Goal of sub 20 5k (Read 13664 times)

Hey all,

Just ran a hilly 5k on 8/22.  Was a little disappointed with 21:05, but not too bad for South Carolina in August.  First two miles were 6:35 and 6:38 approx...then I imploded on the first hill of mile 3 and couldn't bring my pace back down.   The course only has about .25 mile of flat near the start (it was out-n-back) and the rest are various hills typical of the piedmont here.

Still, I'm thinking I'm going to need that 5th day of running (and thus >20 miles) to get this done.  Course, cool weather and an easy course to run near the holidays will help too.

Hope everyone else is doing well.  Haven't had time to keep up....

Steve

 I see a lot of folks too miopic on one goal and maybe is a factor in being stuck.  They run a great race and its just not good enough, so its frustrating...right.  Me I would try to take that 20:20 and maybe eek out a 20:15 if i could, yeah still not on my goal but better to be closer than further ... right. 

I agree that we (the ones who frequently post on this thread) sometimes seem to get to obsessed on the "mythical barrier" of 20:00.  We often train at goal pace, not based on recent race times.  We plan paces and mile splits to hit 19:59, miss the first or second target, and end up botching the whole race.

Some of the things that helped me the most with my recent breakthrough (besides the absence of hills, heat, and wind) were (1) Consistentcy in training over time -- based on recent race times, not goals.  Jim Howe drove that point home to me after my post boasting about a session of too fast intervals: "Your recent race times do not support those times."  Was a nice way of saying, "You boy, have not EARNED THE RIGHT to train that fast."  (2) Trust that training. When you are fit and fast enough,  20:00 is like a runner that goes out too fast, you don't have to chase it down; run hard, run steady, and it will come back to you. (3) Every workout has a purpose.  The goal should not be so much to run so far at such and such pace, it should be to achieve the goal of the workout.  The Long Run is a Long Run, its not a weekly attempt to run a sub 1:30 HM.  A Tempo Run is a Tempo Effort, its not a time trial.  (4) Race at different and longer distances.  After my 7-Miler and 10-Miler, I found myself thinking, "A 5K is not any easier, but at least its only 3.1 miles".  (5) Running often, sometime twice a day, makes running a natural activity.  Why are Kenyans so good?  Same reason good ole southern boy drivers are such a force on the NASCAR circuit.  Running and driving are their natural means of transportation from the time they can walk.  (6) In summary, train hard, train smart, and show up at the starting line confident, fresh, and most of all, healthy.

I plan on running 3-4 more 5Ks before the end of the year.  I've already caught myself thinking, "there's a lot of hills on that one" or "that course is 3.21 miles long"...what if I don't break 20:00 and look like a fluke?  Got to get away from that tought process, it ain't the point.  The point is to put out the best effort on that day to run my best race.  Be it 19:59 or 20:01, I want to be a better runner/racer than my last week's self and all the other old farts pushing 50 (and the young ones, and the girls, and a least half the HS CC team...).

mainrun and sjutton, it looks like its just a matter of you guys being fit enough to run a full 5K at or near 5K pace.  You both have a good plan, so keep at it and good luck!  BuckeyeChamp, you have come a long, long, long way.  One day, maybe not too long from now, you'll post your race report on your breakthrough.  Then after months and years of hard work, people will comment on your "natural speed". 

Have a good one guys, and have fun running this weekend!! 

But the question is, does that extra mental focus come from being fit to run the race you are hoping for, or is it the other way around?  Is it possible that your mental focus is heavily influenced by what your body is ready to do that day?  Maybe some days you're physically ready for a breakout and your brain already kind of knows this on some subconcious level, and that's why you're able to focus.

Maybe.

On an overall base fitness level, yes, you might be much fitter than ever before.  But your race fitness (your ability to give a 100% effort on a given day) fluctuates quite a bit from day to day and even sometimes within a day based on recent workouts, sleep, diet, life stress, etc.  So maybe your mind picks up on all of that and is knows when it needs to be ready to focus for a 100% effort only when your body is ready to give it.

I'm not saying for sure but this is something I think about quite a bit.

NEW PR 19:15.

Three straight races under 20.  Although I find myself questioning this last result wondering if the course was maybe a little short.  Trimming 23 seconds off my last race seemed too good to believe.  Even if the course was a little short I'm still comfortably under 20 and can't complain about that.

The race was 8/29 in downtown Cleveland.  It had rained most of the morning, but by start time it had stopped and was near perfect temp for me (low to mid 60's) and overcast.  The winds off Lake Erie were unpredictable as usual.  No chip timers for this race and with approx 1,000 runners/walkers I didn't want to start too far off the start line.  I found a spot with some room about 8 rows back.

It was a pretty clean start although I did get tangled up at the elbows with one guy as everyone was jockeying for position.  At about 1/2 mile in there was a 1/4 mile gradual uphill which seemed to knock the crap out of me.  I haven't done any hill training yet.  This is where it gets weird.  I started to settle in after the hill, but didn't feel like I was going very fast.  And while I wasn't getting passed I caught myself wondering if I would even break 20.  The only thing I can figure to account for this is improved running economy.   Still getting tired, but doing so at a higher pace.

Coming back around to the hill I was holding my own and managed to use the hill to my advantage and gain some ground on the guy in front of me.  With about 1/2 mile to go I got passed by a group of three.  I went with them and passed two of them at the 3 mi mark.  The third one was right in front of me near the finish, but found myself recognizing he wasn't in my age group (much younger) and backed off content to finish behind him.

I wish I could point to one thing in my training that could help you guys, but I can't.  I started increasing my long runs to 10miles, but only have two of them in.  On the interval work I seem to concentrate mostly on the mid to long distances 1/2mi to 1 mile.  Or, maybe it's just plain rest.  I have no problem taking a day off if my legs are feeling tired.

Wishing the best for you guys in your training and upcoming races.  My next race is Labor Day.

Great job!  Congrats!

If you are worried that the race may be short because it is not certified, you can just check if any runner has a Garmin.  If the Garmin shows > 3.11 mile, it is unlikely to be short.

NEW PR 19:15.