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Blaine's Training Journal (<s>Sub-16 5k</s> - failed) (Read 927 times)


#2867

    New season starting up! I didn't quite reach my ultimate goal for my marathon this Spring, but still got a 4.5 minute PR and a win so I'm still quite happy with the results. This Summer/Early Autumn is going to be focused on the sub-16 minute 5k. I have 3 goal races to try and PR at every 2 or 3 weeks starting at the end of August. There are also 4 races I plan on training through between now and the first 5k, on top of the 19 or so mid-week 5k series "races" that I sponsor (I plan on treating these as tempo and interval runs with folks to chase.) There are also a couple of 5k races that are part of a series that ends with my first goal 5k race, so I might sign up for those once I check to see if they conflict with anything else, although then I'll be racing more than I really wanted to this year and I might have to reevaluate things. I'll wait until the end of May to figure all that out though. The rest of this month is all about rest, recovery, and more rest. June will be base building, with the only fast runs coming as a result of races I'm training through (at this point, 1 trail race and possibly 1 5k road race) or perhaps if I need to pace somebody in a coaching session. I am going to try to raise my mileage back up into the 60s and 70s per week, while including some weight lifting, swimming and biking in my routine. July will get me back to speed work. I might wait for a few weeks into July and continue with the base building early on, but I'll come up with a more concrete plan when I see where I am in mid-June. The speed work is going to center around a lot of fast 400 meter work (62-70 seconds) and longer GRP work (3:12/km). August will continue with the speed work. I'll be training through Beach to Beacon, but will still give it a very good effort (hopefully I will be in the low/mid 34 minute range at the slowest.) I will cut back on speedwork a little about a week before my first goal 5k, and then will be in maintenance mode as I concentrate on getting that sub-16. If I get my sub-16 early, then September might involve building up more base and trying to find a good 50 miler or another marathon. If I don't, then I'll continue with the short stuff. Either way, I want to try to work into cross country season come October/November/December. So that's the goal. Let's see how well I get there.

    Run to Win
    25 Marathons, 17 Ultras, 16 States (Full List)


    #2867

      Week 1: Post Marathon Recovery I did a lot of walking last week, with 1 run at my Maine Running Company coaching session of about 4 miles. They were doing a tempo, so I just let myself fall back to the slower runners so that I could keep going at my easy pace. Both calves/achilles ached by the end of the run. I also did a mixture of a walk/run to get to where I wanted to be on Sunday when I volunteered to control traffic at the Sea Dogs 5k. Nothing hurt there, but I only jogged for a total of maybe 200 feet at a time and then walked a bit. Cross training wise, I got in a really good swim (1250m) on Friday, and got my bike out and tuned up so that I could get in an easy 9 miles on Sunday. Goals for week 2: Build up the running a little more, but be careful of my achilles. They didn't hurt at all during the swimming or biking, so not too worried about that. I plan on running Monday after work (which I did, and my right achilles was aching by the end), Wednesday at the first Back Cove 5k (mid-week series) - I plan on running this nice and easy with my wife, Thursday with the coaching group, and Saturday I want to hit the trails. Hopefully my achilles aren't bothering me by then because I'd like to get in an easy 10 miles for my trail run, but if they hurt then I'll keep it short. I also want to get on the bike and in the pool at least once each, preferably twice. What with funerals and such that I need to attend, I don't see getting into the pool more than once.

      Run to Win
      25 Marathons, 17 Ultras, 16 States (Full List)

        So that's the goal. Let's see how well I get there.
        Blaine! Congrats again on your marathon win. It will be interesting to see you work towards your 5K goal. Thanks for sharing with us.

        When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?


        Marquess of Utopia

          Blaine, Have you ever run a sub 16 5K before?


          #2867

            Blaine, Have you ever run a sub 16 5K before?
            Not yet. That's why I want to get the monkey off of my back. I came close in college (16:07 or 16:09 - I forget which) and have done high 16/teens since graduating, but no sub-16s. I ran a 16:37 last year 3 weeks after a 50k trail race, so I probably would have had the fitness then to do it had I not been concentrating on my upcoming marathon.

            Run to Win
            25 Marathons, 17 Ultras, 16 States (Full List)


            #2867

              Week 2: More Post Marathon Recovery I ran Monday/Wednesday/Saturday/Sunday, all easy. My achilles ached after the Mon/Wed/Sat runs, but not after today's. I ran on a gravel path on Wednesday, and on trails yesterday and today. Wednesday and today's runs were with my wife, which was nice. I also got out for a couple of miles of walking out in the woods on Tuesday during my lunch break while I called up to get insurance quotes. It beat the hell out of sitting on my ass while I waited on hold. About 20 miles total. I didn't get in the pool, since I got bit by a bug just over my eye and I figured that would be particularly uncomfortable if I were to try and swim with my goggles. I spent Friday evening cleaning up my lawn and mowing it. I haven't gotten out on the bike yet this week, but I might head to the grocery store this afternoon for a quick trip. For those keeping track, Thursday was a lazy day. I went to a funeral for my wife's grandfather and decided not to run, since I wouldn't have been back in town early enough to get to the coaching group run anyway. I mostly hit my week 2 goals. My Saturday run was short (as I assumed it would be) and I haven't gotten on the bike yet, but with Thursday's run moved to today I came through the week about where I expected to be. Week 3 goals: Pretty similar to last week. I'll be flying out to a wedding next weekend so I'll see if there any trails in the vicinity that I'll be able to run on or not. Leg allowing, I'd like to get up around 30 miles, but I'm not going to push things.

              Run to Win
              25 Marathons, 17 Ultras, 16 States (Full List)


              Future running partner.

                Good luck running on your trip. I find that when away from my daily routine that it's hard to stay on schedule. How do you usually handle running when on busy trips?
                jEfFgObLuE


                I've got a fever...

                  Good luck, Blaine. I, too, have always wanted to run sub-16. I ran a 16:23 as a high school senior, and was in shape to come close the following year if not for injury. However, I'm many years older and many pounds heaver now. Nevertheless, it's something I want to take a shot at here in the next couple of years before I hit 40. I'll be watching your progress closely.

                  On your deathbed, you won't wish that you'd spent more time at the office.  But you will wish that you'd spent more time running.  Because if you had, you wouldn't be on your deathbed.


                  #2867

                    Good luck running on your trip. I find that when away from my daily routine that it's hard to stay on schedule. How do you usually handle running when on busy trips?
                    Well, for this trip specifically I'm not worried about it if I don't get a run in since I'm babying my leg. Normally, though, I just plan on getting up and running early. When I went to Texas last August, it was the only time available (I was at a conference from 8 in the morning to 7 at night) and it was also the coolest part of the day. Two of the 3 trips that I took recently culminated in a marathon, so in one case it was a minor reason I went and in the other the sole reason. The third trip (which fell between the two) left me with time to get a couple of runs in between watching the Olympic Trials and the Boston Marathon.
                    Good luck, Blaine.
                    Thanks, good luck to you too!

                    Run to Win
                    25 Marathons, 17 Ultras, 16 States (Full List)


                    #2867

                      I'm a little behind, so here's me playing catchup: Week 3: More post-marathon recovery Got on the trails twice and mostly ran easy. Took my wife to the drive-in one night; that was fun. Also the first time that she stayed awake through both movies. (Indiana Jones then Iron Man) I ran before leaving for Pennsylvania, which is good because my flight was actually for Friday and not Saturday so I spent an extra 4 hours at the airport waiting for a different flight and didn't have time to get a run in by the time we got to PA. Got a decent run in the day of the wedding while there. Ran about 37 km (about 23 miles) total for the week. Week 4 goals: Build a little more mileage, keep it easy. Week 4: Beginning to base build I ran every day this week, with 3 trail runs, one of which I did 5 kilometers at a good tempo pace (18:00 flat). One of the runs was on the Monday after getting back from PA. I went down to Massachusetts for a funeral and to visit some friends and got a nice slow run in at a park near their house on Sunday. After getting home I spent 4 hours in the yard getting some work done, first building the frame for a 7' x 3' square foot garden and then cleaning up the yard and mowing. Ran about 63 km (about 40 miles) total for the week. Week 5 goals: Build a little more mileage, keep it easy. Week 5: Continuing to base build Ran at lunch time on Monday, then gave blood that evening. Tuesday I was out on the trails, and my nipple started hurting. Wound up getting some sort of marble or something underneath it, no idea what from, but been taking antibiotics from Wednesday on and it is mostly gone by the end of the weekend. Every run was nice and easy, and I got a good trail run in on Friday night. Bunch of the guys I was running with ran from 8:00 to midnight, so I joined them for about 80 minutes. The trails we ran on are pretty easy to run in the dark since there aren't a lot of roots and its relatively smooth (although very hilly.) My right calf was bugging me a little on this run or else I might have run further. No pain, but definitely tight. I took it easy on Saturday, then ran home from work Sunday morning (had Erin drop me off to do some busy work with the servers that is easier when nobody is using them.) It was HOT today. Wish I had started running at 7:00 instead of 8:00, but oh well. The road I ran on was very well shaded which helped, since it is mostly uphill to get home for me. No problems with my calf which was nice. Signed up with the Body Bot software to evaluate it before promoting it on my website, and did a few tabata interval style workouts through that software after my runs this weekend. I like it. Total mileage this week was about 73 km (about 45 miles) - right about where I wanted to be. Week 6 goals: Take all my runs through Friday easy, and make sure my calf doesn't hurt. See if I can get some extra mileage in on Wednesday evening so that I'm in the 70-80 km range total for the week. I'm planning on racing a 5k next Saturday on the roads and then running in a 6 mile single track trail race on Sunday, so I probably won't rack up high mileage over the weekend.

                      Run to Win
                      25 Marathons, 17 Ultras, 16 States (Full List)


                      Future running partner.

                        Took my wife to the drive-in one night; that was fun. Also the first time that she stayed awake through both movies. (Indiana Jones then Iron Man)
                        How did you manage to do that?!?! Shocked For my wife that would be like going to have root canal done, for fun Sad I'll probably have to take her to see SITC before I get to see Indi. Roll eyes
                          Dude. I haven't even seen a drive-in in years let alone been to one. It brings back memories of the one my parents used to take my brother and I to when we were kids. I checked out that Body Bot site - looks interesting.

                          When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?


                          #2867

                            How did you manage to do that?!?! Shocked For my wife that would be like going to have root canal done, for fun Sad I'll probably have to take her to see SITC before I get to see Indi. Roll eyes
                            My wife is into the superhero flicks and bad 80s tv shows. I've gotten her watching Dukes of Hazzard and the A-Team now, and she is a bigger fan of movies like Batman and Spider Man than I am. She initially has no interest in them when I say I want to see them, then she sees a trailer, and then she's trying to figure out whether they'll play with anything else we want to see at the drive-in. There are 2 drive-ins pretty close to me, one between where I live and where I work that's about 10-15 minutes from home, and one that is about 25 minutes in the opposite direction but that has 2 screens and less traffic going by.

                            Run to Win
                            25 Marathons, 17 Ultras, 16 States (Full List)


                            Future running partner.

                              THATS AWESOME!!!
                              Wingz


                              Professional Noob

                                Sounds like you're right where you want to be. Cool Good luck with the calf and with building up to 60-70 MPW.

                                Roads were made for journeys...

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