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

miele


Godzilla

    Hi all!  I'm taking a URD today.  After I tell you what I did you might say, 'no wonder'.  But first:  RR

     

    Primo's Run in Danville Half Marathon:

     

    Woke up at 3:30 and couldn't go back to sleep.  Laid in bed until 5 then decided it was coffee time.  I didn't feel sleep-deprived despite the unusually early wake up.  Coffee, breakfast, morning rituals, etc. and then it was off to the start.

     

    We got there about 45 minutes early which is perfect so I can make use of the facilities, hopefully.  The weather was absolutely perfect.  47 at the start, no wind.  My game plan was to use the first 3 miles as a warmup.  I wasn't going to be concerned about the pace and I definitely wasn't going to panic because of a slow start but my goal was a 8:23 pace overall (1:49:49).  We took off.

     

    1         8:44

    2         8:36

    3        8:43  

    There were some rollers in here but I can feel my legs aren't up to it today.  My timing feels off and running just feels awkward.     It's happened to me before but it's unfortunate that it happened on race day.  Oh well.  I pretty much stop looking at my watch at this point.  Every time I would glance at it it would say 8:3x.  I couldn't go faster so I didn't fight it.

    4       8:18    downhill

    5      8:22

    6       8:31

    7      8:36

    8       8:23   took a gel and turned on the music.

    9      8:35

    10     8:39  Ok, this didn't turn out like I had hoped but there are only 3 miles left.  Let's see if I can do something.  Start counting people you pass.

    11     8:22   The effort is harder but I still don't look at my watch.

    12     7:57

    13     7:47  These last two miles came as a complete shock when I downloaded the info.  That's my 10k speed.  Why couldn't I have run a decent 10 miles leading up to these final miles?  Where's the 13 mile marker?  Where's the finish?  I'm so ready to get this over with.  I'm slowly passing a woman who sees me and speeds up.  She looks strong so I figure she'll be able to hold that pace till the finish.  Not so.  I eventually pass her again.  The small victories in life, right?

    .2 (per Garmin)  7:48  I couldn't  see where the finish was.  Mistook a street sign for the finish line only to be crushed to see I was mistaken.

     

    Chip time:  1:50:56  an 11 sec. PR!

    AG 40-49:      19/94  (there are some fast people around here)

    F:         46/224

    Overall:     166/520

     

    The positives:

    *I was able to finish strong.

    *I didn't go out too fast (never mind that I couldn't really pick it up till mile 11)

    *Top 50 women got a special tech shirt (bright tennis ball green.  Excellent!)

    *Passed 18 people from mile 10.  The three people who passed me I eventually re-passed.

    *11 second PR!  Course PR by 1:05.

     

    The negatives:

    *I never seem to be able to bust out a great HM PR during marathon training.  Disappointing.

    *Couldn't hold what I thought would be a reasonable pace for me.

    *Doesn't bode well for what I wanted to achieve in the marathon.  Have to re-evaluate that goal.

    *They only had Large and XL left in the really cool top 50 shirt.  So DH now has a new shirt.

     

    All in all I'm not so disappointed.  Just a little.  I think I'll eventually be able to break 1:50.  Next year.

     

    So now it's back to marathon training.....tomorrow.  Sunday was the race.  Monday I ran 8 in the morning.  Legs felt pretty heavy.  Hit the gym then ran 4 with the group in the evening.  That 4 miles just about did me in.  I wanted to stop at mile 3 but didn't.  I shouldn't have run with the group last night.  That's why I'm taking today off.   My legs are telling me to be careful.

    I'm wondering if it would have made a difference had I handled the 'taper' any differently.  I did run 3x1600 on Tues.  That should've given me enough time to recover for the race on Sunday, I think, but maybe not.

     

    I hope Jan checks in to let us know how it went with her race.  She's probably refusing to leave Long Beach.

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

     

                

    npaden


      miele, congrats on the PR!

       

      Think this through, you just ran your HM PR coming straight off several high volume weeks of marathon training.  You adjusted your training slightly, but this wasn't your goal race or you would have done a lot of things differently.  Your legs are probably still thinking marathon pace because the Hansons plan really gets you locked in on that with so much volume at that pace.

       

      For me my big gains on the shorter races didn't come until several months after my marathon.  Remember I ran a HM while I was marathon training and I adjusted my schedule about like you did and was a little disappointed with my result as well.  My official time on that was a 1:50:04 or something like that but I did end up running like a 1/4 mile extra based on some confusion at the start.

       

      There is no doubt that you are on target for your marathon and if you schedule a target half marathon a few months after your marathon I think that you will knock out that sub 1:50 with no problems.

      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)

      Jan26.2


        miele - Congrats on your PR!!! I don't think I'll ever even see a 1:50, much less a 1:49 or faster. I think PRs during marathon training are tricky to pull off. You've got the increased mileage and aerobic endurance, but you've also got some fatigue that never really goes away. Nice race!

         

        Long Beach was amazing! Bright sunshine, temps in the 70s, lots of time with my son and his GF, and a fun race. Finish time was 1:53:52, which is about 17 seconds off my PR. It was a nice surprise, since I had no expectations for this one other than to enjoy. I raced with tunes for the first time ever, and I think it really helped when my body wanted me to slow down. I'd crank up one of my favorite songs and it would power me up. This year they started the marathon an hour before the half, but there were more half runners so it was extremely crowded pretty much the whole race. At the end of mile 3 was the Queensway Bridge, and it's a steep one. We were able to pass a lot of the crowd as they slowed to walk (guess that hill training paid off), and flying down the other side helped too. My splits were:

         

        9:14

        9:04

        8:36

        8:32

        7:45

        8:33

        8:58 (took a gel and water here)

        8:44

        8:34

        8:46

        8:57 (DH circled back to grab some donut holes and I slowed to wait for the piggy)

        8:26

        8:00

        7:16 (this was the .1 part)

         

        We treated this way more like a vacation than a race, so the finish time was like dessert after a yummy meal. Cool Training at 6400 feet and racing at sea level helps too! This Sunday it's back to altitude reality - we're running the Denver R&R half with my son. Should be fun, except the predicted temps keep dropping. Now we're looking at upper 30s at start time. Brrr!

         

        DH had a job pulling me off the beach and getting me on the plane. That part is always ugly. Joking I took today and tomorrow off work just so it wouldn't be as horrible coming home. After some good talks on the beach, hopefully now DH realizes the depth of my hatred for teaching and will still be supportive when I find something else. But, it's all fun and games until someone takes a pay cut!

         

        I've got to go back to previous pages and check in on everyone. Hope everyone is well!

        PR's: 5k - 23:33/ 10k - 48:30/ 5 mi. - 39:21/ 13.1 - 1:53/ 26.2 recent - 4:34

         

        Upcoming races: Resolution Run HM 1/1/13

                                    Phoenix R&R    HM 1/20/13

        Zelanie


          Bluerun- Hope you are able to figure something out.

           

          Lurch- Maybe it's time to head south to the Wedge. Smile  Glad your travel arrangements are coming together.  As far as the "wall of humanity", it still was nothing like Disney.  My problem was that we were all supposed to fit in the bike lane on the side of the road, and once you get the whole family + strollers out there, that wasn't happening.  But running a bit faster to get past people before the cars came was fun, too!

           

          Miele- Maybe don't take my word for it as an unexperienced marathoner, but I think the fact that you were able to pick it up at the end means that your marathon training is right on track.  You had the endurance, and that's what will count for more in a longer race.  At least that's my opinion. Smile  Congrats on the PR!

           

          Jan- Sounds like a great vacation race, and a nice time considering the course!

          bluerun


          Super B****

            Lurch -- finalizing travel plans always causes me enough stress to make a vacation necessary!  Glad you've gotten everything pretty much worked out.

             

            miele -- congrats on the PR!  It could be that it was just an "off" day for you (until the last couple of miles), so it doesn't necessarily mean your goal for the marathon is off.  But what do I know?

             

            Jan -- nice race!  Seems like you actually know how to run a race just to enjoy it ... I really want to learn to be able to do that!

            chasing the impossible

             

            because i never shut up ... i blog

              Great race reports everyone. It is really motivating.  I have been sick since Sunday.  I havent ran all week.  I might do a couple small runs in the next few days and try to at least get 30 miles this week.  I won't be doing a 20 miler on sunday.  I just want to recover.  I havent taken much time off since June so I could use a little break of training.  Anyways keep up the great runs everyone, racing season is back!!

              Wolfy

                5k  = 19.48 10/1/13

              10k  = 45.28 4/16/13

              Half Marathon = 1:38.53  Summer Sizzle 7/13/14

              Operation Jack Marathon 12/26/12  4:39.11

              Solo O Marathon 06/02/13  3:52:10

              Operation Jack Marathon 12/26/13 3:40.34

              miele


              Godzilla

                Thanks for the encouraging words, guys!  I've decided to go for a 3:54:59 marathon instead of a 3:53:30 (that would've been a 5 minute PR).  I think I can do that based on the HM I just ran.  It'll be close and I'll have to be smart with pacing.  I seem to be better at pacing the longer the race and I might join in the pace group.  I don't know.  I say that every time but they seem so crowded that it stresses me out.  (Although I can't say they're any more crowded than the actual race.)

                 

                Nathan-  I remember that extra long HM you ran.  You were ticked off (and I don't blame you).  The HM I just ran was your standard .1 over because of the tangents or inaccuracies of the GPS.  So I'm just using that pace of 8:24 (13.2 in 1:50:56) to calculate a marathon time.  And next year I'll get that sub-1:50.

                 

                Jan-  It sounds like you had so much fun!  Congrats on a nice, enjoyable race (but, really, donut holes at mile 11?  Gag).  I was hoping you wouldn't have a terrible side stitch episode and it seems like you didn't.   I wouldn't have been surprised at all had you written from Long Beach to say you had refused to go home but it sounds like DH is taking your hatred of teaching seriously.  That's good.

                 

                Zelanie-  How's it going?  You still doing some track work with the group?  There's another group around which does a Thursday night run and a friend said they mix it up.  Could be hills one time then intervals the next.  It sounds like fun but I just can't fit it in with the other training and I don't want to deviate too much from this plan.  Maybe after the race.  Hope your training is going well.

                 

                blue-  Has the knee gotten its act together yet?  Are you still able to run on the AlterG?

                 

                Wolfy-  You didn't eat at Jack in the Box again, did you?  I'm sorry you've been sick but glad to hear you've turned the corner and are starting to feel better.  Maybe take the whole week off?  What could it hurt?

                 

                me-  Had a good tempo run today.  12 miles total with 8@8:54 which is just a couple of seconds faster than I'm supposed to run them.  This is the first week in a while I've been able to get in a solid week at the gym, too.  I've got a coffee cake in the oven, football on TV and later we'll have pizza along with a tasty adult beverage.  Life is good.

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

                 

                            

                Zelanie


                  Wolfwalker- enjoy the time off!

                   

                  Miele- Sounds like a good run and a good day!  Sounds like it makes sense to reevaluate your goals, good luck to you!

                   

                  Me- Things are going well!  I skipped the track workout for a couple weeks because I was racing, and they were sort of between training cycles anyway.  Last week was the time trial for people who needed paces, for example.  But I was back this week and we ran 6 x 400 at repetition (fast!) pace.  I think the track workouts are geared towards 10K training, though, so I'm thinking of maybe only going every other week.  Then on the "off" weeks I could run longer tempo miles or something like that.

                    jan-long beach, sounds soooo nice. Nice run and donuts to boot!

                     

                    miele-way to go on that PR!! When's your marathon?

                     

                    me-only doing 2 runs a week now, and more karate trying to get more strength in my legs and around the knee. Had a great dream last night that I did a HM and PR'd at 1:36!!!! Man, did I wake up with a smile on my face!!

                    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

                    miele


                    Godzilla

                      Good luck tomorrow, Jan!!!!  Have fun!

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

                       

                                  

                        Hi everyone - Sorry I have been MIA - we had a week of illness, followed by a week in the Bahamas, followed by a week of catching up.

                         

                        My running has been sporatic at best - Ran a 10K trail race yesterday - egad was it hard!  So different from road races.  I plan to run a half on 11/3 -

                         

                        Miele -  Seems as though your training is going well!  That half time in the middle of marathon training is just solid!

                         

                        Blue - Sorry to hear about your knee - does the PT have any other thoughts?  My DH is out for at least 2 months for a knee injury and he is so frustrated.  Hope you get some answers soon-

                         

                        Congrats to all the great races everyone has had - it's been great weather for it - and it seems as though everyone is healthy and strong.

                         

                        Zelanie - I would never guess from your pic that you have a 15 year old!  My guys are 6 and 8  - teenage years seem so far off.  Your training seems to be going well - congrats on the race.

                         

                        Jan - Great race  -long beach sounds like heaven!  and with your son too :-)

                         

                        Wolf - Hope you are feeling better soon - it's inevitable here in Boston that the flu is coming -

                         

                        Sorry if I missed anyone - I am on my way out the door to meet my running buddy at mile 17 of her marathon - she's trying to qualify for Boston and I agreed to pace the last 9 miles - hopefully I will be able to help-

                         

                        Tara

                        Ready, go.

                         

                        doctorjen


                          miele - excellent half PR.  I know a bigger PR would be great, but that's not too shabby in the middle of high volume training.  My own tune up half was a disaster this time around -  6 MINUTES over my PR.  But I'm refusing to believe it's predictive ... Good call on the rest day.  Maybe not so great call on the double that close to a PR race!

                           

                          Zelanie - I had my first child when I was quite young, and was constantly mistaken for a sister.  Worse, once, when we were shopping together with my baby, we were mistaken for a couple with our first child!  However, my hair is now entirely gray and I color it.  I'm not quite ready to look like my 10 year old's grandmother.  Great job on that 10K!  And how great to have your first sub-8 mile be in the end of a 10K!

                           

                          Lurch - excellent 5K PR!

                           

                          Nathan - man, you've gotten so fast!

                           

                          Tara - How did your friend end up doing?  I'm fascinated with all things Boston just now.

                           

                          stever - that's a great running dream!  I tend to have the ones were I get lost on the course, and suddenly I'm running through someone's living room.  Weird.

                           

                          Wolfwalker - feeling any better?  You've also gotten so speedy!

                           

                          bluerun - hope you get this knee figured out soon.

                           

                          Jan - that sounds like a fabulous running vacation.  I'm with miele on the donut holes - I can't imagine trying to get them down!

                           

                          me - Taper madness is starting, and should be hitting full stride pretty soon.  I staved it off a bit on Saturday by running part of the KC marathon as part of a relay team.  My friend was running her second marathon, a redemption marathon, after being injured and having to walk the last 11 miles of her first.  She arranged a relay team to run with her for company and support, the "Julie D. Rocks" relay team.  I ran legs 2,3, and 4, for a total of 16 miles.  Her teen daughter and the daughter's best friend also ran legs 3 and 4, and I stayed on the course to keep them company (and to get my long run in.)  This was a slower pace than my usual long run pace as she was running with the 4:45 group, but it was so much fun.  My friend Gay was the official pacer, and many of my running group friends were running with the group, so it felt like a big Runbelievable party (that's the name of the group.)  I pulled off the course at the last exchange point, mile 22.  My friend was doing great up to mile 21, but was really struggling the last mile I was with her, and we had to stop to stretch, and I was really worried about her.  Her brother was picking up the last leg to bring her home.  I drove the 2 teen girls to the finish line in his car, and we parked and walked back to the end of the course to wait for her.  We got to see the 4:45 group finish, which included a couple first time marathoners from my group, and my pacer friend.  Finally, my friend and her brother came through.  She was looking pretty strong now, although by the time it took her to go the last 4 miles, I knew she must have been having a hard time.  Relay team members are encouraged to get on the course and finish together, so we ran out to join her and she got to cross the finish line with her daughter, brother, the other teen who is a family friend, and me, her regular running partner.  It was pretty sweet.  She made it just under 5 hours - 4:59:13.

                          Today I got out solo (all my friends are recovering!) for a lovely 6 miler.  Perfect weather here - 50F, but sunny, clear, leaves are changing.  It felt so good, like I could have run forever.  Tuesday is the last hard workout of the Pfitz schedule, 8 miles total with 3 x 1 mile at 5K pace.  After that, I'll probably get really crazy with this tapering.  It's just hard when you get to the point that you know all the training is done and you just have to hang on, not get injured, and arrive at the start line rested and healthy!

                          miele


                          Godzilla

                            Tara-  A week in the Bahamas is a much better way to avoid running than being sick.  How'd your friend's race go?

                             

                            Zelanie-  Racing screws up my interval workouts, too.  I think I only missed one this last time.  Actually two but I count the race as a speed day.  Sounds like a good plan to switch between intervals and tempos.

                             

                            stever-  Your running dreams are way better than mine.  I had one a couple of weeks ago (way too early in the training cycle but whatever...) and it went like this:  Get off the shuttle bus at the start and head to the port-o-potties.  Look down and realize I had forgotten my Garmin.  That's OK.  I'll run with a pace group.  Oops, I seem to have forgotten my gels.  That's OK, too.  Oops, where's my bib?  I forgot my bib with the timing chip.  That's OK, too.  I'll just take a taxi back to the hotel and sign up for another race.  I don't understand why I'm not upset during these dreams.  I'm supposed to be anxious and in a panic but I'm not.  I would still prefer to have a dream like yours, though.  How's the knee coming along?

                             

                            docjen-  IIRC wasn't your tune-up half miserably hot and humid?  Or am I mixing up people's races?  If that's the case, of course you can't use that as an indicator for the marathon.  That relay sounds like a lot of fun and congrats to your friend on a great race!  Only a couple more weeks till the big day!

                             

                            me-  Finished the week with 70 miles.  Ended up running 18 instead of 16 but the formula still holds.  The LR should be no more than 25-30% of the weekly mileage.  I did not, however, run it at the required pace.  I was supposed to run it at 9:38 but just took it slow and easy until miles 16 and 17 which I ran at GMP.   I'm about to go out for an easy 6.

                            I keep meaning to ask you guys if you've seen this 3-part series on ESPN about Badwater?  I've only seen parts 1 & 2 but the final episode should be coming up.  If you've missed them and are interested they seem to replay them a lot.  Those people are crazy nuts.  It's amazing.   So far the lead guy has been hitting sub-8mm up till mile 40 or 42.  Seriously?!?!

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

                             

                                        

                            hectortrojan


                              miele – Nope, my father in law has not signed me up for another raceJ A couple of weeks ago my brother in law’s wife asked me I would like to take her place for half marathon though.

                              70 miles/week, that’s awesome! Congratulations in getting PR in the haft marathon. woot woot!

                              I watched a documentary on badwater 135. It is insane the way runners prepare for that race. It might be one of the toughest races in United States.

                               

                              Doctorjen – it’s great that you ran with your friend and had fun doing it.

                               

                              stever1966 – it’s funny that your had a dream in which you had PR in the half. It says how much are u into running!

                               

                              Wolfwalker23 – feel better soon. I am not reading this forum regularly these days, but from whatever I remember, seems like 20 miler is your favorite kind of long run!

                               

                              Jan26.2 – congratulations in running great HM!

                               

                              Zelanie – I remember when u got injured and it was not fun when you had to do those 2 mile runs to gradually get back in again. Glad to see that you are back to running 12 miles for your log run. Congratulations in running a great 10k and getting the PR!

                               

                              Me – ran for a little over 3 hours for the entire week. Was excited to go for a trail run on Saturday. Weather was in high 30s when I started running and in 40s when I finished and it felt great.

                              npaden


                                I'm still alive after a solo elk hunt in the mountains of New Mexico.  Was up to 11,816' at one point, but the elk weren't there.  Was a mental challenge for me spending 5 days out by myself, but I survived and all the elk did too.  Had one brief opportunity that if I would have done some things a tiny bit differently I would have been able to shoot a nice bull elk, but I didn't get it done.

                                 

                                Was supposed to run this morning but didn't get it done, might run tomorrow morning and then back out for a few more days of hunting deer this time.  I have 17 miles to go in October to keep my 100 miles per month streak alive.  Going to have to work at it, but I should still be able to get it in, just barely!

                                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)