October 27th, 2008
Another S title. This one is due to the strange workout I just did.
With the Bridge Challenge 10K coming up this weekend, I had mentioned last week I wanted to do a fast workout in prep for it but was in a quandary due to having just done a marathon. I waffled for a bit and finally decided I would play it safe, be lazy and just do strides this week.
Now we all know I’m a Pfitzinger Pfan since he got me to the marathon safely and confidently with his book Advanced Marathoning. I also own his Road Racing for Serious Runners which has plans for all distances of races, though not as scheduled as the other book, this one gives you the workouts you need to do, you have to figure out the days.
Anyway, I opened it up to the 10K plan and checked out the last week. It has the requisite easy, short LRs (oxymoron, but after marathon training, anything shorter than 17 isn’t really Long anymore), nothing in the VO2 column, but in the Basic Speed column sits 5 x 300m. Hmmm… Basic Speed for Pfitz is always strides, most commonly 100s, in this 10K plan he also has a couple 200m sessions, but 300m was a new one on me. I even went to RunningTimes.com to see if he’d written anything about a 300m stride session but didn’t find anything.
Not exactly an interval workout, a little faster actually since strides end up being quite a bit faster than 5k pace, though stride recoveries are whatever it takes to get your HR back to normal which keeps it from being a VO2max exercise. Interesting. I thought about it and was thinking it seemed a waste to go 300m since it’s not really helping VO2, and is maybe harder than a stride session needs to be, but on the other hand…what the hell? It only adds up to a mile of fast, so why not give it a go? Besides, Pete’s The Man, so if he thinks it’s a good idea, it must be.
So that’s what I did today, I ran 7 and near the end did 5×300. I enjoyed it! Much easier than an interval session, while feeling like I was doing something good for my legs and body. I didn’t pay attention to my watch during them, but now that I’m home, I see they got progressively faster without thinking about it, starting with 7:08 pace, ending with 6:47.
Yeah, I know, not supposed to think about speed with strides, it’s for legs and form but the fact that they were 300s coupled with the way I run my strides (like intervals – I don’t accelerate, peak, then slow down before it’s over…I just run the things) makes it fun to see in retrospect.
And that, blog friends, was my entertainment for the day, running in spurts and making up new words to go with them. Now it’s time to shower, return some almost overdue library books and figure out what we’re eating tonight, a subject that annoyingly comes up 365 time a year. “What do you want to eat tonight?” ” I dunno, what do you feel like?” “I dunno” Then I go shopping for I Dunno, can’t find it and settle on a chicken.
Posted in Running
Hey I asked a question about pace on RWOL. I got my answer. Duh! I’ll follow along on here. Glad you had such a nice weekend.
Hey Jackie, mmm…I can smell your Indian food from here, yum.
Wow, after running halves and fulls – I would think that this training is easier. Albeit faster..
Your post brings to mind a quote from Lynn Jennings: “To race fast, one must train fast.”
I’ll be getting back to some strides this week — but only the wimpy 100m variety. I’m strangely excited about it.
Hey Flo-well, since I find the rw board people (except you and Amuse) to be really mean and snarky (condescending, whatever) I am not posting there anymore. My question for you is this: I want to try Pfitzinger-what is the most essential thing I should do to get started with his plan-which book should I get? Thank you for a kind answer-they would have ripped me a new one on the rw boards if I asked it there…
I think Daniels would call it repeats rather than intervals, because of the full recovery. 300m strepeats? Sounds like a great idea for something to do just 2 weeks after a marathon. well done Flo.
Speaking of Jack, I did one of his more brutal workouts on saturday. 18 miles including 2 10-minute tempos with 2-minute recovery, and one 20-minute tempo towards the end. My training buddy Joe came along. His verdict: “I hate Jack Daniels!”. He was smiling as he said it (I think).
Dave, yep, it is easier, that’s why I’m looking forward to spending the Winter months working on short and sweet instead of long and laborious.
Julie, I agree with that quote (though I still like to keep my long runs on the modest speed side, unlike you Ms. Speed Demon). I spent an entertaining morning the other day scouring your blog, enthralled with your training, and progression. Wow! I highly recommend everyone go over there and read how Julie got so fast in a short period of time. Very inspiring, from “this is my first week doing 45 miles” to “this is my first week doing 100″.
Anyway, like that quote, I felt that need to do something faster for the 10K, if only to appease my mind, so the strides pacified me. Pfitz followers often ask on the forums “do I have to do them?” and I’m always “He wrote it in the plan, so they’ve definitely got a purpose, plus they’re so simple and fun!” I’m glad to have them in my running arsenal.
Lisa, what happened?!? There are a few people who are super abrasive, but that’s part of their “charm” and usually their brains are worth the scary replies. Plus, if you just hang in there and post a little more, people get used to your presence. I always said when I started posting on the Marathon Training Forum that I posted a little at the beginning so they’d get used to my scent.
I feel very comfy there now, so give it a second chance!
As far as your question, if you’re working towards another marathon, Advanced Marathoning all the way!! The other book is a companion and useful for shorter races, but Advanced Mar. is the Holy Grail. There’s an updated version coming out in December, I think, but if you’re hungry for a great read, don’t wait, get it.
Jim, agreed!! I actually checked my Daniels’ spreadsheet before I left the house, since 300′s are listed and I looked at the times that correspond to my usual strides which turn out to be equivalent to Repeats, so I had that in the back of my mind.
Can I just say, your workout sounds beyond brutal! Oy, a long run with a tempo thrown in? Like one on its own isn’t bad enough. Congrats on doing it! Can’t wait to hear about your marathon, c’mon December!!
Thanks for the link, Flo. If I may, I have one post that captures how I personally get faster (although, of course, it may not work for everyone):
http://raceslikeagirl.com/2008/05/26/fall-training-week-1/
I second the recommendation for Advanced Marathoning with the advice to stick with one of the shorter plans if it’s your first time: the 18 week plan or shorter. I found it really tough to follow for 18 weeks. I can’t fathom doing 24, at least not as a newbie.
And, unfortunately, I have to agree with Lisa on the RW assessment. I posted something about a race recently and was basically called both a liar and stupid by several regulars. I guess I missed the “charm” part.
Thank you Flo! Amazon here i come!
Oh shit, Julie, seriously?? That is so fucked up. I’m really sad to hear it because there is such good stuff to be found there. If only I’d known, I’d have jumped in to your defense. I will say, our Women’s weekly BQ thread (which is no longer solely for BQ seekers since a bulk of us have them now, but remains a great support system) is a safe haven on that forum, and while some of our ladies are too scared to post in the regular threads for fear of being mocked, we talk about the jerks knowing full well we get lurked on by everyone. I will say this, you’d probably be a great fit for the 3:10 thread, you get to know people when you’re all working toward a particular goal together and the support is invaluable.
Lisa, go for it, girl, it’s a great plan and I second Julie’s recommendation, 18/55 is the way to go!
I’ve been a little put off by some of the RW posters too. Thanks, Jule, for the “How to get faster” link. I wish I’d read that months ago. One reason I’ve been blowing past my goals is that my fitness calibration is constantly out of date. I had to lean this the hard way. For the next marathon, I’m reaching out a bit. Not quite as fast as Julie, but I’ll try for 3:30.
I’ll check out the BQ forum. Just what I need — another message board thread to suck all the productivity out of my day!
FYI, on LetsRun.com there’s a weekly women’s training thread kept up by someone named Humbled. I’m Pfitzinger Pfan over there. That, too, is a good crowd.
The mockery on LetsRun.com is often quite unbelievable, of course, but somehow it doesn’t bug me as much since I suspect about 75% of the people there are young, insecure guys in (or barely out of) their teens. They are also frequently hilarious, which excuses the buffoonery somewhat.
I love to lurk at Letsrun, though it’s so far from my reality (all the young tracksters) that it’s like a trip to the zoo. I’ll check out the thread you mention, though like you…just what I need, more internet diversion.
Go Jim, 3:30, woohoo!!
I think I need to add strides to my running arsenal. I just love that expression. Im stealing it.
I went to read Julies blog, will get back to it later. Flo, dont get jealous if I read another womans blog.
Lisa, theres alot to be learned in the RW Marathon training forum even if you really post.
Go forth Bruce, I encourage experimentation.
Speaking of the “charm” that goes on in some RW threads on the Marathon Training Forum, for those who don’t frequent the forum, here’s a prime example. You hate ‘em, you love ‘em, there’s always some cringe inducing something going on…
Go forth Bruce, I encourage experimentation.
Will you marry me??? Oh wait I got a small problem with that.