2019 3:20, And Beyond (Read 444 times)

    pj -  Excellent 1/2M!  Living out in the woods must agree with you.

     

    sam - Hey!  How's your hip these days?

     

    my week

    M: 4 easy + weights

    T: 6 with intervals at the armory

    W: 7 easy

    Th: 7 with hilly 5@7:00

    F:1h XT

    S: spin

    S: 4 easy + weights

     

    total = 21

    Running Problem


    Problem Child

      dwave Remote Start for the win. Just let your car idle outside with the heat turned on (insert rant from rlk about vehicles) and let it thaw naturally for a few minutes. I'm super spoiled in that I've bought one for each vehicle I've owned (two) since college. Also convenient when it's hot outside. I do it before my Saturday runs since I don't appreciate being late.

       

      keen enjoy the snowboading. 4 months is CRAZY early. NeRP didn't even sleep through ONE night until 6 months. 20 lbs...that's like 12 month clothes. Rolly Polly slept until probably 6:20 or later this morning. I left before he was awake which was nice. Quite morning reading and sipping coffee after breakfast and brunch (fat kid gotta eat) was made.

       

      rovatti still recovering or just taking the week easy?

       

      Sort of concerned with Thursday's workout. Weather and packing might not be conducive to a 6 mile 6:53/mi run with a warm up and cool down. Friday night I'm driving past rlk land so I don't have to do it Saturday morning with a child who might be awake. As my sister-in-law (L&D nurse) says "Babies are to be seen, not heard." Someone probably disagrees with this somewhere. Probably a grandparent.

      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


      Speed Surplus

        "clever how expensive is an e-hub?"

         

        Same as a regular hub in this case - my ebike motor is a mid-drive, so the rear wheel and hub are just a normal wheel. Basically, there's a torque sensor that tells the motor how hard you're pedaling, and it delivers additional power to the crank as necessary depending on the level of assist you've set. It feels like you're pedaling a regular bike, except you're also a cycling God.

         

        That said, it seems that the manufacturer is going to cover this under warranty and send me a new hub. I may have to pay some labor for the shop to relace the spokes, but I'm not sure. The icing on the cake would be if the manufacturer also covers that. Fingers crossed.

        5:27 / 18:49 / 40:32 / 88:12 / 3:12

        CommanderKeen


        Cobra Commander Keen

          Brew - Weight-wise DD3 still is in 12 months clothes range but she's also pretty tall, so for length she needs bigger clothes. Bigger ones fit her arms/legs, but sometimes it looks like she's wearing a very tiny tent.
          Any chance of moving Thursday's workout?


          SClever - Nice that it's going to be replaced under warranty - hopefully that does include the labor costs as well. Since the bike uses that sensor to decide how much extra juice to give you, does it also broadcast/tell you what your power output would be sans motor?


          Quite glad I broke with tradition and stepped outside of the house to check the weather this morning instead of just looking at the local conditions on my phone. Reported 40*/5mpw wind was actually probably closer to 35*/15mpw wind, and I would have froze and likely cut my run short had I dressed for the reported conditions. Not quite sure what to make of this morning's run, or if I should. I tried some strides and just felt heavy, like I had no power. But my overall pace was faster than I figured it was just by feel (fog could have affected this perception).

          Maybe the feeling of the strides should have been expected, but I've never had this much of a break from running, so it's new territory for me.
          I did get a little more hopeful for the year after Strava creeping a (slightly faster) running buddy - he had zero running for nearly 3 months to start last year and still went sub-3 at CIM.

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

           

          Upcoming Races:

           

           

          AceHarris


            PJ: Nice HM! Should be a good predictor for sub 3:10. Hairpin turns that lead you into a headwind are tough. I often don't feel the tailwind and then am unpleasantly surprised by the change.

             

            Brew: Anxiously awaiting my snowglobes! Nice work on keeping pace so far this year.

             

            CK: Illness is pretty much gone, just lagging behind on getting motivated again. Our youngest (now 14 months) is teetering on sleeping through the night.  Until a few days ago she always got up at least once. Sometimes to eat, sometimes it just seemed to hangout for 10-15 minutes then she'd go right back to sleep. Thanks for wanting to be with me?

             

            OMR: Glad you are less stressed. Bummed for future students that will likely get passed along without knowing how to wear pants.

             

            My running continues to be in the "slacker" category. It seems when I'm not marathon training the excuses tend to pile up. "It's too cold, windy, wet, tired, etc." I generally just run during marathon training because I know I can't afford skipping runs, but with shorter races on the board I lack the will power. We ultimately know this will just lead to disappointing shorter races, so at some point I've gotta get my sh*^ in gear, hopefully that is soon. Cherry Blossom really isn't that far away.  I need some goals I'm excited about!

            Road Mile: 5:19 (2017), 5k: 17:09 (2021), 10k: 35:54 (2021), HM: 1:21:55 (2020), M: 2:53:18 (2021)


            Speed Surplus

              "Since the bike uses that sensor to decide how much extra juice to give you, does it also broadcast/tell you what your power output would be sans motor?"

               

              No, the controller that I have only shows your speed and assist level. Strava will estimate your wattage, but then you'd have to extrapolate what the motor is giving vs. what you're providing yourself. My motor is 350w, but it doesn't provide a steady 350w - it varies, and may peak significantly above that.

              5:27 / 18:49 / 40:32 / 88:12 / 3:12

              Running Problem


              Problem Child

                keen Maybe move the workout to Saturday. Depends how I kind of feel/motivation after a LONG day of work then 5 hours of driving. NeRP looks like a round kid with his shirt not being long enough. It doesn't help he has discovered his belly button and walks around lifting his shirt to show it off. I guess I shouldn't do that either.

                 

                sc you can't replace the spokes? I figured all cyclists had the spoke nipple tool. Cool they're replacing it free and it isn't some special part.

                 

                ace Yeah I was telling a friend about that (excuses) last weekend. It's amazing how you're out of bed running in mid 30s one month and the next it's 9:00am and 45F when you're saying "Maybe later" knowing full well it's not happening and you don't care.

                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

                darkwave


                Mother of Cats

                   

                   

                  ace Yeah I was telling a friend about that (excuses) last weekend. It's amazing how you're out of bed running in mid 30s one month and the next it's 9:00am and 45F when you're saying "Maybe later" knowing full well it's not happening and you don't care.

                   

                  I think that there's mental fitness as well as physical, and both take time to build up.  (and both benefit from occasional down time)

                  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.

                  ThisIsNotSam


                  Jogger

                     

                    sam - Hey!  How's your hip these days?

                     

                     

                    it's quiet, mostly. still doesnt feel the same, you know. It sounds like one of those lingering issues that will hurt me a lot when I turn 50

                    Mile 5:24 3k 11:01 5k 19:01 10k 38:34 hm 1:26:57 fm 3:02:33

                    pepperjack


                    pie man

                      I seem to be recovering ok.  Lack of fieldwork this week helped.  The rain broke and I got a good run, almost light until 6 as well.  Healdsburg full moon run tomorrow so that will be nice.

                       

                      For the last few years I’ve been going to a fancy party at the Pratt Library back home.  It’s a black and white party so easily the most formal thing I do.  I’m missing it this year for the first time in 5 years I think.  Also looking like I’ll miss the annnual super bowl tavern run my friend organizes.  I’ve never missed, one year I did less than the 12 miles cause I was doing LA (probably still drank the typical amount of beers, though).  I’m going to blame furlough on that one.

                      11:11 3,000 (recent)

                      rlk_117


                      Resident Millennial

                        It's been really quiet here! So I decided to - seven weeks later - finally finish my CIM report and blast you all with it. Big grin

                        _________________________________________________
                        mile, 5:26 /5k, 19:34 /10k, 41:00 /13.1, 1:31:49 /26.2, 3:12:58

                        rlk_117


                        Resident Millennial

                          CIM2018 Race Report. PR, 3:12:58

                           

                          Background:
                          I went into the race with a very solid training block, supported by a new (to me) coach. Training technically started back in July, but the first ~12 weeks were more like "organized base-building", so the training block consisting of workouts, a strict LR schedule, etc was more like 4 months. Still the longest I've ever focused on one race. On the note of the new coach, different workouts (compared to my teammates) meant doing some workouts alone, and generally missing out on the "pack magic" that I became used to since I joined the team in Jan 2016. That initially felt like a big drawback, but I do think I developed some mental strength from doing solo workouts. I also had a truly individualized training program and great feedback/coaching for the first time in a long time.

                           

                          The day before:
                          Left SF around 1pm (with some teammates + one dad), ate a bag of pita chips in the car (#carbs), got to the expo, ran in, got my shit, ran out. Saw a bunch of SF running buds while there; this race really feels like a hometown affair. Also saw a lot of elites milling around in lobby. Then we (one teammate + aforementioned dad, hers) checked into our hotel, which was about .8mi west of the finish line, and just two blocks from one of the start line bus locations. We hung out there for awhile with her dad, who is an old school marathoner himself. He entertained us with stories of marathons from the 70s and 80s. I had been feeling strange emotions – not excited, not exhilarated, and maybe a hint of dread – and his stories made the afternoon fly by calmly and helped me forget my apprehensions.

                           

                          Typically, in the few days leading up to a marathon, I feel jittery from nerves but also from excitement. It feels like the work is done and I just need to lay it all out there. This year was different, though. I had put all my eggs in the CIM basket in 2017 and not only was the race result poor but I literally staggered to drag myself across the finish line and then promptly fell unconscious for a few seconds. It was weird. One year later, I had put all my eggs in the CIM basket again for my nth attempt to bust through my marathon plateau. (I ran a 3:21 in 2013, and at CIM 2017 I just eked out a 3:19.) I had a coach and a new approach. Would it be enough? If I failed, would I quit marathons? Using a different training protocol also had me stressed, since the typical “benchmarks” I’d had in previous cycles were no longer there. But that training obviously didn’t work super well… so I should trust in the new system, right? The 2018 training didn’t feel as “hard” as previous training cycles, so I was worried I underdid it. I was dreading the race.

                           

                          Race morning:

                          4am alarm. Tiptoe in the dark to try not to wake A’s dad. Transform self into bib person (see photo, left). Add throwaway clothes. Coffee and oatmeal in paper cups so I could bring them on the bus. Leave hotel, go to bus pickup point, find teammates, get on bus, blast some pump up jams, finally start to feel excited! Long bus ride to Folsom, a scary/funny moment when my teammate is giving the bus driver directions from her phone. Get off the bus, pee, get back on the bus, decide I can’t eat any more oatmeal, get off the bus, watch people tripping on gaps in the median when they get off the bus (in the darkness), pee, do drills and a bit of a shuffle, take off throwaways, laugh as my teammate whips out resistance bands to activate her glutes, pee behind a bush with teammates, make our way to the start line, puussshhhh our way from the 4:30 group up to the front.
                          Image may contain: one or more people and shoes
                          Bib people.

                           

                          Most of my teammates kept going to the self-seed 3:00 start section, and I let them go. This felt like a tipping point: my new(ish) coach had been telling me for weeks that I could run 3 hours. I had not been training for 3 hours, I wanted to run a “confidence” race to ensure a strong finish, I had never run a 90 minute half marathon (let alone two back-to-back). Every time he mentioned “3 hours” to me, I brushed it off and told myself 3:10-3:15. I wanted to trust him, but I really thought it was an outlandish estimate for my abilities. I’m not a person who can do meh training and then blast an off-the-charts race, or at least I never have. I didn’t want to undersell my potential or “be lazy”, but I also didn’t want to start a marathon at a faster pace than I could sustain and risk blowing up hard. So at this moment, I pushed Daryl’s expectations out of my mind and settled into a starting area that my heart told me was right. 3:15. I found two teammates here, and it was nice to squeeze ourselves into the start corral together. One of these two has rubbed me the wrong way for awhile, for reasons I won’t get into, so I was wondering if I should distance myself from her. I was trying to keep an absurdly positive attitude. But the other woman is jovial and kind and light-hearted, and laughing with her made me forget about the long road ahead. There were still some remnants of dread.

                           

                          One thing I didn’t mention yet is that last year, I had a “race buddy”. A teammate and I had been super pace-compatible during training, so we had decided to try to shoot for 3:17ish/faster together last year. We spent the whole morning together and ran side-by-side for about 18 miles. It felt like I could unload some emotional and physical burden on her, and I could shoulder her burden when I was feeling strong. Yet this year, since many of my teammates had “graduated” up to the 3:00 range, I had no plans to race with anyone. That made it seem scarier.

                           

                          The gun goes off

                          …and I don’t cross the line until at least a minute later. This was very different from last year, where I felt right on top of the start. I later found out that the race apparently only used half the road width for the start line, in attempt to control crowds. No matter. We get started, we’re running, I’m with the two teammates for a few steps. Daryl has a rule to never worry about the first three minutes of a race (not talking about track races), and use that time to calm down and settle in. So I did. Still talking and laughing with my one teammate. Running feels so easy. Then I see dwave a few paces in front of me. I pull even with her and we get to officially meet for the first time and chat a bit! I send her on her way, as she takes the first mile of her race very easy and ratchets the pace down from there. Moments later, a teammate (forum alumna kinase) who I hadn’t yet seen that morning, runs up on me. While M had some very speedy days a few years ago, we are currently pretty well-matched in pace. She’s a smarter racer than I am, so she surprises me from behind and outkicks me at least once per season! We chatted about our race plans, and it turned out that our pace would actually be pretty similar and we would benefit from working together. What a relief!

                           

                          That plan was to stick around 7:15s-7:20s (7:15 is a 3:10, and 7:26 is a 3:15, approximately) and make sure we felt relaxed through half and even through 20ish. Our watches finally clicked for Mile 1 and it was a 7:20 – perfect pace, and it had felt absolutely effortless. We clicked along, chatting and feeling really casual. At one point M dropped her sunglasses (we were holding ours in our hands – it was still dawn) and I think stepped on them (?!) so she stopped momentarily to get them and told me to keep going. I slowed down (“I’ll be the Desi to your Shalane!&rdquoWink and she easily caught back up. She was holding an 8oz disposable waterbottle and gave it to me to hold while she stopped, so I took the opportunity to take a gel and swig water.

                           

                          Miles 1-6: 7:20, 7:22, 6:56, 7:13, 7:17, 7:20

                           

                          The sun came up, we ran by my bf (J) and another friend and got high-fives, and the course rolled a bit. We’re having fun! Nothing really eventful to report. I tried to focus on “making it boring” – a mantra I had read by Peter Bromka. The more boring it is now, the less catastrophic it’ll be later. At mile 8 I successfully grabbed a small disposable waterbottle from a kid on the sidelines. This was great, and I ended up holding onto it and skipping water stops until mile ~18 because of it. It helped me take gels (around 10 and 15) because it guaranteed I had some water to wash it down! M and I crushed the tangents, and every time she slowed for a water stop, I’d slow to make sure she caught up to me. The sacrifice of a few seconds now, with a running buddy, definitely pays off. The 3:10 pace group was really large, and we found ourselves just behind it. At one point, we were running almost in the gutter of an excessively wide road in order to not get trapped up in them. At that point, M said “do we want to try to go around them?” I wanted to have a patient race, but I said yes: I wanted to keep M around as long as I could.

                          Image may contain: 7 people, including Megan Robblee, people standing and outdoor

                          Me and M and our mini-pack of 3:10+ ladies

                           

                          Miles 7-12: 7:21, 7:17, 7:24, 7:07, 7:12, 7:20

                           

                          We scooted in front of the 3:10 group and found ourselves in a little cluster of mostly women. When we ran under the half marathon arch, my watch was at 1:35:00 – perfect setup to even split a 3:10, which was the A+ goal. We saw plenty of non-racing teammates on the sidelines throughout, including one who brought her bike trainer so she could park herself on the course and multitask. We were in great spirits and laughed at that! We saw J around mile 15, and I reflected on the difference between this year’s race and last year. J followed the same spectating plan, and last year at this point in the race he could already tell I was grumpy. This time, I was feeling so in control, fresh, and enjoying chatting and joking with M. I didn’t know exactly what “MP” was, but I knew anywhere between 7:15-7:26 would land me at 3:10-3:15. Hovering at high 7:1Xs felt good and sustainable.

                           

                          We spotted a teammate, P, racing up ahead. P is an interesting character and, I’ll be blunt, a fairly pessimistic person. I’ve tried on many occasions to be friendly and nice to her, but I struggle to be around someone who is so negative. She has been trying to break 3 hours for a long time, so the fact that she’d come back to us meant she was having a bad race. M said, “is that P up ahead?” I said, “yes, but honestly I am feeling really good and positive right now and don’t want her to bring us down if we can avoid it. Do you know what I mean?” M said, “I know exactly what you mean, and I agree. She’s probably not in a good mood.” But in a race of ~8,000 people, you can’t exactly run past someone wearing the same singlet as you and have them not notice you. And so we pulled even with P.

                           

                          Miles 13-18: 7:21, 7:13, 7:23, 7:15, 7:21, 7:23

                           

                          P said hi and some complaints about how terrible things were going. I was blunt and said something like, “don’t say that out loud! Just smile and be grateful that we get to do this.” We’d also get spectators saying something like “great job ladies!” and she’d smirk to herself “ugh not great at all”. The three of us ran in silence for a bit – “make it boring”! – and at one point P said something like “I’m glad you guys are here, this is making it fun.” Look at that, a positive remark!! M and I had been checking in on each other throughout the race, like “how’s this pace feel?” and our thoughts were really compatible. But I knew she was more fit than I am (and she has a PR of 3:02). Finally, around mile 19, she said “I think I want to speed up, how are you feeling?” I wanted to stay right on the pace I was, but I gave her my blessing and I’d try to chase! I was still with P who was surprisingly positive. P and I would look for each other upon coming out of water tables to reunite. We weren’t talking, but it was great to have another body in a blue singlet next to me. We strung apart a bit, and I came to the bridge at mile 21 that takes you from Fair Oaks Blvd to J street. This is the beginning of the end! Last year, I felt like I was almost walking up this bridge and it had felt like a mountain. This year, my brain was fully wired, I was running up the bridge, and I was ready to take on the last few miles. I knew I had slowed a bit, but I had to keep focus. We don’t come all this way to ease up at mile 21. And, let’s be honest, “easing up” at that point would still hurt like shit.

                           

                          Miles 19-21: 7:25, 7:26, 7:29

                           

                          The marathon is a funny thing: no matter how much you bide your time and keep things relaxed, at some point the pain will hit you like a freight train and it will turn into a battle. I knew my splits were slipping a little bit, but I knew I was giving as much as I could. P had passed me back and gave me encouragement. I kept her in my sights. J was on the side of a course on a JUMP bike (ebike share) – this made me so happy! It also enabled him to easily follow along to the end despite not being able to run. I took down one last gel, somehow, and it got to the point where I was afraid of slipping on wet leaves because I wouldn’t have been able to get back up. All of my focus was channeled into running in a straight line and moving forward. My legs were bricks. J biked alongside me (the road was very wide and I was on the left hand side, away from most of the runners) and said funny things, talked about our cats, etc. At one point I got really cranky and shushed him! I either wanted pump up jams or to suffer in silence.
                          Image may contain: one or more people and outdoor

                          Low-quality still from the mile 21 bridge video; me and J

                           

                          I totally stopped looking at my watch. I didn’t have strict time goals and just wanted to squeeze out every last drop, so being “disappointed” by splits would not have helped. I’d been counting down blocks ‘til the finish: when you cross that bridge, you are on J Street at 55th, and the finish line is down at 7th. The blocks felt so long!! I ran past a teammate who screamed at me, told me that 6 of our teammates had OTQed. What a rush! Keep going, keep going, I can’t wait to be done, this is a huge PR, etc. The final stretch ends with two 90 degree left turns in quick succession, to get to finish lines facing the California State Capitol. I was careful to not slip, as there were wet leaves on metal gutters at both of these corners. Men and women get separate finish lines at this race, which I really appreciate. It was such a sweet feeling finally getting there. I made sure to run all the way through; last year, I stopped short on the finish line after a very rough last few miles and actually passed out and had to be wheeled to the med tent. None of that this year!

                           

                          Miles 22-26.2: 7:23, 7:25, 7:33, 7:29, 7:45 (!), 1:44 (7:40 pace)

                           

                          3:12:58, 7:21 average

                           

                          Image may contain: one or more people, shoes and outdoor

                          I didn't even see the friend who took this photo - I was grinning like an idiot because I knew I was finally there and I'd done it. Mile 26.

                           

                          Mile 26 was my slowest, and that is ok. I didn’t kick as in “speed up” at the end, and that’s ok. I stayed strong and only lost a few seconds in that last stretch. If I'd been slightly slower in the first half, would I have had a stronger second half? There's no way to know. My race was pretty well executed overall (slight positive split), but moreover, it was a 7 minute PR and a break through my ~3:22-3:20 marathon plateau that began in Spring 2013 and finally ended on Dec 2 2018. I’ve sped up in all other distances since then, and I’m finally proud of my marathon PR and feel that it’s in line with my ability across distances. Of course, I thought “never again!” many times during those last few miles, but I’m sure I’ll be back again in 2019…

                          _________________________________________________
                          mile, 5:26 /5k, 19:34 /10k, 41:00 /13.1, 1:31:49 /26.2, 3:12:58

                          berylrunner


                          Rick

                            Things went well at Carlsbad.  Had some minor issues but got the goal and BQ,  3:16:13.

                            12-22   Last One Standing  - dnf 37 miles

                            1-23  Sun Marathon - 3:53

                            3-4-23  Red Mountain 55k - 7:02

                            4-15-23  Zion 100 - 27:59

                             

                             

                            rlk_117


                            Resident Millennial

                              congrats beryl!! issues?

                              _________________________________________________
                              mile, 5:26 /5k, 19:34 /10k, 41:00 /13.1, 1:31:49 /26.2, 3:12:58

                              darkwave


                              Mother of Cats

                                RLK - thanks very much for the race report - I enjoyed reading it.  It's especially interesting to read race reports by others that ran the same race as you.  BTW, it seems like pretty much everybody I know slowed up that last mile.

                                 

                                [BTW, I'm not your coach, but I would have absolutely made the same call you did.  Especially in the marathon, over-confidence in the early miles is a recipe for disaster.  It also takes confidence to start controlled in the early miles.]

                                 

                                Beryl - congrats, and I'm very sorry I failed to swing by to wish you good luck.  I'm also curious about the "issues."  Don't leave us hanging!

                                 

                                My week: 58 miles, 7 "miles" of pool-running, and 2000 yards of swimming:

                                M: Yoga and 8 miles very easy (8:40) under the Whitehurst
                                T: 11.5 miles, including 2 mile warm-up (not enough),  8 repeats of about .5 mile in length under the Whitehurst (3:09, 3:13, 3:01, 3:03, 2:58, 3:02, 3:00, 3:07), and 4 mile cooldown.  Also leg strengthwork and 1000 yards recovery swimming.
                                W: 2.5 miles very easy (10:10), yoga, and another 8 miles very easy (8:48) plus drills/strides
                                Th: upper body weights/core and 7 "miles" pool-running.
                                F: 4 miles very easy (8:40) and DIY yoga at home.
                                Sa: 3 mile warm-up, 5K race in 19:27* (splits were 6:22/6:23/5:59 (plus 7 second pause) and 36 seconds., 4 mile cooldown.  Later 1000 yards recovery swimming.
                                Su: 14 miles - first 5 very easy (8:46), next 9 moderate (7:44).  Later did upper body weights/core.

                                 

                                Lotsa snow/ice around here during the first part of the week, so ran on the access road under the Whitehurst Freeway.  Saturday I hopped into a Park Run as a rust-buster.  Accidentally stopped at the wrong finish line, and then had to get going again to cross the real finish line - thus the discrepancy between my splits (paused watch at the first "finish") and my official time.

                                 

                                Race report is here.

                                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.