Updates from February, 2012 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

  • bqx40 7:51 am on February 22, 2012 Permalink | Reply
    Tags:   

    Going back to the simplicity of the Runners World smart coach plan 

    This training plan was created using the Runner’s World SmartCoach iPhone app. To get your own plan, download SmartCoach from the App Store or create a plan online at http://www.runnersworld.com/smartcoach

    02/20/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    02/21/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    02/22/2012 – Tempo Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: Warm; 4 mi @ 7:17; Cool

    02/23/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    02/24/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    02/25/2012 – Long Run
    Distance: 14 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    02/26/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    02/27/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    02/28/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    02/29/2012 – Speedwork
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: Warm; 2×1600 in 6:49w/800 jogs; Cool

    03/01/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/02/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/03/2012 – Long Run
    Distance: 16 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/04/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    03/05/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/06/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/07/2012 – Tempo Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: Warm; 5 mi @ 7:21; Cool

    03/08/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/09/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/10/2012 – Long Run
    Distance: 18 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/11/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    03/12/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/13/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/14/2012 – Tempo Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: Warm; 6 mi @ 7:25; Cool

    03/15/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/16/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/17/2012 – Long Run
    Distance: 20 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    03/18/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    03/19/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    03/20/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    03/21/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    03/22/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    03/23/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    03/24/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    03/25/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    03/26/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 10 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    03/27/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    03/28/2012 – Speedwork
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: Warm; 3×1600 in 6:41w/800 jogs; Cool

    03/29/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    03/30/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    03/31/2012 – Long Run
    Distance: 16 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/01/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    04/02/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/03/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/04/2012 – Tempo Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: Warm; 7 mi @ 7:20; Cool

    04/05/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/06/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/07/2012 – Long Run
    Distance: 20 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/08/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    04/09/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/10/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/11/2012 – Tempo Run
    Distance: 10 mi
    Pace: Warm; 8 mi @ 7:24; Cool

    04/12/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/13/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 9 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/14/2012 – Long Run
    Distance: 20 mi
    Pace: 8:29

    04/15/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    04/16/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 5 mi
    Pace: 8:18

    04/17/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 5 mi
    Pace: 8:18

    04/18/2012 – Tempo Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: Warm; 5 mi @ 7:03; Cool

    04/19/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 5 mi
    Pace: 8:18

    04/20/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 5 mi
    Pace: 8:18

    04/21/2012 – Long Run
    Distance: 8 mi
    Pace: 8:18

    04/22/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    04/23/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 4 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    04/24/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    04/25/2012 – Tempo Run
    Distance: 7 mi
    Pace: Warm; 4 mi @ 7:17; Cool

    04/26/2012 – Easy Run
    Distance: 4 mi
    Pace: 8:39

    04/27/2012 – Rest / XT
    Distance: 0 km
    Pace: Easy

    04/28/2012 – Marathon Race Day
    Distance: 26.2 mi
    Pace: Marathon 7:33 Time: 3:18:04

     

  • bqx40 12:25 pm on July 26, 2011 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: , pfitzinger   

    The First Moment of Truth / Doubt #nycm #running 

    I don’t know if it’s a prioritization thing or a psychological thing, but I have yet to fill out my training plan completely, either in my RunningAhead.com Training Plan or in my Google Docs spreadsheet.

    Last week featured back-to-back 11 and 13 milers, ending with a 15 miler at the end of the week.

    Wednesday (tomorrow) and Sunday this week and next feature a 14 miler and an 18 miler.  Those seem pretty daunting at this point.

    It’s not the distance or weekly volume that has me apprehensive. I’ve went as far as 23 miles in training runs before. My plans have peaked with a few consecutive weeks around 80 miles per week. With this plan, my first 20 miler is still weeks away, and the plan peaks at 70 miles per week.

    One difference is that this plan is structured differently: My former (often improvised) 80+ mile plans consisted of lots of “doubles”: 2 runs in a day. It’s a little easier to squeeze in workouts when you do 7 miles, 5 miles, etc… then one 20 miler. I’m also trying to stay fairly faithful to the up-tempo and marathon pace long run schedule (so far).

    Another possible difference is that my work and family schedule have made me favor (almost exclusively) the early morning run. I was doing outdoor runs for some of those, but the excessively humid air on the one cool day in the middle of a long hot streak was so laden with gnats that I really haven’t had the interest in getting back out there in the darkness until it cools off a little.

    That leaves me running on the treadmill, and for the interest of time, the treadmill downstairs.

    For 2+ hours.

    Twice a week.

    Maybe I’ll venture outside tomorrow morning.

    Two 2+ hour runs on a treadmill in the same week.

     

  • bqx40 4:18 pm on October 17, 2010 Permalink | Reply
    Tags: goals,   

    Switching focus away from the marathon for a little while 

    I’ve had a combination of really good marathon experiences and really bad marathon experiences at this point.

    The race day experience doesn’t bother me too much. The marathon is a challenging distance to run well, because little problems early on (and even 24 hours before) multiply over the 26 mile 385 yard distance:

    • Blisters start before the halfway point.
    • Lack of proper fueling or hydration shows up between miles 15 and 20.
    • Unseasonably warm weather usually takes it’s toll for the 8-10 minute miler about the time you hit mile 20-23.
    • Eating the wrong thing that morning becomes exponentially nasty with every mile you’re out on the course.

    The problem is, I’ve had 3 bouts with injury, including one that occurred within 7 weeks of this year’s Chicago marathon. There’s an aggressive mileage target that I want to hit (80-100 miles per week) for the performance that I want out of my marathon. The mileage itself is not an issue: I’ve successfully run 80+ mile weeks before with only the expected fatigue. The problem is scheduling that mileage into my routine.

    I end up injured because I stubbornly stick to my mileage target on weeks that I don’t have the time to follow-through. That means that I:

    1. Stack too many runs in a day [triples with well over 20 miles total]
    2. Run too fast [within 10 seconds per mile of my marathon PR for every run]
    3. Start building up 5 or more miles per week at a time.

    I guess the whole “marathons disrupt a runner’s progress” line of thinking finally got to me. (See: The Marathon: A Race too Far?)

    I’ve completed 7 marathons so far, and I’ve only had a consistent 16 week training period for 3 of them.

    1. My first one was a 4:34 PR in Outer Banks, NC [My first marathon, ever]
    2. The second one was a 3:39 PR at Flying Pig.
    3. The third one was a 3:32 PR at the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon.

    The others? I came off of injury or ran 4-6 weeks after another marathon. Two of them were extremely hilly marathons:

    • 4:42 at Hatfield-McCoy six weeks after a 3:39 PR at Flying Pig (I also vacationed the week before and had sore leg muscles when I start).
    • 4:32 at Flying Monkey coming off of 6 weeks of injury.
    • 3:49 in Memphis after a 3:32 in Indianapolis–the second marathon wasn’t hilly and I was still in good shape.
    • 4:24:50 in Chicago after injury within 7 weeks of the race and 86’F high downtown.

    So far, it appears that the recipe for the greatest chance of success is having at least 16 solid, consistent weeks of training. Also, after running the marathon, my running takes a huge step backward for at least a month. To get to where I want to be for marathon training, I think I need to back off the focus on the marathon.

    So, instead, I’m going for some INSANELY lofty goals for my current ability–basically, race paces below 7 minutes for all races up to the half.

    • A 19 minute 5k
    • A sub-40 10k
    • A sub-70 10 miler
    • A sub-90 half

    I can do 5k training plans in increments of 4 weeks, and even the half in 12 weeks. I can also race a 5k every weekend without really risking injury if I run easy the rest of the week.

    Don’t think that I’m giving up on the marathon; I have a ticket that I need punched for the NYC marathon next year.

     

    • Mike Campbell 9:39 pm on October 17, 2010 Permalink | Reply

      I feel the same way, just with shorter distances. I ran my first 15k, which pales in comparison to a marathon. The week afterward, I was icing my leg every day. Although I’m glad I ran it, I realized how much more true training it takes to run the longer races. Any negative variable entered into the equation destroys months of training (eg illness, injury, weather, sleep, etc). If any of these variables hit family members, it affects me too. So the odds of all factors being optimal on a specific date are minimal. That’s why I am sticking with shorter distances and standing strong against peer pressure to do otherwise.

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