Forums >Racing>The Waltons aka Advanced Half Marathon Training Thread - 2022 edition
Fred - another PB?! Congrats! You are in really great form at the moment.
Watson - good stuff on the parkrun considering the quiet period post-marathon.
Piwi - good to see you back into it. We are down in Papamoa in late Jan for a week or so, will have to tee up some runs.
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: Waterfront HM, 7 Apr, 1:15:48
Up next: Runway5, 4 May
"CONSISTENCY IS KING"
wow Fred! Another PB that is amazing.
Piwi strava stalking says you're getting back into fine shape quite quickly!
I had a big week but hamstring niggles when I went faster. Ugg oh well.
1600 - 5:23 (2018), 5k - 19:33 (2018), 10k - 41:20 (2021), half - 1:38:57 (2018), Marathon - 3:37:17 (2018)
Mark sounds good. Waterways, beach and swim after
Zeb thanks although today's run took a bit of effort. My lungs are good but legs are in catchup mode.
Sorry that hammy is still bugging you
55+ PBs 5k 18:36 June 3rd TT
" If you don't use it you lose it, but if you use it, it wears out.
Somewhere in between is about right "
Mother of Cats
Racing: I don't mind racing when not at full fitness; however I personally don't like tempoing races. Whenever I race, I'm planning on giving whatever I have (even if it may not be as much as I'd like). This is because I fear tempoing races can result in bad mental habits - a tendency to not test your limits.
I'll also note that I strongly believe that while it's OK to race when not perfectly tapered or at peak fitness, don't let that be your practice for every single race. Some people fall into the habit of protecting themselves emotionally - they come to every race with a pre-loaded excuse, and then after the race the report is always "look how well I ran for running 10 miles the day before." (I'm not accusing anyone on this thread of doing this.
It's important that sometimes you show up at a race where the weather is perfect, you've got the carbon plated shoes, the course is fast, and you are well rested. In those races, your performance (good or bad) comes down solely to what you were physically and mentally capable of that day - it takes some courage to face that reality head on, but it's important, I think.
My week:
47 miles running, 2 hours pool-running, and 500 yards swimming.
M: Streaming yogaT: 9 miles (10:20) plus drills and hill sprints, and upper body weights/core.W: 9 miles, including 6 Stafford Street hills (2:00 up a 5% incline, then 3:00 jog down), followed with leg strengthworkTh: 2 hours pool-running and streaming yogaF: 7 miles (9:58)Sa: 10 miles, including 8 Iwo Jima Hills (2:00 up a 2% incline, 90 second jog, 40 second downhill stride, 1:00 jog). Followed with leg strengthwork and 500 yards recovery swimming.Su: 12 miles aerobic (8:28), upper body weights/core.
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.
Waltons ThreadLord
James - Ugh on the two races without a map. Have either been run before, or are they both new this year? Congrats to DW and good luck training for whichever race you choose.
Watson - Nice park Run. Enjoy the speed & strength work.
Piwi - Thank you. Good job on the 25 miles. ;-)
Mark - Thanks. I have to admit my 10k best was probably a bit soft, in part because I don't race a lot of 10k's. They're not a common event here - I can find a half more easily than I can a 10k. That said, I do feel pretty good right now. Nice week of work for you. I know what you mean about LR conditions - I've had some long runs where about halfway through I think to myself "I wish this was the race."
Zebano - Thanks. Sorry to hear about the hamstring. I've had hamstring issues that have made me cautious about pushing pace; I want to go faster but I worry about re-injury. I hope you get over yours soon.
Darkwave - I think I know what you're saying. If you're going to race, then go with the intention of running full-out; don't go with pre-prepared excuses. I think it's OK to set a goal based on conditions (I'll expect a faster time for myself on a flat course than a hilly course). For me, sometimes I differentiate between participating and racing. The former is where I go to enjoy the event, knowing ahead of time I'm not going full-out. I understand that's not for everyone. I think I race often enough that participating doesn't create bad habits; hopefully that's not wishful thinking. It has taken me several years, but I feel like I'm at the point where I don't quit late in a race (I feel this because I know I've been tempted to, but didn't, whereas I know early in my "career" I did quit a few times).
Our forecast is for cloudy/rainy skies for a few days, so I'll be trying to fit in easy runs here an there when I can. I have a half on Saturday; what I do there will depend on how I feel and what the course & weather give me. My wife and I are making a getaway weekend of it, so I won't feel bad about it being a "participate" event, and either way I'll get to cross it off my list of NJ halves (after Saturday, it will be 25 done, 3 to go - pending the creation or cancellation of races).
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: Clinton Country Run 15k, 4/27; Spring Distance Classic 5k, 4/28
ok time for my weekly. It was a nice big week and I really hope I can do this again.
66 miles / 10 hours.
Darkwave - I agree with your racing premise. I like to walk away knowing I left all my fight on the course.
Next Race 10k trail race on 11/12. It will be wet, muddy, hilly and difficult footing!
JamesD
It's messy, and this probably will be more info than you want. In 2010-2019, our city (Columbus, GA) had a wonderful full/half/5K with Army ties that was put on by an all-volunteer committee led by some retirees. The half was my goal race 2014-19 except 2018 (injured). The organizers were getting older and weren't confident that anyone else could maintain quality, so they announced before the 2019 race that that would be the last one. Last year, someone from two hours north of here tried to put on a similar full/half race in November on the same course and sort of implied that it was the same race reborn. They publicized it outside of town and on non-local websites but not here, to the extent that I didn't hear about it until six months after. They cancelled it at the last minute. Then they had it on Memorial Day weekend this year, with almost no local publicity. They announced a couple of days beforehand that they had not been able (a couple of months earlier) to get permits to run on the Army base that was a big part of the original course, so they changed the course to have multiple boring loops. You may remember that I've commented once or twice that it gets warm here in the summer, and a full marathon at the start of summer when nobody's acclimated to the heat seemed like a remarkably dumb idea, but nobody died & one of the few locals who ran it said it went off ok. Immediately after the race, the organizers announced that they would do it again on November 19 on the (previous race's) original course. They have a couple hundred out-of-towners and a handful of locals signed up, and since I know and like the course, I was considering doing it. They now have changed part of their website to indicate that the start & finish will be in downtown Columbus, with no other information about the half course, and elsewhere on the same page they still say that the start will be at the original location. Not confidence-inspiring, but the new start/finish is three blocks from our home, so it's about as convenient as possible for me.
So...this summer our local running club, which had been involved with the 2010-19 race, announced a distance series of races in the fall, including existing 5K, 5-mile, & 10K races, a new 10-miler, and a new Beat the Bird half in conjunction with an existing 5K. The Beat the Bird 5K is always the Saturday before Thanksgiving (note for Kiwis: the Bird is the Thanksgiving turkey, and beating it is having the race before Thanksgiving), which this year is November 19. I'm sure this is not a coincidence. Before the May race, I asked on the local club's Facebook page if anyone knew anything about the May race, and the usually-responsive club officials didn't say a word. The signup page for the Beat the Bird race says the course is "TBD based off construction" though it also says it'll be mainly on bike trails (which should reduce permitting issues). The course isn't on MapMyRun like it usually would be. The club is reasonably well organized, and I assume they're going to be setting & measuring the course this week now that they're past the new 10-miler (which was also the 5K DW ran Saturday). If our city council meeting minutes were better organized, it would be interesting to see the councilmembers' reactions to being asked to close two sets of streets/intersections for long races on the same morning when we usually only have one or two long races a year.
I haven't decided which race I'll run. Probably will wait until the last minute to see which course is flatter, which has more people around my speed, and whether either will be cancelled. Actually, that day will almost certainly be too cold for me, but I haven't run a half in three years, and this is a half marathon board after all.
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
James Your intolerance for cold weather continues to amaze me. The longer the race, the colder I want it to be! I can't believe neither organizer has race information online that is just negligence. Best of luck regardless.
Cobra Commander Keen
Stuff not covered in the marathoning thread...
James - Nice week, and kudos to your wife for helping out her friend.
Fred - Nicely done on that 10k PR, especially so soon after the HM.
Zebano - Whoooo look at all that! Well done.
Continuing to stack miles like cordwood. My biggest week ever by ~1k. Less than ideal LR on the treadmill Saturday (home with DDs 2 & 3 while DW and DD1 were out of town for a soccer tournament). I would have preferred to have been outside just on general principle, but on the other hand winds were 20+mph. Super bonus: I came in from the run to DD2 making me scrambled eggs!
I should hit 100 this week (and maybe next week) before dropping miles a bit. I have one of my least favorite types of workouts coming up this week (10k effort pickup sandwiched between a couple HMe segments) but things have been going quite well this cycle so I don't know that I should worry much, especially since the weather should be absolutely primo for it (calm winds, Kiwi Point 80).
5k: 17:58 11/22 │ 10k: 37:55 9/21 │ HM: 1:23:22 4/22 │ M: 2:56:05 12/22
Upcoming Races:
OKC Memorial 5k - April 27
Bun Run 5k - May 4
Everyone's 10k, Liberty State Park, 10/23/22
The morning dawned gray and cloudy, with enough humidity to threaten rain, but the rain didn’t actually come until around noon. It was still dark when I picked up my big around 6:40 (last year, the line got quite long so I wanted to be early) and temps were in the low 50’s with a light breeze and I saw many people dressed quite warmly (long pants and either long sleeved shirts or heavier long sleeves), which was appropriate for standing around in the pre-dawn cool, but I think too much for a race. I wore shorts (yes, the colorful space/starfield ones) and a tank top.
As happens sometimes, it seemed few people want to line up near the front, so while the race director was saying people planning to run 7, 8, 9-minute miles should be near the middle, the guy at the starting line was trying to get everyone to move up. So I moved up a bit. One apparent novice made a comment to the effect of "doesn't my time count too" when he heard the request for slower runners to move back, so I explained chip timing to him and then he seemed much happier. I asked a woman nearby what she was planning to run (since she was in shorts and a tank top too, I figured she was more experienced). She said she planned to run low 7's, so I indicated she should line up ahead of me.
I had set 3 goals. The A goal was to run it in 48:28, which is the time the race calculator gave based on my half two weeks ago, but which I knew would be hard since I just ran a half two weeks ago. The B goal was to run in less than 50 minutes. The C goal was to beat my current PR, which was 50:32. The race started and I took off fast. My plan was to test whether the A goal, which would require a 7:48 pace, was possible. Surprisingly, to me, the low-7's woman was not far ahead of me for the first half mile, though I wasn't running low 7's, but eventually she pulled away. One man went thundering by me with heavy footfalls and a little while later I passed him while he was walking. In mile two, he thundered by my again, and I again passed him while he was walking, after which I didn't see (or hear) him again. Another guy passed by me very closely. He was in shorts but a insulated long sleeved top and wearing a cap as well as a hydration pack, the strings for which were swinging loose and almost hit me as he went by. I ran the first two miles, mostly downwind in 7:52 each, but I knew I would not be able to hold that pace let alone speed up, so I shifted to goal B.
Miles 3 & 4 clocked in at 7:58 and 7:57. The course is two loops in the park, basically a long run south along a paved walking path inland, and the long run north right long the river. The run along the river is tough because it just seems to go on forever while the run along the path has lots of little turns and a variety of scenery (though passing the Statue of Liberty on the river run is cool). Mile three starts on the river run and the wind was a bit brisk. I tried falling in behind two tall guys who looked like brothers, to get some shelter from the wind, but their pace was just a little too fast for me, so I had to let them go. I caught up to the hydration pack guy and heard him grunting and muttering to himself after I passed him. Turns out, he set me as a target and was just behind me in the first pass of the video camera. The fourth mile was a repeat of the southbound leg, though since it was sheltered by reeds and trees, the tailwind was not felt nearly as much as the river-side headwind. I actually caught up to the two tall guys for a while, but they then drew away from me again.
Then things started to get tough. Mile 5 is the last part of the run south, the brief run east to the river, and the start of the second run north. I was tiring and the twists of the inland path were harder the second time around. By the time I hit the river the second time, I was struggling to keep my pace around 8:00 and running into the wind along the river didn’t help. I was passing some walkers still on their first lap, but there weren't a lot of runners nearby. I finished mile 5 in 8:15.
Mile 6 was a struggle. The endless river path. The wind in my face. The humidity. The fact that the pack had thinned out and I was often running alone. My form was falling apart a bit and I stumbled a bit when I came to a slight depression in the path, with my foot catching on the edge. My pace occasionally crept up to the 8:20 and even 8:25 range, but I fought it back down. I could hear hydration pack guy behind me; he was verbally pushing himself with phrases such as "don't f***ing quit on me now." I took his words to heart myself and kept pushing. He passed me with about half a mile to go. Despite my efforts to keep the pace up, mile six was done in 8:15.
With less than a half mile to go, I saw I had less than 4½ minutes if I was going to hit my B goal. Normally, that would be fine (9:00 pace), but given the rate at which I was slowing, I was getting nervous. On top of it all, I had developed a stitch in my right side. With a tenth of a mile to go I could see the arch over the finish line. I put on what little burst of speed I had left and crossed the finish line grimacing. But the clock still said 49:XX, so I knew I’d done it! My official time was 49:24, but boy, was I tired. I saw hydration pack guy and we fist bumped and talked about how we'd helped push each other. I also spotted the tall guys and related the story of how I tried to fall in with them and how I almost caught them again. They acknowledged their pace was uneven, but who am I to criticize as the finished well ahead of me (and I got a smile when they did a mid-run jump-and-spread-out-the arms as they passed family. I think they finished about 10 spots ahead of me. I grabbed some water and a bagel, and headed home, happy with my first sub-50 10k
62nd of 312
53th of 153 males
10th of 25 males 50-59 (unofficially, 3rd of 11 males 55-59)
Here's some video from the race. (The Statue of Liberty is in the background on the left horizon.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?<wbr>v=fsuqa2d0ZLM&t=452s Crossing the mat a bit before the halfway point already looking a bit tired as the clock hits 23:55 in bib 201. Hydration pack guy is right behind me. The fact that my stride is already tight is, I think, a sign that I wasn't fully recovered from the half.
Forward to video time 32:26, time on clock 48:50 and there I go emerging from the right in the background looking even more tired (blue top, light shoes). Hydration pack guy puts his head down and takes off just as he passes the foreground camera. I note something of a gap in runners after I go by.
Hi all, thanks to James compiling all the recent results, I've used an old post at the bottom of page 1 to put an updated race table together.
Please let me know if there's any corrections, or any more races to add before the end of the year.
Mark, James - thanks for the work. If you would be so kind, for me please add:
Fredford66 Oct 9 Crest Best Half Marathon sub-1:50 1:48:32 (PB)
Fredford66 Oct 29 Hallowed Half Marathon checklist race
Fredford66 Nov 26 Turkey Trot 5M 39:20
All done Fred. You've got almost as many PB's this year as the rest of the thread combined!
Hi all, thanks to James compiling all the recent results, I've used an old post at the bottom of page 1 to put an updated race table together. Please let me know if there's any corrections, or any more races to add before the end of the year.
Thanks are premature - I've only finished through August. Still working on September & October until now. Will send those in a day or two.
All good. I have plugged in a few from Sept and Oct that I knew of, e.g. Watson's marathon.