That's what we call an "Easy 10" OR! Keep it up. You'll be crushing workouts and perhaps even piling on more miles in the weeks to come. I'm super excited to see how this experiment goes for you.
That's what we call an "Easy 10" OR! Keep it up. You'll be crushing workouts and perhaps even piling on more miles in the weeks to come. I'm super excited to see how this experiment goes for you.
keepgoing wrote:
That's what we call an "Easy 10" OR! Keep it up. You'll be crushing workouts and perhaps even piling on more miles in the weeks to come. I'm super excited to see how this experiment goes for you.
Thanks very much! I am super excited, too! Will do my best. Keep in mind what I tell people at the store, that I am “just a dumb runner.” So, I will have to stay on top of things in order to adjust...and learn how to do the workouts.
Nice run this morning. No need to fixate on the overall average of 7:23 or the last mile of 6:58. You accomplished the purpose of the run. To start very easy, progress as feels comfortable and controlled, and to not get too carried away at the end of your run so that you will be prepared to successfully tackle quality days when they are on the schedule. Some days, run likes these might average 7:23 - other days, they might average 7:53 or 7:13 or 7:46. It doesn't matter. The effort and the purpose are what matter.
The daily easy runs may naturally slow down as the quality days add up. Do not be alarmed or worried about this. Also don't be alarmed if you happen to feel particularly fresh on any given day and cruise to a 7:13 easy average. Again, its about the purpose. The important message for easy runs - faster does not necessarily mean better. Slower does not necessarily mean better. Controlled is better. Hitting the quality sessions is better. Staying healthy is better. That is the formula.
As far as ever needing to work around your busy work days, let me know if you don't know how to make the right adjustments. Days can always be moved, much like chess pieces. It doesn't mean the strategy is different, though.
I am happy to see you willing to try something new and different. I think you will be pleasantly surprised how well you respond to this new stimulus. If you start seeing "flyer" fartleks and running sustained, controlled tempos and consistent kilometer repeats, I think you will see some very noticeable gains.
If the daily easy runs continue to feel easy, I think we should consider adding to the volume of those days instead of increasing the intensity of those days. Leave the intensity for the quality days.
Any questions, fire away. Happy running.
That was fun. Did 16 x 1:00 on/1:00 off, from 20:00 to 52:00. It felt like doing lots of long-ish strides. I liked that it was speedy, yet open-ended. So, 10.13 miles at 6:43 overall pace. Last two miles were a cool down, 6:56 and 6:42.
Happy running...
Nice work, OR. I was thinking that you might get a kick out of fartlek.
Your collaboration with Stone Cutter has the potential to be scary (and I mean that in a good way).
Perfect. Absolutely perfect. That is exactly how the workout should feel. Controlled fun. It should also inject you with more speed down the line.
Think of it this way. Let's say you ran those 1:00 surges between 5k-8k pace (which is how it usually unfolds, sometimes the last couple might get down to mile pace once you are loosened up). That means you did 16:00 of running at 5k-8k pace. That is about 3 miles of 5k-8k pace work for you in one session. That is a stimulus you have not really had in any of your progressions because, quite naturally, it is impossible to progress down to that pace and sustain it.
So far, so good. Glad you seem to be enjoying it.
I'm being proven wrong. Well done, outsiderunner.
Thanks, guys.
Stone - That is exactly what it was--5k-8k pace. I saw 5:20s-5:35-ish when peeking at the watch. Looking forward to the easy day tomorrow...and then the Thur. workout. I am a little concerned I might have some difficulty in "shifing gears" down to 6:00-6:15 for the six mile MP segment on Thur., as I am accustomed to progressing downward gradually in my runs. Do you think I will be okay? Any tips?
Black hole wrote:
I'm being proven wrong. Well done, outsiderunner.
Thank you, my friend, and happy running to you...
Just clarify for me, what schedule are you planning on following the rest of this week and next week? I wasn't sure how you wanted to modify the schedule for your next 5k race.
Once I know that, I can give you tips for each quality session and how to be approach/handle them.
I am following the original schedule, as my next 5k race is next Sat. (12/29), not this Sat. That is appropriate, right?
Okay, good to know about the date of the next race. Since we want to incorporate the 5k into the training schedule next weekend without losing the quality long run, I will send a revised two week schedule for you tomorrow when I am sitting at the computer and not on my phone. Enjoy your easy run tomorrow...
Sounds good. Thank you.
OR -
Not sure how I forgot, but I just realized that when applying the dates to this schedule that next week is the holiday. I restructured your next two weeks to accommodate the 5k race next weekend. Also, I made your rest day (which is optional) on Christmas day, so that you have the option of spending the whole day with your family. If you wanted to get out for a couple easy miles (4-6 miles is good) on Christmas, that is fine too. You also have the option of moving your rest day to any other non-quality day if that works better for you.
Let me know if you have any additional questions.
Week 12/17 - 12/23
M- 6-10 miles easy
T- 8-10 miles incorporating fartlek of 10-15 x (1:00 “fast”/1:00 “easy”).
W- 6-10 miles easy
Th- 10-12 miles incorporating 8-12 x 1km at 5:40-5:50/mi with :75 recovery jogs.
F- 6-10 miles easy
Sa- 6-10 miles easy
Su- 14-18 miles with the last 6-8 miles at marathon effort (6:05-6:15/mi).
Total: 56-80 miles
Week 12/24 - 12/30
M- 6-10 miles easy
T- REST (HOLIDAY) - OPTIONAL
W- 10-12 miles incorporating 6-8 miles of tempo running (6:00-6:15/mi), either continuous or broken
Th- 6-10 miles easy
F- 6-10 miles easy
Sa- 6-10 miles incorporating 5k race
Su- 14-18 miles easy
Total: 48-70 miles.
The schedule looks super, Stone.
Easy ten around town this morning....10.13 at 7:23 overall pace...7:45 to start, cruised along, and down to 7:06 in the last mile. The run was within two seconds total of Monday’s easy 10 (1:14:49 vs. 1:14:51 today). It felt good, but I felt even better yesterday and on Monday. On that subject, I thought I should note that, in comparison to the way my legs felt on Mon. and Tues. of this week, they felt a bit dead on race day at Richmond...not completely dead, but a bit dead.
Did the 1k reps this morning...well 0.6 mi reps, as my watch would not allow .62 mi (.6 or .65 were my choices). Not much sleep and a cold morning (very little wind, thankfully), and it felt good. Not being an interval guy, I was thinking I might have some difficulty. My watch gave me some trouble in the first rep, probably because I could not see very well, as it was still fairly dark out. In any case, I got faster as the reps went along, and my last rep was the fastest (5:32 pace). I started out with 5:50s for the first few reps. So, I went 10 x 0.60 with :75 jog rests, with a 2.5 w/u and 2.5 c/d. Ended up going 12.65 miles at 6:39 overall pace. The reps averaged 5:47 pace.
Thank you so much, Stone. This workout gave me a nice chunk of confidence. I am thinking this OR/SC collaboration might be "scary" good, as that one poster predicted. :-)
Change your watch settings to kilometers. Then program the workout, or set your autolap to 1Ks. If you then switch the settings back to miles, it will default to .62 miles and you'll have a rep time to report instead of pace (3:36, etc....)
I'm not coaching you, but one thing I do that is NOT good, is that I care about overall pace when I'm doing workouts. This inhibits me from doing the quality section faster.
OR - Bdubs gave you two great tips. I also do the same thing when I run km repeats. Before I start the run, I change the unit of measurement to kms for the entire run. I warm up for 3-5 kms. I then stop and stretch for a bit. When I start the workout, I hit the lap button to reset it. That way, when it autolaps, it will autolap on the km - just like Bdubs said. Then you can recover for :75 and hit lap again. Repeating these steps will always have it autolap on the km, so you don't have to keep checking your watch. At the end of the run, change the units of measurement back to miles. Your Garmin connect will actually display the workout as .62 mile splits.
If you are more comfortable keeping your units of measurement on miles and doing .6 mile repeats, honestly, it makes no difference. The point is, just run approximately 10k effort for about three and a half minutes at a time, recovering for 75 seconds at a time. Same idea. The idea of keeping an acceptable range is important too. Some splits might be a tad faster than your target, some might be a tad slower. The way you did it today was perfect - starting slowly and building into the workout.
Bdubs' other point is very crucial too. Pay no mind to the overall pace of your run. Really. Run VERY easy on the warmup and cooldown without regard to pace. Recover at a VERY easy pace in between the repeats. You don't get bonus points for a faster overall average. You get bonus points for doing the workout properly. Think of it this way - if you raced a 5k, would you care more about the average pace of the 5k or the overall average of the day's run including the warmup and cooldown? It's the quality running that matters.
I agree with your initial impressions of this training - you are going to be a better racer with better fitness and better results.
Keep up the great work.
Bdubs - Thank you for taking the time to comment, and I appreciate your advice. Could not agree more that the overall pace does not matter a whole lot. I mentioned it in order to be thorough.
Stone - I am glad you commented, as I have never run this type of workout. Glad you think I did well. I was not sure what it would feel like, and thus I was a bit cautious in the beginning, wanting to make sure I would get the 10 reps. It was a good workout, and I was surprised how good that fast last rep felt. Looking forward to dialing in some easy pace tomorrow. Thank you, my friend.
And by the way, 6 miles worth of work today at 5:47/mi average off relatively short recoveries. In time this will eventually become your HM pace.
Just stick with what you are doing. Easy easy days, quality controlled workout days.