Wishing the best to Centex and Nasreddin Hoja at their HMs today!
Glad to hear Anzlo is doing ok. My recollection from RW days is your hikes are lengthy and very challenging—I'm sure the health benefits are substantial and those efforts will make it much easier as you work your way back into running.
* * * * *
I only managed one run this week and covered 4 miles. My wife came down with a bad cold last Wednesday and I've been staying close to home as news reports are this year's flu can emerge and quickly turn dangerous. Her primary care doc thinks as long as her symptoms don't get any worse she's ok at home.
Caffeine-fueled Runner
Finally got my very first run for 2018 done. Combination of two snowstorms and cold weather, my wife's surgery and recovery, and the change in my job have made getting out and running in the past three weeks pretty challenging. I could tell that I'd been off the running path for three weeks. Time to get back to it.
PR's--- 5K 24:11, 10K 49:40, 10-Mile 1:26:02, HM 1:56:03, Marathon 4:16:17
Maniac #11112, Fanatic #14276, Double Agent #2335
For the week I ran 31 miles - which includes the HM in Austin yesterday (Sunday). This is a pretty big HM with around 7,000 runners.The HM weather was in the 60's and very humid (drizzly) which I knew would make for a difficult race. I started the race at my normal HM race pace (8:20-8:30) and paid the price later. Mile 7 I started to struggle somewhat and walk a little through the water stops along with a short porta potty break. The last two miles I was able to pick my pace up somewhat. Final time was 1:57:16 which put me at 7th out of 39 in the 65-69 age group. Took some time to recover from nausea after the race.
I really could stand to lose about 15 - 20 pounds which I know would help my running and overall health which should be a focus for me. Plus I need to add some regular speed work to my schedule. Perhaps 800's or 1600 repeats at a track or 5k races. This along with a few more miles should get my running to where I would like it to be.
Happy Running!
Had to take the week off due to flu/cold. Did manage a very easy 3.2 miles on Saturday, so hope to be back to usual sort of mileage this week.
Congrats Centex on completing your HM in less than ideal conditions .... and still sub-2.
Started running at age 60.
AG 60-64 PR - 5K 25:45, 10K 53:28, HM 1:57:39, Marathon 4:32:09
AG 65-69 PR - 5K 26:11, HM 2:02:39, Marathon 5:04:47
Was happy with yesterdays half and a nice 2.5 today with two sprints. I'm nicely loosened up for next weeks ski trip in the Italian Alps.
36 miles for the week, even with a snowy business trip to Albany and snow/ice when I returned to Nashville. Lots of treadmill time until the weekend, when it got up into the 60s.
Out there running since dinosaurs roamed the earth
37.1 miles for me last week. LR of 12.5 on Sat and then 7 on Sunday to keep the mileage at a reasonable level. Decent weather here the last few days. Supposed to turn colder, but more like a normal Jan rather than the warm weather we have had recently.
Centex - Congrats on another sub-2 HM. Heat didn't help you, but you still ran a great time. I'm right there with you on losing some weight and doing more speed work. Why isn't that easier to do?
Hi All,
Great to hear about you guys are still out there. Having just turned 69, I relied on RW to feel like I wasnt alone. ;-)
I'm finding that I need more rest days than I used to, and have dropped to 3, sometimes 4 days a week... usually 5,5,10 or 3,4,5,8.
I used to race a lot and enjoyed the podium at 5k way more often than not. I've slowed, even though my training runs seem as strong as 5 years ago, so haven't entered anything since October, and March before that.
I am scheduled for a half this weekend, and had targeted 2 hours, but the predicted temps are going to be 63 rising to 67 at the finish, 80% humidity.
I really fall apart at those temps, so have been trying to figure out how to increase my chances at a decent time. I've got a supporter staged at 5, 8 and 10 miles with ice, gels, electrolytes and even o2 if I need to walk a bit. I'm going shirtless which is a horror show, but wtf, who cares, and it really does help with cooling. No knee or calf garb which I often wear.
I was think of trying to get ahead of the pace by a couple of minutes for the first 7 miles which shouldn't be difficult, then throw a 4 or 5 short recovery walks for the rest.
Any other thoughts on hot weather racing? Ice in cap? ice bandana? Gels when? electrolytes when?
I am scheduled for a half this weekend, and had targeted 2 hours, but the predicted temps are going to be 63 rising to 67 at the finish, 80% humidity. I really fall apart at those temps, so have been trying to figure out how to increase my chances at a decent time. I've got a supporter staged at 5, 8 and 10 miles with ice, gels, electrolytes and even o2 if I need to walk a bit. I'm going shirtless which is a horror show, but wtf, who cares, and it really does help with cooling. No knee or calf garb which I often wear. I was think of trying to get ahead of the pace by a couple of minutes for the first 7 miles which shouldn't be difficult, then throw a 4 or 5 short recovery walks for the rest. Any other thoughts on hot weather racing? Ice in cap? ice bandana? Gels when? electrolytes when?
If you ever find a definitive answer, please let me know.
I have had several races in hotter and more humid conditions and am always well off my best pace in them. Getting ahead of the pace seems to make matters worse as it pushes up the core temperature quicker, so I tend to accept the inevitable and back off the pace by 30-45 seconds per mile from the outset. Still trying to decide whether a cold wet shirt is preferable to no shirt - probably not, especially as humidity heads to 100%. I tend to grab water at each aid station, drink half and pour the other half on my head - do not try that with Gatorade. I don't think Gels are needed in a HM or shorter, but I always ensure that I'm well fuelled and hydrated before the start.