The Fretboard Running Thread 2023

Bidley

Feb for me, 185km, 13 runs, longest run 32km, The next few weeks will be my most exciting for running yet!

Iamnobody

Great to see everyone doing well. After a disappointing Jan I’ve got back on track for Feb.

Total mileage 134.5 miles
16 runs
Longest run 26.3 miles

I’ve been working on distance and strength - I’ve also done some back to back days of fairly decent mileage as it’s been hard to dedicate 3-4 hours to a long run. 

Benm39

February,  53.1 miles in total over 12 runs. Longest run 9 miles this month.  Training will start to ramp up a bit now towards June event. 

RedRabbit

Just done my first run of the month after feeling shitty for most of last week.

I did my intervals session and found it a lot easier than expected (I ended up keeping the fast pace through both the fast and steady sections of the last interval) so I want to push it a bit more.  What's my best option?

Current session is 3 rounds of 2mins fast and 5mins steady.  Am I best

1.  Adding another interval

2.  Increasing the length of the fast sections (and possibly reducing the steady section)
3.  Increasing the speed of one/both sections

I'm leaning towards option 2 mainly as that's the general approach of c25k so it's what I'm used to.

Anyway, first 5k of the month tomorrow.  I'm going to try setting the treadmill just a touch faster than last time.

Bidley

Great work @RedRabbit !

Depends what you want the workout to achieve. I would suggest that you're not going fast enough in your fast intervals. They're supposed to be uncomfortable and beyond what you can sustain for longer periods, and those rest periods should be super slow, even walking if you have to. I''d suggest 5x 2mins fast, 2 mins slow for this. This is fartlek or speed work.

If you want something a bit more chill then I would go 5mins steady, 15 minutes fast (just slightly beyond what you think is comfortable), 5 mins steady or something like that. This would be more of a tempo run.

I'll add the disclaimer that I'm not a run coach or anyone with any kind of qualification I've just done a few training plans and they all have variations on those kinds of themes. You can use your running watch if you have one to figure out what sort of paces you should be looking at.

Bidley

Yesterday I did 2 miles at marathon pace, 3 miles at HM pace, then 2 miles at marathon pace. Felt great and ready for Cambridge Half tomorrow

26.2

Good luck @Bidley ;

RedRabbit

Bidley said:

Yesterday I did 2 miles at marathon pace, 3 miles at HM pace, then 2 miles at marathon pace. Felt great and ready for Cambridge Half tomorrow

Good luck @Bidley I'm sure you'll smash it.  You've certainly put the work in.

RedRabbit

Bidley said:

Great work @RedRabbit !

Depends what you want the workout to achieve. I would suggest that you're not going fast enough in your fast intervals. They're supposed to be uncomfortable and beyond what you can sustain for longer periods, and those rest periods should be super slow, even walking if you have to. I''d suggest 5x 2mins fast, 2 mins slow for this. This is fartlek or speed work.

If you want something a bit more chill then I would go 5mins steady, 15 minutes fast (just slightly beyond what you think is comfortable), 5 mins steady or something like that. This would be more of a tempo run.

I'll add the disclaimer that I'm not a run coach or anyone with any kind of qualification I've just done a few training plans and they all have variations on those kinds of themes. You can use your running watch if you have one to figure out what sort of paces you should be looking at.

Good question (the bolded bit!).

I'm aware that I'm slow - plodding even.  The "fast" pace I'm trying to build up to is what I'd like to be able to maintain for a 5km to get my time down to around the half-hour mark (a long way of saying I'm aiming for around 10km/h).  I've kind of got in my head that once I've hit a half hour 5km, the big hill out of the village will be more manageable.

I think I'll try upping the speed a bit for my fast interval, reduce the time on my steady intervals and increase the number of intervals overall and see how I get on.

djspecialist

Cambridge Half today. Perfect race conditions: cool, dry and still. (And, being Cambridge, a pretty much flat course.) I'm over the moon to have smashed my PB by almost 4mins.

Official finish time: 1:37:08

@Bidley, I hope you and any other FB'ers taking part had a great run.

Iamnobody

Great time @djspecialist - congrats. 

I hope @Bidley and the others had a successful outing. 

Bidley

Nice going @djspecialist ! Great time.

I was freezing my nuts off hanging around the common but as usual it was a great day.

Smashed my PB as well by 3 minutes, 01:41:39. I feel like I'm not far off breaking 01:40! My legs are spent though now.

4 weeks until Brighton. I've just realised I've missed a week on the plan (the way it's written has thrown me) so I've got 3 weeks of the plan left but 4 weeks until race day. Any thoughts?

26.2

Great times @djspecialist and @Bidley ;

26.2

Bidley said:

Nice going @djspecialist ! Great time.

I was freezing my nuts off hanging around the common but as usual it was a great day.

Smashed my PB as well by 3 minutes, 01:41:39. I feel like I'm not far off breaking 01:40! My legs are spent though now.

4 weeks until Brighton. I've just realised I've missed a week on the plan (the way it's written has thrown me) so I've got 3 weeks of the plan left but 4 weeks until race day. Any thoughts?

I wouldn’t worry too much. That half shows that you’re in good nick. What long runs are you scheduled to do? You could lengthen this week’s long one a bit and maybe the one after, but otherwise I’d leave the rest of the plan the same. The taper is most important. 

For long runs I’m scheduled to do 34K this weekend, then tapering down to 17K and then 12K the weekend before the race. If I’d missed a week, including a long run, I’d probably just increase the 17K to a half and leave it at that. 

Bidley

Well this weekend I was going to do 21km, but reading the plan correctly it should be 32km! So I'll do that then taper as per the plan. This week I'll hold back on the speed work and tempo as I need a bit of respite after yesterday.

To be honest I'll feel better if I get one more 20 miler in my legs - even if it is in the cold and rain as it looks like it will be.

RedRabbit

Well done all who were at Cambridge.

Following @Bidley 's advice, I've just done a round of tempo training.  5 mins steady, 15 mins at pace and finished off with a very steady 5 minutes.  At a push, I reckon I could have managed 20 minutes at pace but someone would have had to scrape me off the treadmill afterwards.  

Bidley

Good work @RedRabbit ! Mixing your runs up was a game changer for me, if only to keep interest levels and the sense of progress going.

You'll be doing sprint repeats next

monquixote

Also did Cambridge half at the weekend.

Took it very easy and did 1:58 which is my slowest ever HM time and about 15 mins off my best, but was mostly concentrating on high fiving kids and eating jelly babies

Bidley

High fiving the little-uns is easily the best part!

Iamnobody

Bidley said:

Well this weekend I was going to do 21km, but reading the plan correctly it should be 32km! So I'll do that then taper as per the plan. This week I'll hold back on the speed work and tempo as I need a bit of respite after yesterday.

To be honest I'll feel better if I get one more 20 miler in my legs - even if it is in the cold and rain as it looks like it will be.

Congrats on the half PB and also to everyone else who ran - sensible move to knock the speed work on the head. Don’t worry about the long one unless you really feel up to it. 

I’m not sure you gain much more doing another 20; you’ve got the mental believe from already doing one. 

You could maybe do a couple of steady 5 milers in the week and back to back long runs on the weekend to go over 20 - split it something like 15 & 7 over Sat & Sun. 

Whatever you do I reckon you’ll do well in the marathon.