Monday, March 30, 2009

10 miles at 6:58 avg pace

A nice mix of running today, starting with 4 miles at the track, 7 fast laps interspersed with 9 slow ones. Then a 6 mile run at the park with the running group, for a total of 10 miles at 6:58 avg pace:

Garmin connect

It was good to finally get some speed work in, I've been putting it off for several weeks now, and at this point, it's the only way I'm going to get faster.

I was supposed to go to North Carolina and see family and run the Raleigh Rocks half marathon this past weekend but fate intervened. Or perhaps more accurately, my supervisor denied my request for time off for some inexplicable reason, and I decided that now would not be a great time for me to risk my job for a race and a family visit. It was a disappointment, but another race will come along shortly, and I am maintaining my training regimen and feel confident in my ability to hit new PRs and maintain top form.

I feel strong and fast these days. My diet is not as good as it could be but my training is as consistent and close to the "edge" as I have ever been. I've also maintained my 2 to 3 trips to the gym per week to focus on leg lifts and core, and have felt results there. Also my recent decision to avoid upper body exercise seems to be paying off with less top side bulk and a smoother running form.

So despite some setbacks, my running life is going well.

Friday, March 27, 2009

10k at 41:44

Another 10k PR - if I ever get on a flat course I think I'll be able to make a real run at breaking 40. More track work would probably help. It was a moderately windy but very pretty day at about 65 degrees on this run with the Village Runner folks.

On Saturday I'll be running a 5k with the Las Vegas Track Club. Since it will be a hilly course I'm not aiming for a PR, more the 19 to 20 minute zone.

My body is used to longer distances now and it's very difficult for me to get warmed up and up to speed quickly enough to nail a fast pace in a 5k.

I don't even feel on target until about the 30 minute mark these days. Looking at my splits from today, I started at 7:01 and gradually dropped it to 6:26 by the final mile:

Workout Mile Splits

So I definitely take some time to hit my stride.

I suppose a good warm up before the race Sat will help, with some sprints and a lot of stretching, which I never do. Also some coffee to jumpstart the motor.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

15 miles at 7:17 pace

Long run yesterday. It would have been 7 min/mile pace but I couldn't find the Auto Pause feature hidden in the many little sub menus of the Garmin interface, and I had to stop at several street lights.

15 miles in Vegas

A beautiful day about 65 degrees, I went from park to city streets to the track where I ended up not doing much of a speed workout since I was so tired from the unexpectedly long run.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

10k at 43:17

Monday run with the group in Henderson. I finally figured out how to set laps on the Garmin with 1 mile increments - a very cool thing. Definitely going to leave that on for every run. So after the first mile warm up I was happy with how I settled into a 10 second range of about 6:55 to 7:05:

Mile splits

Then afterwards I hit the gym on the way home for a quick session - about 20 minutes of quad lifts, calf lifts and 300 or so situps. Legs and core - my new cross training mantra. Leaving the arms and chest alone - I've never seen a Kenyan with big arms. Just sayin':


Tonight I'll do 400's for real - I'll have to set the Garmin for interval training for this, wondering how that will work.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

A 10k in 42:27

10k in 4227

6:50 per mile avg pace, very windy out there this weekend.

Something tells me I will crack the 40 minute barrier when given an appropriately fast and flat opportunity. Not a lot of 10k's near me so not sure when that will be.

Still loving the Garmin.

My next big workout will be on the track. Hello 400s. Hello pain. Hello speed.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Gadget Lust

First run today with my Garmin. I think I'm in techie geek lust/love. 10 miles at a 6:54 min/mile pace, a little better than my target of 7. My best pace was 5:25 for a short downhill stretch. There's a great graph of it all on Garmin Connect, and a Google map showing exactly where I went:

Garmin Connect

This is a cool training tool.

Track Time

I did my first track workout yesterday after the usual easy Monday 10k training run with the group. 4x400 laps at the track at 88, 82, 89 and 87 seconds. My goal is to do them all consistently at 90 - which would be 6 min/mile pace - and eventually be able to do 12 in a row. The way I run these is one hard lap then one easy, repeat. So my goal workout by say midsummer would be 24 laps, 6 miles, with every other lap at 6 min pace.

I dont feel the need to go faster than 6 min pace because anything faster will probably not help me as a distance runner. I am not a Kenyan!

Asides from that, just emphasizing the legs and core with some quad presses, calf lifts and situps at the gym. No arm lifting, no barbells, no bench. Focus.

Sunday, March 15, 2009

Just Wondering?

How do people like their Garmins? I borrowed one this past weekend and I really liked the real time pace and distance functions.

So what's up with these gadgets? Is it like having a little virtual running coach on your shoulder? Worth the price?

Quads Core Speed

I really am that dense, sadly. Despite just having written two posts about how important it is for me to focus on the legs, the abs and speed workouts, here is another. If I don't bang it into my head with a hammer, I don't remember. So this is my mission, to improve these key areas, and not worry about the other distractions such as biceps and and benching and big shoulders. Quads Core Speed.

Exhibit A:

Weekend of March 13 through 15 Workouts


On Friday the 13th I did a simple easy 60 minute run at Wetlands Park because I'd had a long week at work and that was all I felt like doing.

On Saturday I volunteered at a marathon in the morning, which was fun. In the afternoon I borrowed the Garmin of a friend and was able to maintain a 7 minute pace for 13 miles to chalk up a 1:30 hallf marathon time on the streets near my house. The Garmin seems an incredibly useful tool and I will need to get one soon - being able to nail down consistent 7 minute miles one after the other is huge. I was very heartened by this discovery.

On Sunday I did a relaxed 10k trail run with running group friends. In the evening I went down to a local high school track and did 3 fast 400 meter sprints with one rest lap between each. By fast I mean fast for a relatively slow distance runner type, with 86, 81 and 88 second splits.

I think I'm on the the right track with training overall, emphasizing quality, strong legs, core, interval sprints - the kind of stuff that should show results on the race course.

PS - Gotta get a Garmin!

A Question of Emphasis


Well it occurred to me that I've been training the wrong body parts. Why is it when I make my 3 to 4 weekly trips to the gym that I lift barbells and do push ups and develop my upper body? All the sort of manly stuff you see guys at the gym doing - I suppose I just saw everyone else doing it and assumed I should as well. But a developed upper body doesn't help a runner at all.

I knew this and yet somehow it didn't register until I volunteered at a half marathon this weekend and closely observed the top 5 runners: they were all quite fast, and they all had great big quads, flat stomachs and no upper body to speak of. Gazelles not Grizzlies.

So there's a lesson there. If I had a personal coach I'm sure this obvious truth would have dawned on me much sooner, but I don't, so I've got to make the best of the realization now that I've finally grasped it. Speed = strong legs, core and wiry build.

From now on at the gym, it's all core, abs, and legs for me. No more pushups, bench, or barbells. I've got to put the emphasis on the parts that are going to get me results. I've got to carve a runner from the block of marble, not a wrestler.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Red Rock rocked Me!



So the hills and unusually strong headwinds - 20+ mph - combined to make the Red Rock Half Marathon a surprisingly tough race. I ended up clocking a 1:33 for 8th place, far off the 1:27 or 1:28 I had been hoping for - but very happy with having been a serious contender.

The first half of the race with constant 6 and 7% inclines for 5 miles straight is definitely what bit me as far as my finishing time - that part was just a very difficult slog.



Me on one of the rare flat sections.

I did manage five or six solid 100+ yard sprints on the downhill backside that were fun, a lot faster than I'd normally be able to manage in a half marathon. This action helped keep two aggressive younger runners at bay, they had closed on me near the half way point but once the downhill commenced I was able to surge past them. They finished 30 and 45 seconds behind me so the sprints really did make the difference there. The sprints also served the psychological function of making my normal pace seem easier.

So I am happy with where I finished and overall had a positive race experience, the great striped cliffs of Red Rock were a beautiful backdrop to this challenging course. At this point though, if I never see a hilly race again, I'll be a happy camper - hills are tough! I'm all about the flat courses from here on out!

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

A Comfortably Hard Race


I've got the red rock half marathon this saturday morning, and I'm looking forward to it despite the elevation change that will be involved. Basically the first half is uphill 1000 feet and the second part downhill the same. A half marathon roller coaster.

I feel good, I've been taking the training easy this week so I should be fresh enough to put in a good effort. I'm aiming for an average pace of just over 7 minutes a mile, maybe closer to 7:15 if the incline proves particularly tough. I'm not looking for a PR here.

It's a smaller race with 300 to 400 runners so I'm hoping to be somewhere near the front. My goal is to keep the lead "peloton" in sight by running comfortably hard, which is what a 7 minute pace should be for me, about a 160 pulse with long full breaths but no heavy breathing.

I want to be very careful not to push it into the gasping/panting zone on the initial uphill in an effort to keep up with the leaders - this is something I've fallen for before and it will kill my effort at having a strong second half and negative split.

After the halfway point the game plan is to accelerate on the downhills with at least 5 on the toes sprints and hopefully reel in some fish. I've been practicing mixing in 100 yard sprints into my tempo runs and this should be something within my ability to pull off. I'd love to finish in the top 10, which seems plausible based on last year's results. My current PR is a 1:28 at this past December's Vegas half, which was flat and fast. Still I'd like to run close to that.

But until Saturday morning I've just got to chill out, taper, eat moderately and get enough sleep. And then come race day, do what I do every day, just a little bit harder.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Why I Run

It's nice that most races are for charities, and for the social aspect of finding a group of like minded individuals.

But mostly I do it because I like to be fast. I love to open it up. I love to cruise along and push to a higher pace and feel that gradually become natural, to sprint for 100 yards in the middle of a 12 mile run because you can, to be harder better faster stronger, to overcome the dull muscle ache, to go out on a still day and be shocked at how hot it feels when you slow down and realize you've been creating your own breeze. I love all of that.



On the way to 2nd place at a Lake Mead half marathon