Sub 20 min 5k, 3 runs a week

[TheEd]

because your long run for now shall only go up to 1hr, you go can increase it in segments of 20 minutes .. so 20 - 40 - 60

hope this makes sense

TheEd

[GavMoon]

I'm not sure I did understand that actually. Does it mean one week I'd do 20 mins and then 40 mins the next, 60 the next etc? I thought the increase would be more gradual?
I ended up doing 45 mins yesterday and it felt ok.
What's the plan for tomorrow?
Cheers

[TheEd]

you increase the long run in increments of 20 minutes .. so you have now done 45 minutes so next week you can increase to 1hr .. 1hr is the longest you need run .. the pace can be increased on the long-term where your distance becomes longer however this is certainly not necessary until you have adapted

3 x 1000m Rest 2 to 3 minutes .. pace 10 seconds per k quicker than the 1600 session

the shorter rest should catch you

enjoy

TheEd

[GavMoon]

Hi again TheEd,

Public holiday on Tuesday, few things going on .. so had to swap things around a bit this week. I did the easy session on Tues (25 mins easy) then the quality on Thursday. 3x1000m felt ok. Pace was 4'10" and 150s rest between the intervals felt like enough. HR was mid 160s after the first interval and mid 170s immediately after the 2nd and 3rd. After a minute it was back around 120 and still falling.

As with previous days, the first interval in some ways was the hardest, could this be because I wasn't properly warmed up?

Today I ran 50 mins slow. It didn't feel great - pretty warm (25C at 8.30am) and I wasn't carrying any water so probably got a bit dry. The ITBs were a bit achy towards the end as well so I didn't want to push it. Funny .. on the slower runs they seem to be more vulnerable than on the faster ones. E.g. a 40 min fartlek never gave me any aches but a 40 min slow has done in the past

What's planned for this week? Cheers.

[TheEd]

yes, slower runs do provide more chance for aches and pains as the runner is not as 'bi-mechanically efficient' as to when they running faster

this is all part of the development process though

a good warm-up will always benefit your interval training

will provide the quality session shortly

TheEd

[GavMoon]

Thanks TheEd - looking forward to it.
Cheers

[TheEd]

8 - 10 x 400m @ 4.10 per k pace

look to Rest 60 seconds

this session should be easier however around the 5th 400m the short rest should start catching you

hope it goes smoothly

TheEd

[GavMoon]

Hi TheEd,

The session felt gerat. Definitely easier than the 1000m or 1600m ones. You were bang on with your prediction, there was a bit of a change after the 4th interval and also the 8th, 9th and 10th felt a bit harder.

Here are the stats:
Intervals 1-3
HR was 142 after the interval. Falling fast within 30s. Breathing very easy, 5-6 strides per inhalation and 5-6 per exhalation. Pace felt ok.

Intervals 4-7
HR in the low 160s after the interval. Again falling fast within 30s and down to around 120 after the 60s rest. Breathing a little steadier, around 4-5 strides per inhalation & exhalation. Pace still felt easy.

Intervals 8-10
Legs started to feel the load in the last three intervals. The pace was still ok, but a bit more effort was required to maintain it. HR up to 170 after the interval, and only back down around 140 by the time the next one started. Breathing now 3-4 strides per inhalation & exhalation.

Interestingly, the max HR seemed to occur 10-20s after the end of the interval.
After the 10th interval the HR fell to 110 after 60s.
I warmed up for longer and it was much better.

Same old stuff for Thursday?
Cheers,
Gavin

[TheEd]

nice to read you getting the benefits of the session

same old for Thursday and somewhat harder run over the weekend

either a 1500 test or a 4k time-trial

are you up for it?

Cheers

TheEd

[GavMoon]

Hi TheEd,

Definitely up for it. As it's the weekend I might be able to use the nearby track that I've located. But which distance? I would think I could run the 1500m quite fast as I've been running 1600s, and could compare it to the original 1600m test I did. But on the other hand if I'm wanting to run a 5k race eventually, maybe the 4km would be better preparation for that?

What do you think?
Cheers.