I just read an article declaring: “most runners are essentially joggers,” which really grinds my gears. The author writes: “They do all of their runs at the same, steady, moderate pace. They might go a bit slower on their longest runs than they do on their shortest ones, and a bit faster on their best days than they do on their worst days, but they make no conscious effort to vary the pace of their training.”
Well, shoot!
Reading that article got me all fired up to do some speedwork. True to Fitzgerald’s description of joggers, my version of “speedwork” is simply running faster than I normally do, so I decided to do a little research to determine what a speed workout pace would be for me. I went here, but all the numbers made me dizzy and annoyed and totally turned off. If liking these charts is what defines a “runner,” then, dude, I AM a jogger!
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| Click on the image to enlarge it, if you really care to see the numbers… Dad! |
Deciphering how to run “200m in 49.4 to 54.3″ is NOT appealing to me AT ALL, but… I DO want to get better, faster and stronger. So I went here, instead, where Runner’s World saved the day, breaking it down in simpler terms (thank you, thank you, thank you!):
*With this tool, I plugged in my GOAL marathon time of 03:59:00, rather than my actual best of 04:12:58, because I want to aim for the training paces of a sub-four hour marathoner. I don’t think this is how it’s “supposed” to work, BUT all of the paces seem realistic for me, so I’m going with it.
“Maximum Oxygen” and “Yasso 800s” lose me in the same way the McMillan chart did, so I’m ignoring them. And voila, I have my new training paces!:
- Easy/Long Runs: 10:13-11:30/mile (5.2-6.0 mph on the TM)
- Tempo Runs: 8:32/mile (7.0 mph)
- Speedwork: 7:07/mile (8.5 mph)
This same tool also shows the “Projected Finish Times” for a
03:59:00 Marathoner, which I love, because it gives me goals to strive for at various distances:
Gosh, I’m boring myself just writing all this mumbo jumbo, but I do have a point and some new goals for myself, including four PR-race goals I’ll be gunning for in the next MONTH:
#1) Run 1 mile in less than 7:30. *Because I’ve never done this before…
- I’ve never cranked up the treadmill beyond 8.0 mph (7:30/mile), which is FAST for me. BUT according to the junk above, my speedwork pace is 7:07/mile, so my goal for April is to do a treadmill workout with sprint intervals at 8.5 mph. *See TM Interval Workout below. **And possibly see Chuck fly off the back of the TM!
- Another training goal that should help with all of my PR goals is to do one “fast” run per week, including: A) a tempo run (averaging 8:30/mile) or B) speed intervals (with 7:00-7:30/mile sprints).
#2) Run a 5K in less than 26:51 (8:38/mile), which is my PR from 5/30/10. I’ll be running five 5Ks tomorrow = five opportunities to PR!
#3) Run a Half Marathon in less than 1:53:15 (8:39/mile), which is my PR from 8/15/10. Next up is the La Jolla Half Marathon on 4/17, which won’t be easy. It has some beastly hills in there, BUT I’m going for it, duh.
#4) Run a Full Marathon in less than 4:12:58 (9:38/mile), which is from LA just a few weeks ago on 3/20/11. My next marathon is the OC Marathon on 5/1, followed by Rock ‘n’ Roll San Diego on 6/5. Goal #1 is simply to PR, but I’m also gunning for that sub-four!
*I found the following
500 Calorie Treadmill Workout, which I’ve used a few times. I love the 3 minutes-to-1 minute intervals and plan to crank up the speed intervals from 7.0 & 8.0mph to 7.5 & 8.5mph on my next session:
And there we have the most boring post of all time! Now I’m off to the Carlsbad Expo for tomorrow’s All Day 25K!
Oooh buddy, I love, love,
love race expos!!!!
