Still a noob to life after C25K. I have reservations about running faster than ‘comfy’ during longer runs, as I am scared of injury, or just being too exhausted and being sick - which goes back to a cross-country run at school when I was 11. I normally shuffle along at a higher HR than where I am supposed to be (180-ish), so it isn’t like I am slacking off even when I am comfortable.
So, today, I was a bit worried about a planned run in my training plan that was 10min jog, 3min ‘tempo’, 10min jog. Quick google of what tempo runs were, took me to Runners World. I visualised what I though it should feel like (well, I am a geek!) and headed out.
I’d picked a familiar route where I knew it wouldn’t coincide with an uphill gradient 😉 and worked out it should be about 4K, so I set off at 5k pace. Wow, was I unprepared for the humidity this morning!!! I wasn’t hot, sun-wise, but for some reason I find I struggle. Still, I kept going and started to listen out for the tempo-run cue.... which didn’t happen. Turns out there is a volume issue with my music and the app voice. So a quick glance at the watch as Queen came on the playlist and I picked up the pace a bit for 3-ish minutes. It felt like a long 3 minutes 🤣 even though I wasn’t at max effort. I was surprised how much ground I covered!
Slowed back down to the comfy pace and was pleasantly surprised it felt comfy again very quickly (or maybe that was because I was going downhill now!) I did the last 10min perfectly fine and only slowed down because I have the 5k Parkrun on Saturday.
Either way, today was a great confidence giver. I’d found slower gears during C25K. I’m chuffed I am now finding faster gears too - and surviving! I can see where the tempo was in my HR data - really interesting! The map I’ve attached here shows most green after that ‘dot’ where is says ‘Hook St’... that was the tempo bit until the next left corner 😁.
Happy running everyone!
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Equi-geek
Graduate10
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Well done! And it was deceptively warm this morning. The dog won't go for a walk so I know it's warm again! I did an intervals thing last night and did a fast 4 min. It was difficult! I have my happy slow pace and speeding up is hard! 😁
Well done, Equi-geek! Sounds like you’re getting the hang of this pace thing...😊👍❤️🏃♀️
I’m still a bit confused by all these different run intensity terms. 🤔 I never seem able to hold a conversation when I run, apart from odd words to people I pass, so am not sure if that means I’m at my “tempo” speed normally. And I don’t seem able to maintain my “fast” speed for long at all when I try random Fartlek style runs - certainly not for 3mins!!! 😖😧 (I admit I’m a teeny bit envious that you get a 180 bpm pulse, though, as my pacemaker can’t even go that high!! 😂😂❤️)
Thanks Tasha, that’s really helpful. If I put in my Parkrun PB to date then it means I should really be training much slower than I do for most of the week. So I’ll need to work on that.
I find it hard when people talk about heart rate zones, because I have no natural heart rate, and my pacemaker doesn’t necessarily behave how you might expect with exercise.
Glad I am not the only one a bit confused! I am in ‘experiment mode’ and won’t beat myself up if I over-do it and can’t finish. But I don’t envy you having to cope with a pacemaker!!
That’s why I decided to choose Fartlek-style speed work instead of structured intervals. My pulse rate went lower for Laura’s Speed podcast intervals than for my standard slower longer runs, so I knew my pulse wasn’t behaving right. Fartlek lets me just speed up and slow down randomly depending on how I feel, so no risk of me passing out or anything! 😂❤️
Well done Equi. I think it's great to add variety and different challenges to our running. Now that I know I can do 10k I too am going to add some different challenges to keep me motivated and excited along with my longer runs. Go you
Thanks Lorijay! I’m just starting out heading towards 10K and the Great South (hopefully) so going to be an ‘interesting’ summer 🤣 Not too proud to walk a bit 😉
Well done anyway!! Don't stress about the "words", not important. (Tho there have been a few Big Swinging Dick comments on other posts about people misusing some "sacred" terms like "recovery runs".)
Ignore the zealots i say. Go out and run around. Just have fun. Some faster bits, some interval-type things. But mostly slow, especially on the long runs.
Thanks sallenson! 🤗 I’m planning to head out tomorrow for a slow and steady ParkRun. It still amazes me that I can run so regularly - even these ‘short’ 4ks 🤣 and enjoy it - who knew!... 🤷♀️
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