NOS 2015 - run thread - Week 8 - Bring it!
Welcome all to week 8. We have been toiling away since week one working to get faster and faster, and now we get to see the results (hopefully anyway, more on that in a second). This week breaks up the routine you have likely started to get used to, by design of course, to keep your body from getting too settled/in a rut.
So a few words about the testing. For both tests, pacing is important (thank you captain obvious, right?). For those of you who have never experienced it (and God bless you if you haven't, you are wayyyy better than I), there are few things in life that are worse than realizing midway through a test you went out too hot and now need to try and just hold on, or worse, need to shut it down and go again another day. On the flip side, you can also go out too slow and feel like you left some gains on the table. While that physically feels better (I have never thrown up by going out too slow), it can be even more mentally taxing. The good news with all the type A's in the haus, I think the former is more likely, so be careful on going out too hot! And to follow on my soap box moment from last week, this is a GREAT time to post your results for a couple of reasons. First, for those who see a big bump, it always nice to throw that down and celebrate with the group. Second, for those who may not get the result they are after, there are a LOT of folks who have gone through that disappointment and have great feedback to provide. Finally, if you should feel either way, remember that this is just the half way point and there is more work to be done and gains to be had! I will end with a great quote for test week:
"Don't watch the clock; do what it does. Keep going." -Sam Levinson
Have a great week!
Comments
Since I did the bike test on Saturday I decided to get up this morning and do the run test so that I could maintain the same pain as the rest of you. I got up and had a gel and some water and hit the road. I did a circuitous route to the high school track for a 30 minute warmup with a few strides. It was in the low 30's so I had worn a long sleeve shirt and a hi-viz vest. I took those off when I got to the track so I wouldn't overheat. I got on the track and got up to speed and hit the lap button to start the 3.1 mile segment.
I didn't have any expectations for this 5k. As most of you know if you've read along with my whine and cheese party this NOS that I've been having some problems with my right hamstring. I haven't run anything fast longer than a mile for a long time. I did run a 6:48 mile about 5 weeks ago but that was only one mile and I had no idea how a 5k run would turn out. I started out strong but I tried to hold back a little so I wouldn't blow up. I didn't check my watch at all during the test so I had no idea of my pace, I just knew it was hard. I've used Joe Freil's plans in the past and he says that when you're doing a test that you should just ask yourself if you're going as hard as you can at that moment so that's what I did.
Since it was early my brain wasn't firing on all cylinders so unintentionally tricked myself. For some reason I thought that the 5k would be 16+ laps so I was counting down and trying to figure out how many more laps I had to do when I realized it was only 12+ laps that I had to do!!! Bonus! I was closer to the end than I thought.
I ran hard and tried to pick it up for the last two laps but I think that just meant I didn't slow down. My time was 21:29 for a vDot of 45 which was exactly what my vDot was at the end of the NOS last year. I'll take that since I haven't been able to do any speed work except 30 second sprints for the last couple of months.(I didn't test at the beginning of this NOS so I've been using my old vDot paces so I guess that was OK.) TP file http://tpks.ws/FVmK
Rest up tomorrow and run well on Wednesday. Good luck.
Was already feeling not 100% the last couple of days having a sore throat each morning and today (the day after the bike-test) I could barley speak in the morning and my throat was hurting terribly!!
I left the office early today to get a nice hot bath and will add some more paracetamol now
Testing at this medical condition doesn't make any sense IMHO as the result will not reflect my current fitness level!
So I'll most likely take a few days off to recover from that cold and may do the test later depending how long it takes me to get rid of that cold.
Have you been pushing harder more frequently lately?
Difficulty hitting power/pace zones? HR lower than normal at those zones?
Your symptoms show up after a particularly exceptional week of training?
I ask because the past several OSes I have struggled with fatigue which always included cold/flu symptoms at some point. Recently I have spent some time looking into chronic fatigue and the cortisol-adrenaline responses to high intensity workout as compared to endurance style workouts.
I had to do my run test today due to some logistic challenges. I had an interesting result I am hoping to get some input on.
My last 5k was 19:44 (10/22) and was the best I had done in a long time. This was a vDOT of 50. I had been at 48 for the last 18 months or so.
I have had some trouble hitting the time marks/intervals in the prescribed workouts over the last several weeks, so I was pretty sure I was not going to be advancing my vDOT score and anticipated another 50 or possibly even slipping back to a 49.
Well, along came this afternoon and I started out the 5k with the fastest individual mile I have ever run (5:56) . I then followed it up with #3 fastest mile (6:02:07) and then my # 4 fastest mile ever (6:02:61). I ended my 5 k at 18:39:95. Technically a vDOT of 54 (barely squeaked in).
A 4 point vDOT increase seems like A LOT for a two month period of time and I am worried I am not going to be able to hit the new targets in the intervals as it was already kind of hard and now is going to be even harder.
I am STOKED about chopping 1:04 off my best 5k ever. But I am also somewhat concerned. I am wondering if y'all have any insights re: should I "ease into" the next set of workout intervals, or just go bonkers and try to hit my splits.... I know we are not even 1/2 way through the OS yet and I don't want to blow up.
Thanks for your time and for all the positive energy in the EN!!
October 29th I did a 5k run test at 27:58. Vdot 33.
December 6th, I did a real 5k at 26:00. Vdot 36.6.
@Justin- I agree with Scott, try out the new paces (you earned them right!!) but if not quite hitting them all the time just back off a little till body catches up.
It's all mental (well a little physical) to these tests folks. If you can train the brain to not worry about pain you are getting there.
Run Test done this morning on TM. Usually I struggle with replicating my training times into a test, but this morning I felt good, ran loose, and executed my pacing.
Old Vdot 35.2 (not a good test) New Vdot 37.1 Very good test.
The work is working !
Good work everyone. Did my test this morning, same exact time and thus same Vdot as 8 weeks ago. Was a little surprising to me , because I feel the zones I have been running at haven't been kicking my butt and tend to find myself drifting at a slightly higher pace often. I did my first test on the treadmill at 1.5% elevation. Today I tested outside because I will be moving to Florida in a week so didnt think I should be testing on the treadmill. The difference between TM and outside may have something to do with the testing times. On the other hand, I am very happy with this test. This is my 2nd year with EN and last year at this time my Vdot was 43
My overall time was 24:50 (five second slower), pace was 7:59 (the same) and average HR was 163 (1 beat lower).
I thought I would be faster as I felt good at the various zones in the run workouts.
Only difference between today and the first test was the 30 degree cooler weather and multiple layers of clothing.
But no excuses; gotta work harder over the next six weeks.
New 5k 27:24 new V dot 34
Old 5k 29:19 old V dot 31
Woop, woop!
Ok, got the test in this morning despite some logistical challenges...
Time: 23:58
Avg Pace: 7:43
Mile 1: 7:54
Mile 2: 7:49
Mile 3: 7:24
HR Avg: 181, Max 202
vDot:40
My last test was:
Time: 24:50
Pace: 8:00
HR Avg: 185, Max 197
Nice improvement for me, I'll take it; especially given my poor showing on the bike...
Lets' see if I can hack my new target zones.... :-)
Thanks!
Erik
No I've not had a hard time hitting my zones during my workouts lately. To your HR question I've no answer as I normally don't use my HR strap since the data out of it is pretty crappy and I'm still waiting for the new strap to arrive.
The time before christmas is usually very stressful @ work as well as at home so this might be one factor here ...
It's quiet usual for me to catch a cold at that period of the year (similar to end of Jan begin of Feb) but this year it's just bad luck it happens exactly during testing week.
In the last 2 years I sometimes just ignored the first signs of catching a cold and kept on pushing by the plan and at least in 2 cases this punched me hard in the face a few days later by being unable to train at all for a week or more.
I've now had 2 full days off and I feel a lot better so let's wait for tomorrow mornings throat feeling and maybe I give the 5k a GO
NOS Week#1
vDOT: 33
5k Avg HR - 161; Max HR - 169
5k pace - 9.03min /mile
Splits - 8:35,9:25,9:10
NOS Week#8
vDOT: 40
5k Avg HR - 156; Max HR - 172
5k pace - 7:38 min /mile
Splits - 7:39,7:58,7:22
26:29
mile 1: 8:21
mile 2: 8:39
mile 3: 8:39
vDot = 35 no change
I've had a history of running injuries mainly because I've never followed any pacing guidelines until I joined EN in Nov. Bumping up speed is making me nervous.
This training plan works!!!!!!
Not to make anyone paranoid or anything, but my numbers jumped some last NOS (my first) and I started having Achilles issues in March during the get faster plan so I backed off the speed work and stuck to the Z1/2 work with some Z3 for the rest of the IM season. This fall I started adding some speed work back in and then injured my hamstring. I dropped the long speed work and have just been doing 30 second fartleks during the NOS but those have been all out with a 40 second rest (15-20 repeats per workout). I've also been getting message therapy for the last couple of weeks.
This week I did the 5k test and was right at where I was at the end of the NOS last year with a vDot of 45. It's a bummer not to be faster, but just the fact that I haven't slowed down and haven't done any speed work is significant for me since I'm 58. In addition to the massage therapy I've added weights back into the mix. I dropped those last NOS. I plan on getting back slowly into the longer speed work, but monitoring it carefully.
I did the FTP test yesterday and then during the brick my right calf got really tight and started hurting bad so I completely stopped running for fear of injury. Today my legs felt fully recovered from the FTP test but my calf was real sore in the exact same spot. Several times throughout the day I massaged the area and tried to work it out. I figured I better not try a test so I ended up running for an hour at Z 1.5. After about 3 miles it felt a lot better and I finished with 8 miles on the TM in 60 minutes.
@Amulya, Justin and others concerned about your new paces. Listen to your body. That's more important than anything else. If you feel something abnormal, or are starting to hurt, ease up. Don't run yourself into a wall. Always be thinking about how your current workout is going to affect tomorrow's workout or other downstream workouts. However, don't let your new numbers intimidate you. You earned them so try to hit your new paces. If you earned a VDOT bump it will take your body some time to adjust. Maybe instead of adding HMP or MP to the end of the run, add some Z1 running or a pace between Z1 and Z2.
I warmed up 1 mile and then started, what I did not realize was that in the out and back course I chose and have used before there was a very strong head wind once I got out on the road, I felt I was really putting a lot into it by 3/4 of the first mile and that it would not be a true representation of where I am in terms of VDot having battled those conditions, I kept at it but pulled out shortly after mile 1
I did not give up easy and after 20 mins or so tried again in the bike path that is more protected from wind. It was going well until mile 2 when I felt I was crumbling due to that initial mile on the 1st failed attempt and the effort it had taken and I stopped to call it a day...
I don't consider this a huge deal and it's more a learning than anything so I plan these tests better in the future
I also have the Thanksgiving Run from week 5 where I did 19:50 vs 20:36 in week 1 and I have been using those paces since then
I will try to test again either Friday or sign up for a 5K over the weekend and will get back to you all!!!
Congrats to all for the great results reported so far !
Hey guys, I've been along on the ride since the beginning of the Nov outseason. Today's run test was a PB for me even if it was on the treadmill. Set it at incline 2 and ran 20:52. First 1/2 mile was 7:05 and the rest was at 6:56. It was tough but I think I could give it a little more. avg hr was 171 with max at 183. I think that gives me a vdot of 48? Is that right? I haven't been on the forums much because life has been in the way. I have done all the workouts and then some. So far after 8 weeks EN has been fantastic.
@ Gonz -- you'll crush your 5k race, so don't worry about today!
Solid run test for me this evening. After dinner & my son's basketball practice, I headed over to a local high school track. It was chilly, but not frigid and the wind was frisky, but not overwhelming. Fellow ENer and New Jerseyite Peter Wick came out to light the track and provide moral support. After a solid warm-up including strides, I got right to it.
Set my Garmin to auto-lap every 1k and ended up with the following splits:
1k: 5:52/mile pace
2k: 6:06/mile
3k: 6:10/mile
4k: 6:16/mile
5k: 6:05/mile
Total: 18:58 (6:06/mile pace)
Obviously, I slowed from 1k thru 4k, so I started out too hot. I was able to bring the pace back down in the last km, so I think all-in-all, my pacing was OK.
I'm 30 seconds off my PB 5k result in EN testing, so I have a goal to shoot for in Week 14!
Anyway, I accidentally stopped several yards too soon...mis reading my watch...so I don't have an exact exact time. It was really close to 20 minutes, but I'm not going to claim 19.xxx because I blew it and had to make a guesstimate of what my actual time would be if I hadn't started walking with .03 miles to go....
So let's call it 20:00 flat. VDOT 49.8
That's still 30 seconds better than I started...at 20:30, so I'll take it. I wish I were better at this. I feel like I kind of have to re-learn how to run a 5K every year!
Congrats to all who tested up and to those who just gave it all and saw where the chips fell!
@Terry - good job doing it on a treadmill. The EN calculator give a vDot of 47 for a 20:52.
Nice job everyone.
I did my test at the track in the dark, cold and wet. I couldn't see my Garmin until the first mile was over and the lap time came up at 6:20, which is a bit fast for what I thought I could do. After that I just had to hang on and not explode and I felt I should get a good time.
Ironic in that my bike test only had a small gain, and that has where I have been trying to focus and really wanting to improve. I haven't been doing the Tuesday & Thursday brick runs. I think my slight body comp improvement helped me more on the run v bike. Fingers crossed I can make some more improvements, stay injury free (or at least no more injured than I already am). My goal is to get under 20 minutes next time. I think it is doable. Probably if I had paced better on that first mile I would have been quicker today. But I am still really pleased with this result. Here are my laps from Strava
Time: 20:39
Mile 1: 6:48
Mile 2: 6:39
Mile 3: 6:36
Mile .1: :34
HR Avg: 181, Max 173
vDot:48