From bobg@Radix.Net Mon May 17 09:54:57 EDT 1999
Article: 173375 of rec.running
Path: news1.radix.net!saltmine.radix.net!not-for-mail
From: bobg@Radix.Net (Robert Grumbine)
Newsgroups: rec.running
Subject: More speed, less haste
Date: 17 May 1999 09:22:37 -0400
Organization: RadixNet
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Xref: news1.radix.net rec.running:173375

  Yet another case of conventional wisdom working for me, if only I'd
pay attention (or realize before the fact what was meant).

  Yesterday I ran 2400m repeats (3 of them, with 5 minutes rest, at
a bit better (15 seconds/mile) faster than 10k race pace -- this was
recommended by Owen Anderson as a Lactate Threshold workout (his 
recommendation was for _at_ 10k race pace, I upped it a bit in hopes
that my best was better than I've actually run -- not something I'd
recommend to someone else, but if I do something stupid to myself, well,
I know who to blame.))

  The first two, I ran at a nice fairly steady pace.  As much as I ever 
have, I felt like the running was 'flowing'.  Feet just meeting the 
ground, smoothly loping along, no bouncing, no throwing the arms around, 
just cruising along.  Pace was right about what I'd aimed at and I was 
feeling good and strong, so I decided to run the last one 'hard'.  Well, 
I wound up working harder (the previous two left my pulse at about 165, 
this one took it to 180), but in almost exactly the same speed as the 
other two.  The difference (I had a pedometer along) was that my stride 
count was 10% lower.  What I've been doing in running 'hard', it seems, 
is to increase my stride length, but decrease the stride rate, as happened 
yesterday, so I do indeed work harder, but don't really go any faster.

  So a point to watch: Not 'are you working harder', but 'what makes
you go faster".  More speed, less haste.  I still haven't figured
how to generalize this to, say the mile, where the 400 pace still
strikes me as pretty darn quick so I'll probably stretch out the 
stride again.  But at least now I know to _search_ for a stride length
and rate that gives that feeling of 'flow'.


  Aside: Idiocy of stride length on last rep. aside, I did run the
three evenly (+2, +5, -2 seconds total from my target), so I feel 
like I got a good LT workout (and did feel the bear making noises 
at me).  The pace helped confirm my suspiscions that I really might
run the even minute/mile pace 10k that I was retrospectively thinking
might have been reachable.  And, having set my 5k best in that 10k,
and then run 3x2400 faster than that pace, I'm pretty confident of
breaking my 5k PR when I race it in 3 weeks.  Very nice day.

  Further aside: The word 'I' shows up a lot in my postings, which 
can lead to problems as happened last week, but normally it is for
a very different reason.  That is, I mean to emphasize the fact that
whatever it is is _my_ _opinion_ or experience.  That's one data point,
use with caution; your mileage may vary; take with grains of salt; etc.
In this case, a description of something you might look for if you aren't
already doing it, and an invitation for someone who does it better
than I've described to give us the real scoop.
 
-- 
Robert Grumbine http://www.radix.net/~bobg/ Science faqs and amateur activities notes and links.
Sagredo (Galileo Galilei) "You present these recondite matters with too much 
evidence and ease; this great facility makes them less appreciated than they 
would be had they been presented in a more abstruse manner." Two New Sciences