Already reported about the daring 5000m on the track, I wrapped up the rest of the week feeling really tired.
I do not regret doing the race because first of all there were those consideration about the opportunity do do a decent time in decent weather (now the temperature has already risen to 23C and humid...) and also it was a good way to kick-out the "post marathon gloom"...
After the marathon, is quite easy to totally relax and slack out for several weeks (well deserved anyway). But because I have another marathon coming in April, I better get my things going asap, albeit with the necessary recovery time
So:
Mon/Tue/Thu/Fri; no running... felt really like sleeping was the best option
Wed: track meeting 5000m
Sat: 14km very easy... I was feeling very tired and with aches here and there. My HR was at least 10bpm or more higher than what it should be for that speed.. and I even had to stop a couple of times because I felt tired.
Right hamstring very tired...
Sun: same 15km... slightly better, still HR too high, I tried to run slowly. I really needed a crane to get up from bed...
Recap: legs are not too bad, but the right hamstring really needs some work. I also feel tired.
The real great news is that my infant son has begun to sleep through the night (at least until 5am..) so that is really a boost for the recovery !
Monday, February 28, 2011
Thursday, February 24, 2011
something a bit insane....5000m track race
...errr... I did something a bit insane...
regardless of all what I read about the muscular damages after a marathon, damages which can take up to 3 weeks to repair...
it did go this way:
Monday and Tuesday I felt my legs really sore. I could go up and down the stairs, etc.. but not really in any idea of running (not even a light jog...).
I do not know what happened, but Wednesday morning I got up from bed and my legs were 90% ok, just a bit sore in some spot, etc...
Then I started to consider that I was already entered into the track meeting long ago, and it would have been a pity to lose it because the weather is still good (cool), while all the other meeting will be in much warmer weather...
it did also help that I have some business appointments in the late afternoon near the track meeting venue, so it was really "on the way home"...
So.. call it insanity, but I packed some running stuff in a bag and went to work...
By late afternoon, I felt very motivated to run and after work I headed to the Stadium...
I can not deny that some other runners did really big eyes when they saw me warming-up...
my legs were a bit sore and I had not idea if I would have been able to really push hard...
This said, I lined up with the other 20 starters and could not avoid to notice that I was MUCH older than anybody else, maybe double than the average age of the other runners...
the gun goes and I try to run around 3'15" for the first k...
The eventual winner and my teanmate Colin took off at higher speed, but I was in a small pack of 5 runners and we basically went along at 3'15" pace for the next 4k...
It is difficult to describe my feeling: in a sense, I felt like I was not suffering enough, especially compared with a monster effort of a marathon. The breath was quite comfortable, but I did not have the stride to go faster.
At 4000m I started to suffer, but it was a kind of subdued suffering....
At the last lap, we started to sprint and obviously I did not have huge legs...
I closed in 6th place, beating at the sprint a 17yo runner (!!) with a 16'23" clock which is anyway incredible considering the marathon.
(it is also a kind of PB for me.. because I never did a 5000m track race before... my 5K PB of 15'51" was on road)
It was quite funny that after the race, the most depressed was a guy who beat me at the spring by couple yards... he told me how he did prepare for 2 months specifically for this track meeting, doing intervals and intervals. And now he felt very depressed to just beat me by a little knowing that I did a marathon 3 days ago......
Well... now I will really take it easy for some time... but anyway it was great fun on the track !
regardless of all what I read about the muscular damages after a marathon, damages which can take up to 3 weeks to repair...
it did go this way:
Monday and Tuesday I felt my legs really sore. I could go up and down the stairs, etc.. but not really in any idea of running (not even a light jog...).
I do not know what happened, but Wednesday morning I got up from bed and my legs were 90% ok, just a bit sore in some spot, etc...
Then I started to consider that I was already entered into the track meeting long ago, and it would have been a pity to lose it because the weather is still good (cool), while all the other meeting will be in much warmer weather...
it did also help that I have some business appointments in the late afternoon near the track meeting venue, so it was really "on the way home"...
So.. call it insanity, but I packed some running stuff in a bag and went to work...
By late afternoon, I felt very motivated to run and after work I headed to the Stadium...
I can not deny that some other runners did really big eyes when they saw me warming-up...
my legs were a bit sore and I had not idea if I would have been able to really push hard...
This said, I lined up with the other 20 starters and could not avoid to notice that I was MUCH older than anybody else, maybe double than the average age of the other runners...
the gun goes and I try to run around 3'15" for the first k...
The eventual winner and my teanmate Colin took off at higher speed, but I was in a small pack of 5 runners and we basically went along at 3'15" pace for the next 4k...
It is difficult to describe my feeling: in a sense, I felt like I was not suffering enough, especially compared with a monster effort of a marathon. The breath was quite comfortable, but I did not have the stride to go faster.
At 4000m I started to suffer, but it was a kind of subdued suffering....
At the last lap, we started to sprint and obviously I did not have huge legs...
I closed in 6th place, beating at the sprint a 17yo runner (!!) with a 16'23" clock which is anyway incredible considering the marathon.
(it is also a kind of PB for me.. because I never did a 5000m track race before... my 5K PB of 15'51" was on road)
It was quite funny that after the race, the most depressed was a guy who beat me at the spring by couple yards... he told me how he did prepare for 2 months specifically for this track meeting, doing intervals and intervals. And now he felt very depressed to just beat me by a little knowing that I did a marathon 3 days ago......
Well... now I will really take it easy for some time... but anyway it was great fun on the track !
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
TV
just to close on the subject of the HK Marathon, I ended up on TV... with the cameramen who did really a good job of catching the moment when I slipped on the tarmac
(NOTE: the asphalt on that bridge is REALLY rough)
The direct link below starts actually from just few second ahead
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CM9hMRAznm4&feature=player_detailpage#t=685s
The frames are at 11'31" of the video (which is mainly on the duel for the win among the top athletes), so if you have more time and want to see the full video... see below
(NOTE: the asphalt on that bridge is REALLY rough)
The direct link below starts actually from just few second ahead
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CM9hMRAznm4&feature=player_detailpage#t=685s
The frames are at 11'31" of the video (which is mainly on the duel for the win among the top athletes), so if you have more time and want to see the full video... see below
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
a bit more technical…
passed the emotional moments...let's dig into the numbers...
(the very few readers of this blog know that I am data-maniac runner)
1) the tapering....
for the first time, I tried to take advantage of the "Training Load" function of the SportTracks3 SW.
Without bothering too much with my own personal data, you can see that the load went down a lot during the last week of January because of work commitment, so I tried to do a bit more in early February to recover, but obviously this involves the risk of getting too tired close to race day…
The greenish line (Training Stress Balance) was so still well below “0” very close to the marathon and I really had to take 3-4 days very easy to get a decent taper and reach race day with a TSB of +8.
I think that probably is better to avoid getting so close to a “A” race with tough workout and get more freshness to really have the best performance.
If someone is interested in knowing more about how to use the function, just pop me a message.
2) The carbo-loading:
my terror is always to end up in a part-a-john after 10k because of having eaten too much, and at the same time I still need to eat those 400-500grams extra of carbs to build up reserves for the race
(my friend Stefano knows very well the consequences of this: we ended up with 6 stops in the … while still finishing in 2h34’… he carbo-loaded using cereals…)
So, like I did for Fukuoka, I mainly took some cereal bars, but mostly resorted to carbohydrates in powder. I found a product with acceptable taste and so it was enough to sip all day long. I highly recommend
So my gut was still light and I did not feel too bloated at the start…
3) Race Splits
Difficult to say something on this. The first 10k are uphill, so the pace was fair. From 20 to 35 it is mainly downhill and also we really started to pick up the pace.
The split from 35 to 40 is great, considering the climb out of the tunnel and all the other flyovers, etc…Than I was really done for the day and just keeping the pace.
4) The HR
All the race was done following the indication of the Polar… I did on purpose hold back until the 20Km at the lower end of the MP zone… then it was time to start the race..
Note the spike in bpm around 1h00’…it was right after the fall… It was really an adrenaline boost..!! I had to calm down.. relax back and let the HR goes down again
5) The REAL race…
apart from the performance of a middle-age guy… there was a real race going on ahead of me
Here the article on the local newspaper
and lastly, the newspaper also find the goodwill to make an article about “the race in the race” for the local runners, where I am also interviewed !!
6) The reward:
for me, the greatest satisfaction is to being able to run in Fukuoka again.. with 2h39' I am sure to make their entry requirements. Now you know where I will spend my first Sunday of December !
(the very few readers of this blog know that I am data-maniac runner)
1) the tapering....
for the first time, I tried to take advantage of the "Training Load" function of the SportTracks3 SW.
Without bothering too much with my own personal data, you can see that the load went down a lot during the last week of January because of work commitment, so I tried to do a bit more in early February to recover, but obviously this involves the risk of getting too tired close to race day…
The greenish line (Training Stress Balance) was so still well below “0” very close to the marathon and I really had to take 3-4 days very easy to get a decent taper and reach race day with a TSB of +8.
I think that probably is better to avoid getting so close to a “A” race with tough workout and get more freshness to really have the best performance.
If someone is interested in knowing more about how to use the function, just pop me a message.
2) The carbo-loading:
my terror is always to end up in a part-a-john after 10k because of having eaten too much, and at the same time I still need to eat those 400-500grams extra of carbs to build up reserves for the race
(my friend Stefano knows very well the consequences of this: we ended up with 6 stops in the … while still finishing in 2h34’… he carbo-loaded using cereals…)
So, like I did for Fukuoka, I mainly took some cereal bars, but mostly resorted to carbohydrates in powder. I found a product with acceptable taste and so it was enough to sip all day long. I highly recommend
So my gut was still light and I did not feel too bloated at the start…
3) Race Splits
| Distance | Time | Split time | Split pace |
| 5 | 00:19:28 | 19:28 | 03:54 |
| 10 | 00:38:42 | 19:14 | 03:51 |
| 15 | 00:57:43 | 19:01 | 03:48 |
| 20 | 01:16:37 | 18:54 | 03:47 |
| 25 | 01:34:56 | 18:19 | 03:40 |
| 30 | 01:53:53 | 18:57 | 03:47 |
| 35 | 02:12:16 | 18:23 | 03:41 |
| 40 | 02:31:33 | 19:17 | 03:51 |
| 42,2 | 02:39:55 | 08:22 | 03:49 |
The split from 35 to 40 is great, considering the climb out of the tunnel and all the other flyovers, etc…Than I was really done for the day and just keeping the pace.
4) The HR
All the race was done following the indication of the Polar… I did on purpose hold back until the 20Km at the lower end of the MP zone… then it was time to start the race..
Note the spike in bpm around 1h00’…it was right after the fall… It was really an adrenaline boost..!! I had to calm down.. relax back and let the HR goes down again
5) The REAL race…
apart from the performance of a middle-age guy… there was a real race going on ahead of me
Here the article on the local newspaper
and lastly, the newspaper also find the goodwill to make an article about “the race in the race” for the local runners, where I am also interviewed !!6) The reward:
for me, the greatest satisfaction is to being able to run in Fukuoka again.. with 2h39' I am sure to make their entry requirements. Now you know where I will spend my first Sunday of December !
Monday, February 21, 2011
2h39’…and 1500USD
So I eventually did my debut in our local marathon….
It is difficult to decide where to start from, if from an aseptic narration of the race or from the deep emotions that every marathon leaves in a runner….
So I start from the 32K mark….
Until that moment, I had run the whole race shoulder to shoulder with Wioleta Kryza (a Polish Pro woman … after the race a google search revealed that in 2002 she was suspended for doping…). In few words she told me that she was quitting there because she was out of the money prizes.
I was alone with 10k to go and I could only see maybe 400m ahead 2 local runners who were directly competing for me for the “local runner special classification”.
I hit the split button ….2h01’19” into the race. Even with the mind fogged by the effort, I realized that I could arrive below 2h40’ , but at the price to clock a 38’ last 10K, with all the hills and the tunnel still ahead…
so go for it (sub 2h40’ and 3rd place) or just cruise to the finish and be content with 2h41’ and a 5th place?
I went….
I felt my body refusing the idea of pushing even harder, but my mind was really focused and little by little the 2 got read and blue spots ahead got bigger and bigger.
Once I reach the western tunnel, the red spot become just few steps ahead …. while climbing out of the tunnel (from –40 to +20 on sea level) I felt my legs like stones, but also the blue spot was nearer and nearer and I left it behind at the top of the climb…
Now I had only 4k left, and my right leg was setting tighter and tighter… every downhill was a real pain… I was not more able to extend the stride and just cruise down… every flyover felt like a mountain. My right hamstring was just a piece of wood and I was somehow surprised myself on how the Km splits were anyway still 3’4x
I stayed focused to my stride, just pushing my pain away. A last climb, the last Km banner and I hear Bill P. shouting “good job, Roberto, push, you can stay under 2h40’ ”…
Last turn, I see the finish line with the clock ticking away 2h39’30”…40”…45”…but is done…I crossed the line in 2h39”52”, around 15-20th overall but most important 3rd local runner….
It was all much beyond my expectations and a huge payback for all the sacrifices and early wake-ups…
The gratification was also “material” when I realized that I won 1500USD for the 3rd place in the special classification for local runners… the first time I ever win a cent running.
I can give myself a 10/10 marks because I really executed a perfect marathon strategy… not to sounds overconfident, but It was right from the books…
The course of HK marathon can be divided into 3 main sections…
the first half is a lot of hills, going from sea level to the top of the StoneCutter Bridge at over 100m altitude.. it might sound ridiculous, but climbing 100m in 4k, with strong sea winds is really tough…
My idea was to start VERY easy and keep my HR in the low 160s until the mid race. After 4-5k in the long climb my pack disintegrated and I was left with the mentioned Wioleta…
We exchanged pacing duties until the 15k turn-around point, and then I realized that somehow I was 5th of the local runners and not really far from the 4th/5th place… it was still a long way to go , but I was feeling strong
That sentiment did not last long… at the U-turn, on TsingMa bridge, I felt my feet losing grip and soon after I was on the ground with blood coming out from the right leg and my hands…
nothing terrible, but it was a huge discharge of adrenalin !! I could not finish my marathon for a stupid tumble…
My HR rate soared to 175-180bpm and I had to control my breathing, resume running and wait for the next water stop to sponge my bleedings..
The race was not compromised, I got back gradually to my “pacemaker” and we reached the half marathon mark in 1h20’50”.
Perfect to plans and it was time now to take advantage of the gradual descent down till the 37k…
I was happy that my HR was still low and we started to clock several 3’30” and 3’40” Kms… until she dropped off…
My HR was by then already around 175 (87%HRmax), but it was like I expected…
then.. the last part.. the last 5k are really brutal: you are under the underwater tunnel…40m below sea level and you have to go out.. with a climb which seem endless….then is all a succession of overpasses, flyovers, ups/downs until your legs can not take it anymore…
I run many marathons, but Hong Kong is really the toughest of the “city marathon” in the worlds…
Exhibit : IAAF race report (which made it as quote of the day in letsrun.com..)
END PART 1...tomorrow something more
It is difficult to decide where to start from, if from an aseptic narration of the race or from the deep emotions that every marathon leaves in a runner….
So I start from the 32K mark….
Until that moment, I had run the whole race shoulder to shoulder with Wioleta Kryza (a Polish Pro woman … after the race a google search revealed that in 2002 she was suspended for doping…). In few words she told me that she was quitting there because she was out of the money prizes.
I was alone with 10k to go and I could only see maybe 400m ahead 2 local runners who were directly competing for me for the “local runner special classification”.
I hit the split button ….2h01’19” into the race. Even with the mind fogged by the effort, I realized that I could arrive below 2h40’ , but at the price to clock a 38’ last 10K, with all the hills and the tunnel still ahead…so go for it (sub 2h40’ and 3rd place) or just cruise to the finish and be content with 2h41’ and a 5th place?
I went….
I felt my body refusing the idea of pushing even harder, but my mind was really focused and little by little the 2 got read and blue spots ahead got bigger and bigger.
Once I reach the western tunnel, the red spot become just few steps ahead …. while climbing out of the tunnel (from –40 to +20 on sea level) I felt my legs like stones, but also the blue spot was nearer and nearer and I left it behind at the top of the climb…
Now I had only 4k left, and my right leg was setting tighter and tighter… every downhill was a real pain… I was not more able to extend the stride and just cruise down… every flyover felt like a mountain. My right hamstring was just a piece of wood and I was somehow surprised myself on how the Km splits were anyway still 3’4xI stayed focused to my stride, just pushing my pain away. A last climb, the last Km banner and I hear Bill P. shouting “good job, Roberto, push, you can stay under 2h40’ ”…
Last turn, I see the finish line with the clock ticking away 2h39’30”…40”…45”…but is done…I crossed the line in 2h39”52”, around 15-20th overall but most important 3rd local runner….
It was all much beyond my expectations and a huge payback for all the sacrifices and early wake-ups…
The gratification was also “material” when I realized that I won 1500USD for the 3rd place in the special classification for local runners… the first time I ever win a cent running.
I can give myself a 10/10 marks because I really executed a perfect marathon strategy… not to sounds overconfident, but It was right from the books…
The course of HK marathon can be divided into 3 main sections…
the first half is a lot of hills, going from sea level to the top of the StoneCutter Bridge at over 100m altitude.. it might sound ridiculous, but climbing 100m in 4k, with strong sea winds is really tough…
My idea was to start VERY easy and keep my HR in the low 160s until the mid race. After 4-5k in the long climb my pack disintegrated and I was left with the mentioned Wioleta…
We exchanged pacing duties until the 15k turn-around point, and then I realized that somehow I was 5th of the local runners and not really far from the 4th/5th place… it was still a long way to go , but I was feeling strong
That sentiment did not last long… at the U-turn, on TsingMa bridge, I felt my feet losing grip and soon after I was on the ground with blood coming out from the right leg and my hands…
nothing terrible, but it was a huge discharge of adrenalin !! I could not finish my marathon for a stupid tumble…
My HR rate soared to 175-180bpm and I had to control my breathing, resume running and wait for the next water stop to sponge my bleedings..
The race was not compromised, I got back gradually to my “pacemaker” and we reached the half marathon mark in 1h20’50”.
Perfect to plans and it was time now to take advantage of the gradual descent down till the 37k…
I was happy that my HR was still low and we started to clock several 3’30” and 3’40” Kms… until she dropped off…
My HR was by then already around 175 (87%HRmax), but it was like I expected…
then.. the last part.. the last 5k are really brutal: you are under the underwater tunnel…40m below sea level and you have to go out.. with a climb which seem endless….then is all a succession of overpasses, flyovers, ups/downs until your legs can not take it anymore…
I run many marathons, but Hong Kong is really the toughest of the “city marathon” in the worlds…
Exhibit : IAAF race report (which made it as quote of the day in letsrun.com..)
END PART 1...tomorrow something more
Friday, February 18, 2011
Forecasting potential race performance with Polar Running Index
Polar is for me a very mysterious company... they "invented" the HR monitors, their units are packed of very useful functions... but then they do not make any effort to explain how to use in practice the functions made available...
The most mysterious of all is the Polar Running Index, about which I already wrote a couple of times (see HERE and HERE)
Now I try to use the Index as "forward looking tool" to forecast my incoming marathon time....
I own the Polar Rs800 since December 2006 and the trend of the P.R.I. is
Because I wanted to see better how to use Garmin and because the Polar food pod was broken for a while, I miss several data in the most recent period...
Anyway it seems that the past figures give a good idea of how my performance could be.
78-80 : around 2h42' (but that day in Boston the weather was tragic...)
80-82: below 2h40'
85: more around 2h35'
obviously these are my personal data and other people might have different curves.
Also the Index does not keep into consideration the specific training you could have for a specific distance (5000m o Marathon) but only a general indication of aerobic fitness
So I can bet on myself for Sunday that the time probably it can be something around/above 2h40', but then need to be factored by the hilly course and weather conditions (humid...).
I would be very happy to go below 2h42', qualify for Fukuoka and save somehow my legs for the spring marathon
Ok, now all is said and let's see what happens on Sunday
The most mysterious of all is the Polar Running Index, about which I already wrote a couple of times (see HERE and HERE)
Now I try to use the Index as "forward looking tool" to forecast my incoming marathon time....
I own the Polar Rs800 since December 2006 and the trend of the P.R.I. is
Because I wanted to see better how to use Garmin and because the Polar food pod was broken for a while, I miss several data in the most recent period...
Anyway it seems that the past figures give a good idea of how my performance could be.
78-80 : around 2h42' (but that day in Boston the weather was tragic...)
80-82: below 2h40'
85: more around 2h35'
obviously these are my personal data and other people might have different curves.
Also the Index does not keep into consideration the specific training you could have for a specific distance (5000m o Marathon) but only a general indication of aerobic fitness
So I can bet on myself for Sunday that the time probably it can be something around/above 2h40', but then need to be factored by the hilly course and weather conditions (humid...).
I would be very happy to go below 2h42', qualify for Fukuoka and save somehow my legs for the spring marathon
Ok, now all is said and let's see what happens on Sunday
Thursday, February 17, 2011
HK Marathon course in video
This is a nice one...
A guy put a camera on a car and did all the course of the HK Marathon.
It is impressing from 4'45" onward to appreciate the gradient of the big Stonecutters bridge... is really steep and long.
If you want to jump directly to the beginning of the bridge, click below
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxef8EgrxkM&feature=player_detailpage#t=287s
Other sections of the course are in part 2 and 3 of the video
A guy put a camera on a car and did all the course of the HK Marathon.
It is impressing from 4'45" onward to appreciate the gradient of the big Stonecutters bridge... is really steep and long.
If you want to jump directly to the beginning of the bridge, click below
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxef8EgrxkM&feature=player_detailpage#t=287s
Other sections of the course are in part 2 and 3 of the video
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)