Gyeonggi Half Marathon

I had what I would call "an OK race" considering this was my first half marathon in at least 2 years. I'll admit the last 3 miles were a struggle, in part due to some hills in addition to my perceived lack of leg strength. I'll make an effort to add more hills/resistive training, in addition to some longer runs and look for another hopefully flat half marathon before it gets too hot and try to break 90 minutes.

Splits: 7:00, 6:50, 7:02, 6:51, 6:58, 7:14, 6:52, 6:51, 7:05, 7:10, 7:15, 7:08, 7:29 (49' elevation change in mile 13 was enough to slow me down).

Okinawa Marathon 10K

After several years of getting stymied by work schedules and injuries I finally made it to the Okinawa Marathon 10K. While the marathon in hilly, the 10K is a flat out and back fast course.

If I've ever run a 10K with more even splits I certainly don't remember. Now to recover and run my first half marathon in several years next weekend.

High Intensity Low Volume Training

I am really enjoying the transition from typical 40-50 mile running weeks to low milege, high intensity workouts along with biking and swimming. Below is a summary of my running workouts for the week: ................................................................................. Mon: 19 min for 5K following 8.5 mile bike (6:07/ mile).. Tues: 4 x 800 just under 3 min, 60 sec rest (5:58/ mile).. Thurs: 5:42 mile off 12 mile bike........................................ Fri: 11:18 for 2 miles (5:39/ mile)..................................... Sun: 5K in 18:55 (6:06/ mile)........................................... For the week I had ran about 11 miles in 67 minutes (5 runs, 2.2 miles ave for each), just over 6 min mile pace with a handful of solid bike rides and short high intensity swim workouts. All running workouts but the 11:18 2 mile were done on artificial turf, and I wore my trusty Brooks Mach 9 with the insole replaced by a small, thin heel pad.

Distance Running Tip- Check the Weather!

If all goes well on December 5th I'll be running the Angkor Wat International Half Marathon in Cambodia.

A quick check at the average weather for early December revealed no surprises- humid and probably warm. Based on the winning time in 2009 of 1hr 13:26, my guess is the course is relatively flat (the guy won by 5 minutes), so I'm not too concerned about hill training. I am also inclined to believe this race has an early start time (can't find it on the website).

I'll overdress with extra layers for a couple of weeks prior to this one and hope to acclimatize, although it won't be easy to overheat running in November.

Weekly Training Summary for Oct 10-16:

Sun- 14 miles (half marathon race)
Mon- 3 mile jog, swim 800 meters, mix of 100s, and kickboard
Tues- 5 mile jog total, 4 miles bike
Wed- 10 miles easy
Thur- 8 miles easy, travel to Daegu
Fri- travel home from Daegu, swim 900 meters including mix of 150s and kickboard
Sat- 10 miles, middle 5-6 run at sub 7 min miles.

49 total miles run. Not bad coming off a half-marathon and some sore quads. Except for the last 1-2 miles, that Saturday tempo workout felt good. Interesting that I sort of crashed and burned close to 9 miles, close to the same point I began to struggle in last Sunday's half.

I also noted my pre run weight at 130.2 lbs, slightly heavy after a day and a half of inactivity and a sign that my muscles were loaded with glycogen and water. Despite the fact that it wasn't that warm out, I was mildly surprised my post run weight fell to 126.2- a 3% drop.

Triathlon- If you want to run faster- bike more!

This morning I did a short triathlon on Camp Humphreys- 400 meter swim, 20 K bike, and 5K run.

SWIM: On Thursday I did 400 meters in 7:50 in the indoor 25 meter pool. Today, with a diving start I checked the watch at 8:13 when I emerged from the 50 meter outdoor pool. I guess that means the more wall push offs there are, the faster I can go.

T1: Run to the bike, on with the bike shoes, sleeveless top, helmet, sunglasses, and off I go. Probably a minute or more but I didn't bother to look.

BIKE: 2 x out and back on a relatively flat course. Coming back on the first leg I unexpectantly hit a bump and nearly lost it- unfortunately my water bottle flew out of it's cage meaning there wouldn't be any water until the run (fortunately, I had the foresight to plant another bottle in the transition area). I finished up with the bike computer reading 38:55 for 12.96 miles- call it 39 min for 13 miles. Ave speed read 19.9 mph. That's good for me.

T2- Off with the helmet and bike shoes, on with the running shoes. No fancy stretch laces so I spent the extra time lacing up. Chugged some water and dumped the rest over my head. No cloud cover today with a 9:15 am start- and no water on the bike I was getting warm.

RUN: Legs felt like crap- normal for right off the bike in a triathlon. I passed 2 guys who were doing what I call "the triathlon shuffle". They were running about as good as I can swim. Finished in 1:08:? 6th overall (the winner finished under 59 min- very strong bike leg!)

COMMENT: My lack of bike training really cost me on the run, as my legs never really came around so I could get rolling (or maybe it was the heat). I only bike 25-35 miles per week, 4 miles back and forth to work a few times a week, and 2 miles back to do the kids running program. I know that putting in an occasional longer bike would pay huge dividends on the run, but whoever said I was training for a tri? Post race weight was 124.

Wed Aug 11 Workout

am: 2 miles with Sumo, then 4 easy that felt good.

pm: 10 x 100 meter swim, then 4 mile bike.

good recovery day.