Forums >Racing>2019 Sub 3 hour marathon thread
Mmmm Bop
Opinions welcome....I’m registered for the Brighton marathon on the 14th (2 weeks before London) and left it too late to change down to the 10k. There’s a few people I could run with who are shooting for 3:30 (sort of unofficially pacing them) but curious of the positives/negatives of running a last long long run 2 weeks out. I generally recover quickly from long 8 pace runs.
5k - 17:53 (4/19) 10k - 37:53 (11/18) Half - 1:23:18 (4/19) Full - 2:50:43 (4/19)
RIP Milkman
Mikkey - What do you put your chances at for a moose mug in London? The reason I ask is that I think it was originally out of the question, but your cycle has really picked up and you’ve now mentioned you want to go for it. If there’s a real chance of you getting it in London, I personally wouldn’t even run Brighton, no matter how quickly you recover. You certainly won’t get any fitness adaptations from a long run that close since endurance takes generally 4 weeks to adapt.
If you don’t feel like it’s in the cards, or you don’t really care and are fine with just a sub 3, then 3:30 sounds like a fine plan. You just need to okay with running a 2:55 at London and not kicking yourself for what could have been
5K: 16:37 (11/20) | 10K: 34:49 (10/19) | HM: 1:14:57 (5/22) | FM: 2:36:31 (12/19)
Stotan Disciple
Thanks for the correction - that makes much more sense. Is crossing the age plane like crossing the streams? Finbad - Moose mug is a physical thing. Behold: I feel like they over-relax my legs and I lose some muscle tension, if that makes sense? Note: I am the only person I know who feels this way.
Thanks for the correction - that makes much more sense.
Is crossing the age plane like crossing the streams?
Finbad - Moose mug is a physical thing. Behold:
DarkWave you may be onto something. I recall how I used them for every marathon. Normally I use them the Saturday before Boston after walking around the marathon expo. At CIM I used them on Friday. Back in 2014 I used them both Saturday and Sunday it was my first Boston so I walked around expo both days and felt really flat in the Newton hills. I was able to recover after the hills. 11 days later I ran 3 minutes faster at another marathon. I think I was either exhausted from Expo or my legs got way too relaxed. I have been know to do 2 races in a day or 3 on weekends. Its just getting harder the closer I get to 50. GabbyTri has impressed me doing both the 5k and marathon we're same age so I'm all in both days too.
My GF brother worked for a Boston gym and Normatec gave them boots so I have always had access to Normatec but if I had known of Air Relax I would have gone with the cheaper version. BTW I make all my serious athletes buy the AIR Relax. After all, what they save on coaching they can invest in a good watch and compression boots.
Normatec vs Air Relax Review - Recovery Compression Boots Comparison
Mikkey - Can you do half, Like jump in halfway making sure you take chip off or some such. run with the bib but not cross line. let race director know. I agree with JMAC if the moose Mug is close I wouldn't risk it.
Thinking should be done first, before training begins.
powered by plants
Some thoughts:Slammin, thanks for the kind words, but I'm not anywhere near 1:17 shape. I'm looking to break 1:20 at Brooklyn provided ideal weather. Also, racing on LI seems a bit weird to me. I feel like it's all the same people race after race. Sorta like Jersey. I prefer the anonymity of NYRR racing.
Mikkey, I wouldn't do it. 3 weeks would be one thing, but 2? The last 2 weeks of a marathon cycle you shouldn't be recovering from anything other than the cumulative fatigue of the weeks of work. I don't think a 3:30 is that taxing on you, but why risk it?
Re: Moose Mugs. This was always something that I never thought I'd have a shot at, but, I'm faster a 41 than I was at 31 and it's not like I just started running in my 20s. I see no reason why I can't run a 2:50 in 8+ years. Also, it's funny when you interact with people for whom this isn't even a question. My coach ran 2:28 this year. He's 37ish.
5k: 17:52 (2014); 10k 36:59 (2014); 15k: 56:29 (2018); Half: 1:19:27* (2018); Full: 2:54:22 (2018)
*downhill AF
Weather: Nice week and you are ready to go as well! I'll put you down for sub 2:45 in the table so you are aligned with your teammates Fin and JMac Let me know if you want the goal different there.
Sling: I hope the knee pops back to where it should be. Enjoy the taper and rest up.
Madison: Thanks for the summary of your previous and current cycles; that's a nice way to look at things. It definitely shows you are in better shape this time. I looked at the elevation profile of Milwaukee and it looks pretty tough!
Nimmals: Thanks for posting the Mike Platt stuff. I often struggle with negative thoughts during a race; it's an area I want to improve in. Great 10k race by the way! You mentioned you want to get under 16 again in the 5k; do you have a marathon goal for the short or long term as well? I've got to believe you can get under 2:30.
DW: Thanks for the well wishes! I've been checking Accu-Weather for April 14th too many times every day...So far it looks pretty good; low of 42, high of 62, cloudy with a slight chance of rain. I'd take that. Hopefully it won't change for the worse! Good luck at Cherry Blossom this weekend. I would like to run that race at some point. It stands out as one of the few races everyone has great things to say about, and it seems people always run well there.
I'm a bit annoyed I could not get in a long run, or any run, on Sunday. Was planning to do 20 miles easy but I had to be at work most of the day Sunday. Hopefully missing that won't bugger things up too much. I'll be running all easy this week, with maybe a few fast miles thrown in here and there.
2:52:16 (2018)
Yeah, Mikkey I think you're in good condition and the distance is a bit much 2 weeks out, Be a good training run if you dropped out after your desired mileage though.
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
Thanks for the advice, I’ve just registered for the Paddock Wood half this Sunday and will spectate at Brighton instead.
Good choice. You should get Piwi to run the half with you.
Thanks JT! I'm sure the weather forecast will change for us both quite few more times before we get a better idea. I still remember the winds and temperature forecast for Boston last year was still way off even 5 days out.
I must be in taper madness mode now as my last sort of sizeable workout (2M + 1T + 2M + 1.3T) this morning felt incredibly rough/difficult and felt close to a sustained tempo (to almost race like effort in the last bit)!
Good luck Mikkey and Darkwave this weekend!
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)
Weather already knows this, but I found this to be a good summary of accuracy of weather forecasts. Basically don't even start looking until 7 days out, with better accuracy coming within 5 days.
"A seven-day forecast can accurately predict the weather about 80 percent of the time and a five-day forecast can accurately predict the weather approximately 90 percent of the time. However, a 10-day—or longer—forecast is only right about half the time."
https://scijinks.gov/forecast-reliability/
Weather - I always find that workout surprisingly easy, but the 3x1T in the last week to be awful. ETA: I just realized you did this workout backwards, it's usually 1T + 2M + 1T + 2M. No wonder it was harder!
I've also officially entered taper madness. I came down with some virus on Monday night. Luckily I had the night off from running, so I just laid around, but I had to take the day off of work the next day. Luckily it seems to have subsided somewhat, especially the fever and chills, such that was I was able to get a run in yesterday. I'm just hoping to avoid the injury bug that hits me very taper, but if this is what counts for this cycle, I will take it. Way better than the metatarsalgia last year and the fake stress fracture diagnosis 2 years ago.
Hope you feel better soon!
Yup, just felt like my M miles were a bit faster than what I could sustain over the lang haul as my HR (if correct) was quickly into the tempo range on those portions. Based on what I can see from previous marathon efforts HR was in the high 150's for most of the race and then crept into the threshold range (mid to even upper 160's) towards the last 10K. I don't really race by HR, but I was just curious. Part of the issue is that I ran a pretty good effort on the hills Monday so this was likely still in my legs. Good thing is I still got in a 10K workout at faster than marathon pace with 12 days to go. Now hoping the taper takes care of the rest ...
Certainly not much more to be gained from here on out. Have a 2 mile race as part of my local race series on Saturday evening that I will run hard, but not planning to kill myself getting into a sharp footrace with some youngster in the last bit. I'm in a position to possibly win a bit of cash so it is worthwile and shouldn't do any harm. Sunday I'll run my last double digit mileage (90 min all EZ) and then I'll continue to taper from there. Next week I don't think I will be running much more than 30-35 miles total, which I haven't done in a very long time!
JMac: Hope you kick that cold quickly. Take it easy and rest.
Weather: A 2-mile race sounds like a good sharpener at about 8-9 days out.
So the runner I mentioned a while ago that kills multiple hard workouts/week and runs all easy runs 7:00-7:25 range just did this workout today: 16 miles as 2 easy, 8 @ 6:23, 2 easy, 4 @ 6:19. The "easy" miles were in the 7:03-7:20 range. This seems like overkill this close to the race (she is running Boston). And she did a hard workout Monday, 2 x 2mi + 2 x 1mi, 5:40-5:55 pace. Will be very interesting what she does at Boston.
JMac: Hope you kick that cold quickly. Take it easy and rest. Weather: A 2-mile race sounds like a good sharpener at about 8-9 days out. So the runner I mentioned a while ago that kills multiple hard workouts/week and runs all easy runs 7:00-7:25 range just did this workout today: 16 miles as 2 easy, 8 @ 6:23, 2 easy, 4 @ 6:19. The "easy" miles were in the 7:03-7:20 range. This seems like overkill this close to the race (she is running Boston). And she did a hard workout Monday, 2 x 2mi + 2 x 1mi, 5:40-5:55 pace. Will be very interesting what she does at Boston.
JT Please tell me who this is message me if you have to.
JT - She better OTQ with those kind of workouts. Absolutely no reason someone doing that this close to the race can't break 2:45.
JMac: I have been thinking she should be running 2:45 or better for the last 3 years. I hope she gets the OTQ this year. Not sure about Boston; she said they go by gun time there?? But maybe at a fall marathon.