Not a good week

Not a good week.

Caught a flu virus mid-week and felt unwell. Was knackered on Friday, took 1/2 day MC and anti-biotic. Felt better by Saturday arvo.

Unfortunately the week didn't end there as I had a race to do on Sunday. I registered for this 13k trail race long time ago because I thought this would be a good workout for Gold Coast Marathon in July. As you all know, Gold Coast is off from my calendar this year and instead I did Seoul Marathon a month ago. Hence I was left with a race that I didn't really need to do. I tried to sell my slot in the local running forum at a steeply discounted price but nobody wanted it.

So, after two days of bed rests, I decided to do the race as a training run. Just took it easy all the way, walked the hill, chatted with a friend and finished in 67mins (av 5:10) pace. A pretty expensive outing for a training run !

Next week looks like a busy one at work with a possible business trip. Looking back, I reckoned that I was extremely lucky that I had about 2 months of uninterrupted training for Seoul. No sickness, no business trips, and work load was very light following the festive seasons (both year-end and Chinese new year in Feb) - all of which enabled me to train consistently. At my current shape, I think I would count myself lucky to run a 4:00 marathon !

If you guys follow this blog for the purpose to see me training, please look away now and check back 3 months before marathon date :p

Training this week:

Mon: 16k including 45mins @ 4:10
Tues: 40mins easy (av pace 5:26)
Wed: 40mins including 4x1min hills, 6x20sec hills (av 5:00)
Thu: 18k easy (av 4:57)
Fri: sick :(
Sat: sick :(
Sun: 16k incl F1 Nature Run 13k trail race in 1h07m (av 5:10 pace)

Total 66k for the week

Shout outs

A couple of quick shout-outs:

Congrats to Rob for the 3h.02m in Boston. What a great place to break your PB. Let's rock the 3-hour barrier together in Melbourne !!
And to Epi who finished in 3h01 coming out of knee surgey barely couple of months ago !

To SW - whose stable won the Australian national title for 5000m Men, as well as silver in 5000m Women

Also to Ronnie who got a big PB and BQ'ed in Nagano Marathon, Japan.

As for me, nothing much to shout about. Had a mediocre training week: 6 x 1k at 3:50 and 6k tempo on undulanting road at 4:10 - which were decent, but had a miserable long run. The muscles seem to lose their elasticity and stiffened a lot during long runs.

One month gone since Seoul and I think I am about 70-75% back. Hopefully things will pick up a notch this week.

Still toast

All the best to Craig and Rob who will be running Boston Marathon next week !

Rob - I think you have an excellent shot at sub-3 in Boston given how well you have trained over the last couple of months. Craig - hopefully your injury will come good by race day.

Here is a Ryan Hall video on the Boston course for some motivation :)

see here


The Seoul result means that I have qualified for Boston 2011, however I don't think we'll go there in the next few years. Not sure Sling Jr will enjoy the 20 hr flight! Furthermore, sub-3 is much higher on my scale of fixation a the moment. I think it's more fun to run Boston as a holiday marathon, enjoying the course and atmosphere.

On the training front, I seem to lose some juice this week. My legs feel dead and burning although I've ran quite little since the marathon 3 weeks ago.

Tuesday run turned out to be walk-run affair since it was a hot & stuffy day. Just had no desire to run. On Thursday I did 4 x 5mins at threshold pace and it was bloody hard. My av pace was 4:00-4:03 min/km, with 2min rec in between and HR in 170-183 range. In contrast, during the marathon prep, I did 6 x 5mins averaging 3:50s with only 1min jog, and HR was only around 170 and didn't climb above 180 at all. Thus, my threshold session this week was 10secs per km slower, with twice the length of rest time, but HR was 10 bpm higher!

Maybe this is a sign that I am still not 100% recovered from the marathon effort. To make things worse, I had an uncomfortable niggle in the ankle too. Possibly due to the jarring effect from wearing racing flats during the marathon.

Interestingly. I always have bad jinx after marathons. After running Joong-an Marathon in 2008, I jumped straight into training with a view of running a fast 10k the following month, but a week before the race I damaged my ankle ligament and was then out out action for 2 months. In 2009 after running Gold Coast, I jumped straight into hard training with a view to run a HM 1.5 months later. At the end, I completed the Army HM but only averaged at my marathon pace due to tired legs.

Let's hope the post-marathon curse will go away !

S: 40 mins (av 4:45) including 15 x 30secs on/off
M: 30 mins easy (av 5:30)
T: 60 mins run/walk (av pace 6:00+)
W: 35 mins easy (av 5:12)
T: 50 mins including 4 x 5mins @ 4:00, 2mins rec
F: off
S: 98 mins easy (av 4:55)

Slackin'

Initially was keeping one eye on Perth Marathon on 20/06. But after doing some maths: 4 weeks to recover/re-build from Seoul, then another 6-7 weeks of training, I think the improvement from training is likely to be minimal due to the short, half-baked marathon prep again. Anyway, I've done too many 8 weeks marathon preps in my life!

Gold Coast in July is not an option due to my bro's wedding. So, that leaves Melbourne on 10/10/10 as the most viable option, six months way from now. Review from last year wasn't that great though, with lots of sub-3 and low 3 marathoners bumping in a great wall of HM/10k runners, so let's hope the organizer can fix that.

Plan to do some short races in the next 1-2 months. Hopefully, the racing and training will keep me to stay motivated. An October marathon is such a long way to go.

Anyway, running has been really minimal since the marathon. Took one week off after the race and started doing 30-40mins runs during the second week. SW seems to take marathon recovery seriously and honestly, I was a tad worried that I won't be able to leverage on the marathon fitness due to the lengthy period of inactivity.

It is surprising that although, I didn't feel wasted after the marathon, I found it hard to get going running in Singapore again. Legs were stiff and it was simply not fun to be drenched in sweat again. On Good Friday, I did 1hr+ run and it felt like I was doing a marathon.

Probably it's wise to take a longer post-race recovery this time since the marathon is still gonna be 6 months away. Past experience seemed to agree with this. Following last year's Gold Coast marathon, I did a 8k race just a few days later then jumped straight into 5 weeks of hard training to get ready for the Army HM. At the race, I could only run the HM at my GC's marathon pace !!

That's all folks - really nothing much to blog about this week. To close, here are a couple of photos from Seoul marathon:








This looks like a scene taken from 3000m race. But it's actually the last 300m of the marathon inside 1988 Olympic Stadium.








Starting marathon temperature was 0c. I hardly sweat at all - the wet marks on the front of the shirt was due to drinking water spill.

2010 Seoul International Marathon

A belated race report. Just came back from a week long holiday in Seoul and the picturesque Jeju Island celebrating Sling Jr's 1st birthday.

3:03:49…..

My first attempt at sub-3 and honestly I wasn't good enough on the day. Started a tad too fast and got punctured after km 30.

My reaction is mixed…a little bit disappointed, but at the same time felt reasonably pleased too (if you know what I mean). I'd say in the scale of happiness, I would rate it a 7.

Here we go:

We landed in Seoul on Wednesday and it was snowing !!! It was freezing and wet coupled with blustery wind. What a welcome! On the next day, I went out for a 40min run and it was still freezing even with gloves and beanie. My body was shaking and I could hardly get the words out of my mouth when I ordered a coffee after the run. During the run, I also bumped into 3 Kenyan runners as our hotel (Westin) was just across the road from the elite athletes' hotel (Seoul Plaza). I ran behind them and was surprised to see that their 'shake out' run was very, very slow. I was jogging at 5:00 pace and had to intentionally slow down in order not to pass them. It is just too rude to pass runners who can run marathons 1 hour faster than you !!!

I then started my carbo load. Didn't run on Friday as we went for sightseeing to the snow capped Mt Seorak. Had 7k run on Saturday morning and slept early.

Come Sunday, it was around 0c at the start. I was grouped in the 'A' corral for runners with faster timing than 3h:20m. We started about 5 minutes behind the elites. As Seoul is an IAAF Gold Label race (same level as Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago, NY etc), the race attracted a deep elite field. In the Mens, it included a 2:05 runner and about 10 sub-2:10 athletes. In the Womens, it included a Chinese lady who got 3rd placed in the Olympics and a few African and European runners. The conditions were a tad too cold to my liking and my body was shaking.

I started with the sub-3 pacemakers and the pace was fast from the start. Despite the fast start, I found the effort to be very easy due to the temperature differential between Seoul and Singapore. We passed the 10k mark in 41:47 (about 4:10-11 pace) and the pacemakers continued running at 4:10 pace. I decided to let them go and ran on my own. I carried four gels but dropped one packet at km15 (not sure whether it made a difference to the end result given I ran out of steam then). I passed the HM mark in 89:07 with the pace group was nowhere to be seen (probably they passed halfway in 87-88 minutes). I was still feeling good at this point and continue to chug along.

Due to the large crowd (23,000 runners), I missed the initial km markers and decided to split every 5km where they have the official markers (chip recording)

5k - 20:56
10k - 20:51 (41:47)
15k - 21:29
20k - 21:14 (42:43)
Halfway: 89:07

In the second half, we went towards the south east and encountered pretty strong headwind. As runners began to thin out, I couldn't get sufficient shielding from the elements as we ran on very open, wide roads. My pace slowed slightly but I was still on sub-3 pace at km 30 (2h:07m).

25k - 21:29
30k - 21:38 (43:07)

Afterwards, the wheels began to come off. My legs seemed to run out of gas and the windy conditions made it even tougher. I just couldn't move my legs fast and my strides got shorter and shorter. My pace slowed to 4:30 pace between km 30-35 and passed km 35 in 2h:30m. At this point, I was about 1m:40s behind the sub-3 pace and realized that it wasn't gonna happen today. It now become a test of perseverance. I was tired, low on fuel, 1m:40s behind my goal pace and it was still over 7k to go.

We climbed a bridge over the wide Han River towards the Jamsil area and my pace continued to deteriorate to around 4:40. I passed km 40 in 2:53:40, about 3mins + behind the 2h:50m required for sub 3. I picked up the pace slightly as we went into the 1992 Olympics Stadium and finished in 3:03:49 - a 1 minute PB from last year's GCM.

35k - 22:45
40k - 23:18 (46:03)
2.2k - 10:09
Second half: 94:42

Surprisingly, the first thing that crossed my mind when I passed the finishing mat is when will be my next marathon? I just can't hardly wait...

Anyway, there were negatives and positives from the race and both serve as valuable lessons for my next marathon, such as

- I started too fast (especially the first 10k). Perhaps holding back a bit would give me a better results.
- Maybe I am still 'too marginal' to attempt a sub-3. My coach suggested me to run at 3:01 pace and picked it up in the 2nd half if I had the chance to go for gold. Perhaps if I follow the coach's order, I can finish in 3:01 or 3:02. But I don't know whether that's what I really want
- I think I need to lower my HM time to around 85 (from 87 currently), otherwise there is not much room for error (must rely on perfect pacing, calm conditions etc)
- I feel that I need to consider doing more marathon than 1 per year as it is currently (2006 DNF, 2007 DNF, one marathon each in 2008, 2009, and 2010). I reckon I can better navigate the situation after km 30 if I have more marathoning experience.
+ Happy with the PB considering that this race was unplanned and I only decided to run 8 weeks ago after taking almost the whole of December off. Not a bad return for such as short prep.
+ Despite still stuck with the same 10k and 21k PBs (39 & 87) in the last 3 years, I managed to lower my marathon time by 15mins from 3.18 to 3.11 to 3:05 and now to 3.03
+ Hitting the wall at km 30 officially makes me a classic sub-3 wannabe. However, I have seen some people crashed and burned and ran 10-15 minutes slower in the second half. Because I was able to keep the damage to about 5mins positive split (despite the fast start and windy conditions), I think I am not too far away from sub-3.
+ Another good sign is that I didn't feel wasted at all after the run. In previous years, I could hardly walk for days after the marathon, but this time I felt good even right after finishing the run.

After the race, I managed to get my shirt signed by Lee Bong Ju, the 2001 Boston marathon champ and 1996 Olympic silver medalist. Hopefully, the autograph wouldn't wear away after the wash!

Now, the dilemma is whether I should do another marathon in 2-3 months time or should I just train for 4-6 months to prepare for Melbourne in October. Once you flirt, you just don't wanna stop!!!

The Flirt

Six days to go to Seoul…

Okie, last week was supposed to be a taper week. But due to the postponed long run from the previous weekend, I did a cumulative 88k+ over the last seven days. This is the first time I ever go to marathon race week with that kind of mileage. The planned time trial turned out to be a dud but it doesn't matter anymore now. The hard work was already done over the last couple of months and I have to trust my training.

Have been looking at my logs for Seoul and last year's prep for Gold Coast. Some stats below:

Mileage (excluding race week):
GC: 1060 in 11 weeks of prep, average 96
Seoul: 867 in 10 weeks, average 86
** GC prep had 200 more kms in the legs. Last year ran 7 days a week, this year only 6 days.
** Average training pace (all runs) about 5:00 during GC prep, this year average is 4:50-4:55

Long Runs:
GC: 9, average 30k
Seoul: 9, average 31k
** One different thing this year is less stoppages during my long runs. For example, carrying fuel belt resulting in 5mins stop during a 3-hour LSD. Last year took 2mins break every half an hour to drink.
** LSD paces are now about 5secs/km faster, but GC prep had more quality long runs at MP.

Medium Long Runs:
GC: 7, average 21k
Seoul: 9, average 20k
** This year more medium long runs, done on undulanting terrain. Also often ran last part of the long run at moderate pace (halfway between MP and easy, say around 4:45 for me)

MP long runs (part of long runs above):
GC: 3 times, between 15-26k, done in intervals form e.g. 6-5-4-3-2-1k or 30-25-20-15-10-5 mins @ MP
Seoul: 2 times, more continuous and in fast finish format e.g. 10k ez + 2x10k MP or 16k ez + 10k MP
** Less total MP work time but longer per session (10k per interval), the sessions are also done at the end of long runs (vs fresh legs)
** This year I ran the two MP sessions at 4:16-17 (hypothetical goal) versus 4:20s for GC

Intervals:
Both GC & Seoul prep had 7 interval sessions, covering 7k of fast work each session
** For GC, I used 1k or 1600 reps due to the mentality that longer intervals are better for marathon. Did them at 3:50s (around 10k pace), recovery 200-400m or standing rests
** Under SW, intervals vary between 5mins to as short as 30 secs. For 5mins stuff, I ran them at 3:50s, for 30-60secs at 3:30-40 pace
** Recovery is a short 1 minute for 3-5mins intervals, e.g. I ran a Yasso workout 8 x 800m in 3:00 each (3:45 pace) with 1min jog, or 5x5mins @ 3:50s pace, 1min jog

Tempos (both LT and MP):
GC: 8 sessions, average 36 mins of work each (included a couple of 40-60 mins tempo at MP)
Seoul: 8 sessions, average 32mins of work each (no MP tempo, all threshold stuff)
** Almost same format for LT sessions, either 3 x 10mins or continuous 20-25mins. But this year's pace is a few secs per km faster
** Longest continous tempo for GC 14k @ 4:24 (161 bpm HR), while for Seoul 15k @ 4:08 (169 bpm HR)

Race temperature and Results:
GC: 3:04:50, around 10c, calm, sunny
Seoul: ????, forecast 0c to 7c
** Temperature will be a challenge. Haven't raced in sub-0 or low 0 temperature since living in Perth. But anything is still better than running in Singapore (28c, 90% humidity)

Overall, I feel that I am in a better shape than last year's prep for Gold Coast, but is it enough for sub-3?. My best HM time is 87, doing 89 HM back to back sounds like a high risk proposition

But should I take the risk and test the water a bit? Should I flirt?

Anyway, training ths week

Mon (long):
28.6k long run in 135mins (av pace 4:46)
First 16k easy, then 10k @ 4:16 pace, 2k easy
Postponed run from the weekend

Tue (easy):
23mins on treadmill (av pace 5:45) + core

Wed (easy):
16k easy with strides in 80mins (av pace 5:03)

Thu (time trial):
6k in 23:18 (av 3:53)
Splits: 3:50, 3:50, 3;50, 3:52, 3:57, 4:00
3.5k wu, 3.5k cd
Total 13k
The plan was 8k TT, but legs were like lead. Felt sluggish, haven't recovered from 28k three days ago and 16k run 18 hours earlier
Decided to pull the plug after 6k, didn't want to go to the bottom of the well

Fri (rest):
Off.

Sat (threshold):
15mins @ 4:02, 4mins rec, 10mins @ 3:57, 3mins rec, 5mins @3:49
Total fast stuff 7.56k in 30:00 (av pace 3:58), including rec jogs 8.9k in 37:00 (av pace 4:10)
3k wu, 3k cd
Total 15k

Sun (easy):
12k easy in 60mins (av pace 5:02)

Total 88.6k for the week (second last week before the race)

Ta-ta-taper

A slightly belated post since I didn't run over the weekend. Did a final long run this morning (Monday).

Just couldn't believe it's ONLY 13 days to go. I felt that I just started my marathon training a couple of weeks ago !

The strange thing is that I don't feel like racing, but I want to keep on training forever because the training is much more enjoyable than what I ever had in previous years. I think I only missed 2-3 runs over the last couple of months.

Also, I am more consistent with mileage ranging from 84-100k, while in the past my mileage tended to swing wildly from one week to another due to tiredness/overtraining. Actually, if that 84k week (due to overseas trip) is taken out, my mileage has an even narrower range at 94-100k. It is believed that Deek & Mona did almost the same training/mileage week in and week out during their careers, so I guess consistency is what Aussie training system is all about.

Whilst on the topic of Aussie system, the taper is again different to what I have done in the past. Previously, I followed the modern taper where no fast work (intervals, races) is done during taper. The belief is that you will be teaching your body to burn carbs faster when doing fast stuff. But if you do marathon-paced work close to the race, your body will be more familiar with the marathon fuel metabolism and you will never touch 5k-10 pace during the race itself anyway.

My taper this week will include 3 x 10-15 minutes intervals and another 8k time trial. The belief behind the Aussie system is to prepare the body/mind for race-like situations and to make the marathon pace feel easy.

Anyway, training ths week

Mon (easy):
7k easy (av pace 5:16)

Tue (time trial):
4k warm up to F1 track
8k solo time trial in 30:50
Splits: 3:47, 3:49, 3;49, 3:49, 3:51, 3:55, 3:54, 3:56 (last k into headwind)
4k cool down
Total 16k
Not happy with last 3k (lost 15secs), legs seemed to run out of steam (32k long run 3 days before)
McMillan calculator equates this effort to 38:50 10k and 3h:02m marathon.

Wed (long):
20k in 100mins (av pace 5:00).
Legs like lead, took it easy as I probably need some fat-burning fix anyway.
XT: planks, bridges, abs crunches

Thu (easy):
34mins recovery on treadmill (av pace 5:43)
XT: light weights, squats, lunges

Fri (fartlek):
75mins aerobic fartlek (av pace 4:35)
Total 16k
Too hot & hazy outside, so ran indoors. SW plan is short fartlek @ 5k pace, but difficult to do on treadmill. Decided to do more longish fartlek between 4:40-4:00 pace.

Sat (off):
No run

Sun (off):
No run

Mon (long):
28.6k long run in 135mins (av pace 4:45)
10k @ 5:00, 6k @ 4:45, 10k @ 4:16, 2k+ cool down
Running at sub-3 pace even for only 10k was damn hard, even after 2 days off
Don't think it is a sustainable pace for me

Total 94k for the week (6 running days + 2 off days). Last 7 weeks average 95k

Wishin' there are more time

Week 6 of 9 to Seoul…. Only 3 weeks to go :(

Thanks guys for the comments last week re: LSD vs MP run. As you know, my biggest weakness as a runner is the mental factor (lack of self-conviction). Therefore, I just couldn't stand not doing a long MP run before a marathon. At least one training session before a race….

So this morning, I left home at 5am and jogged 10k to East Coast Park where they have a traffic-free flat bikepath. After the 10k warm up, I ran 2x10k (Fort Rd toilet to country club) with 3mins standing rest in between. Did the first one in 42:47 and found it relatively comfortable (av HR 163). The second one was completed 5 secs slower in 42:52, but I had to work a bit harder (av HR 169). Anyway, average pace was 4:17 min/km with a total work time of 85:40 for 20k.

Also took a chance to wear my marathon racing shoes and practice fueling by alternating gels & sports drinks every 5k during the 20k tempo run (Seoul water stations are 5k apart).

Disclaimer: I am not saying I will be aiming to run 4:15 pace for Seoul although I do MP tempo run at around that pace. With only 9 weeks of prep time and a HM time of 87, doing back-to-back 90mins HM is probably still out of reach.

This week was also one of the faster training week. Adding up all the quality miles: 8k of interval work & strides (3:50-ish pace) on Monday, 8k @ 4:24 embedded in mid-week 23k long run, 6k tempo @ 4:00 pace on Thursday, and 20k MP tempo today, I accumulated 42k of 'work miles' in 2h:56m or marathon distance at 4:12 min/km. That's 42% of this week's mileage with the remaining miles at easy paces. Since my easy pace is around 5:00-6:00 min/km, my overall average training pace is still slow.

On the surface, it seems that I have reaped the benefits of the last 5 weeks training. Maybe that's why a 'proper' marathon training is typically 12-20 weeks since it takes sometime for the body to absorb the workouts and harvest the fruits of training (training effect lag). The bad news is that I only have another week for sharpening since my prep is like 5 weeks foundation + 2 weeks sharpening + 2 weeks taper.

If only I can have 12 weeks of prep time, I could do something like 5 weeks foundation + 5 weeks sharpening + 2 weeks taper. I reckon that extra 3 weeks of sharpening/specific work might be worth 1-2 minutes of marathon time (coming from extra 3 long runs, extra 3 midweek long runs, 6 additonal tempo/speed sessions).

If only….

Anyway, what's done is done. Training this week:

Mon (intervals):
20mins warm up
6 x 5mins, 1min jog
Av pace for the 5mins: 3:52, 53, 56, 53, 54, 48
Covered 7.74k during 30 minutes of work (av pace 3:54)
Including recovery jogs, covered 8.6k in 35+mins (av pace 4:05)
30mins cool down with 2x40secs + 4 x 20secs barefoot on grass
Total 18k
Done 48 hours after 36k long run.

Tue (easy)
10k easy (av pace 5:08)
XT 10mins: planks, myrtle hip, squats, lunges

Wed (long):
23k easy-moderate in 1h:51m (av pace 4:50)

Thu (threshold):
15mins warm up
6k in 24:00 (av pace 4:00)
13 mins cool down
Total 11.5k

Fri (easy):
30mins easy treadmill (av pace 5:45)
XT: 10mins upper body weights

Sat (long):
10k warm up (5:20 pace) to ECP
2 x 10k @ 4:17 average, 3mins standing rest
2k cool down
Total 32k in 2h:29m (av pace 4:40)
Including today's run, last 8 days total mileage 136k

Sun (rest):
OFF. Rest day.

Total 100k for the week (last 6 weeks av 96k)

Old skool Aussie

Week 5 of 9 (one month to go…gulp!)

Last week, Ewen left an interesting comment on my blog:
"I'd stick to the 2 speed/2 easy long - esp if that's on the SW plan. When the marathon comes around, the speed and endurance meet with a MP race. "

In general, SW plan follows the old school Australian training system along the same line of past Aussie greats such as Deek, Mona, Wardlaw etc. The similarities lie in terms of structure and long run paces.

Typical week under SW for me includes 2 speed sessions on Tues & Thur, a medium long run on Wed (20k+), and long run on Sat (30k+). Other days are easy. I personally request one day off every week which is Sun.

Deek's training, for instance, was as follows
mon: 10km and 16km
tues: 10km and 10km in 38mins followed by 12 laps alternating straights and corners hard easy
wed: 10km and 29km
thurs: 10km and 8 x 400m off 200m floats
fri: 10km and 18kmsat: 19-21 km and 10km
sun: 33-36 kms in 2 hrs 15 to 2 hr 40 and 8km

Hence, Deek's structure included 2 speed days, mid-week medium long run and Sunday long runs.The rest were easy days.

Based on info on public domain, Mona's typical Sunday run was 35k in 150mins. That's 4:20 pace, or 1+ min/km slower than their MP. Deek's typical Sunday run was 33-36k in 135-160mins. This is about 4:10-4:25 pace , hence also about 1min slower than his MP.

The new breed of Aussie marathoners such as Jeff Hunt, wrote in his blog that he does his 38k long run in 150mins or 4:00 pace. This is about 50secs slower than his marathon pace (2:11).

It seems that all of these Aussies do easy-paced long runs at around 50-70 secs slower than MP. There are no so-called 'long runs at race pace (MP).

Maybe some of the Perth-ites could pose this question to Mona during the training camp :)

On the contrary, African and modern US runners incorporate MP running in their regime. Geb & Wanjiru are known to run 30k at competition speed. US marathoners such as Ryan Hall and Brett Gotcher (coached by Mcmillan) run 15 mile tempo runs at MP

For a runner of my (slow) standard, SW schedules long runs at 5:00 pace. I once asked him whether should I do MP long run. His answer was that I could run at MP for the last 30mins but I need to run the early part of the long run slower so that the av pace is still 5:00. For instance, if the schedule calls for 30k in 2h:30m (5:00 pace). I could run the last clip at MP, but have to run the first couple hours slower, so that the total duration is still 2h:30m.

I guess "time on your feet" for raw endurance is an important component of Aussie system.

Up to this point, I haven't done any long MP runs. For past marathons, I usually did a couple of long MP sessions and they worked well for me. Last week I tried to do 20k at 4:20 pace, but found it tough and ended up averaging close to 4:30.

Curious to get your views on:
1) whether MP runs are key to your marathon performance? How many sessions did you do during the marathon prep and how long per session?
2) Next week, I have a 32k schedule and this would be my last chance to do long MP runs (after that, the weekend long runs will taper off). Should I do the MP stuff next week or stick to the suggested pace of 5:00?

Anyway, training this week was affected by the trip to Jakarta and lingering ITB problems. Ran 15% lower mileage to finish at 84km for the week. Only did one session and one long run instead of normal 2 sessions and 2 long runs, so about half the load. The workouts were:

1) 15k continuous tempo in 61:50 (av 4:08 pace). This is supposed to be a TT but due to ITB issue, I decided to run it at current HM pace. I hope this should make running the first 20-25k in cool-weather Seoul to be relatively comfortable.

2) 36k long run in 3hours (5:00 pace) done 2 days after the 15k tempo, hence I had yet to fully recover from that workout. ITB was aching badly, therefore I was glad to complete the run. I also only stopped for 5mins in total (toilet, drinks refill) during the 3 hours, so it was almost continuous.

Tired

Week 4 of 9 to Seoul (halfway there)

Good to hear Clown & TB are thinking to run MM on an auspicious date of 10/10/10 !! Hope to make my 9th marathon start there (maybe I should run another one after Seoul to make MM the 10th) . How cool is that? 10th marathon on 10/10/10. It's also a week before my 39th birthday, a nice present!

But first things first. Managed to 'survive' the first 4 weeks of training. Another 3 weeks of hard training to go before 2 weeks taper.

I think my training has gone pretty well until today. I planned to do 20k non-stop tempo at 4:20 pace during a 30k long run. However, I found the pace to be too hot to handle and I ended up averaging 4:27. I also had to make a couple of lengthy breaks to stretch ITB/glutes and to rest.

It seems four weeks of 90k+ of 'rushed training' from scratch (without sufficient base mileage beforehand) have finally caught up with me. Old niggles around ITB and glutes are coming back, upper body parts such as necks, back are very tight and legs are like jello.

SW doesn't actually schedule any MP runs. Since I thrived on long MP runs in the past, I made the decision to do MP runs today and it backfired. Doing 2 speed session and 2 easy long runs in a week are probably just the right dosage for me. If I want to do MP long runs, perhaps I should to think about dropping one of the speed session to keep the legs fresher.

Will be going to Jakarta to vist family for Lunar New Year. My plan is to do short slow runs until Thursday when I return to Singapore. This means I will miss half a week of training but hopefully I will feel fresher by then.

Anyway, training this week:

Mon (threshold):
3.5k warm up (5:30)
15' fast, 4' jog, 10' fast, 3' jog, 10' fast
Covered 8.9k during fast reps, averaging 3:56min/km
Including recovery jogs, covered 10.2k in 42'00" (av pace 4:08)
2.3k cool down (5:30)
Total session 16k
Challenging workout, done 48 hours after 36k long run.

Tue (easy):
33mins easy treadmill (av pace 5:35)
Tight on time. Busy at work

Wed (long):
22k easy-moderate in 1h48m (av pace 4:56)
First half 5:15 pace (felt crap), second half 4:40s (strangely felt better)

Thu (fartlek):
4k warm up (5:00)
30 x 30secs on, 15secs off
First 15 reps av 3:35, last 15 reps av 3:45 (total 15mins of work at 3:40 av)
HR never got lower than 180 (90-95% max HR) in last 15 reps
Including recovery jogs, the workout covered 5.6k in 22'30" (av pace 4:02)
3k cool down (5:35)
Total session 12k+

Fri (easy):
42mins easy treadmill (av pace 5:35)
Light weights in the gym

Sat (long):
30k long run in 2h:21m (av pace 4:42)
The plan was to run 20k at 4:20 pace, ended up 4:27 pace (had to stop a few times to stretch ITB, glutes)
Tired legs. Including today's run, ran 130k in last 8 days

Sun (off):
Rest day

Total 94k (392k in last 4 weeks from scratch, av 98kpw)

No GCM this year

Week 3 of 9 to Seoul (gulp)

Will not be running Gold Coast this year as my brother's wedding is on the same weekend !

Hmm…so what's next then after Seoul? Melbourne in October looks attractive. Mostly flat course with some rises here and there. Good crowd and I am familiar with half of the route. October is also 6 to 7 months after Seoul which gives me ample of time to train for sub-3. However, the downside is the weather unpredictabilty, especially the wind (unlike Gold Coast which virtually guarantees calm, cool conditions almost everytime)

Perth City to Surf in late August provides me with 5 months to train, but sadly I am a dud at hills. Currently not interested in marathons elsewhere in the region.

If I run a decent time in Seoul, say under 3:10, I might be tempted to run WAMC Perth marathon in June. Traning wise, it is exactly 3 months after Seoul, which in theory should give me some post-marathon recovery time and a couple of months to continue building the foundations towards sub-3 goal. However, I hate the wind and pavement running. We shall see.

But of course, if I can miracoulously run a sub-3 in Seoul, I don't need to worry about these things anymore *lol*. It's a mission impossible as I don't have 10k/21k speed for sub-3 marathon. How I wish Captain Kirk can put a human transporter somewhere along the marathon course to timewarp me to the finish line !

Anyway, training this week:

Mon (interval):
4k warm up (5:22)
5 x 5 minutes, 1 minute jog in between
Pace per lap: 3:52, 3:53, 3:54, 3:54, 3:53, 3:45, accumulated 7.7k at average 3:52 min/km (with short breaks)
Including recovery jogs, the workout covered 8.6k in 35mins (av pace 4:03)
3k cool down with 2x200m fast (5:12)
Total session 16k

Tue (easy):
11.5k easy in 60mins, including 6 barefoot strides (av pace 5:15)
XT: lunges, squats, heel raises

Wed (long):
23k easy-moderate in 1h55m (av pace 4:55)
Based on pre/post run weights and drink consumed, my calculated sweat rate is 1.5 litre per hour !!

Thu (fartlek):
4.5k warm up (5:05)
12 x 60secs on, 30secs off
Averaged 3:30-3:40 min/km for the 1-minute ons
Including recovery jogs, the workout covered 4.4k (av pace 4:00)
3k cool down (5:30)
Total session 12k

Fri (off):
Rest day

Sat (long):
36k long run (22k @ 5:00 pace, 14k @ 4:48)
Excluding stops (drink, toilet), total running time 2h:56m (av pace 4:55)
Including stops (8mins total), total running time 3h:05m (av pace 5:08)

Sun (off):
Rest day

Total 99k in 5 runs

Week in summary:
Only ran 5 times this week as my father is in town. Nonetheless, a solid week with 2 workouts and 2 long runs. Monday's workout was great (at least for my standard), with almost 8k at 3:52 pace (translates to sub 31 8k or 38:40 10k pace). When I started with SW, I was whining about the short 1min recovery but now I feel it's not so bad. Did a 36k long run in the weekend, and surprisingly I found little problems in completing the distance. Consumed 1 litre water, 500ml sports drinks, and 1 gel for the whole 3 hours and felt good throughout the run. However, my ITB hurts afterwards, hopefully this goes away soon.

Last 3 weeks mileage have been 100, 99, and 99km. During the old times, I used to do 10-15mins shakeout run as a second run so that the total mileage rounds up to a nice number like 100k. Nowadays, I don't really care, even if I total 99.8k for the week. Makes me wonder if sub-3 marathon might be over-rated because it is just a nice, round number. Is there a difference in ability between runners who finish in 2:59:xx and 3:00:xx? I guess not. Perhaps if I never get sub-3 in my lifetime, then I should be as happy if I finish at 3:01 or 3:02 *lol*

Benchmarking

Week 2 of 9 to Seoul (ouch...)

Thanks for everyone's vote of confidence that I could complete an impromptu marathon with just 2 months of training. Sounds like around 3:10 was a popular prediction.

Well. I've been looking it at my past running log and found some interesting stuff (see chart below)

The 1st bar shows my monthly mileage for Joong-an marathon in Nov 08. The prep was quite similar to current situation. We were in Japan for holiday and rarely ran for 2 weeks. Then I embarked on 8 weeks of marathon training. Av mileage for that 8 weeks block was 384k per month. If we include another month before that (including holiday period), the 3 month average was 355k. This yielded 3:11 marathon.

The 2nd bar depicts mileage for Gold Coast in Jul 09. I was in off-season mode for 1 month (baby), then had 12 weeks of marathon training. Av mileage for the last 2 months prior to the race was 415k per month, for 3 months it was 388k. This yielded 3:04

The 3rd and 4th bars show mileage from two popular programs, Hal Higdon and Pfitzinger. Av mileage are 300 and 400ks respectively for 2 & 3 months before race week

The 5th bar shows the projected mileage leading to Seoul 2010 (mid Dec-mid Mar period).This assumes 90k average for Week 3-6 and 70k average for week 7-8. This produces a monthly average of 330 for 3 months and 360 for last 2 months prior to the race.

My observations:
- Based on Joong-an and GCM data, it seems higher mileage & longer prep correlate positively with marathon times (at least for me). There is pretty strong evidence that 3 months averaging 400k+ helped me to attain faster marathon timing in GC.
- My mileage are concentrated in the last few weeks before the race as depicted by more mileage done in last 2 months versus last 3 months.
- Higdon and Pfitz plan show consistent volumes for last 3 and 2 months. This raises another question whether I work too much in the last few weeks (tried to cram in everything as race day got closer)
- To say that my mileage is higher than Higdon's advance plan is misleading, since Higdon's plan runs for 4 months. My training plan is only 2 months.

- Will run Seoul with lower mileage compared to previous 2 marys & Pfitz plan
- It looks that there is nil chance to get a PB ! lol

So, that's a bit of analysis based on mileage. It's more difficult to compare intensities since all the workouts in each cycle are different. If we use average weekly training pace as a proxy for intensity, presently the data show that I am still averaging a the same training pace. In fact, my average pace still hovers about 5:00 pace and it hasn’t changed in four years!

Anyway, training this week:

Mon (threshold):
4k warm up/strides (av pace 5:25)
10 mins, 4mins jog, 10mins, 3mins jog, 5mins
Ran the fast part at 3:50-3:55 min/km, slow part av 4:45 min/km
Covered 7.9k in 32mins with 4 miles worth of 10k-paced running
3k cool down (av pace 5:30)
Total session 15k in 1h:10m (av pace 4:44)

Tue (easy):
11.7k easy in 60mins, including 5 barefoot strides (av pace 5:10)
XT: lunges, hip exercises

Wed (long):
20k easy-moderate in 100mins (av pace 5:00)
XT: 15mins upper body weights

Thu (hills):
6k worth of hills plus wu + cd
Average only 5:00 pace (up & down), but HR never got below 160 due to quick jog down and then up again

Fri (easy):
40mins easy on treadmill (av pace 5:37)
XT: 80 abs on bench (no weights)

Sat (long):
32.4k long run in 2h:37m (av pace 4:52)
10k easy @ 5:23, 140 bpm, 16k @ 4:30, 160 bpm, 6k easy with pick-ups. Testing the legs since I don't know what my MP is

Sun (off):
Rest day

Total 99k for the week in 8h:14m (av pace 5:00)

Week in summary:
Another 'ramping-up' week, with midweek and weekend long runs being extended to 20k and 32k respectively. Paces for these two runs are still on the slow side as my body is still adjusting to 100k weeks. Had one good threshold workout, but a dud again when doing hills. Next week will be another 'ramping-up' week with long run further stretched to 3 hours.

Holy Cow...I will be running a marathon in 8 weeks time

Last week, it was:

23 weeks to go to the Marathon..

Now, it BECOMES

8 weeks to go to the Marathon (yup, eight weeks)

There is a suprising, but very exciting development.

For my son's 1st birthday, the family (us, in-laws) decided to celebrate in style by going to South Korea. Coincidentally during that period, there is Seoul International Marathon!

I would have entered 10k/21km, but they don't have one (it's a single event). After some thinking, it will be too rude to pass the opportunity to run one of Asia's biggest marathon (30,000 marathon runners). So why not?

Now, the big question mark is how do I get my self ready to run 42k in 8 WEEKS TIME ???? *gulp*

I have been in off-season mode in last 1.5 months, longest 'long' runs of only 15-20k with a view that I have a full 6 months to do marathon training.

Will I crash and burn? Can I finish the race in one piece? Will I hit the dreaded wall?

Top 4 reasons why I should feel pessimistic:
a. 8 weeks essentially means 6 training weeks (plus 2 weeks taper)
b. Been in off-season mode, only ran 2-3x per week in Dec.
c. Feb-Mar is a busy time at work. Tough to find the time to train
d. As I am essentially doing a 'crash training'. The increase in mileage and intensity over that 6 weeks might yield over-training risk

Top 4 reasons why I should feel more upbeat:
a. I run much better in the cold climate. However, average temp in Seoul in March is between -2 and 8c (max, noon). This is below a perfect running temperature of 10c (such as Gold Coast). An unknown factor.
b. Seoul course is flat-ish, slight downhill in the beginning, but there is 6k of gradual rise (km 30-36) of 15 meters in elevation. Hmm…looks like a miniature version of Boston marathon which has a rise between km 26-36, climbing 51 meters. Overall net elevation loss of Seoul is 12 meters versus Boston's 137 meters.
c. My mid-week and long run have reached 18k and 30k
d. SW actually thinks I won't be doing too badly :)


All things considered, I could think of three scenarios:

1. Most likely scenario: hit the wall or overtraining, finish in 3h:30
2. Less likely scenario: <3h:15m, qualify Boston marathon for three years in a row
3. Most unlikely scenario: running under 3.10

Place your bets please….

Anyway, I always want to run Seoul so might as well enjoy the route for fun (albeit insufficient training).

Importantly, what a great way to celebrate my son's 1st birthday by running a marathon !
----------------------------------

Training this week:

Mon:
LT/Vo2 test

Tue (intervals):
5k warm up (av pace 5:20)
8 x 800m, 1min slow jog
Splits: 3:02, 3:01, 3:01, 3:02, 3:01, 2:59, 3:00, 2:55 = average 3:00 (3:45 min/km)
4.6k cool down (av pace 5:27)
Total session 16k in 1h15m (av pace 4:45)

Wed (long):
18k easy (av pace 5:06)
Took it easy, av HR 143

Thu (easy):
35mins treadmill (av pace 5:40)
2 sets of weights, 100 abs

Fri (threshold):
15mins warm up (av pace 5:25)
6k threshold run in 23:41 (av 3:57min/km)
Splits: 4:00, 3:58, 3:59, 3:57, 3:57, 3:48. Av HR 167
Rest, then up and down 100m hills, 10 times
3.6k cool down
Total session 15k in 1h:10m (av pace 4:42)

Sat (long):
30k long run in 2h:33m (av pace 5:05)
Tired legs from yesterday. Ran 10k from home to MR, 1 loop of trail, ran 10k back. Always hard to run 30k again after 2 months hiatus. Had a few stops nead the end.

Sun (rest):
OFF. No run.

Total 100k for the week in 8h:17m (av pace 5:00)

Week in summary: I broke the '10% mileage rule' by jumping from 70k last week to 100k this week (50% increase), hopefully The Runners World magazine gods will not punish me for this. Overall, a good week with 2 solid speed workouts and two longish runs. Paces for the long runs are still slow right now as I have been absent from marathon/mileage training for over 6 months.

lab rat

Participated in a research.

1) vo2 test

Protocol: speed 8.5 km/h constant, 3mins @ 0% grade, increased by 2.5% every 2mins
Duration: 20mins, ending at 20% grade
Vo2max 59
HR 190
Peak lactate 10.1

Experienced premature fatique as hills are not my strength. I've seen HR of 195 bpm during races & intervals, so could go longer under competitive situation, hence potentially higher Vo2. On the other hand, some say that protocol is not that accurate as in reality, runners don't run at that grade a lot hence Vo2 might be grossly elevated. A better test would be to run on flat grade (or track), with increasing speed and ending at the top speed that corresponds to your highest oxygen uptake.

For what it's worth, this calculator predicts 35mins 10k, 80 HM, and 2h45m marathon potential for me.

Pretty much in-line with what I expected. NOT MUCH GENETIC TALENT, even after logging 20,000km in the last 6 years.

Sub-3 would be the upper limit of running achievement since many runners generally never reach their VO2max potential.

2) LT

Protocol: grade 1%, 4mins run, 2mins rest for reading, speed increased by 0.7 km/h every interval

The protocol was for less fit types, with starting speed of 8.7 km/h. Lactate still hovered above resting levels for 30 minutes into the run. Fortunately, during the last stage, I at least reached 4 mmol which is often referred as LT (although range could be 2.5-6.5).

Paces/HR/lactate profile to come.

3) Vo2max (same day as above)

Done after LT test with 10mins rest
Protocol: 1 minute at 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 km/h at 1% grade (total 6 minutes). Then staying a 15km/h, grade increased to 2%, 4%, 6%, 8%, 10%

Achieved the same Vo2max as above, hence consistent results - although, I had some residual fatique from the LT test. HR only reached 190, decided to stop as I just couldn't run at 4:00 min/km with 10% grade.

Interestingly, the test was done at 23 BMI. Dropping a couple of kgs will increase it by 2 points.

The work begins

Training for the week ending 10/01 (Week 1 of 26 to GCM)

Mon: 6k easy (5:00), 5 strides barefoot on grass, 1.2k cool down. Total 8.2k in 41:05 (5:01), 40 forward lunge walk, 20 backward, 80 abs on bench, glutes exercise

Tue: 3k warm up (5:20), drills + 4 strides, 15 x 00:60 on, 00:30 off - paces according to GPS for the 'ON' were 3mins 30, 29, 32, 40, 31, 38, 32, 35, 38, 46, 39, 33, 42, 49 (small climb), 30 min/km - average @ 3:37 or about 3k pace, recovery were 5:00-6:00 pace - total fartlek 22:00 incl recovery covering 5.43k (av 4:03 min/km), HR av 175 hi 186, 3k cool down (5:32). Total 12.33k in 59:10 (4:48)

Comment: Felt ok. Probably that's my max speed at the moment, nevertheless accumulated about 15mins worth of current 3k PB pace. Just realized the program had 12x 1min…so I over did-it..oops

Wed: 45mins easy progressing from 6:00 to 5:00 min/km, next 30mins at 4:50, 5 strides. Total 16k in 81:00 (5:04), HR av 147
Comment: Legs a bit tired, probably takes time to be familiar with running everyday again.

Thu: 3.5k wu (5:40), 15x100m hill, quick jog back, between 58-62secs per cycle, av pace 5:05, 2.5k cd (5:30). Total 9k in 49:00 (5:27)
Comment: schedule called for 30x100m, but I was spent after 15. Not fit enough yet. Hips and kness sore due to the downhill.

Fri: 5.5k treadmill (5:40), relaxed and easy. 2x12 reps on weight machines (lat, fly, deltoid row, lower back, quads, calf, glutes), 60 abs on bench, 20mins yoga stretch

Sat: Long run progression, 20mins @ 5:00, 4:50, 4:40, 4:25 min/km, 10mins @ 4:18, strides. Total 20k in 93:30 (4:40)

Comment: Tried to make up for Thursday's session, so ran a faster long run today. Did the same distance & route as last week but carried a bottle of water this time. No breaks but drank the water on a run. Av HR was 155 bpm versus last week 157 bpm but av pace is 10secs/km faster today. Hence, hydration (500ml water for a 90min run) will certainly help running performance and mitigate heat build-up in Singapore conditions.

Sun: off

Total 71k in 5:54 (av 5:00)

Mileage breakdown:
Aerobic & Recovery: 90%
Stamina & Strength: 4%
Speed & Races: 6%

Summary:
Overall, not a good start for the new year. Did one workout and failed to complete another. The fartlek was great but the hill was a dud (I think I had half of Singapore finished ahead of me in the hills). Av training pace at 5:00 is also slower than the 4:50s in recent weeks. However, I am not complaning since this is still early in the training cycle and there are still 25 weeks left before GC. Mileage and long runs will get progressively higher and longer from this point.

Had a blood test done before Christmas. Haematology data (wbc 4.0, rbc 4.87, hgb 14.5, plt 215) suggest that I should be ready to tackle training. However, my cholestrol is on the elevated side (238, hdl 77,ldl 147), hence I need to be a bit more selective on what I eat!

Off-season

Some stats to start with:

Ran 3650k total for the year of 2009 (av 10k/d). Also passed 20,000k of lifetime mileage since I started running six years ago at age 33.

The stats above just showed how little natural talent I have :(

This week marks the end of my off-season training. For the whole of December, my training load is only about 60% of normal, with lots of rest days. My body and legs are still not entirely fresh and springy, but my fitness hasn’t eroded much either, so I guess they balanced out.

Training this week:

Mon – 2k ez, 15k Tempo in 60:00 (av 4:00 min/km) in HK under cool conditions (see previous blog post). I reckoned I could carry on at this pace for a half-marathon distance (85 mins pace). But thenI would feel less guilty to claim a PB in a training run for 15k rather than a common distance such as 21k. Anyways, this timing is faster than of all my currents PBs, therefore, I will use to set my training paces. Makes me wonder if I continued to stay in Australia, how much faster I could get since I can run at this pace presumably on regular basis?

Tue – off

Wed – 35mins easy run on treadmill (av 5:20)

Thu – off

Fri – 20k long run in 97:00 (av 4:50), aerobic progression 20mins at 5:10, 5:00, 4:50, 4:40, and last 17mins at 4:32 pace. In line with my earlier blog about ‘secret weapons for 2010’, I did the long run without breaks and at moderate paces (instead of easy) to optimize calorie burning. The continuous nature of the run plausibly resulted in de-hydration, heat buildup, and cardiac drift as evidenced by the jump in HR from 140 bpm to 180 bpm at the end (note that 180 is higher than my tempo HR!). Will run without any breaks/water for runs up to around 90mins.

Sat – off

Sun – 4k ez, 10k at medium effort on a cross country course in 45mins+ (av 170 bpm). Decided to piggyback on MR25 club runs since it was my first time doing the route; even then I had to wait for some runners to ask for direction. Overall, a good outing at pretty solid pace although, I found the trail too rocky for my liking.

Total 59k for the week.

Will resume SW’s on-line coaching next week. Let the hard work begins !!

15k solo tempo run in HK

In line with the festive holiday season, my running is virtually also on 'holiday' mood.

After averaging 300+ ks for the last 9 months or so, I only managed to do around 200k month-to-date due to a combination of family visits, holiday and work. After the SCSM half, I averaged out running every second day or so.

Week of 7-13 Dec: 5 off days, 2 runs, total 26k
Week of 14-20 Dec: 2 off days, 5 runs, total 65k
Week of 21-27 Dec: 3 off days, 4 short runs, total 35k

Had a good Christmas break in Hong Kong with wife and son: doing lots of shopping, eating good food, and visiting Disneyland. Had a major scare as Sling Jr vomited a few times one night and we had to rush him to the hospital. The doc said it was probably gastritis. Thankfully, he seemed to be recovering quickly and is on the mend.

Had a good run whilst in Disneyland. Weather was cool at sub-10c with some wind chill here and there. Ran along 1.8k stretch of road between Lake Inspiration and Disneyland Hotel for 4 return trips. The cool conditions at about 1/3 of usual Singapore temperature made running so damn easy and effortless. My original intent was to do 10k tempo run at 4:00 pace. I duly passed the 5k in 19:58 and 10k at 40:08 and still felt strong. Consequently, I decided to continue the run, picked up the ante, and passed the 15k mark in 59:50 and covered 15.06k in 1 hour flat.

An unofficial PB since my last 15k race in 2005 was around 61:40s. My 15k splits from Melbourne HM was 61:12 and Singapore HM was 61:16.

The route was flat and in a straight line (no corners, no turns), hence I think the GPS distance should be pretty close to accurate. I also ran another 60 meters extra just to make sure some compensation of the u-turns :p Hmm...can I claim this as a PB?

I felt that I could continue at this pace for another few ks since I still had some gas in the tank. The good thing about running in cool temperature is that I sweated less and do not have to re-hydrate. Even for allowing sole slow down to around 4:10-4:15 for the next 6k, I think I could end up doing a 86 minute half-marathon that day if I continued. Or even could be 85-ish if I didn't run solo (aka race conditions).

Putting the 60-minute 15k in Jack Daniels chart suggests that I am in 54 VDOT shape: 38:40 10k, 1h:25m HM, and 2h:59m marathon. While McMillan predicts 38:40 10k, 1h:26m HM, and 3:01:42 marathon. Whilst the actual results will depend on the training and the runner itself, at least, these prediction calculators will give me some pace guidelines to shoot for.

On the negative side, the tempo run results re-affirm my view that I am a crap hot weather racer. I really admire local runners like Ronnie, Vivian, Tatz, Steven etc who can run 80-85m HMs in hot weather countries like Singapore and Cambodia. Due to my excessive sweating, both my heart and working muscles simply have to work hard to compete with the skin for blood under warm conditions. Also due to my insanely high sweat loss, I can never be able to keep up with the optimal hydration needs without doing a lot of stops at water stations.

Tune-up races 2010

Doing my own training this month due to a myriad of things such as post 1/2 marathon recovery, family visits, and Christmas holiday. Will resume SW’s coaching in January to prepare for GCM.

Will be off to Hong Kong with wife + son next week yay :)

Below is my indicative race plan for 2010. Have not registered any of these yet, but these are what I have in mind:

14 March: North East Run 16k
A new race, hence I don't know much about the race route and organization qualities. Anyway, it's a good distance to race since it is virtually a lactate threshold test. One bummer is that the race venue is far from my place (1 hour train ride) and I need to go there twice to pick up the race bib and then for the run itself :(

11 April: 2XU Compression Run 12k
Also, a new race and it will be held in Sentosa Island. Most likely 2 loops of the island with some undulations.

22 May: Saucony Passion Run 25k
I've done the 10k for this event in 2008 & 2009 and hated it due 'human wall' formed by slower 15k runners who started earlier and general public who used the running path.

This year, they replaced the 15k with 25k. My initial thought would be to do the 25k at goal marathon pace or slightly faster. One bummer is that the race will start at 4pm which is still a bit warm for my liking.

4 July --- Gold Coast Marathon
Most likely will take a long holiday in the land of Oz late June to early July since I need to extend my permanent residency. Hopefully the family can join me to Gold Coast.

Other races:
I might also do the JP Morgan Corporate 5.6k run around April if my company sponsors its staff this year again. Currently not tempted to run Adidas Sundown 21k since I am now getting slower to recover from races (the 25k race is a week before)

That's basically all. No common race distances such as 5k, 10k, or 21k leading up to the marathon. If my marathon fitness indicates that I have a shot at sub-3 in GC, I could toe the start line with the slowest 10k and 21k PB among all runners in the sub-3 pacing bus. Can a wet dream become a reality? :)

Secret Weapons for 2010

A slack week :) only did two runs (10k ez @ 5:10 & 16k ez @ 4:48)

Due to little training, I have some time to think about next year plans. No prize for guessing the goal lol. But I am really excited about next year as it will be my first ever attempting a sub-3 (of course subject to actual fitness level closer to the race day).

Presently, I haven't done anything to deserve a sub 3. My recent half-marathon (87 mins) only indicate around 3:03 marathon potential, so in that sense I haven't really earned the right to try sub-3. While there are still 6+ months plus to train, I doubt that I will be able to run 85 half which is typically used as a benchmark for sub-3 readiness. It took me 3 years to lower my half PB by 1 minute, hence to cut 2-3mins within the next 5-6 months seems to be a stretch target.

My only hope for an upside is that it will come from doing the right workouts during the marathon prep. In general, I am a better trainer than a racer. So doing the right workouts (long runs, long goal MP run etc), hitting targetted paces/effort, and training consistently will be key, and let's just hope everything will come together on race day and who knows I might be lucky :p

Anyway, I've identified 5 areas that can to help me to achieve my goal. They are not genetic-driven, so regardless of my limited talent, achieving these should contribute to running faster:

1) Lower weight

At 168cm and 68kg, my BMI is 24 which is a bit high. Earlier this week, I went to the gym and they measured my body fat percentage at 14% (not sure if accurate). Using an accepted rule of thumb that every extra pound of non-productive body weight (body fat) decreases running performance by around 1%, if I can reduce my (fat) weight by 3kg, in theory it can improve my peformance by around 5%.

This can come from better dietary regime, such as targeting low GI food and less fatty food items.

2) Upping the pace of easy runs and long runs

In the last few weeks, my average training pace (average of all sessions) is 4:50s, mainly due to doing long runs at moderate pace (around 4:40-4:50). If my average weekly training pace was 5:00 during GC prep could get me 3:04+, presumably a slightly faster average pace should get me somewhere close to 3 hour. I don't think this is not that hard to attain.

In addition, running at moderate pace also will lead to more fat burning. I read in a book that at low intensity (walking) of 25% VO2max, you burn 85% fat, 15% carb. At 65% VO2max, you burn 60% fat, 40% carb while at 85% VO2max (tempo pace) the mix is 30% fat, 70% carb. While these are percentages of fuel mix, but the key to reduce body fat is to actually lose the fat itself as TOTAL FAT CALORIES. At 25% VO2max, the fat burnt is only 0.8 kcal/kg/min (you burn 0.8 calories of fat per 1 kg of body weight every minute). But at 65% VO2max, you will actually burn fat at a rate of 1.2 kcal/kg/min. At 85% VO2max, the fat burnt is reduced again to 0.8 since the fat component is lower at 30%. Hence, upping the pace of aerobic runs to moderate level should assist in losing a couple of excess fat kgs.

3) Minimizing stoppages during runs

Last week Epi advised me to run continuously without a break in order to develop mental toughness and improve pace concentration. Some things that I can start to adopt in the next marathon prep include a) bringing fuel belt during long runs (avoid going to 7/11 to get drinks which could take 5 minutes); b) let the watch run while drinking or resting to give me incentive to ensure the break will be a quick one; and c) jogging during intervals breaks (even at 8-9 min/km) rather than standing breaks. I think a jog say at 130-140 bpm before starting the next interval should yield better fitness than starting the next one at HR of 100 bpm with standing break.


Anyway, these are just my random thoughts on a few scopes for upside improvement which are independent of my limited talent. Anyone has other ideas?

Quote of the week:
"you can run a good half marathon off of marathon training, but you can’t run a good marathon off of half marathon training" - Renato Canova

Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon and 1/2 Marathon 2009

87:34 chip time..

Distance was 21.3k by GPS, passing 21.1k in 86:5x. Quite sure the race distance is close to accurate since normally GPS overstates by 100-200m as runners will not take the shortest pathway as envisaged by the race measurer.

Not sure whether the result is better than my current PB in Melbourne which is 87:05. Today's timing is 30 seconds slower. Temperature was 24c with 95% humidity, while the race in Melbourne was around 10c and relatively dry conditions. Also I did a couple more drink stops to re-hydrate which cost 5-10 seconds each (sadly, I couldn’t drink on the run, hence I walked in order to drink properly). The course was also harder than Melbourne which included 500m-long steep hill (ECP).

But who knows…

But again self-conviction was probably the main culprit. I felt strong but just didn’t have the guts to push. Splits for 5k were: 19:48, 20:36, 20:52, 21:13, and 5:05 for the last 1.3k of whatever. (10k splits were 40:24, 42:05). The first 5k was probably a tad too fast in hindsight but there were 2 pretty long gradual downhill (av 3:58 for the 5k). Next 5k included a 500m hill and it broke me down, but pace wise was still okay averaging 4:07s for this segment. After that I was basically ‘locked’ into a cruising pace for the second half. Although, I wasn’t struggling but I just couldn’t find the guts to shift to a higher gear. Since the 21k was a side-event to the marathon, there were not many runners and I was virtually running alone the whole way. Ran the next 10k at around 4:10+ pace and was simply cruising until I picked it up a bit in the last k. As can be seen in the km splits below, my HR was hovering at 170s between km 3 – 20. I was simply locked into a twilight zone and felt afraid to fail. I felt that I still had a lot left in the tank at the finish, but what the heck, the race is already over.

All in all, I am pretty okay with the result, only 30secs slower than Melbourne (I am only good at cool weather runs) and beat my Singapore best timing for the distance by a full minute. So, I feel that I am on the improve fitness wise. Habing said that, I still need to work hard next year to do sub-3.

My lingering issue is just poor race execution. Probably started too fast (albeit downhill start), but the main problem is simply too much aversion towards pain. Perhaps I should do more races during the build-up to GCM in order to practice pacing, drinking on the run, and more importantly, to increase pain tolerance and the will to push myself.

On the elite level, today’s cool weather for Singapore standard (24c, 90+% humidity, wind) resulted in course record to be broken. Luke Kibet, defending champ and 2007 World Championship gold medalist (2:08 PB) won it in 2:11 and brought home US$35k + appearance fees.


Km splits according to GPS and HR:

3 50 158
4 0 167
3 47 170
4 1 171
4 10 169
4 3 170
4 12 170
4 5 170
4 7 171
4 9 171
4 9 172
4 14 171
4 7 173
4 11 174
4 11 173
4 14 175
4 16 174
4 16 176
4 12 177
4 15 177
4 6 181
59 183

Chip time: 87:34
Position: 19th overall out of 9794, 17th Men out of 6371, 7th AG 35-39 out of 1122

Results link

1 week 2 go

Training this week:

Monday: 4k warm up with strides (5:12), 8 x 3 minutes intervals with 1 minute jog, a bit of self-improvisation by turning them to 800s, covered ~810m by GPS (normally overstates distance). Splits: 2:55/160, 3:04/166, 3:01/168, 3:04/169, 3:01/171, 3:05/174, 2:58/175, 2:59/177. Av for the interval was 3:01, surprisingly feeling fresh two days after 29k long run., 3k cool down (5:37), total 13k+ (av 4:37 pace excl breaks). Wondering how fast I would run Yasso 800 with 3 minutes steady jog instead of 1 minute slow jog?

Tuesday: 46 minutes easy including 1 set of drills & strides, warm and humid, lucky I tweaked Sean’s schedule as otherwise I would struggle to do the intervals today, total 9k+ (av 5:10)

Wednesday: 80 minutes at easy pace, but it wasn’t easy effort-wise, heat index 40+, took a couple of lengthy breaks to stay under shades, total 16k (av 5:04 excl breaks)

Thursday: 42 minutes easy on treadmill, 120 abs crunches, myrtle hip exercise, core work, one-legged squats, lunges, total 8k (av 5:15)

Friday: 4k warm up with strides (5:20), 6k sustained run in 23:48 (av 3:58 pace). Splits: 3:56, 4:01, 3:58, 4:00, 4:01, 3:52. Av HR was 165 bpm (high 172) which was better than the same workout a month ago at av 4:01 pace, 170 bpm (high 183), short jog, 10 minutes up and down 100m hill at steady effort, 3k down (5:10), total 15k+ (av 4:40)

Saturday: off

Sunday: 90 minutes long run with a bit of self improvisation, first 30mins easy pace (5:05), next 30mins moderate pace (4:40), last 30mins steady pace (4:28), total 19k (av 4:45)

Total 81k for the week

Week in Summary:

A decent week with a couple of solid workouts. Good 800s on Monday at around 5k pace, while Friday's 6k tempo run was 3 secs/km faster with 5bpm lower HR compared to the same session one month ago. Comparing the 6-week training blocks between Melbourne ½ (87 min) and Singapore ½, this time I am doing more mileage (15% more over 6 weeks total) and longer long runs (3 runs between 29-32k vs a single 29k for Melbourne). Hence, it looks like my endurance is better. For Melbourne, I did 2 race pace sessions, a 9k and 10k sustained runs averaging 4:05 pace, while this time my most specific run was 2x6k at 4:08 pace (on tired legs). All in all, I am not sure of my chance to get a PB next week and certainly the conditions (300% higher temperature than Melbourne on heat index basis) will make it a challenging task.

Will be interested to see the marathon results and whether the course records will be broken this year. The SCSM organizer has invited 8 sub 2:10 African male runners and 8 sub 2:30 female runners to battle for the glory. I’d say the Singapore Marathon has the deepest field of all marathons in Asia excluding Japan & Korea and is definitely stronger than any Australian marathons.

Too many modifications ?

There is good article on Kara Goucher about running by feel. It is interesting to note that Kara only knows what session to do (either intervals, tempo, easy runs) the night before and her coach, Alberto Salazar only told her the actual workout contents when she shows up on track in the morning. Even then, the session could be modified depending how she handles the beginning of the session or even during the warm up.

see here

http://running.competitor.com/2009/11/features/exclusive-kara-goucher-interview_6885

I have a confession that I frequently modify Coach's schedules to my liking. But rather than changing them depending on how I feel, I do them based on life' schedules and weather conditions. If I feel that I will be time pressed on day x, then I will swap a scheduled workout A with an impromptu easy short run. Also, if weather looks decent (cloudy or after a long rain), I would do a workout instead of a scheduled easy run.

For instance, Coach schedules the following for this week:
Mon ez, Tue Workout, Wed ez, Thu Workout. Fri ez, Sat Long

Instead, this is how I did the week:
Mon Workout, Tue ez, Wed Workout, Thu ez, Fri sort of Workout, Sat Long

All in all, only one session matched the original schedule, which is Saturday's long run. This happens almost every week, ranging from 1-2 tweaks to 6 tweaks just like this week.

I am pretty sure the program is designed for a reason. While sometimes I told Coach about the change, most of the time I didn't tell because I only can decide which session to do after seeing the day's schedule or weather.

This makes me a bad trainee. Is this good or bad??

Anyway, two weeks left before the SCSM Half. My 'modified from the original schedule' training this week:

Monday 3.5k ez/strides (5:05), 15-10-5 minutes intervals > HM pace with 4-3 minutes rest, av pace & HR: 3:59/169 for the 15, 3:58/174 for the 10, 3:49/175 for the 5, lost concentration in the middle segment but overall legs a bit tired from 32k long run two days earlier, 2.7k ez (5:30), total ~14k

Pace & HR data for the same 15-10-5 workout in the last 11 days. It seems the good result on 10 Nov was simply a function of temperature and not fitness.
5 Nov 3:59/168, 3:55/174, 3:49/176 (arvo, rain)
10 Nov 3:59/164, 3:53/169, 3:45/172 (morning, cool)
16 Nov 3:39/169, 3:58/174, 3:49/175 (arvo)

Tuesday 40 minutes easy on treadmill (5:20), 100 abs crunches, myrtle hip exercise, total 7k+

Wednesday 4k ez/strides (5:10), 2 x 6k at HM pace, First 6k in 24:44, av pace 4:08 pace, HR 165 bpm, splits 4:10, 4:12, 4:09, 4:05, 4:07. Second 6k in 24:37, av pac 4:06, HR 172, splits: 4:06, 4:06, 4:08, 4:13, 4:06, 3:58, I expected low 4s on average so a bit disappointed, thought of aborting at 4k mark in the 2nd segment but decided to be mentally disciplined and carried on, 3k ez with 4 short hill sprints (5:20), total 19k

Thursday 50mins easy in the driving rain (5:13), total 9k+

Friday 2.4k ez, 2.84k in 10:33, 3rd (av 3:44, 174 bpm), supposedly 3.2k but well short, a waste of time and effort, 2.4k ez, total 7k+

Saturday the schedule calls for 32k but short on time, planned to get up at 4.30 and start at 5, but only ran at 6am, home-tanglin rd-holland rd-sixth ave-dunearn rd-rifles range and back, first half at 5:05-4:50, second half <4:50, total 29k+ (av 4:53)

Sunday off

Total 87k for the week

Ok week

Attended a 3-day conference, hence running took a back seat this week. Most runs were short and easy since I had to fit them during the lunch time break. With the exception of one decent session and a long run, everything else was so-so.

Singapore now officially enters the monsoon/rainy season. I actually like the rainy season since the morning is normally very cool (24-25c), especially after an overnight’s rain.

Had a good 15-10-5 minutes session which have become my favorite of late. Did the workout in the morning, which led to faster pace and lower heart rate. Average pace were 3:59/164, 3:53/169, 3:45/172 versus a similar session done last week in the afternoon under rainy conditions with av paces of 4:00/168, 3:55/174, 3:49/176. Therefore, av HR during the intervals were 4bpm lower, but average paces were a couple of seconds faster, which is always a good sign. I think this is underpinned by the favorable weather conditions as well as the recently introduced moderate-paced long runs which gave that slightly extra endurance stimulus.

Three weeks to go to the SCSM 21k!

Anyway, training this week:

Monday: one hour easy including 5 long hill sprints, total 11k+ (av 5:00), 100 abs crunches, 2x15 lat pull, deltoid row, fly, rotary calf, leg curl, leg extension

Tuesday: 15mins warm up with strides, 15-10-5 minutes intervals with 4-3 mins walk/jog recovery, average pace: 3:59/164, 3:53/169, 3:45/172, 10mins cool down including 2x200m, total 12k+ (av 4:28 excl rests; pm 5k slow (av 5:40), Myrtle hip exercise

Wednesday: Felt crap after yesterday’s session, 50mins easy with stops here and there, total 9k+ (av 5:13)

Thursday: 4k up, 10 x ~200m hill, up in 55secs, down in 65sec down, 5x100m hill sprints, walk rec, 1 set of drills and strides (high skipping, high knees, butt kicks, carioca, bounding), 4k cool down, total 12k (av 5:03 excl breaks).

Friday: 35mins relaxed run on treadmill, 6k+ (av 5:25)

Saturday: Nice running on a great route (Rifles Range) in cool conditions (24c), first hour 5:00-4:50 pace, second hour 4:40 pace, finished up with 8 x 30secs on/90secs off and a couple ks cool down, total 32k (av 4:50 excl breaks)

Sunday: off

Total 89k for the week

Self Improvisations

Good week. Probably the first time I came close to completing Sean’s written program since I engaged him to be my coach a couple of months ago.

I also made some self-improvisations to my training by introducing a few extra things here and there, such as barefoot strides, technique drills, and short hill sprints which are not in the Coach’s program. I think it’s a good time to introduce them now, and if I do them diligently, I might reap the benefits (e.g. better running economy) in time for 2010 GC marathon build-up.

Another new thing that I introduce is a fartlek-esque long run. Coach only prescribes me to do my long run at 4:50 pace, which can either be a flat 4:50 pace for the whole duration or a progression-style, something like 5:00 in the first half and 4:40 in the second half or a real progression from 5:00-4:15 pace. Due to Singapore conditions and the fact that I am a heavy sweater, it’s hard for me to do progression-type run over here. After 60-90 minutes or so, I would experience a huge sweat loss and hydration-deficit (I could drink more, but that would make the stomach sloshing with water). In light of this, what I did this week was to run the faster stuff in the first half while I am still fully-hydrated and the temperature is still cool. Maybe I should call it a reverse-progression run haha? As the main purpose of progression run is to teach the body running at faster pace while tired, I did a short fartlek at the back end in order to replicate the stress. For example, today I did 5k warm up, 12k solid at goal MP less 20secs, 3k easy, 5k of alternating 1min on/off, 4k cool down. Not so sure, whether this would have the same effect as a normal progression run, but I guess I’ll give it a try. Furthermore, this also makes the long run more interesting due to the pace variation.

Anyway, training this week:

Monday: 3k up, 7 x 800m hilly loop (splits 3:00, 3:01, 3:02, 3:04, 3:02, 3:05, 3:07 with 1:40 rest), the loop wasn't difficult, but I still struggled. Clockwise, 1min moderate slope, 2min gradual downhill (acts like recovery), anti-clockwise 2mins gradual rise (not challenging), 1mins steep downhill. Need to find a better loop with more ups and downs. 3k down with 6 x 20secs barefoot strides on grass, Myrtle hip exercise, total 12k+ (av 4:35 excl breaks)

Tuesday: 100 abs, 8k easy on treadmill to minimize leg pounding (5:12), 1k jog to grassy area, 1 set of drills and strides, 1k down, total 11k+ (av 5:10)

Wednesday: 1 hour easy moderate (15mins @ 5:10, 5:00, 4:50, 4:40), then 20mins easy, the original plan was to finish last 20mins at 4:20-4:30 but legs didn’t want to go. Super humid morning, 5 x 10secs hill sprints to hopefully oust the staleness for tomorrow’s session, total 16k+ (av 4:56)

Thursday: 3k up, 15-10-5 minutes intervals (av pace 4:00, 3:55, 3:49). Recovery 4mins and 3mins, had bowel problems and had to poo during the recovery. 3k down, total 13.6k (av 4:27 excl breaks). Did 10mins of light upper/lower weights. Sean schedules this workout for the next 2 weeks, so will be interested to see the progress.

Friday: 35mins relaxed run on treadmill, 100 abs, Myrtle hip exercise, lunges, total 6k+ (av 5:30)

Saturday: 5k easy (5:10), 12k solid undulating terrain(4:35), 3k easy (5:20), 5k of 1min HM pace/ez (av 4:35), 4k easy (5:10). Warm morning, dehydrated. Had to stop a few times, total 29k (av 4:50 excl breaks)

Sunday: off

Total 89k for the week

Season ain't over yet

Really envious of Clown & Epi who have finished their running seasons and are heading to Everest Base Camp.

My running season is not finished yet, with SCSM half marathon in 5 weeks time.

Did 280k in October – lowest monthly mileage in a while. This was a function of doing 3 races (3k, 21k, 10k) within a span of 20 days and the associated pre-race taper and post-race recovery. My monthly average between April and September was 350k+, hence this month was 70k short. I do feel that I have lost some ‘oomph’ from the drop in mileage (presumably endurance). Note that these races are my personal choices, and the coach just wrote the program around these events.

Hence, I am quite happy to see the training ramping up back to my usual 80-90k range over the next few weeks. The Coach’s plan is a bit different to the prep for Melbourne HM, emphasizing more on endurance this time around. Will be doing mostly 90ks a week and only taper in the last several days. Long runs have now been extended to 32k.

Another change from the last prep was shorter fast-sustained runs (tempos). Last time, I did a couple of 10k sustained run at HM pace – which took me around 40-41mins. In general, I think they were useful sessions and I was able to run at this pace during the race (unfortunately, the pace slowed in the second half, hence the reason for adding mileage and longer long runs) This time around, most speed workouts are 20-30mins in total duration and they will be in long intervals format with long breaks in between.

Therefore, some new tweaks in training (more mileage, short tempos). Let’s see what happens on Dec 6!

M: 18k easy (4:53)
T: 12k easy (5:00)
W: 2.5k wu, 6k sustained run @ 4:01 pace, 5x100m hills, 2k cd
T: 7k very easy (5:30) + core strength
F: 12k easy (5:00)
S: 5k easy (5:10), 21k moderate(4:40), total 26k
S: off

Total 86k for the week

Need mental toughness

Just wasn't mentally switched on to run the Nike 10k yesterday. Hence, I bagged another DNF in my running CV.

Work has been busy & stressful for the whole week, so it zapped a lot of of my brain energy and focus. At the start of the race, I wasn't feeling that flashy anyway since this is my 3rd race in 20 days (after 3k and 21k). Again, to make sure I got good starting position among the 10,000 runners, I waited at the start line for a good 40 minutes and probably lost all of the warm up benefit. Ran pretty consistent splits for the first few ks and passed the 5k mark in 19:36. So I was still on track for a small PB. However, for some reasons, I then got switched off mentally, lost concentration, and went wayward. Before I knew it, I passed the next 2ks at 4:10 and 4:20 pace. At this juncture, I began to have side stitch and I realized around 41mins was the best I could hope for - which is slower than my 10k split during the half marathon a couple of weeks ago. Felt very de-motivated and I decided to quit at 7k, walked and cheered other runners. Maybe I just didn't care about the race enough.

I used to like 10k a lot, but now I think it is the hardest event for me to PB. For HM and marathon, you are more or less forgiven even if the pace slows down by 20secs for 1-2k since you have chance later on (later kms) to recoup. For 5k or below, the race is very short, you don't need to concentrate for a long time and you'll finish the race before your brain starts to play tricks. 10k for me is very tough, even after running had for 5k, you still have 50% of race distance to go. And once, your pace drifted downwards at km 6-8, mentally it's hard to tell yourself that you can recoup the time lost.

Six weeks to go before the SCSM Half Marathon. Let's hope this one won't turn out as another DNF.

Very light week

Most likely I won't be running Seoul next March. For my next marathon, I really wanna have a good attempt at sub-3, rather than training specificaly and aiming for something like 3:02-3:03. Since Seoul is 5 months away, I think sub 3 will be a big stretch. In addition, Seoul is gonna be really cold (it was <0 in 2007) around that time.

Quite keen to run Gold Coast again in July. Weather is typically pretty good, 10c and calm. Good organization with pacing group led by Mona or Pat Carroll. Also we can combine with a family trip again to my wife's place in Melbourne. Don't mind running Perth if the timing is right.

This leaves a good 8 months to train. Not sure what Sean has in mind to fill that period. It could be base building or even focusing on shorter distances to increase overall speed. Will have an in-depth discussion after Singapore Half Marathon on Dec 6.

Training wise, this week is very light with three rest days to recover from last week HM. 51k total, mostly easy runs.

Next week will run the Nike Human Race 10k. No expectation on finishing time as my training was geared towards last week's HM. Have not been doing intervals for a month, as training in recent weeks mainly consisted of HM pace and lots of easy running.

Oh ya, I am 38 years old today. Hopefully I will be wiser and faster!

Under-performance (again)

Did the Melbourne Half Marathon 2009 today in 87:05.

A small PB - feeling slightly more disappointed than happy.

I failed to take advantage of a fine, calm Melbourne day (which is rare), a flat course, and a good field (164 runners finished ahead of moi)

Was hoping to run 85-86 - which I thought was doable given the conditions. Coach thinks that I had a good chance for 86:20 and asked me to go out at 4:05 pace. In the end, I averaged 4:05 according to Garmin. But as usual, Garmin always overshoot race distance, it measured 21.3 on a certified HM course. Actualy, the km markers were a bit disapointing for such a big run as some of them (especialy the so-called halfway point) were inaccurately placed. For future races, perhaps I should take into account GPS' typical 100-200m over-estimation (worth 20-40secs for my speed) into my pacing plan.

As mentioned previously, I pulled a hammy during last week's 3000m. Went to a physio (reputed to be the best sports physio in SG), but very disappointed with the visit. He used a deodorant roll-on to massage voltaren to my hammy which I could do by myself. He simply told me to rest and that was it. What a rip-off! Give me tennis ball and foam roller anytime!

On Friday, I did a 50mins run in Melbourne and the hammy was ok. Hence, I was in confident mood going into today's race. However, I aggravated the problem in a funny circumstance. With about 15mins before the start, I was still queueing at the port-a-loo. I (with a few other runners) decided to go to the Botanical Garden across the road from start point and ran hard up the hill to find a bush to pee. I pulled the hammy again during the uphill run and I knew that it wouldn't be an easy day.

In light of this, I ran very cautiously all the way to avoid the hammy blewing up. I didn't take any drink until the 13k mark because I didn't want to take a risk of stopping and resuming the run with pulled hamstring. In the second half, the hammy just got tighter and I also faded due to tiredness. Even in the last 1k, I didn't make any attempt to sprint pass people as I didn't want to risk sprinting on the slippery grass field inside MCG.

Average HR was 169 bpm - which I think is a bit on the low side. (my marathon HR from Gold Coast ws 165)

As expected, I had positive splits due to the tight hammy and fade. 5k splits: 20:10, 20:26, 20:36, 20:44 + 5:07, 10k splits 40:36, 41:20. Official Result: 87:05, Position 164, gender position 147, age group position 36

4:04/156, 3:59/166, 4:00/169, 4:03/167, 4:04/169, 4:06/168, 4:03/168, 4:05/169, 4:06/169, 4:06/168, 4:06/169, 4:05/169, 4:13/170, 4:06/171, 4:06/171, 4:10/171, 4:09/171, 4:03/171, 4:11/172, 4:11/175, 4:05/175, 1:02/179 (300m)


In the end, I managed a small PB for the Half Marathon. On the posive side, this is the first time in 3 years that I managed to get 2 PBs in one year.

Slightly disappointed as I felt that lack of self-belief is my weakness. I think I probably should have pushed the boundaries a bit today. McMillan predicts a 3:03:40 marathon based on today's timing, so I am still far from sub 3-hour shape.

Anyway, what's done is done.

Commiseration to Rob who pulled out at 12k due to injury. We had a few beers afterwards at the Young & Jacksons, and the yak pale ale was nice!

Good one-two punches, now hamstrung !

Last week, I wrote that I was feeling like a boxer on the ropes. With the final bell about to ring (HM next week), I went out in a counter attacking mode and had a couple of punches (workouts):

1)10k at HM pace. I really don’t know what my HM pace is, so I decided to run at my usual tempo pace between 4:00-4:10 pace (last week did 9k averaging 4:06, so I think that range is reasonable.). Finished the run in 40:40, av 4:04 min/km. Splits: 4:02, 4:04, 4:03, 4:06, 4:04, 4:05, 4:04, 4:09, 4:07, 3:53. Average HR was 169 bpm with a high of 179.

Talking about race simulation, my 10k at HM pace as the last workout before the race is pale in comparison with Dathan Ritzehein. He is preparing for the World Half Champs next week and ran a 10 mile race pace run in training, unofficially breaking the American record. A 16k training run at 21k race pace, that’s what I call WOW.

http://www.oregonlive.com/trackandfield/index.ssf/2009/09/dathan_ritzenhein_runs_faster.html


2)3000m track race. This is my first ever 3000m race and my lack of experiences showed in terms of pacing. Splits: 40, 84, 86, 88, 90, 90, 90, 81 = 10:51. In terms of per km, the split was 3:31, 3:44, 3:36 (av HR 178, high 188), crossing the 2400m in 8:45 (Singaporeans are always interested in 2.4k timing 'cos it's a fitness test for national service!). Managed to win the race, finishing ahead of runners from India, Srilanka, Thailand, and Malaysia. The event is the annual Singapore Masters T&F Championship. Note that the race wasn’t very competitive. Firstly, there was no prize other than trophy. Secondly, Singaporeans are hard working and people in my age group are busy doing their mid-life crisis, couch potato, baby bonus, hard-cash professional lives. Thirdly, Singapore does not have a running heritage (current fastest marathoner is under 2:40).

Quite surprised to see the finish time (av 3:37 pace) since I never ran faster than 3:50 min/km during intervals. I believe I could have run even faster given 1) bad pacing; 2) uncompetitive race and I was running alone after the first lap; 3) the race was delayed for 1 hour and I had to do four warm ups in different times since I didn’t know when the race would start; 4) I pulled a hammy about midway; 5) my HR only peaked at 188 (I usually hit 190+ during intervals); and 6) no 3k pace work other than 100m strides.

McMillan puts me at 1:27:27 (4:09 pace) for the HM based on today’s 3k. Jack Daniels is more generous at VDOT of around 53.5. This projects 1:26:20 HM (4:06 pace). Another reference point is this week’s 10k run at 4:04 pace based on Garmin. My lingering concern is that my long run and easy runs paces which are very easy at 5:00-6:00 min/km. Any ideas?

The biggest concern is the pulled hamstring from today’s 3k race. It felt really bad when I finished the race. I don’t know how serious it is, probably until the time I wake up and run tomorrow. Let’s hope I have enough reserve to do one final punch next week.

Update: Just received feedback from Coach. He said I could have run 10secs faster (10:40s) in the 3000m if I started slower and ran consistent 85-86 laps. Also, he suggests to go out at 4:05 pace for the HM (86s), but warns not to run with injury.

On the ropes

Ran 87k for the week, consisting of 17k of running at Threshold or faster and 70k of very 'easy' running.

And what I meant with easy is in fact, really really easy, something like 5:00-6:30 min/km on my easy days. Coach's guideliene for easy runs is 5:00-5:20 but for some reasons I can't go any faster these days. My legs are tired all the time. I felt like a boxer leaning on the ropes in a boxing match. Just holding on to survive (running at slow paces), with an occasional counter punch when feeling strong (1 good run per week).

Did 1 full workout and 2 little sessions:

1) 9k hard + 10x100 hill: Coach is really old-skool and basically only uses two pace terms, namely either hard or easy. With such opaqueness, I just ran the pace that I feel is appropriate for that distance. Did the 9k in 36:55, average 4:06 (according to GPS); Struggling with side stitch in the second half. All in all, not a bad effort considering I did a 29k long run the day before (36 hours rest)

2) Thursday's program calls for 15-15-8 hard, but only managed to complete 15mins @ 4:02 pace due to heavy rain. I asked Coach whether I could repeat the same session the day after, but he said no and was against me making up session. I had to beg him to give him a short make-good session. The next day, I did a little workout of 2x8mins hard (4mins rec). I covered 2.1k in each of 8mins, pace about 3:50 min/km.

For some reasons, I am struggling to run under 3:50 pace in the last couple of months. Lactic acid always rise very quickly everytime I want to run faster. Bear in mind that intervals in the program are never shorter than 5 minutes and recovery never longer than 90secs. I think my brain probably takes a conscious decision to prevent me running any faster since the intervals are long and recovery are short.

Next week, I will be running my virgin 3000m track for over 35s. Honestly, I think I would be lucky to run under 11:45 since my fastest interval pace is only 3:50 min/km. Coach doesn't schedule any 3k-paced work in his program. I can see myself to be flooded with lactic acid due to the absence of short, fast intervals. But I don't really care since it is just a part of training and marathon is really what I am training for.

Still struggling with sore hips (I think it is pirofirmis). Have been using foam roller and tennis ball to work the ass. Found Myrtil exercise on internet and I shall give it a try.

http://www.runnerspace.com/video.php?do=view&video_id=8190

Short Recovery

Still struggling with sore hips, but fortunately the calf strain is improving a bit .

Did 92k for the week (vs coach target of 100k). This means that I continued the trend of never hitting the mileage target set by the coach ;=)

This week, I did 2 workouts:

1) 4 x 5mins, 1min rec. Ran a bit conservatively since I had a deep tissue treatment the previous day. Averaged 3:56 min/km on the 4x5, so it wasn’t very fast. Av HR for last 3 reps was 175, high of 185. Felt refreshed after a down week, still got plenty left in the tank.

2) 6 x 5mins, 1.15 rec. Went to CCAB track and aimed to cover 1300m in 5mins (23secs/100m or 92 per lap or 3:50 min/km). Splits: 5:00, 5:02, 4:59, 5:04, 5:02, 4:56, av HR for last 5 reps was 177, high of 190. Pace range was 3:47-3:53, could have been a hair faster here and there, since the track was crowded with school kids.

I think the second workout is akin to running a controlled 5-6k race in terms of effort. 6 x 1.3k with short recovery (75 secs), total 7.8k @ av 3:50 pace for 30 mins of hard running. Probably I am a good value for low 19 5ks (3:50 pace), but defintely don't think I can do 3:50 for 10 (38:20) even under race condition.

Talking about short recovery, there is an interesting video on Ryan Hall’s 10 x 800m session.

http://www.flotrack.org/videos/coverage/view_video/235353-flotrack-2009-xc-season/200081-ryan-hall-workout-wednesday


The intervals were done on an out and back route at 2500m altitude. His splits were 5x 2:11-2:12 and 5x 2:16-2:17, so obviously there was an incline on the return leg. Recovery was 1 minute in between.

It seems that Ryan did his 800s at goal HM pace as he mentioned a target of 59mins for the HM. This is about 2:48 min per km or 2:15 per 800m. At sea level, 10x800 at HM pace is an easy session, but at altitude coupled with short recovery, it is a tough workout.

If this was a Yasso session, he would have run it at 2:04-5 per 800m or at 6-8k race pace (2:35 min/km). Recovery would be 1-1 ratio or 2 full minutes.

In summary,
Ryan: 10x800 at 21k pace with 1:2 rest-to-run ratio, in altitude, total 22mins of hard running (plus 9mins rec)

Sling: 6x1300 at 8k pace with 1:4 rest-to-run ratio, in tropical weather, total 30mins (plus 7mins rec)

Question: As a average joe, is my workout too hard or too easy?

In the past, I loosely followed Tinman and Jack Daniels’s guidelines on recovery. Equal rest time for 5k pace intervals (80-100% of rep time), 50% of rep time for 10k pace intervals , and 20% for Threshold intervals. But under Coach, the recovery has now been cut to around 1min.

Another thing that I notice is that I am now so much slower in my easy runs. When I was self coached, I do around 15% of 10k-21k paced running, 15-20% of marathon or moderate paced running and the remaining 65-70% was easy runs. Under Sean, I did 15% of 10k paced running, and the residual 85% is slow poke pace runs. And I really meant slow poke pace (5:30 min/km) since my legs are shot after two intervals per week.

In essence, the main changes from my previous training are:

1) More easy running (85-90% now vs. 70% before) and slower pace

2) Short recoveries for intervals (1min for 5mins of fast running vs. 2-4mins before)

3) Less weekly modulation. The program either has 2 intervals + long run for the week or 2 thresholds + long run for the week. When I was self-coached, I adopt a more varied approach to weekly training by doing 1 interval, 1 threshold, 1 long run for the week.

Question: Will these changes work for me and make me a better runner?

Life is an experiment of one, I guess :=)