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I jogged over to the start of the Al Briede 5k. It was moderately warm - mid-70's, humid, and breezy. But not bad, as Louisiana races go. But I had just a bad race. If you plug my recent race times into any pace calculator, no way should I be running over 20 minutes, let alone a 20:38. But that's what I did, and it was hard work, too.
So what's going on?! The race was tough from the start, and slowed drastically in mile 2 (where I was passed, and then stayed - small race meant I was second). I was out of breath and had shin splints (either the wrong shoes - my flats for track - or tied too tightly).
Contributing factors could be:
- First week with warmer, humid weather
- Tough time at track on Tuesday
- Overall increased volume of hard running is tiring me out and I need time to adjust.
- Tempo on Thursday - although it was purposefully an easier pace to avoid exhaustion before the race
- Bad shoe choice: calf pain was definitely an issue, although certainly not the cause of all my slowness!
So what's the plan? I think stick with my general mileage and track for a little bit to see if I just adjust to harder track workouts. If I keep slowing down, I'll cut out some volume and slow down my easy days even more. And then, of course, we will hopefully also be doing some faster stuff on the track as the weather keeps warming up: after three marathons and precious little else for almost a year, I'm in dire need of some speed!
I find it interesting that no matter what kind of runner you are, turtle pace in my case, more elite in yours, that you still have to find your groove. You still have to overcome the injuries and figure out what works for your body. I never thought it would take so long to recover from a back injury but it has. At the end of the day I'm just thankful to be back out running. I know that 20:38 is slow for you b/c of your ability, but law have mercy lady that's so amazing to me!!!!!
ReplyDeleteHonestly, in those conditions, especially if you're not acclimated? I don't think that time is awful and suspect I'd have run about the same.
ReplyDeleteI also think that 5Ks can be very hit or miss - slight issues one way or the other can have significant consequences, just because the race is over so quickly.
I still think 20:38 is amazing and would give ANYTHING to run that! I have only gone sub-21 one time and that was barely under... I haven't since and am scared it was just a fluke.
ReplyDeleteYou gotta give yourself some grace with the race results. You had a tough track workout and have been training for marathons which don't usually lead to crazy fast 5Ks. Plus the first few weeks of adjusting to the heat and humidity are always harder- by the end of the summer everyone has just stopped giving a damn and admitted we're all slow because of it (lol). Congratulations on finishing the race injury-free and at least this way, you can train for and race another :).
I agree with all of the above. Particularly running in warm/humid conditions when not acclimated. Even for a 5K, that can slow you down significantly. So I wouldn't jump to any conclusions just yet about you being slower.
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