Sub 1:30 Half Marathon in 2018 (Read 704 times)

Good point and my PB was the same now that I think about it - I finished with a 3:55 then 3:47 with an overall average pace of 4:12.  Without those last 2km it wouldn't have been a PB because I beat my previous by 18 seconds.  Last year when I set out to beat it I targeted 4:12 average pace from the start and was within 1 second of where I wanted to be with 5km to go but couldn't kick like I did the previous year.  I think I set out aiming to be on target because I didn't trust I could finish fast and now that I think about it, that is probably the reason I couldn't finish fast rather than the sideways rain and wind in the last 5km...I think this time I'd be wise to stick to 4:15 until 5km or so to go and then lift if possible.  That will mean I'll need to average about 4:05 for the last 5km which is certainly within the realms of possibility (last 5km during the PB was 20:15).

Steve - Assuming flat surface, no wind etc., I think you can comfortably be 30 seconds behind at the 5k mark, and more than make it back.  My half PR was a negative split, although admittedly the course was probably slightly quicker naturally in the second half of it.

 

https://www.strava.com/activities/707959230

 

Have you ever heard someone state that they made a mistake of going out too slow?

So, I ran my first official half marathon yesterday. Didn't have too high expectations because of the low mileage and shin issues over the past few months (only 40-45 miles/month over the last 6 months). Hoped to run a sub 1:40 though. Started the race at 4:45 min/km, which should exactly lead to a 1:40 half marathon. Had to really keep myself from going faster, first miles were feeling really easy and comfortable. At km 14/15 it started to get harder and the last 3-4 km were really really tough. Probably has a lot to do with the low mileage and my stamina that could be a lot better. Still managed to keep up the pace and finished the race in 1:39:49. Really happy with that!

Do you find that works?  I've had a few people say you need to race at an even pace for the whole race.  I'd love to work out the optimal scenario of seconds sacrificed in the first half and then gained back plus interest in the second half.

 

My kilometer splits of yesterday's race:

Don't think I could've gone faster starting out slower and racing a negative split. This was the absolute max I could run. Pretty satisfied there's only 9 seconds between slowest and fastest km (not counting the first km which was pretty crowded and hard to get into a good pace).

This week should be all about recovery. Got a badminton tournament coming up next weekend, so I'll be not running this week. After the weekend I'll see how it all feels and start to build up my mileage to improve my stamina. Hoping to get close to 1:35 in a few months. Key for me is building mileage and stamina.

jaimegu: Hey, I Need to try that, it's like surf and running at the same time! It could qualify as biathlon.

piwikiwi:

"I wear slightly more bulky shorts when carrying my phone rather than thin flimsy running shorts"

I got myself a few pairs of cheap synthetic "army" trousers, awesome for trails and with tons pockets.

JamesD: Did you try a self assessment for ITBS?
There is a video here with a self-assessment version of Ober's test. I would visit a physio anyway. Here it is anyway: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=195&v=z4Cg8-YEPb8

flavio1980: What about one of these trail running backpacks? I have a few where I would safely carry an iPad.

RoXX: not bad!

ME:

Got a weird start of the week: On my first Q run I was supposed to do intervals at 04:00 - 04:04 and repetitions at 03:58 but I didn't even manage to get close to my threshold pace (4:24). Later the weather started improving and it's finally possible to run without a ton of clothes. The second Q session on Sunday was spot on. I did 4 reps at tempo pace (04:2ish), the last around 4:30-4:35 was uphill on our new 35m hill (we have 2 now and they call us "the Dutch Highlands").

Weekly Summary
Monday, Mar 05, 2018 thru Sunday, Mar 11, 2018

Jaime - Whoa! Crazy conditions in that race. Nice week.

Flavio - Oops! Glad you survived the tumble. If I ever run with a phone I typically swap the SIM card from my phone to one of my wife's old iphones (mine is way too big) and it'll fit in the pocket of my shorts (small of back). I find it somewhat amusing that I can load up Zwift on the iphone and log virtual miles while on actual roads.
Good week, and that's some crazy crime rate!

Piwi - I heard on the radio (Friday?) that OKC beat the Spurs (or was it the Suns?), but that it was "just" beating the *insert team name here*. Apparently that one was basically a gimme, but it was something they needed given their recent games.
That's one heck of a hill you climb up on some of your runs!

Watson - Awesome that you had a couple good workouts just before the taper. How was the race?

Enric - Solid week as well, even if you didn't manage the pace on one workout.

JMac - You seem to have a good plan of attack for your upcoming training. Props on the good week and getting in that LR.

I had a pretty good week, with two easy runs that just felt awesome and were much faster (at easy HR) than usual (149bpm cap on easy/Z2).
The local running club did their LR almost entirely on the OKC Marathon/half marathon course this weekend. I took the opportunity to run the entire HM course; On many occasions I've run across all but a mile or so of it since it shares so much with the full course, but it was good to finally see all the differences.

Weekly Summary
Monday, Mar 05, 2018 thru Sunday, Mar 11, 2018

@Flavio: yes of course makes sense - I assumed it was ok to run around displaying a really nice phone like the One Plus. Reminds me of a friend in the Domenican Rep who would only wear his beaten up gear when going for a run outside of his guarded complex after having gotten his brand new pair of Nike's robbed once and he would also always only carry enough change for water and a taxi back home plus a carbon pole like the hiking poles that expands in order to fight off wild dogs I am a sissy in comparison - the only risk I "run" is electric bikers!

MJ - LOL, your friend beats me. I don't have wild dogs to worry about. I also mostly run within a university campus loop which is relatively safe (gate security) and free of cars, which is cool.

Flavio - "Local Entrepreneurs". Euphemisms for the win!

Steve - Take care of yourself. Good idea to take it easy, though I would use that that planned easy 45 minutes tomorrow as a "do not exceed" rather than a "must do", just in case. I don't know how aggressive your goal is, but an easy week or so shouldn't set you back too much, if at all. And easy weeks are certainly not going to set you back as much as a month or so off.

Good banter guys, I've been a bit behind after a busy week and weekend - time to catch up!

Jaime - wow those pictures really show how tough the conditions were! And nice week too.

Flavio - I have a SPI belt which I use when I'm doing longer runs and need to take multiple gels and/or other stuff (https://spibelt.com/).  I bought mine from Amazon and find it really comfortable.  I used it for the marathon and didn't even notice it - if you tighten the straps it doesn't bounce around at all.  I think there are some models designed for larger phones too.  Fingers crossed for the 50mpw!

Piwi- great hobby jogging, I see you have been back at the hills again lately too.

James - yes agree with Flavio - consistency is the key even if it means being a bit more conservative.

Watson - nice week, interested to see how your race goes.  I'd say sub-1:30 is easily doable and you've had good consistency in training over the last few weeks.  The only downside might be that the vineyard sections of the course might be slow.  That was what I found when I did the Hawkes Bay HM (and Queenstown, for that matter) - fast when you're on the roads but can be slow/harder work off them (particularly if they throw a few 90-degree turns in there).

Roxx - that is a really nice effort off relatively low mileage, well done.

Negative splits - I'm in two minds on this.  My PB HM was a slight positive split - but almost even and that's possibly because the hardest climb is in the second half of the course.  I was definitely fighting the last 1-2km but still managed to hang in there.  I've run significant negative split races (e.g. Devonport 2017, Omaha 2017) where I felt like I'd really managed the race well, but possibly also left a little in the tank - although neither of those were goal races.  It's a little hard to judge considering that most courses around here have hills but overall I'd say my 3 fastest races were negative or even splits so there is probably something in that.  When you've done a bit of running you start to know what you're capable of and cranking up the last 5km will generally serve you a lot better than overcooking the first 5km.  The races I went out too quick I absolutely paid for it.

Enric- nice week

JMac- great to see you getting the mileage back up.

Keen - nice week.  It's good touring the course beforehand as it really means you know what to expect.  Actually running it is kind of different to just scouting it on maps and elevation profiles!

Steve - bummer!! Hope the body heals up OK.

Me - a little lighter last week at 63km.  I actually felt really good on Sunday's long-ish run and had to dial myself back.  I was a bit annoyed Saturday as I was going to do a track session and have a crack at a sub-5 minute mile, but the track was shut for an event, so I'll have to wait for that one.

M: weights

T: 12.5km easy

W: 12.9km incl. 3 x 2 min hill efforts

T: 11.4km incl. tempo blocks uphill

F: weights

S: 10km incl. intervals

S: 16.3km easy

Total: 63.1km

Coatesville HM is coming up Sunday. It is an unforgiving course with some tricky hill climbs.  There is a steep-ish climb early on, then flat/undulating/downhill to the 10.5km mark, then a real uphill grind pretty much solid through to about the 16.5km mark.  Then more or less a downhill blast/flat through to the finish.  Last year I finished 4th (1:20:54), I was actually reeling in third place during the climb, but left it too late so had no shot of catching him over the downhill section at the end.  While the usual mantra of 'don't go out too quick' definitely applies on this course, I actually reckon the key is to really work hard during the 10.5km-16.5km section, knowing that you'll get a boost from the downhill section that follows it and you can pretty much ride that home.

Goal is to beat last year's time, podium would be a plus but really depends who else is there (if Mark Boyce and Stephen Lett show up I will be no chance).  And ideally beating Chris Trent to keep outright second place in the series.