Competitive Jerks Racing and Training - 2023 (Read 572 times)

Fishyone


     

     

    On the run commute stuff, yeah, I have a backpack and huge bag I bring home at the end of the week. It's usually filled with coats I've accumulated over the week.

     

     

     

    Fishy - no NYC for me this year. I am so traumatized from that weather experience I am putting all of my eggs in the CIM basket. I will run NYC next year if we get a group of folks from this forum who make it.

     

    My wife has asked me on more than one occasion "Are you moving into your apartment again?" luckily I can park at work certain days and lug the many bags (I prefer the reusable grocery type..they hold a LOT and are foldable and light) to/from my office on those days.

     

    I might try to sign up again this year.  If you recall I jumped on the website at like 1:30 PM last year and apparently all of the sports were filled by the time I made it through the virtual queue.  That's the real reason I was asking.  For the fall I was pondering NYC followed by abreviated recovery build then CIM.  Thoughts?  I'll get a better idea this spring as I'm doing Boston then May 14 Sugarbush Maine.  It's about a 4 week gap.

    5K 18:36 (2023), 10K 39:40 (2022), 1/2 1:24:37 (2023), full 2:58:36 (2015) 

    Fishyone


      Any book recommendations?  I've read Daniels and Pfitz.  What is the next must read?  I prefer some focus on longer distance running.

      5K 18:36 (2023), 10K 39:40 (2022), 1/2 1:24:37 (2023), full 2:58:36 (2015) 

      mmerkle


        Commander So maybe what I heard/read was BS, but I heard/read that red meat doesn't digest "quickly enough", and the same goes for roughage like raw veggies. Don't get me wrong I eat those things normally just not the night before a marathon that starts at 7am. But obviously some people on here do not have that issue. Maybe I'll try something like that the night before a long run (I probably already have lol) to see what happens.

           

          Question: How seriously do y'all take rolling weekly totals? 

           

          I pay no attention to them, I just focus on Mon-Sun.

           

          Heel striking: maintaining “proper” form is one more thing I have chosen to ignore, along with monitoring heart rate and some other things that just seem like extra hassle. I know I am a heel striker based on seeing race pics. I don’t think I get injured more than the average runner so I just leave it alone.

           

          Night before marathon food: I am an old-school pasta with red sauce guy, maybe some protein. I have varied that a bit based on availability and/or whether something else looks really good on the menu. I try to stay pretty carb-heavy for 2-3 days before the race, but I don’t get too scientific about it. I think as long as you don’t do anything too stupid, that stuff has a relatively minor impact on race performance compared to other factors.

          Dave

          wcrunner2


          Are we there, yet?

            Any book recommendations?  I've read Daniels and Pfitz.  What is the next must read?  I prefer some focus on longer distance running.

             

            Relentless Forward Progress: A Guide to Running Ultramarathons by Byron Powell.

             

            You did say you prefer to focus on longer distances.

             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.

             

             

                 

            wcrunner2


            Are we there, yet?

              And a short introduction:

              Been running regularly since 1968 (I don't count the four years in HS from 1960-64).

              Ran my first marathon in 1970 at Boston, last year before you needed a confirmed qualifying time and finished in 2:59.

              Decided I preferred 10K and under, especially 800m and mile races on the track, though I continued to occasionally run a HM or marathon maybe once a year.

              PBs are really for approximate distances because so few courses were certified in the old days
              800m - 2:06

              Mile - 4:41

              5K - 16:22

              10K - 35:10

              HM - 1:19:03
              Marathon: 2:54:56

              With the exception of the HM which I ran at 34, all the others were set in my mid-20s, roughly 50 years ago.

              As you can see I ran much better at the shorter distances.

              2013 brought a huge change in my running as I was getting tired of all my track races and even some of the 5Ks turning into solo time trials because of how much slower I was running as I got older and there was less competition at my age.  At the urging of some friends on the old RWOL forums I trained and ran my first ultra marathon that fall, 49.6 miles in a 12-hour fixed time race.

              I may qualify as a jerk sometimes, but my competitive edge isn't as sharp as it used to be.

              If it's acceptable I prefer more browsing with an occasional comment on topics that interest me, than to commit to regular posting with weekly summaries, etc.

              BTW the WC has nothing to do with my name, which is George; it's an abbreviation for the town I lived in when I was first introduced to the internet.

               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.

               

               

                   

              Mikkey


              Mmmm Bop

                Milkman - I think you’ll need to start showing a bit more respect towards your elders around here now. 

                Managed a 9 miler this morning and then the Garmin flashed up that I’ll need 3 days to recover….so I’m looking forward to putting my feet up again until Saturday.

                5k - 17:53 (4/19)   10k - 37:53 (11/18)   Half - 1:23:18 (4/19)   Full - 2:50:43 (4/19)

                flavio80


                Intl. correspondent

                  Heel strikes - It seems the current trend is that you should avoid overstraining, and you can hit the ground with whatever part of your foot, so long as it's underneath you, never ahead.
                  It makes sense, if you land with your foot ahead of your hips, there will be larger breaking forces involved and longer contact with the ground.
                  The book "Older yet faster" talks extensively about this and defines this as the biggest form issue you could have.

                   

                  RP - My prescription glasses have that blue screen protection thingy. I actually don't need the glasses much as my astigmatism is like 0.25, but the blue screen filter helps a lot, since I'm looking at a screen for like 14/15 hours a day if you count the phone and the TV.

                   

                  Lord Commander - Are you one of those people who keep 20 tabs open at all times (I'm shivering while typing this) or did you just say that metaphorically?
                  Also those are rookie numbers, you gotta pump those calories numbers up!

                   

                  Mmerkle - red meat takes a bit longer for digestion but that's largely dependent on the individual.

                   

                  WCrunner - Welcome aboard, I see you've got some incredibly fast times and I'm quite impressed with your longevity at running, same as Longboat.
                  Is the world master athletics championships something that excites you? I figure you'd have some very strong competition there.

                   

                  Fishy - Books:
                  The athlete's gut - this was very educational and I found it helped me understand a lot better about digestion. Stomach and tummy issues are common in long distance races.

                  The Hansons marathon method - A different way to approach the marathon, this book brings some interesting ideas.

                  PRs: 1500 4:54.1 2019 - 5K 17:53 2023 - 10K 37:55 2023 - HM 1:21:59 2021

                  Up next: no idea

                  Tool to generate Strava weekly

                  JMac11


                  RIP Milkman

                     

                     

                    I might try to sign up again this year.  If you recall I jumped on the website at like 1:30 PM last year and apparently all of the sports were filled by the time I made it through the virtual queue.  That's the real reason I was asking.  For the fall I was pondering NYC followed by abreviated recovery build then CIM.  Thoughts?  I'll get a better idea this spring as I'm doing Boston then May 14 Sugarbush Maine.  It's about a 4 week gap.

                     

                    Ah yes I couldn't remember who that was, I forgot it was you! I was reading more stories about people like you, i.e. you need to be on the second it opens up or you won't get in.

                     

                    You should just do NYC next year with all of us. CIM is a place where you can PR, and NYC is tough to do unless you're in amazing shape. I would just skip NYC and do CIM.

                    5K: 16:37 (11/20)  |  10K: 34:49 (10/19)  |  HM: 1:14:57 (5/22)  |  FM: 2:36:31 (12/19) 

                     

                     

                    zebano


                      Zebano/MMikkey - The best training is the one you do, hex bar, trap bar, 1 inch bar, olympic barbell.

                       

                      You do you bud.

                       

                      Also strides? Haven't you guys started running wickets like the big boys yet?

                       

                      Books: I like Run Faster by Hudson and am currently reading Training Essentials for the Ultrarunner by Jason Koop. If you haven't read it Once A Runner is a fun read too.

                      1600 - 5:23 (2018), 5k - 19:33 (2018), 10k - 41:20 (2021), half - 1:38:57 (2018), Marathon - 3:37:17 (2018)

                      CommanderKeen


                      Cobra Commander Keen

                        Commander So maybe what I heard/read was BS, but I heard/read that red meat doesn't digest "quickly enough", and the same goes for roughage like raw veggies. Don't get me wrong I eat those things normally just not the night before a marathon that starts at 7am. But obviously some people on here do not have that issue. Maybe I'll try something like that the night before a long run (I probably already have lol) to see what happens.

                         

                        No veggies there at all, just meat and rice. Meat only takes 4-6 hours or so to digest (being primarily digested in the small intestine, fibrous stuff like veggies have to go through the large intestine further on), so plenty of time for that given that I usually eat this for lunch. Maybe an early supper before the race depending on what other options are there.

                         

                         

                         

                        Relentless Forward Progress: A Guide to Running Ultramarathons by Byron Powell.

                         

                        You did say you prefer to focus on longer distances.

                         

                        Beat me to it!

                         

                        Flavio: One Tab is a thing! Brave is such a memory hog and my computer is so old that I'd never get anything done with a bunch of tabs open.

                        5k: 17:58 11/22 │ 10k: 37:55 9/21 │ HM: 1:23:22 4/22 │ M: 2:56:05 12/22

                         

                        Upcoming Races:

                         

                         

                        JMac11


                        RIP Milkman

                           

                          You do you bud.

                           

                           

                           

                          Didn't we agree "bud" is one of the most aggressive things you can say outside of "pal"?

                           

                          Keen - after hearing you only order meat and rice, I assume you're actually a pirate and your previous marathons collapses are due to scurvy 🏴 ‍ ☠ ️

                          5K: 16:37 (11/20)  |  10K: 34:49 (10/19)  |  HM: 1:14:57 (5/22)  |  FM: 2:36:31 (12/19) 

                           

                           

                          CommanderKeen


                          Cobra Commander Keen

                             

                            Didn't we agree "bud" is one of the most aggressive things you can say outside of "pal"?

                             

                            Keen - after hearing you only order meat and rice, I assume you're actually a pirate and your previous marathons collapses are due to scurvy 🏴 ‍ ☠ ️

                             

                            The meat alone has more than enough vitamin c to avert scurvy! That said, I do have other sources of this as well. It's not like I'm out at sea for months eating nothing but hard tack.

                            5k: 17:58 11/22 │ 10k: 37:55 9/21 │ HM: 1:23:22 4/22 │ M: 2:56:05 12/22

                             

                            Upcoming Races:

                             

                             

                            AndyTN


                            Overweight per CDC BMI

                              Flavio - I did the dead lifts you suggested Monday but just about 40 reps using my own bodyweight. Guess what? My hamstrings were pretty sore yesterday so I certainly think we have identified a weakness. During my marathon in December, my hamstrings gave out on me at about mile 21 and I was 30-50 seconds per mile behind target pace those last miles. I think doing very little true speedwork other than tempos during training was a cause, weakness in my upper hamstrings looks to also be an issue.

                               

                              As for the different comments regarding my stride/gait changes, I am just going to wear that running dynamics pod for a few more weeks to collect data with various types of runs. Once I get a larger sample size of data, I will take a look to see if there are any minor changes I will attempt.

                               

                              mmerkle - Regarding miles in calendar week vs. 7 consecutive days, I have been utilizing the Garmin Acute Training Load feature a lot since upgrading my watch 3 months ago. Last year I was really focused on endurance so pure mileage was the goal but now that I am incorporating speedwork more, the accumulative impact of my runs is important to me so I don't overdo it. I started creeping up above my green zone about 10 days ago and tightness in my legs started creeping up a few days later. This tightness is manageable but is my biggest indicator of overdoing it and I have taken a week off from speedwork. I know this wasn't your original question but it is giving me a focus for more than just total weekly mileage.

                               

                              Memphis / 38 male

                              5k - 20:39 / 10k - 43:48 / Half - 1:34:47 / Full - 3:38:10

                              wcrunner2


                              Are we there, yet?

                                 

                                WCrunner - Welcome aboard, I see you've got some incredibly fast times and I'm quite impressed with your longevity at running, same as Longboat.
                                Is the world master athletics championships something that excites you? I figure you'd have some very strong competition there.

                                 

                                 

                                Once upon a time it would have, but now I focus almost exclusively on ultras, mainly fixed time races and 50Ks with generous cutoff times.  I have some serious competition in my age group in the ultras anyway.  Gene Dykes is in my AG and is local on top of it.

                                 

                                AndyTN - I always been very leery of making deliberate changes to my form.  Without video evidence I can't confirm this, but I think the only time my form changes is what comes naturally at different paces. As I seem to be a natural mid-foot striker none of my coaches over the years have suggested any changes, and the one time I had my stride analyzed, I was told that it was fine as is.

                                 

                                Weekly rolling totals - I look at them occasionally here on RA, but it's a meaningless statistic for me.  Now that I'm retired and not limited by a 5 day workweek and weekends, I've moved to a 10 day training cycle.  That creates significant variation in both weekly and 7-day rolling totals depending on when my back-to-back long runs occur.

                                 

                                Pre-race dinners - Pretty much anything that appeals to my taste buds.  Running ultras, I'm more concerned with what I can eat during the race.  I stay away as much as possible from anything with lots of sugar.  I guess what I prefer would be considered complex carbs and protein rich foots such as grilled cheese and wraps.

                                 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.