Run speed vs. run strength (hills) = good IM Marathon?
I just completed my last run test (5k) with a VDot of 47 (6:45 / mile)....trouble is, I really feel that I'm going to hurt myself if I continue to run at this pace - I think I'm capable of going a bit faster but am fearful that I'll get injured (history of plantar fascitis)...so my thought is to train to get "stronger" i.e. hills at a slower pace than my VDot intervals (7:30-8:00 / mile). I just did a short run (on treadmill) trying this - upping the % grade every 5 min. and increasing pace a bit each "up" to finish at 4.5% grade and just under 8:00 pace - felt the workout but didn't have the lingering pain that has plagued me recently (can concentrate on proper foot fall / posture / etc...). Does this make sense to help protect my fragile feet? How would this type of training translate into a IM Marathon (all else being equal i.e. bike power, etc.)? I have IM Texas in May and would love to break 4 hrs. for the run (last nov. IM Cozumel run was 4:50 - ugh!)....any thoughts would be appreciated. Of course I would still train outdoors and would add SOME speed work to try to keep the turnover high....THANKS!
Comments
First thought: who cares how "strong" you are? Going faster in races requires you to be faster, not stronger. Further, I think that the risk of injury is far greater from running hill repeat intervals than running faster on flat groud. In my experience, those that have running injuries -- me included -- are the result of running too much too soon, not due to running to fast/hard/whatever. That said every time I have actually hurt myself it has been while running too fast up a hill. I think it is because running up hills puts more stress on the feet/lower legs.
My pretty much fool proof plan for having a faster run split is to lose a much weight as you can. Now if I could only take my own advice...
To expand on Chris' injury point: running hard up hills on an increasing grade on the treadmill offers additional ways to injury yourself, specficially the muscles that lift the thigh, muscles at the base of the abdomen and internally in the lower core. I also have injured myself doing hard uphill intervals, but never doing hard intervals on the flat.
+1 on the speed aspect. I get my best IM runs when (1) the temp is perfect, i.e., mid 60s and (2) I've done a few weeks of intervals on a soft track ahead of time. The easiest way to get a faster IM marathon than your 4:50 at Coz? Go to Tempe a week earlier and your time will drop a minue a mile just from the temp. difference.
Doug,
I like to think of this question as having three parts:
Speed
Like Chris said, running faster is about becoming a faster runner by running faster. We do this encouraging you to run with pace, interval training, etc. That said, it sounds like you know your body and the quickest way to become slower is to injury yourself. That is, all the speedwork in the world is only as good as your ability to run consistently and not get hurt. As you get injured...your make-me-faster stuff grinds to a halt.
I've been there with the foot and ankle stuff (grrrr!) and it my experience hard hill running can stress your feet more than flat running. So in terms of what's best for you, I wanted to make you aware of the risks of running up hills vs flats, given your foot stuff. Maybe one of the smart doc types can give us some additional insight.
Endurance
) tends to fall within the same range: 4-5 runs per week, total of 25-35 miles. In my experience, it's very risky to try to push much beyond the personal equation that you've found to be right for you. For me, it's a 1:30-45 long run and about 35mi per week. When I try to go beyond those, things get exponentially more risky so I'm in camp of getting faster by running faster and getting skinny.
In my experience, the sum of running frequency and volume, applied over time through consistent running. We all have our unique numbers that we can apply to our own bodies but within the context of Ironman training about 90% of AG'ers "endurance building equation" (just made that up
Additionally, many Ironman athletes attribute a run failure to a lack of endurance when in fact it's due to poor execution. Outside EN, the solution is always to train more. Inside EN, our first instinct is to examine race execution first to determine if you made a mistake there. If yes, what can we do improve execution (free speed)? Addressing a lack of or opportunity to improve fitness is only addressed after execution.
Durability
I would call this the ability to keep running at the same pace after you legs have taken the pounding of a 112mi bike ride and 18mi run. The last 8mi of the Ironman run feel like someone has taken a baseball bat to your quads, as you actually become very, very sore during the event vs the day after. Durability is about being able to run through that.
The tool I personally use is moderate downhill running: in addition to intervals on the flats, I'll do hilly runs, not so much to drill the uphills but to add considerably more stress to my legs and quads on the downhills. Be careful, it doesn't take much at all, but in my experience it pays off.