Larry: Week 4 of the C25K is in the books. This week’s 3 work outs consisted of:
Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:
- Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
- Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds)
- Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
- Walk 1/4 mile (or 2-1/2 minutes)
- Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
- Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds)
- Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
I did all three workouts outside, on a new route. I definitely felt some progress this week. Running is becoming easier, although that first 5-minute run was tough! It’s good to feel progress as it makes you feel like the work you are doing is paying off.
Judie: I continued to run the same ~1/2 mile course that I have been using since week one; I generally try to go up and back three times (about three miles), even if my actual workout time has already ended. I agree that running is becoming easier; last week running for three minutes seemed like a lot, but it was a breeze this week when compared to the five minute portions!
Of course, it didn’t help that for the first time all year we’ve just begun hitting the 100º mark daily, and I still haven’t been able to get out the door and run as early as I would have liked. I don’t think there was one time this week when I was able to get my workout in much before noon, but by the second time I finally got smart and ran in a Patagonia performance swimsuit I’d originally purchased for a trip to Schlitterbahn a few years ago. I’m in the middle of nowhere, so there is no risk of anyone seeing me running in a bikini and my Vibram Five Fingers, and I found it surprisingly comfortable … plus I was able to get a little bit of sun on my legs. 😛
Larry: This week I want to talk about pace. We all run at different speeds. Some of us fast, some of us slow. This week two American athletes were among the field entered in the 5,000 meter race at the Exxon Mobil Bislett Games in Oslo Norway.
Neither won the race but both set records. Bernard Lagat broke the U.S. record, which was previously held by Dathan Ritzenhein, by more than 2 seconds running a 12:54:12. Read that again. Yes, you read it correctly, that’s 12 minutes & 54 seconds to cover 3.1 miles.
Meanwhile Chris Salinsky, another U.S. runner, finished in 12:56:66 crushing his previous best of 13:12.
The men finished 3rd & 6th respectively.
So the 5,000 meter race is 3.1 miles. In order to break 13 minutes for that distance those men ran each of the three miles in just over 4 minutes. 4 minute pace for 3 miles. Can you even fathom it? No? Imagine this. Mark off about a 50-yard straightway along your street, or anywhere flat and straight. Now run that 50-yards at a sprint, as fast as you possibly can. Run as fast as your legs will go. Both men ran the whole 5,000 meters faster.
I simply can not fathom running for that long, that fast. Not to mention the marathoners that cover 26.2 miles in a similar fashion. It’s almost super-human.
Judie: It’s completely superhuman!
Right now I am basing my workout solely on time (as dictated by the iPhone C25K program), not distance. At the rate I am going I would be thrilled to eventually jog my entire circuit of ~3 miles in 30 minutes without having to stop once . But to cut that down to under 15 minutes — doing the entire 5K in a full-bore run — simply boggles my mind.
Larry: Oh yeah, the winner of the race, Merga Imane from Ethiopia, finished in 12:53:81.
Judie: Are you just trying to make me feel slow? 😉
Larry: Here’s my point. Run at your own pace, whatever that may be. You don’t have to set out to be the fastest runner on the block or be embarrassed because you think you’re the slowest. Guess what? There’s always going to be someone faster.
Recreational runners complete with no one but themselves. Your goal in any race or run should be to beat no one but yourself. Keep track of your workout times and your race times. Work at making yourself faster so each time you better your previous attempt.
Running should be fun. When we get too caught up in worrying about our speed and how it compares to others it sometimes loses that. Don’t worry about how fast or how slow you’re running. You’re running! And that’s what’s really important.
See you next week…….
