Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Speed Workout: Marathon Fartleks & Corral B

I finally heard from the Chicago Marathon and I landed a spot in Corral B for the race ... which is awesome!  To get into Corral B I had to submit proof that I'd ran a sub 3:35 marathon since January 2011, which I have.  Being closer to the front of the 45,000 runners on race day will hopefully eliminate some of the congestion and aid in a faster race.  But it won't be like I'm running free and clear - last year about 4,200 runners finished the race in less that 3:30.  So there'll still be plenty of folks around.  But at least I should be mixed in with runners of a similar pace.

As for today's workout ... it was another scorcher!!!  Really warm and humid conditions in Ankeny, IA for my weekly Speed Workout.  This week's run was a little shorter in duration - thank goodness - and basically consisted of Fartleks.  If you're not familiar with Fartleks, it's a Sweedish word that means "Speed Play".  Typically you complete Fartleks in the middle of a run by increasing and varying your speed at random times.  They're typically completed in a somewhat non uniform manner, but today's workout was pretty structured.  But the main point was to vary my speed from fairly fast ... to faster.  Here's how the workout went ...

Workout: Speed ... Fartleks
Location: Ankeny Middle School Track - Ankeny, IA
Weather: 90 degrees, 65% humidity, 6 mph wind

1.5 mile warm up
12 minutes of alternating 100M dashes, fast & slow - aprx 5:30 pace then recover with jog for a 7:00 pace overall
2 mile Progressive run without stopping - the first mile at 6:18, the second at 5:57
2 miles of Fartleks - alternating 200M at 7:00 pace and then the next 200M at 6:20 pace for an overall mile pace of 6:50
1 mile cool down  
8 Miles Total

It probably doesn't look like that tough of a workout, and normally it wouldn't have been that difficult.  But the "feels like" temp of 90+ was pretty challenging.  I was really impressed with the Ankeny Middle School track.  Go Hawks!  It was a new, 8 lane, very cushiony surface.  It's amazing how much these school districts spend on recreational facilities in the Midwest.  It seems like most schools near any city of any size typically have new everything.  Bad for the tax payers I suppose ... but good for an old man training for a marathon!  Hope your running is going well.  Have a great week!
... be great today!

5 comments:

  1. That's great that you got into your preferred corral. There's nothing more frustrating than having to do the dodge and weave through hundreds of runners who are slower than you.

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  2. Nice that you got into the spot you wanted. Nothing like not having to weave through slow runners.... not that I would know what that feels like... Ha!!

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  3. Yay for B corral! You're almost an elite!!!

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  4. Your workouts always look and are very hard. Any form of intervals or speed work is hard work and takes commitment to complete. You are very dedicated and committed. I At your pace starting in the right place is very important. 45000! Ouch, my race this past weekend had 110 starters and 107 finishers :)

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  5. There must be a lot of corrals for that many runners. Great you're in B.

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