The Waltons aka Advanced Half Marathon Training Thread - 2022 edition (Read 444 times)

darkwave


Mother of Cats

    James - good luck next week, whichever race you choose.

     

    Nice run titles again by both Hash and Marky_Mark.  BTW, my sister is visiting New Zealand right now, and is raving about the natural beauty of your country.  Her photos are pretty cool.

     

    Hash - do you have to pay for access to the track?

     

    ***

    My week:

    56 miles running, 2 hours Lever Runner (-20 pounds), and 500 yards swimming.

     

    M: 60 minutes Lever Run (-20 pounds) and streaming yoga
    T: 10 miles on the treadmill with 8x(2:00 at 8mph with 2% incline; 90 second jog; 0:30 at 9.0-9.1 mph; 60 second jog). Followed with leg strengthwork.
    W: upper body weights/core and 10 miles on treadmill (9:47)
    Th: streaming yoga and 60 minutes Lever Run (-20 pounds)
    F: 10.5 miles on the treadmill, including 5x5:00 at 8.1mph with 60 second jog and 6x0:30 at 9.0-9.5 mph with 90 second jog. Followed with leg strengthwork.
    Sa: 10 miles easy outside (9:40) and upper body weights/core.
    Su: 14.5 miles progressive outside, split as first 5 miles averaging 9:46, next 5 miles averaging 8:35, next 4.5 miles averaging 7:44. 1 mile cooldown after. Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.

     

    It took until Friday night for me to test negative for Covid, so I stayed home until then.  Since I couldn't pool-run, I used my Lever Runner.  It was a holiday splurge for myself last year, and while I don't use it that often, it's nice to have it as an option - it means that I can use my treadmill for regular running and cross-training.

     

    I'm feeling mostly OK - maybe a little bit tired, but that could just be that I'm out of shape.

    Everyone's gotta running blog; I'm the only one with a POOL-RUNNING blog.

     

    And...if you want a running Instagram where all the pictures are of cats, I've got you covered.

    ccoakley


      DW, really glad to hear your case was so mild.  And impressed you were able to keep your mileage up.

       

      Hash, nice sleady week.  Did you end up registering for the marathon all your friends are running?

       

      Mark, is it even a trail run if you don't get lost at least once?  2 10% grades sounds intense.

       

      James, nice activity streak!  Did you switch your running time just to get ready for the race or is this a permanent thing?

       

      Gels, I haven't used a gel in probably 10+ years.  I'll bring Gatorade if it's an over 2 hr run otherwise just water.  But I am obsessed with hydration and will bring a full water bottle for a 3 mi run. I ALWAYS drink a decent chug every time my watch beeps for a mile or an interval in a workout.  I know I need to figure something out if I plan to run another marathon but gels aren't the answer for me.

       

      My week started out well and then Thursday's workout wrecked me.  I opted for an URD today instead of slogging thru.  Hopefully I can reset tomorrow.

       

      Weekly for period: From: 11/07/2022 To 11/13/2022

      Date Name mi km Duration Avg/mi Avg/km Elevation Gain
      in ft
      11/08 Morning Run 5.71 9.19 01:04:33 11:18 07:01 112
      11/09 Morning Run 8.02 12.90 01:28:10 11:00 06:50 164
      11/10 5 x 1k @ 5k pace that was probably too fast 7.00 11.27 01:11:31 10:13 06:21 141
      11/11 Morning Run 4.31 6.93 00:49:46 11:33 07:11 115
      11/12 Lunch Run 2.80 4.50 00:38:09 13:38 08:29 39

      Total distance: 27.83mi

      5k 24:53 (2020) |10k 52:24 (2021) |HM 1:57:14 (2019) |FM 4:24 (2007) |50k 5:57 (2022)

       

       

      Marky_Mark_17


        Caitlin - oh, it's going to suck for sure, but it's on some private trails that can only be run during this event and I'm kinda intrigued to see how much I may or may not enjoy this event.  5 x 1k @ 5k is a tough workout for sure!

         

        DWave - good to hear that COVID doesn't seem to have been too rough for you.  Hope your sister enjoys her trip.

         

        Hash - do I detect an Iron Maiden reference there?

        3,000m: 9:07.7 (Nov-21) | 5,000m: 15:39 (Dec-19) | 10,000m: 32:34 (Mar-20)  

        10km: 33:15 (Sep-19) | HM: 1:09:41 (May-21)* | FM: 2:41:41 (Oct-20)

        * Net downhill course

        Last race: Maraetai HM, 10 Mar, DNF

        Up next: Waterfront HM, 7 Apr

        "CONSISTENCY IS KING"

        JamesD


        JamesD

           

           

          James, nice activity streak!  Did you switch your running time just to get ready for the race or is this a permanent thing?

           

           

           

          Just for the race.  I used to run in the mornings, but that was a lot easier to work around some morning club and board meetings when I was taking two off days a week, one on Sunday & the other on Wednesday or Thursday.  Since I switched to a three-days-running-one-day-off pattern, it's been easier to run at midday (I'm retired) or in the afternoon.  I also go a lot faster in the afternoon, and my only two races since May were 5Ks at midnight and at 6pm.  After the half on Saturday, I'll switch back to midday or afternoon runs, especially during winter.

          Post-1987 PRs:  Half 1:30:14 (2019); 10K 39:35 (2019); 5K 19:12 (2017); Mile 5:37.3 (2020)

          '24 Goals: consistency, age-graded PRs, half < 1:32

          zebano


            I had a solid week, generally continued my doubling and got to race*!

             

            MonAM: 20' E

            MonPM: 40'E + 4 strides

             

            TueAM: 20' E

            TuePM: 30'E + 4 strides

             

            WedAM: 20'E

            WedPM: 12x:45on/off

             

            Thur off

             

            FriPM: 20'E +_4 strides

             

            SatAM: 10' E

            SatAM: 20'E + drills + 8KM Race + 1mi CD

            SatPM: 1 mi w pup

             

            SunAM: 50 min w/ a friend + 15 min w/ DS #1

            SunPM: 10 min w/ DS#2 + 40' E

             

            47 Imperial Freedom Distance Units

             

            12x:45 -- this was an attempt to replicate my best ever pre-race sharpening workout. 12x200@3k/200E which was a completely effortless session followed by my first ever sub20. This Wed on the other hand was not easy and I probably overdid it a touch so I took a bit more time off than intended (i.e. the single run on Fri)

             

            Living History Farms: Traditionally this is my favorite race. It's a XC race complete with multiple stream crossings, hills, uneven footing, mud and a ton of competitors. In recent years it's been a 10k, but the distance has never been permanently set as they reroute the course regularly to avoid eroding any area too much. I've run it as long as 8.1 miles and as short as 5.8. Due to Covid it hasn't been held in 2 years and in the meantime the group that runs the farm decided to fire the RD because he wasn't making them enough money so this was really a trial of the new group.

             

            The first thing to note is that race participation was down from about a thousand to roughly 500 but I still had competition out there, that didn't matter to me as it's still a relatively large race for these parts. The race started in a slightly different place but the first couple miles were similar. A little bit of rutted dirt road, under the I35 underpass and then running by cornfields where you're avoiding the mud and ruts and just trying to find the most solid and level dirt to run. I took this out a bit conservative knowing that the back half of the race is the hardest. Regardless after the first half mile I started passing people and only 1 person passed me the rest of the race. After that we hit the section that's typically singletrac down to creek, cross creek, singletrack uphill, short section of cornland before we repeat. Lets just say that they left the two tamest creek crossings in and rerouted around the rest. When we went back under  I 35 I was a bit shocked and immediately picked up the effort knowing I had a easy creek crossing, a mud pit and two huge hills over about 1.25 miles. Well instead they cut out the mud pit and the two giant hills and it was only about .75 miles and the whole race was an 8k. I guess other runners know that but I couldn't find it on their website after. Shame on me for not checking when the distance changes year to year.  Ultimately it was more of a 4 mile threshold + 1 mile hard than a race as most of the difficult terrain and distance that I was pacing for just wasn't there. It was still a fun , short XC course and all the problems were with my expectations but so far I'm not loving the change of RD.

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

            zebano


              James Good luck with the cold half. I didn't mention it in my report but it was 22F and windy at my race and I could really feel it. It made it somewhat difficult to move smoothly and quickly for the first mile but once fully warmed up everything went fine. I hope you have a similar experience as a half is long enough that a mile warmup shouldn't be a huge detriment to your time.

               

              DW That lever runner looks pretty awesome and certainly better than pool running!

               

              CC What is a URD? Also lol at going too hard on the 5x1km. I don't know why but VO2 workouts are just the worst, both as far as controlling the pace and soreness afterwards. I actively avoid them most of the time for that reason (also they tend to cause me to peak too early, probably because I overrun them).

               

              edit: I'm assuming Unplanned Rest Day now that my brain is functioning

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

              JamesD


              JamesD

                James Good luck with the cold half. I didn't mention it in my report but it was 22F and windy at my race and I could really feel it. It made it somewhat difficult to move smoothly and quickly for the first mile but once fully warmed up everything went fine. I hope you have a similar experience as a half is long enough that a mile warmup shouldn't be a huge detriment to your time.

                 

                 

                Thanks.  I hope it works out that way.  Forecasts have temperatures in the low 30s and windy at the start, so it won't be as cold as for your race, but my internal thermostat seems to be about 15 degrees higher than anyone else's (which is nice in the summer), so I hope it'll feel about the same.  I figure I'll be the most exposed when I'm standing around waiting for the start after breaking a sweat warming up, so I'm toying with the possibility of doing my shakeout run on the treadmill in our gym and just jogging the four blocks to the starting line 5-10 minutes before the start.  With a military-themed race, there's a good chance somebody will be singing the national anthem before we start, so maybe I can encourage them to sing at 78 rpm rather than 33-1/3 (hope those younger than Piwi get the reference).

                Post-1987 PRs:  Half 1:30:14 (2019); 10K 39:35 (2019); 5K 19:12 (2017); Mile 5:37.3 (2020)

                '24 Goals: consistency, age-graded PRs, half < 1:32

                Fredford66


                Waltons ThreadLord

                  James - I know what you mean; in cold weather that period between warmup and race start can be tough, especially if the national anthem goes long/slow.  Good luck.

                   

                  Zebano - Nice job on the 5 Imperial Freedom Units race.   Were the creeks frozen when you crossed them?

                   

                  Ccoakley - Not a bad idea to take a rest day if a hard workout tires you out.

                   

                  Darkwave - Glad to hear you're officially over covid, even if the effects are lingering a bit via fatigue.

                   

                  Hash - Thanks for the clarification.  Nice week.  Nothing wrong with slow and steady.

                   

                  Mark - Been thinking about your comment to James on temperature changes.  Maybe being so closely surrounded by the ocean, NZ doesn't get bigger temperature swings?  In NJ a tropical system can bring warm & humid up from the Gulf and the next day the jet stream can bring arctic cold.  Nice forest runs as training for your trail half.

                   

                  I'm trying to avoid slacking off in the period between my last fall half, back on 10/29, and the start of my next training cycle.  39.0 miles for me with some training focused on the 5-miler.  I still have a chance to hit 2,000 miles for the year.

                   

                  Date Workout Type Distance Duration Pace Temp
                  11/7/2022   Easy  6.1 mi 1:00:15   9:53  69
                  11/8/2022  4x1mile w/¼ mile recoveries Interval  7.7 mi 1:11:49   9:20  45
                  11/10/2022   Easy  6.0 mi 1:00:08 10:02  46
                  11/11/2022   Easy  6.1 mi 1:03:35 10:26  54
                  11/12/2022   Easy  3.8 mi    37:23   9:51  66
                  11/13/2022  8x400m w/400m recoveries Repeats  4.9 mi    47:44   9:45  50
                  11/13/2022   Easy  4.4 mi    44:38 10:09  49
                  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: RunAPalooza (Asbury Park) HM, 4/6; Clinton Country Run 15k, 4/27

                   

                  Running Problem


                  Problem Child

                    I've signed up for a 10k Turkey Trot. I'm going to use this for training for Boston 2023. I've tried to do some speed work earlier this season using a 3:05 marathon pace and it SEEMED to go okay. I already know I need to get an actual race pace figured out to determine actual fitness instead of guessing. I also like this organization, and it's pretty much the exact same course I broke 40 minutes on. While I don't expect to break 40 I have NO idea what I'm capable of at the moment since I've been unable to consistently do speed work for one reason or another, and the race is so close I'm not even sure it's worth doing anything at this point (open to suggestions).

                    I'm announcing it here since this is the "non-marathon" training thread, and those folks can get mean. Ask me how I know.

                     

                    Course is flat, fast, out and back and other than ice/snow/rain doesn't have really anything I can think of as a hindrance. maybe ONE section of running path where tree roots have broken up the path (they create speed bumps) but I know it, and it's the same spot where people MIGHT be walking their dog. The rest is on public roads that will be closed off. There is potential for some fast runners to be there, but I'm not planning on it.

                     

                    In case you can't tell I'm kind of nervous about racing, and have no idea what I'm doing. I'm not going to wear any super cheater shoe V2.0 since I want a fair assessment of fitness, and I don't do speed workouts in those.

                     

                    Fitness....I've been aiming for 50 mile weeks, I'm on a 344 day run streak where I've averaged 6.95 miles per day (crossed 2,400 today) and the race is in the town I live in. Course SHOULD be an accurate 10k. My standard race option is "go out at goal race pace and hang on until the end."

                     

                     

                    Zeb URD = Unscheduled Rest Day.

                    Many of us aren't sure what the hell point you are trying to make and no matter how we guess, it always seems to be something else. Which usually means a person is doing it on purpose.

                    VDOT 53.37 

                    5k18:xx | Marathon 2:55:22

                       

                      Hash - do I detect an Iron Maiden reference there?

                       

                      Absolutely you do. I'm a bogan from waaaay back. Fun fact - I grew up with Jon Toogood from Shihad. At high school we had an indoor cricket team in the adult league (he was a flippin ' good sportsman). We named ourselves 'The Little Lucifers', and our uniform was a black AC/DC or Iron Maiden t-shirt. Good times!

                       

                      DW - We don't have to pay to use the Track, but they've just upgraded the entrance gates from a padlock and key to an electronic lock. The $25 is for a swipe card for the lock. There are a whole bunch of upgrades happening because the track facilities are being used for next year's Women's Soccer World Cup.

                       

                      CC - Haven't paid to enter yet, but have verbally committed to running it!

                       

                      Interesting convo on the whole hydration thing. I don't like gels (well, I don't like the sickly-sweet ones that I've tried) and usually take two small bottles (one plain water and one with gatorade-style powder mixed in) on my long runs.

                       

                      Zeb - Nice to get a race in! I've been trying to add a few doubles into my week to help build up my mileage.

                       

                      RP - When is your 10k TT? You are safe from meanness here with The Waltons!

                      50+ age-group PBs:  Half Perish 1:24:24 (June '23 Road Race) - 10km 37:52 (2022 Local Road Champs) - Track 5km 18:49 (Aug '22) - Perish Run 3:17:42

                      2024 Goals: Boston Perish Run Sub 3:15 - Road/Track 10km Sub 37:30 - 5km Sub 18:20

                       

                       

                      Running Problem


                      Problem Child

                        Hash next Thursday morning.  Weather will probably be 35-40F and feel cold the whole time.  Also, I’m one of those meanies. 

                        Many of us aren't sure what the hell point you are trying to make and no matter how we guess, it always seems to be something else. Which usually means a person is doing it on purpose.

                        VDOT 53.37 

                        5k18:xx | Marathon 2:55:22

                        Fredford66


                        Waltons ThreadLord

                          RP - Good luck with the 10k.  The root-based speed bumps are definitely something to look out for.  I had a couple of those on my last 10k and one almost tripped me up as the bottom of my shoe scraped across the top of it as my foot was coming forwards.  As mentioned elsewhere here, 10k is one of those "just hang on until the end" distances.  At 50 mpw I have no doubt you're ready for it.

                           

                          Speaking of cold, I had my first sub-freezing run of the season today.  29º feeling like 23º (-2C/-5C), so of course I was over-dressed a bit because I'm always erring on the side of too warm when the cold weather first arrives and I have to re-learn what to wear every time winter rolls around.  To think I was running in 66º (19C) just 3 days ago (albeit in the afternoon, not the early morning).

                          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: RunAPalooza (Asbury Park) HM, 4/6; Clinton Country Run 15k, 4/27

                           

                          zebano


                            RP.  I think you're going to massively surprise yourself. That streak is super impressive and you in particular seem to always race really really well. If I were you I'd do one of two things:

                             

                            1. Get to the race go out in 20 flat, think "that was easy", turn around and negative split that thing by a lot

                            2. Find a day this week to run a big specific workout like 4x2k@4/km on minute jog+ KM all out. Hopefully no latter than Friday so you have time to recover. How you feel going into that final KM and how much you crush it should tell you a ton. Alternatively run the workout at 3:50 and I think you'll realize that you're in 38flat shape (WAG on my part).

                             

                            Even if you don't do much speedwork, I'd strongly suggest some strides every other day  just to get the body used to going faster.

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

                            Running Problem


                            Problem Child

                              Zeb yeah somehow I race well and it’s pro because I doubt myself a LOT.  I’d put some thought into some type of 4x1K workout to get a rough idea of where to pace things and a rough indicator of how much it will hurt.  I at least have some newer shoes to run the race in than some 400+ mile NikeS.

                               

                               

                              5x1,200m (5 minute) with 1 minute rest.  Targeted 6:40/mi pace and it was too easy.  ‘Last one fast one’ was 6:25/mi ISH pace.  It was enough effort for me to know it wouldn’t have been possible to hold for the whole workout, and definitely enough to tell me I should try 6:30/mi (4:00/km) pace for either a workout or the race. Unless some magic comes in I probably won’t run sub-40 and I’m not trying to this time

                              Many of us aren't sure what the hell point you are trying to make and no matter how we guess, it always seems to be something else. Which usually means a person is doing it on purpose.

                              VDOT 53.37 

                              5k18:xx | Marathon 2:55:22

                              JoshWolf


                              Part of TLC

                                RP - Just a quick delurk: 50 mpw ist plenty, but without any substantial speedwork in the preceeding weeks following Zebano's suggestion will do nothing but wreck your legs imho. With just eight days to go I'd recommend a few strides here and there to prime the neuro pathways. If you want to test 10k pace to get the feel of it, 15 minutes should do the trick. Relax. Good luck!

                                 

                                All: Hi.

                                 

                                ETA: Well, too late 🙃. Good luck anyway!

                                 

                                Relurk

                                Don't hurry - next AG will start 2026