123

Training Blog for HM runners - all welcome (Read 984 times)

Wingz


Professional Noob

    Hi, all. I wanted to start a thread for those of us who are currently training for a half-marathon. I thought it would be nice if we had somewhere we could post to about what we're running, how we're doing, and what we're learning along the way. This is my first time training for a half-marathon, and it would be nice to have some company, so if you're working towards the same goal, why not jump in and share too? I'm planning on posting my progress here every week, and I would encourage you to do the same. Training for another goal? Why not start your own thread? There's plenty of room... Smile

    Roads were made for journeys...

    Wingz


    Professional Noob

      Ok, like I said, I've starting training for my first Half Marathon. Here's a secret: I have two races in mind. I have the race I'd like to do, the Inside-Out Sports Classic HM on Oct 22, and I have a fall-back race in case I need a few extra weeks of training, the Outer Banks HM on Nov 12, which I mentioned earlier in another thread. Really I would like to run in the one in Oct. It's right here in town, so I won't have to travel, and it's a pretty course. It just made sense to me to have a one-step-back plan that I could use if I needed more time, so that I wouldn't feel like it was an all-or-nothing kind of thing and possibly end up quitting if I got a couple of weeks behind. I'm trying really hard to go by Higdon's Novice Half-Marathon training program. I've discovered, though, that since it has you running only 3 or 4 times / week, I may end up sneaking in an extra run here and there... The short time that I was running 5 days/wk it just felt (psychologically) "right" for me. ::ahem:: Then I hurt my hip. Hmm... Maybe it wasn't physically right for me right then, but I know that it felt good to run 5 days/wk. Higdon includes strength training and cross-training, so maybe that extra work will take up enough energy that I won't miss my fifth day so bad... This was a good, but tough, running week for me. I've allowed myself two extra weeks at the start of the program to get in the swing of things, and I'm glad I did. I was able to do all of the workouts on Week 1, but the days were all scrambled. Of course, having to take your car in for repairs and then pick it up (on foot) doesn't help either... Or my screwy work schedule... But that'll be getting better in a couple of weeks. Here's how the week went: Planned Mon - stretch & strengthen Tue - 3 mile run Wed - 2 mile run or crosstrain Thurs - 3 mile run & strength Fri - rest Sat - 30 min crosstraining Sun - 4 mile "long" run Actual Mon - 3 mile run Tue - stretch & strenghten Wed - 35 minutes crosstrain Thurs - 3 mile run Fri - 2.4 miles & strength training Sat - rest Sun - 4 miles, done with music that moved my feet faster than normal. In all, it was pretty close to the planned week, maybe a touch more. I will try to do the same workouts next week (when again I'll be taking my car BACK to the shop to try to get them to fix the job they botched...). Roll eyes

      Roads were made for journeys...

      zoom-zoom


      rectumdamnnearkilledem

        Oh, this is great! My own planned HM is Halloween weekend! Right now I am just trying to increase my weekly running times by 10% or less. I break that up into 4 workouts, including one long run, 2 easys, and 1 speed (tempo, at this point, though I want to start messing with fartleks and hills, more). Once my son starts school I may try to do 5 runs/week, but he will only be in half days, so it's tricky to do anything but a shorter run while he is gone. This past week I ran a total of 210 minutes, for 18.1 miles. I had hoped to run closer to 19 miles, but with Gus' illness and subsequent death I was tired and my heart just wasn't in it. Hopefully I can hit 20 miles this coming week. I would like to be increasing by 1.5-2 miles each week for the next month (though I doubt I will get many miles in at all during the 5 days I am in LA). Right now my longest run is about 6.5 miles. I'm generally increasing my long run by about a half-mile/week. k

        Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

        remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

             ~ Sarah Kay

          Great thread...as usual! I am training for the Kansas City Half in October. There are two friends of mine that are training for the same race, but we are not training together right now. One guy is too fast and we would slow him down, and the other is currently taking a little time off to heal. So it's just me out there. Here is a typical week for me: Mon: Rest and stretch Tues: 3.3 easy miles around the neighborhood Wed: Rest and stretch Thurs: Speed work (sorta)...1 mile warm up and cool down and an increasing # of miles (3 miles this week) Predictive Race Pace (what I think I'm going to run the HM at) It's a great tempo run and let's me know what to expect on race day. Fri: Rest and stretch Sat: 3.3 easy around the hood Sun: Long run...6 miles this week I also bike to work and back every day during the week. It's 8.6 miles round trip. It's only a 20 minute work out in the AM and 20 minutes in the PM, but I keep my heart rate between 70-80% to get the max out of an easy workout.
          "Life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways.... totally worn out ....shouting...."Holy S**t....What a ride!"
          zoom-zoom


          rectumdamnnearkilledem

            Rob, your workouts look a LOT like mine! My short days are usually in the 3-4 mile range, too. Big grin k

            Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

            remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

                 ~ Sarah Kay

              I really enjoy a nice easy run between my harder (long or PRP) days. I like to keep them short and nothing fancy. I don't know if you use a heart rate monitor or not, but since I started using one, I feel like I'm getting a much higher quality of workouts. Do you either of you use them?
              "Life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways.... totally worn out ....shouting...."Holy S**t....What a ride!"
              zoom-zoom


              rectumdamnnearkilledem

                I think Janell does, but I don't. I really should look into one. Can anyone recommend a model that is good bang for the buck?

                Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

                remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

                     ~ Sarah Kay

                Wingz


                Professional Noob

                  I use one almost all the time. I love it! I bought a Polar A3 off the internet a while back. I think it's a discontinued model even though it's still available. It lets me set a range, will beep out of the range, gives me a workout time, time in zone, and average HR. It does NOT let me do anything with laps or intervals, I can't download anything, and it doesn't give a max HR. In general Polar's a good brand, though there are others, of course! I had some trouble with an Acumen and ended up returning it - twice. Wasn't going to let them ship me a third dud, so I switched brands. I've found that at my training range (135 - 145 BPM) I feel an urge to breathe deeper, but would have no trouble carrying on an interesting conversation. Prior to my starting to use it, I was running at a pace where I was always a little out of breath - say 3 or 4 words and breathe hard and then say a few more. The little beep on the alarm reminds me both to slow down AND to speed up when I'm daydreaming and just kind of drifting... LOL! I have the same problem with driving my car! Either speeding a bit or just kind of drifting, slower and slower... enjoying the drive... listening to the music... etc. Out of curiosity I wore it on my last 5K, and discovered I race at a rather high HR! 180 - 190 sustained over 40 minutes. (Yes, 5K in 40 minutes...) I topped out at 196... though it may have actually been possible for it to go higher, I don't know. I am sure I won't be able to race for longer distances at this effort level... and I wonder if I should plan on running with the monitor for my 10K and HM... I also wonder what level would be sustainable for longer distances. If I hadn't kicked a little early (oops!) I probably could have tagged another half mile to mile on to the end of that 5K and been alright, so I'm guessing if I can keep it around 170ish for most of the way for a 10K I'll be fine. But it's just a guess. My longest run to date has been 6.9 miles, but it was using the monitor (135 - 145 BPM), so it took about 2 hrs and 10 minutes. Other than my feet being tired I finished that in pretty good shape. Okay, it was during the same time my hip was hurting, but I swear it was hurting BEFORE I started that long run... Okay, that makes me sound even MORE foolish, but it's true! Black eye Blush

                  Roads were made for journeys...

                    Kirsten, I bought my first HRM online (Ebay) for $50 including shiping. It is a Sigma PC 15. Actually, it looks like they are still selling it: http://cgi.ebay.com/HEART-RATE-MONITOR-SIGMA-SPORT-PC-15-WATCH-PC-15-PC15_W0QQitemZ200006207630QQihZ010QQcategoryZ15277QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem I took that link off Ebay this morning. The features were great...it kept max hr, average hr, you could do laps for your speed work, audible alarms for target hrz. I couldn't agree with Janel more. Before a HRM, an "easy" run for me was actually too fast. You are supposed to be able to hold a conversation (if your Janel, an "interesting conversation"). I ran the 10k race on the 4th with my HRM on. My "max" HR is 220-32 (my age) = 188. I averaged 184 (97.8% of my max) over the full 10k and maxed at 204 during my kick. I have been told that the 220- your age will get you close to your MHR, but it's different for each person. I have read some articles on training with a HRM. Most of them agree to train based on HR and distance...forget about time. If you are on an easy run (70-80% of max) and you want to run 5 miles, don't worry about how long it takes you. Your HR will dictate the pace. On race day, forget about the HR (unless you think you are close to a heart attack...then you might want to slow down a bit Big grin). Run all out for the race. I still wear mine so I can log the info. Sorry so long, but since I have been using my HRM, I feel my workouts do so much more for my fitness.
                    "Life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways.... totally worn out ....shouting...."Holy S**t....What a ride!"
                    Wingz


                    Professional Noob

                      You are supposed to be able to hold a conversation (if your Janel, an "interesting conversation")
                      Well, if it's not an "interesting" conversation, why would you bother to have it in the first place? Wink I actually meant "interesting" as in you'd get into it and be able to concentrate on it (rather than your breathing!) but I guess it kinda sounded like I was saying all MY conversations would be interesting. Which I guess, to me, they would be, so that's not too far off! Big grin LOL! It's so hard to be humble when you're this great! Big grin

                      Roads were made for journeys...

                      zoom-zoom


                      rectumdamnnearkilledem

                        I love laughing so early in the AM--you guys are great! You know, I wish I would have had an HRM when I first started running. My general pace is not all that much faster, but with the conversation thing and breathing I KNOW my fitness level has improved. I'm no longer thinking "god, this breathing thing sucks," LOL! And during my first 5k I was chatting quite a bit with another runner...my MIL teases me and says that during a race I'm not supposed to be chatty. But she's a tightass... Big grin k

                        Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

                        remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

                             ~ Sarah Kay

                          I'm aiming for the Grand Rapids, MI HM Oct 29, which I think Kirsten is going to run with me. Next year, we are going to make it the full marathon, right Blondie?? Big grin Kirsten is supposed to email the list of runs she wants to do & if all dates & the finances agree, I plan to run them all with her (if they are 10K or longer). I'll do one 5K, the Susan G Komen race, as it is a cause I feel very strongly about. Other than that race though, 5K is too short to be really fun. I don't mind our virtual 5K's because I can map it out ahead of time & just take a 5K segment out of a longer run. I've been REALLY slow on the running for the last month due to a busy summer. I haven't even had time to log the very few miles I've been able to run! I'm hoping to pick it back up this week & next. We leave for our trip to Norway on July 30 & I'm hoping to get a run in every day while we are there, just to explore the areas we are staying. My hubby will be with me, so the runs will be shorter than my usual, but much faster & likely more painful! Wink
                          So do not get tired and stop trying. - Hebrews 12:3
                          Wingz


                          Professional Noob

                            Hi, Erin. Welcome back! Norway, huh? After Wyoming? Now I'm going to get jealous if you keep this up! Have a great time! Keep running! You can plan for "virtual" 5k/5m the first weekend of every month, if that helps!

                            Roads were made for journeys...

                              Hi, Erin. Welcome back! Norway, huh? After Wyoming? Now I'm going to get jealous if you keep this up! Have a great time! Keep running! You can plan for "virtual" 5k/5m the first weekend of every month, if that helps!
                              How fun, I can run my Aug virtual in Norway!!! Sorry to make you jealous...I lived there as an exchange student in high school & this is the first time I've been back since (it has been just a couple years) Wink So for me, this is the trip of a life time!! Two weeks there, one with a good friend & to her wedding, then the second w/ the host family I lived with. I'm so excited!!!!!! Did I mention how excited I was???
                              So do not get tired and stop trying. - Hebrews 12:3
                              Wingz


                              Professional Noob

                                Very cool! Be sure to tell us about it. Hey, can you take some scenery pictures for me? I'm curious what it looks like.

                                Roads were made for journeys...

                                123