Back to the Track #5

I always figured that running fast races isn't about the race, it's about the training that goes on for the 6 months leading up to the race.  If that is true then this morning was a key event in my Ottawa race.  I was scheduled for trackwork and I had to be at work for an early meeting.  To fit it in I had to get up in the dark and wet (not my favorite activity).  Woke up 5 minutes after my cutoff to fit it all in, looked at the clock, looked out the window (couldn't see anything, but could hear the rain).  Made the decision to "man up" and go do my workout instead of staying in bed.

Ran to the track thru the rain, thinking "What am I doing this for?".  It didn't help that I stayed up late drinking too much red wine last night with friends.

After a couple miles warmup and some quick 100m strides I was feeling almost human and the rain had stopped and the sky was getting lighter.

Goal was 6 x 1,200meters in 4:33 (6:06 pace) with 90 seconds rest.  This was a little quicker than my last time (4:36 average, plus it was 6x vs 5x).  Here's how it went......

1. 4:34 - lap times were about 91,94,89 - lost focus in lap 2 and couldnt quite make it up in 3
2. 4:34 - similar laptimes - I definitely need to work on that second lap
3. 4:37 - same problem in lap 2 but didnt pick it up for lap 3 - got to nail #4 or this is going to get ugly.
4. 4:33 - nailed it, felt pretty good.
5. 4:35 - again, it got sloppy in lap 2
6. 4:29 - 90,90,89 - solid last rep, but not a lot of fun.

Average was 4:34, which is 6:07 pace (that's a 19:00 5k).  Felt happy with the result and very happy with the decision to get my ass out of bed and do the workout in the first place!

Next trackwork will be probably in two weeks, when I'll see if I can get down to 6x1200 in 4:30.

Weekly Summary

My first real week of marathon training is over.  Officially it is week 3, but the first 2 weeks got messed up by work and the Kaiser half marathon.  No excuses this week!

Here's the plan, and how it turned out...

• Day - Plan - Actual 
  
• Mon - rest - rest
  
• Tue - 5m easy - 5m, started easy, but ended up way too fast at 6:06 pace - 7:30 overall - i'm blaming the guy i ran with
  
• Wed - 12 miles easy - 9 miles easy - didn't feel like doing the full 12
  
• Thu - 7m easy w some strides - skipped due to work, plan to double friday
  
• Fri - 6m tempo, 9 overall - AM 6m at 6:46 8.25m overall - PM 7.5m easy (7:45ish)
  
• Sat - 8 miles easy - 8.5m easy
  
• Sun - long run, 17 miles - 16.5 hilly miles w 3 at marathon pace (6:54 )
  
• Total - 58 miles - 54.3 miles 
  

So a solid week, and the tempo on Friday was pretty good, holding 6:46 with level heartrate for 6 miles.  Next week will be about the same mileage, but on just 5 runs.  I'm resting Monday, and will be flying to Hawaii on the Sunday.

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!