Wednesday, January 20, 2010

mile repeats: we meet again

the last time i did mile repeats was december 2008. yeah, i wasn't quite down with speed in 2009 (but somehow i still managed to get a few pr's - presumably from a bigger, stronger base). however, the last workout in '08 went really well and sent me off to the goofy challenge with confidence. i figured since i haven't been confident about setting goal paces lately, i should probably quick slacking off and start doing speed work again.

after work on tuesday, i managed to not talk myself out of a speed day and got in 3x1mile with a 1/2-mile recovery (my general rule of thumb for speed work is to recover for half the distance of the interval). it was tough, but i survived. after a two mile warm-up i shifted gears and picked up the pace. the first mile went alright and i could still breathe when i finished. a half-mile never goes by so fast as when you have another interval looming. the second mile, definitely tougher. as i "recovered" over the next half-mile i reminded myself that i only had one more interval to do, and since it was the last it wouldn't hurt as bad as the previous. the third repeat wasn't as deathly as the second, but it wasn't a breeze either.

speedwork is the devil, but it feels so good to finish a tough workout. i may or may not have rewarded myself with some m&m's for breakfast wednesday.

tuesday (1/19) pm run: 8.5 miles w/ 3xmile (6:31, 6;33, 6:31), avg hr (174)

oh yeah, i think i pulled the 6:30 goal pace out of the air. mid-interval i realized that's the same goal pace i have for my 800s (3:15)... for twice the distance. at least this should make doing 800s less intimidating? ol' jack daniels has me down for 3:15 800s but doesn't include mile repeats. mcmillan says 3:07-3:15 (800s) and 6:31-6:45 (mile). should i slow down my mile repeats? should i speed up my 800's? both? neither? is it even a big deal since i seem to be falling within range?
at 10:16 PM
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40 comments:

  1. Nicely done on the speedwork. I've been getting back to that for the last couple months myself after a long (too long) break from it.

    Hmm, maybe your 800's aren't fast enough.
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  2. Mile intervals were always my favorites, but to switch things up, I'm going to concentrate on 800s for this cycle. Since you handled 3x1 mile intervals that tells me that your 800s are probably too slow...and you should aim for about 10-15 sec/mile faster for them.

    Just as an example...I run mile intervals at 5:55, while my 800s are run at 2:55. Another way would be to track your heart rate and see if you are running harder at the end of your mile than you are at the end of your 800s.

    Either way, speedwork does the runner body good!
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  3. You're so speedy! Nice job on those miles! Did you monitor your pace during each mile or do you run them by feel?
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  4. holy speedster! nice job on the repeats :) i have only done mile repeats once ever... i dont know if i am a fan :) haha. so has marathon training officially started yet?
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  5. You are so crazy hardcore and fast, why the hell are we friends? I feel like the highly awkward cousin that you feel sorry for and must be nice to.

    You rock. Sorry I disappeared. Awkward cousins are also often moody, sullen SOB's. Head dislodged from a$$ and back in the game again :) Can;t wait to watch the wedding unfold!
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  6. Nice job on the speed work. Mile repeats are fun and not fun at the same time.
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  7. My idea of "speedwork" was running fast (faster than 12min/mile!) until the next mailbox, yeah, that lasted for 2 mailboxes!
    I hate speedwork. I know it will make me run faster, but for me, it's not about getting there fast, it's just frickin' getting there!
    I totally leave the speed to you!!
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  8. Wow, speedy times for the repeats! I'm no expert, but I agree with the Laminator - you're probably doing the 800s too slow.

    "Speedwork is the devil, but it feels so good to finish a tough workout." Couldn't agree with you more.
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  9. FIRST has me do mile repeats at 6:22, 1200 and 1000 @ 6:10, 8000@6:06, and 400s at 6:00. Not sure what the logic is. I think you can certainly run the 800s faster. On the other hand, I wonder how important a few seconds are here and there...Who knows? Great job with the mile repeats. I find 800ms much more manageable!
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  10. Yes, the feeling of finishing a hard workout can't be beat. Nice running!
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  11. You have some super fast repeats!! You are so right when you say speed work hurts but it feels so good after. Way to work it.
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  12. Nice repeats! My plan calls for them but what I think it just says that to compete with the other plans. I'm sure what it really means is that I should run the same steady slow pace all the time and somehow on race day I'll pick up my pace by 2 minutes a mile. I'm going with this theory anyway!! Great job and have a great week!
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  13. Great job on the speedwork!! Those paces look amazing :-)
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  14. WOW! way to go!!!!! i think this was a good measure of where you are with your speed, so now you should run your 800s 3:10 if you can. that way you are building on where you are right now. you haven't lost any speed at all over that year of not speed-training :) just think what this year will bring if you stick with it!!!!
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  15. "Speedwork is the devil, but it feels so good to finish a tough workout."

    They sure nuff are! BUT there's nothing like a good tough workout to make you feel like a bad@ss. Great job girl!
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  16. I need to start doing some mile repeats. I tend to go out and just run...which is why speed and I are probably not friends!
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  17. Nice job on the speedwork! Can't wait to see the PRs you're going to crush this year!
    I agree you can probably run your 800's a little faster.
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  18. Nice intervals, Speedy McSpeedy Pants!

    I'm thinking if you can run that pace for 1600's, you can run 800's a bit faster....
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  19. Nice work, Lindsay. Bring the fire fire extinguisher with you on your next speed drill, your gonna need to put out your shoes. Your on fire.
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  20. What a great workout! You are so speedy! I hope you crush your PR's this year!

    Did you see the giant containers of M&M's on the Biggest Loser this week? A little piece of heaven!
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  21. Nice job! I like mile repeats better than 800's, and for some reason can't seem to run my 800's at a faster pace than my mile repeats. It's weird. I can run 400's faster though. If you're in the range then you're doing well.

    Of course it depends on what you're training for...I think you mentioned before that you'd like to break 20 minutes in the 5K? If you want to break 20 minutes the interval times might need to be a bit faster (at least the 800's).
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  22. The whole key with intervals is supposed to be VO2Max right? So the key is moving your heart rate into the > 94%, < 98% MHR right? So speed doesn't make much difference if you are using an HRM. Pace is used as a proxy for heart rate if you are not able to keep track of HR.

    Any by the way - *everything* is beautiful in California (hands in pockets whistling away).
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  23. I'll bite since we're in a similar pace range but with the disclaimer that I have not done intervals since...um...hm. '08?:

    Are you pulling the McMillian/Daniels numbers out of a larger plan? Because if you are following v-dot paces, those tend to be on the conservative side which for marathon training makes sense. I'm not quite sure of the utility of a lot of high end speed when you are training for say...the half up since building endurance is the big aim but what the hell do I know. There is always the risk of losing efficiency which is why I get the idea of strides and sharpening and some high end work, which is where I suppose mile/800s come into play.

    Long story short: On the rare occasion I'll actually do anything speed oriented, I like to base it off 5k pace, and that includes stuff as short as 200s. That said, I don't think there is anything WRONG doing the 800s and the miles a the same pace since that is right around 20 for the 5k. In the midst of endurance training its never made much sense to me to push much faster than that.

    But really, what do I know. ;)
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  24. Dang great job with the intervals speed demon!
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  25. Well done on those mile repeats! For sure, I could not be so consistent if I'd taken such a year break from speed work.

    FWIW, I too think you could probably be running those 800s faster but you're supposed to build up to doing like 10 of them, right? So I'd try doing them a bit faster but if you can't keep the times fairly consistent as the repetitions increase, back off some.

    Happy Yasso-ing!
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  26. Nice job! Miles are nice and you only have to do 3,4 or 5 rather than 12, 16 or 20 400ms!
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  27. WOW you are fast. Did you ever do track or anything? Also, I just saw the quote at the bottom of your page, and I LOVE IT!
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  28. It seems like you got plenty of good/detailed answers here. GREAT JOB ON THE SPEED WORKOUT.

    I'm wondering if maybe your recovery is too long. You don't want your heart rate to come down too much in recovery... because then it almost defeats the purpose of the training. So maybe instead of 1/2 the distance of the interval as rec. you can try 1/2 the time of the interval. A former coach used the HR method that someone mentioned... for recovery, as soon as my HR was at 120, I would start again... Now, I always recover with 400m for both distances.

    If you can still hit the 6:30's with a shorter recovery, then you could try bumping your 800s to a faster pace as others suggested... But, I'm no expert :) Especially for longer races! I just do what I'm told to do! I haven't had track workouts since I started my (first ever!) half marathon training... so, my advice is probably more applicable to the 5k! Anyway, just a suggestion.

    I LOVE SPEED WORKOUTS!
    Track is my love.
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  29. Nice speedwork! I hear ya...speedwork is a killer, but so satisfying.
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  30. I'm with you on your tasty breakfast/reward choice, yum...if they had peanuts, that's your protein!

    My track coach would say to slow down on the mile repeats and speed up thost 800's. That makes sense.
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  31. Mile repeats! What are those?!? LOL I haven't done them in like seven weeks or so. But, thanks for the reminder.

    A 6:32 average mile repeat pace is a thing of beauty if you ask me. Great Work!!

    I'll have to post some picturs of M&Ms just for you. :)

    Have a good Friday!!
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  32. Hmmm I see a sub 20:00 5k in the not so distat future for you.
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  33. I sure love "justified M&M's" :)
    Great job with the repeats. I'd speed up the 800's and push it to the limit....but that's just me...you definately have it in you what with those great mile splits.
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  34. Great Post Lindsay! Way to go on your mile repeats. I should probably start incorporating some speed work to get faster soon. Good inspiration. Keep it up!
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  36. Wow, great work there on the repeats. Speedy!!! When I grow up, I want to be as fast as you! You're just going to keep getting faster and faster as you keep doing them. Happy Weekend, and hpe you get in some good miles!
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  37. Nice job on the mile repeats! I wish I could hold that pace for a mile. I have no idea if you are picking the right pace, but you might check the "run less, run faster" book. There is a bunch of charts and workouts in that book and you can calculate the exact pace they should be run based on your race goal. I think the mile repeats for a BQ goal of 3:40 were at a 7:02 pace. But that's with only a 1 min rest!
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  38. Don't sweat it. I think you're fine where you are. If the 800's start to feel easy, go ahead and speed them up. If not, don't. Just don't set a goal pace for yourself that seems too intimidating at this point. You need the confidence more than anything right now and skipping a workout because you're intimidated, or not finishing because it's too hard will be counter productive. That's how I pulled out of my funk in October.
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  39. Nice job there, Lady!! and to think we've been reading each other's blogs now for over a year. Wow.

    yep, that settles it. If you were at our indoor track sessions, you'd definitely be the fastest one there.

    btw, how many bags of M&Ms did you eat on the way home on Friday? (I saw your tweet.)
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  40. I did the same speed workout over the weekend, albeit at a much slower pace! I've been short on my speed workouts and long runs recently, so the first workout back REALLY hurt. But there's nothing quite like mile repeats to whip your butt back into shape!
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