ALAN WEBB: PLEASE GO BACK TO SCOTT RAZCKO

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someone else wrote:

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Are you rating the thread or your looks?

hiyooooooo!! sitdown mothaf***a!

MichaelMatthews wrote:

someone else wrote:

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Are you rating the thread or your looks?

Aren't you a clever one?

Mr. Matthews.

Given the lack of explanation for your statement, the response you received was most appropriate.

Would you care to elaborate on your position?

Welcome to a kinder and gentler LetsRun.

the clarifier wrote:

Mr. Matthews.

Given the lack of explanation for your statement, the response you received was most appropriate.

Would you care to elaborate on your position?

Welcome to a kinder and gentler LetsRun.

I do not have tons of stats to present at this time, but I will begin to gather all of his performances and maybe some interviews to show how his motivation and happiness has changed over time.

But, to make a general supporting statement. Webb performed great under Razcko. Left Razcko for college and sucked and was mentally chaotic. Went back to Razcko and made himself a legend. Left Razcko and appears to be as mentally restricted as when at college, and does not appear to be nearly the same runner. Not as powerful, not as muscular, not as happy.

Go back to Razcko, give him a year to get his balance back. Then give him another year to break 3:43 in the mile.

What about 2008? American record in 2007, yet1 year later can't even make the team? Webb was right to leave, but Salazar was not the best choice. He should have gone with Schumacher or better yet Li.

get a life

Webb has done well under Razcko, but Raz does not seem to have the ability to control Webbs attitude and discipline.

I think that problem lies in both of them, but together it wasn't a long term recipe for success.

Mr. Matthews,

Alan here. Seriously. Let me start by addressing the specifics you brought up in the above statement. Motivation has never been an issue for me. I am a runner, it's what I do. It's what I always want to do. Some people, certainly the frequenters of this board, have issues with my methods and constantly question everything about my training, performances, etc., but let me make one thing clear, motivation to succeed has never been an issue for me. I'm a lion. And this lion is always hungry.

Happiness? I was happier with coach Razcko? Happiness is a strange thing. Truth is, I am happy when I'm healthy and running well. I wasn't running well when I left VA, so I wasn't happy. It took me a while to get used to things out here in Oregon, and I suppose you could say that I wasn't happy. There are a lot of good guys out here to push me, though, and things are looking up. Have I run 3:30 yet under Salazar's training? No. But at least I'm running. At this point in my career, that's enough to make me happy, at least for a while.

I'm moving up. I'm finally starting to feel the 'fitness' that I once knew so well. No offense to the average letsrunner, but this 'fitness' is not something most of you guys are familiar with. It's not fitness you can achieve by getting a base in over a couple months. It's not something that you start to feel after a few weeks of hard workouts. Being in peak mile shape, especially under all this pressure, takes a whole different mindset. It takes focus. It takes time. Thankfully, being in this group in Oregon really makes it easier to settle down and focus on the little (yet important) stuff, like recovery, mechanics, and, yes, even nutrition. I'm doing well. I'm not overworking my body. For once, I'm taking the necessary time to get into shape, instead of pushing my body to exhaustion day in and day out. And in response to the 'not as powerful, not as muscular' comment, I'm actually enjoying my leaner physique, surprisingly. My legs feel just as strong; they just don't have to propel so much mass anymore. Then again, I can't do 45 pull-ups in a single set anymore either, haha! Worthy sacrifice, I suspect. We'll see how the rest of this season goes.

Closing remarks: I'm not going anywhere. You haven't even given me a chance here. Trust me, I'm just taking my time to get to the top again. That was my problem before. I thought everything had to be all out all day. That's what kept me hurt and unhappy. I know how people on message boards like this feel about me, and it doesn't bother me. In the end, I'm only responsible for me. I don't owe anybody anything. That said, I'm shooting for the top. And, to the haters, why don't you go for the record?

Thanks for the love,

Alan

Thank you Mr. Matthews. We now have the information to carry on an informed and civil discussion.

Life goes on at the k and g LetsRun.

For once I think it was actually Alan who posted. If it is I'm looking forward to what you can do this summer.

WINNING. He needs tiger blood and Adonis DNA. If he wants to be a b#tchin runner, he needs great strippers and expensive hookers. Neither AlSal nor Razcko is the drug he needs.

To the REAL Alan Webb:

Nicely played.

The REAL Alan Webb,

Let me begin first by saying thank you for the response, and hopefully you will consider participating in a conversation here with the jerks of letsrun, as I cannot think of a current elite runner that ever has. If this is not the real Alan Webb, damn fine job! Nicely done!

For the record, I haven't run in years. But I check back on this website for two reasons, to see if you or Ritzenhein have continued to improve your legacy. Hopefully this year, both of you break PRs and American records, prove all nay-sayers wrong, and confirm in your own minds that you are doing the right things.

the real alan webb has a point here - the same one the brojos have been making for a long time - that true fitness is built by linking seasons together - webb is trying to find a way to link seasons together, with some luck, peaking at london 2012.(again, with some luck if the iranians do boycott).

so carry on, alan webb, real or not - stay healthy and put a few seasons under your belt. ahem.

I'll participate. It seems like it's pro etiquette to steer clear of message boards like this, so I'm probably not going to reply to any other threads or anything. Plus, I'm not exactly a fan of all the negativity (especially when it involves me...obviously). But I will definitely do my best to answer any questions and just talk about how things are going. If things get ugly, though, I'm gone. I don't need the insults and negativity. Diet jokes, however, are welcome. I've always been a fan of those.

By the way, you'd be surprised how many of us pro guys occasionally visit this board (despite the etiquette).

Alan,

From what I think I know about you and your background. As a youngster you built incredible hip strength and explosiveness probably from what I read to be age group swimming. That and your genetics created an astonishing amount of speed. Following Scott Razcko's training, which is said to be modeled closely from John Cook's, you capitalized on explosiveness and faster running through low to mid mileage and drills. The training seemed to match your natural characteristics perfectly, and watching you race and seeing your results became an exciting hobby for many of us for years.

From what I saw of your results and from reading your book years ago, your training at Michigan was much different. As were your results. Impressive and aggressive racing from mid to long distances, and less than stellar 800s and miles.

Back to Razcko for the second time, it did take time, and you remained undercover for quite some time getting the chemistry back in order with the old training program. But again, the results were phenomenal. 1:43 and 3:46. Even the 8:11. Shit!

Now on to another coach with Alberto Salazar. It is safe to say that Salazar has never worked with a runner like yourself, with your speed and your range. I cannot say I, nor anyone else on this board, know much about his coaching methods aside from his gadgets, but I would assume it is very much different than the training that created your legacy with Scott Razcko.

Can you tell us some of the differences or similarities between the training you are doing now and the training you have done in the past.

Also. What other strength accomplishments did you have in the past along with your 45 pullups?

Stay at it Alan. i have been a big fan of yours since your high school years and enjoy watching your race anytime. Best of it in 2011 and beyond and congrats on the beautiful wife! Stay happy, stay healthy, everything else is a distant third!