It is absolutely the length of the run.
As it turns out I'm a bit of a workout size queen! Today I finished week two of 5k to 10k and the mileage drop is becoming a real point of annoyance.
First there's the actual mileage drop. I'm sticking to the training program which means three structured runs per week, which is about what I was doing before, but given the structure of the runs I'm only doing about one and a half to two miles per workout compared to a minimum of 5K per run previously. It doesn't help that mile two is typically my least favorite part. Today's run was actually long enough to get a full 5k in but looking at the next few workouts I probably won't get to do that again until next weekend.
While I'm sure the speed-work will help me make better use of my time so that I will be pushing my mileage back up again quite quickly I won't get to exceed my current longest run (time wise) until week 6 day 3! It's kind of frustrating at the moment to be cutting my mileage in order to... run more miles? I'm sure it wouldn't be as much of an issue if I hadn't run so little in the storm aftermath, but regardless scrolling back through my last month and a half worth of workouts is making me feel like a massive slacker and I'm itching to rack the miles back up.
As much as I question whether running a marathon is really a good idea for me, based on my reaction to this mileage drop I have a feeling that in the long run (hah!) I'm going to end up doing one anyway. "That's good enough, I'm done now" did not come as a standard feature in this model.
Secondly there's the Nike/treadmill issue. As flawed as its measurements have been Nike has been my favorite fitness community hands down. It's shiny and I get all sorts of awards and badges and nifty metrics when I do stuff. Apparently I must have really internalized all of that gold star sticker stuff when I was a kid because every time I get a new badge on Nike+ I totally eat it up.
However I don't have the Nike footpod so none of my treadmill workouts are counting toward my stats and it is kind of driving me a little bit bonkers. My listed November mileage is literally half my October mileage.
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| I feel rather blessed that I can recognize just how much of a ridiculous First World Problem this is. |
While we're on the subject of First World Running Problems - I tried to pull out a pair of dressy pants for a work holiday party this weekend and all of mine are too big, including a brand new pair in size small that are so new I hadn't even had a chance to have them hemmed! Pants shouldn't puddle when you are wearing five inch platforms, right? Hopefully I can just shrink the new ones a bit in the wash and re-claim them but finding out I'm too small for a pair of smalls was a bit ridiculous at that point in time.
It actually isn't so dire as that as I still have a lot of old clothes I have yet to slim down to, but even if it fits my body I don't know if my college wardrobe will fit me so much anymore.
Sorry, I know I've been slacking on this, I have no excuse really.
Here, have three days worth of runs!
Just for reference I'm aiming for about 10:00 or under as "fast", somewhere between 11:00 and 12:00 as "steady", and anything over 12:00 as "jog".
Day 1 - Tues Dec 4 - Treadmill - Steady run
1.7miles at an average pace of 11:46
goal - 20 min at an "easy pace" plus warmup/cooldown
It's just way too hot in the gym
Day 2 - Thurs Dec 6 - Treadmill - Intervals
2.11 mi 27 minutes at a 12:35 pace
goal - 10 min jog, 2 minute fast runs alternating with 2 min jogs - 2 times
, 8 minute steady run
plus warmup/cooldown
I could have pushed the fast run way more but I have been feeling like I am maybe coming down with something and I'm still trying to get used to the treadmill. I figure there's plenty of time to work up to it. Still way too hot a the gym
Day 3 - Sun Dec 9 - Road - Steady run
I could have pushed the fast run way more but I have been feeling like I am maybe coming down with something and I'm still trying to get used to the treadmill. I figure there's plenty of time to work up to it. Still way too hot a the gym
Day 3 - Sun Dec 9 - Road - Steady run
3.23 miles at an average pace of 11:10 min/mile
goal -35 min at an "easy pace" plus warmup/cooldown
I think I pushed myself a bit overly hard during the first half of mile three, anything slower than 10:15 at that point felt impossibly slow! As a result I got a sidestitch just before mile three but otherwise I felt good.
It rained in a really annoying spitty manner the majority of the time but I got to see a red fox make a full-on dash across the street about thirty yds in front of me so that was TOTALLY worth it.
I picked up the couch to 5k program around week 4 or 5. In the beginning I would just run 1/2 a lap around the track, adding 1/2 laps every week or so. When I decided to do a 10k, I just added mileage on my own. It's hard to train for both distance and speed, at least for me. I would get impatient like you, too!
ReplyDeleteAs you can probably see I have a wee bit of a "go big or go home" problem which classically translates to overtraining injuries.
DeleteI could feel myself pushing too hard already after hitting 5k distance. In the beginning of November I was running once a week and adding a half mile per run, that was not going to be sustainable for long. As much as it rankles, the tightly controlled schedule really is for the best.
I think the only thing saving me is that I'm still on the learning curve for the treadmill so I'm focusing too hard on not face-planting to get too bothered by the lack of mileage while I'm actually running.
Are you doing the Bridge to 10 K program? I was wondering what the next step is after C25K and I've heard various opinions on doing it.
ReplyDeleteI'm using the active.com 5k to 10k iphone app http://www.active.com/mobile/10k and I am a bit mixed about it. Actually I can't say that exactly, the app itself is fine but I have had continuing sort of mildly annoying problems with Active.com and I guess it rubs off a bit.
DeleteI used the Active C25K app and did fairly well with it. The progression seemed reasonable and the app was easy to use. The 10K app is functionally exactly the same with the addition of intensity levels and the subtraction of active trainer support (which I have to admit annoys me a great deal more than it should considering how useless that site has been).
As much as I don't WANNA do more intense interval work, I do like that it is built in because I really SHOULD be doing it at this point.
From what I understand the guy who set it up was on vacation until the 10th and since Nike+ updated the code was no longer valid but should be up and running soon. I have send messages to Nike + support through their facebook page and they have manually added all of my treadmill runs so if you do not want to wait you can do that.
ReplyDeleteOh and just because you are following a plan does not mean you can go out for a run just to run....or maybe do a 5k with me on Saturday....just sayin.