At this time I have 3 consecutive Tuesdays starting August 30th, then September 6th and 13th. That last session corresponds to the week that ends with your peak 20-miler (at least for Intermediates) and is timed to help boost conditioning 3-weeks prior to race day.
We will be meeting at the store, then doing our warm-up run down the Pennsy to Rohrman Park, which is a tad over 1-mile SE-ly from the store. The park has a nice system of looping paved trail paths that should work nicely for doing interval workouts. I just need to get down there to measure out distances and mark them, probably with high-vis duct tape so we don't get any complaints about spray-painting the trail surfaces. We do our work-outs, then easy 1-mile run back to the store for Cool-Down. Not sure if the store will be open or not, or if Misty wants to keep it open until you get back so if you need any supplies and such you can get them. Will just go with the flow on whatever Head Coach Misty wants to do.
I won't go into details on the routines, but I do know the first routine will be "classic" Yasso 800's. It is a great interval work-out in its own right, but it is also a pretty reliable predictor of marathon performance. We will strive to run 8 of them (10 if you are game) with 90s recovery between intervals.
I might opt for a "ladder-up-down" routine 2nd session, but that could change as I mull it over more what is best to help you. I will finish out 3rd session with my version of lactate threshold training. It's a pretty simple concept and my run-friends I run and train with most seem to always be impressed with some of my marathon finish times, when all the time they just leave me in the dust on 5k's and 10ks and half-marathons. I always tell them - its the LT routines I do - not about speed - all about boosting threshold to tolerate and process lactate and it makes a big difference at marathon distance.
Of course, when I do my training, I am running these LT routines far sooner and do more sessions than you do. But, the main goal here is to introduce you to some of the concepts of boosting your performance, and if you run the 3 sessions it will have some training effect that will help you come marathon day. You can be a Novice or an Intermediate - the concept of running a bit faster over shorter intervals will help boost your physiology above what it is just running the standard schedules you are following.
In the grand scheme of things, I would have loved to put you through a whole series of sessions starting with week 8 or so and taking it all the way through week 16 or 17 of the schedule. Nothing wrong with doing speedwork the last week before the marathon, especially if it is pace and/or threshold running routines. Yes, running marathon pace is considered speed or high-intensity work. Ya, Novices train to just "finish" and run this oh-so incessant steady-slow pace all the time, but you would be amazed what happens when you mix-up the training. Even my "10-minute Ladies" from last year could reap some boost from doing 3 simple sessions!
Remember, speed-work is not necessarily about speed or running all-out to "puking-your-guts-out" and more about stressing the metabolic systems to nurture adaptations to deal better with the induced-stress. When it comes to running the marathon, it is conservation of limited resources of muscle and liver glycogen, and boosting the body's ability to tolerate ever-increasing lactate levels that usually culminate late in the race, somewhere before or at that mythical threshold they call the 20-mile wall.
Elites and many other accomplished marathoners will tell you no wall exists. You train appropriately, have a good hydration/fueling plan and have a well-thought-out race plan that centers on somewhat slower start and segue into race pace, then you run right through and beyond the so-called wall. OK, elites have a shorter time-period for starting out "slow" and always remember speed is relative to the individual.
OK, 3-sessions I lead for you and I run them with you. Give me some idea who is interested and some feedback if we can meet and start a bit earlier from the FF store. 5:30 pm would be great, 5:00 pm even better, but we can always stay with 6 pm if it means some of you can't make it. No one gets left behind - I mean it!
I will post more on this once I get our course measured out at the Park and I get some consensus on a meet time at the store.
peace,
No comments:
Post a Comment