Bill Rodger's training log is insane

144 laps around the indoor YMCA track takes some serious balls.

There are stories about a lot of the Japanese marathoners doing similar stuff. I used do something similar, where my main running route was a mile loop. Doing that really helps just being able to turn off your mind and grind away in races.

I have never seen anything like this, the monotony would kill me.

Ed Whitlock used to do 3hr runs around a 500m loop cemetery near his home. He didn't time them, just looked at the clock as he left the house, and no music either. Sometimes it is what it takes mentally to be good - just turn your mind off and get it done - alone.

20 Miles per day, every day that he ran. A real human taking days off for soreness, being lazy, or just not giving a f^ck. Love it.

It's a nice place to run (granted it might've been a bit different in the '70s). Sort of rolling and twisty with a fair number of trees, so it's not quite as boring as Boston's other reservoir paths.

I've seen Rodgers's training logs before, and I've always been puzzled how after some runs he adds the notation "1 later," such as "18 miles in 2 hrs, 1 later 19 total."

Anybody know what this means? Does that refer to a cooldown jog, or was he doing a separate session with an additional 1 mile run? (It seems odd for someone of his level to even bother running just one mile). He even has the "1 later" sometimes added after both runs of a double session day.

endless jamacia pond loops wrote:

Just started reading through the training logs of bill rodgers (

http://bobhodge.us/bill-rodgers-1973-training-log/#january

) and all he seems to do is laps around the 1.5mi jamaica pond. this guy is insane

We were tough like that back then.

When you're doing loads and loads of miles the question of where to do those miles can become an issue. One way of dealing with it is to find a place you like and just keep running around it. Benji Durden said he would do three hour runs on loop that took three minutes to run. No need to keep thinking about where.

1 Later? wrote:

I've seen Rodgers's training logs before, and I've always been puzzled how after some runs he adds the notation "1 later," such as "18 miles in 2 hrs, 1 later 19 total."

Anybody know what this means? Does that refer to a cooldown jog, or was he doing a separate session with an additional 1 mile run? (It seems odd for someone of his level to even bother running just one mile). He even has the "1 later" sometimes added after both runs of a double session day.

In his book he talked about his first hundred mile week. He was in bed, ran 99 miles, but got out of bed just to run 1 mile to get to 100.

Four Bostons, four New Yorks, ranked number 1 in the world. Ran sub-2:10 over 40 years ago, with junk shoes, junk clothes, and on a crummy diet...and when very few were running 2:10 or better. And no magic shoes. And much, much more. All of this = the greatest American distance runner ever.

The beast of all American beasts.

Corn pop wrote:

144 laps around the indoor YMCA track takes some serious balls.

Never did 144.

I ran 20+ lap repeats on indoor tracks before. Really not that bad. The tracks are super short.

And regular routes definitely end up happening when you train a lot.

And he's still out there. I usually get to see him a couple of times a week, depending on the time I can take a stroll. My coworkers I stroll with have absolutely no clue who "the old guy" is. I can't think of a comparison, Babe Ruth is to baseball, maybe.

AT THESWOOSH wrote:

20 Miles per day, every day that he ran. A real human taking days off for soreness, being lazy, or just not giving a f^ck. Love it.

No need to embellish.

He moved somewhere in CA at one point. Decided he didn't like it, wanted his Jamaica pond loops and moved back. I'd go insane. I think a lot of Japanese runners do real short loops though.

You really get the feeling that the guy just loved to run, and to race.

Littleton walker wrote:

And he's still out there. I usually get to see him a couple of times a week, depending on the time I can take a stroll.

He is still out where? Jamaica Pond? How many miles a week does he run (jog) now?

I can't think of a comparison, Babe Ruth is to baseball, maybe.

I don't think Ruth is a good comparison, regarding the length of their careers/activity.

bernies. wrote:

Corn pop wrote:

144 laps around the indoor YMCA track takes some serious balls.

Never did 144.

I ran 20+ lap repeats on indoor tracks before. Really not that bad. The tracks are super short.

And regular routes definitely end up happening when you train a lot.

I've done multiple 10 mile runs on a 1000ft track (50+ laps) suspended over some indoor soccer fields because of the winters where I live. The only time it was bad was when it was late at night and absolutely dead so all I could hear were my feet hitting the ground. Just have to get in the zone and enjoy how many laps you've done.

When ships were made of wood and men were made of iron wrote:

endless jamacia pond loops wrote:

Just started reading through the training logs of bill rodgers (

http://bobhodge.us/bill-rodgers-1973-training-log/#january

) and all he seems to do is laps around the 1.5mi jamaica pond. this guy is insane

We were tough like that back then.

When sex was safe and motor racing was dangerous