Okay, I’m not Flash fast. But I’m getting faster, feel a bit Flash-ish, and this month was a big contributor. Hard to believe, but I’m now done with a half year of Zone 2 training. It feels like just a few weeks ago that I started this. Looking back at all the data I’ve collected, I’m amazed by how many runs I’ve completed, the miles I’ve run (1,100 this year so far), and the progress I’ve made. While it doesn’t feel like six months, I’m aware of the determination that has been needed to maintain this plan.
For those reading for the first time, my overall aim is to time-qualify for the NYC Marathon, which at 54 demands a HM time of 1:36. My best HM time is 1:47, so I need to shave off 11 minutes. My previous strategy, run hard and fast always, would surely lead to injury. So, I took a chance on Zone 2 running (explained here), which says run slower, in order to run faster. It’s counter-intuitive, but slow running makes you efficient aerobically, which you need to sustainably run fast over longer distances.
Along the way, these six months have seen a lot of ups and downs, a roller coaster ride of frustrations and successes. In month one I saw big results, in month two I saw no gains at all, while in month three I saw small gains and in month four I saw some big progress again. Month five was “slow progress” and now that I have ended month six I can say that it was a significant improvement month. Up and down, up and down, and up and down. Overall it’s a success, but you really need a lot of patience for this plan.
For those who question Zone 2 training, give it a second look. The results are obvious. It takes a while to build up the aerobic base, but keep in mind that slower running is also sustainable — I haven’t been injured in a while, and I’m running about 50 miles a week at 54 years old. I also enjoy every one of my runs. Well, not the interval runs. Those suck. But besides those, I enjoy it. Zone 2 is not “sexy” — no paces to brag about on Strava — but it is effective. When race time comes that’s all that matters.
It’s Time to Switch Over to the 80/20 Method
My plan to tackle the NYC qualifier is 44 weeks long and has three parts — a 20 week base building phase, a 4-week transition stage, and then a full 20 week half-marathon training plan. The base building part of the plan consists of nothing but Zone 2 running, split up into a weekly number of 10k’s (five) and one long run. My aim here was twofold: build a solid base of weekly miles, about 45 - 50 miles per week, and build my aerobic base by slowly lowering my pace per mile while in Zone 2.
This post, and sixth month, signals the switch over to the 4 week transition period. My thought here was that moving from 100% Z2 running to 80/20 running could be quick, and somewhat harsh. After all this work, I do not want to get injured. So, I though a 4 week period of 90/10 running made sense. So, what I did in this sixth month was introduce one session of speed work a week. In month seven I’ll start the actual half-marathon plan. I’ll transition to full 80/20, adding a tempo run to the speed session.
The structure of the half-marathon plan is pretty simple. Keep in mind that I need, on race day, a HM run at a 7:20 pace — hopefully with that pace sustained (over the race) in both Zone 3 and 4. With that goal in mind, I know where different distance/type runs in different zones need to be for me to reach that goal by race day (Nov 6th). That said, here’s the basic plan per week for the half-marathon:
Three 10k’s in Zone 2, with the eventual race-time aim of a 8:30 pace (in Z2).
One long run of 15 miles, with the HM in Zone 2, and the final 2 miles in progression. The aim of the HM is to bring the Z2 pace to between 9 - 9:30.
One 5 mile tempo just under my LTHR, aim by race week of a 7:00 pace.
One interval session per week, aim to keep a pace of 6:30 while moving to harder and harder sessions with longer/more repetitions with less rest.
If I can make these various sub-goals, I should be able to make the time I need at the race. At this point, I am not sure I will make it — but I think I have a decent shot at it. Let’s look at the data for this month, moving to a Joe Friday style “just the facts” look and see how things looks with these goals in mind.
Joe Friday and Month Six’s Data
As in previous month-summary posts, I’ve posted below the raw table data and chart data that goes along with it. Here’s the table for just month six (you can check previous month posts for the rest of the table, which is getting too big to post).
The first thing to note in the chart are the split times, which read like “9:12/8:47”. If there’s a split time, this means that I’m accounting for the impact of temperature on pace. I’m using the formula from Maximum Performance, which suggests that for every 2F degree jump over 60F, you can take 4 seconds from your pace time. So, if you run-in 70F with a final pace of 9:20, temperature adjusted you ran at 8:50. So, when you see a split, the left is the “raw” pace, and the right is temperature adjusted.
Does this make sense? I could be wrong, but I think so. If, at 70F, I am running a 9:20 pace at effort X, this means part of that effort is dedicated to cooling the body, not running. So, what the adjustment is noting is that if it were under 60F, running at effort X would yield a faster pace, since all your heart rate would be dedicated to running. This is why, when it gets cold, runners “suddenly” run much faster. Since my race is in the winter, my temp-adjusted paces should, as it gets colder, start to line up with my raw paces. So, I need to keep track of this to see where I’ll be.
The Long Run
As I noted above, as I moved into the transition period I upped the long run from 13.1 miles to 15 miles, with the last 2 miles being a progression run. In the table and the chart below, I only record the pace for the HM component. As you can see I the chart, at the end of month six, my “raw” pace (red line below) is 9:56, and temp adjusted (green line) is 9:28. Given my goal (by Nov 6th): a 9 - 9:30 pace time, that’s great. If I can get my Zone 2 HM down to 9:00 by November, I’d feel very confident.
The Bread and Butter 10K Runs
Remember that the data in the 10K chart below is not for one run per data point, but rather each data point is an average of all 10K’s for that week (4 scheduled each week o month six). As the table shows, I’m down to “raw” 9:23, and temperature adjusted 8:50. I need to get this pace time down to 8:00. If temp-adjusted time is right, I’m less than a minute off that, so things look promising if the trend in the charts can be taken as something that will continue through the plan.
Speed Work
For this transition month, a few things should be noted. One, as I noted above, I moved to one speed session per week. Second, in the last week I wasn’t able to do one, so I ran 100% Z2. Third, in the first week I ran a second threshold 5k (first was at the end of month five), to get a good feel for my lactate threshold so that I could reset my heart zones for the HM part of the plan. Fourth, in the second and third weeks I ran an interval session of 8 x 400, with a 400 light jog rest period in between sessions.
If you remember from month five, in the last week of that month I ran a threshold 5k to gauge LTHR. I ran that one in 7:50 pace. This one (in month six) I ran at 7:38 pace (23:50 total). To hit my time in November, I need (in Nov) a 5K pace closer to 6:50, so I’m now 48 seconds off pace. It was warm for that 5k run, and I didn’t do temperature adjustments. If I add this in, it would be a 7:22 pace, or 32 seconds off what would be needed in November. Seems doable with 20 weeks to go.
My interval sessions have been pretty good so far — averaging a 6:31 pace — even though I hate running them. They are just hard. Some people like them, apparently, but I’m not one of them. I have to admit, part of my dislike of them is that I keep worrying (probably nonsensically) that I’ll have a heart attack running at that intensity. So, I run these while worrying that I’m probably about to die, which kind of saps the enjoyment out of it. Hopefully I’ll be able to get over it at some point! Maybe not.
Last But Not Least: Cross Training
I’m still maintaining my weekly cross-training, two sessions per week. My current workout schedule looks like this:
As I’ve noted in prior posts, the leg and ab work is essential to this running plan. Speed is just not possible without sufficient leg power, and base mileage and running fast will only get you so far. In addition, without sufficient ab strength, it’s impossible to maintain decent form after a few miles. The upper body workouts don’t contribute to running, but make sure I don’t look lop sided! I also have an odd neurological issue that leads to my left torso side being weaker, and boy does it show on arm strength!
Some Final Thoughts after Six-Months
First: I still love my Brooks trainers. I’m currently rotating between a pair of Glycerin 19’s (always used for my long run) and a pair of Ghosts. Why did I stick with Mizuno trainers for so long? Brooks are really good running shoes. The Ghosts are great for shorter runs, the Glycerin have awesome cushioning for longer ones.
Second: as a professor who teaches mostly ethics, I have a quandary. Should I buy a pair of Nike Vaporflys for my race? The Vaporfly takes 4% off your time, which would mean that in a pair of Vaporflys the effort needed for a 7:20 HM would turn into a 7:40 effort. I can’t shake the feeling that this is cheating in some way, though. Is it?
Third: Sha’Carri Richardson’s ban from the Olympics was stupid. She smoked some weed. Is it a performance enhancing drug? No. In fact, seems like a performance de-enhancer. Let her race. Shelby Houlihan’s ban is different - she tested for a steroid. Sad, but in the end it comes down to whether you believe it was really in a burrito.
Fourth: month six brings back nagging voices about purpose. Do I run out of an excess of existential “rage, rage, against the dying of the light” Dylan Thomas-like existential anxiety? If so, is that bad? Running hasn’t resolved my existential questions, but instead sharpened them. The more I run the more I ask: why do we do anything?
Up next: Month Seven. Bring it.
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Thanks for posting your experience with Zone 2 running. I'm a month into my own Zone 2 journey and I feel the need to continue to seek out anecdotal evidence to not go crazy. I've made some progress in the first month but not a whole bunch. Although I'm only running 30-35 miles a week as I'm in the beginning of my 24 week program. I'll eventually get to about 50. Anyway, seeing your experience helps reinforce that I'm on the right path I need to literally just keep putting one foot in front of the other and I'll get to where I want to go. Thank you!