April 2017 Running Challenge

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  • MobyCarp
    MobyCarp Posts: 2,927 Member
    hanlonsk wrote: »
    I am very happy to find a supportive group of runners. It is harder to discover than I thought it was. I am currently training for my first ever half marathon, and have a few other races leading up to it. I am mostly doing run/walk intervals. I would gladly accept any advice or input or tips on half marathons that anyone would like to give.

    Welcome, @hanlonsk !

    I've done some run/walk intervals for my initial 5K training, and again as part of rehab from injuries, but I'm primarily a continual runner. I understand that run/walk is a bit of a different discipline, so you might have to adapt any advice I give you about half marathons for the run/walk discipline.

    The biggest thing about stretching from running 3 to 5 miles up to the half marathon distance is that you have to learn to run slower. The run/walk intervals are one method for addressing this, and I'm not sure how far it's practical to stretch running at lactic threshold with walking recovery intervals. If at some point you decide you'd rather run continually, you'll probably need to run slower than you're running during your current running intervals while still running faster than the average of your run/walk routine. But there is no reason you absolutely have to convert to continual running; if run/walk is your thing, do that and be happy.
  • skippygirlsmom
    skippygirlsmom Posts: 4,433 Member
    @7lenny7 love Kody laying in the water ha ha super pictures.
    @ddmom0811 so jealous is all I can say - enjoy
    @respectthekitty great job getting the walk in when you didn't feel like running :star:

    I don't think I'll get a run in today. Thunderstorms this morning, then orthopedic appt this afternoon, then a T&F booster meeting that will probably last until 9:00 tonight.

  • ereck44
    ereck44 Posts: 1,170 Member
    Finally getting a chance to post here....only 9 pages behind on 4/3. LOL!

    After missing my goal 3 months in a row, I finally achieved (bested) my goal last month, having run 61.43 miles. This month my goal will be 50 miles.

    My husband and I planned a trip to Nashville at the end of the month. We will probably be walking a lot. My husband doesn't share my love for running.

    4/2 Planned run for 10 miles but ran 9 instead due to starting out too late....didn't want to be running after dark. Still a good run. My biggest issue is starting out too fast and then never being able to relax. Yesterday, again I started out too fast. After the first mile my shoe laces were untied and I had to stop to tie them, and noted on my HRM that I slowed to the rate that I planned to be running. Afterward, I decided to take 15-20 second walk breaks if my heart rate was creeping up. It helped me relax. I finished the 9 miles feeling stronger than I ever had. My lungs felt great, legs were clearly sore but not terrible. My pace was 12.88 miles per minute, but stayed in my zone 80 minutes which was a huge accomplishment for me.

    4/2....9 miles
    goal...50 miles

    Indianapolis Mini Marathon (Half Marathon)....May 6th.
  • MobyCarp
    MobyCarp Posts: 2,927 Member
    @lporter229 - Way to go! Late in the training cycle, it's really tough to limit yourself to what you really should be doing. Yes, take sunscreen to Boston. I didn't last year, but got bailed out by someone handing me a tube as I got on the bus. But that was a premium package bus; I won't have that package this year, and I don't think it's routine on the BAA buses.

    Your difficulty on the flat after running the hills sounds a lot like what I was feeling on Beacon Street and Commonwealth Avenue last year, after passing people in the hills of Newton. It's likely you had a very good training run in the mental preparation department.
  • lporter229
    lporter229 Posts: 4,907 Member
    @MobyCarp- Good to hear it. Your help has been invaluable! Thanks!
  • WhatMeRunning
    WhatMeRunning Posts: 3,538 Member
    edited April 2017
    Based on how this base building cycle is going, I extrapolated it out through the summer to see how much of a base I might be able to build up. Getting into 60+ mpw heading into September looks quite possible and is on paper as my goal currently. There is a 50k in this area in late October that I may set my sights on if reality maps out to the plan. Plan B could be the Kansas City Marathon in mid-October. Neither of these would be "raced", to whatever degree that may be. Plan C would be just to develop whatever base I possibly can and see about carrying that forward to something next spring. All plans assume I prevent injury. I'm going to be strict about keeping to that particular aspect of the plan if at all possible! :lol:
  • MNLittleFinn
    MNLittleFinn Posts: 4,271 Member
    WhatMeRunning wrote: »
    Based on how this base building cycle is going, I extrapolated it out through the summer to see how much of a base I might be able to build up. Getting into 60+ mpw heading into September looks quite possible and is on paper as my goal currently. There is a 50k in this area in late October that I may set my sights on if reality maps out to the plan. Plan B could be the Kansas City Marathon in mid-October. Plan C would be just to develop whatever base I possibly can and see about carrying that forward to something next spring. All plans assume I prevent injury. I'm going to be strict about keeping to that particular aspect of the plan if at all possible! :lol:

    That sounds awesome!

    However, I now believe that you are Evil. There's a 40K in october that lines up with a 4 day weekend for me.....and now you have me thinking about signing up for it and using my September marathon as a training run.....
  • WhatMeRunning
    WhatMeRunning Posts: 3,538 Member
    edited April 2017
    MNLittleFinn wrote: »
    WhatMeRunning wrote: »
    Based on how this base building cycle is going, I extrapolated it out through the summer to see how much of a base I might be able to build up. Getting into 60+ mpw heading into September looks quite possible and is on paper as my goal currently. There is a 50k in this area in late October that I may set my sights on if reality maps out to the plan. Plan B could be the Kansas City Marathon in mid-October. Plan C would be just to develop whatever base I possibly can and see about carrying that forward to something next spring. All plans assume I prevent injury. I'm going to be strict about keeping to that particular aspect of the plan if at all possible! :lol:

    That sounds awesome!

    However, I now believe that you are Evil. There's a 40K in october that lines up with a 4 day weekend for me.....and now you have me thinking about signing up for it and using my September marathon as a training run.....
    Oh yes...I am quite evil! :naughty: Evil, evil, evil! :naughty: (insert evil laugh here) :naughty:

    Did you sign up yet? :lol:

    Seriously though, my first full beat the freaking hell outta me! I'm a firm believer in progressing through each distance. 5k before a 10k, 10k before a half, half before a full. I have read similar things in many ultra running books that the experience of a full and a 50k can really be a good base to achieve before attempting a 50 miler (or beyond). Then again, there are plenty of people who skip distances and jump right into the bigger distances.

    I am hoping that since I have done fulls before that a 50k will not kill me on my first attempt, particularly when I do it after coming back again practically from scratch! I'm feeling pretty good though based on how things have progressed to this point. I'll be able to tell a lot more after a few months if I'm biting off more than I can chew. Right now things feel great and a reasonable progression plan on paper makes this look perfectly feasable. My legs and body may tell me something totally different once I get into mileage territory I've never been in before. I've never run more than 54 mpw before. This plan has me going to 60 mpw territory, up to 66 mpw at the peak.

    Oh, those 6's definitely add to the whole evil aspect! :naughty:
  • BeeerRunner
    BeeerRunner Posts: 728 Member
    Barkley Marathons update!! John Kelly finished in 59:30. Gary Robbins missed the 60 hour cutoff by 6 seconds!! :'( How heartbreaking for him!
    http://runningmagazine.ca/2017-barkley-marathons-recap/

  • WhatMeRunning
    WhatMeRunning Posts: 3,538 Member
    Wow!!! I can't imagine what Gary Robbins must be thinking right now! Congrats to John Kelly for keeping this particular years race from having no finishers at all!
  • MNLittleFinn
    MNLittleFinn Posts: 4,271 Member
    BeeerRunner wrote: »
    Barkley Marathons update!! John Kelly finished in 59:30. Gary Robbins missed the 60 hour cutoff by 6 seconds!! :'( How heartbreaking for him!
    http://runningmagazine.ca/2017-barkley-marathons-recap/

    Wow. That would be devastating
  • Run4life375
    Run4life375 Posts: 98 Member
    Added another 2.6 miles today. I was planning on only riding my bike today, but I ended up having to "run" some errands!

    exercise.png
  • HonuNui
    HonuNui Posts: 1,464 Member
    edited April 2017
    Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers. He passed at 10am today. Wear your damned sunblock.
  • girlinahat
    girlinahat Posts: 2,956 Member
    @HonuNui I'm so sorry. Thinking of you.

    Plenty of hugs and warm thoughts coming your way.
  • WhatMeRunning
    WhatMeRunning Posts: 3,538 Member
    edited April 2017
    @HonuNui - :cry: All the best thoughts coming your way.

    @Elise4270 - It comes back. Just keep at it. I had sputtering starts beginning in January this year (flu interrupted) and February. It was seriously getting me down that I could not get more than about a quarter mile without feeling really winded, and that I felt the best I could do was maybe a mile or so. Stuff was pretty chaotic in terms of getting back to regular running, and even when I did get back into some sort of groove just a mile seemed forever and the "suck fest" my lungs were doing trying to do those short little distances. I hated being passed by every other runner and wondering if I could even catch up to those damn walkers in front of me (how do they walk so fast?). All I know is that at some point, it all added up to some regular running (even if short) and then after some time doing that all of the sudden my cardio started opening back up. It has kept building pretty quickly in the past few weeks. I suspect you will find a similar thing happening with how much mileage you were cranking out last year. :wink: All I know is that the first couple months were tough to get into a regular running schedule and after that it took a few weeks to get the fitness back up to outweigh the fatigue each run was piling on. It's getting over that hump that really sucks.
  • katharmonic
    katharmonic Posts: 5,720 Member
    Oh, @HonuNui I am so very sorry. My heart just breaks for you.
  • katharmonic
    katharmonic Posts: 5,720 Member
    Date :::: Miles :::: April MTD (goal = 95)
    04/01/17 :::: 7.7 :::: 7.7
    04/02/17 :::: 3.5 :::: 11.2
    04/03/17 :::: 2.5 :::: 13.7

    Bit of a slog today but got a run in when I thought I might not, so calling it a positive. Tomorrow is a travel day to Indianapolis so no time for a run. And then the forecast for most of the days I'm there looks like crap. Thunderstorms and then snow. Snow! What the heck, midwest?
  • MNLittleFinn
    MNLittleFinn Posts: 4,271 Member
    http://wildduluthraces.blogspot.com/

    I'm VERY intrigued, as it lines up well with my school year and is at a decent time to use my September Marathon as a training run.....but there will be NO deciding of anything until at least a week after my June Marathon.... I blame @WhatMeRunning for my even thinking about this.......and a coworker of mine for saying he'd crew for me running the 50k...... Everyone is an enabler!
  • MNLittleFinn
    MNLittleFinn Posts: 4,271 Member
    WhatMeRunning wrote: »
    @MNLittleFinn - As long as you make it through your June marathon, something tells me things might go like this.

    Day of marathon: Never again. Half marys only from now on. Will probably downgrade that damn fool September full marathon I signed up for. Those 50k people are stupid.

    Day after marathon: I can't wait for my September full!

    Not too much later: 50k here I come!!

    I have a feeling it might go exactly like that.....is it bad that there's a training plan that, if I go for the 50k, happens to have a 26 mile run that would fall on the day of marathon number 2?
  • WhatMeRunning
    WhatMeRunning Posts: 3,538 Member
    MNLittleFinn wrote: »
    WhatMeRunning wrote: »
    @MNLittleFinn - As long as you make it through your June marathon, something tells me things might go like this.

    Day of marathon: Never again. Half marys only from now on. Will probably downgrade that damn fool September full marathon I signed up for. Those 50k people are stupid.

    Day after marathon: I can't wait for my September full!

    Not too much later: 50k here I come!!

    I have a feeling it might go exactly like that.....is it bad that there's a training plan that, if I go for the 50k, happens to have a 26 mile run that would fall on the day of marathon number 2?
    Bad?? No, more like a sign. :naughty:
  • MNLittleFinn
    MNLittleFinn Posts: 4,271 Member
    WhatMeRunning wrote: »
    MNLittleFinn wrote: »
    WhatMeRunning wrote: »
    @MNLittleFinn - As long as you make it through your June marathon, something tells me things might go like this.

    Day of marathon: Never again. Half marys only from now on. Will probably downgrade that damn fool September full marathon I signed up for. Those 50k people are stupid.

    Day after marathon: I can't wait for my September full!

    Not too much later: 50k here I come!!

    I have a feeling it might go exactly like that.....is it bad that there's a training plan that, if I go for the 50k, happens to have a 26 mile run that would fall on the day of marathon number 2?
    Bad?? No, more like a sign. :naughty:

    This is the reason I'm waiting until AFTER my first marathon to decide. The urge to just go for it is very great, and I don't want to jump the gun on it....Though the ultra is in the am part of the state as my first marathon, just in the hill country instead of the flats.
  • Stoshew71
    Stoshew71 Posts: 6,553 Member
    HonuNui wrote: »
    Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers. He passed at 10am today. Wear your damned sunblock.

    Oh no. My heart goes out to you @HonuNui
    I am so very sorry.
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