PM Update - 5 Mile Progression run on grass around soccer fields during sons practice, legs felt/feel great! 802, 745, 727, 714, 643, cool down 930
AM - 4 mile trail run again, wanted to get a new PB, which I ran
last fall right before BQing at St. George, as I know I am in better shape now …
and wanted to get a new benchmark before the 90 degree heat arrives. Mission accomplished, 8:26 AP, this being 25
seconds per mile faster that my 8:56 I ran it in last September. This is my favorite trail run, but it is
tough! The first half of Mile 4 is steep uphill, including
a section with about 40 steps due to steepness, which equates to a strenuous
effort regardless of what pace I run! M1 - 8:23, M2 - 8:14, M3 - 7:56, M4 - 9:10
So … I have been thinking a lot about my running goals …
I found an interesting article (link below) on the
importance of varying training, and while it was written primarily with the tri-athlete
in mind, I think it applies to the long distance runner as well. I have some pretty lofty running goals, as
most of us do on this site. While I only
started running competitively in the last year, for me I find it important to
constantly remind myself how I should best progress in my training to reach my
overall goals. Having just turned 45, I
believe balance and consistency is the key.
For the first time in my life, I have improved upon my consistency, as
that was my number one goal at the beginning of the year, to build an aerobic
base from which I could produce gains.
While I am only 4 months into this phase, and it will probably take a
couple years of consistent running to get to where I need to be, I must
constantly remind myself that injury prevention is Priority One … and this is
where I believe Balance is critical, and my training needs to constantly change
focus to achieve this. I am no longer
25, and cannot continually ramp up mileage and intensity, like I probably could
have 20 years ago, and achieve success.
While continual improvement at all distances is my primary
goal, I must remember that I cannot achieve these goals overnight, and steer
myself away from the desire to constantly enter races and try to put forth PR
efforts, as I am convinced this will only lead to one thing … injury! As I have considered the different aspects of
the goals I want to accomplish, I have determined that ultimately my goal is to
reach my peak running performance at Age 50 and beyond, while remaining injury
free throughout the process … that would involve 5 years of consistent training
with balance. My ultimate Boston goals
are a Top 20 finish in Age Group 45-49.
Because of where my birthday falls, I will get to run Boston twice at
the Age of 49, the first time being on my birthday! A Top 10 finish in 50-54 Age group at
Boston, in the 121st running, on April 17, 2017, 3 days before
turning 51! And lastly, at Age 55-59,
well … I hope to win my Age Group at Boston! I have come to the conclusion at the age of 45 that my competitive soccer days are over, and running has replaced as my primary passion ... I probably would have picked golf, but that is just to expensive ... it will probably replace running at 60! lol Anyway, interesting article here, the author runs a local training facility, and was recently selected as the coach of the the official Team USA, for the 2011 ITU World Championships in Beijing, China.
http://thesportfactory.com/site/trainingnews/Peripheral_Training.shtml
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