Thanks to Flavio and Mark for running last years thread.

Rules:

All are welcome!! There is no "advanced" in the title this year. We literally are folks for whom racing is important and we make time in our lives to run and train! It has nothing to do with pace and it  has nothing to do with distance. If you want to race parkruns seriously, you have my support_{and my axe}. I personally will be trying to set a mile PR. Traditionally this was a HM thread so those are fine too and if you want to run the Marathon De Sables I will crew for you (except that per race rules you still have to carry everything - I just want to go to Morroco).

Good Etiquette:

1. Don't say anything you wouldn't say face to  face
2. Start with an introduction... name, age, gender, location, running history and goals, favorite races, etc.
3. We strongly encourage everyone to post their weekly training, it can lead to some very helpful discussions and insights.
4. If you have an upcoming race, let me know and I will add it to the table below. If you disappear from the forum the race will get removed.
5. We also highly encourage you to get involved with other people. If you only dump your weeklies and ask questions about yourself, you won’t get as much support. This is like give a penny, take a penny. Nobody likes people who only take a penny.
6. Stick around - even if you're injured or your motivation is low. We all go through these spells and it’s good for people to know how you’re doing.  Others on the thread may have input on both mental and physical rehab from injuries.
7. Banter and bad jokes are encouraged
8. Imperial Units > Metric but Imperial Stouts are better than both.
9. Strive to improve more than Fred, but don't expect it.

There is also a Strava club.

Flavio has created an app to generate your weekly training in a nice table for those on Strava.

All hail the new supreme leader.

I'm Mark, 41, from Auckland, New Zealand.  One wife, one 5-year old daughter and another pending child (due June).  Accidentally discovered I was good at (and also enjoyed) running in 2015 after a smashed kneecap and ruptured patellar tendon, and kinda went from there including a National Masters HM title (2019) and 10,000m title (2020).  These days I'm trying to take it a little less seriously and have more fun, but the competitive spirit runs pretty strong.

Been a rollercoaster the last three years with lockdowns, PB's, some absolute highlight races and some disappointments too.  2022's theme was "sick" so I'm hoping that's in the past.  Starting off 2023 with a new HM, Clevedon Country HM, in early Feb, which will be hot and slow but at least has some nice countryside and goes past my old house, then Waterfront HM in early April, followed by Southern Lakes HM (AKA the best race in the world) in early May.  I'm a little uncertain how things will pan out from June as, all going to plan, a new baby is probably going to shift the delicate work/training/family balance, but I've got a trail race series planned from May to September.

Goals for 2022:

1. Have fun

2. Don't get injured and try not to get sick

3. Run at least one new race

4. Survive a newborn

Zebano - thanks for starting the thread.  Will there be a racing table at the front like last year?  Hopefully updated regularly?

Chris, M454, Greater Wellington, New Zealand.

I've been running since 2012, with my first race a half in 1:45. I was very consistent training wise through to 2016, and had got my PR down to 1:26.  It's stayed there since.

In 2022, I raced one full in 3:13. One 10km road race just over 40 minutes, a few cross country, plus some 5km Parkruns.  I've raced quite a few half marathons over the years, but none in 2022, and possibly none in 2023.

Upcoming races (all aims TBD):
- Trentham Park Run 5km, 31 Dec
- Wellington Round the Bays 5.5km, 19 Feb

- Hawkes Bay Marathon 20 May

There'll be more Parkrun's, plus quite a few races during club season (Apr-Sep).

You’re 24 with a 12 year old? Wow.

Thank you Zebano for running the thread this year.

Hi, I'm Caitlin (42) from Virginia with a 7 and 5 yr old.  I used to be a SQL developer for the federal government but am currently taking a gap year as I quit over their RTO policy.

I ran my 1st marathon in 2004 with a debut time of 5:45. I got that down to 4:24 in 2007 and then had a series of injuries and pregnancies.  After my son was born in Jan 2018 I had an obsession with getting my running back and ran the Richmond marathon in Nov 2018.  I blew up spectacularly but I finished it (4:59) and more importantly have been running consistently since.  2020 was a game changer for me and I almost doubled my typical mileage.  2022 started out great then I caught covid in Jun and it took about 4 months to get my running back on track.  Although recently some of the unexplained fatigue that only presents in my running has returned.

I like to register and train for races and then decide at the last minute that the hassle of a race isn't worth it and DNS.  But I'm registered for the Richmond marathon in Nov and my primary 2023 goal is to get a new PR.

I'm waffling between how to best approach the 1st part of this year.

A) Target a local 10k in late April and work on speed until then

B) Forget speed and work on building a massive base so I enter a marathon cycle comfortably at 60 mpw

If history is any indication I will change priorities every 2-3 weeks and end up injured without making any real progress on either goal.  Part of the reason I'm here is to change this pattern and stick to a plan.

Caitlin - n=1, but I was able to run a satisfying half last year with basically no VO2 max pace all year, so I imagine the same might be possible for a marathon.  I ran three 5Ks, 3 or 4 short tempos before each race, strides before each tempo & a few other times, & a set of 2 to 4 200s a few days before each race.  The strides and 200s helped with turnover but were not tiring.  That was all my fast running for the year.  I think I might have raced a little faster if I had been able to do real speedwork and more & longer tempos, but I probably would have gotten injured if I had tried.  Sounds like you may be in a similar situation.

Mark - nice week.

CC - if I read right, you have a 10km race in April, and a full in November.  I'd target April with whatever training gets you into best 10km shape.  That still gives you a massive ~7 months to the full.

My week was my biggest for quite a while (although hardly big).  Mon and Tue had quite a bit of yardwork (building garden edging) so my intervals were pretty slow as I was tired.  Wednesday was a bike ride with family incl. my parents.  ParkRun Saturday with an aim of sub 21 (which I got with no wasted effort).  And a long group run this morning.

Weekly for period: From: 26/12/2022 To 01/01/2023

Total distance: 51.24km (Run )

Hi Kathy! It's nice to have some new people join up. Sometimes I think I'm the only runner who came over from soccer who actually preferred soccer (and latter ultimate) but I'm glad you found something you like. How technical is the trail 10k?

CC I'm with James that I don't think much speedwork is needed for a great 10k but he's also freakishly fast for his age.  I say do whatever makes you happy but you really don't need 10 months to prep for a marathon. Side note: at some point people are going to have to post their definition of speedwork. Does it include tempo running? Is it only true speedwork (i.e. sprinting)? Is it all workouts where you run faster than easy?

Mark Nice week. I'm still flabbergasted that you guys are basically 2 days ahead of us. I'm still 6 hours until celebrating new years.

Watson 15 reps of Billat's is solid. How far do you plan to progress those?