Between upping the intensity of speed workouts, increasing run mileage, restructuring my food intake, and prepping for the inevitable Sugarloaf run, the next 4-5 weeks are going to feel like hitting the acelerator of my running regimen. With what I'm doing for training and the races that I'm picking up along the way, it's feeling like 2008 again - the year I had some of my best times in road races. There's going to be a lot going on, and I'll fill you in on the details.
Unity and Portland: Two-Race Weekend
The Unity Spring 5K on Saturday and the Patriot's Day 5-miler on Sunday will be a good test of how well I'm running in the shorter distances. I ran them both in 2008 (the 5-miler was on Monday that year) but skipped them in 2009 due to a conflict with dancing rehearsals.
Unity starts with a long downhill for at least the first half mile. There is a big temptation in this stretch to ride your adrenaline and let go of the brakes completely. I did just that in 2008, landing my best mile I've run to that point (5:56) but faltering the rest of the way, missing my PR (20:52) at the time by 4 seconds. Even though the rest of it is flat and open, the lesson I learned was that downhills can steal your energy just as fast (if not faster) than uphills. My goal this time is to manage that downhill efficiently - letting up on the brake but not overstriding. If anything it'll be a practice for what I'll encounter on mile 11/12 at Sugarloaf.
The Patriot's Day 5-miler was a little trickier than I first expected. Not knowing the geography of Portland as well as I do now, I completely forgot that the stretch of Washington Street included in the route is all uphill. Considering that this part is around mile 4 of the race, you can probably guess that it dragged me down quite a bit. What makes it worse is that part of that stretch is run on the sidewalk of the Back Cove Trail and Washington Street exit of I-295, making that part of the course very congested if there's a lot of people around. In other words, don't expect to pass people at that point. Once back on Cumberland Avenue, though, the idea is to put everything down. The half mile is slightly uphill but straight and open. I got 37:36 the last time I ran it; I should have no issue getting past that and possibly getting close to my 5-mile PR (32:20).
Orrington 10K (May 1): Return to Form
This wasn't my first run, but it was my first 10K and it was on this route where I started my very first speed workouts with RK. Like the previous two races, I missed the 2009 edition but plan to run it this year. This course has small rolling hills on miles 2 and 5 but it's mostly flat and very quiet. I should have no problem breaking the 46:35 time I have on this course and should even break my PR (42:44).
In between these races will be my long runs - 16-18 on the weekend in between these races and 20 the day after the 10K. Then it's 2 weeks until the big race.
Showing posts with label RK. Show all posts
Showing posts with label RK. Show all posts
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Run Long!
Today's Run: 19.68 miles through Yarmouth (Home)
Time Finished: 2 hours, 42 minutes (8 minutes, 14 seconds per mile)
Type of run: Long Run
Miles this week: 46.95
Running sensei say, "Run long time." So I run long time.
The run felt remarkably better than I thought it would, knowing I hadn't run this long at once since the Maine Marathon. Oh yes, the calves are sore and bubbling, but I'm proud of the pace I maintained when the primary goal was just to finish the route I planned today.
2 weeks until Cape Elizabeth.
3 weeks until Somesville.
5 weeks until Hyannis.
Time Finished: 2 hours, 42 minutes (8 minutes, 14 seconds per mile)
Type of run: Long Run
Miles this week: 46.95
Running sensei say, "Run long time." So I run long time.
The run felt remarkably better than I thought it would, knowing I hadn't run this long at once since the Maine Marathon. Oh yes, the calves are sore and bubbling, but I'm proud of the pace I maintained when the primary goal was just to finish the route I planned today.
2 weeks until Cape Elizabeth.
3 weeks until Somesville.
5 weeks until Hyannis.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Easy Means Easy
Today's Run: 9.01 miles through Bath (work)
Time Finished: 72 minutes, 37 seconds (8 minutes, 4 seconds per mile)
Type of run: Easy - relaxed pace
Miles this week: 9.01
The run was slower than what I've been doing the past few weeks, but there's a good reason for this, thanks in part to RK's advice yesterday.
Every so often I get myself into these stretches where I have a lot of energy and push my legs harder than I need to. I'm not at injury-risk stage yet but at the same time I'm not greatly improving my endurance as much as I'm wearing my legs down. A typical training week consists of a speed workout, a long run, and easy runs the other days. The easy runs are what I've been missing for the most part.
This week will be dedicated to getting myself on that more structured track, while there's still time to make adjustments. Less than 6 weeks until Cape Elizabeth, less than 7 to Somesville, and less than 9 until Hyannis.
Time Finished: 72 minutes, 37 seconds (8 minutes, 4 seconds per mile)
Type of run: Easy - relaxed pace
Miles this week: 9.01
The run was slower than what I've been doing the past few weeks, but there's a good reason for this, thanks in part to RK's advice yesterday.
Every so often I get myself into these stretches where I have a lot of energy and push my legs harder than I need to. I'm not at injury-risk stage yet but at the same time I'm not greatly improving my endurance as much as I'm wearing my legs down. A typical training week consists of a speed workout, a long run, and easy runs the other days. The easy runs are what I've been missing for the most part.
This week will be dedicated to getting myself on that more structured track, while there's still time to make adjustments. Less than 6 weeks until Cape Elizabeth, less than 7 to Somesville, and less than 9 until Hyannis.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
An Epic Finale
Today's Run: 5km through Bangor
Time Finished: 20 minutes, 19 seconds (6 minutes, 33 seconds per mile)
Type of run: Road Race
Miles this week: 39.73
Running in my home turf can be fun...if the weather is bearable.
The sharp chill of the air made the wet, just-under-40-degree weather a lot harder to bear. It was only after the race was done that I felt reasonably warm enough to resist the wind and rain. It was because of the weather that I imagine many who wished to run didn' show up - I expeted at least 100, and I think there were barely 80 finishers.
The race starts by wrapping around the block where the old Freese's department store was in Pickering Square. Main Street becomes the course for about a quarter mile before ascending up a steep State Street hill. This is pretty much the taskmaster that puts people in line - anyone overconfident and unaware of the course will get humbled fast. The run continues down State Street until Eastern Maine Medical Center, then makes a sharp right turn onto Hancock Street, contunuing the right angle until the road meets the railroad tracks against the waterfront. It's mostly straight and steadily downhill right through to mile 2 and under the Bank of America building. Mile 3 weaves through parking lots, garages, and overpasses of all sorts until the Sea Dog Tavern, then the scenery opens up so there's a clear view of the river. A couple of right turns puts the runners on Summer Street and up a hill that takes out a lot of reserve energy, but once that hill is finished, it's all downhill to the parking garage and the finish line.
There were no mile markers but there were kilometer markers, which changed the timing strategy a bit - the new goal was to get as close to 4 minutes per kilometer as possible. My first kilometer was 4:15 in large part to that hill, but my next one put me at 8 minutes even, back on track. The third kilometer was steady at 4 minutes and the fourth one had me at about 3:50. This made my last kilometer a fairly disappointing 4:30, begging the question if the 5K is actually a little longer than 5 kilometers. In spite of whatever distance it turned out to be, it was still a good run - 20:19 - my best in the three years I've run it.
It was good to run with my mentor/coach in a race again, even if he slowly distanced himself from me throughout the race. He gave me some tips and advice for running over the next 6-7 weeks along with some preparations for the Marathon in late February.
This is my last 5K until the Irish Road Rover in Portland in early march. Though right now my sights are set for 3 important races before that, I can't wait until I get to the St. Patrick's time of the year. That's when the running really gets fun.
Time Finished: 20 minutes, 19 seconds (6 minutes, 33 seconds per mile)
Type of run: Road Race
Miles this week: 39.73
Running in my home turf can be fun...if the weather is bearable.
The sharp chill of the air made the wet, just-under-40-degree weather a lot harder to bear. It was only after the race was done that I felt reasonably warm enough to resist the wind and rain. It was because of the weather that I imagine many who wished to run didn' show up - I expeted at least 100, and I think there were barely 80 finishers.
The race starts by wrapping around the block where the old Freese's department store was in Pickering Square. Main Street becomes the course for about a quarter mile before ascending up a steep State Street hill. This is pretty much the taskmaster that puts people in line - anyone overconfident and unaware of the course will get humbled fast. The run continues down State Street until Eastern Maine Medical Center, then makes a sharp right turn onto Hancock Street, contunuing the right angle until the road meets the railroad tracks against the waterfront. It's mostly straight and steadily downhill right through to mile 2 and under the Bank of America building. Mile 3 weaves through parking lots, garages, and overpasses of all sorts until the Sea Dog Tavern, then the scenery opens up so there's a clear view of the river. A couple of right turns puts the runners on Summer Street and up a hill that takes out a lot of reserve energy, but once that hill is finished, it's all downhill to the parking garage and the finish line.There were no mile markers but there were kilometer markers, which changed the timing strategy a bit - the new goal was to get as close to 4 minutes per kilometer as possible. My first kilometer was 4:15 in large part to that hill, but my next one put me at 8 minutes even, back on track. The third kilometer was steady at 4 minutes and the fourth one had me at about 3:50. This made my last kilometer a fairly disappointing 4:30, begging the question if the 5K is actually a little longer than 5 kilometers. In spite of whatever distance it turned out to be, it was still a good run - 20:19 - my best in the three years I've run it.
It was good to run with my mentor/coach in a race again, even if he slowly distanced himself from me throughout the race. He gave me some tips and advice for running over the next 6-7 weeks along with some preparations for the Marathon in late February.
This is my last 5K until the Irish Road Rover in Portland in early march. Though right now my sights are set for 3 important races before that, I can't wait until I get to the St. Patrick's time of the year. That's when the running really gets fun.
Monday, November 23, 2009
To Start Things Off...
Well, here we go. My first post on my first dedicated running blog.
To briefly recap my running history, I've been at this for over 37 months. I've taken part in well over 50 road races, 6 of them full Marathons. It's given me a body I never knew existed, a confidence unmatched by anything else in my life, and a hunger that I hope never goes away. The last three years of my life have been beset by many, many changes but one of the few constants in it has been the simple act of putting one foot in front of the other. Faster and faster.
I'm a far cry from the 300-pound dude with persistent knee pain and an unwillingness to put myself in motion for very long. In that alone, I know I've been an inspiration to many. However the greatest person inspired is the one who started this in the first place - me. The fact that I've accomplished a very difficult task in my life allowed me to break through the barriers I used surround myself with.
I can't say that I did it alone, though. There are quite a few people who have put various levels of encouragement in me at the right times to keep me focused and still continue to do so, but one stands out the most. My running coach and mentor (henceforth known in this blog as "RK") was the one that I lay the credit/blame for what I started back in early October 2006. Being a distance and Marathon runner himself, RK made a near-impossible task much easier to deal with by giving me a new focus every time I hit a certain goal. He knew which buttons to push to get me to the next step, even when he wasn't aware of pushing them. RK made it a mental test just as much as a physical one. If I thought I would skip out on a run, he would go anyway and challenge me to keep up with what he did. "Just completed your loop? Good, go sign up for your first race - a 5-miler." "Good time on your race! Now do a half-marathon." "Want to do a full Marathon? How about one on Cape Cod...in the dead of winter." It does help that I rarely back down from a challenge. RK learned that fact pretty quickly, I think. To this day he still makes sure I'm keeping myself up in the running scheme of things - and to this day I still am.
Speaking of keeping myself up on things, I do hope to provide you all with regular running updates on this blog. Everything from my (almost) daily running route results to road races to interesting stuff about running in general - I should have plenty to post about. Thank you for taking the time to read this first post!
To briefly recap my running history, I've been at this for over 37 months. I've taken part in well over 50 road races, 6 of them full Marathons. It's given me a body I never knew existed, a confidence unmatched by anything else in my life, and a hunger that I hope never goes away. The last three years of my life have been beset by many, many changes but one of the few constants in it has been the simple act of putting one foot in front of the other. Faster and faster.
I'm a far cry from the 300-pound dude with persistent knee pain and an unwillingness to put myself in motion for very long. In that alone, I know I've been an inspiration to many. However the greatest person inspired is the one who started this in the first place - me. The fact that I've accomplished a very difficult task in my life allowed me to break through the barriers I used surround myself with.
I can't say that I did it alone, though. There are quite a few people who have put various levels of encouragement in me at the right times to keep me focused and still continue to do so, but one stands out the most. My running coach and mentor (henceforth known in this blog as "RK") was the one that I lay the credit/blame for what I started back in early October 2006. Being a distance and Marathon runner himself, RK made a near-impossible task much easier to deal with by giving me a new focus every time I hit a certain goal. He knew which buttons to push to get me to the next step, even when he wasn't aware of pushing them. RK made it a mental test just as much as a physical one. If I thought I would skip out on a run, he would go anyway and challenge me to keep up with what he did. "Just completed your loop? Good, go sign up for your first race - a 5-miler." "Good time on your race! Now do a half-marathon." "Want to do a full Marathon? How about one on Cape Cod...in the dead of winter." It does help that I rarely back down from a challenge. RK learned that fact pretty quickly, I think. To this day he still makes sure I'm keeping myself up in the running scheme of things - and to this day I still am.
Speaking of keeping myself up on things, I do hope to provide you all with regular running updates on this blog. Everything from my (almost) daily running route results to road races to interesting stuff about running in general - I should have plenty to post about. Thank you for taking the time to read this first post!
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