Half-marathon training: Hanson’s week 6
The previous week’s log is here.
This week removes the Monday off (now truly running six days a week), adds in a speed run (12 x 400) on Tuesday, and keeps the tempo run on Thursday. It also has an 9 miler on Sunday. Total mileage really cranks higher, going from 28 miles in Week 5 to 37 miles in Week 6.
Week 6 schedule:
- Monday:easy 4 mi – EASY RUN 4 mi in 38:40, 9:40 pace. After the long run yesterday, legs were tired, and could “feel” the arthritis in my left knee – feel, but no pain. Interestingly, after running it felt better.
- Tuesday: speed 12 x 400 with 1.5 mile warm up and cool down – SPEED RUN 5 mi in 46:02, 9:16 pace. EASY RUN warm up 1.7 mi in 16:40, 9:48 pace; EAY RUN cool down (or stumble down) 1.1 mi, 13:53, 12:20 pace. This took some calculation to determine the proper pace. My current goal pace for the half is right at 8:30 (and I was able to maintain that even in adverse conditions during the first Tempo Run last week). The Hanson’s book states paces for the speed work, but the charts are based on 5K and 10K times…which is worthless since the entire book is about training for a half-marathon. So:
- using the pace chart, for my targeted half goal of 1:45:00 to 1:48:00, 10K pace should be 7:42 to 7:52
- using a pace calculator, 7:52 pace is a 48:53 10K time; 7:42 pace is a 47:51 time;
- and, finally, going back to the Hanson pace chart, a 10K goal of 48:45 equates to running 400s in 1:53;
- in other words, I should be keeping to a pace faster that tempo (8:30), faster than the upcoming strength training (about 8:20). The pace chart shows 5K pace at 7:23 to 7:33 for the same 10K pace.
- The challenge will be not to over-run it, and to get the entire 12 in.
- The goal is “…these speed sessions should total 3 miles of running at that higher intensity”, and the cool down periods should be the same length of time as the intervals. So we are doing for this first set two minutes on, two minutes off.
- Yeah, this was painful, but a great feeling of accomplishment. The pace chart my attempts to keep the pace, and of course the slope is negative.
- The warm-up run was perfect. When I was doing intervals before I did little warm-up, but doing almost 2 miles helped quite a bit.
- The cool-down was a stumble. I had nothing left. Glad tomorrow is an off day.
- Wednesday: off day
- Thursday: Tempo Run 3 mi (with 1.5 easy warm up and cool down runs) – EASY RUN to warm up 1.7 mi in 16:50, 9:55 pace. TEMPO RUN 3.05 mi in 25:48, 8:27 pace, EASY RUN to cool down, 1.5 mi in 12:38, 8:27 pace (this must have been recorded wrong, I was crawling). I told my wife as I started out that I felt surprisingly good, given the intervals on Tuesday. The Easy Run was…well…easy. But the Tempo run quickly found sore muscles from Tuesday’s intervals. I also got a cramp and did stop for a bit during the tempo run, so it is not truly a full 3 mile tempo run. But it was much better than last week.
- Friday: easy 4 mi – EASY RUN 4 mi in 39:32, 9:53 pace. A bit tired after Tempo Run day.
- Saturday: easy 5 mi – EASY RUN 9.5 mi in 1:32:15, 9:42 pace. Altered the schedule so I could get the longer run in, since tomorrow is a travel day to Atlanta and a Packers game day (yes, I do give the Packers higher priority than running). Plus, a semi front came through. This was the first time in this training stretch that I have run in dew points below 70 in Houston. I felt like I could have gone quite a bit further. It is an interesting bellweather to note that this pace would put me under 2 hours for the half.
- Sunday: easy 9 mi – no run. Long travel day, followed by Packer’s game. First time I’ve missed, but got the 9.5 miler in yesterday.
Plan total: EASY (4+3+3+4+5+9) = 25 miles + TEMPO 3 + 12 x 400 (3 miles) = 37 miles (Nine miles more than last week)
Actual total: EASY (4+2.8+3.2+4+9.5) = 23.5 miles and TEMPO 3 miles + SPEED 12×400 (5 miles) = 31.5 miles
I was entertained by Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History, Blueprint for Armageddon part IV, which goes through 1916 including the battle of Verdun and the naval battle of Jutland (there’s more, but haven’t finished it yet).
Next week, week seven, is almost exactly the same except the Speed Ladder goes to 8×600 and there are a couple more miles added to the easy runs, target total is the same as this week (37).
