Six seconds in twelve months

Yesterday afternoon I raced in the 'Longstaff 8k' cross country event at Weston Park. The race is named after local running pioneer Rosemary Longstaff, who ran 2:43:03 in the '81 Boston Marathon (which was the 88th fastest female marathon time in the world that year). I've run this race quite a few times over the years, including the 3-lap (12k) and now thankfully defunct 4-lap versions. In 2004 I ran 79:54 for the 16k version (The Jack Pennington Trophy Race). This year I ran at a slightly slower pace for half the distance — 40:10 for 8k.

Once again I'm quietly encouraged by this result in what turned out to be a strange race. It was a glum afternoon but thankfully the rain held off while we were racing. Course wasn't fast — although the grass was short, it was wet and the run over one of the beaches was slower than usual as the beach had been 'ploughed' for some unknown reason. What made the race strange was my choice of tactics. After the initial settling down period following the start I had to decide who to run with on the first downhill 800m straight. I could see Pam up ahead and I knew she was a 21:30 or so 5k runner. At the time I happened to be in the company of Andy and Geoff, both capable of under 21 minutes for 5k on a good day. So my choice was "do I go, or do I stay?" I chose to stay and ran comfortably down the hill rather than pushing hard to get onto Pam's shoulder.

For the first 2k I ran along with a chatty Geoff and easy running Andy. At one point long-term rival Charlie edged ahead but I felt so easy I wasn't worried about eventually closing that gap. My legs felt amazingly good! I was running along with a nice feeling stride, breathing and heart-rate both comfortable. I moved ahead of Andy (Geoff had dropped back a little) and while we were crossing the first beach Andy alerted me to a loose shoe-lace. What the?! I must have forgot to double-knot them! I stopped to tie the recalcitrant lace, loosing 10 seconds or so in the process, which gave Andy and Geoff a small break. For the rest of the race I ran fairly hard but couldn't make up the lost ground. Geoff in fact took off in the last 2k, running strongly to finish in 39:06. Andy also increased the gap, finishing in 39:45. Meanwhile I'd managed to pass a fading Charlie.

On the face of it I've only improved my time for The Longstaff by six seconds in a year. For this race though my average heart-rate was 144 (150 last year), so obviously it was a much better performance (even accounting for the possible loss of a beat or two from my maximum HR that Canute mentioned in a comment on my last post). Bring on the next race!

My heart took a rest when I stopped to tie my shoe-lace

The HM-eve 5k

This race was held last Saturday afternoon — a delightfully warm (for late May) and sunny day. Since then we've endured a couple of distinctly wintery cold, wet and windy days. I'm in two minds about this particular HM-eve 5k. I've run the event quite a few times over the years, so it's good one to compare how my 5k race-fitness is going. In that regard, I'll rate it a success, as I ran 22:21 at a satisfyingly low average heart-rate (147) — quite a bit lower than the 151 I averaged when running 22:14 for the ACT 5000m track championships in late March.

Of course it's yet to be done, but I think my current race-fitness is good enough to improve on my M50 5000m PB of 21:29.58. That race in 2008 was run at 662 heart-beats per km while the HM-eve 5k was at 657. A track 5000 is going to be faster as the 'course' is dead-flat, surface is perfect and there are no sharp corners (there were two last Saturday which needed momentary slowing to negotiate). I'm further encouraged by the times that rivals ran last Saturday. Robert ran 21:27 on Saturday and 20:22 in the track 5000. David ran 21:47 and 21:14 on the track. So I think I'm looking at running somewhere between 30 seconds and a minute faster on the track. The only problem being, there are no track 5000s until October!

So, as a fitness test the HM-eve 5k was satisfying. On the other hand, as a race, it was disappointing. I love the close competitive race experience — running with a 'bunch' of runners (half a dozen or so) and figuring out during the race what tactics to employ in order to win this race within a race. Last Saturday the first kilometre was 'fun', but thereafter I was running alone with the next runner about 40m ahead and try as a might, not making any impression on that gap. During the first k I was running with Robert (4:17 for that k), then he edged ahead. Near the 2k mark (4:22 split), David overtook, running strongly. The rest of the race was a bit of a grind (as races sometimes are), especially after the turn when we ran into a light westerly breeze back to the finish at Lennox Gardens.

This past week my training has been sort of okay, but I've succumbed to a cold over the past two days. I ran 78 kilometres including a couple of good 10k runs and a 5k tempo effort at yesterday's Parkrun — 24:32 at AHR 140, finishing 14th. The winner was Marty Dent, former steeplechaser, who'll be running the marathon for Australia at the London Olympics. Go Marty!

The HM-eve 5k course has a couple of sharp turns. Start is near the bridge; from there you run west. Finish is in the park at Lennox Gardens.

HM-eve 5k races
Year	Time	Ave HR	H-beats/km
2006	22:30	N/A	N/A
2007	22:34	158	713
2008	21:46	152	662
2011	23:06	152	702
2012	22:21	147	657

Sally's 14:43 Secret

I'm always on the lookout for gems of wisdom from coaches and runners. Words that reveal a unique and successful training strategy or some other secret to running faster. At the same time, I tend to be wary of advice from elite runners. Extrapolating the training of an elite runner down to my level (that of 'weekend warrior') isn't necessarily the best way to lay out a training plan.

Having said that, my excitement level was almost beyond containment when I read a gem of wisdom from an elite runner just last week. The words were contained in a story by Peter Gambaccini — "Brief Chat: Julia Lucas in the 5000" and they pretty much encapsulate my training philosophy. The story was written after the Payton Jordan Invitational, a 5000m race which was won by Sally Kipyego in 14:43.11, while training partner Julia Lucas placed second in 15:08.52 (which happened to be a 25-second PB). In answer to a question about Sally's example, Julia says "It's really easy to forget how good Sally is. She's just there every day doing exactly what we do. In December, when practices started back and I was looking better than I had, she grabbed me by the shoulders and said 'Julia, don't try to be great, just do every day pretty good like you're supposed to, and then you'll be great.'" That's a quote worth remembering. Prizes aren't awarded for interval session PBs or training runs that leave you so sore and tired that you can barely jog for the next two days. It's the sum of all training that leads to a race-day personal best. Do every training session in a way that results in the desired outcome for that session and then you'll be great. Here is the Youtube interview with Sally and Julia after the race.

My running continues to go well. I've run another 10k heart-beats per km PB (692) and a couple of low-key 5k races (23:16 and 23:32). On the 6th of May I ran the Nail Can Hill Run 11.3k race, placing 288th in 59:31. As I was running along the sandy tracks of the Nail Can ridge, if I had some spare breath I would have shouted out "How good is this?!" Here I was, running amongst a crowd of mainly younger people, legs feeling light and springy, moving through the Aussie bush at 4:30 per k pace without a care in the world (apart from how could I beat the girl beside me in the black bike shorts and the grey-haired old bloke running a few metres ahead).

My finisher's certificate from the '81 Nail Can

A 10k PB of sorts

My running is going well. I haven't raced since the 5000 but have enjoyed a couple of particularly encouraging training runs. I think I may have jumped off a plateau (the 22-minute 5k plateau) to a slightly higher level of fitness. There were two runs in particular over the last fortnight that gave me cause for excitement. On the 11th of April I ran a 10k bike path course in 53:18 for an aerobic cost of 688 heart-beats per km. Then this past Wednesday I ran my 'School 10' course at 696 heart-beats per km, which was a personal best for this course (I hadn't been under 700 before).

Apart from the pleasing HR/pace data, on many outings my running is feeling good. When running I sense some springiness in the legs and am 'doing it easy' more often than not. Following Bob's advice in a comment on my last post, I ventured out to Stromlo Forest Park this morning and ran 3 x 1000m with 1k jog recoveries. The times weren't particularly flash (4:40, 4:37 and 4:28), but I felt like I was holding back a lot and running comfortably (my HR only got up to 153 on the last repeat). So I'm looking forward to my next serious race — not sure when that will be — perhaps a track 3000 at the first High Noon meeting in May.

For training, I've been running with the following pattern: Monday 8k, Tues 15k, Weds 8k, Thurs 15k, Fri 8k, Sat 15k, Sun 15k for a total of 84k per week. Effort-wise, I start each run with the intention of running at a 'good' pace (if the legs and energy levels are agreeable), which turns out to be around 80% of HR maximum or a pace of between 5:20 and 5:40 per kilometre. My overall weekly average pace would be a good bit quicker than it was a year or two ago. I'm trying to run with a springy quick stride, which I think is helping to (slowly) build some leg-strength. I'm watching the London Marathon at the moment and hoping Marty Dent can run the 2:12 he needs to qualify for the Olympics.

Abi took this photo of us during our long run beside the Molonglo River

A good 5000

It wasn't an M50 PB, or even under 22 minutes, but I'm pretty happy with how I ran in the ACT Veterans' 5000m Championship race this past Thursday evening. I finished 22nd (out of 26) in 22:14. No 1/100ths of seconds to be seen in the results so the photo-finish timing equipment must have chucked a wobbly.

I only had time for a 1k warm-up jog but ran quite a few 80 metre strides (with the legs feeling good) so started in a positive frame of mind. Unusually for this track season, the weather was favourable — calm and about 16 Celsius. I positioned myself towards the outside of the curved line and after the gun, fell in behind Amanda. There was a good pack just ahead being led by Roger and Dale, with Rob, Helen and Kathy in close company. The clock at the finish line read 49 seconds as I ran past. That's a tad quick!

On the next lap Amanda slowed slightly so I had the choice of staying back or moving ahead (which I did) to trail Kathy. My legs felt good, but I could tell the pace was a bit on the ambitious side. Passed 1000 metres in 4:08. Too fast! That was the fastest kilometre I'd run since a 1500m race back in November (must have split about 4:09 then). I hadn't run the 1k intervals that Canute suggested (due to a niggly hamstring). The elastic between myself and Kathy snapped before 2k (8:33) so I ran the rest of the race in no-man's-land, hoping to limit the damage from the quick start and stay ahead of Amanda. My 3k split was 13:06. I drifted more after that, running 4:38 for the 4th kilometre before speeding up slightly in the last lap trying to get as close to 22 minutes as I could.

I'm excited about this race because I know there are areas where I can improve. 45 seconds isn't that far away from my M50 PB — interval training must surely be worth 30 seconds off a 5k time? Even so, for the time being I plan to continue with good paced and 'springy' aerobic running (along with regular short races during the cross country season). This morning I enjoyed such a run — 15k around the West Basin of Lake Burley Griffin. It was a perfect day. Rowing sculls were gliding over the calm water; cyclists were zipping along; walkers and runners were enjoying the missing precipitation. 15k in just under 81 minutes — a good run.

Running in the 2010 ACT 10k Championships - I can't believe I'm still wearing these old grey Frees! [D Appleby photo]

I run like Mo Farah

Most runners would have read about the '180 steps' theory of good running. Apparently a running cadence of 180 steps per minute is close to ideal (taking into consideration variations for height — short runners are going to have a naturally faster cadence). I've always been self-conscious about my slow loping cadence, especially after being a spectator at recent track meets and viewing the very fast cadence of some runners. Jeff (a low 18-minute 5k runner) has a cadence of around 214 steps per minute during a 3k race.

I decided to time my cadence to see what it actually was. The easy way to do this (should you wish to try), is to carry a stop-watch and press start as one foot contacts the ground; then count ten contacts of that foot and stop the watch on the tenth. This gives you a time for twenty steps. Using a calculator you can later work out your cadence: 60 (seconds) / T (time for 10 steps) x 20 = cadence. For example, if your time for 10 contacts of the right foot is 6.66 seconds then 60 / 6.66 * 20 = 180.18 — the 'magical' cadence of 180. My timings averaged out at around 6.95 seconds which works out to be a very loping cadence of 172.66 steps per minute. When I consciously tried to speed up my turnover I recorded 6.80 seconds (a cadence of 176.47).

I found this video of Mo Farah running an indoor British record of 7:40.99 for 3000 metres. I like it — besides being a great example of fast running, it's easy to time his cadence as on many of the head-on shots he's leading (and thoughfully wearing different coloured shoes!). Surprisingly, Mo's mid-race cadence is around 175.69 (6.83 secs for 10 steps). In the last two laps his cadence increases to around 187. Further calculations reveal that Mo's stride length is around 2.2 metres (3000 / {176 * 7.683}). So, I (sort of) run like Mo Farah. Our cadences are naturally similar (considering my height). The only difference being my stride-length (should I run 12:30 for 3k) is only 1.39 metres.

Mo Farah running about 5 minutes faster than I do for 3000m

Some good numbers

Thanks to the people who made suggestions on how I could improve a training week. The two weeks since then have turned out to be weeks of 78 and 79 kilometres, doing more or less aerobic running at efforts varying from easy to just below aerobic threshold. There was one 5k race on the 28th of February in which I paced myself to finish ahead of my long-time rivals Charlie and Jim. I caught Jim early (he was having a bad day), ran with Carol for a while (she broke 2:50 at the London Marathon in the 'old days'), then edged up to Charlie at the 4k mark. I could sense he was at his limit so I ran the last kilometre strongly, finishing in 23:41.

I've been enjoying running these Tuesday evening races with something in reserve. Recovery is therefore fast — I can do a normal run the following day — and I feel like this level of effort is building up my training and racing fitness. My next 'all-out' race will be on the 29th of March at the ACT Vets' 5000m Championships. I'd like to break 22 minutes in that race and go as close as possible to my M50 PB of 21:29.58. I'll do some sharpening interval work of the type suggested by Canute (5 x 1k with short recoveries) before then.

One thing that's helping to elevate my confidence are the numbers I've recorded for a few recent training sessions. Numbers that take me back to 2008 — the year of my M50 3000 and 5000 metre PBs. At that time I was running my Tharwa Drive Bridge 8k course at around 700 heart-beats per kilometre. For example, on the 6th of February I ran 42:31 at 691 heart-beats per km and on the 13th of February 41:07 at 694 heart-beats per km. On Friday just past I ran an easy 45:58 (ave heart rate of 122) for 701 heart-beats per km. So that's a good number, especially considering that faster running is more 'efficient' (there's better elastic recoil of the muscles/tendons when running fast). I recorded another good number during yesterday's long run with the Speedygeese. I ran 15k at 5:33 per km (716 heart-beats per km) in which the 12th kilometre was covered in 5:00 at an AHR of 139 (695 heart-beats per km).

The final good number (or silly and inconsequential number depending on your viewpoint), is that today marked my 100th consecutive day of running. Yes, a running streak that started on December 3 last year. I'm not sure when it will end, but thus far I'm feeling fine!

My technique for the running high jump needs work [J Kennedy photo]

Improving a training week

Lucho used to have a list on his blog called 'The Rules of Joghard'. I don't remember all the rules. There was one that said: "There's a man called Canova." I do remember rules 1 and 2. Rule #1 - Family comes first. Rule #2 - Did you read #1, if not, read again. If I had list of rules about running, number 3 would be "Consistency produces great running." Which I guess is similar to the answer Steve Moneghetti gave when asked at a running camp about the best training session one could do. He replied "The 2 x 7 x 365."

I'm going to detail my training for the past week and include thoughts about how I might improve each day's running. Feel free to add your own ideas or suggestions in the comments section of this post.

Monday 20 February: 15k with the Speedygeese. A basic aerobic run. First 8k was at 5:40 per km (9:07 miles). How to improve: This could be a good day to run some strides at the end of the session.

Tuesday 21 February: 11k including a 5k club race in 23:17. Had a bit in reserve during this race, running a slight negative split. How to improve: Possibly a longer warm-up and some drills/strides prior to the race.

Wednesday 22 February: 10k easy run in 57:40. How to improve: Could run longer and easier — perhaps 12k at 6 minute kilometres (9:39 miles).

Thursday 23 February: 10k including a 1 mile race at the Vets' track meet in 7:51 and a 1200m race-walk in 7:19. The mile was a fairly easy effort, but I didn't feel up to racing hard. How to improve: Not sure, but I hadn't recovered sufficiently from Tuesday's race to race hard on Thursday.

Friday 24 February: 7k including a 3k tempo run on the grass track in 15:20. How to improve: This was a very good run as my average HR was only 136 and the track was soft. I think this run benefitted from the relatively easy Thursday. How to improve: Could possibly run a 4 or 5k tempo run.

Saturday 25 February: 16k long run at an easy pace. This run took 1 hour 45 minutes, so definitely 'long'. How to improve: Could possibly run longer (20k) or add some strides.

Sunday 26 February: 12k including a 6k race which I ran as an interval session of 1k easy, 1k hard, 1k easy, 1k hard, 1k easy, 1k hard. Didn't feel that fresh while running these. How to improve: Run a more structured interval or hill repeat session with some running drills during the warm-up.

Finishing the Vets' Sprint Marathon Relay (like an Ekiden with 1k legs)

Racing 10,000 metres on the track

I'm not sure what it is, but there's something uniquely difficult about racing 25 laps of a 400 metre track. The ACT 10k Championships were held on Thursday evening. Although not my goal distance (that remains the 5k), I hoped to 'do well' and perhaps run close to my M50 PB of 44:54.57. Prior to the race I thought I was in good enough shape to do this, but it was not to be. My taper went okay (although in retrospect, perhaps it wasn't long enough) — I ran an easy 12.5k with the Speedygeese on Monday, an equally easy (and great feeling) 4k tempo run in the Summer Series on Tuesday, then a light 5k jog on Wednesday.

On Thursday I lined up with 28 other runners, all with the same goal: to run 25 laps of the track as fast as we could. Initially I followed Burkie, as his even-pacing is legendary and I thought he'd run around 45 minutes. Pete was running just behind, with Kelley and Mick ahead, while the fast-starting Bronwyn ran with Craig — these two quickly splitting away from our group. Following Burkie, I ran through the first k in 4:28 and the second in 4:28. Perfect! Or so I thought. I started losing contact with Burkie as we ran up the back straight to the 3k mark. 4:37 for that k — markedly slower. The rest of the race was pretty much a grind. Pete overtook just before the 5k mark (23:11) and ran a negative split, finishing in 45:59. I continued to fade, running the second half in 24:36, for a finish time of 47:46.96. Burkie finished just behind Pete in 46:07.

My average heart-rate for the race was 147 and it was lower in the second half than the first, which is unusual for a track race. For the same race in 2010 I ran 45:57 at an average heart-rate of 153. I'm slightly confused about this. I suspect my legs weren't fresh enough on Thursday evening to run at a speed that would have pushed my HR into a higher zone. Between now and my goal 5000 on 29 March I'll be running 'training' races pretty much weekly. I may turn some of those into extended training sessions as suggested by Sling in the comments on my last post.

HR data shows I couldn't maintain the effort beyond 3k

Seeing through the fog of slow races

I've been on a 'running streak' that as of today has lasted 65 days. The idea came from Karla when I read via Twitter about the Runner's World challenge to run every day between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. Must say that I'm enjoying my daily runs, but am sensible enough to run a very easy 4 or 5k day if I feel the need.

My weekly mileage is around 70 to 80 kilometres. I thought I'd mention a couple of recent races because I'm coming around to the view that I can't race at 100% effort every week (as a soon-to-be 55-year-old) and expect to race well. A recent article from Running Times about how aging runners train (Keeping the Fire of Youth) is worth reading.

On January 25 I raced a 3000 metres on the track in 12:59.93 (missing a season's best by 3/1000ths of a second!). My taper for this race was 1 day — an easy 5k on the day before the race. My average heart-rate for the race was 149. My legs didn't feel fresh enough to run at my 'normal' 3k racing heart-rate of 152 to 155. On Tuesday 31 January I raced 5k cross-country race on the grass course at Stromlo in 23:30. For this race I noted in my diary: "legs tired in warm-up; not much better in race." My average heart-rate for the race was 146. Last November I raced a 5k in 22:22 with an average heart-rate of 152. My number of heart-beats per km for the November race was 680 and for the recent race at Stromlo, 686 (on a harder course). What all these numbers tell me is that while I can 'train through' races (using them as a hard training session), I can't expect great results from these races. I could at age-45, but not at age-55.

Now, apart from a few foggy races, I'm happy with how my running is going. I've done a couple of runs on the grass track at Calwell and come up with similar numbers to those I recorded in 2007 (the year of some M50 PBs), so aerobically I'm feeling as fit as a Mallee bull. I think I'll target two races for proper tapers (3 to 4 days) — the 10,000m on 16 February and the 5000m on 29 March.

The lovely grass of Stromlo Forest Park [D Appleby photo]