This update has been a little while coming — every 5k race
I've run since the Hervey Bay Parkrun has been accompanied by the strong
winds typical for this time of year in Canberra. In one race I was
almost blown to a stop by a particularly strong gust. It was incredible!
Yesterday however, luck was with us for the Customs Joggers' 5k, with
the wind miraculously dropping while we ran (before picking up
immediately afterwards — the Captain Cook Fountain showering
everyone as we chatted).
'CJs' is a handicapped start 5k race and I started alone with Roger's
green shirt the immediate target. I glanced at the Garmin when it beeped
at 1k, the 4:48 not feeling as easy as I'd expected. I kept running
hard, passing Roger around 2k then caught up to Geoff just beyond 3k on
the way back from the turn. Geoff was talkative and encouraging as usual
while we ran past Rond Terrace. I pushed on to the finish, happy to
hear Bron shout "33:49!" as I passed the line. Splits
had been 4:48, 4:50, 4:48, 4:46 and 4:37 for a net time of 23:49 and an
average heart rate of 144 (about 91% of my maximum).
After another month of training using the Verheul Method I've raced 5
seconds slower than Hervey Bay, but I'm happy! Why? Well, this method of
training is quite addictive in how it leaves your legs feeling
— springy, fresh and full of life. I've noticed however, my
aerobic fitness gradually declining off the 50 to 55 kilometres per week
I've been running, with 4 to 5 days of that being full recovery short
intervals. It's a little like how I felt during track racing seasons in
the old days — 800 and 1500 metre times would improve off
speedwork and interval training. Then you'd try a late season 3000m or
5000m race and run slower for those than you did early in the season off
a base of winter training.
I'm experimenting with a change to my implementation of the Verheul
Method. Each week I'll have two days for short Verheul intervals (with
a longer warm-up), one day will be a 5k race or tempo run, one day will
be for long (800m to 1k) Verheul intervals (with a long warm-up) and
the other three days will be for non-stop aerobic running. Weekly
mileage will be between 70 and 80 kilometres. That's the plan at this
stage, but no plan is set in stone!
After the 29 September Customs Joggers' 5k
