Any Runners? (10K or marathon)

[MolGenBuckeye]

If I wanted to be really masochistic I could have signed up for the 40K or 60K race but I figured I'm not that crazy... yet. Speaking of being masochistic, you and Mili may be certifiably crazy to do full triathlons. How do you train for an event like that? Do you do any kind of workout that is close to that total distance before the event?

My training plan starts about 9 months out from the race. It's a few months of building a base, then the last few months are all about increasing the distance. My longest ride this year was last week: 120 miles from Columbus out past Mount Vernon and back. Longest run will be about 2:45 , I think. As for the longest total workout, I have one on the schedule two weeks from now that's a 45 min swim/100 mile bike/45 min run. So, it sort of approaches the distance in a sense, but you just can't do the full distance of everything in a day. There's a reason you're supposed to take time off after one of these. :)

Does anyone know of any good places in Central Ohio to do a hill workout? I'm looking do to a 7-10 mile run with some decent hills in it. I've heard Highbanks Park has some good hills for this part of the state but I haven't yet checked it out.

Highbanks is about the best Columbus park to do hills that I know of - that's where our running group does their hill workouts. I end up at Blendon Woods more, just because it's closer. It's got a few hills as well, but you'll be doing trails more than once to get in 7-10 miles there.

 

[MililaniBuckeye]

Doing a 2.3-mile (3700 meter) swim tomorrow on the North Shore, from Sunset Beach to Waimea Bay, two of Oahu's most famous surf spots. Fortunately, the summer has very minimal wave sets compared to winter...this swim would not be possible during the winter months (due to waves, not water temp).

 

[jimotis4heisman]

Doing a 2.3-mile (3700 meter) swim tomorrow on the North Shore, from Sunset Beach to Waimea Bay, two of Oahu's most famous surf spots. Fortunately, the summer has very minimal wave sets compared to winter...this swim would not be possible during the winter months (due to waves, not water temp).

if you wanted it bad enough mili, you could do it. nothing is impossible, only pansies to scared to try...

 

[xcrunner]

If I wanted to be really masochistic I could have signed up for the 40K or 60K race but I figured I'm not that crazy... yet. Speaking of being masochistic, you and Mili may be certifiably crazy to do full triathlons. How do you train for an event like that? Do you do any kind of workout that is close to that total distance before the event?

I'll admit, part of my motivation for the Hocking Hills 20K is nostalgia. My high school cross country team would go to Hocking Hills for a week to train (I grew up in the flat lands of northwest Ohio) and the "highlight" run of the week was running the 20K course. I even found out via Facebook that one of my old cross country buddies is running the 20K race too, though he'll probably end up beating me by a good amount.

Does anyone know of any good places in Central Ohio to do a hill workout? I'm looking do to a 7-10 mile run with some decent hills in it. I've heard Highbanks Park has some good hills for this part of the state but I haven't yet checked it out.

Highbanks is perfect. Very hilly, scenic, just great running in general. I don't live in Ohio anymore and I miss Highbanks a lot. It will definitely prepare you, workouts there are hard...

 

[BlufftonBuckeye]

Anyone do the ultra marathons?

I personally don't, Marathons and Halfs are good enough for me, but my buddy ran a 50 miler early this spring, then ran the Burning River 100 in Akron 2 weeks ago. He's also doing the 100 miler at the end of Sept in Pickeney(sp?) Michigan, so I may go to that one so I can represent the Buckeyes and stir shit up with the scUM fans.

 

[bkochmc]

Highbanks is about the best Columbus park to do hills that I know of - that's where our running group does their hill workouts. I end up at Blendon Woods more, just because it's closer. It's got a few hills as well, but you'll be doing trails more than once to get in 7-10 miles there.

Highbanks is perfect. Very hilly, scenic, just great running in general. I don't live in Ohio anymore and I miss Highbanks a lot. It will definitely prepare you, workouts there are hard...

Thanks, I'll probably try out Highbanks next weekend!

I'm at Blendon fairly often as I live close... I ran to Blendon, did some trails then ran back home both Saturday and Sunday, put in about 13.5 miles total. I usually end up running there or the multi-purpose trails at the Hoover Reservoir.

 

[MolGenBuckeye]

Just got to see Meb win the Olympic trials for the marathon! Congrats Merih! We were at mile 26, huge cheer when the crowd saw him come around the corner in first. :)

 

[A Pac]

Marathon Advice

I need some help/advice. I am running my first marathon on June 2nd in South Bend. It is through Sunburst Races and it has been going on for almost 30 years. It's really cool because racers get to run through the stadium and finish on the 50 yard line (even if you hate Notre Dame, you still have to admit that's pretty cool).

If anyone else out there has run in marathons please let me know of any advice you have. I am also running a second one in the inaugural Canton marathon 15 days later (probably not a good idea) but I looked it up online and it seems that I will be OK as long as I get plenty of rest. Please let me know of any advice you has for rest between races. Thanks.

 

[southcampus]

Terrible idea on that 2nd marathon. By the way, it's going to be HOT for both of those most likely. Be sure to prepare for that.

 

[A Pac]

Terrible idea on that 2nd marathon. By the way, it's going to be HOT for both of those most likely. Be sure to prepare for that.

I know it will be hot but thankfully both start at 6 a.m. I think I will be ok on the second one considering I'm not really "racing" in the first one. I just want to get it done. We'll see though.

 

[Muck]

Off the top of my head...

Don't have a big meal the night before. That food will just be sitting in your stomach the day of the race.

Familiarize yourself with (ie actually run at least parts of) the course before the day of the run, especially the last couple of miles.

Stay towards the back of the pack when you line up at the starting point.

When you are training don't do an extra long run each week. It will just keep your muscles tired and increase the risk of injury. Instead limit extra long sessions to every other or every third week.

Don't run at all for 2-3 days prior to the race.

Drink a cup of water about two hours before the start (that will give it time to work out of your system by race time) and a cup of your favorite 'ade ten minutes before race time and 2/3-3/4 of a cup every couple of miles during the race. Do the same during your training runs to get used to it.

Be realistic about your pace. Your mile times during the marathon are not going to be faster than what you are running in training. Instead expect them to be slower. A rough rule of thumb is 1 min slower per mile than your usual 5k time (so if you are doing 18min 5Ks don't expect better than 7 minutes per mile during the marathon).

 

[knapplc]

I need some help/advice. I am running my first marathon on June 2nd in South Bend.

My advice? Don't do it. I heard this guy, Eucles, died after running his first marathon.

 

[A Pac]

Off the top of my head...

Don't have a big meal the night before. That food will just be sitting in your stomach the day of the race.

Familiarize yourself with (ie actually run at least parts of) the course before the day of the run, especially the last couple of miles.

Stay towards the back of the pack when you line up at the starting point.

When you are training don't do an extra long run each week. It will just keep your muscles tired and increase the risk of injury. Instead limit extra long sessions to every other or every third week.

Don't run at all for 2-3 days prior to the race.

Drink a cup of water about two hours before the start (that will give it time to work out of your system by race time) and a cup of your favorite 'ade ten minutes before race time and 2/3-3/4 of a cup every couple of miles during the race. Do the same during your training runs to get used to it.

Be realistic about your pace. Your mile times during the marathon are not going to be faster than what you are running in training. Instead expect them to be slower. A rough rule of thumb is 1 min slower per mile than your usual 5k time (so if you are doing 18min 5Ks don't expect better than 7 minutes per mile during the marathon).

I have no illusions of having a great time. I don't care if I average 10 minutes a mile. I just want to finish both. Next year I will work for a certain time.

 

[MililaniBuckeye]

Terrible idea on that 2nd marathon. By the way, it's going to be HOT for both of those most likely. Be sure to prepare for that.

Not a terrible idea at all. Two weeks is plenty of time to recover from one marathon to do another, especially if the first marathon is a "cruise" marathon.

When you are training don't do an extra long run each week. It will just keep your muscles tired and increase the risk of injury. Instead limit extra long sessions to every other or every third week.

Actually, you should do one long run on the weekend (15-20 miles) with several moderate runs (8-12 miles) during the week, during your peak training (from 6 weeks to 2 weeks prior to race). Your long weekend run should be between 80-100% of the total of the two weekday runs (max 20 miles).

Don't run at all for 2-3 days prior to the race.

Don't do this. Do at least one short run (3-6 miles) at a light pace about 3 days prior, and the day before do a 20-30 minute jog. This keeps your legs loose and in running condition without taxing them. You don't want to go into a 26-mile run "cold".

In my training group I know about a half dozen people who qualified for and just did the Boston Marathon, and they all do what I mentioned above. Even weak runners (like myself) should follow this routine, simply using shorter distances.

 

[southcampus]

Not a terrible idea at all. Two weeks is plenty of time to recover from one marathon to do another, especially if the first marathon is a "cruise" marathon.

I guess I had just assumed that the OP was older and doing his first marathon. Doing 2 in such a quick amount of time would be foolish IMO.