"One more - come on!!" "Uggh! Aaaah! F**k! F****k!! F*********k!!!".
These were the sounds almost drowning out my earphones, as I tried to watch the FA Cup Final from the sanctuary of a treadmill set at 11.3kph.
12 miles of easy but hot and sweaty running and your local team wins 1-0. It's not often I watch a football match, but that's one hell of a good way to watch one, ignorant brutes aside.
Once the brutes had departed, the gym was 100% female, perhaps not surprisingly. I found it odd that there seemed to be little interest in the football though - most of the personal TV screens showing music videos and feature films - I thought there would at least be an academic interest in a major local event.
At the final whistle though the woman opposite me let out a polite "yeah!" with a raised fist, before pulling her hand down with an apologetic smile. That small gesture made my day - very amusing.
What a contrast to the foul-mouthed brutes of the first half!
1-0 to Pompey. A polite "yeah!" to that!
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Monday, May 12, 2008
Trapped in the kitchen: The Alton 10
I found history repeating itself yesterday. In the Totton 10k last year, a week before London, I reached half way dizzy and sick and for the first time in a 10k I walked.
At the Alton 10 yesterday in 27°C of blazing sun I got to the 2nd water stop at 7 miles thinking not again!. My head throbbed, my arms tingled, and my motivation for doing the race, with the Edinburgh Marathon 2 weeks away, was not great. I walked. This was a pattern that I kept up for another 2 miles, seeing a hill as an excuse to walk. There are a lot of hills in the Alton 10!
I wasn't the only one having a bad day though: I'd dropped team-mate Graham earlier in the race, when he started to struggle in the heat. He caught me again in my walk breaks and I guess kept me going for a while. He wasn't able to respond though when I decided I ought to at least run the last mile to claw back a few points for the team. At least I was able to overtake most of the women who had overtaken me in the last walk break. Team-mate Shelly finished just behind me and so I assume, having also picked off the same runners I'd overtaken, must have finished strongly.
I love running in the heat, I really do! Long runs, interval sessions, general training runs - the summer sun just makes you want to get out there and do it. Even track races can be fun in the heat - even a 5000m is only just long enough for you to start feeling the heat. Anything longer though, and I'm toast (almost literally!).
The race yesterday wasn't even supposed to be an all out effort - with Edinburgh in mind I'd decided to peg my pace back to marathon effort, running on heart rate. Trouble was, I'd done an 18-mile run on Friday evening, already feeling tired from the Promenade 5k, and I wasn't at my freshest for Alton. Marathon effort in cooler weather would have felt tough, but in the heat it nearly finished me off.
And why did I think it was a good idea to "find some shade" afterwards and try to cool off lying on the floor of a hot airless school gym? I lay there pouring with sweat, expecting to feel cooler, but continued to boil and feel dizzy. Only once I'd gone back into the sun and Diana had poured water over me did I start to feel OK.
I was amazed at how some people seemed to cope with the heat. Tony led our boys home to a very impressive, and much needed, team 5th place. Toby Lambert won the race in a faster time than last year's winner (in cool weather).
"At least the forecast for Edinburgh is perfect - cool and damp" I said to someone afterwards. Unfortunately that forecast had changed by the time I got home to warm and sunny. Nooo! Please let it be cool. I really can't stand the heat and I really can't get out of the kitchen. Fortunately as I write this the forecast has gone back to cool and cloudy, such is the vague nature of a 14-day forecast.
Last year's hot Totton was a warning of what to expect in London. Let's hope the hot Alton doesn't predict the one thing that will stop me going sub-3:15 in Edinburgh.
At the Alton 10 yesterday in 27°C of blazing sun I got to the 2nd water stop at 7 miles thinking not again!. My head throbbed, my arms tingled, and my motivation for doing the race, with the Edinburgh Marathon 2 weeks away, was not great. I walked. This was a pattern that I kept up for another 2 miles, seeing a hill as an excuse to walk. There are a lot of hills in the Alton 10!
I wasn't the only one having a bad day though: I'd dropped team-mate Graham earlier in the race, when he started to struggle in the heat. He caught me again in my walk breaks and I guess kept me going for a while. He wasn't able to respond though when I decided I ought to at least run the last mile to claw back a few points for the team. At least I was able to overtake most of the women who had overtaken me in the last walk break. Team-mate Shelly finished just behind me and so I assume, having also picked off the same runners I'd overtaken, must have finished strongly.
I love running in the heat, I really do! Long runs, interval sessions, general training runs - the summer sun just makes you want to get out there and do it. Even track races can be fun in the heat - even a 5000m is only just long enough for you to start feeling the heat. Anything longer though, and I'm toast (almost literally!).
The race yesterday wasn't even supposed to be an all out effort - with Edinburgh in mind I'd decided to peg my pace back to marathon effort, running on heart rate. Trouble was, I'd done an 18-mile run on Friday evening, already feeling tired from the Promenade 5k, and I wasn't at my freshest for Alton. Marathon effort in cooler weather would have felt tough, but in the heat it nearly finished me off.
And why did I think it was a good idea to "find some shade" afterwards and try to cool off lying on the floor of a hot airless school gym? I lay there pouring with sweat, expecting to feel cooler, but continued to boil and feel dizzy. Only once I'd gone back into the sun and Diana had poured water over me did I start to feel OK.
I was amazed at how some people seemed to cope with the heat. Tony led our boys home to a very impressive, and much needed, team 5th place. Toby Lambert won the race in a faster time than last year's winner (in cool weather).
"At least the forecast for Edinburgh is perfect - cool and damp" I said to someone afterwards. Unfortunately that forecast had changed by the time I got home to warm and sunny. Nooo! Please let it be cool. I really can't stand the heat and I really can't get out of the kitchen. Fortunately as I write this the forecast has gone back to cool and cloudy, such is the vague nature of a 14-day forecast.
Last year's hot Totton was a warning of what to expect in London. Let's hope the hot Alton doesn't predict the one thing that will stop me going sub-3:15 in Edinburgh.
Friday, May 09, 2008
Portsmouth Promenade 5k Race 1
This was a last minute decision. That's a truly rare event in the Windsurfin'Susie world of running. Usually things are meticulously planned: key races identified and schedules shaped, training planned around other races where points are needed for the team, and, if the schedule permits or requires it, sharpeners identified which help bring me to a peak for the target races.
After last year's injury, I had a score to settle. I was placed well in the Promenade 5k after 2 races, with all to play for in the last race, and a prize up for grabs. My little pole-vaulting come over-training, come bizarre gym psoas minor tear incident put paid to all that.
I wanted to do the series, but with under a week to go till the first race my legs were still feeling the effects of the London Marathon. While still hopeful I'd be recovered in time, how would the 5k sit with me doing the Alton 10, 2 weeks before the Edinburgh Marathon, followed by a 3000m 6 days before the marathon? While I had no doubt I could recover from any one of these races, I wasn't so sure running them all flat out would leave me time to recover and be properly fresh for Edinburgh. After much debate, I finally decided that running a hilly 10-mile race flat out only 2 weeks before a marathon and only 4 weeks after the previous marathon was not such a good idea. Alton would be run at marathon effort, the track 3000m on the Monday before Edinburgh would be run flat out as my last bit of speedwork, and the Promenade 5k was on.
There have been some minor alterations to the course this year due to the new swimming pool slowly emerging from the ground at the Mountbatten Centre. One course alteration happened at the very last minute when the council decided to dig up the path into the park, leaving us with a very sharp left turn with 200m to go. As race plans have to be lodged with the authorities in order to get a race permit, why are race organisers never consulted over planned road works? The Bramley 20 was cancelled this year when the village was dug up with very little notice. Is it no wonder that road races are under threat?! At least the parking was OK despite the building works and the cycle race taking place in the stadium.
Back to the race though, and what a contrast to the weather of last year! Gone were the howling gales and we had ourselves a beautiful hot summer's spring evening - too hot for any distance over 5k, but perfect weather for this race. It was lovely being able to stand around with most of one's flesh exposed (and in my case just about as much as I could legally get away with) without feeling cold. A nice bit of heat acclimatisation in case Edinburgh is warm. (At the moment the forecast for Edinburgh is cool and damp, ie perfect, not that you can trust such a long range forecast.)
I hadn't tapered for this race, and in fact was treading the fine line between the need to recover from London and getting some final hard training in before tapering for Edinburgh. I wasn't expecting much from the race except some solid points on the board and the hope of at least beating last year's time of 21 minutes in the strong winds. Talking to Havant team mate Jane before the race (I was in my first claim Victory colours tonight) I thought that maybe I could keep up with her. Once the gun went though it was quite obvious she was still her usual speedy self as she steadily pulled away from me. I noticed that Stubbington Susie was keeping pace with her though, confirming my suspicions that she's come on quite well recently. I'll have to train hard this summer if I'm to keep pace with them!
I managed to keep a good pace going, but without a prospect of catching the AFD woman ahead of me I admit I settled back a bit in the 4th kilometre. A final push though saw me across the line in a reasonable 20:42. I was left questioning whether I should have tapered (I'd done 6 miles the night before and hadn't rested for 10 days), as my heart rate data made it quite clear that I should have been a place higher and nearly a minute quicker, but I guess I've now got a target for next time. The fact that my 5k PB is now 2 years old is starting to get to me. Oh dear, if I'm not competing with those around me I'm competing with my own times!
There were some good runs from team mates Richard, Richard and Jo. Well done too to local star Karrie for being first lady. I haven't seen the other results yet to know how the others got on. Thanks go to TR, Dave and Gina (marshalling) for their much appreciated support, and to Lynne, Pete, Gerry and the team for another great race.
As a social event, it was very enjoyable, bumping into on-line friends, chatting sports science to fellow coaches, renewing acquaintances with other runners.
Now was it really Bradley Wiggins I spotted watching the cycle racing?
After last year's injury, I had a score to settle. I was placed well in the Promenade 5k after 2 races, with all to play for in the last race, and a prize up for grabs. My little pole-vaulting come over-training, come bizarre gym psoas minor tear incident put paid to all that.
I wanted to do the series, but with under a week to go till the first race my legs were still feeling the effects of the London Marathon. While still hopeful I'd be recovered in time, how would the 5k sit with me doing the Alton 10, 2 weeks before the Edinburgh Marathon, followed by a 3000m 6 days before the marathon? While I had no doubt I could recover from any one of these races, I wasn't so sure running them all flat out would leave me time to recover and be properly fresh for Edinburgh. After much debate, I finally decided that running a hilly 10-mile race flat out only 2 weeks before a marathon and only 4 weeks after the previous marathon was not such a good idea. Alton would be run at marathon effort, the track 3000m on the Monday before Edinburgh would be run flat out as my last bit of speedwork, and the Promenade 5k was on.
There have been some minor alterations to the course this year due to the new swimming pool slowly emerging from the ground at the Mountbatten Centre. One course alteration happened at the very last minute when the council decided to dig up the path into the park, leaving us with a very sharp left turn with 200m to go. As race plans have to be lodged with the authorities in order to get a race permit, why are race organisers never consulted over planned road works? The Bramley 20 was cancelled this year when the village was dug up with very little notice. Is it no wonder that road races are under threat?! At least the parking was OK despite the building works and the cycle race taking place in the stadium.
Back to the race though, and what a contrast to the weather of last year! Gone were the howling gales and we had ourselves a beautiful hot summer's spring evening - too hot for any distance over 5k, but perfect weather for this race. It was lovely being able to stand around with most of one's flesh exposed (and in my case just about as much as I could legally get away with) without feeling cold. A nice bit of heat acclimatisation in case Edinburgh is warm. (At the moment the forecast for Edinburgh is cool and damp, ie perfect, not that you can trust such a long range forecast.)
I hadn't tapered for this race, and in fact was treading the fine line between the need to recover from London and getting some final hard training in before tapering for Edinburgh. I wasn't expecting much from the race except some solid points on the board and the hope of at least beating last year's time of 21 minutes in the strong winds. Talking to Havant team mate Jane before the race (I was in my first claim Victory colours tonight) I thought that maybe I could keep up with her. Once the gun went though it was quite obvious she was still her usual speedy self as she steadily pulled away from me. I noticed that Stubbington Susie was keeping pace with her though, confirming my suspicions that she's come on quite well recently. I'll have to train hard this summer if I'm to keep pace with them!
I managed to keep a good pace going, but without a prospect of catching the AFD woman ahead of me I admit I settled back a bit in the 4th kilometre. A final push though saw me across the line in a reasonable 20:42. I was left questioning whether I should have tapered (I'd done 6 miles the night before and hadn't rested for 10 days), as my heart rate data made it quite clear that I should have been a place higher and nearly a minute quicker, but I guess I've now got a target for next time. The fact that my 5k PB is now 2 years old is starting to get to me. Oh dear, if I'm not competing with those around me I'm competing with my own times!
There were some good runs from team mates Richard, Richard and Jo. Well done too to local star Karrie for being first lady. I haven't seen the other results yet to know how the others got on. Thanks go to TR, Dave and Gina (marshalling) for their much appreciated support, and to Lynne, Pete, Gerry and the team for another great race.
As a social event, it was very enjoyable, bumping into on-line friends, chatting sports science to fellow coaches, renewing acquaintances with other runners.
Now was it really Bradley Wiggins I spotted watching the cycle racing?
Friday, May 02, 2008
Back on track
My recovery is progressing nicely as I start to build (and taper!) towards the Edinburgh Marathon in 3 weeks time.
I've just done my first bit of speedwork since London: 8x400m at 10k pace with 100m jog recoveries, followed by 4x300m at 5k pace with 100m walk recoveries. I confess I was making it up on the spot as I had no idea how I would feel. There's no doubt I still have a touch of marathon in my legs, but what a contrast to earlier in the week:
On Monday, 15 days after London, I felt awful. I had done a very gentle 8 miles the previous day, my first longish run since the marathon, and had felt OK, but later on that day was starting to feel really tired. By Monday I was a complete zombie. OK, my flesh wasn't grey and putrid, but I did get a strange desire to eat my colleague's brain after a difficult meeting. My higher thought processes seemed absent and I spent much of the day staring blankly at a computer screen. (Please stifle any urge to say "So what's new?"!)
How could I feel so bad so suddenly? I'd rested for a week, and then introduced gentle running on alternate days, no more than 5 miles at a time, before doing that gentle 8 miles: pretty much my usual plan for marathon recovery. After 2 weeks I'd usually expect to start feeling better, but here I was thinking there was something wrong with me.
What a contrast the following day though!
I made sure I had nearly 10 hours sleep on Monday night; I've been typically getting at least 9 hours a night since the marathon. On the Tuesday I was feeling much better. I even managed a couple of near-marathon-effort miles in the Tuesday night club run. Things were looking up!
By Wednesday I was feeling generally OK - quite a turn around.
So for the record, it's taken me 17 days to feel like I'm back to normal.
The caveat of course is that I still have the marathon in my legs and don't expect to be back at my best for at least another week, but at least I've got over the general malaise that always dogs me post-marathon.
So having originally thought that this marathon had hit me harder than any of my previous marathons, in fact it's pretty much the same recovery time, albeit with 'Black Monday' thrown in to the mix!
And so to Edinburgh...
I've just done my first bit of speedwork since London: 8x400m at 10k pace with 100m jog recoveries, followed by 4x300m at 5k pace with 100m walk recoveries. I confess I was making it up on the spot as I had no idea how I would feel. There's no doubt I still have a touch of marathon in my legs, but what a contrast to earlier in the week:
On Monday, 15 days after London, I felt awful. I had done a very gentle 8 miles the previous day, my first longish run since the marathon, and had felt OK, but later on that day was starting to feel really tired. By Monday I was a complete zombie. OK, my flesh wasn't grey and putrid, but I did get a strange desire to eat my colleague's brain after a difficult meeting. My higher thought processes seemed absent and I spent much of the day staring blankly at a computer screen. (Please stifle any urge to say "So what's new?"!)
How could I feel so bad so suddenly? I'd rested for a week, and then introduced gentle running on alternate days, no more than 5 miles at a time, before doing that gentle 8 miles: pretty much my usual plan for marathon recovery. After 2 weeks I'd usually expect to start feeling better, but here I was thinking there was something wrong with me.
What a contrast the following day though!
I made sure I had nearly 10 hours sleep on Monday night; I've been typically getting at least 9 hours a night since the marathon. On the Tuesday I was feeling much better. I even managed a couple of near-marathon-effort miles in the Tuesday night club run. Things were looking up!
By Wednesday I was feeling generally OK - quite a turn around.
So for the record, it's taken me 17 days to feel like I'm back to normal.
The caveat of course is that I still have the marathon in my legs and don't expect to be back at my best for at least another week, but at least I've got over the general malaise that always dogs me post-marathon.
So having originally thought that this marathon had hit me harder than any of my previous marathons, in fact it's pretty much the same recovery time, albeit with 'Black Monday' thrown in to the mix!
And so to Edinburgh...
Thursday, April 24, 2008
New training method?
My fellow coach Pete suggested we should adopt the following training method in our club:
I think it has legs!
I think it has legs!
Monday, April 14, 2008
18 seconds: The Flora London Marathon 2008
3:15:18
That's almost a race report in itself. I wanted 3:15, and I'll be telling people my PB is now "3:15", but will that time be enough to get me on the elite start next year, for which a time of under 3:15:00 is needed (the organisers are always careful to include the ":00" on the end!)?
I'm delighted, but at the same time a little concerned. It's a huge PB, but is it what I wanted? Could I have mustered just a little extra effort and managed 18s quicker? Hindsight's so very easy after the event.
If you'd offered me that time the day before the marathon I'd have grabbed it straight away. My calf muscles had been a problem for the final days of the taper - the right calf had gone into spasm during a gentle run on Tuesday and although the Thursday massage hadn't revealed a problem, it tightened again during a gentle 3 miles that evening. The calf had been sore all day Friday and had been tingling on Saturday. I thought maybe it had settled down by Saturday evening, but as I climbed the stairs for bed, it again 'grabbed' - I was worried. On the morning of the marathon I was still very concerned about how tight my calf muscles were - they didn't feel right.
In the event, the calves weren't a problem, so maybe it was pre-marathon paranoia as my friends had claimed. I felt uncomfortable for the first 2 miles but my calves relaxed off and I didn't notice them again - until after the finish that is! I staggered through the finish, grabbed medal, refreshment and baggage, and as I lifted my foot over a kerb I got hit by the most almighty cramp. I've never experienced that before! I've had night cramps but I've never cramped after a race, or during for that matter. Ouch! Was it the suspected damage, or was it simple dehydration? I felt a little like the hypochondriac who had "I told you I was ill" on his tomb-stone. My calves feel dodgy today, but hopefully I haven't done too much damage.
Back to the race, the story is best illustrated by looking at my splits and how my intermediate times compared to the 3:15 steady pace schedule:
I wasn't able to get up to pace immediately, being quite far back from the green start line. It also didn't help that the Maasai Warriors were attracting quite a number of hangers-on and were blocking the road somewhat. Once I got past them, and presumably a host of other celebs positioned ahead of us on the start line, I started to run at nearer my natural pace. I have every respect for the Maasai Warriors, but it does bug me how they position the celebrities on the start line and then put a selection of the country's fastest runners behind them. Just how does Amanda Holden's mum get on the green start for her first marathon when the rest of us have to qualify for the privilege?
Back to the race.
As you can see, after a couple of miles I was back on track and making up time. I was soon into my running and happy that I was able to run the required pace with my heart rate nicely under control. In fact I felt really good!
I could hear regular shouts of "Go Suzy", but as I hadn't got my name on my crop top I realised it was another runner with whom I'd kept pace for a few miles. I realised it was the Cornwall AC runner ahead and I introduced myself, establishing that we were both targetting 3:15. Suzy was great. We ran together for 10 miles or more, sharing water and pacing each other. Suzy seemed very strong, and I felt strong too. I was grinning as a realised that I was on for a big PB at the very least.
We pressed on and built up a nice cushion against our schedule. Soon we had made up the delay in crossing the start line and the course clock was now showing that we were ahead of schedule. In reality we were some 90s ahead of schedule.
At 17 miles I still felt good, but as Suzy pushed up the slight hill at Mudchute I couldn't quite keep up with her and the elastic that had kept us together for 10 miles broke. I still felt strong, but clearly Suzy was on great form. That was the last I saw of her. Post race analysis revealed that she accelerated at that point and was able to run the last half of the race faster than the first - a negative split - so difficult to do in a marathon. She finished in 3:12 - great performance!
The weather had been kind to us this year. Temperatures were cool - perfect in fact. We started in sunshine and finished in sunshine but had some quite heavy rain mid-race. Some people were bothered by the rain, but I found it OK - it didn't get me cold. If anything it might have helped me push my pace. After Suzy had dropped me, the rain stopped. I actually wonder if I could have kept the pace up if the rain had persisted. I like rain!
I just had to hold it together. I was still on pace but by 20 miles I was starting to lose time by a few seconds per mile. By 23 miles I was still what appeared at the time to be a minute ahead, and still optimistic, but it was getting harder to maintain pace. The presence of friend Graham on the sidelines - my only spectator sighting - had helped, but I now had to dig deep. I could see the time ticking away, but at 25 miles I was still just ahead. Surely I could keep it going with a last big push?
I was amazed to see people walking on Birdcage Walk within 800m of the finish. Surely they could keep going? Runners were shouting at them to keep running. There's no way I would ever stop, but I guess if they were targetting 3:15 and they realised they'd missed it then the mind just switches off? I was still hopeful, but as I turned into the Mall and sprinted for the finish I realised I'd lost the battle with the clock. Even sprinting the fastest I could muster, I barely managed to get back onto scheduled pace - I still lost a few seconds in the last 385 yards. At least that makes me feel good that I'd given it everything I had.
I crossed the line in 3:15:18, to be presented with a medal by the woman I'd met 2 days earlier on a customer visit to the Forestry Commission in Hampshire. Well they say it's a small world!
I'm really pleased with that performance, but I hope that 18 seconds doesn't come back to haunt me!
That's almost a race report in itself. I wanted 3:15, and I'll be telling people my PB is now "3:15", but will that time be enough to get me on the elite start next year, for which a time of under 3:15:00 is needed (the organisers are always careful to include the ":00" on the end!)?
I'm delighted, but at the same time a little concerned. It's a huge PB, but is it what I wanted? Could I have mustered just a little extra effort and managed 18s quicker? Hindsight's so very easy after the event.
If you'd offered me that time the day before the marathon I'd have grabbed it straight away. My calf muscles had been a problem for the final days of the taper - the right calf had gone into spasm during a gentle run on Tuesday and although the Thursday massage hadn't revealed a problem, it tightened again during a gentle 3 miles that evening. The calf had been sore all day Friday and had been tingling on Saturday. I thought maybe it had settled down by Saturday evening, but as I climbed the stairs for bed, it again 'grabbed' - I was worried. On the morning of the marathon I was still very concerned about how tight my calf muscles were - they didn't feel right.
In the event, the calves weren't a problem, so maybe it was pre-marathon paranoia as my friends had claimed. I felt uncomfortable for the first 2 miles but my calves relaxed off and I didn't notice them again - until after the finish that is! I staggered through the finish, grabbed medal, refreshment and baggage, and as I lifted my foot over a kerb I got hit by the most almighty cramp. I've never experienced that before! I've had night cramps but I've never cramped after a race, or during for that matter. Ouch! Was it the suspected damage, or was it simple dehydration? I felt a little like the hypochondriac who had "I told you I was ill" on his tomb-stone. My calves feel dodgy today, but hopefully I haven't done too much damage.
Back to the race, the story is best illustrated by looking at my splits and how my intermediate times compared to the 3:15 steady pace schedule:
| Lap | Split | HR | Schedule | Actual | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 07:48 | 130bpm | 07:27 | 07:48 | -21s |
| 2 | 07:23 | 137bpm | 14:53 | 15:12 | -19s |
| 3 | 06:52 | 140bpm | 22:20 | 22:05 | 15s |
| 4 | 07:14 | 142bpm | 29:46 | 29:19 | 27s |
| 5 | 07:04 | 145bpm | 37:13 | 36:24 | 49s |
| 6 | 07:36 | 144bpm | 44:39 | 44:00 | 39s |
| 7 | 07:30 | 144bpm | 52:06 | 51:30 | 36s |
| 8 | 07:12 | 144bpm | 59:32 | 58:42 | 50s |
| 9 | 07:28 | 144bpm | 01:06:59 | 01:06:11 | 48s |
| 10 | 07:21 | 142bpm | 01:14:26 | 01:13:33 | 53s |
| 11 | 07:10 | 144bpm | 01:21:52 | 01:20:43 | 69s |
| 12 | 07:28 | 144bpm | 01:29:19 | 01:28:12 | 67s |
| 13 | 07:22 | 145bpm | 01:36:45 | 01:35:34 | 71s |
| 14 | 07:14 | 142bpm | 01:44:12 | 01:42:50 | 82s |
| 15 | 07:14 | 142bpm | 01:51:38 | 01:50:04 | 94s |
| 16 | 07:25 | 143bpm | 01:59:05 | 01:57:30 | 95s |
| 17 | 07:18 | 145bpm | 02:06:31 | 02:04:48 | 103s |
| 18 | 07:19 | 146bpm | 02:13:58 | 02:12:07 | 111s |
| 19 | 07:39 | 146bpm | 02:21:24 | 02:19:46 | 98s |
| 20 | 07:37 | 143bpm | 02:28:51 | 02:27:25 | 86s |
| 21 | 07:42 | 142bpm | 02:36:18 | 02:35:07 | 71s |
| 22 | 07:35 | 143bpm | 02:43:44 | 02:42:42 | 62s |
| 23 | 07:46 | 143bpm | 02:51:11 | 02:50:29 | 42s |
| 24 | 07:26 | 144bpm | 02:58:37 | 02:57:55 | 42s |
| 25 | 08:02 | 145bpm | 03:06:04 | 03:05:58 | 6s |
| 26 | 07:42 | 147bpm | 03:13:30 | 03:13:40 | -10s |
| 26.2 | 01:38 | 149bpm | 03:15:00 | 03:15:18 | -18s |
I wasn't able to get up to pace immediately, being quite far back from the green start line. It also didn't help that the Maasai Warriors were attracting quite a number of hangers-on and were blocking the road somewhat. Once I got past them, and presumably a host of other celebs positioned ahead of us on the start line, I started to run at nearer my natural pace. I have every respect for the Maasai Warriors, but it does bug me how they position the celebrities on the start line and then put a selection of the country's fastest runners behind them. Just how does Amanda Holden's mum get on the green start for her first marathon when the rest of us have to qualify for the privilege?
Back to the race.
As you can see, after a couple of miles I was back on track and making up time. I was soon into my running and happy that I was able to run the required pace with my heart rate nicely under control. In fact I felt really good!
I could hear regular shouts of "Go Suzy", but as I hadn't got my name on my crop top I realised it was another runner with whom I'd kept pace for a few miles. I realised it was the Cornwall AC runner ahead and I introduced myself, establishing that we were both targetting 3:15. Suzy was great. We ran together for 10 miles or more, sharing water and pacing each other. Suzy seemed very strong, and I felt strong too. I was grinning as a realised that I was on for a big PB at the very least.
We pressed on and built up a nice cushion against our schedule. Soon we had made up the delay in crossing the start line and the course clock was now showing that we were ahead of schedule. In reality we were some 90s ahead of schedule.
At 17 miles I still felt good, but as Suzy pushed up the slight hill at Mudchute I couldn't quite keep up with her and the elastic that had kept us together for 10 miles broke. I still felt strong, but clearly Suzy was on great form. That was the last I saw of her. Post race analysis revealed that she accelerated at that point and was able to run the last half of the race faster than the first - a negative split - so difficult to do in a marathon. She finished in 3:12 - great performance!
The weather had been kind to us this year. Temperatures were cool - perfect in fact. We started in sunshine and finished in sunshine but had some quite heavy rain mid-race. Some people were bothered by the rain, but I found it OK - it didn't get me cold. If anything it might have helped me push my pace. After Suzy had dropped me, the rain stopped. I actually wonder if I could have kept the pace up if the rain had persisted. I like rain!
I just had to hold it together. I was still on pace but by 20 miles I was starting to lose time by a few seconds per mile. By 23 miles I was still what appeared at the time to be a minute ahead, and still optimistic, but it was getting harder to maintain pace. The presence of friend Graham on the sidelines - my only spectator sighting - had helped, but I now had to dig deep. I could see the time ticking away, but at 25 miles I was still just ahead. Surely I could keep it going with a last big push?
I was amazed to see people walking on Birdcage Walk within 800m of the finish. Surely they could keep going? Runners were shouting at them to keep running. There's no way I would ever stop, but I guess if they were targetting 3:15 and they realised they'd missed it then the mind just switches off? I was still hopeful, but as I turned into the Mall and sprinted for the finish I realised I'd lost the battle with the clock. Even sprinting the fastest I could muster, I barely managed to get back onto scheduled pace - I still lost a few seconds in the last 385 yards. At least that makes me feel good that I'd given it everything I had.
I crossed the line in 3:15:18, to be presented with a medal by the woman I'd met 2 days earlier on a customer visit to the Forestry Commission in Hampshire. Well they say it's a small world!
I'm really pleased with that performance, but I hope that 18 seconds doesn't come back to haunt me!
Sunday, April 06, 2008
A tale of 2 cities: Totton 10k 2008
I had a shock when I looked out of the window this morning.
I'd had a leisurely breakfast, showered, and had pretty much got ready to leave for the race before I opened the curtains. I saw a scene I've never seen before in my 20 years on the south coast: blizzard conditions! I scraped 4" of snow off the car and set out for Totton in extremely unsafe conditions, with cars crawling along the M27 in the worst snow I've ever driven in (and I lived in France once, driving regularly to the Alps!). Changing lane was really not the thing to do as you had to drive through the ridge of snow on the white line, but I really hadn't got time to wait behind someone doing 15mph on the motorway! The traffic report on the radio painted a picture of doom saying that conditions were nearly impassable nearer Totton between junctions 4 and 6. This was starting to worry me!
I got to the dreaded junction 6 to find the snow had stopped falling, the road was clear and there was just a sprinkling of snow by the side of the road. I arrived in Totton in plenty of time to find the sun starting to show itself, making the light dusting of snow on top of the hedgerows sparkle. Quite a contrast.
Having feared that the race would be cancelled, we now had pretty good conditions, albeit a tad chilly. Trouble was, did we have a team? A lot of my club mates had decided to take the advice offered on the radio and stay at home. Oh dear!
We just managed to field a men's and women's team but there were a lot of no-shows. This was going to bias the race rather unfairly against those from the Portsmouth area. Southampton's revenge for Harry Redknapp taking Pompey to the cup final?
The race plan for me remained unaltered. After last year's fiasco in the heat, this was going to be strictly marathon pace, saving myself for London next week. I warmed up for a couple of easy miles and lined up in all my winter woollies: hat, gloves, leggings, long sleeves - not my usual race apparel!
The race went well, and we finished in bright sunshine - what a contrast! I stuck to my game plan, keeping to marathon heart rate, with my pace spot on the 7:15/mile I need to do in London (I only need 7:25/mile for 3:15, but I always lose 10s/mile in London for whatever reason). John M was supporting from the roadside and pointed out I had a Winchester woman behind me, so I allowed myself a flourish in the last 300m, picking my pace and HR up somewhat.
I'd been just behind team mate Graham for much of the race, but couldn't quite close him down, sticking to my HR plan. He finished just ahead of me to become the first Victory man across the line, much to his surprise. If I'd allowed myself 1bpm more, I'd have been the first Victory runner over the line, male or female - an illustration of how depleted we were.
It was nice to meet an old friend afterwards, who I confess I didn't realise was a runner, as I jogged back down the field to add a couple of miles. Poor Lisa was struggling somewhat with an ankle problem.
We did get a men's and women's team result in the end, so well done to everyone for having the courage to press on out of Portsmouth. The race didn't seem unusually thin on numbers so I suspect we've been penalised somewhat by the hand of fate!
Here are my stats:
1 4:38 no HR 7:27/mile
2 4:30 140bpm 7:14/mile
3 4:29 141bpm 7:13/mile
4&5 4:32 144bpm 7:18/mile
6 4:30 144bpm 7:14/mile
7 4:30 145bpm 7:14/mile
8 4:32 146bpm 7:18/mile
9 4:42 145bpm 7:34/mile
10 4:11 148bpm 6:44/mile
Total 45:09 144bpm ave 7:16/mile
5th place W45
I was running in heavy shoes and full kit, so hopefully will be quicker still on marathon day, although these figures are exactly what I need (7:15/mile 144bpm). Also, I was a little heavy legged from doing some lab tests yesterday - more on this soon (boy, it was fun!). I've always claimed that fatigue doesn't affect my pace/HR relationship - let's hope I'm wrong and I'll find myself flying along in London - fingers crossed!
I'd had a leisurely breakfast, showered, and had pretty much got ready to leave for the race before I opened the curtains. I saw a scene I've never seen before in my 20 years on the south coast: blizzard conditions! I scraped 4" of snow off the car and set out for Totton in extremely unsafe conditions, with cars crawling along the M27 in the worst snow I've ever driven in (and I lived in France once, driving regularly to the Alps!). Changing lane was really not the thing to do as you had to drive through the ridge of snow on the white line, but I really hadn't got time to wait behind someone doing 15mph on the motorway! The traffic report on the radio painted a picture of doom saying that conditions were nearly impassable nearer Totton between junctions 4 and 6. This was starting to worry me!
I got to the dreaded junction 6 to find the snow had stopped falling, the road was clear and there was just a sprinkling of snow by the side of the road. I arrived in Totton in plenty of time to find the sun starting to show itself, making the light dusting of snow on top of the hedgerows sparkle. Quite a contrast.
Having feared that the race would be cancelled, we now had pretty good conditions, albeit a tad chilly. Trouble was, did we have a team? A lot of my club mates had decided to take the advice offered on the radio and stay at home. Oh dear!
We just managed to field a men's and women's team but there were a lot of no-shows. This was going to bias the race rather unfairly against those from the Portsmouth area. Southampton's revenge for Harry Redknapp taking Pompey to the cup final?
The race plan for me remained unaltered. After last year's fiasco in the heat, this was going to be strictly marathon pace, saving myself for London next week. I warmed up for a couple of easy miles and lined up in all my winter woollies: hat, gloves, leggings, long sleeves - not my usual race apparel!
The race went well, and we finished in bright sunshine - what a contrast! I stuck to my game plan, keeping to marathon heart rate, with my pace spot on the 7:15/mile I need to do in London (I only need 7:25/mile for 3:15, but I always lose 10s/mile in London for whatever reason). John M was supporting from the roadside and pointed out I had a Winchester woman behind me, so I allowed myself a flourish in the last 300m, picking my pace and HR up somewhat.
I'd been just behind team mate Graham for much of the race, but couldn't quite close him down, sticking to my HR plan. He finished just ahead of me to become the first Victory man across the line, much to his surprise. If I'd allowed myself 1bpm more, I'd have been the first Victory runner over the line, male or female - an illustration of how depleted we were.
It was nice to meet an old friend afterwards, who I confess I didn't realise was a runner, as I jogged back down the field to add a couple of miles. Poor Lisa was struggling somewhat with an ankle problem.
We did get a men's and women's team result in the end, so well done to everyone for having the courage to press on out of Portsmouth. The race didn't seem unusually thin on numbers so I suspect we've been penalised somewhat by the hand of fate!
Here are my stats:
1 4:38 no HR 7:27/mile
2 4:30 140bpm 7:14/mile
3 4:29 141bpm 7:13/mile
4&5 4:32 144bpm 7:18/mile
6 4:30 144bpm 7:14/mile
7 4:30 145bpm 7:14/mile
8 4:32 146bpm 7:18/mile
9 4:42 145bpm 7:34/mile
10 4:11 148bpm 6:44/mile
Total 45:09 144bpm ave 7:16/mile
5th place W45
I was running in heavy shoes and full kit, so hopefully will be quicker still on marathon day, although these figures are exactly what I need (7:15/mile 144bpm). Also, I was a little heavy legged from doing some lab tests yesterday - more on this soon (boy, it was fun!). I've always claimed that fatigue doesn't affect my pace/HR relationship - let's hope I'm wrong and I'll find myself flying along in London - fingers crossed!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Weather: The Compton Downland Challenge 20
The average person's body has about 400-500g of stored glycogen.
I started the race today with 400g less glycogen than most people!
Ooh that was a tough one! We started in gale force driving snow. That was a first for me!
The snow lasted for well over an hour before it became mere snow showers. Eventually we had a couple of sunny intervals. These were accompanied by horizontal hail. We really did have it all today.
I've trained hard this week: a hard hill run on Tuesday evening, weights Wednesday morning, 12 miles Wednesday evening, 4 miles Thursday morning, a Kenyan Hills session Thursday evening with very sore glutes and adductors from the weights and a double on Friday with 5 miles in the morning and another 5 miles in the evening.
This was never really going to be a comfortable 20-miler!
The original plan was to take it easy in the first half and then push it on in the second half with some marathon effort. By 4 miles though I was really hungry and running on empty. It was then just a matter of gritting my teeth against the snow and pushing on. It wasn't pretty, but I finished feeling fairly comfortable for a nice easy 20-mile training run, although in terms of effort expended it was more the equivalent of a 24-mile flat tarmac run. Despite the lack of marathon specific quality, I guess a 24-miler must count for something.
The course is a lovely bit of off-road, ignoring the weather for a moment, with 2200ft of climbing. I particularly liked the run through the woods to emerge on the high downs above the Thames - shame we had to contend with a freezing cold gale full in our faces as we descended the downs. Fortunately I was wearing 2 Helly-Hansen's, a club vest, a Gore-Tex jacket, hat and gloves - the most I've ever worn in a race.
I felt sorry for those who carried on at the end, to do the 40-mile option, although some decided to call it quits at 20. Judging by the laughter of those around me, some were enjoying the prospect of 40 miles though. It amused me when one guy referred to me doing the "sprint option".
It was nice to see all the old forum faces: RichK, RFJ, Gobi, Tigger's mate Roo. Well done to club mate Steve for finishing 3rd - top performance!
An experience!
I started the race today with 400g less glycogen than most people!
Ooh that was a tough one! We started in gale force driving snow. That was a first for me!
The snow lasted for well over an hour before it became mere snow showers. Eventually we had a couple of sunny intervals. These were accompanied by horizontal hail. We really did have it all today.
I've trained hard this week: a hard hill run on Tuesday evening, weights Wednesday morning, 12 miles Wednesday evening, 4 miles Thursday morning, a Kenyan Hills session Thursday evening with very sore glutes and adductors from the weights and a double on Friday with 5 miles in the morning and another 5 miles in the evening.
This was never really going to be a comfortable 20-miler!
The original plan was to take it easy in the first half and then push it on in the second half with some marathon effort. By 4 miles though I was really hungry and running on empty. It was then just a matter of gritting my teeth against the snow and pushing on. It wasn't pretty, but I finished feeling fairly comfortable for a nice easy 20-mile training run, although in terms of effort expended it was more the equivalent of a 24-mile flat tarmac run. Despite the lack of marathon specific quality, I guess a 24-miler must count for something.
The course is a lovely bit of off-road, ignoring the weather for a moment, with 2200ft of climbing. I particularly liked the run through the woods to emerge on the high downs above the Thames - shame we had to contend with a freezing cold gale full in our faces as we descended the downs. Fortunately I was wearing 2 Helly-Hansen's, a club vest, a Gore-Tex jacket, hat and gloves - the most I've ever worn in a race.
I felt sorry for those who carried on at the end, to do the 40-mile option, although some decided to call it quits at 20. Judging by the laughter of those around me, some were enjoying the prospect of 40 miles though. It amused me when one guy referred to me doing the "sprint option".
It was nice to see all the old forum faces: RichK, RFJ, Gobi, Tigger's mate Roo. Well done to club mate Steve for finishing 3rd - top performance!
An experience!
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Go Team! Go me! Eastleigh 10k 2008
Well done girls!
1st vet team: Miranda, Susie, Shelly
3rd senior women's team: Miranda, Susie, Shelly, Lucy
I didn't fare badly either:
Bronze Medal South of England Championships W45
Silver Medal Hampshire W45
3rd place W45
I picked up 3 lots of B&Q vouchers, and even more should I forget to hand the others theirs! ;-)
I so desperately wanted a PB but I was a minute out. I quote the results page:
The strong North wind (averaging about 20mph at the time of the race) slowed times considerably.
I reckoned after the race that I lost 30 secs to the wind, but it might have been more. Some of the lead men lost a minute over last year and the lead woman, Natalie Harvey, lost over 30s. Due to possible fatigue my heart rate was slightly down on last year so I guess I need to be happy that I'm as fit as last year and in good shape for London. How can I be unhappy after that prize haul? Our vets beat Winchester for heaven's sake!
I got to meet my online pals hilly and BR whom I haven't seen for ages. I also had a chat with our marathon hero Dan Robinson (good luck in London!), and met Leon Taylor, our Athens silver medal diver (yum!).
What of the race? I had a little virtual partner on my Garmin, which was me running the race last year - I'd know at any point how far I was behind PB schedule - nice feature. Unfortunately we started straight into the strong headwind and the little virtual me was soon leaving me behind. That just left me to focus on the real people around me, such as Stubbington Bev, my Havant track partner, and her Stubby team mate Susie. I caught the 2 of them at half way and dropped Bev, but Susie pulled away from me, finishing just ahead. That wind was particularly cruel on the run in around the edge of the playing fields - it was pretty much a re-run of 2 years ago, although without the sunshine. I've just noticed I mentioned Dan Robinson in the report 2 years ago, having watched him get Commonwealth Bronze - how spooky is that?
A very good day at the office!
Finally, as always, the heart rate data. Notice how much higher my HR was 2 years ago!
4:10 139bpm
4:11 148bpm
4:12 150bpm
4:37 152bpm (slight uphill)
4:01 150bpm (slight downhill)
4:09 153bpm
4:12 154bpm
4:14 152bpm
4:17 152bpm
4:24 153bpm (into the wind)
42:26 150bpm ave
1st vet team: Miranda, Susie, Shelly
3rd senior women's team: Miranda, Susie, Shelly, Lucy
I didn't fare badly either:
Bronze Medal South of England Championships W45
Silver Medal Hampshire W45
3rd place W45
I picked up 3 lots of B&Q vouchers, and even more should I forget to hand the others theirs! ;-)
I so desperately wanted a PB but I was a minute out. I quote the results page:
The strong North wind (averaging about 20mph at the time of the race) slowed times considerably.
I reckoned after the race that I lost 30 secs to the wind, but it might have been more. Some of the lead men lost a minute over last year and the lead woman, Natalie Harvey, lost over 30s. Due to possible fatigue my heart rate was slightly down on last year so I guess I need to be happy that I'm as fit as last year and in good shape for London. How can I be unhappy after that prize haul? Our vets beat Winchester for heaven's sake!
I got to meet my online pals hilly and BR whom I haven't seen for ages. I also had a chat with our marathon hero Dan Robinson (good luck in London!), and met Leon Taylor, our Athens silver medal diver (yum!).
What of the race? I had a little virtual partner on my Garmin, which was me running the race last year - I'd know at any point how far I was behind PB schedule - nice feature. Unfortunately we started straight into the strong headwind and the little virtual me was soon leaving me behind. That just left me to focus on the real people around me, such as Stubbington Bev, my Havant track partner, and her Stubby team mate Susie. I caught the 2 of them at half way and dropped Bev, but Susie pulled away from me, finishing just ahead. That wind was particularly cruel on the run in around the edge of the playing fields - it was pretty much a re-run of 2 years ago, although without the sunshine. I've just noticed I mentioned Dan Robinson in the report 2 years ago, having watched him get Commonwealth Bronze - how spooky is that?
A very good day at the office!
Finally, as always, the heart rate data. Notice how much higher my HR was 2 years ago!
4:10 139bpm
4:11 148bpm
4:12 150bpm
4:37 152bpm (slight uphill)
4:01 150bpm (slight downhill)
4:09 153bpm
4:12 154bpm
4:14 152bpm
4:17 152bpm
4:24 153bpm (into the wind)
42:26 150bpm ave
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
The 20-miler
I thought I'd share my controversial views on 20-milers. I say controversial, as what I'm about to say seems to offend some people, but it's my blog and I'll say what I want. So here goes:
Do not race 20-milers!
I need to explain that one a bit of course, so first of all let me say that this is very much in the context of marathon training. I should also say that I'm not suggesting you don't do 20-mile races - they are excellent training. I should also say that I have done more than a dozen 20-mile races, but the closest I've come to racing one flat out was last year at Worthing where I jogged the first 5 miles, then picked the pace up and ran much of the remainder at marathon pace, finishing in 2:31:33 - an average pace of 7:33/mile, which was actually faster than the pace I subsequently ran the (very hot) London Marathon in! That was a measured effort and I recovered well for London 3 weeks later - it was the heat that did me in on the day, or so I believe - but this hints at the problems of using 20-mile races as marathon training.
What I mean by racing a 20-miler is putting maximum effort into your run to achieve the best time you can. I have never done this, I confess, but I know many people who have regretted racing 20 (some deny the 20 caused the problem but in the context of their training I believe it was a, or even the, major factor). The problem is simply the amount of recovery needed afterwards. It can take a full 3 weeks to recover from 20 miles of maximum effort, and that ignores the effect of whatever training you choose to do subsequently.
Most people are pushing it quite hard in the run up to a marathon. 20-mile training runs are all part of the formula, and very necessary too, but there are much better ways to tackle the 20-mile training run than running it flat out. The 20-miler should be one component of a balanced training program, allowing sufficient recovery to perform your interval sessions and tempo runs. Jog a 20-miler and you should be feeling fairly fresh 2 days later for your tempo run or your mile reps. Race a 20-miler though, and the following week you are feeling jaded and unable to put any effort into the training. You try harder and push all you can to achieve the right paces but just can't manage it. Of course that's the optimistic outlook. At worst you push too hard, get ill or injured and miss the marathon completely.
20-mile races, flat out, are hard. It should be fairly evident that their impact is almost as great as that of a marathon. One unseen risk is that your immune system pretty much collapses for 24 hours afterwards, laying you wide open to whatever bugs are around. You push on with your training and a week or 2 later you are laid up in bed with flu symptoms.
Even running a 20-mile race at marathon pace is hard. It's 20/26th of the effort of a marathon: 77% of a marathon is very tough!
20-mile races, as training, are however very useful. They are brilliant practise for getting your fuelling and hydration strategy right. What better way to do a training run than in company with others and having drinks laid on for you without the need to run with a bottle belt or camelbak? You need to view them as training runs though and run them sensibly.
Early in your marathon program I'd suggest just jogging them. Take them nice and easy and don't worry about the clock, other than to make sure you are at least a minute/mile slower than your marathon pace. There is a school of thought that says you shouldn't do your long runs too slowly as they are not specific enough. While I can see that it might come as a bit of a shock doing 26.2 miles at 7:30/mile when you've only run at 11:00/mile in training, as long as you have been doing tempo runs, and you do include some faster long runs then the occasional reeeeaaally slow run won't do any harm. Generally try to keep them between 1 and 2 minutes/mile slower than marathon pace.
Later in your program, with maybe 6 weeks to go to the marathon, try adding a fast finish to the run. Jog the first 15 miles and then try lifting the pace up to marathon pace for the last 5 miles. Make sure you carbo-load for the race as you'll find this very tough if you're low on fuel.
The hardest I reckon you should run is 15 miles of marathon effort (although I personally think that 10 miles of marathon effort is sufficient). Try this 3 weeks out, no closer. Jog the first 5 miles and then pick up the pace for the last 15. Remember that 15 miles of marathon pace is a very hard training run. Don't do this closer than 3 weeks to the marathon. Give yourself a day or 2 of recovery and you should be OK but look for signs of fatigue. If you attempt a 20-miler only 2 weeks out then jog it - don't attempt a large amount of marathon pace running so close to the marathon.
Of course people will still want to race a 20-miler, but if you absolutely must then I'd say: don't try this within a month of the marathon, consider taking several days off afterwards, and cut right back on the training afterwards with little or no speedwork for a week or 2. Bear in mind the context in which you do the race. How much other racing have you done? What is your training load? Remember that the marathon is (probably) your target. If the 20-miler is your target though, then good luck to you - you obviously won't mind if you don't do that well in the marathon.
It's amazing how heated on-line discussions can get when I say "Don't race 20-milers", but hopefully I've presented a balanced view on the topic.
Do not race 20-milers!
I need to explain that one a bit of course, so first of all let me say that this is very much in the context of marathon training. I should also say that I'm not suggesting you don't do 20-mile races - they are excellent training. I should also say that I have done more than a dozen 20-mile races, but the closest I've come to racing one flat out was last year at Worthing where I jogged the first 5 miles, then picked the pace up and ran much of the remainder at marathon pace, finishing in 2:31:33 - an average pace of 7:33/mile, which was actually faster than the pace I subsequently ran the (very hot) London Marathon in! That was a measured effort and I recovered well for London 3 weeks later - it was the heat that did me in on the day, or so I believe - but this hints at the problems of using 20-mile races as marathon training.
What I mean by racing a 20-miler is putting maximum effort into your run to achieve the best time you can. I have never done this, I confess, but I know many people who have regretted racing 20 (some deny the 20 caused the problem but in the context of their training I believe it was a, or even the, major factor). The problem is simply the amount of recovery needed afterwards. It can take a full 3 weeks to recover from 20 miles of maximum effort, and that ignores the effect of whatever training you choose to do subsequently.
Most people are pushing it quite hard in the run up to a marathon. 20-mile training runs are all part of the formula, and very necessary too, but there are much better ways to tackle the 20-mile training run than running it flat out. The 20-miler should be one component of a balanced training program, allowing sufficient recovery to perform your interval sessions and tempo runs. Jog a 20-miler and you should be feeling fairly fresh 2 days later for your tempo run or your mile reps. Race a 20-miler though, and the following week you are feeling jaded and unable to put any effort into the training. You try harder and push all you can to achieve the right paces but just can't manage it. Of course that's the optimistic outlook. At worst you push too hard, get ill or injured and miss the marathon completely.
20-mile races, flat out, are hard. It should be fairly evident that their impact is almost as great as that of a marathon. One unseen risk is that your immune system pretty much collapses for 24 hours afterwards, laying you wide open to whatever bugs are around. You push on with your training and a week or 2 later you are laid up in bed with flu symptoms.
Even running a 20-mile race at marathon pace is hard. It's 20/26th of the effort of a marathon: 77% of a marathon is very tough!
20-mile races, as training, are however very useful. They are brilliant practise for getting your fuelling and hydration strategy right. What better way to do a training run than in company with others and having drinks laid on for you without the need to run with a bottle belt or camelbak? You need to view them as training runs though and run them sensibly.
Early in your marathon program I'd suggest just jogging them. Take them nice and easy and don't worry about the clock, other than to make sure you are at least a minute/mile slower than your marathon pace. There is a school of thought that says you shouldn't do your long runs too slowly as they are not specific enough. While I can see that it might come as a bit of a shock doing 26.2 miles at 7:30/mile when you've only run at 11:00/mile in training, as long as you have been doing tempo runs, and you do include some faster long runs then the occasional reeeeaaally slow run won't do any harm. Generally try to keep them between 1 and 2 minutes/mile slower than marathon pace.
Later in your program, with maybe 6 weeks to go to the marathon, try adding a fast finish to the run. Jog the first 15 miles and then try lifting the pace up to marathon pace for the last 5 miles. Make sure you carbo-load for the race as you'll find this very tough if you're low on fuel.
The hardest I reckon you should run is 15 miles of marathon effort (although I personally think that 10 miles of marathon effort is sufficient). Try this 3 weeks out, no closer. Jog the first 5 miles and then pick up the pace for the last 15. Remember that 15 miles of marathon pace is a very hard training run. Don't do this closer than 3 weeks to the marathon. Give yourself a day or 2 of recovery and you should be OK but look for signs of fatigue. If you attempt a 20-miler only 2 weeks out then jog it - don't attempt a large amount of marathon pace running so close to the marathon.
Of course people will still want to race a 20-miler, but if you absolutely must then I'd say: don't try this within a month of the marathon, consider taking several days off afterwards, and cut right back on the training afterwards with little or no speedwork for a week or 2. Bear in mind the context in which you do the race. How much other racing have you done? What is your training load? Remember that the marathon is (probably) your target. If the 20-miler is your target though, then good luck to you - you obviously won't mind if you don't do that well in the marathon.
It's amazing how heated on-line discussions can get when I say "Don't race 20-milers", but hopefully I've presented a balanced view on the topic.
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