Around the same time last year I did a a half marathon as a training run and a decider for marathon goal pace at CIM 2011 and it was a clear indicator I was'nt in shape for a 3:10 so pursued 3:15 instead and voila I was pleased with the results.
Over the past 3 weeks I had 2 very good indicator's for 3:10 goal pace being a possiblity this year
i) Rao's 1200m repeats:
I was able to do this workout 1200X7 @ 6:15 pace pretty comfortably, I felt in great shape that day and encouraged a very positive vibe since then for a sub 3:10
ii) Silicon Valley Turkey Trot 5k:
I did this run on Thankgiving Day morning and I was very pleased with the results. After being on road for about 8 days and gaining weight and loosing conditioning a bit, I did'nt have much confidence in my abilities, I was shooting for sub 20min goal and paced accordingly. A large crowd and huge race did help to build up the adrenaline for the race.
It was very well organized race and I am encouraged to make it a Thanksgiving Tradition going forward. I managed to hold myself and run a 6:07 first mile, I would have preffered slower, but fellow runners pulled me for a fast 1st mile, next goal was to not slow down too much and I held a reasonable 6:25, final mile it was about going all out and finishing with a strong kick, I was'nt able to get a fast kick to finish, since there were many 10k and 5k runners at the finish forcing me to run a bit slower but overall quite pleased with final mile of 6:23. Overall time of 19:37 was v encouraging and a PR in this distance. This time indicated a possiblity of a run around 3:10 at CIM.
I would have preffered to do a half marathon as a race predictor as well, but due to travel constraints I was'nt able to get one this year. my training this year was mixed bag, I got very good Aug and part of Sep, but Oct was very weak month, since I got injured right knee due to one of the strength training workouts(Ironic eh!) so had to back off, but last 4 weeks I was able to rampup and log some quality long runs and speed workouts.
Now goal for next few days is to shave off some weight and build a strong core, before the Big day. There is only one goal for the race this year stay with 3:10 pace group and enjoy this fast course.
Over the past 3 weeks I had 2 very good indicator's for 3:10 goal pace being a possiblity this year
i) Rao's 1200m repeats:
I was able to do this workout 1200X7 @ 6:15 pace pretty comfortably, I felt in great shape that day and encouraged a very positive vibe since then for a sub 3:10
ii) Silicon Valley Turkey Trot 5k:
I did this run on Thankgiving Day morning and I was very pleased with the results. After being on road for about 8 days and gaining weight and loosing conditioning a bit, I did'nt have much confidence in my abilities, I was shooting for sub 20min goal and paced accordingly. A large crowd and huge race did help to build up the adrenaline for the race.
It was very well organized race and I am encouraged to make it a Thanksgiving Tradition going forward. I managed to hold myself and run a 6:07 first mile, I would have preffered slower, but fellow runners pulled me for a fast 1st mile, next goal was to not slow down too much and I held a reasonable 6:25, final mile it was about going all out and finishing with a strong kick, I was'nt able to get a fast kick to finish, since there were many 10k and 5k runners at the finish forcing me to run a bit slower but overall quite pleased with final mile of 6:23. Overall time of 19:37 was v encouraging and a PR in this distance. This time indicated a possiblity of a run around 3:10 at CIM.
I would have preffered to do a half marathon as a race predictor as well, but due to travel constraints I was'nt able to get one this year. my training this year was mixed bag, I got very good Aug and part of Sep, but Oct was very weak month, since I got injured right knee due to one of the strength training workouts(Ironic eh!) so had to back off, but last 4 weeks I was able to rampup and log some quality long runs and speed workouts.
Now goal for next few days is to shave off some weight and build a strong core, before the Big day. There is only one goal for the race this year stay with 3:10 pace group and enjoy this fast course.
