Kaiser Half

So the plan was to get under 1:30, which is 6:52 pace.  There's a pretty generous downhill so that was my buffer, the plan for the rest of the miles was to try and run 6:52 pace.

Here's how it went...

• Got thru the first 5 in 34:15, so about 5 seconds ahead of plan. Felt pretty comfortable
  
• Next 2 included the hill so I flew when I could, and they went by in 13:01, so some money in the bank there. 
  
• Miles 8 and 9 were OK at 6:49 - managed to ge back into a steady rhythm.

Then it got tough....

• Mile 10 6:57 and feeling like crap.  I could see the 1:30 slipping away and realised I needed to pick it up and get back on pace.  
  
• Mile 11 was back to 6:52 but it wasn't pretty and I was having no fun.
  
• Mile 12 and things were really hurting, but somehow managed to hold it together for a 6:58.
  
• Final mile+ .11 includced an uphill.  It was ugly (that picture above was on the final approach at the end of an uphill section - I was feeling even worse than I looked) time was 7:36, which is 6:51 pace - not sure how I did that.
  
• Overall ran 1:29:24 which is 6:49 pace.  Came about 240th out of about 5,000. I was happy with the result and the fact that I ran basically according to plan.  I also now have a real gauge of my fitness so I can fine tune my training paces.

It was about 2 minutes slower than my time at this race last year, so I have my work cut out to get into sub 3 hour shape by the end of May.  Next up: Shamrock'n"Half in mid March - daunting goal of under 1:27.......

January Summary

Month one of 2009 is complete.  I think I have got back to reasonable training, but didn't really get started with my marathon training plan.  I think that having a half marathon 2 weeks into the polan isn't really conducive to a structured plan.  After tomorrow's activities I will get serious on the marathon plan - it's still 16 weeks to go so I have plenty of time.

• Miles - 191.9
  
• Biggest week - 52.76
• Long runs - 16.5, 13.5, 2 more 10+
  
• Track - 2 workouts
  
• Tempos - 4 runs
  
• Hills - lots
  

February should be around 240 miles, with a big week of about 65.  Weekend long runs getting up to 20, starting to do midweek medium runs (12-15), a couple track workouts and continued weekly tempos (but stretching them out to 6-7 miles at pace).  I'm going to keep the rest day on Monday, as I think that will help me avoid getting injured quite so quick.  

Pre Race Tune-Up

I'm a little worried about this half marathon on Sunday, and wondering if I am doing something dumb thinking I can get under 1:30.  Training is going well, but I haven't been back long and I haven't done a lot of long runs.  So this morning I looked back over my training log to just before the first time I broke 1:30.  In terms of weekly mileage, I'm doing about the same.  The first time I'd been training solidly for about 3 months post injury, this rime it's only been about 2.  

Last time I'd kept up my fitness with some pool running, whereas this time I just got lazy and fat.  Weight wise, I'm a couple pounds heavier, but that's OK.  Speedwise, I was running my workouts slower back then.  No real trackwork, and tempos were 6:50, vs 6:30-6:40 now.  So that's good.

As a scientific comparison, this morning I decided I'd mirror my pre-race tuneup from before that first sub 1:30 race.  It was about 6 miles, with the middle 3 at an average 6:52 pace.  I have GPS tracks for all my runs so I could run the exact same route and had detailed splits.  Here's how it went....

• Split, Last time, this time
  
• 0-0.5m 6:56 6:41
  
• 0.5-1m 6:52 6:42
  
• 1-1.5m 6:45 6:40
  
• 1.5-2m 7:00 6:43
  
• 2-2.5m 6:50 6:43
  
• 2.5-3m 6:49 6:40
  
• Ave 6:52 6:42 - Heartrate was about the same for both runs.

So bottomline is that I am better shape than I was when I did my first sub 1:30, and this is a faster course (Kaiser this time, first half of CIM last time). Plus the weather looks like it will be good (51 with no wind).  So I need to stop wussing about and just go for it!

I'm going to pace for 6:52 for the first 5 miles, then we get the easy 2 downhill miles, which should be good for 20-30 seconds, then go back to 6:52 pace thru mile 10 and see how I am feeling.  If it's bad, I should be able to drop back to low 7s and still hit 1:30.  If it's good I could try to get down to 6:40 and have a shot at 1:29.

Weekly Summary

First official week of marathon training is done.  It was probably the least structured week I've run ever.  No real plan at all, but overall some good running.

• Monday - was a day off so did a hilly 14 miler in Rancho San Antonio
• Tuesday - took my rest day
• Wednesday - work got in the way and I took another rest day
• Thursday - 5x1,200 in 4:36 at the track
• Friday - easy 5 miler
• Saturday - 10 miles with 5 at 6:42 - good workout
• Sunday - very hilly 12 miler in Marin Headlands - great run
• Total - 49 miles

Next week will also be a weird one as I have the Kasier Half Marathon on Sunday.  I'll skip tomorrow, do a short tempo Tuesday, some pace miles on Friday and the rest will be easy runs.  Still picking my goal for Sunday, my brain is saying that 7 minute pace (1:31:46) is the sensible thing to do, but that seems real close to 1:30 so I suspect I will end up starting fast and then going for sub 1:30.  That may well end badly, but will at least give me a real read on my fitness level.

Back to the Track #4

After skipping a couple days of running due to work getting in the way, this evening was track time.  The plan was 5x1,200 meters, with a short 90 second rest between each.  Goal time was 4:41, which is 6:17 pace.  So a little slower than the 800s I did the week before, but obviously it's 3 laps instead of 2.

• #1 was 4:39 and felt OK
• #2 was 4:38 and felt OK too
• #3 was a little tougher but came in at 4:37
• #4 was not too bad and was 4:36
• #5 went out fast in 1:27 and decided to keep going, ran a 4:29

Average of 4:36 and each was getting faster - very happy with that.  Personally I find these easier than the 800s, even with the shorter rest.  I think the difference between 6:00 pace and 6:15 is pretty key for me right now.  

That's my last track workout before the Kaiser half when I will get my first real test of how much of my fitness has returned.

Weekly Summary

A week of running in perfect weather has come to an end.  The temps have been getting up to over 70 during the day, but it's still been chilly in the mornings (somedays down to the mid 30s).  So you have a great range of weather to run in and no matter when you run, it's been sunny with zero wind.  Compared to the current weather in much of the world right now I am very spoiled here in California.

• Monday - rest day.  this is becoming a regular thing and will probably help a lot
• Tuesday - tempo day.  did 3.5 miles at 6:33 and then another 1.5 at 6:40 - 7 overall
• Wednesday - easy 5.5 miles
• Thursday - track day - 6x800 in 2:59 with equal recovery - hard, but fun
• Friday - skipped a day.  busy with work, cricked neck, shins hurt
• Saturday - easy long run of 13.5 miles.  felt very comfortable.  best long run since surgery
• Sunday - easy 7.5 miles - 8:15 out, 7:45 back - very relaxed

Overall a good week.  I feel better than I have since surgery and the week included 2 solid workouts.

It is now 18 weeks to Ottawa.  I booked my flights, hotel and regsitered for the race this weekend, so I'm going.  Training starts tomorrow officially, although I am yet to completely define the plan.  It will probably be something out of Daniels of Pfitzinger, with a little more speedwork than before but less mileage. 

Back to the Track #3

I decided to run at the track again this week.  I was going to do 5x1,200 but my friend was also planning trackwork and wanted to do 800s.  So I figured I'd do them with him instead.  He's faster than me and was planning to do 6x800 in 3:00, with 3:00 rest.  (he's been doing these in the past with 90 seconds recovery but decided to extend the rest as he increases the reps - ultimately up to 10).  These are the standard Yasso 800s that most people have heard of. (Google "Yasso 800" if you haven't)

I figured I'd start at 3:00 and see how many I could hang on for.

• #1 - 3:00 - last 200 was tough
  
• #2 - 3:00 - last 300 was tough
  
• #3 - 2:59 - last 300 was tough
  
• #4 - 3:00 - last 400 was tough
  
• #5 - 3:00 - last 400 was tough
  
• #6 - 2:55 - tough from about 300 in, but still decided to kick for last 200 - ouch.

I was happy that I managed to hang on for all 6.  I was nowhere near as comfortable as my friend, who ran most of them in 2:55-2:57.  And there is no way I could have run 4 more today at 3:00, but by Ottawa I intend to get up to x10 at something round about 2:50.

Another week rebuilding

One more rebuilding week is over.  One more togo before I start on an 18 week training program for Ottawa.  Still need to work out exactly what that plan is but it will certainly be lower mileage than I was running before.  I am going to keep the rest day in the plan for now, and keep double days to a minimum.  That should keep the mileage down in the 55-65 range, with perhaps a few peak weeks in the low 70s.  With the lower mileage I'll probably have a little more fast paced stuff, which will be a change for me.  Will be interesting to see if it works for me or not.

This week was OK, a couple reasonable runs and the rest was just easy miles.  I started the week feeling the effects of last Sunday's long run and for the first time since surgery was feeling a little pain in my abs.  It was still there after Tuesday's tempo run so I was getting a little worried I'd strained something.  When it was still there after Friday's easy miles I was thinking that I was in trouble.  But after Saturday's longer run it seems to have gone away.  And Sunday was completely back to normal.

Last week looked like this......

• Mon - rest
  
• Tue - 3.5 miles tempo at 6:33 (8 miles overall) - probably a little fast for me right now
  
• Wed - recovery 5 - super slow and really sluggish
  
• Thu - easy 7 - ran with a group, but still felt sluggish
  
• Fri - easy 6 - felt OK, but not exactly sprightly!
  
• Sat - 10 miles w 3.5 miles at 6:40 - this was a struggle clsoing out that 3.5 section
  
• Sun - easy 7 w 1 fast mile (6:40) - felt really good
  
• Total 43 miles

Next week should be 45-50 with a tempo on Tuesday, possibly a visit to the track Thursday for some 1,200s and around 14 on Saturday.  Everything else will be easy runs in the 5-7 mile range.

Weekly Summary

Training is back to normal, so I am going back to weekly summaries on the blog.

• Mon - rest day - decided to spread these out this year, instead of doing them in a big 3 month chunk in the fall
  
• Tue - 5.5 miles recovery (9:28 )
  
• Wed - 5 miles tempo (6:48 ), 7.4 miles overall
  
• Thu - 8.8 miles easy (8:03 )
  
• Fri - 6.9 miles easy (8:15 )
  
• Sat - 7.62 miles easy (8:09 )
  
• Sun - 16.5 miles easy (7:53) w 1.6 miles at HMP (6:45)
  
• Total - 52.76 miles
  

A good week, although I skipped teh track workout that I had planned for Friday.  Was feeling a little tightness in my achilles so decided against it.

Similar plans for this week.

2008 - A Year in 2 Parts

So the graph above pretty much says it all. The first seven months were excellent, with a big PR in the Edinburgh marathon (3:06) and some solid months of running (peak at 429 in July). If things had continued I would have had a shot of meeting some of my 2008 race goals (all of which I missed, many by a long margin). But that's how it goes. Sports hernias took care of the next 4 months and August thru November saw nothing but painful, slow and finally some recovery miles. December has been much better, and I feel I am getting back on track.

For 2009, I have similar goals to those from last year:

Distance

1. Goal
2. Stretch Goal
3. Super Stretch Goal

Marathon

1. sub 3 hour [DONE 10/11 2:58:13]
2. sub 2:55 - not attempted
3. sub 2:50 - not attempted

Half Marathon

1. sub 1:27 [DONE 3/16 - 1:25:28]
2. sub 1:25 [DONE 7/26 - 1:23:47]
3. sub 1:20 - not attempted

10k

1. sub 40 [DONE 4/23 - 38:38, 11/15 - 38:22, 11/26 - 38:07]
2. sub 38 - attempted twice
3. sub 36 - not attempted

5k

1. sub 19 [DONE 3/9 - 18:53, 9/27 - 18:23, 12/5 - 18:13]
2. sub 18 - attempted twice
3. sub 17:30 - not attempted

Mile

1. sub 5:30 - [DONE 12/12 - 5:02* (downhill!) ]
2. sub 5:15 - [DONE 12/12 - 5:02* (downhill!) ]
3. sub 5:00 - attempted once

I have a pretty solid plan laid out to get me though the end of May and the Ottawa marathon (This should allow me to meet most of the first goals for each distance). Beyond that I have a somewhat softer plan, that has me doing either New York in November or Cal International in December. If training is going well and I have a realistic chance to hit my 2:55 or 2:50 goals I expect I'll shoot for CIM as NY is not a particularly fast course. I'll have plenty of chances to do half marathons along the way, not sure exactly when I am going to fit in the 10k, 5k and mile races.

One other thing for training this year is that I am going to take more recovery days. I am thinking that if I do that I can perhaps avoid taking 3-4 months of like the last couple years.

Happy New Year!

Back to the Track #2

Track workout today.  Time for some more 1200 meter repeats.  3 hard laps then 90 seconds jog/recovery.  Do that 4 times, trying to do the 1200s in 4:45, which is 6:22 minutes/mile.

Perfect weather - no wind, low/mid 40's, bright blue sky.  It was busier than usual, with a couple people walking aimlessly around the track and a couple people running laps but nothing I couldn't dodge around.

• First 1200 was 4:38 with heartrate averaging 163 and peaking at 174
  
• Second 1200 was 4:35 with HRs of 157/175
  
• Third 1200 was 4:43 with HRs of 170/180 (started way too fast on this one, and paid for it)
  
• Fourth 1200 was 4:38 with HRs of 172/180
  

Average of 4:39, so I was happy with being 6 seconds faster than plan (and 12 seconds faster than last week).  I always think that if you can't hit the last one on pace then you have screwed up the workout.  Next week I'll add one more repetition so it will be 5x1200 at 4:45.

Overall things are going really well.  I've run the last 5 days thru wind, rain, sunshine and mud and done 2 good workouts (short tempo on Tuesday and today's track session).  Some easy miles tomorrow then a new long run (probably up to 13) on Sunday.  Should bring me close to 50 for the week.

Double Digits!

Ran a hilly 11.5 miler this morning - my first double digit run since early August.  A cold start (for California) at about freezing, but it was sunny and there was no wind so it was still shorts weather.  A Nice gentle climb for the first 3 1/2 miles and it hits the trails of Rancho San Antonio with a pretty silly mile to get up to 1,100'. Then it's a longer downhill down through the reserve before dropping back out onto the roads at about 7 miles.  A beautiful run, with some amazing views of the bay.

The steep mile was much too steep for me to run so it was a run/walk section (which was at a pretty pedestrian 14 minute pace....)

Felt pretty good on the run, but that big hill definitely kicked my butt.  Mind you, I wouldn't have been running all the way up that even when I was fit.

For the first time post surgery I can feel a little ache down below, so I think I may have been a little too aggressive these past 2-3 weeks.  I've run 17 out of the last 19 days and have done a tempo run, speedwork and a long hill run in just the last 4 days.  That would have been tough even when I was in shape.

Time to ease off a little bit I think and plan a slightly easier week over Christmas and then it'll be 2009.