Hmmm, what's a good target for a comeback HM....?

Amadeus 2014

So here I am back running again and at a bit of a loss on the target pace / time for my comeback race, a half on 1st Oct.

I've been training pretty lightly - long runs up to 20k, up to 40k in total per week across 3-4 runs. Where I live is very hilly so my 20k route has almost 240m elevation gain. Of that 27m is in km2, 28 in km4 and a hefty 33m in km 10 so there are a few decent hills. Total time for these is typically 1:55 - 1:57 or so. I haven't done any warm up races or a lot in the way of speedwork but have done 1km reps in the 4:15 range and feel comfortable when I hit a flatter bit at 4:45 - 5:00/km. Way back in the day (three or four years of no training ago) I was averaging 70 miles per week and have run several marathons, some in decent times. With four weeks decent training left the intent is to up the intensity, bring in some hard speed sessions and stretch the long runs to at least 25k before tapering for a week.

I'm pretty sure that sub 1:30 is well beyond me, 4:15/km is too big a stretch just yet. 1:45 feels too soft though so somewhere in between is probably right but where?

All thoughts, opinions, advice much welcomed and appreciated!

Singer

Could you do a Parkrun or other shorter race to get a feel for where your level might be?

dna_leri

Hi Amadeus,

I am guessing that 5K would be too short for you to evaluate HM fitness.
Have you any "indicator workout" that you used in the past that you could compare against ?
e.g. Yasso 800s or "3*3 mile reps with 4 min recoveries at an average pace under 6:40"

Although I do not believe in Yassos as a predictor it might be good to compare now against a previous attempt.

Krusty_Clown

Welcome back stranger! With four weeks to go you should be in pretty reasonable shape to run around 6-7 miles at half marathon pace, or maybe 8 x 1 mile @target pace with 60 seconds rest.

If the course is flat, why don't you find a similarly flat section of road, and try to run one of the above sessions at around 4:30/km (1:35 HM pace) and see how it feels? It's time to start dialing in the target pace and adjusting based on the feedback from a simulation-type environment.

BeepBeep67

No watch, listen to the governor, pick a guy in a GAA top and take him down (welcome back)

Slogger Jogger

Welcome back. I'd agree with finding a parkrun to do for pace sharpness. I try a parkrun once a month if I can and its a big help.

Likewise I'm in hilly territory so I've similar challenges vs flat events. If you can, find flatter ground for the latter parts of your long run and try to pick up pace towards race pace. Best wishes!

Amadeus 2014

Ahhh it does give you a nice fuzzy feeling to come "home" sometimes doesn't it Thanks for the welcome back's, much appreciated...

Some good advice as always. I don't know if there are any Parkruns or equivalent round about here but I suspect the local running club could be a good starting point. In a break with long held tradition I wandered down on Registration Day to see about signing up. I was pointed towards the Seniors / Masters group and asked about endurance and distance training. "Ohh we do lots and lots of that" they said. "Excellent!" I said. "Yes" they said "1500m and even up to 3000m sometimes"... I didn't sign up But they would be a good spot to suss out a short time trial in the not so distant.

I don't think I ever did Yasso's. 3 * 3 miles at 6:40 pace???? I'd drop dead if I tried that these days! There are a few reference sessions I ran back in the day that I could replicate though, I think mixing that with the Clown's race sim idea is the way to go for the next few weeks training and to get an idea of targets.

Shiny Gold Star for best idea goes to Beeps though for running on feel. Not sure I'll find a willing GAA rabbit to chase around these parts but there is bound to be some ponce in a Tri top I can take aim at! In theory I've done enough of these to push at the right stage / not get lazy and it's less about times than about base building ready to try a marathon, maybe in July.

Thanks again all, much appreciated.

ClashCityRocker

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

Welcome back stranger! With four weeks to go you should be in pretty reasonable shape to run around 6-7 miles at half marathon pace, or maybe 8 x 1 mile @target pace with 60 seconds rest.

Do you think 2 and a half weeks out would be to close to the race to attempt one of these sessions? I'm doing the GNR on 11th Sept and it's sort of sneaked up on me. Most of my training over the summer has been geared around 5/10k distance so i'd like to try one of the above to see if i can actually do the HMP i have in my head at this point...

Krusty_Clown

ClashCityRocker wrote: »

Do you think 2 and a half weeks out would be to close to the race to attempt one of these sessions? I'm doing the GNR on 11th Sept and it's sort of sneaked up on me. Most of my training over the summer has been geared around 5/10k distance so i'd like to try one of the above to see if i can actually do the HMP i have in my head at this point...

I've been guilty of doing that 8 x 1 mile (30 seconds recovery), as close as 4-5 days before a half marathon, but then that'd be a tune-up race (albeit in PB territory) in the build-up to the marathon and not my goal race. 2.5 weeks from the half marathon (i.e. the third week before the race) you should be looking at doing your ultimate training session/simulation (e.g. 5 + 4 miles @HMP, with 1 mile easy (or 4 mins jog), plus your longest run (distance dependent on your typical routine and experience).

Two weeks out, reign in the long run and ease back on the duration of the quality (but not the quality of the quality!), and then the last week, focus on getting yourself into the best possible physical shape for a good result in the race. Sort of like a marathon build-up, just more compressed.

The thing is, if you're heading into the half marathon cold (i.e. not suitably trained), then jumping into hard sessions is not a good idea. You've got to be realistic about where you are in your training, and what is an achievable outcome. You can attempt hard training sessions if you've been doing hard training of a similar type/pace. 2.5 weeks out is not the time to try something completely new.