I'm not fast wrote:
No, never ran competitively in hs...I played soccer and basketball, but didn't take up running until 3 years ago. In between HS and now just played sports to keep in shape.
OK. You never ran competitively but was a soccer/basketball player.
I came into running through soccer myself in junior high school. My coach was really big at making sure we were in shape to handle the running in soccer games, so he had us run laps around the soccer field before every practice. The course was probably 500-550 around. We would run anywhere between 12-20 laps. For a few of us, every run became somewhat of a race, or a tempo run anyway. After the run, the coach had us do wind sprints. After that we did ball handling drills, and then if we'd do some sort of half-field scrimmages. Before the day was over, we'd finish up with more wind sprints. As you can see that's a lot of running for junior high kids, but ultimately we were in very good shape. The net result, is that me and another of my teammates would end up setting the State records (9:11 and 9:10) in the 2 mile run once we got to high school.
The problem that I see with you is that you came into running later in life just to get in shape. Not have been in an organized track program, you’ve never been introduced to the same competitiveness that you had experienced in soccer/basketball, never been introduced to the intense racing experience of middle distance running, and the training that goes with it: the 2 mile relays etc etc, and you aren’t going to get that through your running formula books. What I’d recommend is that you alter your path a bit and get that track experience. If you can find a competitive track club, that might help, but it probably won’t, because, most likely you will be exposed to the same cookie cutter running formula book zombies.
I’d recommend a few temporary and a few permanent tweaks to your schedule.
First of all, the 15 mile long run is too much for a 50-60 mpw runner. I’d rather see you limit it 10 miles then sprinkle those 5 miles into the rest of the week. Two 2.5 mile morning adds would be best, but really anywhere would work. It’s also OK for you to break into a tempo run during that long run.
Secondly, I’m assuming the “stamina workout” is the tempo run/cruise intervals? It’s not clear to me.
I would make that “speed” day alternating weeks with something like what is in SOM (12-20 x 150-300m) getting to top-end and striding through to the finish. If you don’t have spikes it might be fun for you to get a pair. You would want to play soccer without cleats would you? If not spikes, make sure you wear lightweight racing flats, then. On the alternate week you should do one of staple workouts of every miler for the last 60 years – 10x400 with 200m rest. This should be a hard workout, leaving you “tasting blood” and very dizzy afterwards. Or try 6 x 400 with 400m rest. This should be hard.
Your 5x1200 with 3:30 jog on Monday, I’m assuming is where you are alternating those other iterations of the theme? (3x1200, 3x800) or (6x1200) or the 8x800 cruise intervals? Yes no? I think those are OK, but you might be better of making the reps 600-1000m for now at a faster pace, then as your fitness improves, lengthen the reps until you can do those 1200s at a faster pace than you are running now. One of the things that you can do with those longer repeats is cutdowns, start off a bit slower than the paces you are running now, with each rep improve the pace, and the last two reps run at faster, much faster, than you are running now.
So basically I’m re-arranging your weeks somewhat like this:
This:
M – 5 x 1200 w/ 3:30 jog (8 miles)
T - AM: 3 very easy; PM: 4 - 5 E
W - Stamina workout: 8 - 10 miles total
Tr - 5 - 6 E
F - speed work, reps: 8 or so miles
Sat - 4 - 5 E
Sun - Longer run 12 – 15
To this:
M - Repeats in the 600m -1000m range at a faster pace than the 1200s you were doing before, then lengthen the reps as your fitness improves, (8 miles)
T - AM: 3 very easy; PM: 4 - 5 E
W – TEMPO OR “cruise intervals” totaling 8-10 miles
Tr –AM 3 easy PM 5 - 6 E
F - speed work, reps: 8 or so miles (12-20 300m-150m accelerations a la SOM, or 10x 400, or 6x400)
Sat –AM 3 easy PM 4 - 5 E
Sun - Longer run 10 miles (tempo run, run to the barn if you want)
Probably too late for this, but in the Summer you should have found the local Parks and Rec track schedule and competed in their Summer All-comers races. Pick and choose events, or run everything. I think you would have liked it.
I think the important thing here is that if you want to run faster, you have to run faster. Do that by either cutting down the pace of your repeats or by shortening them and getting in the pace you ultimately want to race at, then lengthen the reps as you become fitter.