Runner's Forum: The Official: Training Summary Start Up Thread

Over the weekend, I covered 12 flat comfortable miles around the downtown D.C. area, including some of the monuments.  The route included a 10K part of my upcoming marathon - the same part of the same marathon where I hit the wall four years ago.  It was great to get a practice run on that stretch of road, especially so I could learn the sightlines and not panic on a road that seems to go on forever. 

Getting excited for the fall season!

I just started running again this morning. I'm currently a Junior in High School, and I was in Track my Freshman year. However, I haven't done any sports (officially) since then, and I've hardly exercised at all. My friend just started using this site (mapmyride, actually) for his biking, and he told me about it. School starts Wednesday, so we decided that I'd run, and he'd bike, and out paths would cross every morning.

 

This morning was the first, and we actually timed it well, and passed each other. It was only a two-mile run, and I was exhausted during the second mile, but I'm just glad I ran again. I'm going to run every morning during the school year (which starts Wednesday), and hopefully I'll be in great shape by the end of the year. I really want to run the 2009 Chicago Marathon, so I have to start training now.

Also, would it be wise to buy a Marathon Training book?

 EDIT: heh, I'm so tired that, after re-reading my message, I realize that I repeated myself quite a few times. Oh well, I'll keep it as it is.

Ran 5.2 miles this morning - last run in Florida.  Will return to NY tomorrow and continue with my usual running schedule.

I did my 5 mile tempo run this morning and it did not go well! 27:14 which is about 5:25 pace, the last 2 miles i was struggling to hit 5:30 and last week I hit 5:15's and it felt so easy. I seemed to be a little more fatigued than the rest of the guys who still ran a little slower just not nearly as much. O well no worries, i got an easy 6miler this afternoon to rest up on.

Welcome Runihura good to see your getting back into running!

Gilly/Lex: Even Bekele hurts like the rest of us, it just takes 3 consecutive 4min miles to do it ;) 

kdogg - you certainly know your body and training regimen much better than the rest of us. Sounds like you think it is one of three things, mono, low iron or overtraining and you seem to be ruling out overtraining. Seems like a blood test would quickly differentiate between the other two. Keep in mind that studies have shown that moving is one of the most stress inducing things you can engage in, right up there with divorce or death of a loved one.

I did the first century ride of my life this Saturday, 102 miles in 6 hours. Felt pretty good until the last 25 miles. Dropped my speed to about 13.5 mph for the last 25 after averaging 18 mph for the first 75. Definitely didn't have my fueling and hydration as under control as I should have. But like the first (and only) marathon I did, it was a great personal accomplishment. Big difference is that I could walk on my own power after the ride and needed help getting up after the marathon. Sitting on the other hand... let's just say the bike saddle is not my friend.

Well - back posting after a weekend of running.

A nice controlled marathon pacer (that's 5mins/km for me) on Sat. 16kms.

Sunday was a bit like yours fricster. A kids birthday party, followed by a long run. This was the first time I had used gels. They seemed ok, and went down pretty well. (I'm using some lukozade gels a mate brought over from the UK).

But disaster struck at the 30km mark. I probably ran the long run a bit fast (5:40/km) mainly because I didn't start it until 4.00pm, after heaps of buns full of butter, cake, and coffee (bacon and eggs for breaky that morning). 

I don't know what happend but all the food in my body wanted out (think down not up) at 30kms. So I walked the last 2kms home feeling pretty cheated. Goes to show you how important it is to eat the right food (no fat, no dairy) before long runs.

But every bad long run results in me learning something new. This time it was the importance of the right food the day of the run. And my shorts, for example (which i bought for the pockets to carry the gels) just become floppy big sweat rags after 20kms - so they are out.

Ex-Kiwi - I haven't used the RS200 for intervals at all actually. So I'm not much help. Good solid half marathon time there!

So this week is milage reduction again. and week after that is my last 32kms....before Berlin. ....

 

Well. i dont know If i actually posted about Saturday...it was going to be my long run, running the dam with my cousin (my personal motivation) which is just under 6 mi....and Only got halfway through. Hadn't been used to running as late in the morning as i did and nearly keeled over at the 3 mile mark. turns out its really hard for me to just run in a straight, flat line for 6 miles. haha. So much for a long run last week! This morning my roommate told me she wanted to go running with me, so I was really happy about that. We ended up separating on the trail but I just did 2.1 miles today- its getting pretty easy for me so I need to start pushing myself to do 3 miles each day I run. We'll see how difficult it starts getting to get up every morning so early, now that classes have started. I tell you, genetics, organic chemistry, and swahili 3 really take it out of me. :)

kdogg thats pretty interesting and looks like a good plan, i'll have to keep that in mind if i ever move my racing up in distance. Although i would probably have to take more down weeks as i seem to be more prone to injury than you. You're gonna kill em when the time comes.

Well i think i figured out why my tempo felt so bad. I woke up this morning pretty sick. My roommate moved back in friday and was sick when she got here and i have all the same symptoms she did. Even though i wasnt feeling sick yesterday it always effects you even before you start to feel it. It took her about 3 days to get over it so hopefully i can kick this a little quicker than that.

KDogg: Overtraining is still overtraining. Sometimes it can be difficult to know when you have not recovered enough, because there are so many ways it can manifest itself.  Everyone, as you know, has that breaking point where things start to break down...sometimes inexplicably.

Many elites don't hit the kind of mileage you are talking, dude.

Good Luck

We Love You Chiggy!! : )

he he he

Worked all yesterday so no training, had a surprise day off today so made it kickboxing in the morning and had an awesome workout then running with the club - a special evening for this nike+ race thing (a great idea, but how freakin' much?!!!). It's pouring down and blummin' cold in Vancouver (seem to have bypassed late summer and fall and gone straight to winter) - got soaked and chilled to the bone but had a brilliant run. 3miles in 23:43 so one second faster than last weeks run. I was pushing but it felt more tempo than race, it felt easier than last week. 7:47 mile I am happy with!

Pappy Page. I think I used 4 gels, and yeah, I reckon they made a difference. they definitely seem to go down easy. I will use them on my next long run that's for sure.

I found out that there's a group that runs two nights a week from the running store that's next to my building, so I joined them last night.  I haven't run with more than one person it a while, so being in a group made me feel like I was back at cross country practice in high school.  Overall, the run covered 6 miles at 8:30 pace, and went by very quickly thanks to my new friends.

pappypage - I used 4 GU's for that distance also, and they do work, especially if you find a good brand and good flavors that work for you.   Also, taking GU's with water or some liquid will help you absorb them faster and they will be more effective that way.   Best of luck - you can do it.

just a quick 6 again tonite,. short on time from work,.thx for the info simmot and Bonzi on the gels.  ham felt really good tonite,.slow week is definitely helpin. callin for couple days of rain here from tropical storm faye,  hope its a warm rain.

glad you're fellin better kdogg,..

7 Mile Tempo run for me today.  Ericjacquie - be thankful you left this Florida Humidity.

Hi all - I did Personal training on wednesday arvo - lots of core work, and upper body strength.

Ran today mid morning - a rare day off work, so I just ran - no idea how far I went, just stopped when I felt like it after 1:15mins.

Nice running day today - not too cold, real sunshine - yay

 

ziggyrottie - I went to the gym for about 18 months about 10 years ago when I got cheap membership through the running club I was in.  I followed a routine published in Runners World magazine developed specifically for runners.  There were only 7 exercises in the routine.  They were:

1. Quad lifts
2. Leg curls
3. Squats
4. Leg presses
5. Back extensions
6. Crunches
7. Lat pulls

There's too much detail to lay it all out here but they certainly helped me run injury free for the whole period.  Since then I've been relying on body weight excercises and lots of stretching.  You should be able to get someone from the gym to run you through each of those excercises in turn, even if it's a one-off extra cost.  The emphasis is on high reps with medium weights, not out and out strength and power.  Good Luck.

Training for me:  Yesterday, 10k tempo run and today was 6k easy.

pappypage:  awesome.  Good luck with the longer race.

Hey, it's lots of fun to read about all your work here guys. I've been using MapMyRun for about a year now, and it's really helped me step up my running. Last year I got back into running and ended up averaging 2 runs a week with a total mileage under 10 miles per week. This year I have been sticking with a regular schedule for 12 weeks in a row, now running 4 times a week, and last week I hit 20 miles! Yup, I'm definitely hooked. I'm about medium pack speed: definitely not a youngster anywhere near 5 min miles (or even 6 min)! I can hold my own with a 3-4 mile tempo run around 7:30 pace.

I run early in the mornings during the week, because life is too busy the rest of the day between work and the kids activities (we have 2 active teenagers and 3 under 10, not counting the cats and dog!) My dog is a Corgi which means he's really cute and high energy, but he has no legs, so endurance is an issue. He always wants to go out with me, but he's only good to run about 1/2 a mile. So I walk him for about 30 minutes before leaving him to go back to sleep while I run my mileage.

 This week is semi-typical. Monday was 3 miles in 27:34, Wednesday was 3 mile tempo in 23:46 with 1 mile before and after, and today was 3 miles in 28:12. Usually Saturday is my long run, which is now up to 8 miles (soon to be 9), but I'll be participating in a 5K race this week. On July 4, I acheived my 5K PR with a time of 22:50 + I got 3rd place for my age group! I'm not planning on trying too hard Saturday ... just want to see where I've come in the last 2 months. My next "big" 5K is the end of September.

My goal is to try to build up to about 30 miles per week and continue through the Ohio winter. My brother and I signed up for the Indianapolis 500 Festival Mini-Marathon, the first weekend in May 2009. That will be the first 1/2 marathon for me, but at least I have some time. And motivation to keep up the running through the winter months! Sorry for the long intro, but I'm gonna try to start posting here. Thanks for all of your inspirational posts, guys & gals!

Ended up that my cross country team did the 10 mile run the day I had swimmers ear, just my luck I was looking forward to it after all the speedwork.  But of course had to do more speed work. 3 (400m, 600m, 1000m) and strength training after.  Splits are in training log, to lazy to type them here!

Ran 4.5 miles today.

ziggyrottie - I  try to work out my upper body atleast twice per week for 30 mins.  I enjoy the 45 min spin and palaties classes at my gym which gives me a break from running.

Hey LexB - That must just about make you a "real" runner!  On  ya!

Easy run of 6k again today.  Feel almost like a cheat, but that's what the program calls for so that's what I did!  (30-40 minutes easy)

Six mile run with the group last night.  My right foot started to hurt halfway through, but I think it has more to do with not stretching enough before hand than anything with the shoes.  I was able to fix it and finish just fine. 

14 mile run scheduled for tomorrow.  Gotta get it done in time for a full day of football (American version - just so there's no confusion for all of the worldly people on here.)

 

 Ran 7.7 miles in the heat today....59 minutes.  Dang, I hope this pays off when it cools down. I was aiming for 55.

 

 

Hey everyone....

 I'm back. 2 weeks away at a school, with no access to this site. Didn't get as much running is as I would like to have, but I think I kept up my miles enough. I'll find out tomorrow and Sunday...10 miles, then 17 or 18 on Sunday.

How do you get used to running in humidity?? I was in South Carolina for 2 weeks, and the humidity was absolutely miserable! (Had a few guys there from Florida...they tell me it was worse than Florida) I was also stuck running laps (1.75 mile loop). Those are my excuses and I'm sticking to them. LOL

Junkie:

Believe me, you don't get used to this Florida Humidity. Thankfully, there are only 3 miserable months. The trade off is we have gorgeous weather in Spring and Fall. And our winter is perfect running weather.

felt completely unmotivated this week. Had some twinging in my left leg on my run last Saturday and I continued to feel it all week. Wednesday night did track practice with the group. 1mi warm up, 1mi of agility drills and .5mi cool down. Then we had a fundraiser at a pizza joint - yumm! Was planning on doing a 12mi long run with the group today but ended up doing 6mi. I the twinging is shin splints. So, I leed to ice it and relax tomorrow.

Happy Labor Day to everyone here in the states and happy running to all. Enjoy your weekend!