Sub 2:00 Half Marathon thread (Read 2396 times)

hectortrojan


    Jan26.2 – my wife’s lack of running was not due to an injurySmile Thanks for the birthday wishes.
    It doesn’t sound good to hear that your right leg is longer than the left one, but it is good that it can be improved.

     

    Lurch – great job in loosing that much weight! I’m sure that you need to have strong will to do so and the same strong will would help you in longer distance races

     

    Zelanie – I would go for option C: 5 miles tempo. I personally don't include any runs at HM pace in my training. My speed workouts are Hard (at particular HR), Progressive (increasing speed till I hit particular HR) and 5 X 2 min Interval(as fast as I can run for 2 minutes) and tempo runs( I just did a couple of tempo runs. would do more in training for next race)

     

    EdithRevisited – it’s exciting that there will be 20% off at your running store. I am relatively new at running, but since I got serious about it, buying running related stuff excites me more than regular shopping. I got a couple of gift certificate to running stores from my in-laws!

     

    Me – rode a stationary bike for an hour this morning.

    miele


    Godzilla

      Zelanie-  I don't really like having my picture taken so maybe that would explain a little why my photos are bad.  I try to ignore the photographers for the most part.  All those workouts look pretty good to me.  Maybe since it was supposed to have been a tune-up race you should go for the 2x3@10k?

       

      gosling-  Not the dreaded psoas!  I had a flare-up at mile 2 of a marathon.  I believe it was a secondary injury since I had tried to manage a patellar tracking problem throughout the training cycle.  It sounds like your chiro is helping and the good news is you don't have to take time off.

       

      hector-  You made me laugh when you said you're not going to talk about your foot any more.  I know exactly how you feel.  That was a very solid tempo run!  Well done.  I haven't bought any regular clothes in such a long time.  If it's not running related then I'm not really interested.

       

      Jan-  Glad you found a sports chiro you like.  Sounds like he was pretty thorough.   Did he give you some exercises to help strengthen your weaknesses?  Thankfully you don't have to quit running cold turkey.  I know you hate to cut back but.......try to stay sane!  You can vent here.

       

      kenyan-  Nice tempo!  Mine's tomorrow and I'm going to really try to pick a sane pace from the start.  That would be much better than feeling like total crap at the end of the run.

       

      Lurch- I didn't even think about the TSA and potential problems with your driver's license.  With all your traveling and eating out I think you're doing an outstanding job losing weight.  Try not to cut out all fat (you're probably not thinking of anything so drastic but I thought I would mention it anyway).  We need fat to absorb some vitamins.

       

      Edith-  Winston is adorable!  I bet he looks really funny running around with his big floppy ears.  I'm joining the lazy glute club although I'm trying to address leg strength discrepancies with my new leg routine.  My right leg seems to be weaker.  Hope you feel better and enjoy the lady's night!

       

      me-  Took a rest day today.  I've noticed that I need a little longer recovery after Ryan Hall's speed work.   So I made lemon stuff today.  Got an abundance of lemons from the neighbor so I made some lemon pound cake and a lemon pie.  And I still have lemons....what to do, what to do.

      10K: 47:12* / 13.1: 1:50:56 / 26.2: 3:53:48

       

                  


      You Rang?

        Thank you all for your kind words.  I've been thinking about my plateau for a little while and I have come to two conclusions:

         

        1.  My calorie log is riddled with erroneous calorie counts.  I'd been recording fewer calories that I'd actually been eating.  I'm not losing weight because I'm not actually in caloric deficit.  I'm not gaining either, so at least I don't have to re-lose the pounds.  The accuracy of the log was not that important when I was 100+ lbs overweight.  Caloric deficit was easily obtained with any level of accuracy in logging food.  Now that I'm no longer morbidly obese, the accuracy of the calorie log matters.  I just need to tighten down the accuracy of my log and let the magic happen.

         

        2.  I also have a perception problem.  I served in the US Coast Guard for 10 years.  I always butted up against the maximum weight limit. I usually weighed in 5 lbs light of the limit.  I separated from the service and ate everything in sight. for three straight years  I packed on 100+ lbs.  I now weight 20 lbs. less than I did in the service.  I think I am skinny.  The problem is that i'm not skinny enough to churn out a sub 2:00 half.

         

        I know this forum is about running an not necessarily about weight loss.  Time to screw the head on straight and keep an accurate log.

         

        Rick

        Rick 

        PR: 5k 25:01 (10/15) 10k: 57:44 (7/14) HM: 1:57 (5/15) FM: 4:55 (1/15)

          The problem is that i'm not skinny enough to churn out a sub 2:00 half.

           

          I don't buy this. I ran a couple sub 2 halves in the high 190s and I'm six inches shorter than you. Plenty of people bigger than me have whipped me at various races (entered in clydesdale category is the only reason I noticed or paid attention).

           

          I see that you've only got one race recorded in your PR list. To me this means, you just need to keep on running and do a little more racing.

           

          Would you be a little faster if you dropped some pounds? Sure. But don't let that limit you.

          When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?

          the kenyan


            Gordy Ainsleigh (the guy who started Western States)  has dropped a 2:52 marathon, not to mention his sub 24 hour 100 miler relatively unsupported, and he's 200+ pounds.  Then again, he's a bit of a different breed. Wink

            npaden


              Had  a big long reply typed up and my computer froze and it all went away.  Cry

               

              Huge Kudos to Zelanie and Lurch on the weight loss.  I'm still over 200lbs and running sub 2 hour half marathons and I'm anything but a classic runner.  Put the miles in and the speed will come, plus if you run enough you can eat about anything you want, I burned over 10,000 calories running last week!

               

              I've been keeping up but have been busy so not much time to post.  My week last week was tough, my 18 miler was tough, but I'm still following the plan and this week is somewhat of a cut back week (only 55 miles) so I'm thinking I should be able to stay on track.

               

              Thought I would try to share a couple pictures from our club race last week (that's what locked my computer up last time).

               

              Coming in to the finish line.  The tail wind was so strong here you can see it blowing the race number and my shirt the opposite direction that I'm running.

               

              This picture is funny.  I think it looks like I'm about to start crying!  The wind sucked that day.

              Here's a picture on of the club members posted on our club's facebook page of one of the lead runners coming through at about the 7 mile mark.  Running into the wind on that stretch of road was brutal.  When the wind gusted and the dirt blew you just had to keep your head down and look at the road in front of your feet to keep the dirt out of you eyes and mouth.

              Oh well, thought the pictures were interesting.  Hope everyone has a great weekend.

               

              Nathan

              Age: 50 Weight: 224 Height: 6'3" (Goal weight 195)

              Current PR's:  Mara 3:14:36* (2017); HM 1:36:13 (2017); 10K 43:59 (2014); 5K 21:12 (2016)


              You Rang?

                 

                I don't buy this.... Would you be a little faster if you dropped some pounds? Sure. But don't let that limit you.

                 

                Thank you Bonkin for causing me to question my assumptions.  You're right.  I'm not certain if I could churn out a sub 2 half or not.  I do know this.  If i did it now, it wouldn't be as easy as Zelanie makes it look.  Now if I had Zelanie's BMI (and her date of birth).....

                 

                For the record, I'm well above 200 lbs.  I'm 44 years old 6' 6" tall and 236.4 lbs.  as of this morning.  Your'e also right.  I don't race too much.  I also have the luxury of time.  My next half (the one that I want to go sub 2 at)  is September 1, 2013.  I have no intention of letting up from the 30 to 40 mile per week pace I have been putting up or logging the calories.

                 

                npaden:  Love the orange shirt... that just looks fast.  Dust sucks.

                Rick 

                PR: 5k 25:01 (10/15) 10k: 57:44 (7/14) HM: 1:57 (5/15) FM: 4:55 (1/15)

                miele


                Godzilla

                  Lurch-  You'll be fine.  I think keeping a food log is a good idea as long as it's accurate.  You're determined and heading in the right direction.  I have no doubt you'll reach your weight and running goals.  Oh, and I don't think anyone minds non-running related stuff here.  I love hearing about people's goals and progress in other aspects of their lives.

                   

                  Bonkin-  Checked out your log and I can't imagine running 6, 8 or 15 hours!  Crazy (and I mean that in a good kind of way)!  Are you coming off an injury?

                   

                  kenyan-  I'm off to google Gordy after this post....

                   

                  Nathan-  Great pics!  Lovin' the orange with the coordinated shoelaces!  I don't see where you've got 3 pounds to lose, to be honest.  The dust, dirt, wind, etc. reminds me of Texas (the panhandle).  You don't look like you're about to cry but rather that you're giving it your all.  Your streak is going strong!

                   

                  me-  Had a pretty good tempo today.  Decided I wasn't going to look at my pace but just try to maintain a 'comfortably hard' pace I felt I could maintain for an hour.  It was tough but I averaged 8:06 for 6 miles the slowest mile being 8:18 which was the final uphill mile.  Then went to the gym for shoulders and abs.

                  10K: 47:12* / 13.1: 1:50:56 / 26.2: 3:53:48

                   

                              

                  bluerun


                  Super B****

                    I am so, so, SO behind... and I keep putting this off since I feel so behind, which just makes it worse.  So apologies in advance for anyone I miss!

                     

                    Jan -- yikes, I'm sorry, that doesn't sound like fun!  I've never heard of Lower Crossed Syndrome... but at least it can be worked on, right?

                     

                    Zelanie -- I would go with either A or B, with a preference for B.  I like A because it can give you a feel for the pace, but personally, I know I tend to run faster than I think I can in a race situation, so I'd just rather go with what seems like it would be a better workout, and that's B.

                     

                    Edith -- I hope you feel better by now.

                     

                    Lurch -- I'm going to concur with those who said that your weight doesn't have to mean you won't go sub-2:00.  It might be EASIER if you weighed less, but that doesn't mean it's impossible right now.

                     

                    npaden -- that is an awesome picture!  The wind does look brutal.  I was going to say that at least it was a tailwind, but that means you had to deal with a headwind at some point, too...

                     

                    miele -- nice tempo!  My brain is still a couple of years in the past and whenever I see myself running faster than a 9:00 pace in training (even though, according to McMillan, my easy pace can be faster than that), I kind of freak out that I'm running too fast.

                     

                    me -- my shins are still spitting mad at me for that half (well, no surprise -- the steepest uphill was a 15% grade, downhill was 11%... and there were 13.1 miles of that).  But I did get "permission" from my PT, so I registered for another half in May.  It's supposed to be a flat course, and I'd be ecstatic if I could pull off a 1:45, but I think that would be pretty unlikely!

                    chasing the impossible

                     

                    because i never shut up ... i blog

                    hectortrojan


                      Miele – l like drinking lemon/lime juice after long runs sometimes. Since you have a lot of lemons left, you might want to use it as your recovery drink and see how it goes. Great tempo run!

                       

                      Npaden – second picture is funny. I definitely see serious wind from looking at pictures. Loved the orange shirt.

                       

                      Bluerun – sorry to hear about your injury. I hope it gets healed quickly.

                       

                      Me – rode stationary bike for an hour today and yesterday.

                        npaden-Looking at the trail, I wouldn't mind trading our snow and ice for some of that wind and dust!! Great pics.

                         

                        miele-Awesome tempo, that pace is very quick. I'm a big believer in running on "feel". I mentioned that last year, and still run that way. Still haven't given in to buy a GPS watch.

                         

                        me-super busy with work and teaching, but have some more time know between classes. Still trying to get in 3 quality runs between Fridays and Sundays (all other days are booked crazy). I know it's not ideal, but it only gets better as the days get longer. Plus doing my 1 or 2 days of karate as my x-training. Only 4 weeks out of my first 1/2 this year. Cant wait to run this one, plus my DW is doing her maiden 1/2 as well. Super excited for her, even though she is scared sh!tless of it.

                        Happy running everyone!

                        Steve

                        5K/22:33   10K/47:52   21.1K/1:44:06  42.2K/4:07:37
                        2014 Goals: 5K<22:00 10K<45:00 HM<1:40  FM<3:45

                          Are you coming off an injury?

                           

                          The only thing injured after quitting running and re-gaining a bunch of weight is my pride. I'm slowly but surely working my way back though.

                          When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?

                            npaden-Looking at the trail, I wouldn't mind trading our snow and ice for some of that wind and dust!! Great pics.

                             

                            miele-Awesome tempo, that pace is very quick. I'm a big believer in running on "feel". I mentioned that last year, and still run that way. Still haven't given in to buy a GPS watch.

                             

                            me-super busy with work and teaching, but have some more time know between classes. Still trying to get in 3 quality runs between Fridays and Sundays (all other days are booked crazy). I know it's not ideal, but it only gets better as the days get longer. Plus doing my 1 or 2 days of karate as my x-training. Only 4 weeks out of my first 1/2 this year. Cant wait to run this one, plus my DW is doing her maiden 1/2 as well. Super excited for her, even though she is scared sh!tless of it.

                            Happy running everyone!

                            After work, I have a 13.5k training run at 5:10 pace, then another 13.5k on Sunday.

                            Steve

                            5K/22:33   10K/47:52   21.1K/1:44:06  42.2K/4:07:37
                            2014 Goals: 5K<22:00 10K<45:00 HM<1:40  FM<3:45

                            gosling


                              Jan - Sorry your injury wasn't as easy a fix as mine was, but at least you can train through it! Did you get an estimate of how long he thinks it will take to get you back to normal?

                               

                              Edith - Hope your throat is better!

                               

                              miele - Awesome tempo run! I'm also jealous of your lemons. We had a meyer lemon tree in our yard when we lived in California. So nice.

                               

                              Zelanie - I like option B.

                               

                              Lurch - I have a couple friends that went through big weight losses and had luck breaking the "plateau" phase by doing the Whole 30 and actually NOT counting calories during it. Both lost around 20lb in a month and felt like it was a great way to change things up and not burn out.

                               

                              npaden - Great pics! That wind looks serious, though.

                               

                              Me - Feeling much better this week! I was still a little nervous earlier in the week so I hit the treadmill...set out to do 5 easy but felt good so I threw in some intervals at the end. The only thing I could remember about intervals was from the HH intermediate plan I read a while back. He recommends 5x400 at 5k pace as a starting point, so I did 5x400 at 8:00 (faster than my last 5k). This felt pretty easy so maybe I was going too slow? Or should I be doing more intervals? Big test was my 12 miler yesterday. After 8 miles it just felt like a slog; I was done. So I ran miles 9, 10, and 11 at 9:30 and mile 12 at 8:45. Only way to get done faster is to speed up, right? Wink Anyway, groin felt fine after all that so I'm confident I'm back to normal - phew!

                              gosling


                                And since I'm no longer really following any plan (except my own): I have 4 more long runs before my race. I've done 2 12s, an 11, and 2 10s at this point. Assuming I won't want to do a really long one the weekend before, what should I do for the 3 weeks between now and then? Remember I only run 4x a week and my mileage has been hovering somewhere in the 25-30mpw range. In general, would running longer or faster benefit me most between now and then?