Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy
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2010-08-02 8:25 AM |
Master 2210 Columbus, Ohio Coaching member | Subject: Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy OK, so I regularly train with a group, which is a mix of people, but the person I end up doing more workouts with than anyone else is a 45-year-old guy. (I'm a 33yo woman.) His big race this year is a HIM, and mine is IM. He has not had the opportunity to do many long training weekends this year. Keep in mind the following points:
A few weeks ago I did a HIM in 5:50. Saturday he did a HIM in 5:30. He did 9/min/mi and I did 10:23/min/mi. (Similar terrain, similar swim and bike splits) WTH? I think I don't push hard enough in races, maybe. On my HIM, I was never uncomfortable on the run. I kept running, but I never ran hard enough to feel on the edge of cramping or having stomach problems or getting overheated. I walked every aid station getting ice and stuff to stay cool. Given, I was back training the next day, and he is taking 3 days off. But really, 20 minutes? Do I just not have the guts to really race hard? I'm sure this will end up being a positive trait for me at my first IM distance, but it also has me puzzled and thinking that I lack the killer/race instinct or something. I was very fired up for my race, and extremely focused and intense during it. One thing was that my goal was 6 hrs, with a super-secret goal of 5:50, and once I had a really super bike split, I knew I didn't have to go very hard on the run. I was unable or unwilling to alter my goal mid-race. Thoughts? |
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2010-08-02 8:33 AM in reply to: #3017805 |
Not a Coach 11473 Media, PA | Subject: RE: Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy Perhaps he's just a faster runner than you still. Maybe while you are pushing to keep up with hime for 4 miles, he is thinking "this is a good pace that I can hold for 13.1 off the bike". But, if you think you can push harder in a race, then try it. |
2010-08-02 8:39 AM in reply to: #3017805 |
Pro 4277 Parker, CO | Subject: RE: Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy maybe you are more competitive in training than he is. He saves everything for race day where you bring your intesity on training days. Only you know if you lack that "killer instinct" on race day. If finished feeling you gave it the best you could then you can't really ask for more than that. getting back to saving it for race day. when my wife and I first met we ran several races and training runs together. I would often feel I was the faster runner because she would always go at a slower speed then me and finish after. then we ran our first marathon together...she passed me at mile 12 and I didn't see her again until the finish. she beat me by 20-minutes! seemed anything over 10-miles or a century ride she could almost always finish in front of me. But I was always faster in training...where she always saved it for race day. |
2010-08-02 8:49 AM in reply to: #3017805 |
Runner | Subject: RE: Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy One, he's probably a faster runner, like Johnny said. Two, you state that you don't think you push hard enough in races. That usually means that you actually don't push hard in races. How you get over that, I got no good advice. Mostly, you gotta find that spark that pushes you. I would look to other areas of your life where you push really hard to achieve, and see what motivates you there. I know for myself, it's just having those people around me in a race situation that clicks something inside. |
2010-08-02 8:56 AM in reply to: #3017805 |
Expert 2852 Pfafftown, NC | Subject: RE: Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy Could just be he's got a better gift, also (physiology). I certainly wouldn't dwell too much on it (not saying you are, at all). In my 1st tri, I kinda figured out - when I got on the run course - that I was going to beat my pre-conceived time by a fair margin. Right then, I re-evaluated. I tried to demolish it (instead of rest on it). Just a thought. You're doing HIM/IM dist. races. And, it sounds like, to me, you're not just "participating" in them. You're RACING them. You have my respect. |
2010-08-02 10:30 AM in reply to: #3017805 |
Master 2210 Columbus, Ohio Coaching member | Subject: RE: Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy Thanks. Yeah, that all makes sense. Now I have to guard against racing too hard, since my next event is my first IM, and the whole idea is to hold back - at least until mile 20 on the run. My normal mental pattern is to recognize a problem and then compensate, which may or may not create a whole new problem. |
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2010-08-02 10:39 AM in reply to: #3017805 |
Champion 7547 Albuquerque, New Mexico | Subject: RE: Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy Congrats on achieving the HIM goals! You're training for an IM, and you can't afford to take a week off right now to recover from a super-high-effort HIM, so your 5:50 was probably the right outcome given what you're doing. This may have been his "last race" of the season, and with nothing else to look forward to, why not hammer it? |
2010-08-02 10:52 AM in reply to: #3017805 |
Veteran 200 Summerfield, NC | Subject: RE: Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy He may be a more experienced racer than you, in other words, a few more halfs under his belt, a better idea of pacing, knowing when to push it, when to back off and a few more years of aerobic conditioning(a lot can be said for years of base). As someone else said he was probably racing and not concerned with having to train the next few days and not worried about any other upcoming races. I wouldn't let it worry me, especially if you felt good training the next few days. |
2010-08-02 11:19 AM in reply to: #3017805 |
Veteran 345 Houston, TX | Subject: RE: Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy I'm not really able to push myself in races, just don't think I know how. My races (still short, just 5K, 10Ks, sprints) are always about at my top training pace, never, ever faster. My PR for a 5K is only about 1:00 faster than an "average" workout. My first 10K race I was actually slower than my "PR" in training. My husband is the opposite, he can really push himself on races - he PR'd in a 5K at about 18:00, he never, ever runs sub-20 in training, more like 22-23. I can't imagine going a full 5min faster on race day, but he just knows how to give it all he's got, I don't - I'm always too afraid of failing so I stick close to the pace I know and feel comfortable with. |
2010-08-02 8:23 PM in reply to: #3017805 |
Master 2210 Columbus, Ohio Coaching member | Subject: RE: Training vs Racing, interesting with me vs training buddy Thanks. You're right, it wasn't my A race. And I haven't done anything shorter than a HIM this year, so I have gotten a slower pace in my head as "normal." I appreciate the affirmation. I'll not worry about and focus on my goals for IM. |
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