Running.

Im currently around 38 for a 10k but my pb is 36.36 without any real speed work just off the back of running and cycling.
I guess i am aiming for 36 or below for a 10k.
Whilst i felt i had tried hard after the 4th i think i could do another effort.
Maybe i will do a 4×1 next week and a 5×1.
my course is i mile out and back on a unused road so maybe half mile efforts at 5k pace would be good to.
I always thought mile reps were the default for 10 work building to 3 x 2mile efforts.
Next real race is darlington on 12th august its fast ish and chipped and i am on hoilday the week before [camping] so that is ideal to rest the running legs that week.
I think would be good to keep building the 1 mile and maybe alternate the other session to longer 2 mile and short fast half mile reps. Sound like a plan? look like i will get 6 more sessions before the race. My aim for this race is sub 37. I will do leeds abbey at the end of the year and hope to pb there.
Aslo i am going unfuelled on black coffee for these sessions, is that good? i have to many half arsed ideas of what i should be doing! But i am doing something!!

“I always thought mile reps were the default for 10 work building to 3 x 2mile efforts.”

Sounds about right. I’ve seen 3x2m or 5x2km or 2x3m. I guess all pretty much the same idea and effect.

I do most of mine pre-breakfast too.

Sounds like you’re definitely going in the right direction. Abbey Dash is on my list too. Just the small matter of 3 Peaks cx first…

Surfer, I’m having to start slow on my long runs and then pick up the pace at the end otherwise I just die in the last couple of miles. Is that OK?

Absolutely fine. Your long run needs to be manageable my point really was aimed at runners who assume that they have to run very slowly on their long run, very much slower than they can handle. For example if you run your base miles around 7 mins per mile through the week (and one of your midweek runs maybe up to around 10) then your long run of around 15 shouldnt be much slower than around 7:20 ish pace.
I see quite a few people running ridiculously slowly on long runs when the long run is a training opportunity not simply a way to waste a couple of hours and increase the risk of injury.

I had a peaks entry to! But after having time to think it over with the new system this year i decided 50quid plus a donation to mtn rescue was too rich for me. ive not regretted it yet! But ive done it 5 times.
Do you fancy the fell race to?
Whats your aim for leeds? Must get it entered this month.

My aim is speed for 10k however i am also marathon training

I’m no expert but you seem to be doing the hard stuff! 1m efforts are tough and for distance runners they are very important and often ignored because of the intensity.
I would suggest by all means continue with 1 x 1m efforts oer week but alternate between say 6-8 x 1/2 mile reps or even 16 x 1/4 mile reps or a mixture.

I found a good way to develop speed was to finish a hard session of reps then recover for a couple of minutes then do 10 x 100 fast strides, accelarating to almost full speed then easing back, turn around then do the next etc then make sure you do a good warn down.
1 mile reps are great to build stamina and strength but to build speed you need to be doing efforts at much faster than your expected race pace so mix it up a bit.

“I always thought mile reps were the default for 10 work building to 3 x 2mile efforts.”

Personally I wouldnt really run longer than 1m as a “rep” longer efforts during threshold sessions yes but as a structured session 2m I think is too long.

Abbey Dash is on my list too.

Only did it once but ran quite quickly. Its not an interesting course but good for a PB effort.

Haven’t done the 3Pcx before and really fancied a go. I’m treating it as a recce for a future assault so taking it reasonably easy amd making sure I enjoy it.

I’ve done the fell race before and got it catastrophically wrong. I wasn’t really fit enough, hadn’t done many long races before and got my fuelling wrong. I needed a few lie downs from Whernside onwards to get over the cramp, then stumbled in at 4:38ish, 40 mins slower than target. Very much a case of unfinished business.

Target for Abbey Dash is 34:59, though I hope to go a bit quicker – I ran 35:30 earlier this year and have plenty of time to get better.

Message is either start slow and build up speed or go unfuelled and steady to train your body to use fat as fuel.

Not sure about the benefit of going unfuelled as the point really is to finish the session. Having said that my long runs often start around 7am so all I have is water and a coffee.
Speeding up during the run I definitely agree with. I used to train with a large group and the first hour was usually steady then it got faster and faster. Its a training session at the end of the day and I know I and my teammates got very fit of that type of competitive training. It has to be balanced of course but I think a long run should be one of the most testing sessions.

i’m no expert

No but you know more than most!
I will try the strides suggestion.
So if im running close to 5.50 / m in training i though that would equate to a bit faster on race day with the whole adrenalin and competition thing going on. Obv in training i rest between miles to but overall i thought i would get somewhere near equal splits of 5.50/m. Am i fooling myself? You know well enough that this pace is about dead on 36 min for 10 so maybe i am naive about it.
Im going to carry on thursday am upping the 1x mile efforts and tuesday will mix it up with perhaps 7x.5 mile [maybe 8 depends on feel] and 2 mile sessions. I will drop in the strides at the end too.
Thanks all. 🙂

Target for Abbey Dash is 34:59

Fair play to you!
I did 4.04 at 3p fell race in 2011. I had hoped to go sub 4 this year but fell twisting my ankle of pyg. Gutted! Next year for sure.
So tell me more on your schedule thats got you to sub 36? How much biking/running etc.

Am i fooling myself?

Its difficult to say I have ran with guys who train fast then can only manage a similar time in races and others who run significantly faster than their training would suggest when they pin a number on!
Only experience will tell you that and it depends how much effort you are putting in during training and how much you are prepared to hurt during a race. When you have raced more you will find it easier to judge.

Went out Tuesday night for a fast run/walk session. Only this time I wore my cushioned running shoes (although not super cushioned) instead of the barefoot style ones.

I really flew! Ran way faster and longer than I was expecting. Amazed myself.. was it me or the shoes I wonder? 🙂

My form seems to have gone from terrible to bang on after only a couple of sprint sessions. Which means short flat out sprints.

Its all you Molgrips 😉

Did anyone see the program the other night with Eamon Coughlin in Kenya with Mike Boit and Kip Keino??
The depth of quality is staggering, making a final according to Keino means nothing to Kenyans only winning 😯

Up to 60 runners meeting up for training sessions all running very fast. Their commitment and willingness to sacrifice makes them great runners.

Surfer, ok thanks on my 18-20 mile route I’m breaking it down to first 5-6 miles at 8:30/mile then next at 8 then pick up after that to whatever I can keep going at ( varies between 7:30 and 7:45 ) find it hard to keep to that on a long uphill bit at about mile19 though!!

Are you guys doing any leg strength work in a gym at all? Or just interval/ sprints?

Are you guys doing any leg strength work in a gym at all? Or just interval/ sprints?

My legs get a great workout carrying my big belly around.

😀

Are you guys doing any leg strength work in a gym at all? Or just interval/ sprints?]

If you have time then its all good, certainly for injury prevention. I do lots of press ups and sit ups/plank to help with core strength.

What about squats?

What about squats?

I’m sure they are good, Im too old for that now 😥

I do lots of press ups and sit ups/plank to help with core strength.

I can go running for 10+ miles, but I just cannot be bothered doing push ups/core work. I know I should, but it bores the shit out of me. When I was a gym member it was ok, as I was there to do it, but now I have the upper body strength of a wet noodle.

My son (14) has bet me he will have better abs than me by the end of the month when we go to camp bestival. 😳 so I’m working on it!!

Now the people. Done another good session this morning. 8 x 1 min efforts and getting as low as 4.13min /mile pace! I started with 1 min recovery but it wasnt enough i feel so i went to 1.30 recovery after the 3rd minute. By the last one my legs were on fire. Got a warm glow now after cycling to work as i am really pleased with the way its going. I even found i was awake before the alarm today so i hope that continues.
I manged 2 runs at the weekend, 8 mile getting progressively faster finishing the 7th mile at 6min/mile before easing off back home and 12mile really steady off road as well.
Going to do 2 x 2 mile on thursday at tempo pace prob around 6.30-7min mile which i imagine will feel quite hard towards the end especially first thing in the morning.
Then this saturday i am up at silly o’clock to drive to the lakes and do leg 2 of the bob graham round, i am helping a friend and i may possibly extend the run to leg 3 as well if i feel good.
Come on dont be shy, what are you up to?

Good show.

Those short intervals are good. I do even shorter than 1m. It’s incredible for increasing cv capacity it seems.

I did hilly 10km on Sunday in 56 mins, which was decent enough, the only slow miles > 9m were the ones with the hills in.

No knee pain either.

Good going! That sounds great, and I’m very jealous of the BG stuff. I’d imagine it could be addictive and, before you know it, you’re obsessed.

I only ran 10 miles last week – one good session of 6*3mins and a short 3Pcx set of hill reps with a bike on my shoulder (800′ in total).

Cycled 150miles ish over 3 rides, including lots and lots of hills.

Ingleborough fell race on Sat so I’ll probably do a session tomorrow and take it easy for the rest of the week.

I still have to get out to Pen y Fan and run up it. Twice…

You entered then Molly??

The quest for sub 3 hour marathon continues. I was ahead of my plan but I’ve had shin splints for the last 5 days Grrr, it followed a session I’ve been doing weekly on a grass track in fell shoes. 7X800 at 6 min mile pace. All better now after a week of frantic foam rolling, stretching and leg exersise and I managed 6 miles at Marathon Pace last night.

Supprised to find I was using less than 90% WHR on the last interval of the session though.

Also did 11 miles at 3 hour marathon pace and it felt pretty easy.

Going to do 18 miles on Sunday and try to do the last 6 at 3 hour marathon pace.

BGR will be on my radar soon, moving from London to Ilkley so a trip to the lakes will be doable in a day rather than a weekend.

Ingleborough fell race on Sat so I’ll probably do a session tomorrow and take it easy for the rest of the week.

Did that last year in 58:42 which I was quite pleased with

Cool!
I came 4th in a local trail race on Sunday, which somewhat surprised me.
Though in fairness that position was largely due to 12.3 miles being not a popular distance with fast people, combined with needing a bit of map-reading if you couldn’t memorise the course. I was lucky in that the only people who were faster didn’t know where the finish was so they’d normally only get about 100feet ahead before getting lost again 🙂
Also runners round here tend to be more like roadies, except at least roadies have realised that you don’t enter an off-road race on a road bike this time of year and expect to have any grip.. 🙂
Felt quite surreal to me to be in the lead at mile 9, but I can’t see that happening again in a long time.
Did a 12 mile leg of the real relay on wed which was good fun, and was shown on the beeb news, making me famous!
Tonight probably a few miles as it looks dry. Thursday is a 5x3K relay which is normally a laugh, but looks like it might be pretty wet this year. Then on Sunday a local charity 10K.

Yeah the bgr, it does get a bit obsessive.. I attempted last year with 3 others from the club and they got round in 22.20. I didnt! I stopped at 28 mile with knee pain that had come form nowhere.
This will be my 2nd time this year on the course so i imagine i will be pretty sore afterwards.
if you dont know leg 2 is from Threkeld, directly up Clough head, over all the dodds, up to helvellyn, dolywagon, fairfield then back down and up seat sandal. Quite a few summits i have missed too. I will have to be feeling really good to attempt leg 3 as well.
Should be good just hope i can get some sleep early Friday night.
Tea boy, where are you based?
Good running Molgrips get pen y fan done then report back!
Dj, when you move up to yorkshire give me a shout, i don’t need much of an excuse to run in the lakes. Hope the shin splints ease. Which matathon are you aiming at?

I got well lost up on the Dodds a few weeks back! I think its on this thread.

Leicester marathon. It was the only flat one I could get entry to. I think less than 300 people do it so there could be some lonely stretches I think.

Anyone have a benchmark time for Pen y Fan btw? I reckon I’ll be going up the Gap from the North side and then turning left onto the summit.

Anyone have a benchmark time for Pen y Fan btw? I reckon I’ll be going up the Gap from Brecon and then turning left onto the summit.

Not from that way as I always do Crybin first from the gap

Climbed it directly from the A70 in 32 mins and down in 18 a few weeks back

Had a good run yesterday again. Did the same route as before but added another field in so probably added just another half mile or so. I didn’t feel like I was going to have a heart attack during, legs don’t feel like complete jelly this morning and my hip no longer hurts from running, so I think I may be getting somewhere! Got chased by a small herd of cows and a bull which helped me pick up my pace halfway round..

It seems to have sapped all the power out of my legs for my road ride this morning though. So how important are rest days? I feel I should maybe have one tomorrow but I hate the feeling of going a day doing no exercise at all..

So how important are rest days?

They are the most important days.

I reckon if I start in Llanfrynach, go up that way and straight down the ridge to the north of the summit and return to Llanfrynach it’s about 12 miles. I’d aim to beat 2.5 hours which is 12.5m/mile, given it’s not that steep overall.

I averaged just under 12 min mile last time I was on a bigish run up there, that was running the ridges and it was tough going.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/174648049

Well then I can forget 12m/mile! 🙂

Did that last year in 58:42 which I was quite pleased with

Too right! Good run. That’s about my target. Glad you seem to be on the mend and, more importantly, seeing sense and moving north. I moved up from London a few years ago when I was much fatter.

Well done IanMunro – 4th is 4th! You can only race the people who turn up…

Tea boy, where are you based?

I’m in the Ilkley/ Keighley/ Skipton triangle. Bad luck on BGR. One day I’d love to have a go at legs 3 and 4.

Got chased by a small herd of cows and a bull

😯 Sprint training anyone? My mum once got chased by a horse and ended up running into a river to escape.

😀 Luckily I had a bit of a head start and the gate was easy to jump/climb over.

Oh and is a couple of hours DHing at Woburn ok on a rest day or do you have to do absolutely nothing/as little as possible? I won’t be doing much pedalling, just pushing back up to the top. Depends on weather of course but I’d like to get out on my mtb this week after work.

Intervals last night 4 x 1mins flat out, recover then 4 x 30 secs flat out round a small park near me then a slowish 5 miles (36 mins) ankle feels better now. Going for long 20 miler on weekend.