Road Racing and Training Thread - Week Ending 5/8/2022

Feel good about this week. Best LR of cycle (and ever) today. High volume again for me. 3 weeks out.

M - am 10 @ 7:59/pm 4 @ 7:59
T - 10 @ 7:30

W - am 14 @ 6:22 w/ 16x400 on, 200 off (77.5 & 44.5 avg)/pm 4 @ 7:55

Th - 10 @ 7:30
Fr - am 10 @ 7:14/pm 4 @ 7:42
Sa - 10 @ 7:15

Su - 20 @ 6:07 avg. w/ 3x8k w/ 1k float 29:23 (5:55 pace)/3:53/29:08 (5:51 pace)/3:53/28:42 (5:46 pace)/3:53

Total - 96 miles

M62, 5'11", 174 lbs
Age 23: 16:05, 2:40:30
Age 43: 17:10, 2:56:03
Age 58: 18:58, 3:07:23

RACE CALENDAR
May 29: Marathon

MAY 2-8, 2022
M - Off
Tu- 7.7 miles @ 9:52/mi
W - Off
Th- 4.0 miles (10:04, 10:11, 9:42, 9:38)
Fr - Off
Sa - 17.3 miles (2.2 wu, HM race, 2.0 cd)
Su - Off
TOTAL: 29.0 MILES

Half marathon was yesterday, full marathon three weeks from today. Counting warm-up and cool-down, I logged some decent mileage yesterday, and hope to schedule one more longish run before the marathon.

I'll post a race recap later. Official results still aren't posted, but I have all my splits.

Run well.

M38, 5’10”, low 160s

Upcoming
10k - 5/15

Road bests | 2022
5k - 15:20 (2006) | 16:14 (CB split)
10k - 31:15 (2008) | 32:51 (CB split)
10M - 51:52 (2009) | 53:41 (C Blossom)
Half - 1:09:01 (2009) | 1:12:07 (RnR DC)
Full - 2:25:14 (2019) | ∅

Mo: 8 @ 6:42
Tu: 8 @ 7:33
We: 8 @ 6:52
Th: 8 @ 7:36
Fr: 8 @ 6:31
Sa: 8 @ 7:49 rainy trails
Su: 8 @ 7:29

Total: 56 miles

Totally unprepared for the 10k next weekend lol.

The turkey that chased me a couple months ago is getting pretty famous:

apple.news

A Wild Turkey Is Attacking People in D.C. Multiple Agencies Are in Pursuit. — The Wall Street Journal

The Wall Street Journal

More than half a dozen agencies have assembled to cage the wily bird; ‘Turkey Interview Talking Points’

Link:apple.news/AUrwBleVDTcyoFi78pxIPKA

M 24 6'0" 165lbs
PBs - Mile: 5:05 (1/22); 5k: 18:06 (1/22); Half Marathon: 1:24:42 (3/22)
Race Calendar: 5/29 5k race; 6/11 10k race; 6/24 Mile race; 7/24 5k race

M - 5.1 mi @ 8:18 / 9 mi hike

T - 7.25 mi @ 8:43

W - 4.05 mi @ 8:12

R - 8.07 mi with 2 x 3200 (2:00), 2 x 400 (1:30) (12:07, 11:57, 75, 74)

F - 6 mi @ 8:00 treadmill

Sa - 3.13 mi @ 7:39

Su - 11.01 mi @ 7:22

Total: 44.5 mi

Male, 32, 5’8”, 150 lbs.
PRs: 2:14, 4:51, 17:17, 36:17, 1:19:48
Upcoming races: Rochester Mile on 5/21, road mile on 5/27, 800s in June/July/August

M - 6.1 @ 7:59 with 8 strides
T - 2.0 up, 5 sets of 200, 200, 400 (35-37 and 70-73) with same distance jog, 2.1 down, push-ups
W - 3.9 @ 8:09, 2 set of 5 x 40m sprints (6.19-6.35), 60m in 8.62 (2:30 between reps, 5:00 between sets), plyos
Th - 2.2 up, 8 x 400 (75, 72, 72, 72, 73, 72, 72, 68) with 400 jog, 2.2 down, pull-ups
F - 5.4 @ 8:16 with 8 strides
Sa - 5.7 @ 8:35
Su - 13.0 @ 9:31 (trails, 2,100+ ft. elevation gain)

Weekly Total: 52 miles
YTD Total: 909 miles

I had a good workout on Thursday. 72s felt nice and controlled. I also took another crack at the tough trail half-marathon course, shaving 5 minutes off my time from last week (which improves my score in my running club's summer-long challenge). It's a nice change of pace to run through the woods, but it's antithetical to my 800 training so that was the last time I'll run that course.

Half Marathon recap

The morning dawned sunny, which was nice. The sustained winds at 18 mph and gusts well over 20 -- not so nice.

I arrived early, picked up my race number, and pinned it onto a long-sleeve shirt. In the past, if it was above freezing, I would opt for just a singlet, but I was worried about being too cold (wind + 40 degrees + old-man shuffle pace = uncomfortably cold?). Decisions, decisions.

I left my race kit in the truck, took the key off the ring, locked the truck, and headed out for a 2-mile warmup: From the finish line to the 12-mile point and back. I went to unlock the door. Uh oh. Wrong key -- wife's Subaru key, not my Toyota key.

Wallet, phone, race number were all locked inside. What to do?!

In the truck bed I had a few wood scraps, including shims. It took 30 minutes, but I was finally able to unlatch the sliding rear window by driving multiple shims to torque the window inward. Whew! But only 8 minutes to start time.

Sweating, I changed my mind about the long sleeves, re-pinned the race number, waited in line at the port-a-john, gave up there and ran to a park restroom, then raced back to the starting line (barriers set up, so I had to jump in way at the back) just as the gun went off.

For a half mile, I frustratingly shuffled along with the baby strollers and heavyweights on a narrow park road. Eventually, I was able to accelerate to a blistering geezer pace. Ha! There was a tailwind here, and I wanted to take advantage of it.

Mile 1 -- 7:39

-------------------------------

The next few miles we were buffeted by cross-winds. I knew the real headwinds were coming, so I ran pretty hard to put some time in the bank.

Miles 2-4 -- 7:34, 7:34, 7:33

-------------------------------

The path turned, and the headwinds came. We were approaching the turn-around, so the runners ahead were racing back toward us. "My race" is the M60-64 age group, so I watched for fellow-geriatrics. So far so good; everyone appeared youthful. But the winds were brutal.

Miles 5-7 -- 7:44, 7:48, 7:49

-------------------------------

After the turn-around, we had a nice tailwind for a couple miles. From behind, a geezer pulled up alongside me: Now it was a race!

Miles 8-9 -- 7:42, 7:39

-------------------------------

Back to dealing with cross-winds, my fellow-geriatric slowed a bit. I was still feeling quite strong, but not super-confident. I decided to stay with him at the slower pace, and count on a finishing kick.

Miles 10-12 -- 7:48, 7:56, 7:48

-------------------------------

The last mile was directly into the head-wind. With three-quarters of a mile to go, I accelerated, and pulled quickly away. I maintained that pace into the headwind -- didn't want the geezer to reel me back.

Mile 13 -- 7:24, then :47 for the final tenth mile.

-------------------------------

Average pace was 7:40. My goals were sub-8 pace and first-place age group. I achieved the first, but apparently one of those "youths" ahead of me was a particularly well-preserved relic. I swear I hadn't seen any oldsters ahead of me!

Just now as I write, the official results have been posted. The M60-64 winner was just two places ahead of me. 18 seconds! I recall him now. He looked about 38. He passed me at about mile 8. Aargh. I shouldn't have run "easy" with the other old guy.

So, I had to settle for second place M60-64. And also accept the fact that I have slowed more than a minute per mile in just three years. Oh well. Still a good day.

Next up: 26.2

Good racing! Sorry you missed the AG award. Age-guessing is an underrated racing skill. And nice job having the presence of mind to figure out how to get your bib out of your locked truck!

Ha! A lesson learned today.

The results show "gun time" only, not "chip time." The AG winner's gun time is EXACTLY the net time I have on my watch. Funny! There's no doubt he won, but I wonder how close it really was. It took me 18 seconds to reach the starting line -- hard to imagine he started BEHIND me, but who knows. Dunno why chip time isn't listed. That's usually how AG placing is determined.

Your middle-distance aspirations are very cool. Will be fun to see how you do. I'm curious about the philosophy behind the long recoveries during the 400 repeats. Focusing on form? Locking in 4:48 pace?

M, 36, 130lbs, 5’8

Mile TT, 4:51 Aug 2021

HM (first ever race) 1:20.46 Oct 2021

Fairly new to running, been at it since June 2020 and got completely hooked.

Coming off a little injury/ little build up in April and just starting my block for some races this summer. 5K June, 10K in July

M: Rest

T: 15KM, 4:31 avg

W: 7 x 1KM [2:00] 3:27, 3:30, 3:30, 3:25, 3:25, 3:26, 3:26 - 16KM

T: 10KM, 4:28 avg

F: 10.5KM, 4 strides

S: 3 x 3”,2”,1” [1:00] 3mins between sets

3:28, 3:24, 3:14/ 3:22, 3:24, 3:05/ 3:27, 3:14, 3:10 - 15.35KM

S: 13.11KM, 4:35 avg

80 KM’s

Aiming to peak at 115-125KM, most probably singles because of obligations with work.

Hoping for high/low 16’s in the 5K and high/low 34’s in the 10K as i’ve never raced either of those distances before.

Great thread, been following it for a few weeks and finally decided to participate. Seems like a friendly/diverse bunch of runners!

Pardon my ignorance, is there a way to be notified when the new weekly thread is posted?

Allen - that sounds stressful having to break into your own car as you're scrambling to get ready for a race! Sounds like you still had a pretty good day and I hope you get that guy next time.

Main event was the race this week so I'll just type out some highlights here.

Did kind of a mini-taper this week since I had to recover from my 10K last Saturday to run a track 5K on Friday. So the total mileage was only 31, which I think is my only week under 40 all year! Only did one workout which was on Wednesday - 1200 @ 5K pace, then 2x2x300 followed by 3x200, all at a "fast but relaxed" pace. the 300s were all 50 or 51 and the 200s were 33 or 34. Fastest I've gotten the wheels moving in a very long time!

I wish I could say that the light mileage and workout had me feeling sharp for Friday but that was not the case. Probably a few factors going on

- sudden steep increase in temperature (it was over 70 during my race while the vast majority of my training the past few months has been in <50)

- lack of recovery from last Saturday (I think it takes me at least a week to recover from races these days)

- probably didn't eat enough the day of. I like running twilight races but it does make it harder to figure out the food. I had it down in high school but that was a lifetime ago!

Anyway, it was finally a beautiful sunny day and it was good to be outside at a track meet. Big nostalgia feelings. I thought I was in shape to run <16:30 so I wanted to try to run even 5:15s. Was 5:12 through 1600 and actually feeling pretty good. By lap 6 or 7 I was dying hard and started doing a lot of 82 or even 83s. I was just struggling. I got passed by one guy but passed one or two others through the rest of the race, so everybody kind of a had a rough day out there I think. Final time was 16:46. Very frustrating to run 1 second slower than I did on April 2nd after all the hard work I've been doing on the track since then. I've got a very fast and competitive road 5K coming up on Memorial Day so hope springs eternal for a better day there.

Solid, 3rd to last week before my marathon.

M34, 5'10, 160?
PR of note: 2:56:53 (Bay State Marathon '19)

M: 5.8 @ 8:24 on Trails
TU: 5.9M @ 7:47 on Bridle
W: 6.4 ft 4x1,000,1x800 with 75 seconds rest. Splits were 3:38, 3:34.9, 3:37.5, 3:40 and 2:56. Breaking in new workout shoes (Adios 6), which I liked as a slightly more forgiving successor to the Boston 8 and a value at $84.
TH: Hiking Day for me, celebrating fiancee's birthday. Covered around 12 miles total walking.
F: 5.9M @ 7:13. Didn't have to push, and ran pretty quick anyhow after an 8:15 first mile.
SA: Unplanned day off from running with a complete windy monsoon. Subbed in 45 min indoor bike ride.
S: 13.9 @ 6:57. Good, quick long run on a rolling route (Central Park Loop and bike path/going to Riverside Park). Wasn't aiming for anything really but splits went like so: 4 miles @ 7:15, 4 miles @ 7:01, 2.1+ miles @ 6:48 (despite a big hill getting back to Central Park), 3.4 controlled pickup back in the park (6:30 pace). Last .4 easy at 7:35 pace. Tried to do this like OR talks about with complete control especially on the pickup. The fact that I was completely feeling easy and relaxed and did the whole 3.4 without considering stopping it short or worrying I was going too fast was great.

Overall: Little under 40 miles running with some hiking/biking. Feeling very good for MV Marathon, but as always gonna be that last 10K. Encouraged how easy sub-6:50 pace today felt, though.

Hi everyone!

Male, 28, 6'2", 194
PRs: 800m: 1:56 (2011), mile: 4:21 (2011), 3k: 8:49 (2012), 5k: 16:45 (XC, 2013)
Short term goals: Lose weight, strengthen the joints, avoid injury, build up mileage, have fun
Long term goals: sub-3:00 marathon
Upcoming races: Wells 2 Kennebunk Beach 10 miler (5/22), Luv 2 Run Portland 5k
(6/12), On The Run Half Marathon (9/24)

Week of 5/2/22-5/8/22

Monday: 2.8 (8:46) + easy lift
Tuesday: 7.1 total, workout: 2.1 up, 3 x T mile w/ 60 sec rest (6:41, 6:41, 6:35), 2.4 down
Wednesday: XT + easy lift
Thursday: 8.2 total, workout: 2 up, 6x T K w/ 60 sec rest (did this on the treadmill, so I actually just did 0.65mi intervals to break it up more easily), 2 down
Friday: Off
Saturday: 4.3 (8:28)
Sunday: 12 (7:39) w/ 5 x 1'/1' at around 30 min in
Weekly mileage: 34.4 miles

A consistent week! Both of my workouts were on the treadmill this week, which is helpful for keeping my pace under control. It's been so long since I've done workouts that my sense of pace is completely gone. My body is definitely getting used to this amount of miles, which is nice. Still not planning on really bumping it up for a while.

Have a good week everyone!

F45
This year's race results: Cherry Blossom 10M (1:17), Boston Marathon (3:47)
No upcoming races scheduled; maybe a fall something or other

I took two weeks off running after Boston, for a physical recovery and an emotional refresh. I did a little weekend bike riding in between, which was fun but my legs were definitely still deep-down tired. By last Monday I really felt like running again. I kept everything pretty short and (mostly) just ran what felt comfortable for this first week back at it. HR seemed a little high but in the past it has been so after taking a little time off, plus it was quite a bit warmer than when I was running a few weeks ago. So I'm not very concerned about that, as I'm sure it will come back down over the next week or two.

Mo: 4mi (pace was relatively fast though I didn't feel like it was. Legs and brain were just ready to go I guess.)
Tu: 5mi, some hills that felt draggy (after a weekend of hilly biking, not surprising).
We: 4.5mi, rolling route, quads felt stiff and I ran the first couple mi way harder than necessary because I passed a guy who then sped up just enough to not drop farther back, and while he wasn't right on my heels he was close enough that I could hear his keys jingling and that pushed me faster than I meant to run even as I told myself to cool it. After 2 mi he quit and I got a grip and backed off. Legs felt tired at the end of this.
Th: 5mi, legs felt better.
Fr: 5mi, started running in the morning again. It was cloudy and damp but the monsoon hadn't started yet and overall I just felt very, very good.

Total miles: 23.5, easy does it.

I did not run over the weekend, due to the execrable weather on Saturday and it wasn't very nice Sunday either and since I don't feel like I have to run right now, I didn't. I'm going to take some vacation over the next week and a half and will have plenty of time to get miles in as I wish.

Allen: I've had a handful of races where something goes awry before the startling line and the added stress of being rattled can be hard to overcome -- but yikes, good job persevering after locking yourself out of your car!! And nice racing on a less than good weather day.

Male, 26, 5’9", 130lbs
PRs: Half Marathon: 1:17:53 (2021), Marathon: 2:45:23 (2021)
Next Races: June 5k
Future Goals: Sub 1:16 HM, Sub 2:40 Marathon, Sub 17:30 5k

Some fartleks on Wednesday and a long run Saturday morning. Just same old.

Monday PM Run: 3 Miles - 8:36
Tuesday PM Run: 12 Miles - 7:19
Wednesday AM Run: 5 Miles - 7:57, PM Workout: 9.7 Miles = 3 Up (7:13), 8x1 on (5:37, 5:32, 5:29, 5:31, 5:24, 5:29, 5:29, 5:20) / 1 off (7:12, 7:17, 7:29, 7:23, 7:18, 7:22, 7:27), 1 down [solo] (7:11), 3 down [fleet feet] (8:02)
Thursday AM Run: 12 Miles - 7:24
Friday PM Run: 8 Miles- 7:54
SaturdayAM Long Run: 15 Miles- 6:54
Sunday AM Run: 12 Miles - 7:18

Nice racing, Allen. That is brutal with the car. Keeping yourself under control the first mile is impressive there. Looking very good for the marathon coming up, and looks like your racing instincts were pretty much perfectly tuned in this one (albeit the young-looking 60-year-old pulled a fast one on you.).

Wanted to pop in quickly and congratulate my pal Allen. Great job--7:40 avg. is nice...sets you up well for the marathon.

My 5k ended up being a no-go. I decided to sit it out. My left hip has been a little bothersome and plus it was pouring rain that morning. Was not looking forward to warming up for 2-3 miles, getting soaked, and then risking the hip some up and down those hills. So, I played it conservatively and sat it out.

Got 4 runs and 37 miles for the week. Also, I felt crummy in my runs all week, too...

Well, sh!t. I broke my toe. It must have happened yesterday when I tripped on a root. At the time I thought I had just stubbed it really hard. It was swollen and sore again today, so I went to a walk-in and got some x-rays. Diagnosis: an evulsion fracture on the distal phalanx of my right big toe.

Oh well. I'll start training again when I can. Last time I had a major injury I went from no running at all to a mile PR in just 3 months. None of my PRs are that soft anymore, but there will be a comeback and if I'm patient I will get into PR shape again.

Re: Allen's question about the long rests. I was doing Jack Daniels R pace workouts which are meant to improve running economy. When doing them I try to focus on relaxation and form.

Allen- Way to overcome a hectic start to your race.

M49 160cm(5'3") 54kg (120lbs)

Upcoming Race: Gimhae Mountain 10km ( 5km up and 5km down the mountain)

Another good week of training after a long injury-filled layoff. Hopes for a sub 37 minute 10km this summer are not totally quashed, but just want to take it one week at a time.

Mon: 8.1km @ 4:53/km

Tues: 12.3km total. Was supposed to be 5 x 1km at the track with 1 minute rest, but after a 20 minute warm up I started my first rep and at the 600 meter mark a group of students who had been in the stands lined up on the homestretch. I paused my watch and headed to the adjacent dirt baseball field and continued. After the first rep I went to a 2 minute walking rest for the other reps. Ended up going 3:29/3:31/3:33/3:28/3:32 for the kms. 20 minute cooldown to end. The ground was a little muddy and I only had my watch to know the distance, but I felt good. It was nice to get the legs moving at sub 6:00 min/mile pace. First track session in 3 and a half years.

Wed: 8.05km @ 5:07/km

Thurs: 6.5km @ 4:53/km

Fri: 7km @ 4:45/km with 3 200 meter uphill repeats.

Sat: 8.1km @ 4:40/km

Sun: 10.5km @ 4:40/km

Week Total: 60.4km

Also had 110km on Zwift with a 25km "race" on Sunday.

Male, 28, 6’4”, 151 lbs
PRs: 4:54 Mile, 16:56 5k
Races - 5/19 gravel 5k, 5/29 Open Water 1mi swim

Mn - AM: Swim 3500 yd, PM: 5 @ 8:20s
Tu - OFF
Wd - 3x1600 + WU/WD = 8.25
Th - AM: 4 @ 7:15s, Swim 3000 yd, PM: 8 @ 7:25s
Fr - 7 @ 7:40s
Sa - 5k in 18:18 + WU/WD = 8.5
Su - 9 @ 7:45s

Total Run - 50 mi
Swim - 6500 yd

Tu - 5:27 5:27 5:30. Pleasant surprise in capability, I guess being tapered all the time has its advantages
Sa - 18:18 for 3rd, rain and wind plus a course with ~170ft elv. Lost to two high school kids. Wife was first female, net $225 between us. Combination of covid and weather kept the numbers way down.
General - Some knee pain recently (cause of Mn/Tu low mileage). I think it is from tight legs and have been doing some drills and rolling to avoid it. I also bought new shoes monday and have been using them all week. Between those two changes I've been ok since mid week. Would like to get a little more mileage out of the old shoes so I'll risk it soon. Planted our container garden sunday, kale green beans and peas.