Ran a 10k - Official Thread (11 Viewers)

[SFBayDuck]

Yeah, I've run a grand total of one 50K (a little short of that, actually) in my brief career, and now I'm going to do one in training?  

I'll target mid-Mar (six weeks before Miwok) for this.  Will bring some oreos, as that is my best-guess for food which might appeal to me on race day.  If I can't do 50K in one day, then I'll plan a longer, hilly run the day after.  This weekend was a "lite" version of that -- did 4hrs on Sat and 1.5hrs on Sun, both on hilly trails.  As you know, there is no option for me for midweek vert now (DFW) so I'll have to be vigilant about weekends back in Calgary.

The fear is starting to take hold, though.  I'm hoping part of my slowness on Saturday was the snowy trail, and I can count on less resistance/inefficiency in May.  Not helping at all is that my dad and his wife are considering coming to the race (making a bay-area long-weekend out of it), alongside my wife.  The good news part is that it's more support, the bad news is that it just amps the pressure to not fail and finish the race.  I don't deal well with pressure!

Thanks for the tips.  One request -- do you know of any good beginner RRs for Miwok?  I've googled it but not come across anything detailed.  You might have a link or two from your prior preparations?

You wouldn't be racing a 50K, you're just using it as a long, supported training run (if you have an actual race you can sign up for).  If you do split it into a long back-to-back weekend, do the bulk of the vert on the first day.  On that second day it'd be fine to run some mellow rolling hills, as that's pretty much what the back half of Miwok largely is, but the point is to be running as much as possible and not power hiking.  And if you hit the downhills hard enough on the first day your quads should be feeling it, and you don't need to pile on more damage on that second day.  

Your fitness combined with your experience in the mountains set you up well for success at Miwok.  You're much faster than I am, and the biggest issue a lot of people have in their first ultra(s) is that they've run primarily on roads and not the trails and hills - you don't have that issue.   The only thing holding you back right now is confidence.  

I'll see if I can find a RR or two, I think I did come across a few.

 

[xulf]

Off the wagon for a while. Decided to run today 

Boy do I suck

Your GPS is either way off or you were pretty hammered during that run...maybe both?

 

[JShare87]

Music on watch with bluetooth headphones is really the way to go.  I'll still always wear my Garmin since the GPS accuracy is so superior, but I really like having my cellular-equipped Apple Watch on my other wrist.  I've got my music, I can send and receive calls/texts if necessary, and I've got Apple Pay if I want to stop at a gas station to buy something to drink.

This is how I roll too. Sure I may look like an idiot with 2 watches. But, it’s better than a phone, wires, pockets full of sammys and dum-dums.

 

[gruecd]

This is how I roll too. Sure I may look like an idiot with 2 watches. But, it’s better than a phone, wires, pockets full of sammys and dum-dums.

 

[bushdocda]

Does anyone here do Parkrun (https://www.parkrun.com/)?

When I moved to Paris with my wife we met some people who turned us onto Parkrun and we've made some good friends through there. It's essentially a free timed 5km run every week. Really good for just getting started into running as it is super low pressure and all are welcome, including walkers. Also a great way to just let it rip in a race-like setting once in a while without paying $40 just for a 5k.

From the looks of it (https://www.parkrun.us/events/#geo=2.24/39.06/-101.47) there aren't a ton of locations in the U.S. but well worth checking it out if you're near one.

Thanks. Only heard of it from non US folks. Didn’t know it spread and had a easy site. 
Got a flat one not too far from me in College Park MD. 

 

[-OZ-]

Thanks for this! Good point on the OWS as the swim is my biggest weakness overall. I'll try to perhaps take the train down to Nice a few weeks before the race and get some practice in the Mediterranean so I'm not shocked by the roughness or the temp, etc. 

Also like the idea of a metric tri one day to test all three levels together at a distance between the full and half iron. 

Right now I've got a few prep races lined up (Sevilla Marathon next weekend, Gdynia Half Marathon, Paris Marathon, local sprint tri and Aix-en-Provence 70.3).

My longest tri to date was Steelhead 70.3 about 6 years ago (2014) and I really struggled with nutrition as well. Hopefully I'll be able to get a feel for that before the full iron.

Thanks for the tips!

All the more reason to do long sessions.  I took it more gradual, but you'll be fine as long as you put the time in and understand your nutrition needs.

 

[Zasada]

I'm obsessing tonight.  Should be going to sleep.  But instead I'm consuming all things Miwok.

@SFBayDuck sighting at 5:12 (en route to his 100K PR)!

...and then again at 10:59 (I think).

 

[Zasada]

You wouldn't be racing a 50K, you're just using it as a long, supported training run (if you have an actual race you can sign up for).

Nope, gonna be solo.  No races in my neck of the woods in March, and my work/life schedule won't allow me to travel to one.  But that's OK.  At least I'll be on home trails.  

Your fitness combined with your experience in the mountains set you up well for success at Miwok.

In most of the videos I've watched, Miwok trails seem less-difficult than the rooty, rocky ones I'm used to near home.  That could be helpful.  Regarding fitness, I've got good street cardio, but at any distance 25K+, it's a crapshoot.  But I'll strive to get as many long days (one a week, minimum) between now and the race.

You're much faster than I am

Maybe on streets and at shorter distances.  But not on trails.

The only thing holding you back right now is confidence.  

Yeah, the more I obsess the more things look bleak.  Hoping that after a month of continued training, I'll be back to my Sep/Oct confidence, when I thought I could conquer the world (and which is precisely what drove me to enter the Miwok lottery -- along with that hit to the head).

I'll see if I can find a RR or two, I think I did come across a few.

Don't spend too much time on it, I did some deep searching tonight and found a few.  Should be enough to cover it.  At some point in the coming weeks I'll start putting together a pace chart to plan my race.  Will definitely need some help with that, GB.

 

[SFBayDuck]

I'm obsessing tonight.  Should be going to sleep.  But instead I'm consuming all things Miwok.

@SFBayDuck sighting at 5:12 (en route to his 100K PR)!

...and then again at 10:59 (I think).

Not me at 10:59, but I'm in the aid station at 10:20.

In most of the videos I've watched, Miwok trails seem less-difficult than the rooty, rocky ones I'm used to near home.  That could be helpful.  Regarding fitness, I've got good street cardio, but at any distance 25K+, it's a crapshoot.  But I'll strive to get as many long days (one a week, minimum) between now and the race.

Yeah, the more I obsess the more things look bleak.  Hoping that after a month of continued training, I'll be back to my Sep/Oct confidence, when I thought I could conquer the world (and which is precisely what drove me to enter the Miwok lottery -- along with that hit to the head).

You're correct, there are only a couple of technical sections and the rest is smooth, buttery Northern California single track or fire roads.  

You saw how slow everyone is moving in that video, right?  I listened to a podcast the other day that had a great take on ultra running, especially the longer distances.  I think it was Ian Sharman talking, because he's constantly touting the benefits of hiking in training, and he said that for most people the biggest impact can be made not by maximizing your fastest paces, but my bumping up your slower paces.  The thinking is that it's tough to make big improvements on the high end in a 100K or 100M, but if you can increase your slower paces you can make a huge impact in your finishing time.  Because us mortals spend so much relative time at the slower paces, bumping those up can really make a difference.  So get to where you can shuffle at a 13:00 pace on a late flat section instead of walking at a 15:00 pace, or hike up a hill at 14:00-15:00 pace instead of 18:00-19:00.    Quite frankly it struck a chord with me because it's my strength - I'm a strong hiker, but a pretty poor runner.  So I can make up 2-3-4 minutes a mile on others in the mid/back of the pack in some sections, and am rarely losing that much relative time on more runnable sections, especially late in the race.  

One more thing - breathe.

 

[tri-man 47]

Not me at 10:59, but I'm in the aid station at 10:20.

...not getting a foot massage, 'cause that's not how they roll.

 

[tri-man 47]

@Harris ...I might have been a little slow to the draw here: Did we meet at Drake University when you were doing CPA Exam prep?  Is this you?

 

[Harris]

@Harris ...I might have been a little slow to the draw here: Did we meet at Drake University when you were doing CPA Exam prep?  Is this you?

One in the same! That was almost 11 years ago! I also knew one of your son's friends in Chicago just by coincidence but I'm not sure if you knew that bit. 

I used to post here off and on but certainly not regularly and definitely not over the past couple of years. 

Anyways, moved to Paris from Chicago about 15 months ago for work and it's been great. The running and triathlon scene is really big and I can cycle year-round all over the place. My wife jokes that all I brought over from the States were clothes and bikes (she's not far off).

How have you been? Still in OPRF if I remember right?

 

[fred_1_15301]

@gianmarco    Taking this out of the Otis diet thread.  I'm wondering if I should be altering my training plan.  My plan has me running on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays (long run day) sprinkled in with cross-training, strength and stretching on off days.  I have 10 weeks to train at MAF pace before the run.  Do you think I should add in another running day?  

 

[gianmarco]

@gianmarco    Taking this out of the Otis diet thread.  I'm wondering if I should be altering my training plan.  My plan has me running on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays (long run day) sprinkled in with cross-training, strength and stretching on off days.  I have 10 weeks to train at MAF pace before the run.  Do you think I should add in another running day?  

These other guys here can probably offer better training plan advice to get you in a good spot for your 10 miles.

First, it depends on what your goal is. Is it to just finish the 10 miles? Finish without walking? Run it faster than you are now?

Overall, to run the 10 mile race, you need to run a consistent amount over the 10 weeks. 3x/week is the minimum but ideally probably need to get that to 4.  Probably a couple slower/shorter runs (30-60 minutes), 1 faster run (30-45 minutes), and 1 longer run. Don't increase your mileage by more than 10% each week unless you've run that much before. Ideally you need to get at least a couple 7-8 mile runs in before your race if not 9-10 if you can get there.

There's some online plans to help that you can use and you can post here. They can be tweaked as needed to fit your goal and what you can do.

 

[ChiefD]

These other guys here can probably offer better training plan advice to get you in a good spot for your 10 miles.

First, it depends on what your goal is. Is it to just finish the 10 miles? Finish without walking? Run it faster than you are now?

Overall, to run the 10 mile race, you need to run a consistent amount over the 10 weeks. 3x/week is the minimum but ideally probably need to get that to 4.  Probably a couple slower/shorter runs (30-60 minutes), 1 faster run (30-45 minutes), and 1 longer run. Don't increase your mileage by more than 10% each week unless you've run that much before. Ideally you need to get at least a couple 7-8 mile runs in before your race if not 9-10 if you can get there.

There's some online plans to help that you can use and you can post here. They can be tweaked as needed to fit your goal and what you can do.

Yeah, this sounds about right.

I think a minimum of 4-5 days would be good if the schedule allows. I like something like this:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Slow run

Wednesday: Slow run

Thursday: Tempo run or something a little faster

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Long run

Sunday: Cross Training or Slow Run

 

[fred_1_15301]

Yeah, this sounds about right.

I think a minimum of 4-5 days would be good if the schedule allows. I like something like this:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Slow run

Wednesday: Slow run

Thursday: Tempo run or something a little faster

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Long run

Sunday: Cross Training or Slow Run

I generally can't run on Wednesdays due to my schedule.  My goal is in 10 weeks to complete the 10 miles at around 140 minutes (this is the pace that I signed up for).  I'll try to bump up my training to 4 runs a week (maybe 5 runs on certain weeks where my schedule permits).  

 

[MAC_32]

The more miles the better, but defining 'more' depends on a lot of factors - some that can be answered now (history) and some that can't (maintaining health). If you're able to add something of substance (SoS) that'd be ideal, but it depends on that first part because quantity takes priority to quality.

I would be sure to include one total rest day per week though.

 

[ChiefD]

I generally can't run on Wednesdays due to my schedule.  My goal is in 10 weeks to complete the 10 miles at around 140 minutes (this is the pace that I signed up for).  I'll try to bump up my training to 4 runs a week (maybe 5 runs on certain weeks where my schedule permits).  

Just take out the Wednesday day. That gets you at 4 days a week and leaves you rest days to recover. 

And dude, you are going to crush that time if you continue to stay after it for 10 weeks. 

 

[gianmarco]

I generally can't run on Wednesdays due to my schedule.  My goal is in 10 weeks to complete the 10 miles at around 140 minutes (this is the pace that I signed up for).  I'll try to bump up my training to 4 runs a week (maybe 5 runs on certain weeks where my schedule permits).  

That's a 14 min/mile pace. You'll hit that time even now based on what you can run when with walking. Don't worry, we will adjust the goal time for you

How many miles per week are you currently running or have you run in the past? 

As mentioned above, the thing that's going to get you to a good race day is quantity of miles run leading up to it. Keep it slow and you'll get there faster than you realize. 

 

[bushdocda]

Don’t forget the beet juice. 

 

[tri-man 47]

One in the same! That was almost 11 years ago! I also knew one of your son's friends in Chicago just by coincidence but I'm not sure if you knew that bit. 

I used to post here off and on but certainly not regularly and definitely not over the past couple of years. 

Anyways, moved to Paris from Chicago about 15 months ago for work and it's been great. The running and triathlon scene is really big and I can cycle year-round all over the place. My wife jokes that all I brought over from the States were clothes and bikes (she's not far off).

How have you been? Still in OPRF if I remember right?

Oh, good to know that you're you!     I wasn't aware that you somehow met one of my son's friends (or even how you'd make that connection!).  My son is married, and they have two young boys (grandsons  )  and living out in Lombard.  He does BI work at Molex.  My daughter, who was at Drake (leading to our quick meeting back in the day), got her masters in social work and works for the Alzheimer's Association.  I'm in higher ed, actually ...Dominican University.  I'd gone back to school myself to get a doctorate, and I'm now full-time accounting faculty.  I love the new gig - it allows me more time to work with and mentor students (lots of discussions about the CPA and career paths) and more time to get involved with presentations and leadership in the professional orgs (such as the AAA). And more time to train and run.        As you'll hear, if you missed the fall chatter, I PR'ed at the marine corp marathon in October to requalify for my fourth Boston in 2021.

Are you still in the accounting field in some manner?  And how were you so fortunate to wind up in Paris?  Man, that'd be great, to run and bike through Paris and France.  My wife and I spent time in France a few years ago (at the back end of a school-sponsored, two week trip I had to southern France to learn about the roots of St. Dominic and the little village of Fanjeaux).  We loved the couple of days we spent in Giverny (Monet's gardens; great little AirBnB right on the main drag near the church) as well as some days staying in the old quarter of Avignon with a side trip to the lavender fields to the east.  I saw that one of your races is down that way (Aix-en-Provence)!

--

Guys, if @Harris is training for an IM, we'll need to figure out the French for "BMF."  Then again, with @Zasada gearing up for an ultra, we'll need to be able to say it in Canadian, too.

 

[ChiefD]

Guys, if @Harris is training for an IM, we'll need to figure out the French for "BMF."  Then again, with @Zasada gearing up for an ultra, we'll need to be able to say it in Canadian, too.

OuiMF

BMFeh

 

[fred_1_15301]

The more miles the better, but defining 'more' depends on a lot of factors - some that can be answered now (history) and some that can't (maintaining health). If you're able to add something of substance (SoS) that'd be ideal, but it depends on that first part because quantity takes priority to quality.

I would be sure to include one total rest day per week though.

Fridays are my rest day.    

 

[fred_1_15301]

That's a 14 min/mile pace. You'll hit that time even now based on what you can run when with walking. Don't worry, we will adjust the goal time for you

How many miles per week are you currently running or have you run in the past? 

As mentioned above, the thing that's going to get you to a good race day is quantity of miles run leading up to it. Keep it slow and you'll get there faster than you realize. 

Oops I mean 10 miles in a 100 minutes.  You may not believe this but I actually have a stats degree.  Apparently simple math is not a prerequisite.    

 

[fred_1_15301]

10 minute mile is my goal for the 10 mile run.  I'm hoping I get there in 10 weeks.

 

[MAC_32]

10 minute mile is my goal for the 10 mile run.  I'm hoping I get there in 10 weeks.

1:29

 

[bushdocda]

LMAO

 

[The Iguana]

10 minute mile is my goal for the 10 mile run.  I'm hoping I get there in 10 weeks.

You'll crush it, imo! 

For reference, when I started this journey, I was doing a half marathon. I had a similar time frame (actually a little shorter) and was able to do it in 130 minutes and change - which is your 10 min/mile pace. It wasn't exactly easy but it wasn't terribly difficult either - and I was starting out way, way out of shape! About 6' 235 to start the process not a whole lot lighter on race day. 

 

[pbm107]

10 minute mile is my goal for the 10 mile run.  I'm hoping I get there in 10 weeks.

Are you running Broad Street? I will be running it.

 

[Harris]

Oh, good to know that you're you!     I wasn't aware that you somehow met one of my son's friends (or even how you'd make that connection!).  My son is married, and they have two young boys (grandsons  )  and living out in Lombard.  He does BI work at Molex.  My daughter, who was at Drake (leading to our quick meeting back in the day), got her masters in social work and works for the Alzheimer's Association.  I'm in higher ed, actually ...Dominican University.  I'd gone back to school myself to get a doctorate, and I'm now full-time accounting faculty.  I love the new gig - it allows me more time to work with and mentor students (lots of discussions about the CPA and career paths) and more time to get involved with presentations and leadership in the professional orgs (such as the AAA). And more time to train and run.        As you'll hear, if you missed the fall chatter, I PR'ed at the marine corp marathon in October to requalify for my fourth Boston in 2021.

Are you still in the accounting field in some manner?  And how were you so fortunate to wind up in Paris?  Man, that'd be great, to run and bike through Paris and France.  My wife and I spent time in France a few years ago (at the back end of a school-sponsored, two week trip I had to southern France to learn about the roots of St. Dominic and the little village of Fanjeaux).  We loved the couple of days we spent in Giverny (Monet's gardens; great little AirBnB right on the main drag near the church) as well as some days staying in the old quarter of Avignon with a side trip to the lavender fields to the east.  I saw that one of your races is down that way (Aix-en-Provence)!

--

Guys, if @Harris is training for an IM, we'll need to figure out the French for "BMF."  Then again, with @Zasada gearing up for an ultra, we'll need to be able to say it in Canadian, too.

Glad to hear about all of the positives on the update and great job on the PR at MCM!! Boston is one of my lifetime goals but likely not this year unless a miracle happens at either Sevilla (next weekend, targeting 3:15) or Paris (April). 

I started off in accounting at my current company (private equity commercial real estate investment firm) but about four years ago transitioned into portfolio management and then 15 months ago moved over here to work on a large European real estate investment fund. If you come back to Paris or France certainly let me know and I'd be more than happy to lead some cycling around!

This year is lined up to be my biggest race year to date (barring injuries) with the above that I mentioned plus another half-ironman in July (someone at work threw down a challenge) and then the Transcontinental Race at the end of July. Not sure if anyone on here has followed it previously but it's ultra endurance cycling across Europe, this year Brest (France) to Burgas (Bulgaria) with checkpoints along the way. Once I realized that my application was accepted for the race I definitely had an "oh ####" moment! 

Awesome to see this thread still going though and hoping to contribute as much as I can!

 

[fred_1_15301]

Are you running Broad Street? I will be running it.

Yup

 

[MAC_32]

Brain storming, looks like we are gonna have a nice run of weather Friday-Sunday. I am doing a steady pace long run Sunday. I will possibly be doing it hungover, but I definitely want to do it tired. So, what would you do Fri and Sat? I have about 50 minutes to work with Friday and could probably etch out 60-80 minutes sometime Saturday. I will be fresh. Real answers requested, but schtick strongly encouraged. 

 

[ChiefD]

Brain storming, looks like we are gonna have a nice run of weather Friday-Sunday. I am doing a steady pace long run Sunday. I will possibly be doing it hungover, but I definitely want to do it tired. So, what would you do Fri and Sat? I have about 50 minutes to work with Friday and could probably etch out 60-80 minutes sometime Saturday. I will be fresh. Real answers requested, but schtick strongly encouraged. 

Well, since you want to run it hungover and tired, 50 minutes of drinking Friday seems short, but if its all the time you have so be it.

But I would definitely expand the Saturday drinking to something like 120-240 minutes. That should do it.

It's the cumulative drinking you are aiming for.

 

[MAC_32]

Well, since you want to run it hungover and tired, 50 minutes of drinking Friday seems short, but if its all the time you have so be it.

But I would definitely expand the Saturday drinking to something like 120-240 minutes. That should do it.

It's the cumulative drinking you are aiming for.

I fully intend to exceed 240 minutes on Saturday. 

 

[ChiefD]

I fully intend to exceed 240 minutes on Saturday. 

You should be good then. 

 

[SFBayDuck]

I fully intend to exceed 240 minutes on Saturday. 

Please report back with average HR. 

 

[The Iguana]

Oh what a relief... have my PT appointment in the morning but tried a little easy run tonight and it went well. Will see what they say in the morning but feel pretty good about getting back to normal sooner rather than later. 

Was on the indoor track to stay nice and warm and figured I would just see how things felt. 5 miles never felt so sweet. 

 

[tri-man 47]

Brain storming, looks like we are gonna have a nice run of weather Friday-Sunday. I am doing a steady pace long run Sunday. I will possibly be doing it hungover, but I definitely want to do it tired. So, what would you do Fri and Sat? I have about 50 minutes to work with Friday and could probably etch out 60-80 minutes sometime Saturday. I will be fresh. Real answers requested, but schtick strongly encouraged. 

Maybe just get in miles on Friday, make a strong tempo run the heart of Saturday, then your steady pace long run on Sunday.

 

[gianmarco]

Maybe just get in miles on Friday, make a strong tempo run the heart of Saturday, then your steady pace long run on Sunday.

This sounds good. I'd also recommend getting a good night's sleep and eating well. 

Booooooooooooring.

 

[gianmarco]

I fully intend to exceed 240 minutes on Saturday. 

Similar thing I told @gruecd.....

400-800m repeats, starting at 5K pace, each one faster than the last until you can't anymore. If you fail going faster than the previous, you get 1 extra attempt. 

 

[Zasada]

So this morning I decide to go out and try to grab a CR near my (DFW) house.  Conditions were good.  Dry, 7C/45, bit of a tailwind.  Been gaining a little confidence lately with the street running (trails are a different story).  It's an 800m segment, with no street crossings and good footing.  About a 1.5km warmup getting to the segment, turn the corner to get on it, and fire-up the 1K pace.

I've forgotten how hard 1K pace is.  Feels like an eternity, and in the dark I'm trying to see the end of the segment to know when the pain will stop.

I start a little fast (3:30/km I saw after), and halfway through I have to ease off just a touch (3:50/km as seen after).  But get through it, and figured I ran about a 3:45/km (6:02/mi) pace.  Have to slow to a jog when the segment ends, but slowly start ramping-up the pace as I recover and have a decent rest of my "normal" 11km weekday run.

Get home, upload to Strava, hoping to see a crown.  Instead I see a #2 trophy.  Ugh.  Am I going to have to try again?  Then I look closer at the segment and #1 is a 38s/km pace.  Ummmmm, yeah.  No beating that.  So I flagged the segment and hopefully Strava will do something about it.  Not a huge deal, but when crowns are hard to come by, I'd like to get the ones I earned!

 

[Juxtatarot]

So this morning I decide to go out and try to grab a CR near my (DFW) house.  Conditions were good.  Dry, 7C/45, bit of a tailwind.  Been gaining a little confidence lately with the street running (trails are a different story).  It's an 800m segment, with no street crossings and good footing.  About a 1.5km warmup getting to the segment, turn the corner to get on it, and fire-up the 1K pace.

I've forgotten how hard 1K pace is.  Feels like an eternity, and in the dark I'm trying to see the end of the segment to know when the pain will stop.

I start a little fast (3:30/km I saw after), and halfway through I have to ease off just a touch (3:50/km as seen after).  But get through it, and figured I ran about a 3:45/km (6:02/mi) pace.  Have to slow to a jog when the segment ends, but slowly start ramping-up the pace as I recover and have a decent rest of my "normal" 11km weekday run.

Get home, upload to Strava, hoping to see a crown.  Instead I see a #2 trophy.  Ugh.  Am I going to have to try again?  Then I look closer at the segment and #1 is a 38s/km pace.  Ummmmm, yeah.  No beating that.  So I flagged the segment and hopefully Strava will do something about it.  Not a huge deal, but when crowns are hard to come by, I'd like to get the ones I earned!

You're already listed as #1 now.  Congrats!  I know you're doing the trail/ultra thing right now but I hope you take another shot at shorter distance road stuff at some point.  Your HR has shown you're getting really efficient and I think the speed could come in time as well. 

 

[xulf]

So this morning I decide to go out and try to grab a CR near my (DFW) house.  Conditions were good.  Dry, 7C/45, bit of a tailwind.  Been gaining a little confidence lately with the street running (trails are a different story).  It's an 800m segment, with no street crossings and good footing.  About a 1.5km warmup getting to the segment, turn the corner to get on it, and fire-up the 1K pace.

I've forgotten how hard 1K pace is.  Feels like an eternity, and in the dark I'm trying to see the end of the segment to know when the pain will stop.

I start a little fast (3:30/km I saw after), and halfway through I have to ease off just a touch (3:50/km as seen after).  But get through it, and figured I ran about a 3:45/km (6:02/mi) pace.  Have to slow to a jog when the segment ends, but slowly start ramping-up the pace as I recover and have a decent rest of my "normal" 11km weekday run.

Get home, upload to Strava, hoping to see a crown.  Instead I see a #2 trophy.  Ugh.  Am I going to have to try again?  Then I look closer at the segment and #1 is a 38s/km pace.  Ummmmm, yeah.  No beating that.  So I flagged the segment and hopefully Strava will do something about it.  Not a huge deal, but when crowns are hard to come by, I'd like to get the ones I earned!

Your HR has been absolutely killer.  You're crushing it 

 

[The Iguana]

I just left the PT office. I'm not sure if I love that guy or hate him but that was some good stuff. Have several more sessions scheduled over the next week or so and he promises to have me "fixed" in no time. He worked both on the hammy and on my hip (both left leg). The hip has been an ongoing thing for some time - never felt like an injury but just sore/angry/uncomfortable. Possibly going to do some dry needling next time around. 

 

[Zasada]

You're already listed as #1 now.  Congrats!  I know you're doing the trail/ultra thing right now but I hope you take another shot at shorter distance road stuff at some point.  Your HR has shown you're getting really efficient and I think the speed could come in time as well. 

Didn't see that -- cool!  

Yeah my HR is getting back to peak form.  My (Garmin) VO2MAX is higher than its ever been.  My legs still don't feel like they're in peak form, but they're improving.  

This morning I examined my running in Aug/Sep (to see what got me to my peak performance, pre-butt vacation) and while the weekly volume then is about the same as it is now, I don't think the quality is there.  With the big difference being that instead of running 5x weekly (Rest/10K/20K/10K/Rest/20K/10K) I've moved to 6x weekly, adding another 10K but dropping the midweek 20K.  That could be hurting me.  If I can get the motivation to start getting out of bed at 0300 on Wednesdays again, it would probably help me to get back to that.

 

[MAC_32]

Similar thing I told @gruecd.....

400-800m repeats, starting at 5K pace, each one faster than the last until you can't anymore. If you fail going faster than the previous, you get 1 extra attempt. 

I'm going to schedule this, but not this weekend. I want easy days on either side of something more taxing on my legs like this one. Hopefully next week, but we'll see if mother nature is behaving. Preciate the idea.

I'm rolling with @tri-man 47's suggestion. I haven't done that level of a sustained effort since fall. With low 40's and sun I'm curious how long I can hold it. 

 

[ChiefD]

Didn't see that -- cool!  

Yeah my HR is getting back to peak form.  My (Garmin) VO2MAX is higher than its ever been.  My legs still don't feel like they're in peak form, but they're improving.  

This morning I examined my running in Aug/Sep (to see what got me to my peak performance, pre-butt vacation) and while the weekly volume then is about the same as it is now, I don't think the quality is there.  With the big difference being that instead of running 5x weekly (Rest/10K/20K/10K/Rest/20K/10K) I've moved to 6x weekly, adding another 10K but dropping the midweek 20K.  That could be hurting me.  If I can get the motivation to start getting out of bed at 0300 on Wednesdays again, it would probably help me to get back to that.

You may need to get out of bed at 3am on a regular basis once you start to feel the Dallas summers. 

 

[The Iguana]

I just left the PT office. I'm not sure if I love that guy or hate him but that was some good stuff. Have several more sessions scheduled over the next week or so and he promises to have me "fixed" in no time. He worked both on the hammy and on my hip (both left leg). The hip has been an ongoing thing for some time - never felt like an injury but just sore/angry/uncomfortable. Possibly going to do some dry needling next time around. 

Also, he recommended that I keep running as long as there is no significant pain/discomfort. Going to keep the runs relatively easy for a bit but happy to be able to keep getting some miles in. 

Last night really was kind of fun to see the difference in my own attitude around it all - last year with a couple issues it made a great excuse to get a few days off. This last week away was really difficult. Total change in mental approach to it.

 

[SFBayDuck]

Also, he recommended that I keep running as long as there is no significant pain/discomfort. 

To me that’s the sign of a PT who gets it. 

 

[Brony]

To me that’s the sign of a PT who gets it. 

If I need to find another one, I'm going to start with the ones that do Graston or dry needling.  Not because I need it, but if the PT was serious enough about treating runners to learn those techniques, then they are likely a step ahead of your fresh-out-of-college PT.