Posts Tagged ‘race goals’

Or rather, I will enjoy a hard training run within a racing environment…

For the past few days, I’ve been mulling over doing a 5K this weekend.  I had planned to race this weekend anyway, but the Half debacle complicated my plans.  While part of me was dreading the idea of racing again (the memory of discomfort is very bright still), another part is anxious to get back on the horse; these months-long stretches between races is not good for the psyche, much less when the last race memory is pure suckage.

What clinched the deal is that the weather is finally going to drop tonight, race start will be low 50′s, temps I haven’t experienced since April.  How wonderful it will be to remove the heat & humidity factor entirely from the picture.

Conferring with Coach A muse/Adam, we agreed that goal time is inconsequential.  Instead, my primary goal is to finish without a bizarre ending with an ancillary goal to feel good and run strong.  With this in mind, he gave me a great pace to target, 6:50s.

I know it will be slightly annoying to see my age group cohorts speed ahead of me, plus this race has real prizes which is a rarity around here (at least it did in 2007), but finishing upright would be worth its weight in gold.

I wasn’t going to mention that I’m doing it, btw, just say so afterwards, but I’m such an ass that if I’m going to run 6:50s, I want you to know ahead of time so it doesn’t look like I ran a shitty race and pretended after the fact “Oh yeah, I was planning on crap pacing from the get-go”.  Now you know I really am.  And because I went to the trouble to explain this, I’ll probably finish with 7:00′s.

In other news, my first medical test is this Monday, the breathing one, so that should be interesting.  And, to get to the appointment, I’ll be using a Zipcar for the first time.  It’s a Honda Civic and it has a name, “Calrissian”…I don’t know what its momma was thinking.

I’ll leave you with a couple shoutouts.  First, to my marathoning girlfriends who are running St. George and Wineglass this weekend.  Have a GREAT race and run like the wind, baby dolls.  To my sweet friends tapering for Chicago, I’m sending buckets of calming vibes your way.  As for the rest of youse guys, have a great weekend, whatever you have planned.  Love to all!

As posted on Facebook and the 3:20 thread yesterday (thanks for all the supportive comments, you beautiful people!) I had a really swell run yesterday that confirmed my plateau is gone, finis, no mas.  Done.

Last pre-race workout: 8.31 miles and it went like this:

Miles 1-4 8:38 cutting down to 8:11 (unintentional, just felt good from the previous day off)
3x.75mi @ 10k w/90 sec rec’s (6:44 pace)
1.75mi home @ 8:17/mi.  Avg for the run, 7:59

And as posted, it was 73 degrees.  Race morning promises to be 10 degrees less than that which means woohoo…speed bonus.

My bashful goal setting is now under review.  To be honest, it was already under review a couple days prior but I wasn’t sure if I should say it aloud or not.  I hate stating a goal and not making it, but on the other hand, it would be disingenuous to say I’m going for a slower time if I’m not, the whole point of this blog is to be real.

So I might just go for a PR after all – though it won’t be a wild one if I manage it, probably barely skirting last year’s 1:33:51.  Despite my workouts suddenly being so fine and fab, I haven’t done any runs to make me think I can whip out 7:06s.  Now 7:09s?  Perhaps.  Funny to think that 3 sec/mile is the difference between “I might” and “I can’t”, but there ya go.

While I’m in this non-bashful mode, I’ll also state my goal for the end of 2011.  Sub 1:30 Half.  I am no longer sure what’s possible and what’s not, but it’s conceivable that I could do it.

Flo ver. 1.75b
Not yet the full-fledged second version – 5 lbs to go before I announce that particular upgrade – but for the interim, this is what 115.5 lbs. looks like (a 7.5 lb. loss).   Not a huge change really, but it has undoubtedly put some speed back in my stride.  Here’s my last full body shot taken in May, if you want to compare.  The biggest difference between the two is that I don’t have that asinine grin anymore.

For even crazier contrasty fun, revisit my About Me page. I just swapped photos, juxtaposing this shot with my very first race photo from 2007.  That is one picture that will always make me cringe, but it illustrates my journey better than race times ever will.

It’s finally happened – the Plateau, she is gone.

Yesterday’s workout was: 10.7 miles w/5 x 1.25mi @10k pace, avg. 3:40 recoveries.  I averaged 6:59s.  It was 81 degrees and Daniels and Tinman say that’s equivalent to 6:47s in normal temps, so I plugged it into McMillan and dang if it doesn’t spit out my Half PR from last year.  Of course, this is all calculated approximation so TWB (tinged with bullshit) but I haven’t been in spitting distance for close to a year, so this is a beautiful thing.

Btw, some weather trivia I just read: this is the hottest Philly summer on record, and by a wide margin.  Highs averaged 88.7!  Last winter had record snowfall.  If this keeps up, I may just move my ass outta here.  But back to running…

Race Goals For The 19th
As mentioned, I’m not looking for a PR for this one, instead my main focus will be getting hydration down right.  I’ll also be tweaking the nutrition aspect and for the first time, at Adam’s suggestion, will take 2 gels, one 30 minutes in, the next 30 minutes afterward.  I think this is a great idea, I’ve always scrimped on that stuff during Halfs but now I have no problem taking gels (they used to remind me of snot but now I find them quite tasty, or else I’ve established a craving for eating snot).  But back to the goal…

1:34 has a nice ring to it; challenging, but not tempting fate too much.   Having trained in this miserable weather for months, it’s hard to realistically know what’ll happen.  It’s like you’re rehearsing for a dance but only marking your moves for months, then suddenly you have a week to dance all-out (assuming we’ll have some cooler weather before the 19th).  Should be interesting, if nothing else.  Plus, the major happiness with this race is the girlies coming in: there’ll be Reyana coming from California, Rebecca from Alabama, Doggie & Loren and Kat.  So it’s a chickfest in the works!

Meanwhile, I’m actually looking forward to my 6@Half pace tempo this Friday (or Saturday if the weather’s better) to see where my heart rate lies.  Who is this person?  Looking forward to quality runs again?  No defeatist attitude?  Some actual confidence?  She seems familiar but I can’t quite place her.  Looking forward to become reacquainted with her as the Fall progresses, though.  Speaking of…

Fall Races
I started scouting out races to do between this Half and the November one, and compiled a nice little list, which I’ve put on my At The Races page. I’ll pick 3 but those are the choices so far.   It’ll be so good to get back in the game – the longer I’m away, the more nerve-wracking it is to race.  Which is another reason I’m happy that September’s Half will be a rustbuster and not one that (in my mind) counts.

Back to the present
I had a fun 11-miler this morning, the first few miles run with blog commenter and friend Steph, who is one half of a pair of athletic twins (missed you today, Linds!).  I see them both in the park and they look so remarkably identical, the only way I can tell them apart is one wears red, the other wears blue.  I’m still not convinced there are two of them since I’ve yet to see them together.

Anyway, we had a fun time jabbering about the park regulars, it’s so satisfying to have your observations of weirdos and funny running styles confirmed.  Btw, they’re not the only twin runners in the park, there’s another set of sisters in their 20′s too, though they’re much easier to tell apart.  They’re also very sweet and always say hi.

I’ll end today’s post with a shout-out to my friend Matt Tartar, whom I met doing the Runner’s Roundtable.  He’s got a cool podcast called Dump Runner’s Club where he talks of all things running.  If you’re a podcast listener, add him to your list, he’s a funny guy and a sweetie, besides.

And that concludes today’s blah blah.   I wish you all the blah blah for the next couple blah.   Be safe and make sure to blah your blah blah because it might get itchy if you’re not careful.

But it’s ok, nobody’s playing funeral music over here.  Besides, I think this is only the third quality session I’ve ever cut short, so I was due. Today’s fun was supposed to be 8×800@10k pace w/1min rec’s.

The hamstring injury had me nervous as it hadn’t completely left the building.  And while I’d said I wanted at least one perfect hamstring day before attempting this session, tomorrow and Sunday are going to be “feels like” high 80s by 6am, so it was now or never.  And it feels much better, so I thought it worth chancing.

When I left the house at 6:30am, it was “feels like” 82, deeming 10k pace a concept rather than an absolute – I just needed to manage 8 at “whatever”.  I had a 2.5mi warmup which included some strides, then I stretched the hamstring, jogged a bit more and began.

In the end, I completed 5 of them, the first 4 pacewise went 7:05, 6:59, 6:58, 6:58, then I gave the hamstring a long stretch which had the opposite effect as intended, making it announce its presence, so the 5th one fell in at 7:18 and at that point, it was time to pack it in.  Honestly, it was the hamstring, feeling cooked from the heat and a bad attitude.

On the bright side, I managed almost 18 minutes of effort-filled running, so it wasn’t a waste by any means, just not the most efficient bang for the buck.  But I feel better than if I hadn’t done anything hard this week.

Injury Reflection
I think I know how I got the hamstring injury in the first place.  It’s no secret I’m always on the hunt for improving my form and something I’d been playing with recently was stride length.  A couple sessions ago (the one before I strained it) I’d noticed that if I increase my pushoff and lengthen that back leg, I gained some speed.  The problem, I think, is that my hamstring wasn’t accustomed to supporting this exaggerated movement.   Live and learn.  That’s a potential byproduct of experimentation.

Pace or Effort?
There’s an interesting thread going on at MRT about whether you get the same workout running slower paces in hotter weather.  I’m of the opinion that you don’t get an equivalent workout in poor conditions.  Not to say you don’t get benefit, just that you get more improvement when you’re able to fire on all cylinders.

With this in mind, I don’t see myself having the outcome I want for the RNR Philly Half (aka Distance Run) in September, which is a PR.  So if you look at my At The Races page, I’ve removed the note “goal race” from that one and added the Philadelphia Half Marathon in November to the schedule.  It’s a tad slower course than the September Half, but I’ll have another 2 months to train and in cooler weather, so at least I’ll have a clue about where I stand.  Right now, I’m so mixed up with the sludge and my last races, that I don’t know what to expect.

But this is not a boohoo situation!  It’s a “try to see clearly and plan accordingly” type of deal.  I know good things will come, but it’s a matter of time.  This is all about discovery and realization and frankly, even though I whine a lot, I love it.  Yeah, I get frustrated not moving ahead the way I’d like, but running is like nothing I’ve ever experienced before – the way it unfolds is such a mystery.  It keeps us on our toes, gives us a menu of emotions to choose from and makes life exciting.  How many things can you say that about?

Yesterday, I walked downtown to get my race packet for this Sunday’s 5K, went to the address on the brochure, walked in, and the woman there asked, “What are you here for?”
“A race packet.”
“Oh no, we don’t have anything like that here”
“Um, the brochure says this is where we get our packets”
“The race director said he won’t give them out until Sunday before the race.”
“Sooo….why does it say come here from June 7-11 between 10am to 4pm to pick up a packet?”
“I don’t know but we don’t have anything.”

Nice.  So much for getting there, warming up and racing.  Now I’ll have to stand in line with hundreds of other people beforehand.

It wasn’t a total waste – leaving my building, I had checked the mailbox and found a $25 gift certificate from my running store for having cumulatively spent $300 on merchandise. The running store was just a block away from the stupid packet non-pickup, so I got a great pair of shorts and only had to shell out $8.

As for the race, the forecast is grim.  Sunday’s high is set to be 90 which means it’ll be around 80 by 9am.   The one potential saving grace is a threat of thunderstorms, so at least it won’t be sunny.  And if I’m lucky, I’ll be electrocuted during warmup.

Seriously, I am not looking forward to this at all but I’m doing it because I need to harden up.   What to shoot for pacewise?  Who the fuck knows?

Ankle Update – Putting On The Heat
I took about 3 days off: Mon, Tuesday’s runette (only 2.5 miles) and Wednesday because the ankle was “there” when I awoke.  It felt fine yesterday morning, so I went 7 and I’m about to go for 7 today too, then 4 or 5 tomorrow.  Keeping it conservative till next week.

One interesting change (to me, anyway) is I’m switching up therapies: I’m still icing after a run but since it’s well past the acute stage, they say regular icing doesn’t do much for you any more, that heat is better, so now I’m applying heat before my run, a few times in the day and before bed.   It makes sense to use heat since I’m basically warming it up in those first creaky morning steps but it’s odd, after hearing RICE a zillion times.  Nobody ever says RHCE.  Maybe because it needs another vowel.

Also, I had cut down on supplements recently but now I’m back to 2 Glucosamine and 2 MSM to see if that helps.  I’d rather up those than take ibuprofen.  I’m not sure why exactly, ibuprofen works wonderfully and when I take it (sparingly), it seems to carry over 2 days, but there’s an onus about it,  so I’ll try the more natural approach.

And with that, I’ll end the whining here. Wish me luck folks, not for a fast race, because I won’t be able to do that, but for a race where my ego does not feel bruised, where I enjoy it for the fun of a runnerly gathering, not to mention the speed session I’ll get out of it.  Assuming someone manages to bring the bibs.

Here’s the podcast if you haven’t moseyed on over yet.  It was fun to do and the guys on the panel were way cool – an enjoyable time was had by all.  I don’t think we helped Joe decide whether to race the NYC marathon or just run it, which was probably the whole point of the podcast, but I think he’s getting closer to figuring it out.

Runs
Yesterday, a 13-miler.  I dawdled too long so it was hot by the time I got out, but that helped keep my pace easy @ 8:47 avg.

Today, Kick Ass.    An 8 miler w/3 tempo and whoa doggies, the speedwork is working! Compare my previous tempo run to today (note the temperature difference):

May 7, 66F:  7:11, 7:12, 7:09, average 7:11
Today, 75F: 7:05, 7:05, 6:58, average 7:02

And I suck in the heat!  The best part?  Both my interval and tempo this week are a hair’s breadth away (5 seconds) from where I was this time last year and that was my short-race prime.  Whew!

Now for the meat of the post…

Age Grading Explanation and Stuff
I initially became aware of age-grading when I got my first running book (and running bible), Bob Glover’s Competitive Runner’s Handbook.  In the first few pages, he has tables for what he calls “Basic Competitor” through “Semi-Elite” with ages and corresponding race times for each group.*

I drooled over the different tables and as I moved up from Basic to Advanced to Local Champion, it was exciting, but it wasn’t till I’d owned the book a couple years that I realized the numbers next to his categories were age-grade percentages, split up like this:

Basic Competitor (50%)
Competitor(60%)
Advanced Competitor(65%)
Local Champion(75%)
Semi-Elite (85%)

How Age-Grading Is Calculated:
They (World Masters Athletics) take the world record holder of each age and sex, call that 100%, then your race time is divided into that, giving you a percentage called your Age Grade.  So, taking an example from Running For Fitness, “the world record for a 53 year old woman running a 10km is 35:01. So if a 53 year old woman finishes a 10km in 45:18, she has an age-graded performance of 77.3% (which is 35:01 divided by 45:18).”

Bottom Line:
It’s tells you how high you rank in your age group and is often used for major track meet classifications.

This is the breakdown:
100% = Approximate World Record Level
Over 90% = World Class
Over 80% = National Class
Over 70% = Regional Class
Over 60% = Local Class

What This Means For Me:
Last year I came very close to 80% in several race distances and now I’m ready to get in there and sit my ass down.   So my goal from here on in, besides the standard time-based ones, is to enter “National Class” for all my race distances (sans Marathon) and then see how far I can move up.  I’d be lying if I didn’t admit Glover’s “Semi Elite” classification sounds pretty sweet to me.  Hell, even the phrase “National Class” makes me giggle.

Now here’s the cool thing…
I didn’t realize till last night that my 5K PR, which was 79.91% at age 47, is 80.86% at age 48…I’m in the door!  Kind of.  I mean, I have to redo it to count, but that’s in the cards and then some (sub 20 will be mine by Fall, gosh dern it!)

Which brings me to my upcoming 5K.  To get 80%, I need 20:38, which looks doable (if the temps are good).  If not this race, I’ll get another chance 2 weeks later.   So there you have it: a race goal, thanks to the goodness of Age-Grading.

*It should be noted that in my version of the book, Glover’s tables are outdated, which might have been fixed in a newer edition.  There are two sets of age-graded numbers floating around the interwebs: 1994 and 2006 factors.  The latter is most current and happily, more generous, so if you see conflicting numbers between online age-grading calculators, the slower one is using the older, outdated world records.