Breaking the Wall

It's good to see your not too sore. Once again good job on Sat.

I think you're probably right on with your prediction of 2:22.50 for St. George. However, with all the races coming up and increasing your speed the rest of the summer months you probably will drop even more. Do you think you'll be able to drop below 2:20?

Good job on Saturday... When and what do you mean by 5k flags? What kind workouts are you planning?

Sasha,

In your pursuit of developing better 5k speed, have you considered dropping your mileage a little? Say, from 80-90 miles/week to 60-70 miles/week? One thought is to lower your total training volume and increase your intensity in order to bump up your speed while you focus on 5k's. Once you've achieved this, you could increase your volume during August and September for your peak marathons, and maintain your speed in the process.

The idea is that to run a fast 5k, you must train like a 5k runner. When I was running my fastest 5k's, my weekly mileage was generally around 60, with two quality track workouts and a weekend race. I am not sure what sort of volume elite 5k runners are doing, but I imagine it is lower than that of an elite marathoner.

Just a thought...

By the way, if you haven't tried decending/ascending ladder workouts already, I would highly recommend it. Go to a track and run 200 - 300 - 400 - 600 - 800- 1000 - 1000 - 800 - 600 - 400 - 300 - 200 at 3k pace. Great for speed.

Steve - that was a typo - it was supposed to say fangs.

Paul - I believe there are two types of a 5 K runner - those that can run it well off low-mileage, and those who do better with higher mileage. Think of Gerry Lingren for an extereme case for higher mileage. I talked to him last year - he said his 400 speed did not come until he started doing mega mileage. So I would say this is very individual. One thing I know for myself is that high mileage done right does not hurt my speed. Perhaps the reason I do not lose any is that there was none to begin with.

I have tried ladders before, although not extensively, and a long time ago. Have not found them to be much different from regular intervals. It might be worth another try - can you make a strong case for ladder training?

Here is the challenge I am dealing with when it comes to a 5 K. I can run a mile in 5:00 and feel like I am relaxing. But then a bear jumps on me on the next 400 and reduces me to a tempo pace for the rest of the way. This has happened time and again. I have been able to give this bear a punch in the belly in Draper Days in 2004 when I ran my PR of 15:37 (I've run faster 5 Ks, but do not consider the courses PR-eligible). That was about the only time in my life I've been able to punch that bear. That race hurt worse than any other race I've ever run. To anybody that says marathon is the greatest pain they've ever experienced I say wait until you do a 5 K right.

To have the strength to punch the bear I did the following: daily sprints 10 repeats of 10 seconds all out 50 seconds slow, 3x1 mile downhill in the Provo Canyon with 200 recovery each in 5:00 once a week, and 4.3 miles up a 5% grade (I believe, you can double check it - it is from the start of the Squaw Peak road to the parking lot at the top) flooring it, a couple of minutes to rest and admire the scenery (as if I would care at that point), and then the same stretch down also flooring it. My plan was to repeat the same routine since it worked last time, but feel free to share any insights on why it worked, and what you think would work better.

Ladders came to my mind because we did a lot of them in college during the time my footspeed was developing. I like them because they mix speed and endurance in the same workout...just like a 5k race. They are also a good way to help with your kick, since you're doing the fastest intervals after you're completely gassed from the longer endurance intervals. I think that's why 5k's hurt so much, because they blend speed and endurance almost equally. There is really no time to relax. I agree that the 5k is the most painful race, by the way. In a strange way marathons are much easier.