Race Report: 5eeK Justice Run

The 5K turned out to be more like a 4K because of race planning errors. I'm not complaining, though ;)

I ran the 2.52 miles (according to the Garmin) in 18:15, which is a 7:15 pace, far slower than the sub-7 I was hoping for. I'm not sure what happened. If I had kept up that pace for another 0.6 miles, I would have finished a 5K in 22:27. Yeah... not sure what happened. It's sub-23, though, so I'm happy. Last year, I did the 5K (it was actually 5K last year, I think) in 25/26ish, so this was an improvement. I slipped going onto the second loop in that clay type of mud. It was kind of exciting. I also had Jeremy Camp on. The winds did end up coming in strong from the west. Temps were good in spandex and the Nike tee. No splits, since miles weren't marked. I got fourth, about 50m behind the third place finisher. I don't think I could've caught up to her, so no regrets. It was a fun run.

Afterwards, some festivities: A strong wind blew lots of Booster Juice fliers everywhere, in a really dramatic fashion. There's no better place for that to happen than at a race, since volunteers started sprinting after them and collecting them. We picked them all up pretty quickly, and it was kind of amusing. Also, the KS performance got canceled since the winner's circle got moved up. Since Molly was sad to not get to hear us, NK and I sang the Be Thou duet for her, and then LD and I sang for her again.

/ Side note, today is Saturday. I took Friday off to taper, and on Thursday, I did 35 min strength, which included a 4 min plank, which left my arms a bit sore the next day. I felt good physically this morning, although a bit physically tired, even though I had a good 9 hours on Thursday and 5-6 last night. Probably just the morning - not used to running then, and it takes a bit to warm up.

// I just plotted the new point on my pace vs. distance graph... I've done a 7.5 milers at nearly the same pace than this... man. Oh well, tried my best. I thought other biological functions might've had something to do with it... so I checked this article: http://www.runtheplanet.com/trainingracing/training/women/menstruation.asp ....yeah I'm talking about that. And this is supposed to be a time of peak performance compared to other times, so it's not that... maybe.

/// It's kind of cool how Phedippidations has so many topics that I can fill my iPod with whatever I need more info about at the time. For example, when I started increasing the length of long runs, I listened to a few about long runs. When I was going for the sub-6 mile, I listened about the mile. For the 5K, I listened to ones about race strategies and running rituals. After my sub-optimal performance today, I'm filling it with ones on periodization and the burnt-out syndrome.

More 5k Predictions

My linear regression of my bests predicts a 5K of 19:47. I haven't been sure what the function is supposed to be. Linear seemed okay. Online race finish time calculators seem so suggest longer times, though. I think what's most interesting is that my longer runs predict longer 5K times. It's hard to say whether I should be able to run those long ones faster, or if the functions used by these calculators just aren't made to apply to such distances. It's also interesting that my 5.25er predicts a slower time than my 7.5er. It makes sense, since the 5.25 is run as an interval workout, so is a less efficient way of covering the distance. Steady's better. Clearly, at least the Runner's Web one doesn't take into account the glycogen depletion threshold at around the 20th mile. I had been looking forward to possibly breaking 20, but it looks like I may need to adjust my expectations. The heat's going to be a bother, too. All my bests were run at ideal temps.

Runners World Calculator:
For a 6 min miler, a 6:38 pace for 5K means a 20:36 finish time.
For a 38:19 5.25er, a 7:04 pace means a 21:55 finish time.
For a 54:41 7.5 miler, a 6:55 pace means a 21:28 finish time.
For a 2:14:47 16.2 miler, a 7:31 pace means a 23:19 finish time.

Runners Web Calculator:
[ using T2 = T1 x (D2/D1)^1.07]
Using the mile, 20:18.
Using the 5.25er, 21:51.
Using the 7.5er, 21:18.
Using the 16.2er, 23:05.

Well, I guess I should expect something in the 21's. It's like 2 minutes slower than what I had been aspiring for, but I can live with that. I'll be happy if it's below 23. Oh man, the weather... I don't know how much of a wrench that'll throw in my plans.

// Weather update: it'll be "feels like 41" - sweet! I should be perfect in shorts and a tee. I'll go for tight clothes to reduce drag. Race conditions will mean slowing down because of traffic, but going faster due to drafting and adrenaline. There will be eastward 19mph winds, though, which means the last leg of the first loop and the last leg of the loop right before the final stretch will be a bit slower, since that leg (which we go over twice), is westward. 19mph is pretty substantial.

I'll think about taking a bit of caffine (new studies show its good effect on performance), and I may bring music (studies also show its benefit). I probably will wear the Garmin to track my pace. I don't know... it's heavy. We'll see.

Mar 31

FIT:
I wanted to get some miles in this week, and it ended up being a shopping trip, since the second key of my bike lock broke - how can metal snap in half so easily? Must be my superhuman strength. Temps were good. On the way back, with 2 pounds of chocolate, a bike lock, and a bottle of shampoo, among other random things, my right knee started feeling the extra weight, and it was fortunate that I finished okay. I iced afterwards (after cooking, which meant a few hours of standing first). I also noticed that the downhill to t was kind of rough on the knees too. Downhill puts 3-6x body weight force on your legs. I never noticed how much more it hurt to run down that hill. I think I went faster once on the tow path, since I didn't have to worry about braking. I kind of want to take an aspirin, but I read this fantastic article: http://www.active.com/triathlon/Articles/Breaking_It_Down__Physiology__Running_and_Recovery.htm. Aspirin can inhibit proper muscle repair and adaptation. I also think I warmed up during the downhill. My legs were reluctant to move much, and I got only 4 hours of sleep last night. That probably had a lot to do with it.

Splits> 8:45 t (est), 4:03 p, 3:57 h, 4:10 b, 6:57 w, 5:01 1 (now with shampoo, bike lock, 2 toothbrushes), 4:51 b+ (now with 5 bars of chocolate, tank top), 4:22 h, 4:06 p, 4:13 t, 9:17 2. Total: 59:47ish, estimated. That's the time for the 7.5ish miles.

Cumulative mileage: 213.7 + 5.3 (track) + 7.5 = 226.5. This is the end of the third month, and the 90th day of the year. I've run an average of 2.52 miles per day. At this rate, I can do just under 900 miles this year. Maybe I can get that up to 1000.

5eeK Justice 5K Race Planning

I should be thesis planning/writing, but...

The 5K is 5 days away. I already have my workouts for this week lined up. Today was Ulty practice, and Wednesday will be the same. Tomorrow, I hope to do 7.5 to get a new bike lock. It's kind of a necessity. Thursday, I'll just do strength, and I'll have an extra running-free day on Friday.

To beat my PB of 20:40 (it actually might've been 21:40 - it was at regionals, but it wasn't a big enough event to post results online.). Well, to beat 20:40, I'd need to run a 6:40 pace. To beat 21:40, I'd need to run a 6:59 pace. Based on the linear regression of my best runs since January, my predicted PR for a 5K at my current level with ideal temps of 40ish degrees would be a 6:25 pace, leading to a finish time of 19:47. Yikes!!! That's unheard of. I probably can't do quite that well because of the 41/61 temps and humidity left over from the previous two days' rain. We're racing at 9am. Oh man, a 6:25 pace is how I ran a MILE on Jan 10th. I have to keep that up for 3.1 miles! I have to go out hard and keep it that way the whole time. I don't know much about what 6:25 feels like, besides not far behind mile pace. Putting on the Garmin and having to watch it may slow me down, and it's not 100% accurate, especially with all of the turning. Luckily, there's not too much turning on this course. It also adds extra weight. Maybe I should just go all out and hope that I'm close to 6:25.

So to prepare... 1) stretch to stay loose. 2) sleep !!! - this may be a secret weapon. most of my runs have been done on non-ideal sleep, so if i do sleep, i may be able to open up a can of unrealized potential. 3) maybe on Wednesday go out and try a 400 or two at 6:25 pace. That means about 1:37 per mile... yeah, not far from how I go out on the mile. Hmm... GETTING PUMPED!!!

GEAR GUIDE: Running Logs

I think I've extolled the benefits of keeping logs elsewhere in this blog, but not in a formal Gear Guide setting. So I'll talk a little bit about overall benefits of keeping a log, and then I'll describe how I've organized my own Runner's World Log.

Things you can track:
Workout Type
Running Course
Temps & Clothing
Time of Day
Workout Time & Splits
Pre-run and During-run Fuel
Injuries
Sleep / Mood
Weight, HR

Tracking these will help you:
1) Monitor progress - you can see how your times for a particular course drop
2) Look for patterns - what kind of training level makes you more injury prone? Are you in danger of increasing training by too much too quickly?
3) Explain trends - maybe it's because of increasing temps, and not lack of effort, that you're going slower.
4) Discover what works - maybe you're a tee shirt as long as it's above freezing type of person. maybe you shouldn't eat chocolate right before a run. maybe long runs are better in the morning than in the afternoon.


Column 1: Day/Date. This is a 52 week journal.
Column 2: Distance, in miles. If I do body weight strength, I put an "S" instead of a number of miles. If I do cross training, I put an "X". If it's an ultimate frisbee practice, I put a "U". If it was a rest day, I put a black rectangle.
Column 3: Time. If it's a run, I do the time. If it's strength, I put the time in parenthesis. If it's Ulty, I don't put the time, since only a certain percentage of the time would be running. If it's a random sport that is stop-and-go, I don't put the time. If it's an endurance sport, like a cardio machine or swimming, I'll put the time in parenthesis.
Column 4: Course. I write the course and the splits.
Column 5: Comments. Here, I'll write the temps, my clothing, the injury report, where and how much I felt like stopping (haha, kind of funny that it deserves a spot in my list of common forms of comments. Usually just applies to track workouts, though.), sleep, time of day, weather, fuel, pretty much the stuff on the above list, as long as it's remarkable.
Bottom: Mileage Totals. You sum your weekly total. Then, you add it to your year to date total. That results in a new year to date total.
Extra: I also track which running podcast episodes I've listened to.

Mar 29

FIT:
Yesterday (Sat): Day 1 of Roll Call. 3x1-hr games in mud pits and miniature ponds. It was on nice polo fields, though. Temps were cool, although super misty. We went 2-1. We could've gone 3-0 if we had subbed and called plays to win vs. get in practice, I think. I had been concerned about being able to cut at all (my usual position) because even during the warmup run, I had to hold my left upper hip because it hurt. I almost asked to handle, but it ended up working out okay. The pain actually permanently went away during the course of play. The wonders of exercise.

Today: I had a lot of schoolwork to do, but I really wanted to get in a run, since I only did 10 so far this week, and this was the last day of the running week. I procrastinated a lot, going between reading Paradise Lost, sleeping, doing nothing. I thought about doing a junk shopping trip run, even though it was going to eat away time I should have spent on homework. I also thought about going to the gym, too, since my left arch feels very unsupported, maybe from all of the running in cleats yesterday. I also wanted to do a track workout because it's been a while, and I need to prep for Saturday's 5K. Eventually, though, I procrastinated so much that I ended up having no choice time-wise except to do the track workout.

It was warm (relatively) and humid, so even before running, the heavy organic cotton tee came off. The sun was out, and the track had puddles from all the rain. I wonder why they don't fill in the serious potholes in lane 1. Isn't it a hazard or disadvantage or something? I had an episode of Phedip on my Shuffle. I thought about calling it a day after the 200's. I kept going, though, and pushed through the desire to take a break after the first 400. I did stop after the 800, though, not for any legit bathroom reason. I was just so out of breath. I finished the 5.25 miles in 38:19. At that 7:14 pace, I could run a 22:24 5K. Saturday's likely going to be humid and warm, too. I wonder how much the fact that it's a 5K rather than 5.25 miles will increase the pace. I was sure to stretch afterwards, and I also stretched during my extended water/bathroom break. I put the tee back on after the break.

FAITH:
I went to NCC today b/c KS was performing. I think I'm going to go there from now. With less than half a semester left... why didn't I try it years ago?

Mar 27

FIT:
A bit of catch up to do, except there isn't much to catch up on. Today is Friday. Monday's 10 was finishable and felt decent afterwards, and that night, it was a good kind of pain as I lay in bed w/ my legs propped up, letting my body recover, heal, and adapt. The next morning, though, it hurt to walk because of the left hip thing, and my banged right knee wasn't great either. I took Tuesday off. Wednesday, I would've taken off again, but it was okay enough to do strength at night. Somehow, exercise sometimes helps stuff heal, so it was good to try. I did 40 minutes. Thursday I took off b/c I couldn't do stuff w/ all the the classes and commitments anyways, but my body was only about 80%, too.

So today, before the DC tourney, I wanted to do something, since I've only logged 1 run for the week and 1 strength. It would've been a nice track day, except it was already nearing 4:30 after my naps, and varsity likely had the track. Plus, I'm only about 90% now. I did the Stairmaster instead, for 30 minutes. This time, I got one with a working HRM. Here are the stats:

168 bmp, 10 min, level 13
174 bmp, 15 min, level 14
180 bpm, 20 min, level 14
186 min, 25 min, level 15
186 min, 30 min, level 15.

327Cal, 4.98mi (whatever that means... I can't even run 5 mi in 30 min, so I don't know what that's about.)

I was stepping-out-of-the-shower sweaty afterwards. That's what gyms do. Running outside is so much better - you get a free fan.