A new record
ORN: 14 miles, 1 degree incline, about 2 hours, 10 minutes. Technically, this is probably a new record - none of my training runs have been this long (to date). The run itself was, while not disappointing, not great either. It's not because it was on a dreadmill - while I dislike the hamster feeling, that usually doesn't bother me much. (I do have a massive crick in my neck, but that comes from trying to watch the TV while running. I wish those things were lower.)
No, the problem is that today's run was too fast - it's not appreciably slower than my most recent half-marathon times, when adjusted for distance. Take off that extra .9 miles, and sure, it's slower than my most recent time by about 30 seconds per mile - without Gatorade, Gu, or crowds, but alone on a hamster pad.
I need to take things slower on my long runs - if I start out too quickly (as I did today), I just burn myself out. I'm probably going to have to do a run/walk thing anyway, but I'd like for it to be a relatively strong performance.
The run/walk option is due to a potential reassessment of my abilities. Thursday's run forced me to take several days off, most of which I attribute to attempting to go too slowly, at a pace which is only marginally faster than my walking pace. (Yes, I do naturally walk close to 5 mph, without hurrying - it's faster when I actually need to get somewhere.) Anyway, the rest forced me to look at some things in a more critical light (like, say, my diet - which has been abyssmally low in protein lately) and available training time.
It's no big deal - I'm fit, but not fast. My speed will still improve, but even in high school, I wasn't fast - I had an average speed which I could maintain for longer than other. That still doesn't mean that I don't envy the fast runners (like the gal next to me who ran 10 miles at a much faster pace than I was doing.)
No, the problem is that today's run was too fast - it's not appreciably slower than my most recent half-marathon times, when adjusted for distance. Take off that extra .9 miles, and sure, it's slower than my most recent time by about 30 seconds per mile - without Gatorade, Gu, or crowds, but alone on a hamster pad.
I need to take things slower on my long runs - if I start out too quickly (as I did today), I just burn myself out. I'm probably going to have to do a run/walk thing anyway, but I'd like for it to be a relatively strong performance.
The run/walk option is due to a potential reassessment of my abilities. Thursday's run forced me to take several days off, most of which I attribute to attempting to go too slowly, at a pace which is only marginally faster than my walking pace. (Yes, I do naturally walk close to 5 mph, without hurrying - it's faster when I actually need to get somewhere.) Anyway, the rest forced me to look at some things in a more critical light (like, say, my diet - which has been abyssmally low in protein lately) and available training time.
It's no big deal - I'm fit, but not fast. My speed will still improve, but even in high school, I wasn't fast - I had an average speed which I could maintain for longer than other. That still doesn't mean that I don't envy the fast runners (like the gal next to me who ran 10 miles at a much faster pace than I was doing.)
posted by Garou at 10:36 PM
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