Ok, so I should be on week 3 of the FIRST training plan for the half and I haven’t done one prescribed “Key Workout”, why is that?
The reason for my inability to step into these workouts has been the topic of many of my conversations I have had with myself while I am on my long runs. Here is what I have determined:
1.) It isn’t that I am not motivated to run, I am. I have been running 20-25 miles per week with mostly 5-6 mile runs, I am just not motivated to run PACE X, I want to run at what ever pace my body says it likes that day.
2.) I want to stay healthy and that is my number one goal because if I pull my calf muscle again then all that work to run 30 seconds faster was wasted with me being in physical therapy to repair the damage. So with that as my number one goal I have been very conservative in my pacing.
3.) I have been running trails for 80% of my runs and I find it harder to maintain faster paces while watching my footing and avoiding rocks. I know I could solve this by hitting the open roads but after all those miles training for Boston on the roads dodging cars I like the peacefulness of the trails.
4.) My friend Jill, who has been joining me on my runs, is a slower runner then I and I have enjoyed a running partner so I have slowed my pace to accommodate her needs. I am a social person, I like to run but I like to run with someone else the most. My friends say, “can you imagine how fast you would be if you shut up and ran”, and thus for me being able to solve all of the worlds problems while on a run with a running partner is more important to me then hitting the desired pace for the run.
So where does this leave me and my goal to run sub two hours in my October half marathon? I think I have decided to do the following:
* Enjoy running no matter what the pace.
* Stay healthy because if I get hurt, I can’t run thus pace doesn’t matter.
* Focus on the time on the road/trail and not the miles. I need to build my long runs up to 2.5 hours to prepare myself.
* Focus on my heart rates for these time runs to determine my improvement. I will still wear my Suunto T3C with foot pod but I will keep the readout to the HR piece and not pace and distance. Thus I will focus my easy/speed/tempo and long runs on the desired HR Zone % and not the pace number. After the run I can look at the pace and distance but I need to remove the focus while running.
I am on vacation next week, I will have 10 days in Maine to relax and run whenever I want. This is the same area and time of year that I got injured last year due to overuse and abuse, so this is a good time to reflect on running to stay healthy and focus on the enjoyment of the sport. I will let you guys know how my vacation goes and how this change in focus is working.
5 comments:
Tim, don't beat yourself up over the training. You're getting your mileage in that is the most important thing overall. I have come to believe that running according to how the body wants to run works so much better than hitting specific paces all the time. I think it's great that you are listening to your body and running smartly.
You may be running slower on the trails but that will DEFINITELY translate over to faster times on the road when it comes down to race time. Trail running is so much harder and it's almost impossible to expect to run them faster. You are so smart to be doing all that trail running, it makes your legs and ankles stronger. Keep it up!
Enjoy your vacation.
Thanks, I am not upset with my training as much as I am coming to terms with what makes me run and how I need to train to enjoy the run. I just look back at the training plan and the focus is on running X miles at Y pace and right now I am enjoying running at the pace my body wants to run and to stay healthy. If faster times come out of this training that is great if not I will get by. I just know that I need to stay healthy, keep enjoying running and training and the rest will fall into place.
Tim,
Trail pace is going to be at least 1-1.5 minutes slower per mile. Trail running also works on the complete core so the gain is stronger and better muscle tone for the later stages in the half marathon....this is when form equals speed....so you are on the right track already.
Of course, while I know nothing about anything, if you slowly ramp up your mileage with a bit of tempo work in there (1x a week on roads w/out partner) you may be ok. Long runs are supposed to be 45 sec at least slower than MP. But, what do I know…
Hey Derv - it is so awesome to hear your reflections and to work with rather than against your body. It is crucial to stay focused on what are the goals and to not overuse and abuse the body -- it will always let you know when you have done so. So as you are loving your body, it will love you and hey you just might save the world in the process .:)
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