16 replies to this topic

[Lfc1984]

Hi,

Well this is my first post to Cool Running...

I have been fairly fit all throughout my life and have once completed the Melb Half Marathon 3 years ago...

After going overseas last year for 3 months I came back ready to get back into it all but never found the motivation to last running longer than about 4kms in a session,

For some reason I put a stop to it all 10 days ago, Entered the 2009 Melbourne Half Marathon which has forced me to train harder and longer. It one of the best things I have done...I have now run just over 50kms in the last 9 days and ran 10kms last night in 43mins 20secs around Duncan McKinnon in Melbs....Quite suprised and proud of myself!!

Now have a training partner which again has forced me to again to push that little harder but the main reason I posted was to get some advice on what my next steps should be over the next month...

Maintain distance and increase intensity resulting in quicker times?? OR
Increase the distance on a daily, weekly basis??

Also should I be running every day?? Whats the minimum kms I should be running a week to prepare??

Any other feedback/advice would love to hear!!

Cheers,

[zandrsmum]

Hi and welcome to CR, god on you for entering the Melb Half, I always find it great incentive to enter races beyond my current level in order to put the pressure on. I too am doing this race and we are probabably running the same sort of distance per week although it appears you are doing it a little quicker than me!! What I would focus on from here is including one longer run per week and gradually increasing your weekly k's from here on at the standard 10% per week. Include a bit of speed/interval work and make sure you do some recovery runs as well, don't do everything at race pace. We have heaps of time to build up so don't risk injury. I think 40-50k's a week is a good start point I plan on building to around 70k between now and October. I am by no means an expert on this, Melb will be my second half (my first being Sandy Point which I have not run yet!!) So I am winging it a bit. Good luck, keep in touch. K

[maphew]

I've only done the one myself, of which the preparation was peppered with little niggles etc.

What i found REALLY helpfull though was to have a program leading up to the day, as well as recording your progress.

There are a thousand different training programs out there including the MM website. Have a look at it, and see what you think. Compare it with others, and choose what suits you.

I did the sums yesterday, and the most you'd be running for the HM per week, based on the intermediate program (your current 10k time would have you easily there, i would have thought) is 44km's plus a speed session, with some possible cross training.

One quick one - my niggles only ever came good after i introduced regular rest days. I'm 13 years older than you though, so leave that one up to you.

A phrase that i've borrowed off someone from CR though, sorta sums it up (for me, anyway) - "You don't climb everest while training to climg everest". Excuse the wording if it's wrong...

Matt

[BostonCalling]

43.20 for a 10km off a limited preparation!!! You should be telling us what to do.

I concur with Zandrsmum and Maphew. Follow a program (plenty of them on-line) and gradually build your k's with plenty of variety in your runs. Good luck for it. Keep us posted on your training.

[ican]

Lfc1984, on Jul 16 2009, 10:36 AM, said:

Maintain distance and increase intensity resulting in quicker times?? OR
Increase the distance on a daily, weekly basis??

Also should I be running every day?? Whats the minimum kms I should be running a week to prepare??

Hi Lfc1984, welcome to Cool Running

The 2 most important things I've learned along the way is don't increase mileage by more than 10% (ie, for weekly overall mileage and long run distance) and that your body needs rest to incorporate hard training sessions. For me, the more intense the training the more important it is that I don't run every day and after a few years I've learned my limits, which is different for everyone. I tend to increase distance and intensity along the training program which result in quicker times.

Well done on the new goal, have fun with it and see you in October.
Cheers
ICAN

[Lfc1984]

Cheers for this guys....Am planning to do my longer weekly run on Saturday mornings and 3-4 runs ranging from 6-10kms during the week...Tommorow will be my first rest day for a week and then will attempt to run 12kms this Sat...If this goes good ill increase the distance by a Km every week.....Will let you know how I manage!!

[Lfc1984]

Lfc1984, on Jul 16 2009, 09:45 PM, said:

Cheers for this guys....Am planning to do my longer weekly run on Saturday mornings and 3-4 runs ranging from 6-10kms during the week...Tommorow will be my first rest day for a week and then will attempt to run 12kms this Sat...If this goes good ill increase the distance by a Km every week.....Will let you know how I manage!!

Well I did 3 laps of the Tan this morning...woke up at 5:45am without the alarm ready to go....Does this mean Im motivated?? Without Running with anyone and without knowing how quick I was going I did the 3 laps in 57.20...Not quick but that wasnt my objective, just want to build on the distance like advised...Felt toughest probably towards the start of the second lap but then found myself quite comfortable going into the last lap.

Couple of questions:

1. Is it normal to be feeling like Im always struggling in my first 3-4kms....I always get the mindset early in the run that I wont be able to get the distance early in the run: If I split the run up today, This thought process probably kicked in around that 2-6kms mark...

2.Secondly, At present Ive been timing myself by locking the car looking at the time and finishing my run back at the car and going straight to the clock...Not Ideal I know!!! Now I really want to get myself back into running a fair bit, so is it worth getting a entry level Heart Rate Monitor with basic features or should I just get a decent one with split times, GPS etc so I wont be wanting to upgrade in a few months?? Ive been looking a few forums on coolrunning (Polar vs Garmin) I think Polar sounds the way to go...

[Melruns]

1. Yes, completely normal. There was a thread on it recently and the general consensus seemed to be that a lot of us feel varying degrees of ragged for the first 10-15 min. There were lots of suggestions to get through it, mostly mind games to talk yourself through that time. The more you train, the more you get used to it.

2. I bought a basic Polar quite a few years ago for HM training and have been very happy with it. The views on technology on CR range from Amish to tech-heads! Just think about what you need to get out of your timing/HR device and go from there. Also think about how you are motivated, some people love to download all their training data and use it as motivation, some people just get out and run. I'm halfway along the Amish-techno scale, I just keep a written record of date, time and distance. Some record their heart rate patterns, how they felt, what the weather was etc.

Have fun!

[ican]

1. Yes. I never know how my run will go. Sometimes starts awesome in first couple of minutes and turns quickly into a laboured painful slog. Other times starts sluggish and ends up being an awesome run. That's the motivation for getting out there half the time telling myself "this could be one of those awesome runs even though I'm feeling crap". I also find the second third of a run (and race) the most challenging mentally.

2. I got a basic Polar HR watch and it served me well, but I didn't like writing down my results (I can wear it as a normal watch though, which I do). For not much more money I purchased a Garmin 305 and never looked back. Download all the data onto the computer and I have a permanent record of times, HR (if I want), splits GPS data etc etc. If you think you will continue running then this would be my advice.

Let us know how you're progressing.
Cheers
ICAN

[RodN]

Lfc1984, on Jul 18 2009, 10:01 AM, said:

Well I did 3 laps of the Tan this morning...woke up at 5:45am without the alarm ready to go....Does this mean Im motivated?? Without Running with anyone and without knowing how quick I was going I did the 3 laps in 57.20...Not quick but that wasnt my objective, just want to build on the distance like advised...Felt toughest probably towards the start of the second lap but then found myself quite comfortable going into the last lap.

Nice one LFC a few hours later and you would have bumped into me doing an easy run. Good going on the distance keep it up!

1. Yes have many rough starts, 15 minutes and its gone. Also sometimes start well but finish feeling like crap. All part of running I guess. I usually feel worst on second lap of PP when just curving up around the Nth corner which is a slight slope so as you are 'breaking through' that to feeling better in the third I think you are well on your way to building some real stamina. You could also ad in going under the rail tracks up the north end then down and loop at the Zoo railway station. That makes the lap an exact 5ks and ad's a bit of a hill which is good for training.

2. I am probably in the tech-head zone but have been using a basic polar for 12 months and even the basic stuff can give you heaps to do back at home if you are that way inclined. I have a spreadsheet where I plug in my times and average heart rates and go from there. They are great for keeping track and for me (a bit of a tech head) I'm looking forward to getting a garmin as they just get better as you spend more!

Edited by RodN, 18 July 2009 - 06:55 PM.

[Lfc1984]

RodN, on Jul 18 2009, 06:54 PM, said:

Nice one LFC a few hours later and you would have bumped into me doing an easy run. Good going on the distance keep it up!

1. Yes have many rough starts, 15 minutes and its gone. Also sometimes start well but finish feeling like crap. All part of running I guess. I usually feel worst on second lap of PP when just curving up around the Nth corner which is a slight slope so as you are 'breaking through' that to feeling better in the third I think you are well on your way to building some real stamina. You could also ad in going under the rail tracks up the north end then down and loop at the Zoo railway station. That makes the lap an exact 5ks and ad's a bit of a hill which is good for training.

2. I am probably in the tech-head zone but have been using a basic polar for 12 months and even the basic stuff can give you heaps to do back at home if you are that way inclined. I have a spreadsheet where I plug in my times and average heart rates and go from there. They are great for keeping track and for me (a bit of a tech head) I'm looking forward to getting a garmin as they just get better as you spend more!

14.1kms this morning!! Averaging 4.50 kms (With my much loved new 310xt!!) Felt really strong, no negaitive thoughts at all apart from around 10kms where I felt it a little bit but then thought to myself 'Am I really struggling??' And then quickly snapped out of it....

Biggest thing Ive really noticed is my recovery.....By the time I got from the Front door into the Kitchen I felt I could start running again....Def a change from 2 weeks back....

[Lfc1984]

Lfc1984, on Jul 25 2009, 10:09 AM, said:

14.1kms this morning!! Averaging 4.50 kms (With my much loved new 310xt!!) Felt really strong, no negaitive thoughts at all apart from around 10kms where I felt it a little bit but then thought to myself 'Am I really struggling??' And then quickly snapped out of it....

Biggest thing Ive really noticed is my recovery.....By the time I got from the Front door into the Kitchen I felt I could start running again....Def a change from 2 weeks back....

Ok, Im all ready to go, Did 19.2kms on Saturday in 1 Hour 34mins....

Now question is:

All my long runs are done in the morning, 6ish....I get out of bed, Dont eat any food, Dont have any fluids (Before or during my runs) and don't stretch....haha....Not the best I know.....

So do I do what I normally do?? Or do you think by doing the correct things before the run on Sunday I will able to break the 1 Hour 40min mark which I would absolutely love to do.....

Any advice on what I should eat and drink before the run anyone??

[HillsAths1]

LFC good luck with your Goal time, I think that given you were doing 43 for 10km a couple of months ago, I can see 1.40 being a problem.

I suggest that you do not do anything too drastic from your usual training(it seems to be doing the trick).

It would be wise to back off the training a little to rest your legs, there is no need to stop running, just a little less and I would aim to run at race pace for 5km or so a couple of days before the race so your legs are preprogrammed as to what pace you want them to do.

On race day most people tend to run a little quicker that when they train so I would suggest that you will more likely to get around 1.35.

I would make sure that you dont do a lot of red meat for about 3 days before the race, as the temp is climbing higher, I would consider having a little more fluid before the race.

On Race day I would not have any more than some toast with jam or something similar.

Hope this helps, good luck.

[BostonCalling]

I agree with HillsAths1. Your 10km suggests a 1.35 is not out of the question.

As for diet, stay away from high-fibre food in the two or three days prior, take it easy Saturday, up early on Sunday have some white toast, muffins or crumpets with honey or jam and a sportsdrink and away you go.

Most important - Enjoy it!

[maryclaire]

with the info you've posted so far, I'd say a sub-100 minute is a shoe-in for you. As for eating breakfast: I would stick with what you know - don't do anything different on race day that hasn't been tried in training. However...

The only problem you may have is that you normally train immediately from waking up and getting out of bed, yet this Sunday you will need to be up and about a few hours before you start running. How do you think you'll go without food? Perhaps you should consider something VERY simple and easily digestible (white toast and jam?) - whatever you know works for you and doesn't cause any stomach problems.

[Lfc1984]

93mins 50secs Guys....Thanks for all advice!! Very motivated to keep going so hopefully a full marathon wont be too far around the corner!!!!

[HillsAths1]

LFC remember you heard it here first.

Well done on a great effort.

Dont get carried away with your marathon goals yet, you clearly have a talent for running, work on getting your 10 and half times down for a couple of years, the marathon will always be there.

See if you can find a club and a suitable coach, you wont regret it.

Keep up the good work.