Sub 1:30 Half Marathon in 2019 (Read 641 times)

JMac11


RIP Milkman

    Forgot to reply to some other things (mainly Keen). I'll be much better about that over the summer, right now a lot of my focus has been on the sub 3 forum given the race coming up, but I plan on focusing almost exclusively on 5Ks/10Ks throughout the summer so will be on here a lot pestering you folks.

     

    Keen - that makes sense on your ultras. I'm surprised there's T work involved. It seems like it's the magical pace though, for whatever distance you're running at. This whole power thing for some reason does not appeal to me. I'm actually a big gadget nerd myself, but specifically because I know I will obsess over power/heart rate is why I don't do it. It took me a while, but now that I know how to run by feel, it's made my running immensely stronger. It's especially important for races when you're not exactly sure what you're capable of. I know Flavio thinks I just sandbagged my goal for the last half, but I legit had no idea what I could run, but I did know what T pace felt like and I wanted to stay just short of that while running my half. I knew my pace was coming in faster than what my goal was, but given it felt correct, I knew I could keep going with it.

     

     

    Tapers - Mark, this is mainly directed towards you, but I'm starting to think about what the right taper is for a half/10k/5k. I think I've discovered for myself that the traditional 80%/60% drop down for the first 2 weeks of a taper for a full is just too much for me. I haven't actually done that much, but I keep discovering by accident that the less I taper, the better I do. It's a tricky one though, because you don't gain any fitness from certain workouts until a period of time, so there's still no point in beating yourself up even if you feel "recovered." It's more that I'm learning that I don't need to cut out the mileage as I get closer. I found this chart to be useful when thinking about how long it takes to gain benefits from certain workouts. One of the biggest takeaways from this, for me, is that there's no point in doing 20+ mile long runs within 4 weeks of your full (which I know a lot of people do), and that you should stop doing threshold work within 10 days of a half.

     

    Workout type Intensity/difficulty When you’ll see benefits
    Speed development Hard 1-3 days
      Medium 1-3 days
    VO2 max/Hills Hard 12-15 days
      Medium 9-11 days
    Threshold Hard 10-12 days
      Medium 7-10 days
    Long Run Hard or Medium 4-6 weeks

    5K: 16:37 (11/20)  |  10K: 34:49 (10/19)  |  HM: 1:14:57 (5/22)  |  FM: 2:36:31 (12/19) 

     

     

    JamesD


    JamesD

      NEW DISCUSSION IDEA - random race superstitions

       

       

      This occurred to me while writing the previous post.  Here are some of mine:

      • Bib goes on the singlet the night before. Occasionally 2 nights before depending on other commitments and availability of relevant personnel (wife)
      • Bag generally gets prepared two nights before to reduce my chances of stressing myself out the day before the race
      • Must wear at least one blue item of clothing (typically this has been a blue wristband)
      • For half marathon series, must use same safety pins for bib for entire 5 race series
      • Never wear event merchandise until after the event is done (yes this is a basic one but I'm still sitting on a half marathon series hoodie that I got in September and can't wear until after next Sunday's race!!!)
      • Avoid talking to anyone during warm-up if at all possible, or basically any time between arriving at the event and finishing the race. This includes family.  Particularly family.
      • Important races get specific playlists to listen to on the way there (only listen at event base if significant time to kill)
      • Clutch's "A Good Fire" can only be played as a pre-race song in Dunedin

       

      I've worn the same four micro-sized safety pins at every race since 2014.  I figure the extra gram or two I save compared to regular small pins has got to be worth at least ten seconds per mile.  Lost one after my most recent race, so I have an excuse for poor results going forward. No other superstitions, though I certainly have a routine, which includes a checklist of what to do when on race day.  That was helpful at my last race, when I had to get up at 4:15.

      Post-1987 PRs:  Half 1:30:14 (2019); 10K 39:35 (2019); 5K 19:12 (2017); Mile 5:37.3 (2020)

      '24 Goals: consistency, age-graded PRs, half < 1:32

         

        I've worn the same four micro-sized safety pins at every race since 2014.  I figure the extra gram or two I save compared to regular small pins has got to be worth at least ten seconds per mile.  Lost one after my most recent race, so I have an excuse for poor results going forward. 

         

        If anything, losing one should get you faster (just use 3 and save a few extra grams, so other few seconds gain per mile Smile

         

        No superstitions here, I do have a routine, but reading Mark's post, I do need to improve mine (and get staff - wife and kids - involved in the preparation apparently...) Smile

        PRs since re-started in 2013:

        5km: 19:43 (Belfast park run Sep-16) | 10km: 40:16 (Belfast Lagan side 10K Sep-18) 

        HM: 1:30:09 (Belfast city Half Marathon, September-18) | FM: 3:25:05 (official chip time Belfast city Marathon, May-19, marathon was 0.3/4 longer, original time 3:27:20 for 26.5/6...)

         

        Upcoming races:  

        ???

        flavio80


        Intl. correspondent

          So one of my favorite youtubers posted a video about New Zealand. I found it very nice (since I can't tell what is correct/incorrect). I also found it brilliant that apparently Australia has in its constitution that New Zealand can join their country as a new state anytime they like, isn't Australia awesome?

          The video -> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtZaaKFi7RM

          PRs: 1500 4:54.1 2019 - 5K 17:53 2023 - 10K 37:55 2023 - HM 1:21:59 2021

          Up next: no idea

          Tool to generate Strava weekly

          Marky_Mark_17


            JMac - that's a super-useful chart.  I'm not too surprised by the long run stats but it does make me feel a bit better about the fact I haven't done any really big LR's since Feb haha.  Evidence suggests I'm definitely more of a taper guy particularly when I'm coming off high (relative) mileage but I know plenty of guys who like you find they do better when they keep the mileage up.

             

            Coincidentally I did my last tough threshold workout today (10 days until the race).  It was a massive confidence builder as I did 3 x 12 min with 3 min rests (actually I miscounted the first rep and did 13 mins) aiming for HMP or maybe a bit quicker.  Average paces were 3:32/km, 3:31/km and 3:30/km (cf. my HM PB average pace is 3:35/km).  Given my legs were a little tired from a workout yesterday as well, I feel like I'm seriously back on track for Waterfront now after a rough week last week.

             

            James - that takes the safety pin thing to a new level.  But yeah actually there is a bit to be said for smaller safety pins rather than the massive weapons you get at some races.

             

            Flavio - I agree with Keen, just go hard at it.  Death or glory!

            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"

            SteveChCh


            Hot Weather Complainer

              Flavio - Definitely take the JMac approach, your workouts have been insanely good.

               

              Mark - I had a shower pre-race once about a decade ago after waking up too early and reading somewhere that some good runner does it to warm up the muscles.  I had a very good race so now I stick to it every race morning (even after having bad races when doing it).

               

              Laying everything out the night before is just common sense, get the number pinned, everything possible to reduce any rush in the morning.  Don't forget to charge the watch!  And clear the history - once my Garmin got full during my last taper and stopped recording so now I make sure all history is wiped.

               

              JMac - I possibly could try that in the future but for now, this is my first uninterrupted training cycle for a race since 2016 so I'm just trying to get through it!  And now you mention tapering...I've officially started.  This is the right place to express my paranoia about every sense I feel in the next week right?

              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

              CommanderKeen


              Cobra Commander Keen

                JMac - I do agree, T does seem to be the magic training effort for just about any race distance. I use power (not so much HR these days, though I do track it), but largely guide based on effort.
                Power just makes it stupid easy to double-check that I'm at the right intensity, though. Of course I'll make changes based on conditions (principally heat/humidity or wind), but power boils things down to a single number. Easy run? Keep it under 250. Tempo? Stay close to 315. Flats vs hills doesn't matter at all. So long as I'm at/near the wattage target I'm doing the work I need to, regardless of the paces involved.
                The whole Xert thing is by no means necessary to running with a power meter, but it makes things very simple. It's kind of like VDOT for power instead of pace. Except that I don't have to do an all-out race to evaluate where I'm at - it figures that for me based on what I do in workouts and makes it easy to see how things change over time.
                Also, I really like that chart. Thanks!

                 

                James - I'm a big fan of the tiny pins as well. Particularly if they're gold, for some reason. They just seem cleaner/neater than the big ones. They're hard to come by for races, though.


                Flavio - Nifty video. I need to check out more of those.


                Steve - You can certainly talk to us here. Or you could always talk to those little voices in your head that wonder if every little twinge means something. Your choice!

                5k: 17:58 11/22 │ 10k: 37:55 9/21 │ HM: 1:23:22 4/22 │ M: 2:56:05 12/22

                 

                Upcoming Races:

                 

                 

                Marky_Mark_17


                  Mark - I had a shower pre-race once about a decade ago after waking up too early and reading somewhere that some good runner does it to warm up the muscles.  I had a very good race so now I stick to it every race morning (even after having bad races when doing it).

                   

                  Laying everything out the night before is just common sense, get the number pinned, everything possible to reduce any rush in the morning.  Don't forget to charge the watch!  And clear the history - once my Garmin got full during my last taper and stopped recording so now I make sure all history is wiped.

                   

                   

                   

                  Yes, fully charge the watch the day before.  Can't believe I forgot that one!

                  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"

                  matthewfschwartz


                    Hey folks, sorry it's been so long as I've been neglecting posting here in quite awhile. I've been slowly building up for Boston and this week began the taper phase (whatever that looks like when you peak at ~40 miles). Luckily I was able to get in a 13 mile and 15 mile long run to gear up for Boston, which is exactly what I did pre-Grandma's last June. I was able to get in a couple of tempo efforts and fartlek/interval type runs, but I really could do with a few more weeks to try to get some more workouts in. Though that table that Jmac posted is encouraging because I still have some more moderate / quality miles and a 12 mile long run left in my plan in the next week or so. Anyone that's going to Boston, I'd be down to meet up at the expo or the pre-race dinner or something like that. We could exchange phone numbers or something before getting there (PM maybe?).

                     

                    Jmac you're looking really good on strava lately, especially with that half marathon you busted out a sub 1:17 if I'm not mistaken. So much for those injuries that set you back earlier in the cycle, you seemed to bounce back quite well!

                     

                    Mark your training has been looking solid on strava as well, you ran a nice half marathon as well! What's next up on your plate?

                    PR's: 800 - 2:01.9, 1600 - 4:34.4, 3 mile - 16:00, Full Marathon - 2:54:49

                    Goals: Break 1:20 HM, Break 2:45 FM, Break 34:00 10k, Break 16:00 5k

                    Upcoming Races: 

                    Strava link

                    Mikkey


                    Mmmm Bop

                       

                       

                       

                       

                      Workout type Intensity/difficulty When you’ll see benefits
                      Speed development Hard 1-3 days
                        Medium 1-3 days
                      VO2 max/Hills Hard 12-15 days
                        Medium 9-11 days
                      Threshold Hard 10-12 days
                        Medium 7-10 days
                      Long Run Hard or Medium 4-6 weeks

                       

                      And the full article... https://runnersconnect.net/coach-corner/how-long-before-you-benefit-from-a-workout/

                      5k - 17:53 (4/19)   10k - 37:53 (11/18)   Half - 1:23:18 (4/19)   Full - 2:50:43 (4/19)

                        JMac - Thanks! that's a really useful chart. Why is the hard paying off later then the medium? is it a recovery issue?

                        I will study and see how to approach my taper. I have hope that last week really hard long run will pay off then Smile

                         

                        Mark - great workout!!!

                        PRs since re-started in 2013:

                        5km: 19:43 (Belfast park run Sep-16) | 10km: 40:16 (Belfast Lagan side 10K Sep-18) 

                        HM: 1:30:09 (Belfast city Half Marathon, September-18) | FM: 3:25:05 (official chip time Belfast city Marathon, May-19, marathon was 0.3/4 longer, original time 3:27:20 for 26.5/6...)

                         

                        Upcoming races:  

                        ???

                        JMac11


                        RIP Milkman

                          Thanks Mikkey - I should have cited the source, my 4th grade teacher would be shaking her head if she knew!

                           

                          Steve - One thing I get every taper without fail is aches that I will say are most likely trigger points. I've gone through enough tapers at this point to realize they're nothing, but they're still pretty annoying to deal with. My advice relevant to this is just to stay on top of anything you're currently rolling, massaging, etc. as they tend to get worse during a taper before getting better right before race day.

                           

                          Matt - Good luck at Boston, if you can throw up a sub 3 with your training I would be crazy impressed. But given you did it at Grandma's, I wouldn't be shocked.

                           

                          Flavio/Kiwis - John Oliver does a ton of stuff on New Zealand, and I always find it fascinating now. ETA: Flavio's video was very good, just got through it. Most interesting fact to me was the lack of natural mammals on the island!

                          5K: 16:37 (11/20)  |  10K: 34:49 (10/19)  |  HM: 1:14:57 (5/22)  |  FM: 2:36:31 (12/19) 

                           

                           

                          CommanderKeen


                          Cobra Commander Keen

                            Big thunderstorms here this morning - one of the gates to my backyard was nearly torn off the hinges. Treadmill workout for me this morning, then!
                            Obviously I'd prefer being on the roads, but it did have the major upside of letting me set whatever speed I needed in order to hit my wattage target and hold it very consistently - much better execution than I would have been capable of on a road will hills, or even a flat track or running path. Plus it makes the charts for the run super-pretty to look at!
                            3x 12 minutes at the effort I could hold for about 30 minutes, with 2:41 jog between. Quite doable, but I definitely knew I was working. My watch even says I shaved 9 seconds off my 10k PR from a year ago (pace was coming from Stryd, not my watch itself) - whatever that means from this.

                            There's another local race this weekend that should be fun to watch, since I'm not running it this year. This is a bit of an odd one in that it starts at 2pm, which usually leads to it being really hot for the time of year compared to when races typically start, but maybe I could take the girls in to watch the finish.

                            5k: 17:58 11/22 │ 10k: 37:55 9/21 │ HM: 1:23:22 4/22 │ M: 2:56:05 12/22

                             

                            Upcoming Races:

                             

                             

                            Marky_Mark_17


                              Matt - I've got Waterfront Half Marathon coming up next Sunday.  Shooting for a really quick race there.  It's doubling as Auckland Half Marathon Champs so that should hopefully throw up a few quick local guys.

                               

                              JMac - weirdly I think they ended up putting all the weird, crazy dangerous animals in Australia and somehow NZ just got a bunch of birds and harmless lizards.

                               

                              Steve - I was goofing around on Strava and noticed just how super-consistent your mileage has been from the start of the year apart from 1 or 2 down weeks.  Reminds me of Julian Ng who was almost bang on 70km/week, week-in, week-out (and he is around a 1:20 HM guy).

                               

                              Keen - I vividly remember that a thunderstorm was one of the very few weather events that would actually stop a game of (field) hockey when I used to play.  Generally not a great idea having 22 people running around in the open holding pieces of carbon fibre when there's lightning around.

                              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"

                              CommanderKeen


                              Cobra Commander Keen

                                Mark - I played baseball from when I was about 3 until I graduated high school, and thunderstorms and tornadoes were really the only weather that would shut down one of those games as well. Aluminum bats and electricity...

                                5k: 17:58 11/22 │ 10k: 37:55 9/21 │ HM: 1:23:22 4/22 │ M: 2:56:05 12/22

                                 

                                Upcoming Races: