Today's assignment was to run a 10k. There were no local races that I knew of, so I decided to run a 10k course that I have raced once before, that I had set my PR. But that was almost 3 years ago. It is the Layton "Classic" 10k course. The Course is relatively flat for the first mile, then climbs about 300 feet over the next 2 miles. Not horrible, but still a climb and that would average between 3-4% grade over that distance. The part I love is that after you get to the half-way point, it is basically all downhill from there.
I set another PR today. My time was 43:43. I was really happy about this for several reasons. First, just setting a PR after a really strenuous workout week is fabulous. Second, I was really trying to focus on not going out too fast. My goal for the first mile was to run it in 7:15. With the long gradual uphill starting after that mile, it is important to feel strong on that climb. I did a warm-up first, just like I would for a race. I was really glad I did that as my legs did not feel very fresh when I first started running. I did go out faster then it felt I was running, which was a 6:45 min/mile pace. I slowed down and hit the one mile mark at 7:12. I did the next mile in 7:31, which I felt really good about. That second mile usually takes me 8:30 to do. The third mile I did in 7:42. Again, I felt quite good as that third mile usually takes me 9:00 to do. I hit the half-way point at 22:49. Now it was basically all downhill, and that first mile of the downhill felt particularly sweet. I finished the second half in 20:54, which means I averaged a 6:48 mile. I looked at my GPS watch more than usual, and I kept seeing that I was running under 6:30. If that had been in the first half I would have been nervous, wondering if I was going to have enough left in the tank, but since it was the second half I just kept on going. A very good day! : )
If you are new to running or you are what is referred to as a "recreational runner", this may all seem a bit obsessive to you. Well, it is : ) To be competitive you have to have some obsessiveness about you. It really won't work any other way. A guy I work with, who is 14 years my junior and normally is very laid back, is quite a runner. And the thing which motivates him is that I am older than him and he doesn't want me to catch him (in speed). He is just a little ahead of me, but his sense of competition keeps him going. Additionally, you have to know your times to understand where you need to improve. I hate hills, but now smaller hills are tolerable. The two mile climb today was not horrendous, though I was very glad when it was over. Last, you need to know your split times (what specifically one refers to as a "split time" varies - could be laps among other things, but a common split time is the first half of the distance vs. the second half). Research shows that people who set PRs usually have a negative split, meaning the second half is faster than the first. Some people do set split times with a positive split time (meaning the second half was slower than the first), but they are in the minority.
Why is this important? The SLC half-marathon is downhill almost the first 6.5 miles. Then it levels out for the next 4.5-ish miles, and then about mile 11 it starts a gradual uphill for nearly a mile, with the last ~300 meters a good climb. After that it is a gradual descent. That is where I got a cramp last year, and I never get cramps when I run. That made it so I could not run that last mile like I wanted to. So I have to PR with a positive split time. Of all courses to do it on, this is the one. I will have to hit the half way point at least at 42:15 (a 6:30 min mile) if I am to have any hope of breaking 1:30, and that doesn't give me much room to spare. I cannot exceed a 7:13 pace the second part of the half if I hope to get below that 1:30 mark. Let's just hope the weather cooperates.
Total miles for week = 44.99 (with the warm-up today I ran 6.49 miles)
Saturday, March 26, 2011
3/24/11 (Friday) Run
Today was just an easy run of 4 miles that I did in 30:40.
It was so nice to have an easy run to do today. This is one of the hardest, if not the hardest, weeks of training I have had so far. Remember I said previously to never do two hard workouts in a row? Well, this training plan had me do four hard workouts in a row this week. It is something I normally would never do and it goes against all I have read (and some of my running friends echo my sentiments). But, I need to have faith that whoever put this plan together knew what they were talking about. The really good "sign" about this is that I have done four hard workouts in a row and no injuries.
It was so nice to have an easy run to do today. This is one of the hardest, if not the hardest, weeks of training I have had so far. Remember I said previously to never do two hard workouts in a row? Well, this training plan had me do four hard workouts in a row this week. It is something I normally would never do and it goes against all I have read (and some of my running friends echo my sentiments). But, I need to have faith that whoever put this plan together knew what they were talking about. The really good "sign" about this is that I have done four hard workouts in a row and no injuries.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
3/24/11 (Thursday) Run
I ran 8 miles in 57:22. The assignment was to run 2X3 miles with a 2 min recovery between them. I wasn't sure how much I had left in the tank after the past two days of hard running. But I managed to maintain an 8.6 mph (6:58) for the first 3 mile set and the for the second one I ran the first 2 miles at 8.6 mph and then increased it by .1 mph each quarter mile in the final mile. Sort of surprised myself. A lot of this is psychological.
3/23/11 (Wednesday) Run
I ran 13 miles in 1:36:37 today. The goal was to do it in 1:33:00. I was nearly on pace to do it by the end of mile 9, but the last 4 miles were very difficult. This run was very tiring.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
3/22/11 (Tuesday) Run
Today I ran 7.5 miles in 51:51. The goal was to do 16X400 meter intervals with a one minute recovery between each interval. I did all intervals at 10.0 mph (6:00 min mile pace). There is no doubt this was a very hard workout and one I would not recommend unless you have properly trained for it. It is easy to injure yourself doing this workout without the proper training, something I have done in the past.
I must admit, I did not have the confidence going into this workout. Still somewhat fatigued from yesterday, I knew it would be hard. I made it through by concentrating on just doing 3 sets of 5 with a "bonus" one at the end. That helped tremendously. My mind tried to talk me into going slower for the last 8, but I just practiced "not thinking about it" and doing just one at a time. I am recovering pretty good, but still a little tired. The good news is I am pretty sure one year ago I would not have been able to do this workout.
Update: While my sweetheart was running tonight I took my bike out and rode 10 miles. It felt great! Just a nice ride and pushed myself a couple of times just for the fun of it. I did the 10 miles in about 40 minutes, which is a 15 mph average. The thing that I was thinking while riding, and that amazes me, is that is just a little faster than the professional marathoners run a marathon. Amazing!
I must admit, I did not have the confidence going into this workout. Still somewhat fatigued from yesterday, I knew it would be hard. I made it through by concentrating on just doing 3 sets of 5 with a "bonus" one at the end. That helped tremendously. My mind tried to talk me into going slower for the last 8, but I just practiced "not thinking about it" and doing just one at a time. I am recovering pretty good, but still a little tired. The good news is I am pretty sure one year ago I would not have been able to do this workout.
Update: While my sweetheart was running tonight I took my bike out and rode 10 miles. It felt great! Just a nice ride and pushed myself a couple of times just for the fun of it. I did the 10 miles in about 40 minutes, which is a 15 mph average. The thing that I was thinking while riding, and that amazes me, is that is just a little faster than the professional marathoners run a marathon. Amazing!
3/21/11 (Monday) Run
I ran 7 miles in 48:39. That is an average of 6:57 min/mile pace. I was a little surprised I did so well after pushing myself on Saturday.
3/19/11 (Saturday) Run
I ran 12 miles in 1:29:51 (7:29/mile pace average). The goal was to do it in 1:23:00, but I definitely did not want to exceed 1:30:00. Right now I am running on pace with my PR half-marathon time of last year. That is important because I don't have the adrenaline of the race pumping through my veins (meaning it helps me go faster) and what I ran today was flat for 7 miles and then a .5-1% grade for the remaining 5 miles. The race is mostly downhill for the first half and then levels off with a climb in the 11th mile of about .5 miles.
I am cautiously optimistic at this point of breaking the 1:30:00 mark. I am confident I will PR this race, but am not 100% confident about the 1:30 mark. We'll see. Today I concentrated most on the first 7 miles, averaging a 7:14 mile. While not spectacular, that is pretty good for 7 miles.
Total mileage for the week was 38 miles.
I am cautiously optimistic at this point of breaking the 1:30:00 mark. I am confident I will PR this race, but am not 100% confident about the 1:30 mark. We'll see. Today I concentrated most on the first 7 miles, averaging a 7:14 mile. While not spectacular, that is pretty good for 7 miles.
Total mileage for the week was 38 miles.
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