Boston/IM WI
Patrick-
Sorry if this is "micro abuse", but I have sat through your marathon webinar, and I know you're the Boston guy. I also read through your Long Term IM Improvement document, which sounds as if it's written in your voice. Anyway, I've been thinking about how to puzzle out the best outcome I can have for this upcoming season, consisting of Boston and IM WI.
As it happens, both of these are races in which I have what I think are soft PRs (assuming weather is ok), and I would like to do at least B+/A- in both, but I don't have a killer goal for either. I am not really in the Kona hunt, so all I want to do is have a personal best WI with a really successful run. At Boston, I want to have a good strong race. Having done 90 minute half marathons the last couple years, and 3:14 2 weeks after the HIM this year, I think I should be capable of beating my previous Boston of 3:16. But again, I'm not in contention to win anything, so all I want is just a really solid race.
Since July, I've been racing/training on a "for fun" basis for short course racing. Nothing too serious. I've been keeping up one long run of 12-15 miles, and the last couple weekends a "double" of 13, and then 10 (but faster) on Sat/Sun. I'm closing out the season with a half marathon that I hope to do in good form on Oct 19. I'm ready for some time off soon, but I'm not "exhausted" like I would be if I ended a season with a big race.
Given the Boston race, I know my OS will suffer (particularly the bike), and I'm ok with that. But I also think I have some time to recover between then and WI. I also know that my 5K race pace isn't what's limited my IM marathon performance in the past, so I'm ok with not squeezing every run speed drop out of the OS. (It's been a bit of durability, and underestimating the temps, so I went too fast on the run...not slowing enough due to heat.)
I wonder what you think of the beginnings of my sketched out plan, which I attach. I was thinking of building up run volume at moderate intensity only before the OS, and then your Improvement document came out, which is almost perfectly in stride with that idea (i.e., 2 Durability months). If you start at the beginning of the year, the OS ends about when Boston does, and I may drop a bit of the cycling early as required to hit Boston in very, very good form.
The question is then how to handle the time between Boston and the 12 week build up. Obviously, I need some real plain old recovery time. I liked Rich's (?) idea of a couple weeks of intense swimming as part of an early transition that would also keep me off the legs for a bit longer...but I'm still not sure where to go from there...particularly how to go about building up the bike again, where to stick a BBW or similar, etc. I'll get my swim going, but the bike (while maintaining decent run form from the marathon) feels like it ought to be the biggest concern.
What are your thoughts?
Thanks,
William
Comments
@William great stuff already. I think that the Run Durability Plan allows you to get ready for a marathon push without cutting off any fitness on the bike, etc. Other random thoughts:
1 - only two weeks post half mary…no more. First week is SERIOUS recovery…
2 - I would plan on doing both bikes in the RDP for both sessions; but only one have to swim…bonus on the other one if you feel okay.
3 - Hard to look much beyond Boston at this point, just wanted to say that…but Wisco is plenty of time assuming you stay healthy in spring before the marathon.
4 - A hacked OS with a serious run goal means that your long run sessions (Sunday) will get to be pretty brutal.
5 - Given #4, our goal is to maintain the FTP you have, not really grow it here (that will come later). So I say Tues/Thurs on the bike, Friday OFF, Sat is your key long run. Sunday is a fixed ride of say 60-90 minutes, mostly Zone 2 stuff. If you feel peppy you can do some 1x1s in there, but that's it. Goal is to get a great Long run in and hit Monday prepared.
6 - Despite #3, my thoughts are 1 week off hard. Then into Swim Camp for two weeks. Then you have May to get your bike fitness back. Could be either the bike focus plan into the IM plan --- or --- load up the IM plan a bit further out (17 wks?) and plan out a big bike weekend or week in May to get a bike boost. I like option 2 here as intensity for focus plans will be hard to come by after OS and Marathon.
7 - I don't want you to really focus on running until june…you "can" run, but nothing hard or long until we get to june…you need a bit off running off time, so frequency rules and long run of 60-75 mins max.
Not sure what you mean here. Are you telling me I'm not taking enough time off by saying "only two weeks off" or are you telling me not to take any more than two weeks off? I tend to read this as the latter, but you usually abuse me for not taking long enough breaks, even though I tend to take relatively numerous ones.
Yup. Makes sense.
Agreed.
Yes, this makes a lot of sense.
Again, this makes sense, and I am sure we'll have time to re-assess down the line.
Thanks again!
Do I have permission to go for it on the half marathon if I'm feeling good, or is this just a fun race?