Quest for OT marathon qualifier

honestly.... you should get after a fast 10k first.... with that 3k/5k speed i'm wondering why you "only" ran 32:32.

that tells me you dont have endurance. though maybe you just never had the opportunity to run a 10k up to your potential.

regardless, take your time before you move up, and get after like a 31:00 10k this spring.

goodluck!

Damn what college did you go to?

I went to a D1 program that's consistently been top-10 the last few years. By the time I was showing any signs of speed, the coach didn't want me.

And yeah, that 10k was mostly a solo run on the roads this December and I won by over a minute. Planning to race a number of 10ks and half-marathons through the next year, see how fast I can get at those.

72 miles this week, first time over 70 in more than a year. Included one 6 mile run in 36:10 and one 4 mile tempo in 20:47.

So you complain about talented people who are lazy, but you're talented enough to run 4 miles in 20:47 without training more than 70 miles per week in a year? Pot, kettle. Kettle, pot.

You need to increase your mileage and build up a big base. A 1:05 half is 4:57 per mile, if you can't hit that pace for a 10k, you're a long ways off. You probably need to build up to 100+ a week to stand a chance.

Another dreamer here too, but I'm a lot farther off than you.

I never ran competitively in my life, graduated college last year, stopped drinking and started running about 30-40 miles a week. First race ever this month: 10k in 33:56.

No plan, no coach, no nothing. How many years would it take to get in 1:05 shape? A decade?

What's the strategy from here on out? Train consistently and log as many miles as I can?

My job is easy--I will have the time and I have the drive.

edumacator wrote:

So you complain about talented people who are lazy, but you're talented enough to run 4 miles in 20:47 without training more than 70 miles per week in a year? Pot, kettle. Kettle, pot.

I'm talking about guys who run competitively in college and then "retire" once they're out. You think Ryan Hall is the only 4:00 miler out there with innate marathon ability? It's a joke that we don't have more guys running fast marathons in the US. And so I'm posting my own progression, partly for my own entertainment and partly to show that your typical, run-of-the-mill high schooler can qualify for the Olympic Trials.

And that's what I was. I trained 60 mpw and placed 44th at my state XC meet. The snapshot of my training I gave last week is 2 years in the making. I figure I've got 2 more to go before 2:19 is within reach.

That's not a bad 10k for your mileage. My training plan has been gleaned from various running gurus and is pretty simple. I think you would benefit from it:

1) Work very slowly up to 80 mpw and stay there for a few months.

2) Add in some faster paces when you get up around 60 mpw. Renato once gave a chart like this and I've found it helpful:

20-30 km at 70-80% of 10k

20-35 km at 85-90% of 10k

15-25 km at 90-95% of 10k

He says to vary betwen tham and do one kind or another every other day. I do one 2 or 3 times a week since I'm paranoid about injury.

3) After a month or so of that, add in a tempo run once or twice every two weeks. 20-25 secods slower than 5k pace has always been the guideline I've followed.

4) Hill sprints. Once or twice a week.

And that's as far as I've thought it out. I'm following this for the next several months and seeing where it leads me.

Here's the thing: you're still young. Maybe 22-23? Don't set your sights on 2012, when you will be 25-26 years old. Set your sights on 2016---2015 is when the OT will be. That will make you 28 or 29 years old---peak age. Right now you should focus on developing speed, while you still can. Stick between 75-100 mpw, depending on what phase of training you're in. Go after PRs from the 800-5000. Try to get that mile to 4:18 or better and get that 5k to sub 14:30. Both of those are very doable at your age, with the right training. After a couple years of really tuning up in the short distances, start working on that mileage. Get to the point where a 100 mile week is easy. You easily have the talent to be a sub 30 10k, from your description at least. Go after the mileage for a couple of years after getting that speed. 140mpw is where it's at for peak marathon training in my opinion. Then get after it and qualify.

peak age 28-29? Tell that to Andres Espinoza running 2:08 at over 40.

Peak age for the marathon is going to be 30-32.

N.. wrote:

peak age 28-29? Tell that to Andres Espinoza running 2:08 at over 40.

Yes, the marathon is dominated by 40 year olds. Moron.

haha, YO wrote:

N.. wrote:

peak age 28-29? Tell that to Andres Espinoza running 2:08 at over 40.

Yes, the marathon is dominated by 40 year olds. Moron.

SHUT UP HAHA, YO. NOBODY LIKES YOU AND YOUR POSTS ARE DUMB.

NEXT PLEASE

Agreed, 2015 is the OT I'm shooting for. Of course I wouldn't turn down 2011 if it offered itself, but I am a realistic dreamer.

Raced indoors last weekend. 75 miles for the week - ran a 4:26 mile and 9:03 3k. Not proud of it, felt like I was just going through the motions, but it is what it is. One the other hand, it's been a few years since I raced the mile, so give me a break.

Took some of my HS guys up to the meet and had some good performances. That's where the real talent is.

Ran my first 80 mile week this week. Included runs of 8 miles at 6:00 pace and 6 at 5:40. Finished up today by pacing some of my runners through a windy 4:35 1600m then running up a long, beastly hill on the outskirts of town.

I need to find a good track 10k to enter. I've searched high and low and apparently nobody runs them in the Pacific Northwest. I race 3k again in a couple weeks, but I'm getting tired of the short stuff. I'm really itching for a good 10k.

Are you training with high school kids or coaching them? I'd find a better group and focus on getting up your endurance and strength, not racing indoors and rabbitting teenagers through workouts.

To the OP: I think you should set some realistic short-term goals. sub 1:05 is way beyond you right now and for the foreseeable future. Guys who run 1:05 can run 29:xx. You need to first shoot for running sub 31 10K this year and then next year shoot for sub 30:30... gradual improvement. If you're able to eventually get under 30:00, then you can start to think about running 1:05.

The good thing is that you have enough time... 2015 is a long way off.

Agreed, although I'm not convinced sub-30 is necessary for 2:19. Maybe for 1:05, but not 2:19. Regardless, I'm fairly certain sub-30 is within reach.