Class 10

You reached the term's midpoint today. The second of three tests checked your progress, which everyone has made.

Tuesday's distances will be 3.25 and 6.5 miles. Or if you can't wait that long, run Friday's intramural track meet (starting at 6:00, with free registration at 5:30) -- or join my half and marathon team's final one-hour run on Sunday morning (from the Eugene Running Company at 8:00).

TODAY'S 2-MILE TEST

(with per-mile pace and comparison to your last long run here; target was to go faster; * = faster than first week's one-mile test)

*Lyanne -- 17:37 (8:48 pace, -31 sec.  per mile)

Neal -- 12:34 (6:17s, -1:02) 3rd most improved

Tara -- 15:34 (7:47s, -59 sec.)

Nicole -- 16:26 (8:13s, -33 sec.)

*Becky -- 18:18 (9:09s, -53 sec.)

Baylie -- 18:56 (9:28s, -41 sec.) faster than 1st week's 2-mile

*Jerry -- 15:44 (7:52s, -31 sec.)

TODAY'S 4.1-MILE TEST

(with per-mile pace and comparison to your last long run here; target was to go faster; * = faster than 1st week's 2-mile test)

Michaela -- 5 miles in 32:30 (6:28s, -1:09) 2nd most improved

Joshua -- 32:28 (7:54s, -18 sec.)

Isaac -- ran hills for Eugene Half training

Leslie -- running 11 miles in afternoon

Brooke -- 35:46 (8:42s, -1:15s)  most improved, earning extra credit 

LESSON 10: GETTING SICK

Take illness symptoms as seriously as those of injury. But instead of using pain as a guide, substitute the words fever and fatigue. The most common ailments are the flu and colds. Never, ever run with the flu’s fever. Don’t just rest while feverish but take an additional day off for each day of the illness, or you risk serious complications. Colds are more mundane – and more common. They usually pass through you in about a week. Rest during the “coming-on” stage (usually the first two to four days). Then run easily (slowly enough not to cause heavy coughing and nose-throat irritation) during the “coming-out” stage.

Class 9

You've now nearly reached the race distance for which your class is named. You won't stop here but will climb up to four or eight miles on Tuesdays.

Thursday you'll take a "midterm," testing yourself at two or four miles. Friday's intramural track meet at Hayward Field will begin at 6:00, with registration the half-hour prior.

TODAY'S 3.0 MILES

(with per-mile pace and comparison to your last long run here; target was to match that pace)

Lyanne -- 27:59 (9:19 pace, -6 sec. per mile) 2nd best pacer

Garrett -- 3.25 miles in 23:49 (7:19s, -26 sec.)

Neal -- 3.25 miles in 23:49 (7:19s, -28 sec.)

Spencer -- 24:34 (8:11s, +28 sec.)

Nicole -- ran untimed

Becky -- 30:08 (10:02s, +2 sec.) best pacer, earning extra credit

TODAY'S 6.0 MILES

(same info as above)

Michaela -- 8 miles in 1:01 (7:37s, +24 sec.) after 19 miles on weekend

Lucas -- 40:58 (6:49s, -56 sec.)

Joseph -- 50:44 (8:27s, -25 sec.)

Osbaldo -- 42:59 (7:10s, -54 sec.)

Isaac -- 40:11 (6:41s, -28 sec.)

Joshua -- 49:16 (8:12s, +7 sec.) 3rd best pacer

Leslie -- 7 miles on Sunday

Brooke -- 59:50 (9:58s, -22 sec.)

LESSON 9: GETTING HURT

Runners get hurt. We rarely hurt ourselves in the sudden, traumatic ways skiers and linebackers do, but the injury rates run high. Most of our injuries are self-inflicted – from running too far, too fast, too soon or too often (and sometimes on surfaces or in shoes not right for us). Prevention is usually as simple as adjusting our routine. Immediate treatment seldom requires total rest, but only a change in activity. Use pain as your guide. If you can’t run steadily without pain, mix walking and running. If you can’t run-walk, simply walk. If you can’t walk, bicycle. If you can’t bike, swim. As you recover, climb back up this exercise ladder.

Class 8

Attendance was light today (as often happens when midterms come on an intervals day). But for those who ran, the pace was the fastest yet.

Tuesday's runs will nearly reach the 5K or 10K race distances, as you go 3 or 6 miles on the river path.

TODAY'S 3 X ONE-THIRD-MILE INTERVALS

(with total time for one mile and comparison to your first week's nonstop mile; target was to go faster, which you all did)

Andrew -- 6:21 (-1:09) day's 2nd most improved

Lucas -- 5:10 (-1:00)

Lyanne -- 7:46 (-1:07)

Garrett -- 5:22 (-33 sec.)

Tara -- 6:21 (-1:08) 

Becky -- 8:02 (-1:17) most improved, earning extra credit

TODAY'S 3 X TWO-THIRDS-MILE INTERVALS

(with total time for 1.95 miles, per-mile pace and comparison to your first week's nonstop 2-mile; target was to go faster)

Michaela -- 8 x 800 meters averaging 2:52

Osbaldo -- trained indoors

Brooke --15:11 (7:50 pace, -59 sec. per mile)

Baylie -- trained indoors

Juan Carlos, with assist from Lucas -- 14:25 (7:23s, no target)

LESSON 8: TAKING TIME

Your second most valuable piece of equipment, after shoes, is.... no, not shorts and not T-shirt. You can wear other clothes than those. Your next most vital item is a watch. Buy a digital model with a stopwatch feature, and make time your main way of keeping score. Time can make you an instant winner by telling exactly how fast you ran a distance, and maybe how much you improved your personal record (“PR,” in runner-talk). Another, more subtle value of the watch: It lets you run by time – by minutes instead of miles. This has several benefits: freeing you from plotting and measuring courses, because minutes are the same length anywhere... easing pressure to run faster, because you can’t make time pass any faster... finishing at the assigned time limit no matter your pace, which settles naturally into your comfort zone when you run by time.

Class 7

Next week we get our one chance each year to set foot on the famous Hayward Field track. The annual intramural track has a Friday, May 1st date. No entry fee.

Thursday you'll run your second set of intervals: 3 x one-third-mile or 3 x two-thirds. This time I will assign you a relay partner, and you'll run every other lap with a rest break between.

TODAY'S 2.8 MILES

(with per-mile pace and comparison to your last long run here; target was to match that pace)

Lucas -- 21:42 (7:45 pace, -9 sec. per mile) day's 2nd best pacer
Lyanne -- 26:23 (9:25s, +19 sec.)
Garrett -- 21:42 (7:45s, +24 sec.)
Neal -- 21:50 (7:47s, -15 sec.)
Leslie -- 24:48 (8:51s, no target) after 10 miles on Sunday
Tara -- 24:35 (8:46s, +12 sec.)
Nicole -- 24:36 (8:46s, no target)
Becky -- 28:00 (10:00s, +11 sec.)
Eleanor -- untimed
Jerry -- 3.1 miles in 26:02 (8:23s, -49 sec.)

TODAY'S 5.5 MILES

(same info as above)

Michaela -- 4 x mile at 6:05 average; after 16 miles on Saturday
Joseph -- 48:49 (8:52s, -6 sec.) day's best pacer, earning extra credit
Osbaldo -- 6.5 miles in 52:00 (8:00s, +57 sec.)
Brooke -- 56:51 (10:20s, +40 sec.)
Baylie -- untimed
Juan Carlos -- 10 miles on Sunday

LESSON 7: GOING EASIER

Pacing isn’t just for a single run. It’s also something you practice from day to day throughout the week. Some runs must be hard if you’re training to race, but most runs must be easy to compensate for that effort. In other words, you run less than your best much of the time – neither long nor fast. You can calculate ideal pace for easy runs several ways: at least one minute per mile slower than you could race the same distance; or about 75 percent of maximum heart rate; or simply whatever feels comfortable, not too fast or too slow. The last of these guidelines is the simplest to use. What feels right usually is right.

Class 6

This by-time run was your only chance for some friendly competition in class. Everyone had an equal chance to finish first, so I gave a prize to the 5K and 10K winner -- the one who sped up most on the return trip. This was meant to mimic how you'd feel in the latter part of a race.

Tuesday's distances will be 2.75 and 5.5 miles. Eugene Marathon and Half runners are always welcome to join us on Sundays; this weekend we'll go 21 or 10 miles.

TODAY'S SLOW/FAST "16 MINUTES"

(with actual time and comparison of 2nd half with 1st; target was to come back faster, or run a so-called "negative split," which everyone did)

Andrew -- 14:23 (-1:37)

Lyanne -- 14:47 (-1:13)

Garrett -- 13:08 (-2:52) 2nd to finish; after 6 miles on Wed.

Neal -- 13:52 (-2:08) 3rd to finish

Leslie -- 14:55 (-1:05)

Nicole -- 11:20 (-4:40) 1st to finish, earning extra credit

Jeff -- 14:42 (-1:18)

TODAY'S SLOW/FAST "32 MINUTES"

(same info as above)

Michaela -- ran 9 miles

Lucas -- 27:44 (-4:16) 3rd to finish

Joseph -- 28:33 (-3:27)

Osbaldo -- 27:30 (-4:30) 2nd to finish

Isaac -- 26:30 (-5:30) 1st to finish, earning extra credit

Joshua -- 28:58 (-3:02)

Spencer -- 28:26 (-3:34)

Brooke -- 28:57 (-3:03)

Baylie -- untimed

Juan Carlos -- 28:00 (-4:00)

LESSON 6: GOING FASTER

A little bit of speed training goes a long way. In fact, a little bit is all you should do because, in excess, speed kills. Most runners can tolerate fast training that totals only about 10 percent of weekly mileage. This can come two major ways and one minor one. The first big way is as intervals – a training session of short, fast runs with recovery breaks between. The other main way to train for speed is the tempo run – at race pace or faster for a shorter distance. The smaller way to gain and maintain speed is with “strides” – ending the warmup by striding out for a hundred yards or so, one to five times, at the top speed that you would ever race. Strides also have value at the finish of a relaxed run, as a reminder to push at the end of a race.

Class 5

Welcome to winter-in-April. You might not have noticed, but the high hills had snow this morning. The chilly start to the day didn't stop your run -- or mine.

Someday I'll get this right! Today I failed at math for the "2.5-mile" run, sending most of you an extra point-five. No one complained.

On Thursday, for the only class all term, you will run by time instead of distance. I call it a "slow/fast run," as you go out for eight or 16 minutes easily, then come back harder. 

TODAY'S 3.0 MILES

(with per-mile pace and comparison to your last long run here; target was to match that pace for this longer distance)

Andrew -- 27:48 (9:10 pace, -33 sec. per mile)

Lyanne -- 27:21 (9:06s, -43 sec.)

Spencer -- 2.5 miles in 19:18 (7:43s, -1:19)

Tara -- 25:43 (8:34s, -1:14)

Becky -- 29:29 (9:49s, -1:31)

Jerry -- ran untimed

TODAY'S 5.0 MILES

(same info as above)

Michaela -- 36:55 (7:23s, -31 sec.) after 20 miles on weekend

Joseph -- 44:51 (8:58s, +5 sec.) day's 2nd best pacer

Osbaldo -- 35:17 (7:03s, -51 sec.) after 10 miles on Saturday

Isaac -- 35:45 (7:09s, +3 sec.) best pacer, earning extra credit

Joshua -- 40:29 (8:05s, +23 sec.)
Leslie -- 9 miles on Sunday

Brooke -- 48:18 (9:40s, -1:17)

Baylie -- 50:45 (10:09s, -1:24)

Juan -- 44:31 (8:54s, +6 sec.) 3rd best pacer; after 9 miles on Sunday

LESSON 5: GOING LONGER

Distance, unlike speed, is almost limitless. No matter what your level of talent, no matter how many years you have run, no matter how old your personal records are, the possibility of covering longer distances still exists. This helps explain the appeal of the marathon. First-year runners can take pride at finishing one in twice the time the leaders take to finish, and longtime runners can feel good about going the distance an hour slower than their PR. Not all runners can go faster, but just about anyone can run longer. It isn’t a matter of talent, but only of pacing, patience and persistence. However, you can’t take big leaps in distance all at once. The safe limit for progress is about 10 percent per week – for instance, no more than a half-mile added to the recent five-mile run.

Class 4

Notice how much difference the rest break makes. Everyone who ran last Thursday went much faster today -- and I hope without a great increase in effort. That's how interval training is supposed to work. It isn't everyone's (anyone's?) favorite way to start a day, but it will pay off later by making the longer runs seem easier.

Tuesday's distances are 2.5, 5.0 and 9.0 miles. Marathon and half training runs are available Saturday (from UO, same place our class starts) and Sunday (Eugene Running Company). Both start at 8:00. 

TODAY'S 2 X HALF-MILE

(with total time for one mile and comparison to your nonstop time last Thursday; target was to go faster; lesser target was to run equal or faster time for the second segment)

Andrew -- 6:31 (-59 sec.)

Lyanne -- 7:44 (-1:08) day's 2nd most improved

Joseph -- 7:05 (-1:07) day's 3rd most improved

Garrett -- 5:24 (-31 sec.)

Neal -- 5:27 (-38 sec.)

Leslie -- 7:13 (no target)

Spencer -- 5:31 (no target)

Tara -- 6:50 (-39 sec.)

Nicole -- 7:00 (-47 sec.)

Becky -- 8:26 (-53 sec.)

Eleanor -- 9:32 (no target)

Jerry -- 6:22 (-2:23) most improved, earning extra credit

TODAY'S 2 X MILE

(with total time for two miles, per-mile pace and comparison to your nonstop time last Thursday; target was to go faster; lesser target was to run equal or faster time for the second segment)

Michaela -- 11:50 (5:55 per mile) totaled 5 x mile at 6:02s

Lucas -- 11:08 (5:34s, -36 sec.)

Osbaldo -- 11:10 (5:35s, -36 sec.)

Brooke -- 15:44 (7:52s, -57 sec.)

Juan Carlos -- 7:02s, no target)

LESSON 4: BIG DAYS

Most runs need to be easy. This is true whether you’re a beginning racer or an elite athlete. (Of course, the definition of “easy” varies hugely for these groups; easy for the elite would be impossible for the beginner.) Training for the distance and pace of races, and actually running these events, is a prescription item, best taken in proper, well-spaced doses. New racers are wise to limit themselves to one big day a week. On this day, run longer than normal (as long as the longest race distance but at a slower pace) or faster than normal on this day (as fast as the fastest race pace but for a shorter distance), or go to the starting line in a race (combining full distance at full pace). Experienced racers can put a long run AND a fast run into the same week, but don’t want to squeeze both of these PLUS a race into one week.

Class 2

This wasn't a race. At least I don't use that word in class. My preference is "test," because that's what you do: test yourself rather than racing to beat others. Today's time gives you a target for later tests.

Tuesday's distances step up to 2.25 and 4.5 miles, plus an 8.0 option for half-marathoners.

Thanks to Laurel Mathiesen for introducing you to the Eugene Marathon and leading warmup drills this morning.

TODAY'S ONE-MILE TEST

(with time and comparison to Tuesday's per-mile pace, if your distance then appeared to be accurate; target was to go faster for this shorter run)

Andrew -- 7:30

Lyanne -- 8:53

Garrett -- 5:55 (-2:06) day's most improved, earning extra credit

Neal -- 6:05 (-2:03) day's 2nd most improved

Tara -- 7:29 (-1:33)

Nicole -- 7:47

Becky -- 9:19

Eleanor -- ran untimed

Jerry -- 8:45 (-18 sec.)

TODAY'S TWO-MILE TEST

(with per-mile pace and comparison to Tuesday's per-mile pace, if your distance appeared to be accurate; target was to go faster for this shorter run)

Michaela -- 6 miles 39:50 (6:35 pace, -38 sec. per mile)

Lucas -- 12:21 (6:10s)

Joseph -- 16:24 (8:12s, -1:35) day's 3rd most improved

Jannik -- 12:24 (6:12s, -1:01)

Osbaldo -- 12:23 (6:11s, -45 sec.)

Isaac -- 12:58 (6:29s, -44 sec.)

Joshua -- 14:45 (7:22s, -56 sec.)

Leslie -- 4 miles in 36:00 (9:00s)

Brooke -- 17:39 (8:49s, -41 sec.)

Justyne -- 18:22 (9:11s, -13 sec.)

Baylie -- 21:25 (10:42s)

LESSON 2: WINNING WAYS

A great beauty of running is that it gives everyone a chance to win. Winning isn’t automatic; you still have to work for success and risk failure. But unlike other sports there’s no need to beat an arbitrary standard (such as “par” or an opponent’s score). You measure yourself against your personal records. To the runner, a “PR” does not stand for public relations or an island in the Caribbean. It means “personal record,” and this PR may represent the greatest advance in the history of this sport. The invention of the digital stopwatch worn on the wrist turned everyone into a potential winner. Here was a personal and yet objective way to measure success and progress. It didn’t depend upon beating anyone, but only upon how the new numbers on the watch compared with the old ones.