Last week's totals:
Mike with a big week again. Mornings are getting downright chilly -- I'm about to break out the ColdGear! To spice these weekly threads up, I thought I'd include planned races for folks (so we can encourage them, perhaps join them, or at least mock them). I can't update the forum's race thread, so feel free to post if you're racing this week, where, and your goals (if any). Thus far:
CliveF -- Fall Harvest 5k (Huntersville NC) -- Goal = (A) 20:00; (B) sub-21; (C) finish uninjured.
Lpadg -- Runway 5k (Charlotte NC) -- Goal = (A) sub-22:16; (B) sub-23.
old-runner -- Spinx Half Marathon (Greenville, SC) -- Goal = 1:35:nn
"I want you to pray as if everything depends on it, but I want you to prepare yourself as if everything depends on you."
-- Dick LeBeau
What happened to Paul? Did he drop out of the group or stop running or what?
I've got 3 half marathons in four weeks counting this past weekend at Rocktoberfest.
This weekend it's the Spinx Half Marathon in Greenville, SC.
Hoping to finish around 1:35, which is where I've been in my last two... nothing radical.
Speaking of Rocktoberfest, I thought this was cool -- they took a photo of me and nanxin running together! He caught me right about the 6-mile point and we ran together and talked a few minutes before he took off. He's a running machine and is getting better all the time! I'm holding my own but not improving it seems. Hoping to not lose anything before I hit the 60-64 age group in February.
Here we are...
Richard Hefner Past Race Results (Athlinks)
Richard,
good luck w/your 1/2 marathon this weekend. That is a great pic of you and Han. Now was this Rocktoberfest in Charlotte or race in Canada (where's the snow) in 20 degree weather (did you forget your scarf?). All kidding aside, have you ever tried experimenting with racing in shorts and a singlet in the fall (when the temps are above freezing)? The enemy is heat buildup (as you run, the muscles get heated up, the heart beats faster to boost the circulatory system to feed blood to the muscles which acts as a cooling mechanism, you also sweat as a response to cool down the extremities & muscles). With all that gear on, your trapping heat (the sweat does not evaporate but pools, heat pools in those clothes plus wearing a hat is like closing the funnel on a steam engine). In swimming one shaves their body for key races because it aids in cooling the muscles (the first layer of skin gets removed reducing the "insulation" between your muscles and the cooler water, plus the removal of the hair lowers the overall humidity at the skin level). If you could get through the shivering at the start you would probably be fine by the first mile (and be a lot more efficient as you body and muscles could dissipate the heat much better) & possibly run better/faster. You would want to test this in some your runs outdoors and wear a monitor to see how how you feel from 30 minutes on.
Rob
Haha... I'm a fella who likes to be warm, and if you think I look bundled up in that photo you should have seen me back when I first started running. I've toned it down quite a bit since then. I can appreciate all of the science behind it but I know my body and I've tried to run without much on in cold weather. What happens is I never get warmed up and am uncomfortably cold throughout the entire run.
I always monitor my heart rate and usually average 166 to 170 in a race. Check some of my past races in my workouts (they're public) and look at this one. I couldn't hardly get my heart rate up to 160 throughout the entire race and ended up with an average heart rate of 158.
If you look at the results of that race and sort by age-graded results, I was 9th out of 709 runners, so I'm not doing too bad for a hot, sweaty, old man...
http://results.active.com/pages/searchform.jsp?rsID=119586
I dunno. I PM'ed him a while back but got no reply. His log is pretty sparse, too.
Yup, when not running I tend to be absent here as well. Running and spending time on a running forum reinforce each other.
I can appreciate all of the science behind it but I know my body and I've tried to run without much on in cold weather. What happens is I never get warmed up and am uncomfortably cold throughout the entire run.
Hey, not to say I know your body better than you (ewww!), but were these races or training runs? Personally, I wouldn't mind feeling uncomfortable in a race if it enhanced my efficiency and lowered my time. You've certainly got the mental toughness to gut out feeling uncomfortably cold for 20-90 minutes. If it meant faster race times, would you do it?
If it meant MUCH faster race times I probably would do it, but I doubt there would be much improvement, if any, for me. My slowest race in the past two years was also the race where it was the coldest. True, I didn't dress skimpy but wearing my winter warm stuff I still never got warm... I ran cold the entire race and when I'm cold my muscles don't react the same way. I even have a hard time talking when I'm cold.
If you look at the results of that race and sort by age-graded results, I was 9th out of 709 runners, so I'm not doing too bad for a hot, sweaty, old man... http://results.active.com/pages/searchform.jsp?rsID=119586
I am 72nd by the age grade.
BTW, if Richard runs races almost every weekend, I would think it is a training rather than race.
From my experience, I did total 15 races from last year and 11 of them are in this year, I can tell that gradually I found the way to race by each try, I suspect this accumulation of experience was a automate process by the memory of the muscles (of course this is just my feeling). In other word, I am pretty sure I can handle race in a much better way compare to for example spring of this year, but whatever I learned, I cannot speak out exactly, and it may be not true for anyone else.
Scheduled Races:
Tokyo Marathon (March 2020)
Boston Marathon (April 2020)
Ran my 1/2 marathon for the year. I went to do the Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon again. Actually, meet my goal and PR'ed.
My first sub 2hr. 1:56:56. Thanks to a very flat course.
Adrian
Congrats, Adrian! Breaking barriers feels nice, huh?
Adrian... congrats on the half marathon! I saw some photos somebody posted on Facebook and it looks like the weather was great again this year. I remember talking to you after the race last year and you were a little bummed with your time then, so looks like you've made some good progress.
Han... You're right that since I race pretty much every weekend all of my races are kind of like training runs. I think if I just had a few races each year I'd get all tensed up about the situation, but since I'm out there every week I don't have time to worry a lot about it. I don't run farther than a half marathon but I run one of those every time I get the chance (14 or 15 this year). They're kind of fun and challenging, but more than that if I'm used to running half marathons it makes the 5k and 10k races seem short.
Congrats Adrian! That's pretty impressive, and a PR to boot!
I'd be doing the Runway 5K this weekend but instead I'll be in Raleigh taking the FE Exam (what used to be the EIT exam) on Saturday. As grueling as any marathon, or so I've heard!
However, I WILL be running my very first 1/2 ever, in two weeks at Thunder Road. I'm so excited!