Ran a 10k in June (3 Viewers)

[jmcc]

My "coach": Reading meeka's concerns about being undertrained (we all feel that with certain races) and wondering about the challenges of those late marathon miles causes me to comment on my "coach." I've found in my hard training and - when I remember - in my races, to try and get 'outside' myself and take a more detached view of where I'm at. I don't try to escape with, or rely on, music, though that seems to work great for many of you. For me, I visualize a "coach" who is assessing where I'm at and what I need to be doing. "What would coach be saying right now?" I try to ask myself. Coach might remind me to focus on my breathing, or my cadence ...to put a little more hip into my stride when my length is slipping; to relax my arms and let some stress out; to land with a good footstrike and run quietly; to work the turns as a way to focus. Coach reminds me in the pool to turn the wrist and grab the water; to focus on my thumb/index finger combo for a good exit. Coach tells me to feel the circular motion on the bike; to stay aero.

This is all helpful during the difficult parts of a race (or workout), where the mind, if left to its own devices, will easily slip into negative thoughts. "I won't be able to maintain this pace much longer; a little walking won't hurt; I'll take my time through the next water stop; this hurts too much to keep pushing; it's too hot to have a good race time today." My "coach" can get me away from those thoughts and get me focused on other things ...race things ...technique.

A variation of this is to plan a mantra to use. A word or words or a phrase that reinforce the rhythm and pace. In my recent tri, having just read an article on ultra/uber-athlete David Goggin, I used "Goggin" as my mantra. That's what got me up every hill. "Goggin," exhale, "Goggin," exhale ... I didn't think about how much of the hill remained, or how I felt, I just focused fully on the word - nothing else. I faltered over the last couple miles of that race, and as I thought back, I realized my "coach" wasn't with me. My weak, tired mind had full control, reminding how wiped I was, and those thoughts held me back to some degree.

Cool advice, thanks

 

[gruecd]

Hey, guys. Schedule called for 6 miles plus 6 x 100M strides last night, but I decided to 8 miles plus strides intead. Gonna try to get to 60 miles again this week, so I need to add a couple here and there.

Tonight I've got another tough tempo workout. I like doing interval work, but I always dread doing tempos. It'll be a 4-mile warmup, followed by 7 miles in the low 6:50's and then a mile cool-down. It's supposed to be a little less humid tonight, so hopefully it will be do-able. As much as I don't look forward to doing these, they're HUGE confidence boosters if you can nail them.

Have a great day, everybody!

 

[The_Man]

Slogged through 3 miles this a.m. at an 8:29 pace. Am beginning to realize that I need to warm up before beginning my runs. At this point, I am actually running faster paces on my 4-miles runs than my 3 mile runs, as I run negative splits once my legs loosen up and I hit my stride.

Yesterday was a day off, but rather than feel fresh, my legs felt like a couple of sacks of lead for at least the first half-mile. And it wasn't until 1.5 miles that I really felt like I hit my stride and began running rather than slapping my feet along the pavement.

What's a good warm-up? And how do I strike that balance of getting my legs loose without overexerting myself before I even begin my "real" run?

 

[tri-man 47]

What's a good warm-up? And how do I strike that balance of getting my legs loose without overexerting myself before I even begin my "real" run?

A couple things that might help: (1) as you're doing a warm-up jog, do several 'butt kicks' ..sling your foot back so you're basically kicking yourself in the butt, and (2) do several leg/knee lifts ...almost running in place, lift the knees real high in front of you. This should help loosen up and stretch out the muscles. Throw a few accelerations on top of this, and you should be good to go. These seem to help me, versus just jogging a mile or more to warm up (as you mention).

 

[gruecd]

What's a good warm-up? And how do I strike that balance of getting my legs loose without overexerting myself before I even begin my "real" run?

A couple things that might help: (1) as you're doing a warm-up jog, do several 'butt kicks' ..sling your foot back so you're basically kicking yourself in the butt, and (2) do several leg/knee lifts ...almost running in place, lift the knees real high in front of you. This should help loosen up and stretch out the muscles. Throw a few accelerations on top of this, and you should be good to go. These seem to help me, versus just jogging a mile or more to warm up (as you mention).

See, and I do like to just take the first 1-2 miles super easy to warm up. Another case of whatever works for you, I guess.

 

[BassNBrew]

Slogged through 3 miles this a.m. at an 8:29 pace. Am beginning to realize that I need to warm up before beginning my runs. At this point, I am actually running faster paces on my 4-miles runs than my 3 mile runs, as I run negative splits once my legs loosen up and I hit my stride. Yesterday was a day off, but rather than feel fresh, my legs felt like a couple of sacks of lead for at least the first half-mile. And it wasn't until 1.5 miles that I really felt like I hit my stride and began running rather than slapping my feet along the pavement.What's a good warm-up? And how do I strike that balance of getting my legs loose without overexerting myself before I even begin my "real" run?

I have the same issue. It takes about 1-2 miles to get the calf burn / heavy leg feeling to come and go. I'd run at 1:00 to 1:30 slower than your planned pace.

 

[The_Man]

What's a good warm-up? And how do I strike that balance of getting my legs loose without overexerting myself before I even begin my "real" run?

A couple things that might help: (1) as you're doing a warm-up jog, do several 'butt kicks' ..sling your foot back so you're basically kicking yourself in the butt, and (2) do several leg/knee lifts ...almost running in place, lift the knees real high in front of you. This should help loosen up and stretch out the muscles. Throw a few accelerations on top of this, and you should be good to go. These seem to help me, versus just jogging a mile or more to warm up (as you mention).

See, and I do like to just take the first 1-2 miles super easy to warm up. Another case of whatever works for you, I guess.

Part of my problem is that if I'm squeezing in a 3-4 mile run before work (like usual), I don't have time to add another 1-2 mile warm-up to the run, and I don't want to "waste" one-half or one-third of my total running distance on the warm-up.On my long run (which is only 6 miles), I do ease into it for the first mile+ and I always end up feeling great. I'm committed to making the 5K on Sept. 19 my first race since taking up running, but after that I think I'm going to start exploring longer distances. I was intimidated by big numbers of miles before, but am coming to learn that my 40-year-old self seems better suited to longer, slower runs than shorter, faster ones.

For the time being, I'm going to try a warm-up of jogging for .25-.5 miles, followed by some leg lifts and accelerations like tri-man suggests, and see if that gets me going.

 

[pigskinliquors]

What's a good warm-up? And how do I strike that balance of getting my legs loose without overexerting myself before I even begin my "real" run?

A couple things that might help: (1) as you're doing a warm-up jog, do several 'butt kicks' ..sling your foot back so you're basically kicking yourself in the butt, and (2) do several leg/knee lifts ...almost running in place, lift the knees real high in front of you. This should help loosen up and stretch out the muscles. Throw a few accelerations on top of this, and you should be good to go. These seem to help me, versus just jogging a mile or more to warm up (as you mention).

See, and I do like to just take the first 1-2 miles super easy to warm up. Another case of whatever works for you, I guess.

I do a combination of both. My first mile is always my slowest, and I also like to stretch my legs out during that mile. I try to concentrate on my foot strike, and having loose muscles (= relax my breathing, and all muscles, thinking about each group individually). My quick update:

I tried to have a SRD today. I set out for 6 ez miles, with the first mile very slow (@ 8:50 pace; as per the above); and my HR was already over 160. I still had every successive mile at least 5 seconds quicker than the previous, but my HR got waaaaay too high. I maxed out at 177, but sustained 170+ during the last two miles. For a rest day = not good. I'm pretty sure that it was a combination of the Heat/Humidity and tired legs from yesterday's bike ride. It was also the first run with my new Pearl Izumi's. The shoes felt great, and could not be more comfortable. The seamless interior is amazing, and the toe box is large (which I need). Time will tell with how much they help me train/race, but they certainly passed their first test!

I also received new Rudy Project Gear from Mrs. Liquors for my birthday. The sunglasses are most awesome, as is the helmet. The bag, t-shirt and cap are also better than anticipated. It's a great deal, if anyone is interested in the bundle.

 

[pigskinliquors]

 

[culdeus]

I'm assuming this is the "performance" one?

 

[pigskinliquors]

 

[wraith5]

See, I watch this and I think BnB.

 

[pigskinliquors]

I could have gone either way with it. BnB to me is more brute strength, while Culdeus is more technical.

 

[tri-man 47]

They're both waaaay out of my league.

 

[2Young2BBald]

I have little doubt this will be playing in the iPod in my head to my cadence. It's a slight up upgrade from the Nursery Rhymes that play to my swim stroke. I'm

 

[2Young2BBald]

Update for me. Did an X-Brick Saturday Up North, doing an hour and 15 minutes of trail mountain bike riding and followed it up with 45-minutes of trail running, all on private hunting trails in a 750 acre game club. Then followed this up with a 3.5 hour canoe trip (with lotsa beer). I have to stop the "I've been working so hard, I deserve to eat and drink whatever I want" mentality. Came home and ran 3 miles on Sunday Night and then did a Bike/Swim/Bike brick last night doing a total of 8 miles on the bike and 2,000 yards of swimming. I wanted to bike or swim tonight, but I am a bit sore and have the US 1/2 Marathon Copper (The Nation's Highest 1/2) at Copper Mountain, CO, this weekend so I cut the grass as rested. Respecting the altitude, the early plan is to do a Galloway-esque Run/Walk at 7/1. For RnR Chicago, I bonked a bit at mile 9 which tells me I am in no shape to go try and run this hard at such a high altitude (and we'll have been there less than 24-hours). I am going to run with a camera to take it all in and try and cruise in around 2:15ish. We've got a ton of plans for the week and the last thing I want os to ruin myself on the first day. My wife, who no doubt is smarter than me, has already thrown in the towel on the 1/2 and backed down to the 12K. After running in the 90s on Saturday & Sunday, the temp at the gun may be in the 30s.

 

[wraith5]

I have to stop the "I've been working so hard, I deserve to eat and drink whatever I want" mentality.

Great workouts 2Y! Good luck in the race - right now a start in the 30's sounds really, really good! I tend to have the same mentality by the way - I eat what I want and rationalize that I've "earned" it. Of course, I lost none of the pounds I wanted to by doing that! So about a month ago I downloaded a program for the iPhone called "Lose It!" I track everything I eat, along with my exercise, and it's made a significant difference for me. Sometimes tracking foods is a royal pain in the ###, but I look stuff up online and I've been pretty good about not missing anything. It's not like I'm trying to drop a ton of weight or anything, but just knowing that Cherry Concrete from Culvers will set me back 990 calories (just over 10k worth of running!!) helps put things in perspective. It's also nice to know the times when I CAN go all out because I've got calories to burn (so to speak).

 

[wraith5]

I went back today to the same pool, which is actually a 50yd length, and hit 800 in just over 21 minutes - slow, yes, but I was pretty happy I can go that far now. Ran into a friend who apparently used to coach youth swimming, and he gave me some really great pointers about my elbows, reaching, breathing, and my kicking. After a few lengths I felt like I was working on my golf game - as soon as I focused on one thing something else fell apart!!

So this afternoon I went back to the pool (no "adult swim" time, so I had to use 25 yd lanes)... AND SWAM 1600 YARDS!!!



I doubled my longest continuous swim and felt great the whole time - I really could have kept going. AND I did 80% front crawl. I'm not sure about my time, but I'm pretty positive it was well under 40 minutes. Next time I'll wear my watch so I know for sure.

One of the biggest changes I made was breathing (almost always on the right) every stroke. I think I had a better reach as well, but the breathing kept me from gasping for air on every other stroke like I've done before. My energy level was dramatically better.

I'll tell you, after the last couple of runs I've done, this is exactly what I needed. I can't wait to go back again this week and do it again!!

 

[Sand]

I went back today to the same pool, which is actually a 50yd length, and hit 800 in just over 21 minutes - slow, yes, but I was pretty happy I can go that far now. Ran into a friend who apparently used to coach youth swimming, and he gave me some really great pointers about my elbows, reaching, breathing, and my kicking. After a few lengths I felt like I was working on my golf game - as soon as I focused on one thing something else fell apart!!

So this afternoon I went back to the pool (no "adult swim" time, so I had to use 25 yd lanes)... AND SWAM 1600 YARDS!!!



I doubled my longest continuous swim and felt great the whole time - I really could have kept going. AND I did 80% front crawl. I'm not sure about my time, but I'm pretty positive it was well under 40 minutes. Next time I'll wear my watch so I know for sure.

One of the biggest changes I made was breathing (almost always on the right) every stroke. I think I had a better reach as well, but the breathing kept me from gasping for air on every other stroke like I've done before. My energy level was dramatically better.

I'll tell you, after the last couple of runs I've done, this is exactly what I needed. I can't wait to go back again this week and do it again!!

Amazing what can happen when you manage to get oxygen to your muscles, huh? Don't regard the breathing as fait accompli. Keep cognizant of it and work at it. The better you breath the faster you go.Speaking of swimming, Xterra is having a kick ### sale right now on wetsuits.

 

[gruecd]

Positively NAILED my tempo run tonight!!!

12-miler consisting of 4 up, 7 at tempo, and 1 down. Went 6:47, 6:47, 6:45, 6:43, 6:44, 6:38, and 6:38 on the tempo miles to average a SOLID 6:43. Couldn't be happier. I'm in a total zone right now, and I wish Chicago wasn't still 7+ weeks away!

I'll do an easy five tomorrow morning before work, and then I want to get back out late tomorrow night for an easy 3-mile practice run with the headlamp. Should be interesting...

wraith - Great job on your swim!

2Young - Good luck in Copper Mountain, but please be careful with the altitude!

 

[gruecd]

That's some funny #####!!!

 

[2Young2BBald]

I went back today to the same pool, which is actually a 50yd length, and hit 800 in just over 21 minutes - slow, yes, but I was pretty happy I can go that far now. Ran into a friend who apparently used to coach youth swimming, and he gave me some really great pointers about my elbows, reaching, breathing, and my kicking. After a few lengths I felt like I was working on my golf game - as soon as I focused on one thing something else fell apart!!

So this afternoon I went back to the pool (no "adult swim" time, so I had to use 25 yd lanes)... AND SWAM 1600 YARDS!!!



I doubled my longest continuous swim and felt great the whole time - I really could have kept going. AND I did 80% front crawl. I'm not sure about my time, but I'm pretty positive it was well under 40 minutes. Next time I'll wear my watch so I know for sure.

One of the biggest changes I made was breathing (almost always on the right) every stroke. I think I had a better reach as well, but the breathing kept me from gasping for air on every other stroke like I've done before. My energy level was dramatically better.

I'll tell you, after the last couple of runs I've done, this is exactly what I needed. I can't wait to go back again this week and do it again!!

This is almost exactly how it went for me right around this time last year, it just "clicked". Once it did, the curve took a HUGE upswing as my confidence grew and I am sure you'll see the same results!Trifind.com is already starting to populate with races for 2010 (AND, its not too late for '09, I'm just say'n). Its never too early to target an event. Have you sought out a place to swim this winter?

 

[2Young2BBald]

Positively NAILED my tempo run tonight!!!

12-miler consisting of 4 up, 7 at tempo, and 1 down. Went 6:47, 6:47, 6:45, 6:43, 6:44, 6:38, and 6:38 on the tempo miles to average a SOLID 6:43. Couldn't be happier. I'm in a total zone right now, and I wish Chicago wasn't still 7+ weeks away!

I'll do an easy five tomorrow morning before work, and then I want to get back out late tomorrow night for an easy 3-mile practice run with the headlamp. Should be interesting...

Where do you stand in realtion to where you we're at for your last BQ? You've been on fire of late. Would running your qualifier a few weeks earlier make sense and use Chicago as a fall back? Just wondering if you are so far ahead of schedule that this would make sense if there was a race available.

 

[gruecd]

Where do you stand in relation to where you we're at for your last BQ? You've been on fire of late. Would running your qualifier a few weeks earlier make sense and use Chicago as a fall back? Just wondering if you are so far ahead of schedule that this would make sense if there was a race available.

As bad as it sounds, I really didn't train "right" for my last BQ. See story here. Honestly, I'd thought about running an earlier marathon, too, but things are going so well that I've decided to just "trust my training" (my new mantra) and give 'er hell in Chicago!!!

 

[tri-man 47]

Buncha FBGs livin' up to the stellar reputation. Wow! Lots of impressive stuff.

Off to Grand Rapid for a day and a half. Targeting a 16 mile run this afternoon and a lake swim in the morning.

 

[wraith5]

Cooler + less humidity (+ confidence building swim) = a strong run for me this morning.

4 mile tempo run, goal of 8:15s and I came in at 8:03s. I didn't split each mile, but I was at an 8:09 pace after 3 so I know my last mile was the fastest. I felt so good that instead of just doing my cooldown mile, I did a slow 1/2 mile, then did a 1/2 mile at a 7:15 pace, then a final 1/2 mile cooldown.

Not exactly gruecd territory or anything, but it beats the #### out of having to quit on a run!!

 

[The_Man]

Great job wraith and gruecd. Inspiring to read about guys setting ambitious goals and then nailing them.

Struggled a little on my tempo run today -- though it was 77 degrees with 90 percent (!) humidity at 6:15 a.m.

How do you guys monitor your HR while you're running? Starting to think that maybe what I consider "hard" running isn't hard enough and should be pushing myself more.

 

[wraith5]

Great job wraith and gruecd. Inspiring to read about guys setting ambitious goals and then nailing them.

Struggled a little on my tempo run today -- though it was 77 degrees with 90 percent (!) humidity at 6:15 a.m.

How do you guys monitor your HR while you're running? Starting to think that maybe what I consider "hard" running isn't hard enough and should be pushing myself more.

For monitoring my pace & heart rate I use this. It works great. I'm not really sure what a good target HR really is and maybe it varies from person to person (my guess is some of the other guys around here have some insight they can share). My impression is that my HR tends to be higher than most - my 4 mile tempo run this morning averaged 176bpm and maxed out at 190bpm.

 

[gruecd]

How do you guys monitor your HR while you're running?

I don't.

 

[wraith5]

How do you guys monitor your HR while you're running?

I don't.

That's only because you don't have an actual heart to monitor - you have a Coltan hyperalloy endoskeleton and a shielded nuclear power cell.

 

[pigskinliquors]

Great job wraith and gruecd. Inspiring to read about guys setting ambitious goals and then nailing them.

Struggled a little on my tempo run today -- though it was 77 degrees with 90 percent (!) humidity at 6:15 a.m.

How do you guys monitor your HR while you're running? Starting to think that maybe what I consider "hard" running isn't hard enough and should be pushing myself more.

For monitoring my pace & heart rate I use this. It works great. I'm not really sure what a good target HR really is and maybe it varies from person to person (my guess is some of the other guys around here have some insight they can share). My impression is that my HR tends to be higher than most - my 4 mile tempo run this morning averaged 176bpm and maxed out at 190bpm.

I also use a Garmin 305. HR's vary greatly from person to person. My max HR is 195 (=pretty freakin' high = Wraith's is freakin' high!!), while my red zone is 185 for running and 180 for cycling (= once I hit this I know I'm in big time trouble). A good site for HR info is: MAX HR INFO. A good way to determine is to do a short warm-up (1 mile maybe) then do 4 1 mile intervals with .5 mile rests in between (if you can't do 2 intervals, do as many as you can). For the final interval = go all out for as long as you can. Your HR at that point should be darn close to max.

 

[gruecd]

How do you guys monitor your HR while you're running?

I don't.

That's only because you don't have an actual heart to monitor - you have a Coltan hyperalloy endoskeleton and a shielded nuclear power cell.

I totally had to Google that to find out WTF you were talking about. Nerd.

 

[The Real Hipster Doofus]

I really am suprised how many runners there are out there. Good motivation for sure.

After being out of the running game for over a year I think I have made good progress in a few weeks. Went from my initial start of barely being able to finish a mile to running my baseline 5K at 27:15 last week. Almost 8 minutes slower than my last official race but have to start somewhere. I went on vacation last week with some friends and me and a buddy did some running there. Did some hill repeats that killed me (first time running hills this year). Did a 1.5 mile warmup followed by a .25 mile uphill that went from 200 feet to a 1000 over that span. Did four of those and was spent as we took the 1.5 back very slow. I went running last night and I felt a little soreness in my right knee. I was planning on doing 4 miles but I figured I would just do 2 miles because of the knee, which I ended up doing at just over an 8 minute pace. I was very happy that I held that pace for that long, considering my usual 5k pace was over 9 min/mile. Today my knee is still a little sore, but it is only when I plant my leg like I would when running. I have been lucky to never really have any real running problems before. I do have a tendency to overtrain at times, I find it hard to cut things off when I think I can push it farther. Any thoughts on what to do with the knee?

 

[wraith5]

How do you guys monitor your HR while you're running?

I don't.

That's only because you don't have an actual heart to monitor - you have a Coltan hyperalloy endoskeleton and a shielded nuclear power cell.

I totally had to Google that to find out WTF you were talking about. Nerd.

I revel in my nerdiness. And I love the fact that you actually Googled it.

 

[jmcc]

I have to stop the "I've been working so hard, I deserve to eat and drink whatever I want" mentality.

Great workouts 2Y! Good luck in the race - right now a start in the 30's sounds really, really good! I tend to have the same mentality by the way - I eat what I want and rationalize that I've "earned" it. Of course, I lost none of the pounds I wanted to by doing that! So about a month ago I downloaded a program for the iPhone called "Lose It!" I track everything I eat, along with my exercise, and it's made a significant difference for me. Sometimes tracking foods is a royal pain in the ###, but I look stuff up online and I've been pretty good about not missing anything. It's not like I'm trying to drop a ton of weight or anything, but just knowing that Cherry Concrete from Culvers will set me back 990 calories (just over 10k worth of running!!) helps put things in perspective. It's also nice to know the times when I CAN go all out because I've got calories to burn (so to speak).

I track every thing I eat and drink as well. It made a huge difference to me.

 

[jmcc]

I had my stress test and echocardiogram today. Doc indicated I did great with the stress test and I have an appt tomorrow to go over the echocardiogram. Running/exercise wise i am having a bad week. I went to the gym Monday and that was it. I feel funky and out of it. I would almost say depressed? Just strange. I need to snap out of this.

I asked the doc what my HR should be when running he said 150 should be my target.

 

[Sand]

Yesterday was a great running day - ran my normal short course and had the legs and lungs afterward to sprint in. 8:07 miles and I should have and could have pushed harder.

Today was a mixed bag. Went swimming this afternoon and wanted to do a pool 300 (I am noodling with the idea of doing another tri - this one has a 300yd pool swim). Swam it in 4:15. Not half bad. I then went on to do a 1000 yd long swim in 17:00 or so, which was too slow. I am having problem keeping my energy levels up. I think it has to do with my weight, which is dropping like a rock right now. I have lost 5lbs in the last 10 days, simply from some good hard workouts. I'd like to get down to 165 (3 lbs to go) and then level off and work on muscle building while keeping the weight even. This worked great at 170, but I'd like to drop a tad more.

On the whole, though, the run was a really nice experience and the 300yd swim was pretty fast.

 

[2Young2BBald]

Yesterday was a great running day - ran my normal short course and had the legs and lungs afterward to sprint in. 8:07 miles and I should have and could have pushed harder.Today was a mixed bag. Went swimming this afternoon and wanted to do a pool 300 (I am noodling with the idea of doing another tri - this one has a 300yd pool swim). Swam it in 4:15. Not half bad. I then went on to do a 1000 yd long swim in 17:00 or so, which was too slow. I am having problem keeping my energy levels up. I think it has to do with my weight, which is dropping like a rock right now. I have lost 5lbs in the last 10 days, simply from some good hard workouts. I'd like to get down to 165 (3 lbs to go) and then level off and work on muscle building while keeping the weight even. This worked great at 170, but I'd like to drop a tad more.On the whole, though, the run was a really nice experience and the 300yd swim was pretty fast.

When I ramped up training in Jan/Feb for an early April marathon, I noticed the same thing, I was hungry all the time and lacked energy at times I never really did. I read about doing 5 smaller meals a day with a snack at night. It was either Runner's World or Triathlete that had the article. I don't follow it to the letter, but I do eat many more times a day and much smaller portions. With the last few years of solid running, I never got below 162. After the change in eating habits, I am right around 154/155 and dropped to 150 when I was powering out races earlier this summer. I find I am much lighter on my feet and am less leg sore.Will they let you flip turn in the pool? If so, you might want to practice pushing in to the next lane if it is a serpentine swim.

 

[Sand]

Will they let you flip turn in the pool? If so, you might want to practice pushing in to the next lane if it is a serpentine swim.

Not sure. The set I did today I did a flip turn every 50 (every other lap). I didn't go under the lane lines, but that isn't a big deal. I usually don't do flip turns because they are energy expensive (particularly every 25 yards) and I'd rather the energy go to working on my stroke. They also give you a false sense of speed since they are so much faster on the wall. Besides, no flip turns in the ocean/lake.Did my long run tonight (4.25 miles - don't laugh) in 8:55 pace after the swim workout. Felt pretty good and I could have kept going.

 

[2Young2BBald]

Oh #### & I'll be runnning at around 10,000 feet above sea level on Saturday. So, one of my goals for this year was to be a bit more laid back about my running life. SO, I didn't really check things, build a water and bean plan (gel), etc, but thought I'd see just how high, high is & egad. Now I am pants-crapping. What the hell was I thinking? I know I need to double up on water and take it easy on pace, what else? I stopped by my LRS and bought some beans and was teased by the 55-year old, 1:23 1/2 runner, as he called me a Gallo-walker for my plan to run/walk. Oh well, the required minimum pace is 13:30, so I think I'm OK.

 

[gruecd]

Now I am pants-crapping.

 

[Sand]

Oh #### & <_< I'll be runnning at around 10,000 feet above sea level on Saturday. So, one of my goals for this year was to be a bit more laid back about my running life. SO, I didn't really check things, build a water and bean plan (gel), etc, but thought I'd see just how high, high is & egad. Now I am pants-crapping. What the hell was I thinking? I know I need to double up on water and take it easy on pace, what else? I stopped by my LRS and bought some beans and was teased by the 55-year old, 1:23 1/2 runner, as he called me a Gallo-walker for my plan to run/walk. Oh well, the required minimum pace is 13:30, so I think I'm OK.

Athletes either race quick before the effects of altitude get to them or stay at altitude a while to get used to it before racing. Racing 3 days after getting there is in the "probably not a good idea" category.If you do start to get altitude sickness (10k feet is more than enough) chocolate really does help. I used to live at 9600 ft and chocolate was the standard local treatment for the tourists coming in. On a personal note, I can remember flying back into New Orleans (on Braniff airlines, LOL) and taking that first breath off the plane. Talk about lungs a' bursting.

 

[SFBayDuck]

Oh #### & I'll be runnning at around 10,000 feet above sea level on Saturday. So, one of my goals for this year was to be a bit more laid back about my running life. SO, I didn't really check things, build a water and bean plan (gel), etc, but thought I'd see just how high, high is & egad. Now I am pants-crapping. What the hell was I thinking? I know I need to double up on water and take it easy on pace, what else? I stopped by my LRS and bought some beans and was teased by the 55-year old, 1:23 1/2 runner, as he called me a Gallo-walker for my plan to run/walk. Oh well, the required minimum pace is 13:30, so I think I'm OK.

Wow, that's serious elevation. I'm worried about the 6400'-7800' for my ultra in a couple weeks, so I've done some research recently on this, but 10,000' is a whole other ballgame. As I take it you aren't there now getting acclimated, not much you can do about it now (1 day per 1000' is what I've seen in a few things I've read to be truly acclimated). Next best case is to get there as close to race start as possible, as the toughest period at altitude is typically the 24-48 hour time period. You show up and run, and your blood is still charged with oxygen, but at that 24-48 hour period is where the tough adjustments happen.You've got it right though, extra hydration (drier air combined with lowered blood plasma level to compensate for low oxygen levels = more need for hydration), and slower pace. At 10,000', altitude sickness is a concern, so be on the lookout for the signs there - headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness.

 

[wraith5]

I had my stress test and echocardiogram today. Doc indicated I did great with the stress test and I have an appt tomorrow to go over the echocardiogram. Running/exercise wise i am having a bad week. I went to the gym Monday and that was it. I feel funky and out of it. I would almost say depressed? Just strange. I need to snap out of this.I asked the doc what my HR should be when running he said 150 should be my target.

Glad the stress test went well! Hopefully the echo will come back solid as well. Maybe after you get the results you'll feel better and get back into the training groove. 150 bpm, huh? I was at 162 at the end of my warm-up mile this morning - if I had to be at 150 that would be the end of my running (and probably my biking, too!). I really need to spend the time to learn more about the subject. I just looked at my Garmin training center data and I enter "Zone 5" at 166bpm and cross into the no zone area at 184 - that can't be a good thing to spend much time there (I do!)

 

[wraith5]

I have to stop the "I've been working so hard, I deserve to eat and drink whatever I want" mentality.

Great workouts 2Y! Good luck in the race - right now a start in the 30's sounds really, really good! I tend to have the same mentality by the way - I eat what I want and rationalize that I've "earned" it. Of course, I lost none of the pounds I wanted to by doing that! So about a month ago I downloaded a program for the iPhone called "Lose It!" I track everything I eat, along with my exercise, and it's made a significant difference for me. Sometimes tracking foods is a royal pain in the ###, but I look stuff up online and I've been pretty good about not missing anything. It's not like I'm trying to drop a ton of weight or anything, but just knowing that Cherry Concrete from Culvers will set me back 990 calories (just over 10k worth of running!!) helps put things in perspective. It's also nice to know the times when I CAN go all out because I've got calories to burn (so to speak).

I track every thing I eat and drink as well. It made a huge difference to me.

Sitting here at the computer tonight and looked at my Lose It! program and realized I was 1400 calories UNDER budget for the day (including my 977 calories worth of running this morning). Headed straight to the fridge and got myself some serious pudding - I can't be shorting my body by that much!!

 

[jmcc]

I had my stress test and echocardiogram today. Doc indicated I did great with the stress test and I have an appt tomorrow to go over the echocardiogram. Running/exercise wise i am having a bad week. I went to the gym Monday and that was it. I feel funky and out of it. I would almost say depressed? Just strange. I need to snap out of this.I asked the doc what my HR should be when running he said 150 should be my target.

Glad the stress test went well! Hopefully the echo will come back solid as well. Maybe after you get the results you'll feel better and get back into the training groove. 150 bpm, huh? I was at 162 at the end of my warm-up mile this morning - if I had to be at 150 that would be the end of my running (and probably my biking, too!). I really need to spend the time to learn more about the subject. I just looked at my Garmin training center data and I enter "Zone 5" at 166bpm and cross into the no zone area at 184 - that can't be a good thing to spend much time there (I do!)

I have no way of tracking my bpm when on the streets unless i stop and do the whole counting my pulse thing. When I am on the treadmill it says my avg is around 160. I dont know how accurate the treadmill things are.

 

[jmcc]

I have to stop the "I've been working so hard, I deserve to eat and drink whatever I want" mentality.

Great workouts 2Y! Good luck in the race - right now a start in the 30's sounds really, really good! I tend to have the same mentality by the way - I eat what I want and rationalize that I've "earned" it. Of course, I lost none of the pounds I wanted to by doing that! So about a month ago I downloaded a program for the iPhone called "Lose It!" I track everything I eat, along with my exercise, and it's made a significant difference for me. Sometimes tracking foods is a royal pain in the ###, but I look stuff up online and I've been pretty good about not missing anything. It's not like I'm trying to drop a ton of weight or anything, but just knowing that Cherry Concrete from Culvers will set me back 990 calories (just over 10k worth of running!!) helps put things in perspective. It's also nice to know the times when I CAN go all out because I've got calories to burn (so to speak).

I track every thing I eat and drink as well. It made a huge difference to me.

Sitting here at the computer tonight and looked at my Lose It! program and realized I was 1400 calories UNDER budget for the day (including my 977 calories worth of running this morning). Headed straight to the fridge and got myself some serious pudding - I can't be shorting my body by that much!!

I use sparkpeople to do the counting thing.

 

[The_Man]

Thanks for the tip about the Garmin 305. Going to put that on my wish list.

Today's 6:15 a.m. weather conditions -- 77 degrees and 92 percent humidity. Good morning, Baltimore! Ugh.

I feel like I've hit a "dead leg" period in my training, kind of like pitchers supposedly go through in spring training. Does such a thing exist? Did a half-mile warm-up, then ran two miles at my 7:45 5k race pace, then had to jog home the last half-mile. 10 days ago, I could do 3 miles at 7:45 pace. Maybe I'll blame some of it on the weather, which has been oppressive. But a couple of weeks ago my legs felt springy and energized during the workday following my a.m. runs. Right now they feel heavy and kind of sore all day. Hoping the bounce comes back.

Finally, does anyone have recommendations for a really good running book? I really appreciate everyone's knowledge, but feel bad about peppering the thread with all my newbie questions about training, heart rate, etc.

 

[gruecd]

 

[Sand]

I asked the doc what my HR should be when running he said 150 should be my target.

That would be pretty much walking for me. Is this doc an athlete and is knowledgeable in the area? Or was he just spouting off some round number? 150 by itself doesn't mean a lot without knowing your max heart rate.