage at this point, I decided to keep to the plan as it's been keeping me happily uninjured thus far.
Wednesday I had a cruise interval workout planned, but a meeting at work required me to get in early so I switched things up and did a tempo from home to save myself the drive and rest time between intervals. I managed 5 miles tending towards the faster side of my interval zone and better yet, they were progressively faster as the workout went on (6:17, 6:19, 6:13, 6:10, 6:08). So despite working pretty hard for that last mile, I was pretty happy with the workout all things considered (in particular the constant battle with heat and humidity here in South Florida...)
Friday I put in a solid MP 8 mile run, the slowest mile being a 6:50 which included the uphill on the Rickenbacker right before the turn around. Several of the miles were closer to 6:30 (goal was 6:44) so again, pretty happy with the workout and how I was feeling during and after despite feeling like I was working for it on the last 2 miles.
I followed up Friday's run with a "short" long run on Saturday. Late Friday I was asked and agreed to lead the Running Company's long group run in the absence of the normal leaders. Normally this means significantly slower than normal pace but I got lucky and the only one to show up was a guy visiting from North Florida who's run Boston before and was probably in better shape than I am, so I got to enjoy running with a partner at the pace I wanted to run. We went through about 13.7 miles at a comfortable conversation pace of 7:43 while battling 88 degree temperatures and drowning humidity. It was definitely enjoyable running with a more evenly paired partner and certainly much easier to keep going when you're starting to get tired (I had neglected proper rest and food, opting for a Friday Happy Hour figuring on a super easy run so I was starting to feel things at mile 10.)
Over all a solid week, the legs are feeling strong and ready for another step up in millage climaxing with a 19 miler next weekend.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Chicago Marathon Training Week 8 Review
Fought through some ups and downs this week as I begin to really see the benefit of a training partner - or, more precisely, the difficulties of not having one. I read other's blogs about planning workout strategies with their partners and the pushing and boosts they get when running with someone else and find myself really wishing I had that support during some of my runs. It's great being able to discuss overall training strategy with Veronica since she already has a few marathons finished, but I still put in most of my miles by myself. Maybe in the next training cycle I'll get lucky and find someone training for the local marathon at about the same pace as I'm going...
Started this week a little rough, an easy 9 miler that can be described as anything but easy. For some reason there was a major disconnect between what my legs were telling me and what my Garmin was telling me. I sailed through the first mile thinking I might have been a little quicker than I was supposed to be, only to find out I was significantly slower than target pace. I found myself pushing much more than I felt I should have been just to hit my easy pace targets and my heart rate just wouldn't jump into the normal range. It wasn't that my legs were heavy, just things weren't adding up... It was a weird day...
Luckily I rebounded nicely by destroying my Yasso 800 workout on Wednesday. I even extended the workout it felt so easy and will probably go and change the other 2 Yasso workouts on the schedule to something slightly more challenging. Thursday was an easy run with the HHH (beer included) and Friday was another strong easy run where everything just felt easy and I even squeezed off a marathon pace mile to finish the workout.
Things came falling back to earth on Saturday however as my 17 mile fast finish effort turned into a 16 and change death march. The temperatures were soaring into the upper 80s before I finished the run and my fast finish effort yielded 2 sub 7 miles on the back half before stumbling in the last couple of miles after hitting the wall at about 15 (as opposed to averaging about 6:44 for the last 8 with the last 2 or so around 10k pace...) I tried one of the Razz Cliff Gus that will be on the menu at Chicago and had trouble choking it down without water at 9.5 miles, and despite hitting every water stop on my route (12 in all) I was majorly dehydrated by the time I stumbled in my front door. My only comfort (as self centered as it is) is that Veronica struggled with the long run as well and she already has 5 marathons and a BQ under her belt since she's been living and training in this heat. We'll probably be hitting the roads an hour earlier next week to try to save a few degrees.
The major lesson from this week's long run was that I really can't push distance and pace in these temperatures. My long runs are longer than I've ever run before, my weekly totals are higher than they've been in at least 8 years (if not ever) and I'm still trying to push pace in high 80 degree weather... I'm changing the last 2 FF runs to optional FF (if it's going to be below 80, which seems unlikely) and I'm just going to focus on getting quality miles in. My sub 3 goal for a first Marathon might be too ambitious, but I'm not giving up on it yet, but I need to make sure I don't kill myself or totally destroy my confidence in these long runs... Ah the joy of training in South Florida...
Started this week a little rough, an easy 9 miler that can be described as anything but easy. For some reason there was a major disconnect between what my legs were telling me and what my Garmin was telling me. I sailed through the first mile thinking I might have been a little quicker than I was supposed to be, only to find out I was significantly slower than target pace. I found myself pushing much more than I felt I should have been just to hit my easy pace targets and my heart rate just wouldn't jump into the normal range. It wasn't that my legs were heavy, just things weren't adding up... It was a weird day...
Luckily I rebounded nicely by destroying my Yasso 800 workout on Wednesday. I even extended the workout it felt so easy and will probably go and change the other 2 Yasso workouts on the schedule to something slightly more challenging. Thursday was an easy run with the HHH (beer included) and Friday was another strong easy run where everything just felt easy and I even squeezed off a marathon pace mile to finish the workout.
Things came falling back to earth on Saturday however as my 17 mile fast finish effort turned into a 16 and change death march. The temperatures were soaring into the upper 80s before I finished the run and my fast finish effort yielded 2 sub 7 miles on the back half before stumbling in the last couple of miles after hitting the wall at about 15 (as opposed to averaging about 6:44 for the last 8 with the last 2 or so around 10k pace...) I tried one of the Razz Cliff Gus that will be on the menu at Chicago and had trouble choking it down without water at 9.5 miles, and despite hitting every water stop on my route (12 in all) I was majorly dehydrated by the time I stumbled in my front door. My only comfort (as self centered as it is) is that Veronica struggled with the long run as well and she already has 5 marathons and a BQ under her belt since she's been living and training in this heat. We'll probably be hitting the roads an hour earlier next week to try to save a few degrees.
The major lesson from this week's long run was that I really can't push distance and pace in these temperatures. My long runs are longer than I've ever run before, my weekly totals are higher than they've been in at least 8 years (if not ever) and I'm still trying to push pace in high 80 degree weather... I'm changing the last 2 FF runs to optional FF (if it's going to be below 80, which seems unlikely) and I'm just going to focus on getting quality miles in. My sub 3 goal for a first Marathon might be too ambitious, but I'm not giving up on it yet, but I need to make sure I don't kill myself or totally destroy my confidence in these long runs... Ah the joy of training in South Florida...
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Yasso 800 Domination
Planned:
8 Yasso 800s @ 2:55
Actual:
1 mile w/u
12 Yasso 800s all faster than target
1 mile c/d
Total: 8 miles
Domination might be a strong descriptor, but the infamous Yasso 800 workout was way too easy yesterday. The idea behind Yasso 800s? You take your goal marathon time in hours and minutes (mine: 2 hours 55 minutes) and convert that to minutes and seconds (mine: 2 minutes 55 seconds). The workout is then to rotate intervals and rest jogs in this time. Pioneered by Bart Yasso who has run marathons on all 7 continents, the Yasso 800 workout is supposed to determine your readiness to run your goal time in the marathon. Run 10-12 of these intervals and you're ready for the marathon - or MIGHT be ready. Problem is it's one of those workouts that if you can't do it, you're not ready, but if you can, it doesn't really mean much as most people are better prepared for shorter faster events than the longer marathons...
My pacing wasn't particularly impressive as I was typically 4-5 seconds fast on the first 200 and then just cruised the rest of the interval. All my intervals were fast (2:52, 2:49, 2:50, 2:52, 2:51, 2:52, 2:53, 2:52, 2:51, 2:49, 2:51, 2:50) but none felt like I was pushing for time. The biggest struggle was going out slow enough to be on pace - only my 10th interval did I go through the first 200 in 44 seconds, only to complete the back side too fast. I started the workout targeting 8 intervals, got there and decided to keep going. I probably could have kept going all day as my legs still felt as strong at the end as I did at the beginning, but I was running out of water and needed to get ready for work and so headed home after 12 figuring that was sufficient domination of the workout.
Though I'm pretty happy I was able to cruise through this workout so easily, I have to say it probably wasn't as hard of a workout as I needed to do. The pace was too slow, the interval too short and the rest was too long. It feels good killing a planned workout every once in a while, but the remaining 2 Yasso workouts on the schedule are getting changed out for something a bit longer and a bit more challenging.
8 Yasso 800s @ 2:55
Actual:
1 mile w/u
12 Yasso 800s all faster than target
1 mile c/d
Total: 8 miles
Domination might be a strong descriptor, but the infamous Yasso 800 workout was way too easy yesterday. The idea behind Yasso 800s? You take your goal marathon time in hours and minutes (mine: 2 hours 55 minutes) and convert that to minutes and seconds (mine: 2 minutes 55 seconds). The workout is then to rotate intervals and rest jogs in this time. Pioneered by Bart Yasso who has run marathons on all 7 continents, the Yasso 800 workout is supposed to determine your readiness to run your goal time in the marathon. Run 10-12 of these intervals and you're ready for the marathon - or MIGHT be ready. Problem is it's one of those workouts that if you can't do it, you're not ready, but if you can, it doesn't really mean much as most people are better prepared for shorter faster events than the longer marathons...
My pacing wasn't particularly impressive as I was typically 4-5 seconds fast on the first 200 and then just cruised the rest of the interval. All my intervals were fast (2:52, 2:49, 2:50, 2:52, 2:51, 2:52, 2:53, 2:52, 2:51, 2:49, 2:51, 2:50) but none felt like I was pushing for time. The biggest struggle was going out slow enough to be on pace - only my 10th interval did I go through the first 200 in 44 seconds, only to complete the back side too fast. I started the workout targeting 8 intervals, got there and decided to keep going. I probably could have kept going all day as my legs still felt as strong at the end as I did at the beginning, but I was running out of water and needed to get ready for work and so headed home after 12 figuring that was sufficient domination of the workout.
Though I'm pretty happy I was able to cruise through this workout so easily, I have to say it probably wasn't as hard of a workout as I needed to do. The pace was too slow, the interval too short and the rest was too long. It feels good killing a planned workout every once in a while, but the remaining 2 Yasso workouts on the schedule are getting changed out for something a bit longer and a bit more challenging.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Chicago Marathon Training Week 7 Review
6 Runs
47 Miles
16 Mile Long Run
7 weeks of formal marathon training in the books, 11 to go. Though my running stats are not impressive by many standards, this week saw the highest millage of my recorded history (since HS) and my longest run ever. Combine that with the fact that, besides a nagging toe pain, I’m mostly injury free, and 2 of the last 4 weeks have been abbreviated by traveling and a strained back (moving injury), I feel it’s time to start rehashing the weekly training for posterity’s sake.
Last week was shortened by missed runs because of a trip to Mexico , the side effects of said trip, and a wedding weekend in Illinois Mexico
Wednesday I was at the track at 6 to do a 400 speed workout. The goal was 4x(4x400), but I was limited to 3 sets of 4x400 by time and my old racing flats destroying my heals. Each 400 was however a fair bit faster than goal (75 seconds vs. a goal of 80) and still feeling relatively easy – so I feel pretty comfortable with the workout as a whole.
I survived most of Friday’s marathon pace effort, cruising through 5 averaging just under the 6:44 / mile target, before succumbing to the 87 degree humid temperatures and phoning in the final 2 miles at 8:20 pace to make sure I’d have something for Saturday’s long run.
Saturday’s 16 miler felt relatively good. Veronica and I met up with Ali and Coston from the Running Company at 6:30 and I hung with them through the first 8 miles of the run at a very comfortable 9 min/mile pace (slightly slower than I should be going, I know.) At the turn around I picked the pace up to a still comfortable 7:20-7:30 pace. I was comfortable with the pace for the next 4 miles. A short unintentional race with another runner, which ended abruptly when the other runner decided to walk after 2 miles, saw my pace hit 6:20 at times despite me trying to let him go and just run easy. The pace, paired with temperatures approaching 87 (with a dew point around 77) forced my pace to slide to 8 min/mile with long stops at every water fountain to splash around and rehydrate. I also practiced with the energy gels – a gu at 7 and another at 10.5. Neither affected my stomach, but I’m not sure what the real effects were energy wise. After the run my legs felt surprisingly good, though the body was definitely dehydrated.
I’m finding with this Miami
Thursday, July 7, 2011
1600s let down
Planned:
5 x 1600 Starting at 6:00 and dropping 4 seconds per interval. 3 min rests.
Actual:
83F, HUMID, slight drizzle for the start of the workout, puddles on track.
1 mile w/u
4 x 1600 - 6:00, 5:56, 5:52, 5:52
800 - 2:44
.5 mile barefoot c/d
Sort of broke on this workout - finally had a track workout push my limits... I really need to start bringing water and ice to these afternoon workouts because the heat and humidity killed me on this one. Between each interval I jogged over to the water fountain to splash cold water on my face and neck, but I was quickly overheating during the intervals.
The goal of the workout was to really focus on split times. I've been pretty bad about judging pace lately, so I needed to focus on hitting good, even splits instead of just making up time to hit the overall split. Also, by getting progressively faster I would work on the negative split side of my racing. The intervals would start at my Cruise Interval pace for my half mile time and work towards my paces from my 5k time since I've been finding that the half marathon pace workouts seem too easy. Last time I did a 1600 workout I managed to run 4 at 5:53 or faster, so I figured this workout would be no problem. Different day, different temperatures, whatever it was, this workout got the best of me - I just hope it's not a sign of possible over training already...
First 3 intervals went alright. 1st interval the splits were dead on, 2nd interval the splits were off and I made up 6 seconds in the final lap, 3rd interval the splits were dead on again. For the 4th interval the first 800 was on, but the second 800 was slow. I was hurting as I started the last interval, but went through the first lap right on pace despite feeling slow and decided I would keep going as long as I was hitting the splits. I went through the 800 mark 2 seconds slow, thought I would keep going but 4 strides later decided I was done.
The mental indecision / weakness has me more worried than anything else in the workout. It's easy to sit here and say it was stupid and I should have kept pushing, but in the moment I just let it go. This is a problem with running alone, and something I'll really have to deal with before Marathon time, knowing that pushing through the wall will be the biggest challenge I face in Chicago.
5 x 1600 Starting at 6:00 and dropping 4 seconds per interval. 3 min rests.
Actual:
83F, HUMID, slight drizzle for the start of the workout, puddles on track.
1 mile w/u
4 x 1600 - 6:00, 5:56, 5:52, 5:52
800 - 2:44
.5 mile barefoot c/d
Sort of broke on this workout - finally had a track workout push my limits... I really need to start bringing water and ice to these afternoon workouts because the heat and humidity killed me on this one. Between each interval I jogged over to the water fountain to splash cold water on my face and neck, but I was quickly overheating during the intervals.
The goal of the workout was to really focus on split times. I've been pretty bad about judging pace lately, so I needed to focus on hitting good, even splits instead of just making up time to hit the overall split. Also, by getting progressively faster I would work on the negative split side of my racing. The intervals would start at my Cruise Interval pace for my half mile time and work towards my paces from my 5k time since I've been finding that the half marathon pace workouts seem too easy. Last time I did a 1600 workout I managed to run 4 at 5:53 or faster, so I figured this workout would be no problem. Different day, different temperatures, whatever it was, this workout got the best of me - I just hope it's not a sign of possible over training already...
First 3 intervals went alright. 1st interval the splits were dead on, 2nd interval the splits were off and I made up 6 seconds in the final lap, 3rd interval the splits were dead on again. For the 4th interval the first 800 was on, but the second 800 was slow. I was hurting as I started the last interval, but went through the first lap right on pace despite feeling slow and decided I would keep going as long as I was hitting the splits. I went through the 800 mark 2 seconds slow, thought I would keep going but 4 strides later decided I was done.
The mental indecision / weakness has me more worried than anything else in the workout. It's easy to sit here and say it was stupid and I should have kept pushing, but in the moment I just let it go. This is a problem with running alone, and something I'll really have to deal with before Marathon time, knowing that pushing through the wall will be the biggest challenge I face in Chicago.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Injured already
I kind of knew that at some point in this marathon training schedule I'd deal with some sort of injury. I have a knack of pushing it too hard and hurting myself. I just didn't think it would happen this early... Ironically it wasn't even a running injury that has sidelined me this week, but a moving one. I must have lifted one too many heavy boxes on Tuesday moving from my storage unit into the new house and my back went out. The last 3 days have been a steady regimen of heat packs, icy hot and Advil.
I feel like an old man in the mornings, barely able to roll out of bed, but the back loosens up towards the afternoon to the point that I probably could run if I needed to. However, I've made the decision to scrap this week and make sure this back doesn't turn into a larger problem. Luckily I'm early enough in the training schedule that this shouldn't set me back too much and I can let my back fully heal.
Hopefully I'll be back on schedule next week!
I feel like an old man in the mornings, barely able to roll out of bed, but the back loosens up towards the afternoon to the point that I probably could run if I needed to. However, I've made the decision to scrap this week and make sure this back doesn't turn into a larger problem. Luckily I'm early enough in the training schedule that this shouldn't set me back too much and I can let my back fully heal.
Hopefully I'll be back on schedule next week!
Friday, June 17, 2011
Marathon Training Plan
Well, after much research, deliberation and many revisions I think I have my 2011 Chicago Marathon Training plan. I've gone back and forth between what I thought might be too many hard workouts and what seemed like not enough, now erring slightly on the not enough side choosing to be slightly under-trained but fresh for the marathon rather than over trained, tired and possibly injured.
Runs & Pacing:
Most of my pacing is derived from mcmillanrunning.com's running calculator using my 1:23:30 half marathon time. For the longer runs heart rate will be a bigger determining factor of pace as my heart rate zone seems to give a slightly faster pace sometimes, and as the summer gets warmer here in Miami, paces might go out the window. Depending on how the training is going I may switch over to use my 5k time for the Cruise and Speed Interval paces.
Notes about the Plan:
- I've moved my long runs to Saturdays in order to give myself at least 1 weekend night with the possibility of going out (though I'm guessing I'll be pretty tired most weekends.) There's also a new group at a near by running store doing long runs on Saturdays so I might have some running partners for some of the runs.
- For the first half of the plan I have easy runs on Thursdays. This is to give me a chance to occasionally run with the Hash - junk miles (with beer!) but a fun group. When the weekend miles start getting more serious and requiring more focus, Thursday will become a rest day to prepare for the Friday/Saturday run and easy runs will move to Tuesday.
- There are 4 key workouts in this plan, the two 20 mile fast finish (FF) runs, the 23 miler (which will be slower with Veronica, but on hills in Ithaca) and the 13 mile Marathon Pace run. Since this is my first marathon build up I've decided to go with only 3 runs of 20+ miles (instead of the 4 I originally had) to make sure I avoid injury and see how I handle the miles.
- Depending on how my legs are feeling, the easy runs on Mondays may occasionally have some marathon pace or tempo pace miles mixed in to get a little more stamina work in the schedule.
- There is a step down week every 3rd week to let the body rest up for the next build up. This is a Hal Higdon strategy and I've used his long run schedule for the build ups.
My only concern with the plan at this point is that it might be a little easy on the threshold work, with more focus on endurance. With this being my first Marathon, I won't really have an idea if I'll be able to handle my target pace for 26.2 miles until about 24 miles into the marathon... Not something I can fix at this point, so I have my schedule, now I just need to stick to it!
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Cruise Interval Pyramid
Planned:
400 (90), 800 (3:00), 1200 (4:30), 1600 (6:04), 1200 (4:30), 800 (3:00), 400 (90)
30 second breaks after 400 & 800's, 1 min after 1200 and 2 min after 1600
Actual:
1 mile w/u
87, 2:58, 4:25, 5:55, 4:28, 2:52, 72
1 mile c/d
Total: 6 miles
Another track workout that perhaps felt too easy. I was able to focus on keeping the intervals smooth and easy. Breathing was starting to get a little labored for the 1600 but legs still felt good and pace never felt difficult. Legs started feeling it slightly during second 1200 and after, but wind was picking up as a storm was coming in and the pace was increasing a little.
At this point I have to be pretty happy at how easy this is feeling. According to mcmillanrunning.com these are the training paces I should be hitting if I was running a 2:56 marathon but I may have to start upping the difficulty to make sure I'm getting enough out of these workouts since I have limited speed/threshold work during my marathon training plan.
I was worried at the beginning of the workout that temperature was going to be a problem as it was 83, feels like 94 with 83% humidity (and this was down from 94F earlier in the day) But the thunderstorm that blew in helped keep the temperatures moderate (temps droped 5-10 degrees during workout), though the wind added something to the workout. It would be nice if the weather cooperated all summer!
400 (90), 800 (3:00), 1200 (4:30), 1600 (6:04), 1200 (4:30), 800 (3:00), 400 (90)
30 second breaks after 400 & 800's, 1 min after 1200 and 2 min after 1600
Actual:
1 mile w/u
87, 2:58, 4:25, 5:55, 4:28, 2:52, 72
1 mile c/d
Total: 6 miles
Another track workout that perhaps felt too easy. I was able to focus on keeping the intervals smooth and easy. Breathing was starting to get a little labored for the 1600 but legs still felt good and pace never felt difficult. Legs started feeling it slightly during second 1200 and after, but wind was picking up as a storm was coming in and the pace was increasing a little.
At this point I have to be pretty happy at how easy this is feeling. According to mcmillanrunning.com these are the training paces I should be hitting if I was running a 2:56 marathon but I may have to start upping the difficulty to make sure I'm getting enough out of these workouts since I have limited speed/threshold work during my marathon training plan.
I was worried at the beginning of the workout that temperature was going to be a problem as it was 83, feels like 94 with 83% humidity (and this was down from 94F earlier in the day) But the thunderstorm that blew in helped keep the temperatures moderate (temps droped 5-10 degrees during workout), though the wind added something to the workout. It would be nice if the weather cooperated all summer!
Friday, June 10, 2011
Marathon Training Resources
I recently published a post on my running blog about some different marathon training resources. It's not comprehensive by any means, but has most of the sources I've been using to construct my training plan.
Check it out here: http://runnerreborn.blogspot.com/2011/06/marathon-training-resources.html
Check it out here: http://runnerreborn.blogspot.com/2011/06/marathon-training-resources.html
Thursday, June 9, 2011
4x1200 Speed Work
Planned:
4x1200 @ 4:20, 400 jog between each
Actual:
1 mile w/u
4x1200 - 4:13, 4:16, 4:16, 4:15, 400 jogs (~2-2.5 min) between
half mile cool down
Total: 5.25 miles
Last night was the first track workout of my official Chicago Marathon Training (18 weeks!) I pretty much have my training plan finalized, but only have Speed Intervals or Cruise Intervals defined for my weekly track workouts - no individual workouts planned yet... So I was very indecisive leading into yesterdays "3 mile SI" especially having just run a terrible 5k Sunday evening.
I finally opted for 4 x 1200 at 4:20 pace or better (pulled from McMillan's Running Calculator). It was warm (83 +) and humid, but the wind seemed to keep things feeling okay. The pace seemed quick but pretty easy and the workout went by quickly without much mental struggle at all. (I guess I should have expected 5:49 pace to seem very easy after going through the first 1200 of the 5k at 4:50 pace).
I've realized I may need to pay more attention to my speed workouts after this one seemed so easy. Right now my speed fitness is far ahead of my stamina and endurance (not that that's saying much at this point) so basing all my workouts off my half marathon time may not be the best plan, however it should help prevent over training, and if training at these tempos feels easy, my goal marathon time (2:55 - also based on the half time) should be very attainable. It's also early in the training cycle, so the distances are somewhat low but I may have taken too much time between intervals as well. Obvious that more refining will be needed, but not a bad start to the training cycle!
4x1200 @ 4:20, 400 jog between each
Actual:
1 mile w/u
4x1200 - 4:13, 4:16, 4:16, 4:15, 400 jogs (~2-2.5 min) between
half mile cool down
Total: 5.25 miles
Last night was the first track workout of my official Chicago Marathon Training (18 weeks!) I pretty much have my training plan finalized, but only have Speed Intervals or Cruise Intervals defined for my weekly track workouts - no individual workouts planned yet... So I was very indecisive leading into yesterdays "3 mile SI" especially having just run a terrible 5k Sunday evening.
I finally opted for 4 x 1200 at 4:20 pace or better (pulled from McMillan's Running Calculator). It was warm (83 +) and humid, but the wind seemed to keep things feeling okay. The pace seemed quick but pretty easy and the workout went by quickly without much mental struggle at all. (I guess I should have expected 5:49 pace to seem very easy after going through the first 1200 of the 5k at 4:50 pace).
I've realized I may need to pay more attention to my speed workouts after this one seemed so easy. Right now my speed fitness is far ahead of my stamina and endurance (not that that's saying much at this point) so basing all my workouts off my half marathon time may not be the best plan, however it should help prevent over training, and if training at these tempos feels easy, my goal marathon time (2:55 - also based on the half time) should be very attainable. It's also early in the training cycle, so the distances are somewhat low but I may have taken too much time between intervals as well. Obvious that more refining will be needed, but not a bad start to the training cycle!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Marathon Training Begins to Take Shape
I’ve been deliberating over a marathon training plan for some time now, unable to find a premade one that I really liked. I’ve studied probably a dozen or so different plans but have been unable to find one that I believe will really suit me – they all seem too easy, too hard, too focused on speed work or too focused on one long run a week. To deal with this I have decided to combine elements of several of them to determine what I will be doing for the next 20 weeks or so. I have no experience developing a marathon plan so this is a risky proposition, but I’m hoping one that will work as I’m taking key elements from renown coaches (Hal Higdon, Greg McMillan, Brad Hudson, Jack Daniels to name a few) to develop a plan that I think is both challenging and doable and will focus more on my weaknesses as a distance runner.
My plan is still a work in progress, and will have to be flexible throughout the program as I will have to adjust to both my travel schedule and how my body seems to be reacting to the training, but here are some of the key components that I’m designing into the program;
My plan is still a work in progress, and will have to be flexible throughout the program as I will have to adjust to both my travel schedule and how my body seems to be reacting to the training, but here are some of the key components that I’m designing into the program;
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
The Need for Speed
After the FICPA 10k, it is pretty obvious that I needed to work on stamina more than anything. However, with a 5k race on Saturday and having been sick the last 2 days, I decided to keep Tuesday's run a relatively easy speed workout, just trading 4 of the 400 m speed intervals for 2 1000 m cruise intervals.
Target:
2 x 1000 ~ 3:35 (3min breaks)
4 x 400 ~ 78 (90 second breaks)
Actual:
2 x 1000 - 3:26, 3:31 (2 min break)
5 x 400 - 74, 75, 74, 74, 68 (90 second breaks)
2 miles warm up / cool down
Total 4.5 miles
Perhaps ironically, despite being sick both Monday and Tuesday, I was feeling great once I got on the track Tuesday evening, and if I didn't have my last 5k for a while on Saturday, I probably would have thrown in some more intervals.
Both my 1000m cruise intervals were fast as I had no idea on the pacing. Ideally I probably should have run several more to get the real stamina benefits, but I decided to stick to the more speed oriented workout and switched over to the 400s. The 400s were all slightly fast, but all felt under control, especially since I was dodging other people on the track the whole time (whatever happened to walking on the outer lanes?) I threw in 1 more closer to all out because I was feeling pretty good. (Is it sad that "closer to all out" has become a 68?)
Finished the workout feeling fine except for some tight calves. This was my fastest workout in at least a year so I'm feeling pretty good about it, despite how short it was. It's nice getting reacquainted with the track before the real workouts of marathon training start in another month or so...
Target:
2 x 1000 ~ 3:35 (3min breaks)
4 x 400 ~ 78 (90 second breaks)
Actual:
2 x 1000 - 3:26, 3:31 (2 min break)
5 x 400 - 74, 75, 74, 74, 68 (90 second breaks)
2 miles warm up / cool down
Total 4.5 miles
Perhaps ironically, despite being sick both Monday and Tuesday, I was feeling great once I got on the track Tuesday evening, and if I didn't have my last 5k for a while on Saturday, I probably would have thrown in some more intervals.
Both my 1000m cruise intervals were fast as I had no idea on the pacing. Ideally I probably should have run several more to get the real stamina benefits, but I decided to stick to the more speed oriented workout and switched over to the 400s. The 400s were all slightly fast, but all felt under control, especially since I was dodging other people on the track the whole time (whatever happened to walking on the outer lanes?) I threw in 1 more closer to all out because I was feeling pretty good. (Is it sad that "closer to all out" has become a 68?)
Finished the workout feeling fine except for some tight calves. This was my fastest workout in at least a year so I'm feeling pretty good about it, despite how short it was. It's nice getting reacquainted with the track before the real workouts of marathon training start in another month or so...
Race Review: FICPA 1040 10k
Much like my taxes were this year, the tax day 10k was disappointing, the only real highlight being the free beer after the race. This seems to be becoming a South Florida race trend for me – disappointing times accompanying race wins… I need to start figuring out how to push myself without competition. That and some race specific training might help…
The race in general was extremely slow this year. In 2008, the only year I could find race results for this race, 6 runners broke 36 minutes – my target time. This year I was the only runner to break 38 minutes – pretty sad really. The only excuse I can think of was the heat – an uncomfortable 80 degrees with 90% humidity. That and the course might have been a bit long – my GPS showing 10.2k, but my 10k time was still sad.
Full Post:
http://runnerreborn.blogspot.com/2011/04/race-review-ficpa-1040-10k.html
Friday, April 8, 2011
1600 Repeats
The first track work out of the year seems like a good time to start this training blog. I'll try to keep it posted with some of my more serious workouts, especially when I start my ramp up for Chicago in October.
4/7
Goals:
2 mile warm up/cool down
4x1600 @ 5:44 3 min rest
Actual:
Tropical Park
80 degrees, slight wind coming across the track.
1.5 mile warm up / cool down
4x1600 @ 5:52, 5:53, 5:53, 5:41 - 3 min rests
Total: 5.5 miles.
So I may have bitten off more than I could chew for a first track work out of the year. My times were a bit slow but that was partly due to what I was working out as splits... I planned to do this workout at goal 10k pace - which realistically should be about 36:26 (5:52/mile), but I'd love to go sub 36 (5:48/mile). Doesn't seem like a big difference, but it is... So I split the difference for the workout and planned 5:50 miles, and worked out the splits until I realized 1600 is a bit short, so I needed to be running 5:44 1600's to be on pace. Unfortunately I remembered and targeted the wrong splits during the first interval, and then just wanted to keep the pace even...
I recovered well between intervals, but had trouble keeping intensity up after the first 800. For the first 3 I went through the half 5 seconds fast and ended 2 seconds slower than target - a 7 second fade... not good for 1600 intervals. Called off the cool down a little early because the stomach was feeling off and no bathrooms at the track... Still, not going to be too mad about the workout considering I was dodging walkers and little kids on the track and it was my first speed work of the year, and first 1600 intervals in over a year... It's a slow road back, but I've started!
In retrospect a better workout would have been 1000m intervals at 10k pace or slightly faster. The race is just a week away so the goal was more learning the pace than strength training. I think for the race I'll work out the 1k splits and run on those rather than mile splits. It'll be my first 10k in 8 years so I'm pumped to see what I can do!
4/7
Goals:
2 mile warm up/cool down
4x1600 @ 5:44 3 min rest
Actual:
Tropical Park
80 degrees, slight wind coming across the track.
1.5 mile warm up / cool down
4x1600 @ 5:52, 5:53, 5:53, 5:41 - 3 min rests
Total: 5.5 miles.
So I may have bitten off more than I could chew for a first track work out of the year. My times were a bit slow but that was partly due to what I was working out as splits... I planned to do this workout at goal 10k pace - which realistically should be about 36:26 (5:52/mile), but I'd love to go sub 36 (5:48/mile). Doesn't seem like a big difference, but it is... So I split the difference for the workout and planned 5:50 miles, and worked out the splits until I realized 1600 is a bit short, so I needed to be running 5:44 1600's to be on pace. Unfortunately I remembered and targeted the wrong splits during the first interval, and then just wanted to keep the pace even...
I recovered well between intervals, but had trouble keeping intensity up after the first 800. For the first 3 I went through the half 5 seconds fast and ended 2 seconds slower than target - a 7 second fade... not good for 1600 intervals. Called off the cool down a little early because the stomach was feeling off and no bathrooms at the track... Still, not going to be too mad about the workout considering I was dodging walkers and little kids on the track and it was my first speed work of the year, and first 1600 intervals in over a year... It's a slow road back, but I've started!
In retrospect a better workout would have been 1000m intervals at 10k pace or slightly faster. The race is just a week away so the goal was more learning the pace than strength training. I think for the race I'll work out the 1k splits and run on those rather than mile splits. It'll be my first 10k in 8 years so I'm pumped to see what I can do!
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