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January 16, 2005
1:18:18/158
Yesterday I tried to scout out a convenient, flat 4 km circuit in Pontcharra. (Flat roads seem less humpbacked.) On the map I found a slightly lopsided solution that would've given me 3 drink stops during today's 16 km (10 mi) run. I wanted to remain well-hydrated while running before breakfast to work on fat-burning metabolism.
Unfortunately the road I found was blocked off and completely torn apart for sewage work. So I checked the track next to the municipal pool. The track was half muddy rut, half frozen footprints. I decided to run back and forth to Chapareillan twice, loading up on water before setting out.
This morning everything was covered with thick frost. I felt cold for the first 8 km, except for my toes, which are just now warming up. I decided to take this one as a 3/1 run (see Hal Higdon's explanation). A 3/1 run seems to split the difference between Greg McMillan's fast finish long run that has you ending at 10k pace, and a straight, steady-state long run. The way I did it was to run the first 3 quarters in my endurance range, then up the speed roughly to my lactate threshold for the last quarter.
My pulse was only around 87-89% for much of the last quarter. I'm not sure how fast I was running those 4 km. Overall my pace of 4:50/km (7:50/mi) fits in toward the fast end of my long run range according to McMillan's running calculator.
A 78-minute run is too short to deplete glycogen stores. Two weeks from now I'm doing 19 km (approx. 12 mi), which at my long run pace could theoretically burn up the glycogen. I am however trying Greg McMillan's suggestion to eat 4/1 carbs to protein after running to recover effectively. He suggested Slim-Fast, so I tried it. Yuck. I think I'll do Orange Julius instead after drinking the other two cans of Slim-Fast.
Posted by Mark at January 16, 2005 10:51 AM