Forums >Racing>2020 Marathon Training and relevant COVID 19 discussion echo chamber
Cal - I tried using Flavio's weekly tool, but for some reason it was only showing the first 4 days of the week for me. The slower stuff was probably around 7:30-7:45/mile. The faster stuff (track session and long run) probably more like 6:15/mile and 6:45/mile average respectively. I run my track reps off the track measurements rather than my watch as my watch always overshoots distance on the track (by as much as 7-8%).
Mikkey - no track marathons that I know of here other than the National 24-hour Champs (which are their own particular breed of madness).
Darkwave - yeah, I find I need some variation (and a day off running each week) to stay fresh too. I'm not really serious about doing some crazy lockdown challenge - but I might challenge myself to a longer long run in a week or two, probably doing laps of my favourite local spot (the Hobsonville Point Coastal Walkway) which I can slice either as 5km or 6.1km.
I really like how in parts of the US (notwithstanding current issues), they'll close areas off to traffic at the weekends for runners, cyclists and pedestrians to enjoy - I recall in San Francisco they used to shut the roads in parts of Golden Gate Park each weekend.
JTReeves - another very solid base week. Thanks - yeah those long runs with tempo sections are really beneficial but they definitely smash my legs around like nothing else too!
DPS - thanks, I'd be lying if I said those tempo sections in that LR were anything less than a struggle though!!
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: Waterfront HM, 7 Apr, 1:15:48
Up next: Runway5, 4 May
"CONSISTENCY IS KING"
Mother of Cats
JTReeves - reminds me of the point you brought up last week and this week about watching stuff on the treadmill. I've never been able to watch sporting events on the treadmill. I just can't. I get too into them, and the next thing I know I'm falling off the mill..... So good for you for watching the crosscountry meets - I'll have to look that up for a non-treadmill time....
Also, since you mentioned my Strava posts....for those of you not on Strava, I've been including screencaps of whatever I listened to during the treadmill run. I figure that my normal outside runs include a map of where I went during the run. And...when I'm on a treadmill, the music I listened to is effectively where I went during that run.
Track marathons - I believe we have both indoor and outdoor track marathons around 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.
The temptation to do something silly
My week:
Mon - 13.0
Tue - 14.6
Wed - 14.1
Thu - 15.4
Fri - 15.3
Sat - 15.7
Sun - 13.3
Total = 101.3 miles
Hitting 100 is NBD for some of you, but I’ve never gone more than 80. And even that was a one-time thing; typically my peak marathon training weeks are low 70s. I planned to make this an all-easy week, to take a break after my 5k time trial. And figured maybe based on that, juice up the miles a bit, to say, 80+. If you had asked me before this, I would have assured you I’d never, ever run a 100 mile week. I guess I got inspired by all the recent talk here about the training benefits of big weeks of all easy miles. Plus a guy in one of my user groups who did 100 last week, despite not having any higher mileage history than me (in fact less). I had no thought about 100 till a couple days into the week, then I figured I would give it a go and take it day to day. I was ready to pull the plug if any unusual pains started to crop up. I was fully expecting the last 2-3 days to be a brutal slog and feel like the final miles of a marathon.
Turns out was actually not as awful as I expected. It was certainly a grind mentally, but my legs held up surprisingly well - I’m not feeling totally destroyed or anything. I know the conventional wisdom is to fill the week with doubles, but that just seemed like a lot of extra effort to me, and I was skeptical whether it would actually help much. I just went out for a 13-15 miler every day. I made sure to keep the pace a bit slower than my usual easy; I was able to maintain that pretty steady through each run and as the week progressed.
I will definitely back off next week, although not yet sure what is in store for the weeks ahead. IDK if there are training benefits to a single high-mileage week like this, but it gave me some confidence that I might be able to maintain more mileage than I previously thought. And if nothing else, just kind of a cool thing to have on my running resume.
Dave
DavePNW, I told you few weeks before this week - that "it is so funny" and you didn't believe me
Ha. My decision had nothing to do with what might pay off, but just what I’d rather be doing. I have a tougher time getting motivated by a ton of easy miles. Running fast is more fun than running slow.
But here you are:
My week: Mon - 13.0 Tue - 14.6 Wed - 14.1 Thu - 15.4 Fri - 15.3 Sat - 15.7 Sun - 13.3 Total = 101.3 miles
JTR - there is one thing about easy miles based on HR and, consequently, a time when your mileage is getting higher eventually - due to lower intensity of the runs. If, in the future, you get to a higher mileage and get "seduced" how easy you handle those miles - never ever start adding intensity to the higher mileage. Get used to the mileage first and then start adding intensity, do not do both at the same times - I was punished with injuries when I did that - at least twice and the injuries were just getting seemingly from nowhere - but, basically just from overuse.
Will see how long the quarantine lasts and how long we will be in "no-races" environment - I am thinking about a marathon time trial maybe in June? Though I remember Patrick from RWOL ran sub 3 marathon length LRs every Sunday for probably 7 or 8 weeks in a row and then ran sub 2:40 in Berlin 2015 (he was 45yo, I think). Still cannot comprehend how he was able to do that - because just a couple of years before I was faster than him and he was already running a decent mileage back then.
paces PRs - 5K - 5:48 / 10K - 6:05 / HM - 6:14 / FM - 6:26 per mile
Yeah of course I remember that conversation. It wasn’t a matter of not believing anything, it was just what I wanted to be doing at the time. Then this week I suddenly decided to completely change gears, because...who knows. Incidentally my track is now locked up as of earlier this week, so interval workouts (and time trials) will be more of a challenge. Maybe all the more reason to stick with the easy miles.
3 months til Masters
Very odd week. Had to chop up some runs, and move stuff around because of life and weather. Ran in shorts and no shirt Sat night and awoke to an inch of snow and 20 mph winds Sunday morning and 3 inches of snow by dinner. Commented some already will read the rest of the weeks in the morning. Hoping you are all doing well.
2023 Goals
Marathon Sub 2:37 (CIM) 2:41:18
10k Sub 35:00 (Victory 10k 34:19)
5k Sub 16:00 (Hot Dash 5k in March (16:48), Brian Kraft in May (16:20), Twilight 5000 in July and August (16:20/16:25 Both heat index 102-103F)
Sub 1:16 Half Marathon City of Lakes Half Marathon 1:15:47)
Sub 56:30 in 10 mile (Twin Cities 10 mile, Canceled due to weather, 56:35 as a workout)
2024 Goals
Sub 2:37 Marathon
Sub 1:15 Half
Sub 34 10k
Sub 16 5k
Mmmm Bop
Mark: Nice week; that long run was a killer, as was your birthday track session. Given your fitness I can see how you'd be thinking about a time trial or something more crazy. One of the runners I follow ran 50 km one day last week just for the heck of it.
Marky - I’m following a NZ born guy on Strava who you may have heard of (Paul Martelletti) and he ran a 50k training run yesterday at 5:51 pace and earlier in the week he ran 16 with a 14:36 5k TT thrown in the middle, he’s a high mileage runner (500+ last month) and is incredible at all distances. He’s 40yo now and not showing any signs of slowing down!
Dave - Congrats on the mileage PB! I personally think 100 miles at easy/recovery pace is physically easier than 70mpw with tempo/speed sessions and not surprised at how you felt.
5k - 17:53 (4/19) 10k - 37:53 (11/18) Half - 1:23:18 (4/19) Full - 2:50:43 (4/19)
I personally think 100 miles at easy/recovery pace is physically easier than 70mpw with tempo/speed sessions and not surprised at how you felt.
No, not at 70... Maybe 85-90.
70.
82.
75 max.
Run 100+ miles for more than 4 weeks in a row - then we will talk...
Run 100+ miles for more than 4 weeks in a row
No.
Slingrunner- coming back with a back yard ultra. Nice.
DW-impresive progression on Sunday.
Cal- just going all in on mileage, huh?
JT- going to have to look up those races now. Nice temp on Fri.
Dave.- 100+ on singles. Wow.
I am just trying to say that running easy 100+ miles week after week is not as easy as Mikkey is trying to say. Running 70-75 mpw with workouts is not easy too but 100+ week after week will have an accumulated effect of fatigue much harder than 70-75 mpw with workouts week after week. At least that was my experience - so, it maybe an anecdotal evidence.