If... the Unforgiving Minute

For last weekend's long run I was out earlier than usual. I have struggled in the past on an empty stomach so I tried a small breakfast before I went out and while it was still tougher than usual, I managed it. Two 9.5K hilly laps at around 4:30 /km pace.

On Tuesday I went back to the track for more 1K intervals. Two weeks ago I did 3 of these on my own in 3:16 with the 4th one in 3:22. This time I had company and aimed for 5 at 3:20, which gives nice easy splits of 40s per 200m, easy to remember anyway.

We hit the first 200m in 37s so eased back a little (too much) finishing in 3:23.5. Recovery was a 3 min jog as usual. The next 2 were similar in 3:22.x. Each time I found it was the 4th 200m that I lost time on. I pushed the next one under 3:19 as my companion tired but we both worked the last one to finish strong in 3:16.6 The average time per rep was 3:20.8.

Over the next few weeks I will keep the volume and recovery static and increase the pace a little each week, starting with getting all of them under 3:20 next week.

I changed my long run from Sunday to Saturday morning this week to fit in with family priorities and not because of my St Patrick's Day hangover. In fact there was no alcohol consumed on the 17th, although I had planned a couple, I just did not get around to it. So at 7:57 on Saturday morning I joined up with a group from the club who have been meeting at this time for years. We took a 10 mile route around Union Wood, similar to what I normally do. The pace was easy and time passed quickly. I had managed some food before the run but had no bother putting away another load after it - I wonder if the slightly slower pace affected my metabolism differently and left me hungrier.

On Monday I did 40 mins of "gym work", followed by 3.5 hours in the garden. I am not sure which was the cause but unaccustomed as I am to both recently, I suffered with DOMS in my back and hamstrings for the next 24 hours. I also realised why our fore-fathers neither did nor needed core workouts - a day's manual work is all that they needed or in my case a few hours. The plan for yesterday evening was a continuation of the 5x1K(3:20)[3:00] from last week but I decided to warm-up and see how I felt before launching into the session.

I felt fine while I was moving although a bit stiff otherwise but as one of the other guys was there I decided to give the session a go, consoling myself that I could always cut it short if I did not feel up to the 5 reps. We went through the first one in just under 3:21 and I felt good. The next two were 3:20 & 3:21. For the fourth one, my running partner dropped back and I picked it up to 3:19. On the last rep, my mind was elsewhere as we went through the first 200m in under 37s, I then eased back too much and while I usually finish the last one with a flourish, I did not push it this time but was still a bit disappointed to see 3:23 for the 1K. Overall the average was just under 3:21 like last week but the times were more consistent, with the recoveries steady at 3:08. Next week I will try to pick up the pace slightly.

Thursday I will do the last of the Fit4Life League races - a 2 mile handicap.

RandyMann wrote: »

Hey D, that kosmin test resulted in a 400m and a 375m last week for him.

That's a good result, fair play to him.
According to the calculator he should be ready to run 2:05.

I did a couple of tests back in Nov/Dec. I logged them here (770m & 771m) but did not give the 800m equivalent times because I did not believe them. I ran 2:12 in January, maybe I could have done 2:10 in perfect conditions outdoor but not the predicted 2:05.5

My theory is that the Kosmin test is good for sub 2min guys but loses accuracy above that. BrianMac used to have a comment on his website about it being less reliable for women and suggesting an additional offset. I see now that he has recently changed the calculators to give different results for men and women and in fact I think the women's time is more accurate for myself with 771m giving me a 2:11.6 for 800m. Maybe that's because I am an older guy and I have more in common with good female 800m runners than good male athletes. Or perhaps it's just because all results are less accurate in the over 2 min 800m range.

I don't mean to pour cold water on your mate's times as we are all an experiment of one anyway and I know he is not a vet. My suggestion to him (not that anyone has asked for it) is to train to the 2:05 time that the test result indicates (if possible) but be aware of the shortcomings. In any case, the real test of how fast any of us can run an 800m is to go out and race one. I will be interested to hear how he gets on as the season progresses. Maybe we will get to go head-to-head at one of the graded meets.

Once a year, a day like this comes along. Usually it's in spring, when the evenings are brighter and I feel ready to run until I drop. If I could bottle it, I would make a fortune. I had a feeling yesterday would be that day, it was. The sun was not just out, it was dancing and by lunchtime I was looking forward to my 1K repeats, how sad is that.

The track was the usual hive of activity on a Tuesday evening but x2 with the good weather. My first athletics coach from almost 30 years ago was there and after some advice from him, I was ready to take on the world. He was no slouch in his day either - still the club record holder for 400 & 800m.

As usual the first 200m was a bit fast on most of the repeats but we reined it in to go through the K's in 3:19, 3:18, 3:19 & 3:20. The fifth one was similarly quick over the first half lap but I let it roll and then picked it up again off the last bend finishing in 3:09, yes! That gave an average of 3:17, 4s faster than last week. The recoveries were a bit longer at average 3:26, mainly due to distractions.

Now if only we could get another week of this weather.

I kept to my promise of mixing it up a bit on my long run this week. I think I have been taking it a bit too easy on these runs over the past while - if i am not increasing my distance, then really these are not hard runs. Also I was making excuses for not getting in hill sprints, so on Sunday I combined the two.

First 2x7K laps in about 31 mins easyish. I have a few markers by now on this route to know I am on pace - 12 mins to the top of the hill, 24 mins to the main road - and I hit all of them, so a good, even pace.

For the hill sprints, I used a trail that has a nice steep section, followed by a level bit and then a shorter hill. The first hill section took about 24s, I walked the level part in 26s and sprinted the final bit in 12s. I walked back to the bottom in 2 mins and did a total of 3 reps. For the third one, I was down to 22s for the first section with the rest unchanged. I left it feeling I could have done one more. I will do this one again.

I did the same speed development session as last week:
4x150 build-up; 4x30m @97% and 4x120m fast.

It took until the last 30m sprint to get going and feel like I was moving properly.
I timed the 120's again, averaging 16.4s, a bit slower than last week, but ok.

My knee held up well and I have much less stiffness than after last week's sprints so I will push on from this next week. I am doing a low-key 800m on Monday and then with a week off work, my schedule will be a bit interrupted but I will try and fit in at least one good session.

BeepBeep67 wrote: »

Solid training of late, what's the primary goal for the year?

800m is the target distance - I plan to run it in the masters this year - hopefully one more fast one before I start to slow down. I'd like to get under 2:10, then maybe 2:08. I will also work on times at all distances up to 5K. There are limited enough opportunities for track events so I will probably end up running a few 5Ks - 16:40 is an stretch goal for that.

Will you go back to track later this year?

Time to catch-up on my last week's activities.

After last Thursday's speed session, I kept in easy over the weekend with a few fast strides thrown in. Fortunately I am not tempted by Easter eggs, I might be if they were 70% cocoa but not the usual Cadbury's muck.

On Monday, my two boys were competing in an open T&F meet. Both got PBs for their season openers and although they were slightly disappointed not to medal, they competed well. I had entered the masters 800m, even though I had been told the track was a cinder one and not ideal for a fast time - I need all the race experience I can get. When I saw the track, it was actually gravel and not exactly oval - more a rectangle with rounded corners.

Turned out I was the only masters competitor there and there were two seniors so we were put together in a three horse race, I did not mind. I had spoken to one of the guys beforehand and he was hoping for 2:20, so I knew I could compete with him. The other guy was about half my age and looked up for it.

From the gun, the young guy took a lead and by 200m I was trailing by almost 5 meters with a similar gap to the third place. I knew there was a danger of being caught in no-mans land and I considered dropping back to race with the guy behind but I hung in there. I did not get any 400m splits but I was starting to feel the pain by half way. The race leader seemed to slow coming into the back straight, I reckoned he was slowing down expecting to coast home. I found out later he was starting to suffer. I glanced back to see a good gap to the guy behind so I pushed a little to close the gap ahead. By the final bend I was on his heels. The finishing straight was only 50m so I waited.

As we came off the bend, I considered taking him on the inside but it was too tight, so I went wide and was surprised when he did not respond and passed him easily. I sprinted to the line and got a finishing time of 2:15.6 - officially it was later given as 2:16.5, not sure which was right but it really does not matter. It was a good race experience and my kick worked even though I have been neglecting speed until the last few weeks.

Although I felt stiff afterwards a 1-mile cool down helped and I recovered well the next day so I felt up to a hill session on Wednesday. I decided to do it a bit differently. Down at the Woods, I warmed-up with a 7 min mile then tackled the first hill at a steady pace (1:15), then jogged down and along to the next one. A little bit harder on this one (1:02), a short recovery down the other side (56s) then up a shorter one in 44s. The fourth one was a 4 min jog away and by now the effort level was more like 5K pace for another 44s hill. Recover for a few more minutes then stride the long straight for 55s. I then jogged back to the car, took on some water and headed to the 2-stage hill I had used recently for faster stuff.

The first stage of this hill is a 22-23s hard sprint, I walk the flat section for a 25-26s recovery and then sprint the next part in about 11s fast. I did 6 reps of this with a 2 min jog down recovery. By the end I knew I had done a hill workout. I did not get this one from any book or program but it was a good session, working on strength in the beginning and then pushing it into speed in the end, similar to a hard track race when I need to kick at the finish.

I reckon my finishing kick is one of my assets so I will continue to work on that as well as my weaknesses (everything else) but I'll be back to more orthodox training on the track next week. First I will run a fast (I hope) 100m at the weekend in the Powerade challenge and maybe even win a trip to the olympic stadium. I am not sure what sort of shape I am in for it. I ran a 12.64 (electronic) and 12.2 (hand timed) in 2009 but without specific training I will be happy to be 13.x for now.

RandyMann wrote: »

Didnt know about this Powerade challenge until you mentioned it, thanks for that! Just entered for the one in Morton on the 22nd April.
Good luck on Saturday, lets see a 12:XX

Good call RM.
12.83 happy with that.
More details later.
RM note there is a change to the Dublin event, check athletics Ireland website for details

On Saturday I took part in the powerade 100m challenge. Weather conditions were good, cool but sunny and just a slight wind. The wind was not measured but I'm guessing around 2 m/s. At first it seemed a head wind but turned into a cross wind by the end of the day.

The turnout was only fair, there were 10 or 11 heats with max of 8 in each. One heat had all the fast guys, best time was a 11.17. My heat had one guy who went sub 12 last year but the rest of us were average.

I have not used blocks for a couple of years but they helped me get an ok start. The transition was not great I think, I probably got upright too early. Once I got into my stride I moved ok and was closing down on the leader in the second half of the race. Happy to get an FAT time of 12.83s in second place. I finished with a set of 6x30m flys to make it worth my while putting on the spikes. Also got a new pair of Nike Matumbo spikes (old colour but good value) for my next race - can't wait to try them.

I would highly recommend the Powerade 100 Challenge to people of all abilities - events planned for Dublin and Cork in the coming weeks - don't be intimidated by the track.

I did not do the local 5K race last weekend, I felt a few niggles (left knee and right calf) and did not want to test them out but I do need to get a 5K race in soon, preferably before I make a PB attempt.

On Sunday I started with a short trail lap to warm up followed by a hilly 6.9K at tempo effort in 26:38. For my easy runs on this loop, I hit the top of the hill in 12 mins, this time it was 10:10, which was a bit too hard for the opening section. I slowed over the last km but I think that's my best time around this circuit by about 30s for an average pace of 3:52 /km. Another short lap brought the total to over 14kms for the day.

Tuesday I made another attempt at 5x800m. There was a slight breeze around the top bend but not as bad as last week. Then the series was 2:31, 2:30, 2:35, 2:36, 2:38. This week I started more conservatively (maybe a bit too much) but I finished feeling a lot better with: 2:36, 2:36, 2:34, 2:34, 2:30. The average time was exactly the same as last week 2:34 and the recovery time a bit better at 3:07. In the end I could have done another one at a push where last week I could barely crawl around. I know you are supposed to feel like you could do another one but I could not help but wonder which is the better training effect, certainly it took more out of me last week. Probably I could do them all under 2:35 which would be ideal but I am not sure if I will get this session in next week.

04072511 wrote: »

Just seen this now. Very nice running that. Do you plan to run any more sprint events over the summer at Graded Meets or somewhere else? Any targets for 200 and 400?

Thanks 04072511. I really don't plan any sprint events this year. I will keep the focus on 800m+. Thinking about it recently it would be good to run a 400m some time this year, around 58s would be nice. Fitting it in will be the difficulty. I hope to run a couple of 800's at the graded events but with a 5 hr round trip I would not make the journey too often. Hopefully I will get a 400m closer to home as a sharpener at some point.

My weekend long run is almost always in Union Wood where there are a myriad of trails to follow. I think the longest loop is 5.5 miles, with a popular 4 mile loop also. The route I took on sunday is only about 3 miles but it has got some good hills. First time around I took 19:25, the second time was a bit shorter as I omitted the lead-in from the car-park in 18:25 and the third one was 19:24. I finished with 6 fastish strides.

Recently I have been doing a VO2 workout on Tuesday and a faster session on Thursday. I am not sure whether I will manage a session on Thursday evening with visitors all this week at work so Tuesday's plan was a bit of a hybrid multi-pace workout trying to cover all bases. Plan was to start with 2x600m at 3K pace, then pick it up with 2x200m at 800m pace and hopefully have enough in the legs to finish with 2x600m at 1500m pace. When I arrived at the track, there was a soccer match in the middle of the track and with so many people around, it would have been too difficult to do a session so I headed to the other football pitch. The surface was a bit slippy after rain and all distances were approximate.

I started with 3x600m approx in 1:53, 1:50, 1:52 with average 1:10 recovery.
I needed 7 mins to be ready to go again and did a set of 4x150's in 21, 22, 22, 23 with 1:05 recovery.
Another 7 mins later, and I finished with 2x400m in 1:09, 1:12 with 1:33 in between.
Not exactly the session planned but a good enough workout all the same.