Marathon Training : Lessons Learned and Mistakes Made at Derby Festival Marathon
Derby Festival, kentucky, marathon, running February 18th, 2008[note] This is a reflection I had after the 2006 Derby Festival Marathon. I am adding it to my blog making sure I have it archived somewhere. As the 2008 Derby Marathon is approaching, maybe there are some ideas worth looking at? [end note]
Marathon Training : lessons learned and mistakes made
“It seems that many endurance athletes view overperformances / underperformances in relation to the acute circumstances. For instance, hot and humid weather, too cold or didn’t eat properly. I do it with most races too. (re: just ask me about my Buffalo Lake Springs Triathlon experience. I’ve got lots of reasons for my poor performance. Including the hitchhiker I picked up in Oklahoma… it has to be his fault!) So, it is good to hear about how training programs could have changed for the better from other endurance athletes.”
Predicting Running Performances - Feb 24th, 2006.
After making a statement like that, it only seems honest that I would try and figure out what occurred during the training period leading to the Derby Marathon that resulted in a performance 9 minutes slower than my expectations.
Here are the lessons that I feel I can continue to learn, as I move forward towards my next adventure. Some of the lessons are positive, others are mistakes that I will try and correct the next time I decide to perform during a marathon. When it is possible, I provided a link to an entry in my blog that I felt supported (in real-time) the conclusions I came to.
Lesson # 1:
Consistency is everything.
- Two major problems I saw as people trained for the spring marathons were lost periods of training due to injury or illness. The injuries and illnesses were likely resulting from too much intensity or too much volume in their training programs. (see: Training through injuries)
- I built a base fitness in October, November and December, with the plan to build upon that base starting in February. The nine weeks of exercise after the December 3rd marathon, inconsistent in nature, didn’t allow the base to be realized with a 12 week marathon training program.
- Consistently doing races allows for better development of “racing consciousness,” thus allowing you to perform with a less hectic mind. It also creates a deeper understanding and experiential knowledge of pain. - Derby Festival Marathon Report (re: The Pain)
Lesson # 2:
Inserting “test races” or “fitness evaluation races” are valuable when you create a race strategy, but they also provide confidence in your training and provide intensity into a program based around aerobic development.
- Changing a perspective of training and physiology - 2/17/06
- Predicting Running Performance - 2/24/06
- Week and Rodes City Review - 3/27/06
- Recovery week review – taper importance - 3/30/06
- Papa John’s 10 mile review - 4/17/06
Lesson # 3:
Nutrition, flexibility and core strength are as important as training paces. Ironically, I said this several time throughout the training period, but I never gave it 100% attention, especially nutrition. (And the reason I’m dedicated to it right now.)
- Magee’s bakery and my lactate threshold - 2/14/06
- I’m tired. My legs, my mind and my mood. - 2/17/06
- period one review - 3/6/06
Lesson # 4:
There needs to be a solid development of aerobic base or fitness before a person begins inserting cruise intervals, thresholds or any higher intensity workouts. In this 12 week training cycle, I used Tuesday’s as my “higher intensity” runs, but began those workouts before I had realized the fitness level I needed to reach my goals.
- Marathon training in T minus - 2/3/06
- Initial testing and focuses - 2/9/06
Conclusion:
Reviewing the lessons that I learned, it is humbling to realize that I didn’t follow my own basic philosophy of training, “Health, Fitness, Performance.” I was caught in a mind-set that focused on performance and the variables that create performance. What I have learned again is that without a deep level of fitness, there will be no break through performance, and without health, it is very difficult to develop that fitness.
I don’t want people to think that I am completely unsatisfied with the race. The fun for me is the journey of improving over time. And I have more improvements to make in my fitness and the resulting performance. I have a lot more fun ahead of me. Plus, I take some pride in the fact that I have transformed from a 3:54 – 4:00 marathoner into a 3:04 – 3:08 marathoner. I just know that there is more time to take back!
“Everybody wants to get fast, hardly anyone wants to get fit.” - Gordo Byrn
garyd - 5/23/06
February 19th, 2008 at 12:15 am
Great post Gary! Not only are these well summarized lessons learned, but, you included links to a ton of great reference material… I need to dig through all of these!
February 19th, 2008 at 8:55 am
Thanks Brad. I’m not trying to train for any specific race right now, but I am still trying to apply some of these lessons. For instance, yoga/core strengthening is a priority and I also plan to race (running races, maybe triathlon) quite a bit this year…. just hop in and race.
One thing looking back at this is the idea of building a “racing consciousness”… that is something that needs some more thought. The book “magical running” by Bobby McGee does a good job of walking people through this topic.
February 19th, 2008 at 1:25 pm
The “racing consciousness” was a new concept for me, and makes a lot of sense. I am going to make that an intentional part of my training this year, working towards a fall marathon.
Thanks for a thoughtful and informative post!
February 19th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
Very helpful post. Thanks!
February 20th, 2008 at 8:42 pm
Great information. When I look at the prediction for my marathon time, it looks like I’ll miss my goal by 5 minutes. That’s disappointing and I don’t want to believe it. http://www.berkshiresports.org/index.php?ID=raceperformanceprediction.
I’ve always found that I run faster 5Ks. If I followed my 5K time across, I should be able to run 3:40. But my 10 mile time predicts 3:55. My best time is 3:49 and I’m shooting for 3:50. I think I’m a little more fast twitch and I’m praying that I’ll defy predictions!
February 20th, 2008 at 10:06 pm
@ homebydawn and regivizz - thank you for reading and commenting, hopefully we can all learn together as we continue onward.
@ lisa - I’m guessing you read my Predicting Race Performances blog, I want to highlight a quote form that lesson here on this post:
[quote] In 2001, I changed my approach to training (thanks to Jan Callahan at UNL)… improvement. 3:27:58. I do not have a 10k time close to the 2001 marathon to see if it was predictive though.
In 2003, I changed some more things. Primarily, I ran my long runs slower. My long runs were approximately 1 minute slower than my marathon pace (even slower if completed at Todd’s Road). And I cut out my track work and added in more “steady” runs. (Steady = just below to just above threshold). Volume also went up using the “long weekend” approach instead of a 1 long run per week approach (again: thanks to Jan). [unquote]
The idea of running slower during your long runs to run faster is such a hard concept to understand. Jan forced me to run most of my runs under 160bpm no matter what my pace. When I started, I was running 9:30ish miles… not easy for me at the time. It proved itself that year.
And has even more since. In 2006, I had several runs a week that were run at 140 to 150 bpm (read posts about aerobic threshold for why) which meant I was running at plus 10min per mile pace. Knowing I had to run 6:52pace, it was frustrating, but there is a purpose behind it.
Bottom Line: if your short races 5k, 10k and 10mile don’t project to what you marathon is ending up at, it is most commonly in my experience, a situation where your steady state endurance is underdeveloped… something that I commonly see in people always training around their Lactate Threshold. (although there is a time for that pacing too)
Just some thoughts for you to consider. For more developed thoughts on this check out Arthur Lydiard, Bobby McGee and Gordo Byrn’s writings and philosophies. I would start with Lydiard though.
February 21st, 2008 at 7:45 am
I have heard this before. Like you and many others I tend to want to push myself in my workouts. My last few long runs have been 9-9:30. I know that building an aerobic base is critical. It takes patience and trusting the process. Knowing something and putting it into practice are two different things. Thanks for the book recommendations.