I got me another blister but don't care anymore at this stage because it's all done. I noticed the increased wear and tear on my 188cm frame and wonder how some guys can run this 2 1/2 hours without falling apart. I guess it'll take years of training to compensate this kind of impact.
Let's start with some analysis:
I missed run number 11 due to some massive blister problems that almost made me abort the test. I managed to come back and gave myself a penalty pace of 4:11/k (6:43/Mi) for the miss. This was the slowest I was expecting to run in the entire test. The missing mileage I made back on day 14 when I did a decent warm-up and cool-down.
Everything included I averaged a 3:59.9/k (6:26.1/Mi) pace. I wore my HR monitor on 20 days and averaged 82.2% (based on 190 HRmax). I mentioned that I am not sure about the 190 bpm but it's probably save to say that I was in a 80-82% range of HRmax (190-195 bpm).
If I calculate theoretical 5k and full marathon times based on this post I end up showing 16:53 for 5k and between 2:42-2:44 for the full marathon which is clearly out of my reach.
A stamina build up with a 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) base would look like this:
M @ 4:19 min/k (6:57 min/mile)
T @ 3:39 min/k (5:52 min/mile); 2-3 mile evaluation run pace
W @ 4:12 min/k (6:45 min/mile)
T @ 4:07 min/k (6:38 min/mile)
F @ 4:12 min/k (6:45 min/mile)
S @ 4:00 min/k (6:26 min/mile)
S @ 4:19 min/k (6:57 min/mile)
The whole program:
The discussion I am facing now is how to read these results. On the one hand Mystery Coach pointed out:
"Most runners miss this line "making sure that you can recover from the effort". To me it sounds like you are just a bit above your steady state. Try backing off 15-20 seconds per mile (you'll find you'll gain this back by the end of experiment). Remember you're trying to find your true steady state not force yourself into one."
But it was said here:
"To find your base level; for the next 21-28 days run 7 miles a day over the same course as fast as you can."
I did run as fast as I could for 28 days. Looking at the extracted 5k and full marathon times above I must have "forced" myself. But isn't running as fast as you can always forcing yourself?
I've done the test but where is my "true steady state" now? Is it 4:00/k (6:26/Mi) or should I add 15 sec/Mi for safty or other reasons, putting the base at 4:09/k (6:41/Mi):
M @ 4:29 min/k (7:13 min/mile)
T @ 3:49 min/k (6:08 min/mile); 2-3 mile evaluation run pace
W @ 4:22 min/k (7:01 min/mile)
T @ 4:17 min/k (6:53 min/mile)
F @ 4:22 min/k (7:01 min/mile)
S @ 4:09 min/k (6:41 min/mile)
S @ 4:29 min/k (7:13 min/mile)
Once I've figured that out I also have to think about shifting days around. My club is always having a track session on Wednesdays and I was thinking of doing the Tuesday workout on Wednesday instead. We're doing all sorts of different intervals there and it will be an "evaluation run" effort one way or the other.
I've got one week time to think about all this before kicking off the stamina build up. I allow myself two full days of rest and then cannot wait to see my running mates on Wednesday on the track. It's been more than four weeks missing the track workouts - and the beers afterwards!
Otsukaresama!
Day 28: 7 miles @ 3:47/k (6:06/Mi).
7 comments:
Congrats on finishing the test Ingo. Hopefully the coach will chime in with his thoughts, but I was honestly surprised to see the paces getting faster like they did towards the end of the month. I don't think switching a day or two around is such a big deal as long as you can keep things balanced. Ultimately, like the coach told Eric some time ago, you could mix things up quite a bit and as long as you're recovering you're doing well.
Thanks Mike! As for the faster paces towards the end I may have gotten a decent aerobic kicker from the first two weeks which started paying of already.
Or the horse was smelling the stable in the end...
Having that said, I don't really really need the two days rest I am taking now - but I think I deserve them ;-)
Well done, Ingo. I'm glad your blister didn't stop you for more than a day.
Well done Ingo. You do deserve a small break I think. It is quite an achievement in itself running that fast for that many consecutive days (we'll overlook the blister day) through the difficulties of work, injuries (blisters), hangovers, and management of the expectations of your SO.
It is a great start to your stamina build-up campaign, and the numbers the test predicts are quite exciting. I don't see why you should dismiss them as out of reach. They are clearly possible, but it comes back to that question of how far you are prepared to extend yourself.
Look forward to seeing you on the track again soon, but the boost you have got from this means you will be smoking me at all distances from here on. That's great for you, but your problem now will be finding someone of an appropriate level to run with, or to push you. You are a bit stuck in no-man's land between the really fast guys and the second rung. If Gordon wasn't injured you'd nearly be up there with him. If Adam Berry wasn't leaving he's coming along to a point where he'd keep you honest. Maybe you'll just have to be content with being at the front of us second rungers.
Thanks guys! The great numbers I calculated are unfortunately not really predictions. I just calculated back from the initial guidance:
"Generally it will be about one minute per mile slower than your 5K pace or about 10-15 seconds per mile slower than marathon pace."
So in case you can show 16:53 for 5k and/or between 2:42-2:44 for the full marathon your base should be around 4:00/k (6:26/Mi). I think it's wrong to turn that around and read it as a prediction.
As for future running buddies - how about you pull your finger out old man? ;-) Your long distance base is still much higher than mine. I pull us until the 30k mark and then you do the rest with your experience and convince me to keep going although I went out too fast. A full marathon is still a very different ball game and I am scared of blowing up. You finished two of these long bastards in 4 weeks and I didn't even show up for Tokyo Marathon!
Impressive workouts, Ingo. And I'm sure impressive races will follow. The first weekend of May there is the TELL 10k which always has a good turnout of Nambanners, likely because it is put on by Bob. Even though the course is hilly (2 laps of the Imperial Palace) I think you are familiar with it.
So now you build up the distance for 14 weeks; do you have a target marathon?
Haha, racing the lunch loop! That would be fun! Thanks for letting me know Anthony. But unfortunately I'll be away over Golden Week to plan my wedding.
The stamina build up will (hopefully) be finished around July and then be followed by a final marathon build.
I was briefly thinking about racing in late summer / early autumn in Europe (like my hometown marathon in Berlin at the end of September). But I am already going to Europe twice before that and that's just too much travelling. Apart from the fact that the marathon build would fall too short.
Now I am thinking of a domestic year-end race like Kawaguchiko or Ohtawara. It's already too cold then for my taste but what can I do. Any other ideas?
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