Caretaker/Overlook Hotel
So I am 8 weeks out from a 10k that I plan to PR in. I have little doubt that will be the case for many reasons...
I think that all of the above will at MINIMUM put me into the 51's. However, that close to 49 means I want 49. The inner demons tell me I'll finish at 50:30 which would just piss me off but I know negative thoughts are foolish so I need to stop that!
What I plan to do is Mcmillan's ultimate 10k workout....
http://www.runnersworld.com/race-training/performance-page-best-10k-workout
I already had to modify the 1st workout as I held 8mm pace for 3 x 1 mile. My right quad was starting to hurt so I went to 400's after that. I did a few to warm up to 8mm pace and then did a few at the end but didn't want to push quad so stopped early. I got in about 5 miles worth. Ok, I'm not gonna beat myself up about it. Onward & upward.
Anybody got advice for or against the Mcmillan plan?
Anything to change, takeaway or add?
Thanks in advance!
Randy
What's your 5k PR?
Are we there, yet?
You shouldn't be doing those workouts on a base of 20-30 mpw. You need to scale back the quantity to about half that.
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.
22:36, though that was a seriously perfect day. I am probably in 23:30 shape right now.
(Got it, George! Though I will probably still push from more than half)
Hmm, that's a 7:17 pace, a 49:00 10k is 7:54. You should be able to roll out of bed (all things being equal) and run that 49:00. I would target 48:00 (7:44 pace) if I were you.
I got that Mc Millan workout in an email, and passed on doing any of it. Not to say that it is bad, I just do other things.
If I were advising you, I would suggest 3 X 1200 tempo repeats at a 7:54 pace on Tuesday or Wednesday, and a 20 minute steady state tempo run (after a 2-3 mile easy warmup) at that same pace on Saturday or Sunday, finished with another 1 to 2 easy miles.
Let's assume 30 mpw. Daniels has you limit your tempo runs to 10% of weekly mileage, VO2max work to 8% and speed reps to 5%.
10% = 3 miles
8% = 2.4 miles
5% = 1.5 miles
Pushing beyond that will increase your risk of injury without providing much additional benefit.
Still, even 23:30 shape on a VDOT calculator predicts a 49:01 although that might not be in reach given the lowish mileage. 22:36 predicts 47:04. Those are wide separations. Rather than setting a goal based on something arbitrary, let your workouts guide you in your goal setting. As a general rule, people get it backwards. They set some arbitrary goal and then try to train for it rather than training the way they should and then setting goals based on how the training has gone.
Short term goal: 17:59 5K
Mid term goal: 2:54:59 marathon
Long term goal: To say I've been a runner half my life. (I started running at age 45).
Smaller By The Day
Your 5K time is much faster than mine, and I was able to pull of a 48:59 in the 10K. So, I think you can hit a 49 minute 10K by just improving endurance and stamina. The best part of the program is the increase in mileage IMO.
Improvements
Weight 100 pounds lost
5K 31:02 Sept. 2012 / 23:36 Sept. 2013 (Same Course)
10K 48:59 April 2013
HM 2:03:56 Nov. 2012 / 1:46:50 March 2013
MARATHON 3:57:33 Nov. 2013
And, actually, Atwood you may have just answered the question I meant to put in the OP.......which was.......
Should I put precedence on the volume or the speed?
Sounds like (judging by comments already) I'd benefit by more volume than anything else. So while I'll still plan to arrive at 30mpw, more specifically, if the pace is killing me during speed work, I'll concede to volume in order to finish the workout, in lieu of speed as priority.
Makes sense to me. You've got speed. We can always use more, but there's a reason Bolt isn't going to break a world record in the marathon anytime soon. I'd say you've got a great shot at your goal. Enjoy your training, and be prepared to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. I've only run one 10K, and I think I spent 8K of it thinking, "Can I really keep this up? We're going to find out!".
Your 5K PR is way faster than mine but yet you're planning on shooting for something that is around my ballpark. You can break 50 minutes. The extra mileage will definitely help. Go get it!
Damaris
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And, actually, Atwood you may have just answered the question I meant to put in the OP.......which was....... Should I put precedence on the volume or the speed? Sounds like (judging by comments already) I'd benefit by more volume than anything else. So while I'll still plan to arrive at 30mpw, more specifically, if the pace is killing me during speed work, I'll concede to volume in order to finish the workout, in lieu of speed as priority.
You'll benefit more by increased weekly volume, but for the speed workouts, the pace and recovery are the critical components. You aren't getting the same training effect if you slow down to get the volume in. Refer back to LTH's post.
And my comment was not to say you should stop the speedwork. Only that your mileage is currently too low to run a 10K to your potential (which is faster than my PR) so the added volume will help.
Agreed & I definitely knew what you meant, D!
And, George, yes, I agree that if I am being true to McMillan, then pace is still critical. In fact, I am trying to stress the importance of staying around that 8:00 pace. I literally ran 7:50, 7:57 & 8:01 for those 3 x 1 mile intervals yesterday. I was happy to see 2:00, 4:00, 6:00 literally almost exactly where I had my water bottle on the track each and every lap.......and while it hurt, I didn't feel like I would die. So, surely I could have put in faster laps but I respect McMillan's opinion not to "overshoot" the goal.
As I think we all easily forget how "under the radar" volume can benefit, I'll try to also keep track of whether the 8 flat pace feels more comfortable as the weeks go by.
I literally ran 7:50, 7:57 & 8:01 for those 3 x 1 mile intervals yesterday.
If you can do that in training, you can do that or better during an event. Stop wondering if you can do it and start expecting to do it.
That is coming from someone who relies heavily on the mental aspect of the game, so there is that.
Ok, start to believe. Got it! Did I mention I'm feeling a little "blerch" today?
Another question, though I'll purposely not check back for opinions til after I'm back from my run and I have no idea what kind of run I'll do.......
Do you like to go right to a specific workout the day after an SRD or do you like a steady pace run and then a specific workout the next? (Remember I ran those intervals in Saturday)
Reason I ask is I see it both ways on lots of good plans but am curious to folks opinions here. FWIW, left to my own devices the majority of my runs are progression runs as I usually start easy and finish faster by the end whether its a 4 mile run or an 8 mile run. (Shrug)
brb