Forums >Racing>Goal 6 minute mile
Michigan Flyer has been unfairly vilified and ridiculed on this thread. He was not attacked by the Haters because he is a busy lawyer juggling family, OCD, and getting older. His real crime was challenging the conventional wisdom that mega mileage is the golden key to achieving any running success. Michigan is not a lazy *ass* trying to avoid a little effort. Rather he is an obstinate contrarian trying an unauthorized approach to achieving a short term personal goal.
Thanks for the shot in the arm Shady Fellow.
I need some positive comments once in a while and this is a welcome sight.
I hope to get out to the track tomorrow and run with my video camera.
That way everyone can tag along on my run whether it be success or failure.
I have never run with my camcorder before but I don't think you can get a feel for the 1 mile run
from across the track.
I ran 13 miles last week so the miles are going up some.
I am not trying to do the least amount possible to hit sub 6.
Just that my times are dropping so fast I believe I am going to make the sub 6 without too much difficulty.
Hopefully we get some good news tomorrow with a track effort.
Fiddlesticks.
We're all busy, juggling stuff, and getting older.
MF is the one that starts these threads. You start a thread, you should be ready for the feedback. You start saying that 35 miles is a lot of miles, you deserve what you get. It isn't.
Do what you have to do and make running be what you want... but, dude. Come on.
>> Just that my times are dropping so fast I believe I am going to make the sub 6 without too much difficulty.
How nice that must be. Why start the thread then? Do you want a medal?
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I suspect that carrying the camera will yield video that is too jerky to watch, and that putting it in a fixed place will yield a better effect for the viewer.
(But, by all means, try both ways, and see what happens.)
It's a 5k. It hurt like hell...then I tried to pick it up. The end.
Fiddlesticks. We're all busy, juggling stuff, and getting older. MF is the one that starts these threads. You start a thread, you should be ready for the feedback. You start saying that 35 miles is a lot of miles, you deserve what you get. It isn't. Do what you have to do and make running be what you want... but, dude. Come on. >> Just that my times arewas hoping that others would share my quest but so far no takers. dropping so fast I believe I am going to make the sub 6 without too much difficulty. How nice that must be. Why start the thread then? Do you want a medal?
>> Just that my times arewas hoping that others would share my quest but so far no takers. dropping so fast I believe I am going to make the sub 6 without too much difficulty.
I started the thread hoping that others would share my quest but so far no takers. I suppose most runners don't run miles for time as I haven't done so in 20 years.
I am a thinker if you remember me on other posts. I analyze things. Running probably doesn't need so much thought but that is the type of person that I am.
I could argue this is what this board needs though since we have 9 pages of posts on a thread that is barely 3 weeks old.
I would guess there are more runners who have run 6 minute miles than runners who have run 1,000 miles in a year.
They both are challenging to me but the 6 minute mile is not the end all... it is the beginning for me.
IF everything goes right I probably can go around 6:15 tomorrow... 6 minutes is probably a little too fast for my low mileage but I will give it a go. That is okay since I still have 57 days to knock off the final 19 seconds.
I do get a sense that if you don't run enough miles on these message boards that you will be seen as not worthy. Where are the motivators who will root for me to hit my goal? If my time is bad tomorrow I will run more miles. You cannot cheat at running. The clock does not lie. I accept whatever time my poor training gets me.
I think you're probably right that most of us casual runners (a.k.a., hobby joggers) aren't targeting specifically mile times--I suspect there simply aren't many mile races available.
I would guess there are a lot who race various distances, and include the mile in it as well.
However, what time we target in the mile is naturally going to be based on how fast we currently are -- or so I think. For example, I do race the mile, when it is conveniently available, but it isn't a primary target of mine, and 6 minutes doesn't happen to be a goal in line with my speed. So I don't "join you" in this six minute mile quest for reasons unrelated to your training philosophy.
I started the thread hoping that others would share my quest but s far no takers
I would have joined you, but my training this year is going well, and I didn't want to switch gears. Plus, a couple years ago I ran a garmin measured one mile stretch of road in 5:58, so the goal wasn't that motivating to me. I understand/relate to your "analyzing" approach to running. I'm the same way. I can see how others may think it odd/not worthwhile. Happy running!
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Last Race: Portland Maine Half Marathon October 5 2014
I started the thread hoping that others would share my quest but so far no takers. I suppose most runners don't run miles for time as I haven't done so in 20 years. I am a thinker if you remember me on other posts. I analyze things. Running probably doesn't need so much thought but that is the type of person that I am. I could argue this is what this board needs though since we have 9 pages of posts on a thread that is barely 3 weeks old. I would guess there are more runners who have run 6 minute miles than runners who have run 1,000 miles in a year. They both are challenging to me but the 6 minute mile is not the end all... it is the beginning for me. IF everything goes right I probably can go around 6:15 tomorrow... 6 minutes is probably a little too fast for my low mileage but I will give it a go. That is okay since I still have 57 days to knock off the final 19 seconds. I do get a sense that if you don't run enough miles on these message boards that you will be seen as not worthy. Where are the motivators who will root for me to hit my goal? If my time is bad tomorrow I will run more miles. You cannot cheat at running. The clock does not lie. I accept whatever time my poor training gets me.
Oh cry me a river.
I would have joined you but for guys like you and me with a moderate amount of talent, a 6 minute mile is a laughably easy goal. Do you want me to tell the story of how I ran a sub-6-minute mile during a recent tempo run with my 12 year old daughter riding alongside on her bike?
You want a cheering section for showing up. There's nothing wrong with not running a lot of miles. But people who are willing to put in serious work toward their goals will naturally earn more respect on these boards than someone who jumps on the treadmill once a week for a time trial. Do you think it should be otherwise?
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Rather he is an obstinate contrarian trying an unauthorized approach to achieving a short term personal goal. While I may not agree with this regimen, I admire his determination in the face of relentless criticism from the barking mob. Curiously, I don't see much reference date supporting the critics.
Good one.
No, seriously, there is nothing "unauthorized" about setting the bar low and doing minimal work toward clearing it. Nothing at all. Just be honest about it.
Do we really need reference date (sic) to support the hypothesis that some training is required to achieve a noteworthy performance?
I want a step by step analysis about how a runner gets his or her times down to break a time goal.
Usually on these boards a poster will post "I broke 6 minutes in a mile! I smashed it with a 5:45 today"
Then no analysis of how they accomplished the goal.
What was the thought process during each lap.
Nothing... just a post such as "I have been lurking reading this thread for months but finally broke the 6 minute goal today"
Good for those posters but I did not get emotionally attached to the thread.
I knew nothing about the poster.
They come in and hope for praise while not putting their emotions on their sleeve.
It is as if they fear letting others know about their quests because then they have pressure to produce the goal.
That's not me.
Some are rooting for me and others are rooting for me to fail.
I am not an obsessed runner (at least not at the moment).
I just have a goal I want to reach.
It seems quite challenging to me and I like challenges.
We will see what time I can muster today but I think those who are poo-pooing my effort thus far are helping to motivate me.
Maybe they are using reverse psychology and I just don't know it?
Perhaps this is semantics, but is it even a noteworthy performance (much less a "quest") if the goal is not-hard for the person?
That's the thing about this goal thread and the sub-20 thread. As a place to gather for folks with the same goal, that's pretty awesome. But once it makes a right-turn into "I do this without much work", then it's a bit awkward. Like if I posted in the sub4 marathoner thread about my brushes with death each time I ran a 3:40 and how I might consider 3:59 to be something I do "without much difficulty". It's a little weird then.
(clarifying point: I am NOT poopooing the sub4 thread AT ALL and I know it is a big goal for lots of folks. It was for me for several years too. But these days it isn't quest-like for me, so it would be weird semi-acting like it was. Still a fine, fine quest for others... definitely.)
So if you are going to start a goal thread for a goal you can achieve without much work, step back and let others take it. Do the shepherding a bit differently.
You cause cognitive dissonance.
>> I am going to make the sub 6 without too much difficulty.
versus
>> It seems quite challenging to me and I like challenges.
Do you honestly not see the issue here?
You cause cognitive dissonance. >> I am going to make the sub 6 without too much difficulty. versus >> It seems quite challenging to me and I like challenges. Do you honestly not see the issue here?
I ran 6:19 last week and thought I am going to breeze under 6 minutes by the end of September.
That is the mental aspect of it.
I believe I can do it.
But when I look at McMillan Running Calculator and see a 6:19 equates to a 21:51 5k performance then I realize 19 seconds is still a long ways off.
Having the right mental approach to beating a goal is important but even if I believe I can go sub 6 I realize that won't make it happen. I still need to put in the miles to make it happen. Now that I see McMillans running charts I am doubting myself more and more. This is the analyzing that I love. The charts say what I should run (probably 6:14 is the fastest I could hope to run today) but somewhere in the back of my mind I am hoping to run a Billy Mills type effort. To go beyond the realm of what I thought was possible and blast a 5:55 today on very little training.
I know that going out too fast will kill me though. I have enough experience to realize 6 minutes won't happen today. And thus it won't happen. So I am aiming to get under 6:30. I probably will run the 1st half in 3:13-3:15 then hold on for the 3rd lap and kill the last 200 meters to obtain my 6:2x on the track. It is about 55 degrees outside a little windy....if the track is open I will have a nice 4 laps to get my splits. My PR on the treadmill 8 days ago was 6:19. It would be nice to beat that but I have no idea what outdoors running will bring to me. I am headed off in a couple minutes to run my trial.
For most of us, it's in our log. Though admittedly I do not recall ever having broken 6:00 in a mile.
I don't see anyone rooting for you to fail. Personally, I'm just confused and eeirily fascinated.
I don't think he was vilified or even "vilified."
There is also no trademark registration for Shady Fellow.
"If you have the fire, run..." -John Climacus