Forums >Racing>2019 Sub 3 hour marathon thread
Yup, I'm an early morning person too. But I was kind of that way even when I wasn't a big runner. Even if not running, I try to get up by 5:30. For a couple of years now my alarm has been going off at 4:30 Mon-Sat, and I try to start running by 5:15-30. A big part of it is also weather related. While the hot summers here suck, at least the winter is never so bad that you cannot run at 5:15. I'd rather pick a time that works year round, day to day. Running at 5:15 here is almost always a decent hour, weather wise. I'd have a really hard time running at that hour if it was icy and/or windy and in the teens. I can see how people in the north need to wait until the sun comes up to get motivated to run.
I love sleep. I'd get 8 hours every day if I could, but it's just not really practical for me. I try to get 7 though, and usually do at least 5 nights a week.
Upcoming races: Boston
RIP Milkman
Holy hell! I can't believe how much you all like running. If the choice is waking up any time before 6 or not running then the run will not happen. I feel virtuous when I start a weekend run at 7.
Finally, someone who agrees with me. If I schedule a run before work, there's a 50/50 chance it gets skipped. Can't remember the last weekend run I did before 10 am.
5K: 16:37 (11/20) | 10K: 34:49 (10/19) | HM: 1:14:57 (5/22) | FM: 2:36:31 (12/19)
Problem Child
You wake up at 4:15 and don't run for another half hour??? That's some great dedication and inspiration. I am such a night owl compared to everyone on here. Part of it, I think, is I have zero trouble falling asleep if I run at night. I've done huge quality days, normal runs, etc. and been able to fall asleep within 30 minutes of coming home if I want to. Last night I did 12 with some tempo work, got home at 9:30, and was ready to fall asleep on my couch by 10:15. I also don't mind running at 9 or 10 PM at night, especially in the summer when I have zero desire to beat the sunrise.
You wake up at 4:15 and don't run for another half hour??? That's some great dedication and inspiration.
I am such a night owl compared to everyone on here. Part of it, I think, is I have zero trouble falling asleep if I run at night. I've done huge quality days, normal runs, etc. and been able to fall asleep within 30 minutes of coming home if I want to. Last night I did 12 with some tempo work, got home at 9:30, and was ready to fall asleep on my couch by 10:15. I also don't mind running at 9 or 10 PM at night, especially in the summer when I have zero desire to beat the sunrise.
I've woken up at 3:00 am and run at 7:00 am. You wake up at probably 6:00am and ran at 10 PM!!!! Talk about some dedication and inspiration. As for being shamed from society, I probably deserve it just for my personality and "being myself."
wait....10 AM WEEKEND RUN?!!?!?!?DUDE! The weekend is piratically OVER by then. 6:00am breakfast. 7:00am run. Done around 9:30-10:00am. shower and something to eat/drink and it's probably 11:00am. I guess the life of a slow poke is different.
weatherboy I'd say I get to bed around 9:00 if I'm doing something around 5:00am. Most of my summer Chicago doubled days wer a 6-7 miler at 4:45ish so I'm back home in an hour. On a non-running day I'd say 5:45 is probably the latest I'd WANT to roll out of bed to get ready for the day. Similar to matt4jc the "dad duties" along with more cars on the road and better temperatures in summer make morning miles much more appealing. THIS summer my wife wants to install a yard successfully (unsuccessful 2018) along with some other projects so if I DON'T get out of bed early the run won't happen.
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
Parent duties certainly make sense. But right now, during the summer, I would run my Sunday long run around 7 PM and be home by 9:30 PM.
Weekdays - my wife doesn't get home from work before 8 PM anyway so it works out for us.
Listened to the latest Citius mag podcast and was gratified to hear that Jim Walmsley mentioned trying some Daniels workouts and not hitting all the paces. I too fail to hit Daniels workout paces; ergo, I have a 64 minute HM in my future
Upcoming; 14th Sep Scottish veterans XC trials, 289th Sep Great Scottish Run 1/2, 12th October TAMA half marathon, 27th October Leeds Abbey dash 10k
Parent duties certainly make sense. But right now, during the summer, I would run my Sunday long run around 7 PM and be home by 9:30 PM. Weekdays - my wife doesn't get home from work before 8 PM anyway so it works out for us.
January is your summer? Wow that must be nice.
Fin: Thanks for the podcast as it was interesting to hear a near elite also mention how hard it is to hit those Vdot paces.
I still plan on going out fairly hard in my Orlando HM tomorrow morning, but as I've said before don't invite a meteorologist to a race. What was looking like ideal conditions several days ago has turned into rain (sometimes heavy with 1-2 inches expected throughout the day) and winds gusting anywhere from 15-20 out of the north and northeast with temps in the low to mid 50's. I like the temps, but the wind and rain not so much! Either way it will serve as a good hard workout/race at this point in the cycle especially with a few miles up and down. Plus might have a decent shot at placing based on past results, although I'd much rather run in a decent sized pack or chase with these conditions.
1mile: 4:46 (12/20) | 5K: 15:57 (3/21) | 10K: 33:40 (4/20) | 15K 51:43 (4/21) | HM: 1:15:03 (12/20) | FM: 2:40:30 (1/20)
Good luck Weather! Those temps sound good, and I don't think rain will slow you much, though the wind could be detrimental if it is strong. Go for it!
2:52:16 (2018)
I see weather caught another poor weather day. Either way 1:17 high is a great result.
my week was good. Quality sessions were solid
70 total
mon 8 8:15
tue 8 with strides 8:10
wed 10 with 5x3:00 at V02 power (5:23
thurs 8 8:19
fri 10 with 2x20:00 just over marathon power (6:06)
sat 8 8:09
sun 18 with 40:00 at marathon power (6:21)
HM: 1/17 1:18:53. FM: 12/18 2:46:04
Thanks Swim and JT!
Very solid week and set of workouts Swim!
Well I ran 1:17:56 this morning in Orlando's version of Boston 2018 (really not that bad) which was good for 3rd overall. Very happy with the effort I gave all things considered. Was really thinking it might be PR type weather a few days ago and even as the day began, but believe the combination of running on wet & twisty boardwalks for several miles (especially miles 8-9 and 12-13) and a then noticeable headwind in miles 1-3 and then again for the last 2 miles cost me at least the minute or so off a potential PR type effort. The temperature was right around 50 with steady rain, but we had a pesky north to northeast wind of at least 15mph with some higher gusts which thankfully were shielded by some trees! Also noticed some slight cramping in my hamstrings after 6 or 7 miles that persisted for the rest of the race. Probably a result of some muscle fatigue more than anything because if I honestly look at my my last 2 weeks I probably didn't have enough of a taper and was coming off some really decent quality in the last month. Not much else notable from the rest of the week except that I did cut down the volume from 80 the week before and had a somewhat sluggish session of 1200's on Wednesday. I'll pull any upcoming quality for the next 5-6 days as I try and recover from this effort.
Weekly Summary Monday, Jan 21, 2019 thru Sunday, Jan 27, 2019
Swim: Strong week with buckets of good quality. That's a nice mix of MP or faster down to 5k-ish speed. You'll be really sharp for your half.
Weather: Great effort in the race today. I agree that without the wind + rain you would have gotten a PR. You should feel good knowing you are in that kind of shape already at this point. Good idea to take it easy this week and let yourself recover.
My week: A hard session of 6 x 1 mile on the mill, then a hill workout of 4 x 2 min which quickly destroyed my legs. I was planning to try 5 or 6 reps but my legs were jello after 4. I'll try to stick with these shorter hill reps at a faster pace (though not that fast; I will be lucky to get to the point I can do one at sub 9 min pace). I am so weak at these that I figure it is an area I could benefit from improving on. Today was a nice long run, no MP miles yet but at an honest pace for me. I feel like aerobically things are moving in a good direction.
Weekly SummaryMonday, Jan 21, 2019 thru Sunday, Jan 27, 2019
Mother of Cats
Swim - nice week. Interesting how much pace difference there is between marathon power and just over marathon power.
Weather - nice result in tough conditions. I wonder if the hamstring issues could be because of fighting the wind? I've found that all my upper leg muscles are always more beaten up after a windy race.
JTReeves - how steep are those hill repeats? Jeesh! Very nice building week.
My week: 58 miles, 16 "miles" pool-running, and other stuff.
M: Yoga and 8 "miles" pool-runningT: 10 miles, including 4x1200 on the track in 4:45, 4:58, 4:52, 4:49. Also leg strengthwork and 1000 yards recovery swimming.W: 8 miles very easy (9:06), yoga, and another 4 miles very easy (8:52) plus drills/stridesTh: upper body weights/core and 8 "miles" pool-running.F: 12 miles, including 6400m tempo on the track in 26:13 (6:41/6:33/6:35/6:25). Also 6 eight second hill sprints, leg strengthwork, and 1000 yards recovery swimming.Sa: 10 miles very easy (8:30) plus drills/strides, and then upper body weights/core. Su: 14 miles - first 4 very easy (8:36), next 5 moderate (7:31), last 5 at marathon effort (6:50). Also leg strengthwork and 1000 yards recovery swimming.
As previously discussed, Tuesday's workout was horrible, and I felt the effects for a few days after. (and yes, I knew that would be the case when I finished it, but it was important to me to get through it, for mental reasons). Was still a bit tired on Friday, but bounced back OK by the weekend. (Full disclosure - I had a tailwind for much of that marathon effort section)
Also noting for the NYC-ers - I'll be in your city this Sunday to run the Gridiron 4 Miler (taking the 3:00 am train up)
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.
Also JTReeves, when you have a chance, you can add me to a) the Shamrock Half-Marathon (3/17) and b) the Garry Bjorklund Half-Marathon (6/22). Tentative goal times for both - 1:23. Will adjust as I get closer.
Darkwave: Table is updated. Good job pushing through that Monday session. Building mental toughness is important. Nice track tempo and progressive long run. I'd like to do some tempo runs on the track, just need to drag myself out of bed even earlier to do that so the activation barrier is higher. BTW, I also had the wind at my back towards the end of my long run; it was nice to have the push but man was I overheating!
Nice podium finish weatherboy. As others have said, great result especially with the conditions.
I'll add my 2cents that that I'm not a fan of waking up before 7:30 for a run. I run after work unless I'm really stuck. Even a 5 mile run before work feels like too much.
First week of Boston training over, uneventful 55 miles. I'm counting today's 10K trail race for my 8 miles@MP. It was a beautiful but spirit crushing course with 1100 feet of elevation gain.
JT- It's obviously weather dependent, but my goal for Boston is sub3. My household is going to go from 1 to 5 this summer, so sooner is better for sub3.
5k- 18:55 (2018) 10K- 39:04 (2017) Marathon- 3:00:10 (2018)