Beginners and Beyond

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Half Marathon RR -- The tale of 6 lousy seconds (Read 105 times)

wcrunner2


Are we there, yet?

    While your first mile was the slowest, 6 seconds is less than half a second per mile. Spread out over several miles and it's hard to say it was due only to the slow first mile. That might have actually helped you to push and pick up the pace later in the race. Just looking at the last five mile splits, two seconds faster in each of miles 9, 10, and 11 (the miles where it's hardest to concentrate and maintain pace) would make up the 6 seconds. Patience. Sub-2:00 is there and I think when it comes, it will come by a huge margin.

     2024 Races:

          03/09 - Livingston Oval Ultra 6-Hour, 22.88 miles

          05/11 - D3 50K
          05/25 - What the Duck 12-Hour

          06/17 - 6 Days in the Dome 12-Hour.

     

     

         

    outoftheblue


      Rondog -- Thanks, I certainly hope to get it next time.

       

      LRB -- I did wonder how much extra gas that super-slow start gave me.  But, I would like to think I can figure out a way to avoid being in such a deep hole after the first mile.  I think if I would have moved up closer to the start (no one seemed to be paying any attention to suggested pace signs), I would not have been so bogged down during that first half mile.   Or, if I could have completed my warm-up strides, maybe that would have helped.  I'm a slow starter for sure, but I'd like to be in the +10 to +15 sec range.

       

      Workinprogress -- Ha, you're right about me analyzing this thing to death -- I never really will know, will I?  I am taking a lot of confidence from this race going forward though.  Thanks for the nice words.

       

      PADrunner -- Thanks -- despite my whining about the 6 seconds, I am pleased with my PR.

       

      WCR --  I've also looked at the middle part of the race as an area I could have taken some time off in.  I was trying to push through the mide race doldrums, but given how much gas I had at the end, I clearly could have pushed harder.  That's definitely a lesson I will take from this race.

      Life is good.

      LRB


        LRB -- I did wonder how much extra gas that super-slow start gave me.  But, I would like to think I can figure out a way to avoid being in such a deep hole after the first mile.  I think if I would have moved up closer to the start (no one seemed to be paying any attention to suggested pace signs), I would not have been so bogged down during that first half mile.   Or, if I could have completed my warm-up strides, maybe that would have helped.  I'm a slow starter for sure, but I'd like to be in the +10 to +15 sec range.

         

        I understand, 10 to 15 seconds would have been ideal for you.

          Great job! I know you were a few seconds off your goal, but you still set a PR and you definitely have a sub-2 half in you. Smile

          5k - 25:15 (11/18/12)

          10k - 1:01:51 (2/14/15)

          10mi - 1:33:18 (3/2/14)

          HM - 2:06:12 (3/24/13)

           

          Upcoming Races:

          Benched until further notice. :/

           

          Everything you need is already inside. [[Bill Bowerman]]

          Docket_Rocket


            Great job!  You're so close!!!!!!!!!!!

            Damaris

             

            As part of the 2024 London Marathon, I am fundraising for VICTA, a charity that helps blind and visually impaired children. My mentor while in law school, Jim K (a blind attorney), has been a huge inspiration and an example of courage and perseverance. Please consider donating.

            Fundraising Page

            Pinktastic


              Congrats, OOTB!   You did a great job nailing your B goal, and that's not anything to sneeze at!   This is quite the accomplishment, and I know that even bigger things are in store for you!

              But The Smile That I Sent Out Returned With You.

              Ric-G


                great job, great prep, i believe you will nail that sub 2 comfortably...congrats!

                marathon pr - 3:16

                happylily


                  OOTB, I'm so happy you reached your goal (who cares about 6 seconds? Pfff... I call it a sub-2:00!). I think the most important thing you gained yesterday is the trust in your training. Now that you have it, you will never lose it. Sure, there are elements we cannot control (weather, sickness, injuries, etc...). But when you train honestly and you trust the work you've done, half the battle is won. Pfitz is great to work with. I'm glad his plan delivered for you. Congratulations once again!

                   

                  P.S. I'm also of the advice that if at all possible, look for another half in the coming weeks just for the fun of it. Sometimes, it's when we have no expectations, no pressure on ourselves, that we surprise ourselves with new PRs.

                  PRs: Boston Marathon, 3:27, April 15th 2013

                          Cornwall Half-Marathon, 1:35, April 27th 2013

                  18 marathons, 18 BQs since 2010


                  Don't call me Buttercup!

                    Congrats on the PR!

                    Slow and steady wins the....  wait a second! I've been lied to! 

                    outoftheblue


                      Nova, Ric and Pink -- Thanks!  II hope you are right that better times are in store for me.

                       

                      Docket and Di2 -- Thanks as well.  And yes, it was so close!

                       

                      Lily -- Thanks for your kind words here, and for all the encouragement you've given me in the Dailies as I struggled through the Pfitz schedule.  If I can find a suitable HM sometime in April and May, I will most likely sign up.

                      Life is good.

                      scottydawg


                      Barking Mad To Run

                        Congrats, outoftheblue!   Nice race report and great time for you!  No doubt in my mind you are going to get 2 hours/sub 2 in the future!

                         

                        You know....your HM finish time is my 10K finish time...

                        "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." Theodore Roosevelt

                        happylily


                          OOTB, I wanted to comment on what you said here: After I got healthy, I learned a second, sad truth – I’m just not very fast.

                           

                          You know, in 2014, we, women, are still treated as objects and are still paid less than men in many fields. But God gave us a tool: He gave us the Age/Gender Equivalent Calculator.  And He wants us to use it! So I've plugged your HM time and assumed that you were about my age (forgive me if you are younger). Your 2:00:05 is the equivalent of a 1:44:44 for a man your age. It's the equivalent of a 1:38:32 for a 40 year old man and it is the equivalent of a 1:32:55 for a 30 year old man. So please, do not call yourself slow anymore. 

                           

                          Age Equivalent Calculator

                          PRs: Boston Marathon, 3:27, April 15th 2013

                                  Cornwall Half-Marathon, 1:35, April 27th 2013

                          18 marathons, 18 BQs since 2010

                          Love the Half


                            One of the things I learned from more experienced runners was that, in order to make a true reach goal, you have to give yourself permission to blow up.  I think it was Bill Rogers who said, "to win a race, you have to go a little berserk" and I think that's true for a reach goal as well.  You have to go into a race with the attitude of, "I'm going to run 1:58 or I'm going to blow up at Mile 11 and end up walking to the finish."  It's OK to modify that plan if you realize within the first mile or two that today just isn't your day but if you hit Mile 3 and still feel fine, then you have to go for it.  You give yourself a chance to succeed by giving yourself permission to fail.

                             

                            Beyond that, I would note that if you are running a half marathon truly all out, you will start feeling the first twinges of discomfort around the halfway point.  It is difficult to describe how bad it gets after that but you certainly won't feel strong.

                             

                            Every race is a learning experience and it looks like you are taking this one the right way.

                            Short term goal: 17:59 5K

                            Mid term goal:  2:54:59 marathon

                            Long term goal: To say I've been a runner half my life.  (I started running at age 45).

                            happylily


                              One of the things I learned from more experienced runners was that, in order to make a true reach goal, you have to give yourself permission to blow up.  I think it was Bill Rogers who said, "to win a race, you have to go a little berserk" and I think that's true for a reach goal as well.  You have to go into a race with the attitude of, "I'm going to run 1:58 or I'm going to blow up at Mile 11 and end up walking to the finish."  It's OK to modify that plan if you realize within the first mile or two that today just isn't your day but if you hit Mile 3 and still feel fine, then you have to go for it.  You give yourself a chance to succeed by giving yourself permission to fail.

                               

                              Beyond that, I would note that if you are running a half marathon truly all out, you will start feeling the first twinges of discomfort around the halfway point.  It is difficult to describe how bad it gets after that but you certainly won't feel strong.

                               

                              Every race is a learning experience and it looks like you are taking this one the right way.

                               

                              ^ This is how I PRed my half last spring. But it's easier to achieve that "all or nothing" state of mind if the race is done as what I called at the time an "experiment". My running goal for the spring had been reached (Boston) and I did the half as an afterthought. I decided I was going to run it crazy well or crazy bad. I took a chance.

                              PRs: Boston Marathon, 3:27, April 15th 2013

                                      Cornwall Half-Marathon, 1:35, April 27th 2013

                              18 marathons, 18 BQs since 2010

                              outoftheblue


                                Thanks Scotty!

                                 

                                Lily -- Thanks for the link to the running calculator.  I'm so used to seeing such fast racing by the people of all ages on this forum, it's hard not to feel a bit pokey at times.   I will add the the #1 woman and 7th OA at the race was a 45 year old woman by the name of Kristi Rossi, who finished with a time of 1:21.   I'm learning that the 45-49 AG is pretty competitive, but wow, she is ridiculously fast.   Of course plugging her info into the calculator tells me she's basically an elite level runner.   She's had local articles written about her. and last year she was the 4th OA finisher in the SF marathon with a time of 3:02.

                                 

                                LTH -- You make an excellent point.  To really race your best you need to go in with an all-or-nothing attitude.  I couldn't quite get myself to that place.  Partly it's because I don't race much and was afraid to risk having a good race, in order to have a potentially great race.   The other part was that I truly didn't think sub-2 was a very realistic goal -- it was more of a pie-in-the-sky goal that a true stretch goal.   When I crossed the finish line and saw how close I was to 2 hours I was genuinely shocked.  If you had told me the night before I would run a 2:00:05 I would have been turning cartwheels with joy.  It was only after seeing how relatively painlessly I was able to achieve that time, that I became regretful about not putting more on the line from the get-go.   I mean I spent 2 years trying to shave 55 seconds from my PR -- I never truly thought I could take over 3 minutes off in one training cycle.

                                Life is good.

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