Forums >Racing>2024 Advanced Training and Racing Thread (still competitive jerks)
Flavio - isn't it super annoying when you hit a great workout and wonder why that didn't happen on race day?
Dorothea - hope the Covid is not too rough.
mmerkle - one rough workout isn't the end of the world, especially if it was 400's for the first time in a while. I had my first decent workout for a couple weeks last week and that sucked also.
Dwave -sorry you had to skip Houston, but it sounds like the right call for you.
Dave - watch out, you'll set off a discussion about how easy should easy pace be lol!
Josh - honestly, quads aren't too bad thanks. My legs in general were pretty tired (and still are, a couple days later), but nothing specific. I think doing that trail series last winter really helped on that front, and I suspect the Endorphin Edge's also helped in the same way VF's help on the road. Hopefully that tempo workout was a confidence builder for you and if it was the first one in a while, I'm not surprised it didn't take too long before it felt like tough going.
MrMattM - no laughing here! It's all about putting the work in.
Steve - some Parkruns run bonus Xmas Day and / or New Years Day events, if those days don't fall on a Saturday (and they can get enough volunteers). So, we got a New Years Parkrun at Hobsonville Pt on the Monday, and the regular Saturday one at Western Springs. The Western Springs course is nice, definitely Hagley-ish but it's a 3-lapper since the park is a lot smaller than Hagley lol. Anyways looking at that hilly LR of yours, you've obviously built up some really good strength, your splits on the uphills were similar paced to the downhills so obviously you got into a nice rhythm.
mt79 - yeah you make a good point about being grateful for being able to get out there. I always remember one run a few years back, where I wasn't feeling amazing and got a bit dark about it, then ran past a guy with an artificial leg and that really put me in my place lol.
wcrunner - nice work!
3,000m: 9:07.7 (Nov-21) | 5,000m: 15:39 (Dec-19) | 10,000m: 32:34 (Mar-20)
10km: 33:15 (Sep-19) | HM: 1:09:41 (May-21)* | FM: 2:41:41 (Oct-20)
* Net downhill course
Last race: Runway5 / National 5k Champs, 16:22, National Masters AG Champ!
Up next: Still working on that...
"CONSISTENCY IS KING"
Hot Weather Complainer
Duh, of course, all the Park Runs here did the bonus ones too but my brain didn't compute that one of them was within the last week. Without checking my running schedule I wouldn't know what day it is at this time of year. Although sadly I have no problem with that this week, being back at work.
I hadn't actually noticed those splits being so consistent. On the up hills I just ran at the effort I usually do which ended up a bit quicker than previous Summit Road runs, and on the down hills I was very careful to keep the pace down - absolutely nothing to be gained by pushing down hill except sore quads.
5km: 18:34 11/23 │ 10km: 39:10 8/23 │ HM: 1:26:48 9/23 │ M: 3:34:49 6/23
2024 Races:
Motorway Half Marathon February 25, 2024 1:29:55
Christchurch Half-Marathon April 21, 2024 1:27:34
Selwyn Marathon June 2, 2024
Dunedin Half Marathon September 15, 2024
Part of TLC
Josh - Woah, speedy kiddo!
Well, it of course depends on who shows up and who is intended to run a certain race. Speedy? That's the boy who won the 800m he competed in on Saturday - 2:13,95 indoors is nice for a 14-year-old. The race he won on Sunday is part of a series in which it depends on your age which distance you have to race to have the chance to get full points for the win. In this case there was a 2K for the kids under twelve, a 4K for youngsters ages 12 to 15 and older people (W60+ and M75+, let's (not) talk about discrimination). The fastest runners had to race the 8K, where he would have placed 18th had he been able to hold his 4K-pace. But can only win against people who compete against you, right? Anyway, 50 points are in the bag for him.
Don't hurry - next AG will start 2026
Speed Surplus
Just two days late, here's last week. Between the track and the treadmill, I'm not exactly raking in the elevation gain 🤣
I don't count the hike, but 31 miles was my biggest post-surgery week by a hair.
The one-year anniversary of my injury is this Friday.
5:27 / 18:49 / 40:32 / 88:12 / 3:12
Darkwave: Are you crushing this one?
https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2024/01/strava-getting-burritos.html
strava segment
1600 - 5:23 (2018), 5k - 19:33 (2018), 10k - 41:20 (2021), half - 1:38:57 (2018), Marathon - 3:37:17 (2018)
Mother of Cats
Darkwave: Are you crushing this one? https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2024/01/strava-getting-burritos.html strava segment
I am not, sadly. That segment is a bit far from me. I was considering heading over, and then I noted that someone already has 319 attempts at it (it's a.19 mile long segment, so that's ~ 60 miles, plus the fact that you have to run back to the start from the finish. So I think I have to let that one pass.
Everyone's gotta running blog; I'm the only one with a POOL-RUNNING blog.
And...if you want a running Instagram where all the pictures are of cats, I've got you covered.
I'm sure Chipotle is happy you're going to continue to keep them in business.
I had another decent week. Finished a record streak of 17 days on Thursday (I love my rest days). Not feeling especially fast at the moment but definitely feeling strong. With a crazy trail adventure coming up next Sat and 4 weeks until my next HM road race that's probably about right though.
Not an 80%er
Here's my week:
M: 80'E
T: 80'E w 8x10s strides
W: 40'E
T: 90' w 3000m time trial in 11:24 (PR is 10:34, so yeah... 😖)
F: 70'E
S: 80'E w 6x30s pick ups
S: 2h10 Long run
PRs: 1500 4:54.1 2019 - 5K 17:53 2023 - 10K 37:55 2023 - HM 1:21:59 2021
Up next: some 800m race (or time trials)
Tool to generate Strava weekly
Flavio - You seem to be managing this "holding pattern" really well. You probably only need 3-4 weeks of marathon specific when you find your race.
My week - Pretty solid as I start to build the mileage. It's started getting quite hot which has made some workouts a bit more challenging. On Saturday I did a workout aimed at getting used to marathon pace on tired legs. By the third rep, 30 mins of MP, the heat was effecting me and it got quite hard in the last 15 minutes or so but I did manage to hold the pace. Up until then it has been very comfortable but the quicker block of 20 minutes sent my HR up and as I usually find in the heat, it doesn't come back down even at the slower pace. Strava said it was 17C which is ridiculous - the weather app told me it was 27C when I finished but it felt hotter than that, with high sun and no wind. I had 4 litres of fluid on both Saturday and Sunday and it didn't just pass through. Had one gel on the run (meant to have 2 but forgot to take one on the first recovery) and 700ml of electrolyte + carb drink. Given the conditions and fatigue, I'm pretty happy I could hold the pace all the way but I was getting very close to the line.
<caption>Weekly Grid</caption>
MMerkle - I'm actually entered in Salisbury, as that was my spring marathon until the Boston opportunity popped up. I'm sorry we won't get a chance to meet there.
Ah, I've been wondering if you were gonna try Salisbury again. Did I tell you the grass part isn't there anymore? It must have been a weird post-COVID year thing.
Steve Nice long run.
Flavio Sometimes you gotta get that first TT or race out of the way. Try again in a couple weeks and I'm sure it will be much faster.
My Week
Had to cut my long run short today because the IT band is acting up again. I'm really pissed now. I'm behind in speed and VO2 max, the 10 miler is gonna be here before I know it, and someone who I beat at Salisbury last year just ran a 2:47 at the Houston marathon. Seems like all of the people I follow on Strava who are close to me in ability are pulling away from me and I've HAD IT. Might take tomorrow off. Like Mark I'm on an abnormally long streak, 22 days as of now. I need a miracle here.
Mark - Fast week! All good things must come to an end.
Flavio - Nice steady miles, you will be ready to hop in a marathon cycle whenever you feel like it.
Steve - That's a great week. The heat really does take it out of you. I'm already dreading the return of warm weather. Usually happens in March here in my part of Florida.
mmerkle - Sorry you are struggling. Just looking at your log, it kind of jumps out that your high mileage runs are also your fastest. That's a recipe for feeling bad.
My update: 2024 has been super stressful and I've eaten and slept very poorly and I'm feeling a little run down, but not terrible. Somehow my weight has crept back to 176 from 173. I think it might have been the double and triple helpings of dinners and all the baked deserts over the holidays (read: It was DEFINITELY the dinners and deserts haha). Speaking of banged up, I'm not feeling too great either! Same mileage as last week, but ran easier as I was feeling kind of brittle. Until today. Went out for my run and it started sprinkling and it was supposed to pour in about 40 minutes.
Made a decision to try to get my first 5k time trial in and then jog home before the storm. My goal by end of January was sub 21:44 or sub 7/mile pace. I have never turned my phone to km before, that was trippy. The splits come so much faster and the mental math is easier. I was running into a headwind on the first 1/2 and wind on my back coming home. Anyway, these were the splits: 4:21, 4:22, 4:20, 4:16, 4:16. Finish time 21:35, so about 6:57 per mile. Satisfied with that.
5k goal by end of February sub 20:50. Still feeling kind of creaky, so I might not try for sub 6 min mile goal this month, but we will see!
Are we there, yet?
Tough week, partially because of the weather.
M: 3.3 miles easy run-walk, felt good for day after intervalsT: Rest
W: 4 miles total, 2 miles easy run-walk, 2 miles brisk walk; fighting the wind made running too much effort, also throwing me off strideT: 6.3 miles run-walk; Wednesday was supposed to be longer, added miles today to make up for cutting it shortF: 2.5 miles easy run-walkS: Rest, Friday was a struggle even though nominally a recovery day S: 2 miles brisk power walk; strong winds gusting to 40 mph / 65 kph made running almost impossible throwing me off stride
Weekly total: 18.1 miles / 29.1 km
03/09 - Livingston Oval Ultra 6-Hour, 22.88 miles
05/11 - D3 50K, 9:11:09 06/17 - 6 Days in the Dome 12-Hour.
WCRunner - do you not have access to a treadmill? Or just ethically opposed?
MT79- are you using your phone for splits instead of a watch? I would think that you would lose time just from having to pause your armswing to look at the phone.
Merkle - I'm sorry about the IT Band thing. Regarding other people advancing faster than you - training and fitness always follows a sine wave pattern. So they may simply be on a different part of the curve from you right now. Things can change quickly.
SteveChCH - I take it that your coach doesn't modify paces for the heat?
Flavio - the time trial is a starting line in the sand, not a permanent marker
Marky_Mark- a lot of solid work there.
Me:
34 miles running, 1 hour arc-trainer/step mill, and 4 hours pool-running.M: 90 minutes pool-running and streaming yogaT: 5 miles very easy (10:27) and weights/core. W: 7 miles very easy (10:14) (run with CK!) and streaming yogaTh: 5 miles very easy (9:31), an arc-trainer workout of 6x4 minutes hard/72 seconds easy plus 10 minutes cooldown on stepmill and injury prevention work.F: 90 minutes pool-running and upper body weights/core.Sa: 7 miles, including four gentle hills (about 1/4 mile up a 5% incline at a very relaxed effort), followed by 20 minutes pool-running and streaming pilates.Su: 10 miles mostly aerobic (8:51) followed by 40 minutes pool-running and leg strengthwork.
I started running again on Tuesday after taking my short break. My gait was a bit clumsy for the first day or two and then improved. The sciatica was a slight issue for the first five minutes of the first few runs, and then resolved. My hip feels MUCH more stable, and I'm generating a lot more power from that leg. My balance is also much improved on that leg (which is generally my really bad leg for balance). If skipping Houston means that I end up with a lot more power in my stride, then it will have been well worth it.
Highlight of the week was obviously running with CK. I gave him the tour of Georgetown, but failed to point out the Exorcist stairs. I also once again failed to get a photo.