Norm’s Training Blog

After Friday’s 10K and reading some posts about speed work on another forum, I went out and ran some striders tonight, the first I’ve done in several weeks. Not really much to say, except that workouts like tonight’s make me realize how fast some people are to hold a five minute or faster pace for long distances.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 07/07/2008
• Time: 05:00:00
• Total Time: 00:55:01.91
• Average Heart rate: 164
• Max Heart rate: 188
• Calories: 800
• Distance: 5.9 miles
• Average Pace: 9:19.88/mile
• Max Pace: 5:20/mile
• Ascent: 558 ft
• Descent: 629 ft

Beautiful running weather this morning, and I guess everyone decided to take advantage of it. Around 30 people showed up at Starbucks to run this morning, it looked like the start of a small 5K race or something.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 07/24/2008
• Time: 05:30:00
• Total Time: 00:50:10.95
• Average Heart rate: 175
• Max Heart rate: 196
• Distance: 6.24 miles
• Average Pace: 8:02.57/mile
• Ascent: 806 ft
• Descent: 845 ft

The first one of these I’ve done. The event involved paddling (canoe or kayak), biking, and running, interspersed with various challenges. There were solo racers, two man teams, and three man teams. Despite not being a cyclist, and having a flat when I got to the bike stage, causing me to have to scramble to find a replacement bike, our team managed to finish first in the 3 man category. When one of my teammates capsized our canoe my Garmin and I took a swim in the river, but the unit didn’t even hiccup.

The bike portion was a real eye-opener for me.  I figured that biking focuses on different muscles than running, but I didn’t realize how much it would affect my running. It really slowed me down when we transitioned to the run.  Fortunately the longer I ran the more I recovered so that I sped up as I ran instead of slowing down. I still prefer running, but it was an interesting experience.
Total distance was around 13 miles.

Workout:

• Type: Other
• Date: 07/19/2008
• Time: 09:30:00
• Total Time: 00:01:59.21
• Average Heart rate: 163
• Max Heart rate: 188

I’ve switched running groups. We still start at Starbucks, but it’s a faster group that meets at the same time and place as my old group. I knew 3-4 of the runners in this group already, and their pace is closer to mine, so I had been contemplating the switch for a month or so. Another runner/triathlete (I’m a runner only, he’s both runner and triathlete) that I’ve met in the past couple of months had mentioned in an email that sometimes we let ourselves get stuck in a rut. He wrote “Don’t be afraid to ‘move up’ in running groups.  It can become a trap to fall into by remaining with the same group too long.  I am as social as anyone and have realized that maybe my own running/triathlon hasn’t improved the last year because I have the same workout partners and pattern… so I have changed both.”  As soon as I read that I knew he was right, but I waited until Tuesday to actually take his advice.  If you look at the workout logs I’ve posted since I started this blog and compare them to Tuesday and today, the difference is pretty noticeable. I’m still not fast by any means, but this group will challenge me to become faster.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 07/17/2008
• Time: 05:30:00
• Total Time: 00:46:36.00
• Average Heart rate: 170
• Distance: 5.85 miles
• Average Pace: 7:58.09/mile
• Ascent: 833 ft
• Descent: 872 ft

Morning run from Starbucks.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 07/15/2008
• Time: 05:30:00
• Total Time: 00:46:53.82
• Average Heart rate: 171
• Distance: 5.87 miles
• Average Pace: 7:59.36/mile
• Ascent: 785 ft
• Descent: 764 ft

I was lazy this morning and didn’t make it out to the clubhouse till 7 AM, so I didn’t run the full 16 miles I had slated for today.  That’s twice now that I haven’t run as long as I originally planned, so I’ll really have to buckle down in the coming weeks. On a more positive note, the run went fairly well considering how quickly the temperature rose once we started running.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 07/12/2008
• Time: 07:00:00
• Total Time: 1:43:25.00
• Average Heart rate: 168
• Max Heart rate: 186
• Calories: 1507
• Distance: 11.25 miles
• Average Pace: 9:11.3/mile
• Max Pace: 6:08.1/mile
• Ascent: 1,111 ft
• Descent: 1,068 ft

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 07/10/2008
• Time: 05:31:00
• Total Time: 00:49:02.29
• Average Heart rate: 166
• Max Heart rate: 180
• Calories: 736
• Distance: 5.39 miles
• Average Pace: 9:06.28/mile
• Ascent: 788 ft
• Descent: 755 ft

I ran my first 10K today, the Bluegrass 10000 in Lexington, Kentucky. It rained right up until the starting gun, then stopped, but the rain started back about 10 minutes after I finished. I prefer that to a typical muggy July day. It was an interesting experience. I think there were arbound 3100 participants, so it was a brand new experience running with that many other people, especially the first two miles or so.  I thought the course was pretty flat although I heard one or two people mention hills before the race started, so maybe being from the Appalachians my definition of hills is different from theirs–definitely not a hilly course like the 5K in Wilmore last weekend.  There was one minor hill that I recall, but it was in the first mile. Once the crowd thinned out enough for me to be able to run where I wanted, it wasn’t much different than a 5K race–I watched my pace and tried not to let my competitive side get carried away when someone faster came by.  I started the race with a girl with whom I’ve been running in the mornings, but after the first mile went by at 7:15 I told her to go on and run her own race and not worry about hanging back on my account.  I was shooting for a time under 50 minutes for my first 10K and I’m pleased with the results. Eventually I want to get under 40 minutes and then see what happens from there.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 07/04/2008
• Time: 07:30:00
• Total Time: 00:49:31.00
• Average Heart rate: 178
• Max Heart rate: 198
• Calories: 844
• Distance: 6.2 miles
• Average Pace: 7:59.36/mile
• Max Pace: 5:39.94/mile
• Ascent: 999 ft
• Descent: 944 ft

Morning Run from Starbucks.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 06/30/2008
• Time: 05:30:00
• Total Time: 00:58:33.34
• Average Heart rate: 159
• Max Heart rate: 176
• Calories: 900
• Distance: 6.56 miles
• Average Pace: 8:55.71/mile
• Max Pace: 5:41.88/mile
• Ascent: 1,026 ft
• Descent: 1,041 ft

I had originally planned to get up and run 15 miles today with two other runners who are going to run the Charleston Distance Run with me, but it was raining when I went outside so I went back to bed till about 0630. By then the rain was clearing up but I didn’t have enough time to make it to Todd’s Road to run with the club, so I got online and found a local 5K race.  It was the first 5K I’ve raced since April when I ran a 24:26. Today’s race was definitely the hardest of the few I’ve run, due to a course filled with hills from beginning to end.  In spite of the hills I was able to beat my time from April by 39 seconds.  The only downside was that I somehow got lumped into the age group below me and listed at second place, so I think that may have knocked me out of winning my age group, but I’m not too upset since I was able to post a faster time than last race.  I’ll never be a speed demon but I’d like to someday get down around a 20 minute 5K. My heart rate was pretty high during the race. I still haven’t figured out what my HR numbers mean or what they should be, but I figure 191 bpm is probably not good.  I’m guessing if your heart rate is lower that means you aren’t having to expend as much energy to go fast, but if anyone who is in the know can give me the Cliff’s Notes on the whole subject I’d appreciate it.

Workout:

• Type: Run
• Date: 06/28/2008
• Time: 08:00:00
• Total Time: 00:23:45.41
• Average Heart rate: 177
• Max Heart rate: 196
• Calories: 424
• Distance: 3.1 miles
• Average Pace: 7:39.77/mile
• Max Pace: 4:55.08/mile
• Ascent: 422 ft
• Descent: 429 ft