2023 The Waltons: Racing & Training Thread (Read 301 times)

darkwave


Mother of Cats

    James - thanks for the good luck wishes - I hope you feel better soon!

     

    Marky_Mark - I meant to chime in with best wishes for the upcoming child.  I'm assuming that you already know how to train on little sleep?

     

    Watson - nice progress at the parkrun.  That is some solid improvement - shame you can't ride that trend consistently down to a 13 minute 5K.

     

    Caitlin- I am so very sorry to hear about your father's misadventure.  While it's great that they're getting such excellent care, and NZ is a pretty good place to be stuck, this has to be incredibly stressful for you and for them.  I hope things smooth out for you and them.

     

    Fred - I agree with the 59:61.  It's not wrong...

     

    Steve - I'm going to google-maps everything you just wrote when I get a chance.

     

    Zebano - that sounds awful.  Basically you gave Covid to all of your household appliances.  I hope things improve.

    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.

    darkwave


    Mother of Cats

      My week:

      54 miles running, 3 hours pool-running, and 1000 yards swimming.

      M: upper body weights/core and 90 minutes pool-running
      T: 11.5 miles, with a track workout of 2000, 5x800, 2x200 in 9:00, 3:24, 3:21, 3:18, 3:15, 3:12, 48, and 48. 5:20 recovery after the 2K; recoveries of 2:4x-3:0x between the 800s; full recovery for the 200s. Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.
      W: Streaming yoga and 9.5 miles very easy (9:19) plus drills/strides.
      Th: 90 minutes pool-running and upper body weights/core.
      F: 9 miles, including a 6400m track tempo in 27:44 (7:05/6:59/6:54/6:46). Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.
      Sa: 9.5 miles very easy (9:20) plus drills/strides. Streaming yoga in afternoon.
      Su: 14 miles progressive, split as first 5 miles averaging 9:18 pace, next 5 miles averaging 8:09 pace, next 4 miles averaging 7:34 pace, and then a half mile cooldown. Followed with injury prevention work.

       

      Second to last week before Houston.  I usually taper with a 5K tempo on Friday and 12 miles aerobic on Sunday, but I am intentionally doing a bit more this time because it seems like my neuro issues get worse when I cut back too much.

       

      I slept in on Friday and skipped the team workout so that I could do a tempo on the track after the sun rose.  And (unsurprisingly) it was substantially faster.  To this point, some tests at the neuro PT this week confirmed that my proprioception is absolutely awful - I'm just not getting any feedback from my feet about where my body is relative to the ground or in space .  So I've got a slew of new neuro PT exercises to do - none of which involve closing my eyes, interestingly enough.

       

      [the big exercise is that I am supposed to build up to is balancing on one foot for 2 minutes at a time, while a) staring at a point on a wall several feet away and b) rotating my head from side to side but keeping my eyes focused on the central point.]

       

      I also have figured out that caffeine seems to make my neuro issues worse - I took a caffeinated gel in the middle of today's long run, and things went a little south after.  And looking back at my training log, the same has happened before.  So I think I'm going to change up my race nutrition plan and just use regular Maurtens and see how that goes.

      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.

      Fredford66


      Waltons ThreadLord

        Darkwave - I imagine what you're going through must be frustrating.  I hope the exercises help.  Good luck with the marathon.

         

        Steve, Zebano - Do you use a chest band for your heart rate monitor or a wrist-based one?  I find my wrist-based one unreliable, but I know other people who swear by them.  Apologies if this is a discussion we've already had (it seems familiar to me, though maybe not in this group).

         

        Zebano - You're certainly due for a change in luck.  Nice mix of running and other exercise.

         

        Steve - Nice week and workout on the Rapaki trail.  The 10k course I ran is far from the hardest trail course I've run, but it has it's challenges.  The surface switches repeatedly from grass to dirt to gravel and many of the grassy sections had shoe-grabbing mud that will always slow people down (especially heavier runners, like me).  It's fun, though.  The trail runners are a different crowd, for the most part, compared with the people who run street races around here.

         

        Ccoakley - I'm sorry to hear about your father but am glad he's getting good care.  Good to hear, too, that your running helped you cope.  It seems my knee really didn't like the hard/fast track running (I thought it might be shoes, but my trail shoes also have minimal support).  The knee was a bit achy on the 10k, but nothing like it was on the track.  Maybe the elastic brace I've been wearing while not running helped?

         

        Watson - Do you use a commercial marathon training plan or one of your own design?  How many weeks is your training period?

         

        Mark - Glad to hear the bug, whatever it was, didn't set you back much.  Nice week of work.

         

        James - I hope the cough/cold doesn't hold you back too long.  You definitely have time to get ready for an August race.

        5k 23:48.45 (3/22); 4M 31:26 (2/22); 5M 38:55 (11/23); 10k 49:24 (10/22); 
        10M 1:29:33 (2/24); Half 1:48:32 (10/22); Marathon 4:29:58 (11/23)

        Upcoming races: RunAPalooza (Asbury Park) HM, 4/6; Clinton Country Run 15k, 4/27

         

        Fredford66


        Waltons ThreadLord

          My week had a few highlights:

          • Most miles run in a week, 38.9 miles/62.6km, since mid-November
          • The track workout I had to cut short when my left knee didn't want to bend without pain.  I'm seeing a PT tomorrow though it's already much improved (though I haven't tested it with speed work again).
          • I ran a 10k trail race pretty well, all things considered.
          • My 10-mile long run seemed harder than I expected, but then I saw in my log I haven't done a 10-miler in over 2 months.  I seem to have lost some of the necessary mindset for longer runs, so I'll need to work on recapturing that.

          All said, I'm happy with the way things went considering how grim it felt early in the week.

           

          Date Course Type Distance Duration Pace Temp
          1/2/2023   Easy   5.0 mi     49:35    9:56  40
          1/3/2023  4x1,200/400 (aborted after 3) Repeats   5.7 mi     56:40    9:57  44
          1/5/2023   Pace   7.0 mi  1:06:13    9:28  51
          1/6/2023   Easy   5.0 mi     51:29  10:18  45
          1/7/2023

          Morris County Central Park 10k

          Race   6.3 mi     59:61    9:37  37
          1/8/2023   Easy 10.0 mi  1:41:34  10:10  36
          5k 23:48.45 (3/22); 4M 31:26 (2/22); 5M 38:55 (11/23); 10k 49:24 (10/22); 
          10M 1:29:33 (2/24); Half 1:48:32 (10/22); Marathon 4:29:58 (11/23)

          Upcoming races: RunAPalooza (Asbury Park) HM, 4/6; Clinton Country Run 15k, 4/27

           

          zebano


            • My 10-mile long run seemed harder than I expected, but then I saw in my log I haven't done a 10-miler in over 2 months.  I seem to have lost some of the necessary mindset for longer runs, so I'll need to work on recapturing that.

             

            Fred - very nice week even with the knee pain. Hopefully the physio fixes you right up and I'm glad you're pleased with the trail race.  I did 2 ten milers this week for that very reason. My body just doesn't love to run long so I have to beat it into submission sometimes.

             

            How do you track temperature? Is it just what strava says or is it a watch feature? I mainly ask because I ran in 10 degree weather (at the start) and ran 10.5 but since it  was 14 at the end strava says it was a 12 degree run so I didn't get my more miles than degrees badge.

             

            Regarding heart rate, I've just been using the watch. I'd say it has at least one inaccuracy for 3-5 minutes but it's highly apparent because RPE will disagree so strongly with it that I just mentally throw that section out; It's usually in the first 15 minutes so at worst it's warm up time and doesn't matter. I really should get a chest band however.

             

            Darkwave - good luck in Houston. Do you want to be on the front page? Excuse me, you're going on the front page, do you want a goal posted?

            1600 - 5:23 (2018), 5k - 19:33 (2018), 10k - 41:20 (2021), half - 1:38:57 (2018), Marathon - 3:37:17 (2018)

            Fredford66


            Waltons ThreadLord

               

              How do you track temperature? Is it just what strava says or is it a watch feature? I mainly ask because I ran in 10 degree weather (at the start) and ran 10.5 but since it  was 14 at the end strava says it was a 12 degree run so I didn't get my more miles than degrees badge.

               

              Regarding heart rate, I've just been using the watch. I'd say it has at least one inaccuracy for 3-5 minutes but it's highly apparent because RPE will disagree so strongly with it that I just mentally throw that section out; It's usually in the first 15 minutes so at worst it's warm up time and doesn't matter. I really should get a chest band however.

               

               

              1)  Running Ahead lists the weather conditions for every run I log and I generally accept what it says.

               

              2)  My watch is usually right about HR, but sometimes it's clearly off for no good reason and sometimes it goes into cadence lock, measuring the rate of my footfalls rather than my heartbeats.  Once it's off it will stay there as long as it wants to (hitting pause and restarting doesn't work), sometimes reverting by the end of a run and sometimes staying off.  I do have an older watch, so perhaps newer models are better.

               

              P.S.  You can update my 1/21 race from TBD to 10k.

              5k 23:48.45 (3/22); 4M 31:26 (2/22); 5M 38:55 (11/23); 10k 49:24 (10/22); 
              10M 1:29:33 (2/24); Half 1:48:32 (10/22); Marathon 4:29:58 (11/23)

              Upcoming races: RunAPalooza (Asbury Park) HM, 4/6; Clinton Country Run 15k, 4/27

               

              watsonc123


                Caitlin - best wishes for your dad.

                Darkwave - I find tapering really hard to get right full stop. Let alone dealing with neuro issues.

                Fred - I make my own plan. The problem with plans is that they need to be a Goldilocks plan, not only in terms of volume but also in terms of intensity. Some people respond better to more milder volume with intensity, whereas some people do very well on high volume with small amount of intensity. Plans don't account for that.

                PRs: 5km 18:43 (Dec 2015), 10km 39:59 (Sep 2020), half 1:26:16 (Sep 2016), full 3:09:28 (Jun 2015)

                 

                40+ PRs: 5km 19:31 (Oct 2020), 10km 39:59 (Sep 2020), half 1:29:39 (Jun 2018), full 3:13:55 (Sep 2022)

                 

                2023 PRs (hope to beat in 2024): 5km 20:34, 10km 41:37, half 1:32:32, full 3:21:05

                 

                2024 PRs: 5km 20:25

                SteveChCh


                Hot Weather Complainer

                   

                  Steve, Zebano - Do you use a chest band for your heart rate monitor or a wrist-based one?  I find my wrist-based one unreliable, but I know other people who swear by them.  Apologies if this is a discussion we've already had (it seems familiar to me, though maybe not in this group).

                   

                  I got a chest strap 3 weeks ago - my coach wanted some accurate heart rate data to set up my zones and believes wrist based HR is basically useless.  The data I've gotten in the last 3 weeks has been reasonably similar to what I was getting before, but every second or third run the watch would get "stuck" on bpm after say 10km and give me exactly the same reading for the rest of the run.  My 5km showed a max HR (or close enough) of 197 which is higher than what we thought previously.  I don't love wearing the chest strap but overall it will be a positive.

                  5km: 18:34 11/23 │ 10km: 39:10 8/23 │ HM: 1:26:48 9/23 │ M: 3:34:49 6/23

                   

                  2024 Races:

                  Motorway Half Marathon February 25, 2024 1:29:55

                  Christchurch Half-Marathon April 21, 2024

                  Selwyn Marathon June 2, 2024

                  Dunedin Half Marathon September 15, 2024

                  Half Crazy K 2.0


                    How is it Monday again?

                     

                    Last week:

                    Monday 7 with 6 x 5 min HM effort

                    Tuesday rest day

                    Wednesday 4.3 easy treadmill

                    Thursday 1/3 easy/warm up on treadmill + strength training

                    Friday 4.4 easy treadmill

                    Saturday 8 with 4 x 1 min, 4 x 2 min, 4 x 3 min

                    Sunday 1.8 easy treadmill + strength training

                     

                    I usually do strength training on hard run days, but with the holiday my schedulign has been so off. It's usually easier to get in a strength training workout in the afternoon on days I work from home since I finish work at 4 and DH finishes up around 5.

                     

                    I found out last week the trail race I'm registered for is going to be less trail. The first/last section that is roughly a mile is being paved this month.

                     

                    zabano, wow, talk about the joys of home ownership.

                     

                    ccoakley, I can;t imagine the stress you are under. It's bad enough dealing with fmaily health issues, but from that distance....

                     

                    Fred, hills at the end of a race are just cruel. Last trail race I did also finished on a hill.

                     

                    darkwave, that sounds really frustrating to deal with.

                    Marky_Mark_17


                      Darkwave - thanks. I'm gonna probably be looking after our 5 year old more and my wife will do more of the newborn stuff. Sleep is likely to be a challenge but I suspect early on just finding time for running is going to be even more of a challenge!  Interesting discovery on the caffeine.  Weirdly I prefer the caffeinated Maurten gels for the flavour as much as anything else.

                       

                      Fred - sounds like positive news on the knee, hope that continues.  Decent week of training despite all of that!

                       

                      K - I'm impressed you manage to fit two strength workouts in each week, I've been struggling to get one in.

                       

                      Anyhoo after catching up with some friends at work, I'm even more convinced that whatever I had in early-mid Dec was COVID.  A work colleague had it over the holidays and persistently tested negative on RATs, his GP said this was pretty common with newer variants and he turned up positive on a PCR test (I never got one as I couldn't be bothered).  Could explain why it's taken a little while to get back to feeling like normal again too.

                      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: Maraetai HM, 10 Mar, DNF

                      Up next: Waterfront HM, 7 Apr

                      "CONSISTENCY IS KING"

                      zebano


                        How 

                        I found out last week the trail race I'm registered for is going to be less trail. The first/last section that is roughly a mile is being paved this month.

                         

                        Fred, hills at the end of a race are just cruel. Last trail race I did also finished on a hill. 

                         

                        At heart, I think that most trail race directors are masochists. Sorry that your trail race is being marred. I had a 7 mile lollipop trail (not technical) near my house when I started running that they've slowly been paving and now I'm down to a mere 1 mile of trail. It's been aggravating as I loved the softer surface. Of course all the cyclists are celebrating. Anyways 2 workouts and 2 strength sessions is a good week!

                         

                        Darkwave, you're going to have to change your avatar to a flamingo! Good luck going caffeine free (sounds like you're most of the way there).

                         

                        Mark - just remember no plan survives contact with the enemy (err newborn)

                         

                        Steve does your HRM also do HRV? I think I remember you mentioning that your coach uses it. Or did your watch provide that already?

                        1600 - 5:23 (2018), 5k - 19:33 (2018), 10k - 41:20 (2021), half - 1:38:57 (2018), Marathon - 3:37:17 (2018)

                        Half Crazy K 2.0


                          Mark, I had a similar thing happen last winter. No positive test but it took a good month once I felt better to feel normal running.  I was so sore after short and easy runs.

                           

                          About the strength training.  Ever since the pande6hit and I started working from home, I've been doing  4 or 5  strength training workouts each week.  Usually the videos are about 30i minutes.

                          ccoakley


                            Thanks everyone for the kind words and encouragement and thanks Steve and Mark for the suggestions.  He's improving faster than originally expected and now they're thinking weeks not months before he can fly home.

                             

                            Steve, that trail sounds challenging.  Between your new trail running and Keen's ultras this thread is really on it's way to covering ALL the running

                             

                            Zebano, hope your recovery continues to go well.  Yikes on all the extra house work.

                             

                            DW, it sounds like you have a really good plan in place for approaching Houston.

                             

                            Fred, I too find the mental aspect of getting back into long runs much harder than the physical.

                             

                            HCK, sorry you're losing your trail.  Your dedication to strength workouts is impressive.

                             

                            Mark, I hope you don't notice any lasting effects.  And belated congratulations on baby #2.  Will your older daughter start hanging out at the track with a stopwatch now?

                             

                            My energy levels seem back to normal this week and both my easy runs have been boring.

                            5k 24:53 (2020) |10k 52:24 (2021) |HM 1:57:14 (2019) |FM 4:24 (2007) |50k 5:57 (2022)

                             

                             

                            Fredford66


                            Waltons ThreadLord

                              Just a quick stop here to thank all of you who expressed concern and/or well wishes for my knee/leg pain.  The news from the PT is mostly good - all soft-tissue issues, nothing with bones or cartilage.  There are a few things going on, but the one I didn't expect is some hamstring involvement, which explains a lot about why it hurt when doing track work but not much else:  track work has the highest intensity while almost all my other running is about duration with lower intensity.  A few weeks of heat & massage treatment, along with targeted stretching at home, and I should be fine (I hope).  No news on when I can resume track work yet, but at least I can continue running.

                              5k 23:48.45 (3/22); 4M 31:26 (2/22); 5M 38:55 (11/23); 10k 49:24 (10/22); 
                              10M 1:29:33 (2/24); Half 1:48:32 (10/22); Marathon 4:29:58 (11/23)

                              Upcoming races: RunAPalooza (Asbury Park) HM, 4/6; Clinton Country Run 15k, 4/27

                               

                              zebano


                                 

                                 

                                My energy levels seem back to normal this week and both my easy runs have been boring.

                                 

                                Glad to hear it! I'm always curious if running is stress relief for people or added stress.

                                1600 - 5:23 (2018), 5k - 19:33 (2018), 10k - 41:20 (2021), half - 1:38:57 (2018), Marathon - 3:37:17 (2018)