Long runs...alone or group?
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I have done both. The last few times I just so happen to have 1 or 2 people from my group that were going a very good pace for me and I pushed midrun to keep up.
If I run by myself, I tend to slow down when it starts to get tough. Which may not be a bad thing on a cutback week or when I am boosting mileage.
This weekend most of my usual running group was racing at a half marathon that I didn't sign up for in time. So I ran my long run by myself. Since I knew I had no one to push me, I ended up doing my 20 miler on 2 mountains for a 1266 foot elevation gain. If I had no one to push me speedwise, I countered it with the elevation and guaranteed a hard workout.
Do you need to be 'pushed' for pace on a long run, or make sure it's a 'hard workout'? I'd see a long run more as background - spending lots of time at an easy aerobic pace to improve overall fitness and endurance, not trying to push as hard as possible. If I don't feel like I could happily do it all day I assume I am doing it wrong.
I often use the later portion of a long run for a fast finish. I'll do the first 3/4's at my normal easy conversation pace, then push the last 1/4 at closer to Half or Marathon Pace but stay under my threshold. I think some call them fast finish long runs or 3/1 long runs. My current plan has me doing something like this every 3rd week, with this weeks final 20 mile run doing 15 easy & the last 5 at goal pace.
I know some say you can't run a long run too slow, but I think there are some benefits to keeping your heart rate just below that high aerobic area. I've run long with a group that took 2-3 minute breaks every 3-4 miles for water and didn't feel like I had a great workout. I guess for me I'd rather have some heavy legs the next day for my recovery run vs being able to push the pace because my legs were fresh.
^^^^ This to answer your question.
I can sustain a good LR pace pretty good, but it's usually about on mile 15-17 that I end up needing a good push. If I don't watch out, I will zone out and slow down.
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If you zone out and start to slow down, then the first part of the long run was too fast. The long run should naturally get faster the further you go. This is for a normal long run. A fast finish long run is a totally different animal.0
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Is that us being the same person again, Carson?0
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This weekend most of my usual running group was racing at a half marathon that I didn't sign up for in time. So I ran my long run by myself. Since I knew I had no one to push me, I ended up doing my 20 miler on 2 mountains for a 1266 foot elevation gain. If I had no one to push me speedwise, I countered it with the elevation and guaranteed a hard workout.
I did a 20-miler this weekend, too. Mine registered as 1000 feet of elevation gain (split the difference between two programs). I forgot that when I run this route counterclockwise I get to run UP what is named "Nunn Mountain" as well as the area where I live (Piney Mountain). Not huge hill climbs in absolute vertical (Nunn, however, is an 8% grade), but steep enough that they can give a challenge. Since my heart rate strap was giving out (time for retirement) in the last third of the run, I was going more by feel than by actual heart rate data.
When I first started running these longer routes on these hills, the hills challenged my hamstrings. After Sunday's run, there was only a residual twinge in the adductor longus muscle yesterday.
Around here, it is really a challenge to find a long loop run (or even out and back) that doesn't have that sort of elevation gain. And because of that, I have a completely different relationship to running hills than some of my running coworkers who like it flat (like a treadmill).
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I run alone 99% of the time, the 1% is when my 15 year old daughter runs with me. She'll sometimes do most of my long run on the weekend, recently we started to do some trail running and she likes to do that, the other day her XC coach told her to run twice a day 2 days a week so she's running now Tuesday and Thursday mornings with me in addition to her after school practice. She'll do 3.5 to 4 miles and head home and I'll continue to finish my run. I love having her run with me, but this morning I missed the quiet of just my feet on the ground, plus good night she doesn't stop talking.
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Always alone. I might do shorter runs with friends but frankly chating while running is not my thing. For me running is a bit like scuba diving: I enjoy the silence0
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I don't mind people talking to me as long as I don't have to talk back.
This would be the same even if I was not running. LOL0 -
I'm very lucky, my husband runs with me 2 x a week including a long, we chat, discuss work, kids etc. Its nice. We have always done it, sometimes he slows me down, sometimes I slow him down but generally we are very well matched and spur each other on. I do run alone sometimes but much happier with him.
We did a HM last year, booked another for March then hopefully a Marathon in September. Very scared...0 -
I usually run alone. I trained for my first marathon when I had three teens and a two year old: it was my only alone time! Now that they are all grown up, I sometimes have one of my children or my husband join me for the last four to six miles, either by foot or bike. It is nice to have someone to talk to on those last miles. My youngest is 17 and a cross country runner, so I always finish those last miles fast trying to keep up with him!0
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