Talkback: ASICS Target 26.2 Team: Rosie

SB - your experience with the test is a great example and lesson which supports the assertion that to improve we all have to train SMARTER and not just more/harder - it has taken me a long time (stubborn/stupid??) for this principle to sink in and your feedback confirms to me once again that the more effort you put in to planning your schedules in a smart way (and then of course to adhere to them!!) with rest and recovery periods included amongst the harder sessions at the right pace etc the better the performance.

Not sure about the name of the Polar ... test though !!!!!

Rosie - hope you are resting??

Better late than never, but congratulations on getting through to the final five. Was good to meet you at Boot Camp.

Hope the trainings going well. Looking forward to reading about your progress over the next few months.

Tom

Rosie, you are quite a conundrum. The times you are running would indicate to  me that you are more than capable of running considerably FASTER than sub 3.30, and yet despite having done a lot of marathons, you haven't achieved this. I can only guess that this is because you are in a constant state of low level fatigue and are therefore not performing to your potential when it comes to your key races (not helped by living on sports drinks, methinks... Ruth  - help her! )

I can see you are finding it hard to take rest days but as everyone on here has stressed, rest is when the body gets fitter. Training is basically about breaking the body down. You give the body a stress that puts it outside its comfort zone. It then as to go 'oh blimey, better make some changes so I can cope with this next time round.' BUT. a) the stress has to be just right - not too much and not too often (or too little, and not often enough but don't think that's an issue for you!) and b) you have to BUILD IN rest, as this is when those changes or 'adaptations' take place.

OK that's the telling off finished!

So looking ahead to week 3. This is slightly provisional, as I've said that we'll review Rosie's paces, based on her 5km race result on Sunday.

Week Three w/c 9/1/12  (35M)
Mon Rest (+ strength training)
Tue 7M CONSISTING OF 1M jog, then 4 x 1M (or 7 mins) fast, with 400m (3-min) jog recoveries, then 1M jog
Wed 7M  slow
Thu 4M steady
Fri Rest (+ strength training) COMPULSORY NO RUN DAY!
Sat 4M easy
Sun 13M easy (I recommend trying out sports drink or gels on these longer long runs)

The only difference in Rosie's prog compared to the sub 3.30 schedule is that the 13 mile run is an 'easy' rather than a LSR. And I don't think anyone else needs to be told to have a 'compulsory no running day'

Rosie- You're meant to leading by example! How can I keep up with your speeds/miles!!!  I want a 3.30 marathon but no where as fit as you at the mo.But I am also laughing my head off.

Hope you have a good rest day tomorrow, go in the kitchen and bake some cakes ect when ever you think of running. A picture of them would be nice to see.

It will be nice to see what Ruth recommends for fuel.

Aha! Cakes! Amazing plan Gazelle. I'm normally rubbish at finding time to bake, but this could work well. I've scheduled them in for the next rest day..

Thanks everyone for the encouragement to rest. I think being sick last week had lulled me into a false sense of how easy the rest day would be...Being in hospital my trainers weren't sitting staring at me begging me to take them for a wee jaunt round the park. Definitely took more self control than I'd expected. I may yet need that gaffa tape, Sleepy Bear! Though yesterday I tried just heading out on the bike instead. Had hoped to swim but my arm still has a michelin man style dressing on after the cellulitis last week (it got a bit broken down and nasty, so will be a few weeks yet till I can swim I think). Looking forward to getting it off now! Bike was fun, but glad it's another week until the next NO RUNNING day.

Oh dear, sorry about being a conundrum, Sam . I seem to be very bad at consistently going faster - it's fine in training for shorter periods but on long runs I tend to switch off (I enjoy them way too much and seem to mentally dissociate off somewhere else and not focus..I lose track of time totally sometimes) so reproducing training times in races is a real challenge for me. Am going to try to stay awake for this 5K this morning though. Just off to walk Dug round the course before the start!  

Is anyone else racing this weekend?

Choisty wrote (see)

On the subject of training smarter rather than harder has anyone read Charlie Speddings autobiography? He sat in the pub at a low ebb and decided he couldn't train harder, but he could train perfectly, which he decided to do. His mantra was to leave each session not being able to say "that was hard" but "that was perfect" a a good way to look at it I think. Also it proves all good distance runners enjoy a beer which is good news!

Liking that , sounds like one I need to read, thanks Choisty

oscarr -  oops hahahahahahahahah that should've been Fit!

Thanks Choisty - sounds like a good read - will add it to my pile!

Rosie - have a good 'un today. Will look forward to hearing about it!  I've got  a xc tomorrow.  Apparently it's the shortest one of the league - about 5 miles so should be a quickie.  A couple of streams to paddle in too so I hear.  Not sure how I feel about those  LOL

Go get em girl!

Rosie A wrote (see)

Choisty wrote (see)

On the subject of training smarter rather than harder has anyone read Charlie Speddings autobiography? He sat in the pub at a low ebb and decided he couldn't train harder, but he could train perfectly, which he decided to do. His mantra was to leave each session not being able to say "that was hard" but "that was perfect" a a good way to look at it I think. Also it proves all good distance runners enjoy a beer which is good news!

Liking that , sounds like one I need to read, thanks Choisty

Good luck for the xc tomorrow sleepy bear. I've just been watching the international races in Holyrood Park: amazing!

So, the GWR race this morning - 22:40. Gender position: 9th, 148th overall http://www.greatrun.org/Results/default.aspx?r=240&bib=697#

My average paces for the mile splits reflect the crazy hill (elevation of 309 according to garmin) and the wind the first mile and a bit..

Mile 1: 08:08

Mile 2: 07:21

Mile 3: 06:05

Mile 4: 06:11  

So, ok, sortof..? I felt fine finishing, but then immediately mildly sheepish as was a bit too fine and should have tried a bit harder? Timewise it's 23s slower than the last time I raced that course (2009), but I've been telling myself I'm loads less fit than I was then, which I clearly need to stop telling myself now, and just get on with training!

 11M slow tomorrow, Yey!!

Hey Rosie

Good effort! Have been watching the XC races today, too - and thought of you.  

Thanks for your email - I'll have a proper look at it after tomorrow - I have a running workshop all day and just getting prepared for it now. Cheers, Sam

Spoons. wrote (see)

Thanks Ruth. What do you suggest I do with all these tins of chocolate I have left over from xmas? Eat them all quickly to get them out the way or spread them out over the month?

mcs wrote (see)

Ruth.......in my first marathon i hit the wall at about twenty miles despite taking gels every fifty mins and having done reasonable well in training and taking on water. Do you have any suggestions. I am six foot two, slim build and twelve stone. I eat fairly regularly in daily life and healthy too, I have the Coeliac condition. Think I might need to eat something solid in the third hour of the marathon........any thoughts......? Thanks in advance.

mcs

Have you tried carb loading properly before race? Also have you tried taking a gel every 30-35minutes?

Hi Ruth! Great to see you on here.

Diet is a problem area for me, I seem to be very bad at making time to eat and on reflection a large proprtion of my calorific intake comes from sports drinks consumed on the go.. I know all the refined sugar isn't ideal but if I stop them I lose weight (wouldn't hurt to lose a bit, but my BMI isn't over, so I don't need to lose loads, and when I stopped them a few years ago I did get underweight and fatigued quite quickly). Any ideas on a better way to go about things? I often start the day ok, but then as the day goes on it goes to pieces.. Thanks!

Rosie. Lets start at the beginning! Would you be happy with putting up on this thread  a food diary for the next 3-4 days alongside time you eat the foods/fluids and roughly what portion these foods/fluids are and what time you do your running ? You can email this to me or put on thread?
Ruth

Hi Ruth. No probs, will do!

I may email it as I suspect it will be fairly horrific and I don't want to scare anyone browsing on here in an unprepared state.. Or I'll post it with content warnings. Would appreciate any advice on the thread though!

I'm not quite sure how I got to my thirties subsisting almost entirely on high-calorie drinks, bananas and cereal,  but it is a sorry state of affairs, so starting at the beginning sounds ideal..  

Hi Rosie - well done on your run - sounds amazing to me! Cross country, hilly and windy with those times you are amazing!

Pancake flat and 10 min miles for me!

Have alook at my thread as I had an awful time with an Alsation - your advice as a dog owner truely appreciated! Still shaken up by it all really! Not hurt but very frightened - especially as they clearly had no control of their animal!

Thanks Rosie! Great run today - 9th - nice one!

Shame we're so far away now - it was Rascal's first ever race last year- she spent most of it snuggled inside my duvet jacket as she was only 4 months old...

Right bed time for us!

Sleepy Bear wrote (see)

Thanks Rosie! Great run today - 9th - nice one!

 

Shame we're so far away now - it was Rascal's first ever race last year- she spent most of it snuggled inside my duvet jacket as she was only 4 months old...

Right bed time for us!

I think my gender position was 10th in that race 2009. Hmmm. that plateau thing again!!

Aw, I wish I'd known Rascal was there last year. Though I'd have had a hard time not stealing her at 4mths old! I do have a problem with puppies..especially absurdly cute ones....