The Chase: 6.2 miles in 35 minutes

tunguska

DogSlySmile wrote: »

Would you do that kind of session in place of 10K pace intervals? Or would ya add that into your week somewhere at the expense of a LSR?

You would do those 2 milers at 10k pace. Great session and a big confidence booster because if you can nail 3 x 2miles at 10k pace in training you're set for hitting your target in a race.

DogSlySmile

Build 2: Week 12

Mon, 6 Aug - DLR Bay 10k - 37:37 new PB

Tue, 7 Aug - 5m @ recovery pace on grass.

Wed, 8 Aug - Short Intervals. 1m warm up - 12x400m @ 5m/m with 200m recoveries. 1m warm down. Tough session. I know this is a beneficial session but I really havent got the patience to run that many hard laps... boring.

Thu, 9 Aug - 7m base/recovery run.

Fri, 10 Aug - 1m warm up - 3x2k @ 10k pace - 1m warm down. The plan was to do 5x2k but I was drained after 3 intervals. Its a fine line between pushing yourself and pushing too hard and I crossed that line a couple of weeks ago and paid for it. Trying to be a bit more sensible rather than just blindly following the manual.

Sat, 11 Aug - Pints pints pints pints

Sun, 12 Aug - Progression run. Found a nice 2mile loop in Kilbogget and did 2m @ 8m/m, 2m @ 7:30m/m, 2m @ 7m/m, 2m @ 6:45m/m, 2m @ 6:30m/m, and 2m @ 6m/m. This was surprisingly good fun, I usually cant stand doing laps! Think the fact that the pace kept changing kept it interesting. Total 13.1m in 1:34:16.

Total Running: 50m

Total Cycling: 24m

This was a good challenging week. Started it off with a new 10k PB, followed it up with some tough intervals and finished it off with a good progression run. Going to start running into work next week. Will probably only run 2-3 days a week and cycle on the days when I have intervals planned. Dunno if it will have any benefit? (1 run per day vs 2 runs per day). But it will definitely give me more free time. Weight 135lbs (-2lbs).

DogSlySmile

Tuesday - I usually take a rest day on Tuesday but I ended up getting the day off work so I decided to do some intervals that day instead. The plan was to do 12x400m @ 5m/m pace but I could still feel Sundays progression run in my legs during the initial four intervals so I changed this to a mixed intervals session. Ended up doing:

1.3m warm up
4x400m @ 5m/m,
1x2k @6m/m,
4x200m @ 4:40m/m, and a
1.3m warm down.

Not sure when my next race is, I missed the sign up date for the Frank Duffy 10mile I really enjoyed that race last year.

DogSlySmile

Friday - Long intervals. I've been struggling with the long intervals recently. I never really seem to feel ready for them or properly recovered from earlier sessions in the week, so I usually end up cutting this session short. I felt great this Friday though, I think the runs to work are giving me more recovery time, so I was determined to give the long intervals a good whack. Decided to do 5x2k @ 10k pace. It was tough but I completed the entire set. I miscalculated how long it should take me to run 2k so my times are 5-10 seconds slower than they should be.

Times: 7:09, 7:14, 7:12, 7:17, 7:14.

Side note: It still amazes me that with the acres upon acres provided for dog-walkers in Kilbogget park that they choose to walk on the f*cking running track!!!

cwgatling

DogSlySmile wrote: »

Side note: It still amazes me that with the acres upon acres provided for dog-walkers in Kilbogget park that they choose to walk on the f*cking running track!!!

Jaysus, that is brutal. Some people have no clue whatsoever.

Good sessions man.

KielyUnusual

Yea, it amazes me. I do some sessions on an old cinder track out in Kilbarrack. I don't understand the logic of taking your dog for a walk around a gravel track, surrounded by a massive park and in a whole city full of footpaths. They also seem to think it necessary to take the inside line of the track. Maybe they have the dog on a strict regimen of 1600m intervals.

DogSlySmile

KielyUnusual wrote: »

They also seem to think it necessary to take the inside line of the track.

This. And they dont take the hint, no matter how close you run passed them. Clowns.

DogSlySmile

Peak: Weak 13

Mon, 13 Aug - 3.6m AM 3.9m PM @ recovery pace

Tue, 14 Aug - Mixed intervals. 4x400m @ 5m/m, 1x2k @6m/m, 4x200m @ 4:40m/m

Wed, 15 Aug - Rest day

Thu, 16 Aug - 4m AM 4m PM @ recovery pace

Fri, 17 Aug - Long intervals. 1.3m warm up, 5x2k @ 10k pace, 1.3m warm down.

Sat, 18 Aug - 5.5m @ recover pace

Sun, 19 Aug - Progression run. 2m @ 8m/m, 2m @ 7:30 m/m, 2m @ 7m/m, 2m @ 6:45 m/m, 2m @ 6:30m/m, 2m @ 6:15m/m. Total: 13.2m in 1:40

Total Running: 51.5m

Total Cycling: 24m

A good week. I started doing my base/recovery runs going to and from work. Its been working out pretty well, I'm getting the same amount of miles on my legs but with more recovery time. Pretty happy with Fridays intervals, I know I can run 10k at pace now I just need to start lengthening the intervals. I found Sudays progression run very hard to pace (I blame the hangover), ended up running faster than I should have on most of the laps. Might do the IMRA charity race on Wednesday, this race was the first IMRA race I ever did so might be a good one to check the progress. Weight 134.8lbs.

DogSlySmile

IMRA Mountain Rescue Benefit Race

This was my first IMRA race for a while. Cycled up after work as its only about 4 miles to Ticknock. I decided to wear my road runners for this but I was regretting my decision as it rained a bit over the course of the day.

I was expecting everybody to sprint at the start before the trail narrowed but in the end I was the only one who went for it and I lead through that section and through the first car park. I got passed by 3 lads and managed to run shoulder-to-shoulder with Fionnuala Britton for about five seconds before she breezed past me. On the long climb to the cairn I passed one guy but was over taken by another. Things got a bit muddy for a minute but my road runners held up pretty well. My lack of downhill speed was exposed again on the long track to the finish. I wasn’t surprised that I was passed but I was shocked at how fast the guy built a big lead over me. Tried to push it on the smoother downhill sections and was nearly clothes-lined by a dog at one stage! Eased off toward the finish line and ended up in 7th place in 31:34 and a minute faster than last year. Did a nice 8 mile cycle home to clear the legs, I thought it done the trick but my quads are a little stiff still. I have 10k pace intervals planned for tonight so I dunno how my legs will react to fast running, but I've no time to really rearrange the schedule.

DogSlySmile

Friday - 3x2 miles at T pace.

My legs were still a bit stiff after the race so I decided pushing 10k pace would have been a bad idea, so I gave this T-pace session recommended by cwgatling a shot. It was a good session, I tried to play around with my stride (lengthen stride/less turnover/same speed). It went well, I seem to be working less to get the same pace. Just did 3x2miles, but I felt like I could have done more. Did them in 12:16-12:20 so a bit fast. Will try and build the reps over the next few weeks.

DogSlySmile

Peak: Week 14

Mon, 20 Aug - 4m AM and 4m PM Recovery to/from work

Tue, 21 Aug - Rest Day

Wed, 22 Aug - IMRA Mountain Rescue Benefit Race. 4m in 31:35. Finished 7th.

Thu, 23 Aug - 4m AM and 4m PM Recovery to/from work

Fri, 24 Aug - T pace Intervals. 3x2m times: 6:09, 6:08, 6:01.

Sat, 25 Aug - 7m recovery on the old Killiney Hill route.

Sun, 26 Aug - Long Intervals - McMillan 10k workout no. 2. 1x2m and 4x1m @ 10k pace. Times: 11:19, 5:37, 5:35, 5:40, 5:41.

Total Running: 46.7m

A decent enough week. I'm glad I got another race under my belt even if it meant I had to rearrange my week a bit. That race reminded me how much I like running hills so I dusted off an old hilly route that I hadnt ran in a while on Saturday. I had a threshold run planned for Sunday but I decided to give the McMillan workout a shot because I've been a bit inconsistent with 10k pace intervals so far. That session went well, it was gusty so didnt bother looking at the watch but I felt like I could have done another one at the end. My weight is down to 133.6 lbs (lowest yet).

Next week will be a test. I have a fair bit of overtime planned in work so the interval sessions will probably take a back seat to base pace runs. Maybe thats not the worst thing ever though as I do want to do a race on Saturday down in Roundwood.

wrstan

Sounds like you're gettig in some great consistency there DSS. Keep it up, but don't forget to give yourself a down/adaptation week every now and again to keep the legs fresh!

DogSlySmile

wrstan wrote: »

Sounds like you're gettig in some great consistency there DSS. Keep it up, but don't forget to give yourself a down/adaptation week every now and again to keep the legs fresh!

Ah cheers mate. I'm kinda taking a step back week this week, I wont be doing much speed work, just lotsa base miles as I have a race on Saturday. And I'll be doing a taper week in two weeks for another race. You any plans for races yourself?

wrstan

DogSlySmile wrote: »

You any plans for races yourself?

Ran the Longford half yesterday as my third target race of the summer. Ran a 5 min PB just getting in under the 90 minutes, so was pleased with that. No immediate plans, but will probably run a couple of local 5k's to consolidate my time and then do a month of fairly easy running before the cross country season. All the best for the weekend.

DogSlySmile

Nothing really much to report on this weeks running so far. Just been doing a lot of base-pace running in and out of work. Running to/from work is a real time saver, its just too bad intervals would be a bit tricky or I'd do all my running like this:D. I've racked up about 32 miles so far (mon-thurs). I'm doing a trail 10k race tomorrow, its supposed to be quite flat so a PB might be on the cards but it depends on how wet the ground is really.

Cant make up my mind if I want to do WAR Powerscourt, its a great race and I loved it last year but it would take time to recover properly from it and that would eat into my training plan. Also I havent cycled more than 10miles in one go in about 3 months, so theres no way I'd be beating my time from last year. Decisions decisions:rolleyes:.

DogSlySmile

Peak: Week 15

Mon, 27 Aug to Thur, 30 Aug - 32 miles of base running to/from work.

Fri, 31 Aug - Rest Day

Sat, 1 Sep - Roundwood Reservoir 10k.
This was a lovely scenic race. After a bit of a delay I started near the front and got among the leading pack in the early exchanging of places. I was told that the route would be flat so I tried to keep a good pace while trying to elongate my stride. I caught and passed a guy at the 2k mark putting me into 5th position. I forgot to set lap times on my watch but I went through 5k in 17:50. Noticing my time I thought I could be on for a PB if the second half was as flat. No such luck. There was a long drag on the road before the route returned to the trails. It really was a lovely place for a run I must come back some day for a ramble. After about 7k the trail got very tight with many twisting turns. I knew there was no chance of a PB at this stage but I tried to keep the pace up where I could. There was a long stretch where the course doubled-back on itself so I could see how far I was from 4th place and how much time I had on 6th. I really tried to up the pace in the last K but the route was just so tight and twisting I could never build any momentum. Crossed the line in 38:01 and 5th place. Happy enough with that. Its only 20 seconds slower than my PB which aint bad considering how tight some of the last sections were.

Sun, 2 Sep - 10m @ base. Very odd run. It was boiling that day but the first few miles were grand even though I took a very hilly route. I was knackered by mile 7 so made a b-line for home. The last mile, however, was a breeze I felt like I was barley trying to run but I was pushing 6:30m/m pace with ease. I actually felt like I was being pushed from behind

Total Running: 52.25m

A good week I suppose, weight is 132.2 (-1.4). Going through 5k in 17:50 was a big boost for the aul confidence as I felt I wasnt breathing/trying that hard and definitely felt like I could sustain that pace for another 5k. I've got another race in two weeks which is on a very flat course so I'll be hoping to build on that momentum and break 37 minutes for 10k. Bring it.

DogSlySmile

Tuesday - Short Intervals
After a warm up I did 4 sets of 4 x 400m in 76-80seconds, so 16 laps in all. Tough session. 1.5m warm down.

Thursday - Long Intervals - McMillan 10k workout number 3.
2 x 2 mile + 2 x 1 mile @ 10k pace. I am actually beginning to like these long intervals! Every time I do one of these sessions I feel I'm a bit closer to my goal 10k time. This was a hard session, I probably could have forced myself to do 3 x 2miles but I'd say I would have been over reaching. Times: 11:35, 11:33, 5:44, 5:46.

Looking forward to my next race now, but I'm not sure how to pace it. A part of me wants to go out at my goal 10k pace and see how long I can last before I have to ease off.

cwgatling

DogSlySmile wrote: »

Times: 11:35, 11:33, 5:44, 5:46.

Looking forward to my next race now, but I'm not sure how to pace it. A part of me wants to go out at my goal 10k pace and see how long I can last before I have to ease off.

Go for it; you're ready. What recoveries are you taking for that session.

wrstan

Sounds like you're really strong at the moment, following some of your recent outings on hilly courses and trail terrain.
I'd agree with cwg - go for it!
A tip though: make sure that you have the mental strength to recognise how you feel during the race and be prepared to recalibrate your goal if you need to.

DogSlySmile

cwgatling wrote: »

Go for it; you're ready.

:eek:

cwgatling wrote: »

What recoveries are you taking for that session.

Thanks man! Recoveries were probably a bit long at ~5mins each. I did a very slow lap of the track and some stretches in between intervals. I think McMillan recommends a 5min break between the 2mile reps and a 3min break between the last 1mile reps.

wrstan wrote: »

...
A tip though: make sure that you have the mental strength to recognise how you feel during the race and be prepared to recalibrate your goal if you need to.

Thanks, this is the bit thats worrying me as I'll be in completely uncharted territory!! It will be hard to know when I should ease off the pace if its hurting, 3miles? 4miles? But then again, I also want to know how hard I can push myself, I dont think I've done a race where I've crossed the finish line knowing I gave it everything I had. This all probably sounds a bit arrogant for someone who's running a charity 10k!!:D:o

wrstan

Lots of people will tell you it's not good to have a plan B going into an A race and that it is as good as an admission of failure when you need to make sure your confidence is rock solid, especially for an A race. I can understand that and I totally agree that it is important that you need to believe that you will hit your goal time, but I believe that self confidence has to be earned and for it to be rock solid it has to be based on some really solid training where you consistently hit your targets while feeling vibrant and strong. My personal opinion is that you shouldn't prepare a plan B, but it is good to have the mental strength to develop one mid race if you find you need to.

Indulge me with 2 recent examples

DLR Bay 10k: having just got under 39:00 in my previous 10k, I set sub39 as my target. I had been training well and consistently, but had no taper and in fact had one of my highest mileage weeks ever right up to the day before the race. By K3 I felt tired and anything but vibrant, and by K4 my pace was well off target and it seemed like I wasn't going to get near the 39. I had no plan B and mentally I threw in the towel well before the 5k mark, slowing my pace right down and feeling more miserable with every step. I finished just north of 42 and felt thoroughly crap. In my post race analysis I reckon that being off pace was a result of being thoroughly over cooked, however my real failure was not having the ability to recalibrating to a sub 40 target and then dig in and go for it. I reckon with the down hill on the second half of that route I would have made the revised target. I never at any stage had that inner conversation with myself to kop on and dig in and just work through the pain.

Longford Half: I had set a sub90 half as one of my main goals at the start of 2012 and this was my first half in a couple of years, my previous PB was 01:34. I made sure I was not over cooked and risked if anything being undercooked. I set out a race strategy and wrote my target 5k split times on my arm (never done that before!). Was bang on plan up to about 10 miles when I really started to feel the wheels start to loosen and could see my pace dropping below the target. This time I decided to dig in and reset my target to 1:30:xx. I had to do a fair amount of talking to myself to strive on. This time when I turned the corner onto Longford main St towards the finish line I could see the clock was at 01:28:xx and infact I crossed at 01:29:12 and a very happy man.

I reckon without the lesson learnt in DLR, I could well have thrown in the towell in Longford pretty soon after believing I was off pace. Giving myself a revised goal that I believed was achievable gave me the ability to grind my way through the pain of a 2-3 mile bad patch, and I hit my original target as a result.

Hope that makes some sense. Really sorry for hijacking your log once again:D

DogSlySmile

Thanks for the insights man.

I really do have a lot to learn about this running lark! I've never really been in that situation before where I had to change a goal time mid-race. But I suppose it will definitely happen in my next race as I will be going at a pace that I've never raced at before... One thing I've always given myself credit for, however, is how stubborn I am (its a good thing in running ). If I'm clinging to a position in a race/attacking a long hill/hurting badly etc., I can usually fight through it. But this next race will be very different because I will probably be hurting by half way so its gonna take new levels of stubbornness to get me through!!! But I'm prepared for the hurt, I've done 16 weeks of hard intervals so I know whats coming physically, but mentally its going to take a huge effort to keep going at pace. But I'm looking forward to the challenge, I want to see what I'm made of ya know?

DogSlySmile

Peak: Week 16

Mon, 3 Sep - Rest Day

Tue, 4 Sep - Short Intervals. 4 sets of 4x400m @ 5m/m pace.

Wed, 5 Sep - 8m to/from work

Thu, 6 Sep - Long Intervals. 2x2mile + 2x1mile @ 10k pace

Fri, 7 Sep - 8m to/from work

Sat, 8 Sep - 8m @ recovery/base pace on grass.

Sun, 9 Sep - T pace intervals. 2m warm up - 3x2miles @ 6:15 pace - 2m warm down

Total Running: 53.6m

A tough aul week - I'm knackered here writing this. All sessions went according to plan except for Sundays (a dirty head wind made it a harder session than it should have been). I did Saturdays and Sundays run on grass as I'm worried that I'm doing too much running on concrete/tarmac - I dont want to be picking up any niggles because of running on harder surfaces. My weight is 133lbs (+.8). I think I'll try and stay around this weight, wouldnt really hurt to be a bit heavier I suppose but I was never really trying to lose weight in the first place. Really looking forward to next weeks race, I've been psyching-myself-up during all my sessions this week, I'm ready to knock a big chunk off the PB. Dont know if getting towards 35:00 is a possibility but I'm gonna go out all guns blazing and give a good whack.

pconn062

Great week DSS, will be interesting to see how much all that 10k specific training pays off for you next week.

jfh

Sun, 9 Sep - T pace intervals. 2m warm up - 3x2miles @ 6:15 pace - 2m warm down.
a lot of quality there.
the above is a tough one, what kind of interval did you take between the 2 miles. good session & one i try myself, similiar pace.

DogSlySmile

pconn062 wrote: »

Great week DSS, will be interesting to see how much all that 10k specific training pays off for you next week.

Thanks pconn! Yeah I'm itching to know if all the intervals were worth it:p

jfh wrote: »

Sun, 9 Sep - T pace intervals. 2m warm up - 3x2miles @ 6:15 pace - 2m warm down.
a lot of quality there.
the above is a tough one, what kind of interval did you take between the 2 miles. good session & one i try myself, similiar pace.

Hi jfh, I tried this session on the advice of cwgatling. The plan called for a 10 mile run with 6 miles @ HM pace (~6:30m/m), but I couldnt motivate myself to do it so I did the above session instead . I didnt have a set rest period in mind for this session but looking at the garmin output I took 3-4mins rest between each interval. The idea is to increase the number of reps and pace of the intervals as your training progresses, but I've only picked up this session in the last couple of weeks and I'm liking it so far.

DogSlySmile

Tuesday - Mixed intervals.
This is a taper week so only did 7 miles in total. This included 2k @ 6:15m/m, 1 mile @ 5:37m/m, 2x400m @ 5m/m, and a 200m sprint (:33).

I'm toying with the idea of using the garmin pace-alerts in my next race. I've never used then in a race (or on any run, for that matter) before so I dont know if its too good an idea. On paper, it makes sense - if I slow beyond 5:40m/m an alarm will sound. But I'm beginning to trust the garmin less and less the more I use it. Might try it out on some slower runs this week and in intervals on Thursday before I make a decision.

wrstan

DogSlySmile wrote: »

I'm toying with the idea of using the garmin pace-alerts in my next race. I've never used then in a race (or on any run, for that matter) before so I dont know if its too good an idea. On paper, it makes sense - if I slow beyond 5:40m/m an alarm will sound. But I'm beginning to trust the garmin less and less the more I use it.

I would agree with your instinct on trusting the Garmin, especially in a race. I would think it is just not precise enough - especially at the speeds you're travelling at these days:D. The most important thing is to let it guide you but not distract you. Here's some things to consider:
The real time pace on the Garmin varies a lot - just check out the pace graph on GC, so if you're using that you might get more beeps than you're expecting, don't let them put you off.
If the garmin splits don't align with the course markers (in my experience they never do) then you can waste a lot of mental energy trying to work out which is right and whether you really are a couple of seconds off for that last split or not!

I usually usually try and set out a race plan outlining pace for different splits based on what I know of the course and how I typically feel at different points (e.g. the end of the 3rdQ and start of the 4thQ is always the toughest section for me!). Then I use the average lap pace reading to guide me, but I only use it as a guideline, combined with how I'm feeling at that point in time to assist me to decide when to push on or when to pull back a bit. I'm probably making it sound much more complicated than it is, had a red eye flight today and my brain is starting to shut down!

nerraw1111

Some solid sessions man! You'll smash the PB.

I'd be inclined to say go at your 10km target if it's not an A race. As you say, you could
be absolutely stuffed in a hill race but always find that bit extra to hold on. Could be worthwhile to see how far you can push it mentally. Sometimes the limiting factor is the mind rather than the legs. I find it harder to hang on on the road than a hill race.

That said, I'm always planning to do it myself but never have. And of course, hard to pass over a PB opportunity and run at your potential, and keep knocking the time down.

DogSlySmile

wrstan wrote: »

Here's some things to consider:

Thanks Bill, some good advice there (as always!). I tried to use the pace-alert thing this evening in an interval session. I dont think it worked. Well, it didnt make any sounds even when I was running slow so maybe I didnt have it set up right:(! I think a good approach might be to set the garmin to give me splits every half mile (or maybe even quarter mile?) to monitor my time rather than using the pace alerts. I might even try your write-the-splits-on-my-hand-approach:D

nerraw1111 wrote: »

Some solid sessions man! You'll smash the PB.
I'd be inclined to say go at your 10km target if it's not an A race.

Yeah I'm gonna go for it at target pace and see where I end up!:eek:!

nerraw1111 wrote: »

Could be worthwhile to see how far you can push it mentally. Sometimes the limiting factor is the mind rather than the legs.

Very true. This is definitely a journey into the unknown for me. I think I'm strong enough to get near 35:xx but its going to be a bigger challenge mentally as I know I'm going to want to slow down by 4 miles. But you'll never know what you're capable of if you dont push yourself once in a while!