29 Oct – 9 Nov 2012 Running Info…

Hello Runners,

BrickLane201210I’ve just come in from our mid-paced run to Beigel Bake and I’m on cloud 9. Wow! We had several ladies who had never run that far before, we had several ladies who were worried they couldn’t keep up but they did, and we had several ladies purposely slowing down their pace to work on “finding their long run pace”. It was a huge success! To our faster girls who joined the run, thank you so much for not pushing the pace. You were all brilliant! Thanks a million and congratulations to everyone who reached some new milestone in their running. The Beigel Bake was a big hit. We’ll have to do that run again sometime.

Running Group T-shirts:
Our t-shirt order is in. The shirts are so cute – I can’t wait to see everyone wearing them! I’m horrible at being a money-collector, so this is it – if you haven’t paid me yet this is your last reminder. I am out of town from Thursday, 25 Oct through Sunday, 4 November) so it might be easiest to mail me a check: 8 Pindock Mews, London W9 2PY. There are a couple of people who did not confirm that they wanted a shirt and had not paid so those orders were not placed. Sorry!

Birthday Celebrations:
We’ll celebrate our October birthdays on Friday, 2 November. Happy Birthday to our November birthday ladies!!! We’ll celebrate these birthdays on Friday, 30 November.
Stacey Towfighi – 19 Nov
Bonnie Bandeen – 23 Nov
Donna Vos – 30 Nov
Ninita Agarval – Nov (no date specified)

Routes this Week

Yes, I am that bossy!!! I’m suggesting routes for the group even though I’ll be out of town. Let’s take this opportunity to repeat some of our most popular routes (translation – I’ll recommend the boring routes so you’ll really miss me while I’m away!!!). Seriously, run whatever routes you want to do. If there’s something we’ve done lately that you enjoyed, group up with a few other runners and do it. Here are some suggestions:

Monday, 29 October
Mondays are long run day for our faster runners. The Hyde Park loop will give you an opportunity to test that slower pace concept. Many of you have less mileage on your program this week than last week. It’ll be tempting to run quickly around Hyde Park and be done with it. Try to resist that temptation and slow yourself down just a bit.

Hyde Park loop (8 miles) – Run down Lisson Grove then Seymour to enter at the NE corner of the park then turn right or west to run along the northern boundary, turn left or south to reach Kensington Palace, then continue to follow the full perimeter of Hyde Park and return to St. John’s Wood via Baker Street or Gloucester Road.
If you’re doing your long run on Monday, but are having trouble maintaining a strong pace over long distances, either drop behind the group above when you get tired or shorten your run to the following:

Serpentine loop (6 miles) – run with the group to Hyde Park but when they cross over Carriage Rd – you turn left or south at Carriage Rd then run over the bridge. Immediately after the bridge, turn left to follow the waters edge back towards Wellington Arch. Then run back towards Speaker’s Corner and home via Baker Street or Gloucester Road. On Monday, mid-paced runners should do a tempo run (if you’re working on pace) or a mid-distance regular paced run.

The Wall (6 miles) – Consider doing this route as a tempo run (or just at a comfortable pace – your choice!!!). If you’re doing it as a tempo run, your warm-up and cool-down could be the jog to/from the canal. You could also to “The Wall” at a regular pace, then run back from “The Wall” to where we exit from the canal at a very strong pace. If you decide to try that, make note of how long it takes you to run only that leg (Wall to turn-off).

Wednesday, 31 October
Mid-paced runners should do the following route:

Hyde Park loop (8 miles) – Run down Lisson Grove then Seymour to enter at the NE corner of the park then turn right or west to run along the northern boundary, turn left or south to reach Kensington Palace, then continue to follow the full perimeter of Hyde Park and return to St. John’s Wood via Baker Street or Gloucester Road.

Mid-paced runners not wanting 8 miles could do the following route:

Serpentine loop (6 miles) – run with the group to Hyde Park but when they cross over Carriage Rd – you turn left or south at Carriage Rd then run over the bridge. Immediately after the bridge, turn left to follow the waters edge back towards Wellington Arch. Then run back towards Speaker’s Corner and home via Baker Street or Gloucester Road.

Our faster runners might enjoy (?) the following route for a regular-paced mid-distance run or a tempo run:

Notting Hill (6.5 miles) – I think most of you know this route now. If you’re not familiar with it, have a look under the “Routes” tab to make sure you know where you’re going.

Notting Hill (6.5 miles) partial tempo run – If you want to try a bit of tempo work, but love the Notting Hill route – then do both!!! Jog to the canal, once you get there, run hard until the Ladbrook Grove turn-off (where we exit off the canal). From there, run a steady pace for the rest of the route and enjoy the window shopping in Notting Hill.

Western canal tempo run (any distance) – If you want a more intense tempo work-out than the one above, jog down to the canal, do your tempo work on the canal, turn around and do tempo work on the canal back to Maida Vale. From there, jog back to Starbucks in SJW to cool-down.

Friday, 2 November
We will celebrate our October birthdays after the run today. Kelli will be organizing post-run cupcakes.

The Heath – old route (8 miles) – The old route.

The 6-7 mile route – follow the group doing the full 8 mile route. At parliament hill instead of turning left towards Kenwood House, turn right and run past the track. Exit the heath, run past Royal Free Hospital and head home through Belsize Park.

The Betsy route (5 miles) – I think Betsy is now doing a longer route on Fridays, but her namesake run is a great route. Anyone wanting this distance ask around as we are running up the hill to Hampstead and someone will explain to you how to do it.

Hampstead tube station (4 miles)– this is a great route to do if you’re short on time or are new to running “the hill”. Head up to the Hampstead tube station with the group then turn around and head back home. For a change of scenery, run up to Hampstead tube station then run back to Starbucks in SJW via the Hampstead high street, then Belsize Park, then down St. John’s Wood Park Rd.

Monday, 5 November
The following is a great route for a long run (mid-paced runners will do this route on Wednesday, 7 November).

SloanePimlico8miSloane/Pimlico loop (8 miles) – Run down Lisson Grove then Seymour to Hyde Park. Carry on as
though you’re doing the Battersea loop but before you get to the river turn left on Pimlico Road. Take Buckingham Palace Road to Victoria Station then Grosvenor back to Hyde Park Corner. Run back to SJW via Baker St or Gloucester Rd. This is a new route for many of you – here’s a snapshot of the route. If you are struggling to maintain a strong pace over long distances, either drop behind the group above when you get tired or shorten your run by going home from Bond St or Baker St tube stations.

Mid-paced runners could do a tempo run or a mid-distance regular-paced run using the following route:

Notting Hill (6.5 miles) – I think most of you know this route now. If you’re not familiar with it, have a look under the “Routes” tab to make sure you know where you’re going.

Notting Hill (6.5 miles) partial tempo run – If you want to try a bit of tempo work, but love the Notting Hill route – then do both!!! Jog to the canal, once you get there, run hard until the Ladbrook Grove turn-off (where we exit off the canal). From there, run a steady pace for the rest of the route and enjoy the window shopping in Notting Hill.

Western canal tempo run (any distance) – If you want a more intense tempo work-out than the one above, jog down to the canal, do your tempo work on the canal, turn around and do tempo work on the canal back to Maida Vale. From there, jog back to Starbucks in SJW to cool-down.

Wednesday, 7 November
Mid-paced runners should do the following route for their long run:

Sloane/Pimlico loop (8 miles) – See route description and map above. If you are struggling to maintain a strong pace over long distances, either drop behind the group above when you get tired or shorten your run by going home from Bond St or Baker St tube stations.

Our faster runners could do the following tempo run:

The Wall (6 miles) – If you are doing your long run on Monday, consider doing this route as a tempo run (or just at a comfortable pace – your choice!!!). Your warm-up and cool-down could be the jog to/from the canal. or If you want to try something different, jog over to the track in Regents Park and try one of the following workouts: Yasso 800s simplified – run two laps hard (make note of your 2-lap time) then jog until you’ve recovered. Repeat another 3-4 times (so you’ll do a hard 2-lap interval 4-5 times in total). See if you can maintain your time or slightly improve it over the repetitions. Make sure that you are fully warmed up before you do this. Pyramids – run 1/4 lap hard then jog to recover, run 1/2 lap hard then jog to recover, run 3/4 lap hard then jog to recover, run 1 lap hard then jog to recover, run 3/4 lap hard then jog to recover, run 1/2 lap hard then jog to recover, run 1/4 lap hard then jog to recover. Repeat that entire routine until you’ve been doing track work for about 35 minutes. Then jog back to SJW or have someone piggy-back you.

Friday, 9 November
The Heath – old or new route (8 miles) – If I’m up for it, I think I’ll run the new route (Western route) at a medium pace. Join me if you’re interested in learning that route! There are always people running the old route, so you’ll have someone to run with whichever route you choose.

The 6-7 mile route – follow the group doing the full 8 mile old route. At parliament hill instead of turning left towards Kenwood House, turn right and run past the track. Exit the heath, run past Royal Free Hospital and head home through Belsize Park. If you want to do the new route but don’t want 8 miles, follow me and I’ll show you where to turn off to do a 6 mile run.

The Betsy route (5 miles) – I think Betsy is now doing a longer route on Fridays, but her namesake run is a great route. Anyone wanting this distance ask around as we are running up the hill to Hampstead and someone will explain to you how to do it.

Hampstead tube station (4 miles)– this is a great route to do if you’re short on time or are new to running “the hill”. Head up to the Hampstead tube station with the group then turn around and head back home. For a change of scenery, run up to Hampstead tube station then run back to Starbucks in SJW via the Hampstead high street, then Belsize Park, then down St. John’s Wood Park Rd.

That’s it! I’ll look forward to hearing about how all of the runs have gone when I’m back. I’ll miss you all!!!!

Happy Running,

Paula

22-26 October 2012 Running Info…

Hello Runners,

Running Group T-shirts:
Our t-shirt order is ready to go in!  Please check this google doc to make sure your order is correct – Click here for the link  Kelli will be closing the edit function on the document at midnight on Monday night.  Whatever is in the document at that time is our order.  Check your details.  Kelli and I have input/updated some payment information and size changes per your requests.  I hope we didn’t make any mistakes, but if we did….  this is your last chance to catch it.

Training, Fuel, and Pace Calculator
Our half marathon is 22 weeks away.  We have heaps of time to get ready, but it now is the time to get yourself on a program.  It is time to make a conscious decision about how you are going to train.  Our group is great – you can come out any day and just run never giving thought to what you’re trying to achieve that day.  Truthfully, many of you could carry on like that throughout the next 22 weeks and complete the half-marathon – no worries.  However, if you are a bit more conscious with your training the whole experience will be a lot more pleasant (and you could have a better finishing time and you have a better chance of not getting hurt).  This “consciousness” needn’t be over-the-top.  I’m asking you to take only a few minutes now to think about your plan.

I think everyone understands that you should be doing one long run, one quicker paced run and one hill run each week.  This week I’d like to address one aspect of that program – the long run…. specifically the pace of the long run.  I’ll delve into the basic science of fueling (which I have hugely over-simplified but hopefully it’ll get my point across).  To fuel our runs we have 3 options – Creatine Phosphate (CP), glycogen and fat.  You have about 10-15 seconds worth of CP fuel – that’s it.  Think Usain Bolt running the 100m – he fuels with CP and it works because he can run 100m in less than 10 seconds.  CP is where your body will go first looking for fuel, particularly if you take off like a rocket from Starbucks.  Think of CP as kindling on a fire – it catches fire easily but burns out very quickly.  Glycogen is the next fuel option.  Glycogen is basically stored in your muscles and in your liver and because of that it makes glycogen a bit more difficult to burn as fuel (think of damp firewood – it will eventually burn but it takes quite a bit to get it going).  Fat is the 3rd source of fuel and most runners, even the very lean women, have an ample supply of it.  Think of fat as a butane tank of gas on the BBQ grill – once it’s lit, you can have countless cook-outs before the fuel is gone.  Here’s the important part…..  all of those fuel sources – kindling, damp firewood or butane gas need something to ignite them and keep them burning.  Physiologically speaking that ignition or burning “tool” is ATP which is created by mitochondria; so, the more mitochondria you have the more efficient you are as a fuel burning machine.  Bear with me here – I promise this is leading somewhere.  What is mitochondria and how do we get more of it?  Some of us are genetically blessed with higher mitochondria counts.  Thank your mother for that – it comes through the maternal side of the genetic equation.  If you didn’t win the genetic lottery, then the only way you can increase mitochondria is through LONG, SLOW, ENDURANCE training (LSE).  When you go for a long run at a slow pace, you actually produce mitochondria.  Kind of cool, huh?  Now remember – we need mitochondria to help ignite our fuel sources.  So what does that mean for you??????  It means SLOW DOWN on your long run – give your body a chance to become a mitochondria production factory.  If you do your long run at a strong pace, you’re missing out on this benefit.  So it’s not about CAN you run your long run fast; it’s about SHOULD you run your long run fast.  I’ve been preaching this sermon for years – it’s a hard message to hear/absorb.  It’s hard to do – I understand.  It feels like a waste of time to run at such a comfortable pace but actually it’s one of the best things you can do for yourself.

This week Agnes sent me a link to a Runners World training pace calculator.  I could just hug her for this – it couldn’t have been better timing.  If you don’t believe me, will you consider believing the experts at Runners World?????  This is how the

calculator works – you plug in a recent race time or a desired race time for an upcoming race.  For this example, I plugged in a 1:59 half-marathon, a target finishing time for many of you in Bratislava (just over a 9:00 min/mile pace).  To properly train for that completion time, check out the long run pace range (10:29-11:48).  I told you I’m not making this stuff up.  Because of the way this calculator works (I can explain if you’re interested), I would target the fast end of that range (so 10:29).  If you’re not doing a ton of tempo/speed work, I would probably bring that number down to 10:15 min/mile pace.  Again, for that 1:59 target time, your tempo work (45-60 minutes once a week) should be done at an 8:46 min/mile pace.  Your Yasso 800s would be 4:03 minutes (so you should be able to run two laps of a track in 4:03 minutes).  If you went out for a weekend run with friends (easy run), that would be at a 10:29 pace.  Any speedwork (say maybe fartlek sprints) would be done at a 7:19 pace.  I’m using the precise numbers only so you can tie them back to the calculator output.  All of these paces are estimates – guidelines, it’s impossible to time yourself to 7:19 min/mile pace.

Play with the calculator – the link is here or type this into your browser:  www.runnersworld.co.uk/general/rws-training-pace-calculator/1676.html

Once you have your results, think about which day you should do your long run.  On Mondays we’re running at about 9:45-10:15 min/mile over about 10 miles.  If you back-calculate, doing a long run at 9:45 means you are shooting for a 1:50 half-marathon (average race pace of 8:20).  Some of you may be going for 1:50 race times but I doubt most of our group have set that time as a goal.  Doing a 10:15 long run indicates a finishing time of 1:56.  That’s a very reasonable goal for many of our runners.  So that’s Mondays.  What about Wednesdays?  On Wednesdays our new “mid-pace” group is targeting a 10:30-11:00 pace (or maybe slightly slower – we’ll see how the group evolves).  A lot of you have told me that’s too slow.  Let’s back-calculate that one – a 10:30 long run pace indicates a 2:00 half-marathon.  An 11:00 long run pace indicates about a 2:08 half-marathon.  That’s not slow!!!!  That’s just under a 10:00 min/mile race-pace.  Not bad!!!  Below is a table that I’ve built from the RW calculator rounding numbers and making adjustments to allow for the way we train.

It’s not precise at all but will give you a quick glance at some pace categories.  Notice that our fastest and our most gentle paced runners do their long runs on Mondays. To summarize – on Mondays the fast group is doing a max pace of 10:30.  If you can’t keep up, no worries – just be prepared to run on your own.  On Wednesdays, our absolute fastest pace is 10:30.  Anyone can  join us but if you are a faster runner you’ll need to limit your pace to that of the group.  Wednesdays are for mid-paced runners.  If you need to run on Wednesdays to get your long run done, then become a mid-paced runner for that one day.  I promise it won’t hurt your longer term training plan to do one long run at a slower pace.  If you’re a faster runner but need to do your long run on Wednesday and don’t want to slow down, consider setting your own route or running the route that the group did on Monday.

Bratislava – Race registration is now open.  It’s far from simple but it can be done.  I tried doing it in English and the system hung up at step 2.  In Slovak, it worked but I had to input a Slovakian zip code (try using 811 02 – just like that with a space between the 811 and the 02) with my London address.  I can’t explain why but it’s the only way I could get it to work.  It looks like there is no free shirt in our goodie bags.  If you want a race shirt, you have to order one (€16) when you are signing up for the race.  There is no rush to register so maybe when I’m back in town I could bring my laptop to Starbucks and everyone could just line up and register for the race.  Once you see someone else do it, it’s easier (easier but not easy!!!!).  The cost of the race is €24 payable by credit card online. The cost slightly increases after 31 December.

When you register for the race, please input your club name as:  WRW London (Women Running the World) so the race director will know that you are part of our group.  Also, when it asks for your fastest half-marathon time, input the exact same time as whoever you want to run with so you will be placed in the same starting section as your running-mates.  You can just leave that field blank.  I’m not sure if they will corral us into pace groups, but just in case they do, put a time that’s quicker than you expect to do (so you won’t have to deal with any slower runners around you).  Just remember to put the same time as whoever you want to run with.

Routes this Week

Monday, 22 October
At St. John’s Wood Road, we’ll split into the canal runners (Wembley, Notting Hill, canal routes) and Hyde Park.  Have a look at these routes and choose whatever looks interesting to you.

Wembley Park (9.2 miles) – I’ve flip-flopped the suggested long run mileage for marathon trainees to 9 miles this week and 8 miles next week.  I hope that’s OK with you.  Training for a marathon or not – feel free to join us.  Marathoners, we need to start focusing on the pace of your long run.  The canal will give us a perfect opportunity to do that – it’s just straight running for about 6 miles from Little Venice to the Wembley/Alperton turn-off.

Wembley Central (8 miles) – The group running 9+ miles will run by the Wembley Central station.  If anyone wants 8 miles, this is a great option.

Hyde Park loop (8 miles) – If you want 8 miles but prefer a loop, consider the Hyde Park perimeter route.  I think you all know the route – the map is on the website under “Routes” in case you need a reminder.

Notting Hill (6.5 miles) – If you want about 6-7 miles, do the regular Notting Hill run starting with the group going to Wembley.  I think there is a map under the “Routes” tab on our website.

Serpentine loop (6 miles) – You always have the option of doing the Serpentine loop in Hyde Park.  Head down to Hyde Park via Lisson Grove, then once you reach the park turn right or west to run along the northern boundary, turn left or south at Carriage Rd then run alongside the road over the bridge.  Immediately after the bridge, turn left to follow the water edge back towards Wellington Arch.  To shorten this loop, cross back over the Serpentine near the café and head on a diagonal back to Speaker’s Corner.  To lengthen this run, either go past Carriage Road and cut south by the Albert Memorial or do not cross over the Serpentine at the café – instead carry on down to the far SE corner of the park, then run up to Speaker’s Corner and home via Baker Street or Gloucester Road.

Speaker’s Corner loop (4-5 miles) – run with the group to Hyde Park, once we’ve entered the park do a small loop keeping to the north side of the Serpentine.  Head back to SJW either up Seymour/Lisson Grove or by the US Embassy then up Baker Street.

The canal west (any distance) – head down to the canal in Little Venice.  Run half the distance you want and turn around and head home.  If you are confused about which way to go, follow the group going to Wembley to gain access to the canal.

Wednesday, 24 October
Hopefully we’ll have a bigger group interested in running at a mid-pace after reading the training pace info above.  To further incentivise people to join us, we’re running to Beigel Bake on Brick Lane. (Click on that link to see a review from Time Out magazine).  There isn’t any seating so we’ll probably grab some bagels/treats and find a coffee shop nearby.  Beigel Bake is supposedly the very best bagel shop in London.  Let’s go see if that’s true!!!

Beigel Bake on Brick Lane (8 miles) for MID-PACED GROUP – we’ll run to “The Wall” then take Farringdon down to the river Thames and cross over to the south embankment.  We’ll run along the river then cross back over at Tower Bridge (which is kind of cool to run if you haven’t done that).  From there we’ll wind our way up to the bakery.  There are heaps of options to shorten this run (see the map below) .  We will be running at about 10:30-11:00 min/mile pace.

 

The Wall (6 miles) – If you are doing your long run on Monday, consider doing this route as a tempo run (or just at a comfortable pace – your choice!!!).  Your warm-up and cool-down could be the jog to/from the canal.  For those of you unfamiliar with these routes, it’s 3 miles to “The Wall” which is a place where the canal path is blocked.  Turn around there and run back to SJW.

The canal (any distance) – run with the group towards “The Wall” then head back to Starbucks whenever you’re ready.

If you are getting bored with those routes, head to Hyde Park or group up a few people and do an adventure run. 

Friday, 26 October
This should be birthday cupcakes day but we’ll wait until Friday, 2 November, as many of our children are not in school today.

The Heath – old route (8 miles) – we’ll do the old route this time.  You can shorten this route by heading towards the track after Parliament Hill, exit the heath, run past Royal Free Hospital then home through Belsize.

The 6-7 mile route – follow the group doing the full 8 mile route.  At parliament hill instead of turning left towards Kenwood House, turn right and run past the track.  Exit the heath, run past Royal Free Hospital and head home through Belsize Park.

The Betsy route (5 miles) – I think Betsy is now doing a longer route on Fridays, but her namesake run is a great route.  Anyone wanting this distance ask around as we are running up the hill to Hampstead and someone will explain to you how to do it.  

Hampstead tube station (4 miles)– this is a great route to do if you’re short on time or are new to running “the hill”.  Head up to the Hampstead tube station with the group then turn around and head back home.  For a change of scenery, run up to Hampstead tube station then run back to Starbucks in SJW via the Hampstead high street, then Belsize Park, then down St. John’s Wood Park Rd.

Congratulations to anyone who made it all the way to the bottom of the email.  Sorry it’s so long.  One last thing I’d like to mention – our beginner runners ran to Big Ben this week.  They are doing great.  Thank you so much everyone for encouraging them to stick with it.  You have no idea what your support means to them.  They are thrilled with their progress but are still nervous/anxious/excited about running.  Thanks a million for making this program easier for them!

I hope to see you running this week,

Paula

15-19 October 2012 Running Info…

Congratulations to everyone who raced last weekend!  Well done ladies!!!  To your right is Darcy and Kelli at the Windsor Half and Patricia and me at the Royal Parks Ultra.

Hello Runners,

We have a lot of information to cover this week, so if you just want to skim this note, the key information is as follows:

  1. T-shirt orders

  2. Info on training programs for the half-marathon and changing the mid-pace long runs to Wednesdays starting this week.  This info will also be on the website under “Training Tips”.

  3. Suggested mileage for the week and Route information

  4. Bratislava race registration

  5. Pilates for Runners class and Christian’s new class for children/teens

  6. Local race in Hampstead Heath

1.  Running Group T-shirts

Our running shirts are ready and each of us owe Chris Roberts a big hug!!!!  She organized the printing of the shirts and thank goodness that Kelli Montanaro has an eye for design.  She helped Chris with the t-shirt design.  Chris and Kelli, thank you so much!!!!  The shirts are black, short-sleeved, dri-fit, Nike shirts that have our new logo on the front and “Run Like a Girl” on the back.  Orders are due by Friday, 19 October.  To order a shirt, update the Google doc that Kelli sent us – this link will open the file or paste this into your browser:  https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AgpMAx5W_kSvdHZLeEI5ZmFETUt5RlVxNG1sWlljdlE&pli=1#gid=0.  The shirts are £24 which includes everything – the shirt, the printing, tax, shipping, etc.  You can pay for the shirt by cash or check (made out to Paula Mitchell) – give payment to Kelli Montanaro or myself or you can mail payment to me at:

Paula Mitchell

Payment must be received by Friday, 19 October or your order will not be placed.  If you haven’t had a chance to try on a sample shirt, the samples will be at the ASL Booster Store on Tuesday from 2:30-4:00.  You could also leave an envelope at the booster store with your payment.  Please put it in an envelope and write your name and Running Group on the outside.  DO NOT give your cash/cheque to the booster store workers or your funds could be comingled with store proceeds and your order will not be placed.

2.  Training for the Half-marathon and New Mid-Pace Run Schedule:

As a running group, we’re rather laid-back.  We are rarely overly-serious about our training or uber-intense, but there is a shift in focus that usually happens after the October break at ASL.  Well, that time is here!  We’re into mid-October and our half-marathon is 5 months away.  We still have plenty of time to get ready, but you may want to start thinking about how you’re going to do that.  We have new runners joining our group all the time, so I’ll repeat some suggestions about how to prepare for a 13.1 mile run.

Step One – What is your goal for the half-marathon?

Do you want to finish the race with your head held high, not on your last leg, or maybe just finish the race without walking one bit of it?
If so, it will be more important to run regularly than to incorporate speed/tempo work into your training.  You should target running 3 times a week with one of those runs being your long run.  For example, you could run M/W/F with one day being your long run, one day being a mid-distance run and Friday being hills.  All of those runs could be done at about the same pace with possibly your mid-distance run being done at a slightly faster pace than your long run.

An important note:  if you are following this type of regime, it’s a very bad idea to all of the sudden do a true tempo run or any type of speedwork.  If you want to add speed/tempo work into your regime, it needs to be done gradually then you need to be committed to it week after week.  Otherwise you could end up hurting yourself.  This same idea applies to people who run a certain pace then decide one week they might like to run with a different “pack” who runs faster.  Even 15-20 seconds per mile can make a big difference in terms of how your body will react (just to be clear – that’s usually a NEGATIVE reaction!!!).

If your goal is to complete the race in a certain time that is a stretch target for you, then consider incorporating speed/tempo work into your program.
In fact, if your goal is quite a stretch for you, then you really must incorporate speed/tempo work into your routine.  Tempo work is easily done on your weekly mid-distance run – there is no need to follow a strict program.  Here are a few ways to do pace work:

  • Jog to warm up, then run hard for a few miles, then jog to warm down.  It can be that easy!  One of our runners told me that for her “to run hard” means she doesn’t want to chat with anyone, she could answer questions yes or no but would prefer to not talk at all.
  • You could also jog for a mile or so to warm up, then run hard for a couple of minutes, then go back to a jog, then run hard for a few minutes, then go back to a jog.  Keep repeating that pattern for about 25 minutes, then jog at the end of your run for a mile or so at a gentle pace.
  • Another idea is to do continuing negative splits, which means every mile is faster than the last.  For example, if you’re doing a 6 mile run, try mile 1 at 10:15, mile 2 at 10:05, mile 3 at 9:55, etc.
  • Another idea is to try Yasso 800s (named after Bart Yasso, in my opinion, one of the most inspirational runners of all time).  He recommends jogging to warm up, then run at a very strong pace for as many minutes and seconds as your estimated marathon finishing time in hours and minutes.  So, if you do a 4:15 marathon, then run hard for 4 min 15 seconds.  Recover for the same amount of time, then repeat.  The original idea was to do this workout on a track doing 800yd repeats.  So, if you could do an 800 (very roughly a 1/2 mile) in 4 min 15 sec then you should be able to run a marathon in 4 hours and 15 minutes. If you’ve run a half marathon, but not a full marathon – take your half marathon finishing time, double it and add about 20 minutes to come up with a very rough estimate of what your marathon pace would be.

    An important note:  Tempo runs should last 45-60 minutes – no more than that!  Speedwork sessions should be 25-40 minutes unless you have been doing speedwork for years.  Less is more!!!

Step Two – Which program will you follow?

It doesn’t necessarily matter what your goal is for the half-marathon, or at what pace you train, you still have to decide which program (in terms of mileage) you will follow. 

Under the “Training” tab on our website, are a few different programs.  There are three programs to train specifically for the Bratislava race.  The aggressive program is for runners who simply enjoy running very long distances and do that on a regular basis.  The medium progression program is what most of our runners will follow to prepare themselves for the race.  The gradual progression program is for those of you who would prefer to ease into long-distance running.  The gradual program would also be a good option for anyone recovering from an injury.

Step Three – At what pace will you train for your long run?

It doesn’t matter if you are doing the half-marathon simply for the experience of it or if you’re trying to complete in a certain time – you need to decide in what pace-range you will train.

I understand this can be confusing to those of you new to running or new to long-distance running.  Many of you have no idea what pace you run or what pace you should run.  Here’s the deal:  if you’re running slower than you should be, the more up and down action can put undue pressure on your knees and hips.  If you’re doing your long run at a pace too strong for you, it can cause all sorts of problems.  Basically you are trying to turn what should be a long, endurance session into a tempo session and as we read above – tempo sessions should not last more than 45-60 minutes.  Our fastest runners are fine – they run out front and off they go!  Perfect!  Our runners who train at a more gentle pace are fine.  They group up at the back of the pack and off they go!  Perfect.  I worry about our runners in the middle of the pack.  To speed up, they are pushing too hard; to slow down, their knees and hips could start hurting.  So beginning, Wednesday, 17 October, I will lead a long run each Wednesday at an approximate 10:30-11:00 min/mile pace.  Once we see who settles into that “pack”, we’ll adjust the pace range accordingly.  I’m trying to target the women who are stuck between the front and back of the pack.  This will cause all sorts of confusion on Wednesday mornings for awhile because I will purposely route this group in a different direction than the other groups.  If you don’t know where you fit in pace-wise, call or email me.  I’ll give you my best guess.  If you need my input, I would rather we jointly make that decision before Wednesday morning.  I know you don’t want to bother me, don’t worry!  You’re not bothering me – ask me now what you should do instead of waiting until we’re in front of Starbucks ready to start running. 

3.  Suggested mileage and Route information:

 

 

Monday, 15 October

Canary Wharf (9.5 miles) – this is a fun route!  We’ll follow the canal east to “The Wall” then come up to street level and run for a few minutes through Islington until we can drop back down to the canal.  From that point, it’s all canal running until we reach Limehouse near the intersection of the canal and the river Thames.  We wind our way through a residential area, run alongside the river for a bit, then cut into Canary Wharf business district to finish at the Starbucks in the mall at Canary Wharf.  It’s a great run.  You can see Canary Wharf from a couple of miles out, the canal provides for straight running without street crossings, and it feels great to grab a coffee then ride the tube back to St. John’s Wood.  Two important things:

  • Please make note of the change in long-run-day for mid-pace runners.  If you want to do your long run between a 10:30 -11:00 min/mile pace, then join me on Wednesday.  On Monday we’ll be running faster than that and you may be left behind (sorry!).  There are areas along this route where it wouldn’t be a great idea to be running solo.
  • Also, it’s not a good idea to jump up from 6-7 mile runs to a 9.5 mile run – you can hurt yourself doing that.  We do this run to Canary Wharf regularly, so you’ll have plenty of opportunities to do it!  If you’re not quite ready, wait for a few weeks to give it a try.  If you want to run a faster pace but not do 9.5 miles, consider the route below; however, the runners who know this route will be running at a gentle pace so have a look at the map.  Maybe print out a copy and carry it with you.The Wall, Farringdon, Embankment to Green Park (7.4 miles) – run with the group to “The Wall”.  Go up the ramp to street level then turn right, run for 1-2 minutes until you reach Pentonville Road.  Cross over and continue straight on Farringdon Road to the river Thames.  Then turn right and follow the embankment towards Westminster.  Turn right at Big Ben, head to St. James park, then cross over into Green Park.  Run up the hill to towards The Ritz.  The Green Park tube station is there, a Starbucks is there, and no pressure Alev…. but there’s a Turkish coffee shop in that area as well.  There are transport options all along the way so this route can be easily shortened.

The Wall (6 miles) – If you are going to do your long run on Wednesday, consider “The Wall” route for Monday (or do 5-6 miles of the Farringdon route above – stop at Embankment tube instead of Green Park).  I think you know the routine by now – we drop down to the canal and start running east to Islington.  It’s 3 miles to “The Wall” which is a place where the canal path is blocked and you have to go up to street level to get around it.  Turn around there and run back to SJW.  If you are wanting to “push the pace” for the half-marathon in the spring, do a tempo run using this route.  Your warm-up and cool-down could be the jog to/from the canal.

The canal (any distance) – run with the group towards “The Wall” then head back to Starbucks whenever you’re ready.

Wednesday, 17 October

Once more, mid-pace runners should consider doing their long runs on Wednesdays from now on:

Mid-pace long run – Kensal Rise Cemetery loop (7.6 miles) – I will be running with you, so no worries if you have no idea where you’re going.  Theoritically, we should all be running between an approximate 10:30-11:00 pace so we’ll all be together.  We’ll start on the canal running towards Notting Hill (that will give people one more chance to figure out what’s going on), then exit the canal path at Ladbrook Grove and turn right to go over the canal.  We’ll enter the Kensal Rise Cemetery, do a large loop, then head back to Starbucks in SJW along Carlton Vale.  The cemetery is very interesting and the caretaker told me it’s fine if we run there as long as we are respectful and not too loud.

If you have done your long run on Monday, then consider one of the following routes:

Notting Hill (6.5 miles) – I think most of you know this route now.  If you’re not familiar with it, have a look under the “Routes” tab to make sure you know where you’re going.

Notting Hill (6.5 miles) partial tempo run – If you want to try a bit of tempo work, but love the Notting Hill route – then do both!!!  Jog to the canal, once you get there, run hard until the Ladbrook Grove turn-off (where we exit off the canal).  From there, run a steady pace for the rest of the route and enjoy the window shopping in Notting Hill.

Western canal tempo run (any distance) – If you want a more intense tempo work-out than the one above, jog down to the canal, do your tempo work on the canal, turn around and do tempo work on the canal back to Maida Vale.  From there, jog back to Starbucks in SJW to cool-down.

Friday, 19 October

You all know the routine….

The Heath – old route (8 miles) – we’ll do the old route this time.  You can shorten this route by heading towards the track after Parliament Hill, exit the heath, run past Royal Free Hospital then home through Belsize.

The 6-7 mile route – follow the group doing the full 8 mile route.  At parliament hill instead of turning left towards Kenwood House, turn right and run past the track.  Exit the heath, run past Royal Free Hospital and head home through Belsize Park.

The Betsy route (5 miles) – I think Betsy is now doing a longer route on Fridays, but her namesake run is a great route.  Anyone wanting this distance ask around as we are running up the hill to Hampstead and someone will explain to you how to do it.  

Hampstead tube station (4 miles)– this is a great route to do if you’re short on time or are new to running “the hill”.  Head up to the Hampstead tube station with the group then turn around and head back home.  For a change of scenery, run up to Hampstead tube station then run back to Starbucks in SJW via the Hampstead high street, then Belsize Park, then down St. John’s Wood Park Rd.

 

4.  Bratislava Race Registration:

The race director was hoping to have race registration open on 1 October but that date has slipped by.  He is hoping the online registration will be active by this weekend.  I’ll let you know when it’s working. 

5.  Pilates for Runners and Fitness Classes for Children:

APPI is offering to organize pilates classes designed specifically for runners.  Ladies, this is a great idea.  Pilates can help offset the impact of running and the teachers at APPI are fabulous.  Please call Anna, their receptionist, to let her know if you are interested.  Based on responses to date, I think the classes will be offered at either 1:00, 2:00 or 3:00pm on Tuesday or Thursday (or both if we have enough interest).  Their contact info is:  Kilburn@appihealthgroup.com or phone T: 0207 6245314.  Anna can answer all your questions about pricing, booking, etc.

Christian, our functional movement specialist, is now offering a class for children from 10-17 years old.  Contact him for further information.  His contact information is on the website under “Our Experts”.

6.  Local Race in the Heath:

Every Saturday there is a FREE 5k race in Hampstead Heath at 9:00am.  You must register ahead of time.  Click here for a link to the race website or input this address into your browser: http://www.parkrun.org.uk/hampsteadHeath/

I hope to see you running this week,

Paula

8-12 October 2012 Running Info…

169 Days until the Bratislava Half-marathon, but who’s counting……

Hello Runners,

Long run moves to Wednesday for next week – ASL is on break Mon and Tues so we will move our regular Monday long run to Wednesday for this week only!

Good luck to all our ladies who are racing this weekend!!! – Darcy and Kelli are running the Windsor half-marathon this weekend, Agnes is running the Royal Parks half-marathon and Patricia and I are running the Royal Parks Ultra (my apologies if I’ve missed others who are running).  Good luck to everyone!!!

Running group t-shirts – Chris Roberts and Kelli Montanaro have arranged for group t-shirts to be made.  These girls are talented!  The shirts are going to be so cute.  Chris will be at Starbucks on Thursday and Friday (11th and 12th) post-run with shirt samples so you can decide which size shirt you want.  I’ll send more info about the t-shirt ordering process in next week’s email.  You will be asked to pre-pay for your shirt at the time of ordering.

Pilates for Runners class – APPI will be offering a pilates class designed specifically for runners.  Ladies, I cannot over-emphasize the importance of stretching, or doing yoga or pilates to offset some of the pounding we endure as runners.  If you are interested, call Anna at APPI (0207 624 5314) and tell her which day/time would be convenient for you.  They will attempt to group up people to create a few classes throughout the week.

Our birthdays for the month of October –

        Cai-Cai Fritzinger (2 October)
Maria Schneider (8 October)
Jane Novak (11 October)
Carol Mark (18 October)
        Syma Qattan (28 October)
        Erin Roth (29 October)
        Angela Shaw (30 October)
       Laura Goldstein (30 October)

Happy birthday to you all!!!  We’ll celebrate with cupcakes on Friday, 26 October after the run. 

Below is the suggested training schedule for the week – note the shift of the long run to Wednesday:

Routes this Week

Monday, 8 October
I think we’ll have a small group running on Monday as ASL is on break.  We’ve shifted the longer weekly run to Wednesday for this week, so most of you need 4-6 miles.

Hyde Park (4, 5 or 6 miles) – Anyone wanting 4 miles

could run down to the NE corner of Hyde Park then turn around and head home.  If you want 5 miles, run down to Hyde Park and do a small loop in the NE corner then exit the park and run home by the US embassy, up Baker St. to SJW.  If you want 6 miles, run down to Hyde Park, do a loop sin the park staying north of the Serpentine (see map). If all of that sounds too boring, go for an adventure run.  It’s fun!  All you do is head out from Starbucks having no idea where you’re going.  At each intersection or street crossing, someone yells out left or right.  It’s fun and you never know what you might see or where you might end up.

Wednesday, 10 October
We’ve switched our long runs to Wednesday for this week only:

Notting Hill + Holland Park (8.5 miles) – start the normal Notting Hill route but instead of turning left to cross over

Portobello Road keep running up towards the Holland Park area (see map).  Take the pedestrian path towards Kensington High Street.  Do a little loop in Holland Park, then return to the pedestrian path and drop down to Kensington High Street.  Turn left and run past the tube station, past Whole Foods, then enter Hyde Park at the SW corner.  Cut across the park on a diagonal then take Sussex Gardens back to Marylebone Rd.  Head home via Lisson Grove or Baker St.  If you want 8 miles instead of 8.5, don’t do the loop in Holland Park or take the tube from Baker St.

Notting Hill (6.5 miles) – If you want about 6-7 miles, do the regular Notting Hill run.  I think there is a map under the “Routes” tab on our website.

Whole Foods (5.75 miles) – Join the group doing the 8 mile route through Holland Park.  We’ll run by Whole Foods at about mile 5.75.  You can stop there if you’ll agree to do our grocery shopping as well!!!

The canal west (any distance) – head down to the canal in Little Venice.  Run half the distance you want and turn around and head home.

Friday, 12 October
You all know the routine….

The Heath – old route (8 miles) – we’ll do the old route this time.  You can shorten this route by heading towards the track after Parliament Hill, exit the heath, run past Royal Free Hospital then home through Belsize.

The 6-7 mile route – follow the group doing the full 8 mile route.  At parliament hill instead of turning left towards Kenwood House, turn right and run past the track.  Exit the heath, run past Royal Free Hospital and head home through Belsize Park.

The Betsy route (5 miles) – I think Betsy is now doing a longer route on Fridays, but her namesake run is a great route.  Anyone wanting this distance ask around as we are running up the hill to Hampstead and someone will explain to you how to do it.  

Hampstead tube station (4 miles)– this is a great route to do if you’re short on time or are new to running “the hill”.  Head up to the Hampstead tube station with the group then turn around and head back home.  For a change of scenery, run up to Hampstead tube station then run back to Starbucks in SJW via the Hampstead high street, then Belsize Park, then down St. John’s Wood Park Rd.

I hope to see you running this week,

Paula