New year, new targets

[K4marathon]

Hello

Yes, I am following the program and there are no real problems right now. Also the speed is getting better now and I feel some good development over the past 2 weeks. I did the 5k paced run last week and also all the other planned exercises. Due to a work-related event I had to postpone today's fartlek to tomorrow, then I have the 40-min easy runs and race day on Sunday. I have not decided yet what kind of race to run but I might do a fast run of 10 to 15 km, maybe with my running mate. Next week the program starts again and I have the normal easy runs and the 4 * 2km (the toughest one for me) and the 90-minute run etc.
Any special things you think I should pay attention to now? There is now around 7 weeks to my 21k race.


See you!

K4m

[TheEd]

focus on consistency and getting all the core sessions in

the next level up is 5 x 2k, so it is something to look forward to

enjoy

TheEd

[K4marathon]

Sure, this is my focus now to get the core sessions with high quality. We have somewhat icy conditions here so in practice it means indoor for me these days. Luckily I have the 400m indoor track close by

I did the fartlek yesterday. I think those sessions are relatively good, but I've noticed that a 1-minute slow jogging part between the fast sections only lowers my HR from the peak (which is around 165) to a level of around 145. Is it normal that the pulse only drops by 20 bpm? As a comparison, in the 6*1km or 4*2km interval sessions my pulse typically droppes from 160-165 to around 120 while stopping for 90s or 120s.


All the best!

K4m

[TheEd]

the pulse drops according to the level of fitness and the closeness to the planned race or event

currently you developing and if your pulse dropped to rapidly, you would most likely be in shape at the wrong time

so fear not, it should all work in the right direction at the right time

TheEd

[K4marathon]

Today was "race day" according to the program.

Due to very icy conditions outdoor, I decided to race (by myself) indoor on the 400m track where I normally train. I thought I would make a race that prepares me for my 21k challenge that is ahead in less than 2 months. Therefore I planned to run a 12k race as follows: first 10k in 50:00 and then 2k as fast as I can, around 9:00.
It went well:
first 10k in 49:52
last 2k in 8:34
Total 12k in 58:26

It went well. Especially I was very happy that I was able to run the "slower" 10k in 50 minutes at the HR level of 160 bpm almost throughout the run. It gives confidence that it is possible to maintain this speed for much longer.

Obviously the conditions today were perfect without hills and wind, rain etc, but nevertheless this increased my confidence as a sign that things definitely are moving in the right direction.


Now planning for a few easy days and then the next cycle starts.

K4m

[TheEd]

nice to hear you have gained confidence from the run

all forward going then

TheEd

[K4marathon]

Hello TheEd and others,


I'm now in the last two weeks before my main event; the Half Marathon on 5th of May.
I did my last long run yesterday, ran 21k in 2:05. It was quite a relaxed run in the early morning hour, at an average HR of 147 bpm.
The pace yesterday was almost exactly one minute slower per km than my intended target for the 21k race ahead. It will be tough to reach the target but I believe it is doable in good conditions at an average HR of around 165 bpm. That is my target anyway, let's see.


Now my plan for the next two weeks is to do no more runs above 10k, only shorter runs and some short sprints at intended race pace.


As always, all comments or suggestions are welcome!

K4m

[TheEd]

there is no harm in doing a 1k session this week

so whenever you can fit it in

your thoughts?

TheEd

[K4marathon]

Hello The Ed,

The last two weeks I spent doing only easy runs, except on Tuesday of the last week I did an interval (4*1k) to keep some speed exercise. Otherwise only shorter easier runs with a few short sprints at intended race speed.

The 21k race itself went almost as planned: started at almost exactly 5:00 pace and the first half (10.55km) went in 53:13. The other half was tough due to some head wind and I started feeling quite sour in the legs toward the end. I had intended to do some fasted running at the end but today I had no energy for that, so the second half went in 52:15, the whole race in 1:45:28, almost perfectly as planned (planned for 1:45).
Especially the last 5km were peculiar. I really tried to accelerate from the actual pace (between 4: 54 and 5:03), but there was no more power in my legs. After the race I felt like I’ve really given all I had today, but still for example walking is not painful at all, like it was last year. My HR was high: average at 169 so I think I used all the strength I could find in my body. Therefore I think the performance was optimal today!

Thanks for all your help in achieving yet another nice milestone!

K4m

[TheEd]

k4m, this is really good, it shows how your experience has benefited you to be able to achieve this result

this is a almost 4 minutes faster than last year, is that correct?

well done, truthfully good going

TheEd