Riccitello Talks
Thu, 12 Feb 2009 23:20:23 -0800
Remember that I’m a trained professional. Or maybe a professional who trained . . . Whatever, I know how to get in shape to run 16:00 for a 5km. I’m simply asking you to consider that there is a lot of thought that’s going into my Carlsbad 5000 training plan. I know what’s best for me. I know what I’m capable of. I know my background. I know my limitations. Therefore, I encourage anyone reading this to carefully consider my previous statements before you attempt to copy my Carlsbad 5000 prep. I don’t want anyone out there getting hurt.
Anyway, I did a little speed work today. Nothing too severe – it’s not like I’ve actually been running, or anything. I don’t want to pop a hammy or snap an Achilles. I know that I really can’t rush things. I still have 52 days until race day. It’s not like the race is next week.
So I ran with two women I help out. They’re both pretty good. I ran for 51 minutes and 26.74 seconds, for a grand total of 7.1645872 miles (I’m starting to dig the Garmin). The girls ran a little longer (I only had a baby-sitter for an hour, plus I was tired). Our mile splits were: 8:16, 7:58, 7:40, 6:49, 6:35, 7:15, and 8:12. In the middle we did 15x(30” as a stride/45” medium). That explains the "hot" pace for miles 4-6.
I felt pretty good. I was only breathing a little heavier than the girls. My calves are sore, but that’s to be expected, seeing as my typical run is 4-5 miles. I’m happy with the pace. I feel I’m right on target. I’ve got to hold 5:09/mile to run 16:00. I think the Garmin indicated that a couple of the 30” strides were down around 6:00/mile pace. I mean, that’s only 50 sec/mile off of goal pace. I realize I was only running 6:00 pace for 30 seconds, but I feel I could’ve lasted another 10-15 seconds at that speed. I’ll get there.
No riding today, but I did do some sit-ups and push-ups. I may as well get the six-pack back, and some pecs would be nice. If I keep progressing nicely with my strength work, I may run with my shirt off. That should be intimidating to my peers . . . and nice for the ladies.