Sub 35 10k training

[Alex]

5.03k in 17:30.

Almost exactly according to plan.

Now a week of very easy sessions (for me at least) and then a cross country 10k race next Sunday.

I have been looking for a good 10k race to see some sort of progress. (The last 10k race 3 weeks ago was a good, fast 10k road race). Because it's getting colder (wintertime) there aren't that many (if at all) good fast 10k races on the road. The next really big 10k road race on a relatively fast course is February 14th. If I run 34:59 there, I would have finished 161st this year

So, next Sunday is a 10k cross country race, 3 weeks later there's a local 10k race but with no competition at all so I might want to do something else; don't know yet.

I still really like this training plan. Going to stick with it!

Also, the 5k today didn't feel super easy, but it was doable.

With kindest regards,

Alex.

[TheEd]

so how things going now, feeling more fresh?

TheEd

[Alex]

Strangely, I don't know.

The 30 minutes yesterday felt really easy. Right now I'm at college and my legs feel a bit tired, but when I run it'll probably feel really easy again.

We'll see after I do the 10x400 tonight. Should be easy enough.

edit: Just did the 10x400 and it still feels pretty much like the above. It felt as if the "power" was missing a bit today, but when I finished all 10 (all in 75-76, p60sec) I felt like I could do 10 more, even though they didn't feel great.

[Alex]

Just ran the 10k cross country race, ending the 2nd cycle. Tme was 38.08 (not important). I finished around other guys who run 35-36 for 10k on fast courses, so that wasn't bad.

After about 2k though, I had really painful calfs. I have been running more on my midfoot/forefoot and today that didn't work out well. I had to stop after 3k to just walk for a bit to let it subside. I lost somewhere between 1 and 2 minutes during the race because I had to slow down to make it managaeble. That's also, strangely, why I'm quite content. It means I can run with the 35-36 for 10k runners on a really bad day too.

Also, I had power in my legs today. (I started having really good legs on friday).

Should I do more stretching before a race to calm the calf muscles down? This might sound strange, but I never really stretch before a race...

So, on to the next cycle! So far I have a 10k run planned at the end of the next cycle, but it's a very small one with absolutely no competition. I might try and find something better. Legs feel fine, calves (calfs?) felt fine 10 minutes after I finished the race, so it's not a long-term injury or anything.

With kindest regards,

Alex.

[TheEd]

sounds good Alex, any reason you changing your 'foot strike' ?

at the end of the next cycle, consider dropping the 10 x 400m session if during the cycle you have any further calf muscle problems. We will replace the session with a fartlek session, 3 x 5 minutes fast @ anticipated race pace with 2 to 3 minutes easy in-between

chat more about this as we get closer to the date

how are the calf muscles now?

on we go

TheEd

[Alex]

I have looked around the internets and have done some research on transitioning from a heel-strike to a midfoot/forefoot-strike and it's supposedly normal for the calves to become upset at this transition. It seems I need to stretch and strengthen them a bit and that the pain in my calves should go away as the calves get used to the midfoot-striking.

I ran a 50-minute recovery run yesterday and I didn't feel my calves at all, so that's fine.

As to why I changed my technique; I've had a lot of injuries like shin splints. I decided to run on the grass next to the track on bare feet for 30 minutes every now and then to strengthen the muscles in my feet and lower legs. The shin splints (which I had for almost 6 years) disappeared in 3 weeks. If you run barefoot on grass, you automatically start changing your technique to more of a midfoot strike. I've also noticed that this change feels nice when I run; it feels like I have more power in my legs.

The only problem is having my calves get used to the change.

I don't mind the 10x400 session. Didn't have any calf issues then either. It's probably just the cross-country course that made things worse (lots of loose sand, hills, sharp turns etcetera.)

If I don't find a good race in 3 weeks, can we maybe do a tough training session instead? Running a 10k 'race' where the next best competitor is lucky to run under 45 minutes seems like a bit silly...

I really feel good with this scheduele (I really like knowing well in advance what I'm going to have to do) and the 2k and 1k sessions are readlly what I need to improve (they're really tough). I feel like I can say now that I am aiming for a sub 34 in February (during the national 10k road race championships). I feel like I'm really close to a sub 35 already; can't wait for another fast race!

With kindest regards,

Alex.

[Alex]

Hi TheEd,

I have a question.

As I get closer to the end of the next cycle (next week Sunday) it is clear to me that there is no race to run nearby.

What kind of training session can I do instead of the race? I was thinking something like 5/6-minute sessions hard with plenty of rest inbetween or something similar.

Your thoughts?

With kindest regards,

Alex.

[TheEd]

Alex, I thought I had replied to this. What did you do in the end?

consider doing a time-trial for the future from 4k to 8km is best

regards

TheEd

[Alex]

Cycle ends this Sunday. I'll probably to the time trial;

Thanks.

With kindest regards,

Alex.

[TheEd]

enjoy Alex

TheEd