Yesterday I ran 3x1600 at tempo pace (6:51). It was hot. It wasn't super hot but it was hot enough that I was nervous about over-heating like I did two weeks ago at the track. I was so worried that I turned on the gargen hose and pulled it out to the road where I was doing my repeats. I even allowed myself 2 minutes between reps instead of 1 minute just to make sure I didn't hurt myself.
It was 80 degrees with NW winds at 7mph and 26% humidity. I ran two miles as a warm up. The first mile was 8:34 and the second mile, in which I did a few little 30 step pick-ups, was 7:55. My average HR for the warm up was 160.
I ran my mile reps on a loop through my sub-division that starts and finished right in front of my house. I ran the first one in 6:39.38 which was 12 seconds faster than I really wanted to be. I realized that I actually started further forward of the real starting point. That was small comfort because the real starting point was only about 10 feet back. I took 2:00 rest, a sip of water and a squirt of water to the head and started rep number 2. I completed my second mile in 6:42.58 which was still about 10 seconds fast. I gave myself another 2:00 break to sip some water and douse my head and took off on number three. I ran number three in 6:43.04.
I never felt like I was straining during the workout and I felt comfortable in spite of the heat. My heartrates at the end of my reps were 181, 192 and 193 and my HR at the end of my rest breaks were 131 and 133. I need to replace the battery in my monitor because it gave me a "no signal" warning a few times but I think it was being accurate when it was working. I ran my mile reps, with 2 minute breaks included, in 24:05.92. I averaged about 6:42 pace for my reps and am pretty happy with my workout. I think my VDOT is higher than 50 or 51 or whatever it is but Daniels recommends running at your current VDOT for three weeks before going to a higher level. I will go one more week and see how it feels to run a level higher. My rationale is that I am basing my current VDOT on my two mile time trial I ran about a month ago in 12:25, which gives me a VDOT of 50. I ran a 1600 time trial in 5:46 about two weeks ago which actually puts me closer to a VDOT of 51. If I had been training at a VDOT of 51 I would have run my cruise 1600s in 6:44 which is a heckuva lot closer to 6:42 pace.
I ran a mile cool down in 8:41 and went in to eat dinner. Tomorrow, Friday, is an easy four miles.
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A more-than-likely boring account of running and racing in the Springfield area.
Post-Marriage-2nd-Attempt-At-Running-Personal Bests
Mile: 5:21 (July '08)
Two Miles: 11:56 (Aug. '07)
5K: 19:02 (Sept. '07)
5 Miles: 33:00 (Oct. '08)
10K: 41:30 (Aug. '08)
15K: 1:06:06 (Sept. '07)
10 Miles: 1:13:40 (Jan. '08)
Half Marathon: 1:39:21 (April '08)
Marathon: 4:00:08 (Sept. '05)
Two Miles: 11:56 (Aug. '07)
5K: 19:02 (Sept. '07)
5 Miles: 33:00 (Oct. '08)
10K: 41:30 (Aug. '08)
15K: 1:06:06 (Sept. '07)
10 Miles: 1:13:40 (Jan. '08)
Half Marathon: 1:39:21 (April '08)
Marathon: 4:00:08 (Sept. '05)
2009 Race Results
April 6th - LSA 5K - 20:43
April 27th? - Whitmore Park Classic 5 Mile - 36:01
June 16th - Summer Park Run #1 (1 mile) - 5:50
June 30th - Summer Park Run #3 (3 miles) - 20:10
July 4th - Staley Firecracker 4 mile -
April 27th? - Whitmore Park Classic 5 Mile - 36:01
June 16th - Summer Park Run #1 (1 mile) - 5:50
June 30th - Summer Park Run #3 (3 miles) - 20:10
July 4th - Staley Firecracker 4 mile -
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4 comments:
Great workout, Aaron. I'm going to be interested to see what you think of Daniels' formulas. I tend to like very structured plans, in which interval times are strictly determined by past performances. I'm probably a little less into structure on easy days, but even so, aspects of Daniels' stuff is pretty appealling.
So far, after about two weeks, I like the that I have a target for my workouts. I like that I have a purpose other than going out and seeing how fast I can run before I fall over. The book is very dry but he makes a good case for longer work bouts at slower paces that don,t fatigue you as much but help your body use your o2 more efficiently. I'm starting to become a fan of tempo runs as opposed to constant pounding on the track.
As for structure on easy days, I like to know that I should run at a certain pace on easy days because when I was using the HR monitor set at 70% of max for a recovery run my pace would vary depending upon heat and humidity. I could run 8:10 pace on a 50 degree day with negligible wind and 40% humidity but on the same course at 65 degrees with negligible wind and 80% humidity I would be running 9:30 pace and that really irritated me. I like knowing that it is okay for me to run 8:30 pace on my easy days and that I will still feel good enough to run a quality workout the next day. I think that my easy days would turn into tempo runs in high school because I would feel good and let myself take off and run the last 2 or 3 miles of my easy 6 miler at 6:10 pace instead of the 7:30 pace I should have been running. This way I let myself stretch out a little without feeling like I'm plodding. Easy days should feel relaxed, not like a slow march to hell.
I agree with you that it's important to keep your easy days easy. It's just that I can only handle so much structure in my life. Some part of my running still has to be about running over hill and over dale through pretty scenery.
If I ever get back into training seriously, I really do think that I'll use something like Daniels to structure my hard days. On long runs and on easy days, I'd still pay attention to concepts, but I'd rather not let the HRM become master.
As for enjoying the tempo runs, I think they can be really helpful. A big part of my training in high school, particularly in the offseason, was fairly hard 2 and 3 mile runs midweek. It was really my bread and butter workout.
I just hated running so darn slow on my easy days because the monitor told me I had to. With Daniels I get an idea of a safe pace for my easy days and if I run slower that's fine and if I run faster I generally don't over do it.
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