The main group is heading to the Track today for a few (i.e. 3) one mile repeats at about 5K pace.  This is going to be used as a tune up for those competing in St.Louis this weekend at the St.Patty’s Day 5 miler.  One of our very own members of the lunch group won that race a few year’s back.

Hardybreed Dan and I are sticking to the park and running 2 mile W/U, 8 x (5:00 @ T pace followed by :30 recovery), 2 mile W/D

Springfield High Track @ 12:05

With the size of the crowd we had last week, we should have a great group.  12 finishers last week for our 4th annual President’s Day 5K was pretty impressive.  Hell, we could rival some of the local 5K attendance numbers.  Plus the weather looks to be fantastic.

Meet at 12:00 noon at 1st and Madison.  Today.

See you there.

The 4th annual President’s Day 5K.  The event was originally organized to meet the criteria for qualifying for a seeded corral at the Indy Half Marathon.  I know it hasn’t been used for that since the first year, but for some reason we’ve kept the tradition of the race alive.

The course for the 5K is our usual 3 mile course.  It starts at Vine and MacArthur and goes through the Park, exiting at Wiggins down to Outer Park and then back up Park Street to Laurel.  The course is exactly 3 miles and then we add 30 seconds to make it a 5K time.

*New Course Record
^Clydesdale Division Record (190+)

Previous years: 2010 Results and the 2009 Results.

*2008 results:

1. Bennett, Greg   18:05
2. Sommer, Eric  18:06
3. Egan, David   18:11
4. Taft, Alex   18:53
5. Gilmore, Greg   19:28
6. Dowell, Tracy   21:28

I am planning on doing today’s workout on the treadmill.  (I know!)  At least my pacing will be spot-on!

Next week starts Phase III which involves quite a bit more running.  So much running in fact, that I don’t think we’ll be able to run the entire workout during our lunch “hour”.  I’m pretty sure that this means I’ll have to find another time to run my Q2 workouts from here on out.  Besides the two cronies (Dan and John) I bring from my house, this only affects David, Greg and Alex.  Everyone else was a one-hit wonder… at best.  I’m not sure what you guys would like to do.  I’d be glad to continue to give you some workouts for Tuesdays lunch until the end of April, or we could try and find a time/ day that’s suitable.  I’m guessing these next 2 phases are going to be at least 90 minute actual workouts, start to finish.  You guys let me know what you want to do.

Dan and I had a very specific plan last week regarding pace and distance.  It could have been one of the most well-executed workouts we’ve done.  Normally our pace is based on egos and how guys are feeling.  Neither of which is really applicable to proper training.  David (not Egan), Dan and I stayed together and in control.  It felt good to systematically stay at about 6:20-6:25 pace during the intervals.  (That is based on our Vdot- Look at the training plan to find yours… It’s important!)  The best part of staying in control and cruising through a solid workout… I didn’t need until Friday to recover.

Today’s plan (after a thorough warmup) is to run 5 minutes Hard with 3 minutes of recovery jogging, to total 4 miles.  With the paces we’ll be running, we’ll probably only have to do a little more than 4 Hard intervals.  Each interval and recovery should be a little more than a mile total.  12:05pm today at the usual meetin’ spot.

This week we have a very similar workout as last week.  The caveat: instead of 3 miles, we’re doing 4.  So it is 800m at interval pace “I” (6:22/mile for Dan and me) followed by 3 minutes of recovery jogging.  4 miles worth.  We’ll do the 5K course we’ve been doing, except carry it on back to MacArthur through the park.

See you all there.

The workout is 800m at I (interval) pace followed by 3 minutes of recovery repeated for a total of 3 miles.  Figure out your Vdot to know your interval pace.

While I was busy recovering (which involved making and drinking a lot of beer) I read a book called Daniels’ Running Formula.  I had heard about it in various circles and a few people had recommended it, but I just never had the desire to read a book specifically about distance running.  Ultimately, I decided to give it look and have been extremely interested in it ever since.  It’s based on a higher mileage program than I’ve ever run before.  I feel like I need to really target my running in order to achieve the goals I would like to in triathlon.  I feel like last year was really a breakthrough year for me in cycling and time trialing and now my focus needs to be the run.

I have targeted two half marathons in April as early season motivators to get me into shape (using the Daniels’ running program) and then hopefully building from there to a season of triathlons.  The half marathons are the Lincoln Memorial and the Illinois Half Marathon.  I detailed a plan based on a sample plan from the book.  It has been modified for these two races specifically and it’s based on a peak weekly mileage of 50 miles a week.  There is a small group of us following the plan so far.  You are welcome to view the plan and follow it if you’d like.  I’d be glad to help if you have questions about following it.  It’s pretty simple once you have a basic understanding of how it works.  Training Plan

With that said, the format of the Tuesday speedwork is going to have to change (at least for me).  The Tuesday workouts need to be a little slower and a little longer.  For instance, tomorrow is supposed to be 4 minutes at hard pace (6:30) followed by 3 minutes at easy pace (8:30) for a total of 4 miles.  I’ll be at the corner of MacArthur and Williams Blvd at 12:05 warmed up and ready to go.  I hope to see you there.  Welcome back to another season.

So, once again we are heading back to the track for some half mile repeats.  8x800m @ 2:52 with 90 seconds recovery.  Time to test the strength.

I won’t even predict next week, but we are close to the end of the season.  And it’s been real.

The Chicago Marathon had many of us up to the windy city over the weekend.  Great performances by Wes, Burns, Hardybreed Dan & Birtch.  And the pacers… Perfect Timing yet again.  I found the heat to be a factor and it made for some serious cramping and tough races for a lot of the runners.  Especially during the second half.  We saw bank signs that showed temps in the upper 80s.  A decent time on 10-10-10 was especially impressive because of the heat.  Congrats to all that dug deep and finished.

Today is sort of an encore presentation at the track.  Lawyer has chosen today to break 17 in the 5,000.  It’s one of those milestones that puts you in a different category, a different league.  I know many of you (myself included) couldn’t jog a lap on the track today, but I promised him that I’d be there to time.  If you’re available and can swing by to cheer him on, he’d really appreciate it.  And obviously, if you’re up for a track workout you’ll be at the right place.

Congrats again everyone!  This is most likely our last track session of 2010.  We’ll be back to Tuesdays at 12:05 in the park on January 4th.  See ya then.

The lunch group is putting it’s finishing touches on their marathon training.  I spoke to Burns about it yesterday and we were noting how nice it is to be a marathon shape and how the perspective of distance changes with various training.  Hardybreed Dan is looking to just get into a marathon for the hell of it.  Noting that, “when else can you just ‘do’ a marathon” after racing an Ironman.  It’s a great feeling.

The guys have continued to push the track workouts and today is no exception.  The plan is to run a workout that David has on his schedule.  Something about 1200s.  Show up and find out.  …And I know I’ve said this for 10 weeks straight… but it’s gonna be a scorcher out there at Noon.

Today, we’ve been asked to help pace Bean through one of his workouts in his Ironman prep for Kona.  He is running a workout called MCT1 which involves running LT for 2 minutes followed by tempo pace for 6 minutes then back to LT.  The workout continues without recovery for a certain amount of time (anywhere from 6-8 sets).  Dan and I did this workout a couple weeks ago (though obviously not quite as fast) and let me just say that it was incredibly tough.  So the thought is that perhaps we can integrate an interval workout out of his continuous run (i.e. just running the miles with a 2 min recovery).

The plan today is take this trend even further and run: 2 miles, 1 mile, 1 mile, & 1 mile.  The longest we’ve run on the track.  Ever.

Today’s workout is still yet to be determined.  I know several guys raced over the weekend and a couple others did a superbrick which finished with a 17 mile tempo run (could you hear us crying?).  Some guys are definitely out for today’s workout, so we’ll figure out a game plan based on who shows up.

Nice job to those that raced Abe’s.

John, Dan and I jumped the fence and the three of us walked all the way back to my house.  Brutal.

I am on a recovery day today (and home with children), so I will not be there today.  Two years ago on this day, we ran paced miles in preparation for Abe’s Amble.  I would suggest something similar at a little faster than your 10K race pace.

Today is going to be a little different.  Bill is heading to the boulevard in Washington Park to run 400 meter intervals in the grass.  We usually do this workout at least once during the Summer months.  He’ll be there at 12:05 MacArthur Boulevard.

I am staying at the track to run something a little longer (and slower).  I will most likely do a mile, 2miles, mile with an 800 meter recovery between each.  It will all be at tempo pace (6-6:10).  It’s a little longer, but as we get closer to marathon season (and Ironman) it needs to be.  See you out there, and bring some water if you can.

I counted 16 people on the track last week.  It had to be close to a record.  It was great to see so many runners out there.  Especially considering that it was less than ideal conditions.  I started with the group and ran the first half in 2:44.  I quickly switched to just the first lap with them while they continued to run 800s.  They were hitting anywhere from 2:40 on up.  It was really warm and not the best for Noon on a black track.  Nice job everybody.

Today is the first Tuesday of the Month and we know what that means… Octopus!  Noon @ 1st & Madison.  Be there!

When we first started out it seemed like we were crawling along and we were still 5 seconds fast at the 200 and nearly 10 seconds fast at the quarter.  We then thought we’d keep the same pace and catch back up.  We were, again, 5 seconds off.  This played true until we were actually running at about the mile mark.  Soon enough though, the 5 seconds fast became 5 seconds slow and we were continually checking splits and playing catchup.  It’s amazing how fast that workout goes by.  I think I made it 10 laps with my last lap being a :75.  It hurt.  I was pretty exhausted by the end of the run, but luckily not sore.

Today, there has been mention of 800s with full recovery.  (Most likely 6)

Not quite sure what I’m planning on doing.  I’m in between races this week.

Last week was back to the track.  Again, we broke into two groups doing completely different workouts.  The first was prepping for the sizzling mile (tomorrow night), the other group was doing longer tempo work.  The mile group ran 800, 400, 800, 400, 800, 400 with half the distance of recovery.  The other group ran 3 repeat miles at around 10K pace.  It was very hot on the track and made for a miserable day of Noon running.  My miles were 5:56, 5:53, 6:02.  It shouldn’t have hurt quite like that.

Today we are running the progressive run that we did last August.  This is done entirely as a group.  We start out at 8 minute pace for the first quarter and then drop 5 seconds every quarter until you can no longer maintain that pace.  It’s a great way to test your fitness and see where you are midway through the season.  We’ll warm-up with a couple of quarters to get the legs over the shock and then get into it.  Remembering the pace schedule ends up being a bit complicated.  Last year I wrote it down and (luckily) took a photo.  If you get a chance, copy this down and have it with you if you’d like to know the pace.  Bring a heart-rate monitor if you have one, it’s great way to learn your maximum.  It’s going to be relatively cool out there compared to the last few workouts.

The workout was 2 miles of tempo pace, 800 meters of recovery (continuous), followed by a mile of tempo.  “Tempo” is a rather empirical term often used in running with very loose definitions.  Some would say your 5K per mile pace plus 30 seconds.  Some would say your 10K pace.  Some would say it is the pace that you can hold for an hour.  All are right depending on what your goals are and what race you’re training for.  My group went with the 10K pace plan and we cruised through the sets at around 6:00 pace.  It was a great workout and the group stayed together the whole way.  Best of all, my calves felt great the rest of the week.

Today we are running the Octopus!  Noon at the corner of 1st and Madison.

Today we’re going to try something a little differently.  I (along with several others) am training for much longer distances than the traditional road racer and need this speed workout to reflect those distances.  I feel that we need to have two different workouts depending on what you’re training for.  I personally have sore calves until Friday after running quarters approaching sub-5:00 minute pace.  I need to run closer to my LT (Lactate Threshold).  My plan is to run a modified tempo run on the track.  2miles at tempo pace (6:30-6:40) with 800 recovery (continuous) followed by 1 mile at tempo.  The goal and/or plan is to run the tempo at the right pace.  Running too fast defeats the purpose of the workout.  Tempo pace is typically 40-50 seconds per mile slower than your current 5K pace.

Back by personal request, the regular group is running the mile, half, mile workout; where every half mile gets 5 seconds faster.  An oldie but a goodie.

The group was one of the biggest we’ve ever had at around 18 guys.  It was great to see so many runners show up and put forth such a quality effort.  The workout was 1200, 800, 400, 1200, 800, 400.  It went by fairly quickly even though there were actually 3 miles of speed-work and 1.5 miles of recovery.  It made for a long track session.  The group actually was able to regroup between each interval which seemed to keep everyone motivated.  This is especially true considering how fast the fast guys were running (Bryan ran the second 800 at 2:13 and the last 400 at :60).  Smokin.  I’m glad he doesn’t ride a bike.  I hit 4:05, 2:40, :75, 4:06, 2:38, :72.

Today’s workout is going to be a little bit shorter because of the extreme heat index predicted for today (around 110 degrees).  Normally we try and get 3 miles of speed-work in during each workout.  Today we’re doing 2.25 miles.  The plan is 800, 400, 800, 400, 800, 400.  We will take a full lap of recovery between each interval.  Bring some water if you can, it’s gonna be hot out there boys!

The workout was six 800s at 10 seconds faster than 5k pace.  The first one was painful.  I mean, it really really hurt.  Everyone was talking about it during the recovery.  If that’s how they were all to feel, it was going to be a long day.  Luckily the second one allowed us to get into some sort of groove, and we just clicked off the laps.  I was actually feeling pretty damn good.  The pace continued to pick up and our times slowly dropped.  The 5th interval was our fastest yet and once we were done David mentioned that he had just PR’d in the 800.  We were all impressed and asked how he was feeling.  He said he actually was feeling decent.  We convinced him to run faster than the last and he agreed.  We talked about the strategy and we were ready.  The last one was the fastest yet and David PR’d again by another 3 seconds!  He ran a 2:36!  He remembered doing a workout similar to this last year, just after he started running with us.  His goal then was to run them at 3:10.

My times were 2:43, 2:39, 2:38, 2:37, 2:39, 2:36.  Nice Job everyone!  Very solid workout.

Today’s workout: 1200, 800, 400, 1200, 800, 400.  Quarter between.

Last week I was vacationing and missed the ladder.  I heard 1600, 1200, 800 & 400 were run.  Never heard splits, though.  Anyone?  We were supposed to run the octopus last week (first Tuesday of every Month) but the ladder was decided instead.  We’ll pick that one back up again in early July.

This week we are running at the track.  the workout is 6×800 with a quarter in between.  Pick a pace that is 10 seconds per mile faster than your 5k pace.  The key to this workout is consistency.  Try to hit every half within 2 seconds of each one.

FYI: anyone running Chicago?  The 18 week training plan starts this week.  Hard to believe.

We had an enormous group for a Tuesday track workout.  Katie Mac and Dave Heaps both made initial appearances.  It’s always great to see new faces!  We broke the workout into two groups: one did quarters on the 2:00 and the other on the 3:00.  This meant that every 3rd was started all together.  It proved to be a great way to keep everyone together and it seemed that both groups ran very well together.

Our times were pretty consistent throughout the workout.  It always seems to take a quarter or two to get into the rhythm of the workout.  Lawyer lead pretty much the entire workout (except when Taft blew by everyone on #9 for some reason).  The rest of us hung back by a few seconds at a consistent 78-85.  I think my exact splits were 81, 78, 79, 77, 77, 77, 76, 78, 76, 74.  A very solid workout.

Today’s workout is 1200, 800, 400, 1200, 800, 400.  The second set faster than the first set.  Quarter rest in between each.

The plan was to run 3 miles with one lap of jogging in between at a pace about 10-20 seconds per mile faster than your 10k race pace.  This is supposed to be a pace that is somewhat faster than your lactate threshold (the goal ultimately being to raise your threshold).  Once we started, the pace seemed forced and faster than it was.  My body was resisting.  The pace stayed consistent, but it hurt to keep it that way.  We went through the first mile in 5:43.  The entire recovery lap, I was in shock at how much it had hurt and was worried it would only get harder.  Egan mentioned that the first one is always the worst.  Thank goodness he was right.  Don’t get me wrong, the next two hurt like hell, but they were doable.  My times  for the next two were 5:37 each.  Happy b-day, to me.

Up next?  10 (yes, 10) quarters on the 2:00.  I know.

Today we are back at the track (12:05 SHS Track) for mile repeats.  3 of them with a quarter in between.

Egan was my official wind-blocker as we ran on the back stretch of each lap.  Fanning was not far behind.  My splits were 2:52, 2:49, 2:47, 2:45, 2:44, 2:42.  My legs were toast the rest of the week.

Tomorrow’s workout? A consensus (or so it seems) has developed for keeping a regimen of hills (and pain) once a month.  So, the first Tuesday of every month shall be deemed “Octopus Day” from here through October.  This means (as usual) a Noon departure from 1st and Madison.  If you’ve never run this workout… it’s worth the price of admission!  Be there…

Lastly… Anyone happen to see Chris Solinsky run the 10,000 this weekend at Stanford?  If not, take 30 minutes and watch the race. It’s that good.

By Thursday night my legs were feeling 100% better.  Only to destroy them again with another triathlon on Sunday.

The workout for the day is (gulp)… 6x800m on the 4:00 send off.  (yes, that includes the rest)