Waltons ThreadLord
Track work this morning. 4 sets of 200m/200m, 200/400, 400/200 with the hard running done at something faster than 5k pace. 38º made it easier to get the work done.
5k 23:48.45 (3/22); 4M 31:26 (2/22); 5M 38:55 (11/23); 10k 49:24 (10/22); 10M 1:29:33 (2/24); Half 1:48:32 (10/22); Marathon 4:29:58 (11/23)Upcoming races: Running is Back 10k, 5/12; Greta's Run 5k, 5/19
6 miles with 8x2 min + 4x200.
4 miles. I keep thinking about adding workouts back in but then don't
6 tapery miles.
Dave
I stopped doing workouts for about three months and I found I lost some top-end speed as well losing some ability to maintain pace on hills. It could be I got old suddenly, or it could be the lack of workouts (or a combination of both). When I was prepping for the NYC marathon, I reviewed several pace estimators and one included data from a study that showed people who ran intervals during training were about 10 seconds/mile faster in a marathon, though it's hard to filter out all noise or set a control group.
It has not been easy for me to get back to workouts and after only two weeks I'm far from ready to say I'm back in the habit.
Even when not training for anything, unless I'm purely in recovery mode, I like to throw in some kind of workout every week. I figure it's good for you, but mainly it helps break up the monotony of every-day easy runs. And the track is fun.
I find I need to do workouts or top end pace gets slow. Based on heart rate, I really should have been able to run a faster 5k than what I did. I had gotten into survive the HM mode, so faster running took a back seat.
Are we there, yet?
Speed seems to be quickly lost if not maintained, but also quickly regained after a few weeks of quick workouts. Even running ultras, I include a good interval or fartlek workout about once every 10 days.
2024 Races:
03/09 - Livingston Oval Ultra 6-Hour, 22.88 miles
05/11 - D3 50K 05/25 - What the Duck 12-Hour
06/17 - 6 Days in the Dome 12-Hour.
This seems to be a common observation...except never for me. It's why I somewhat assume I'm an "exercise non-responder".
If I had a track to use, maybe it would be more interesting. But I don't!
Every time I've added in a workout in the past...probably year?...it's just been demoralizing. I do this for fun!
That's it?!
Well, that's close to 5 minutes faster for the race, and it's an average.
Yes, I've been there too.
That's encouraging if it applies to me.
Yea. I remember debating folks on RWOL that it is not a 100% guarantee that if you run more, you will get faster. I have proof. I also mentioned that just because person A and B got great results from Hudson's HM plans does not mean everyone will. I was told I must be running my easy runs too fast and not running enough. I can say with certainty, my easy runs are not too fast and if anything, may be too slow.