Class 5

This was your first trip to the Willamette River and beyond. You’ll go in this direction every other Tuesday. Crossing Franklin can be frustrating, but you can ease that complication by turning off your watch while waiting for the stoplight to change. That way, you don’t penalize yourself for time spend standing still.

Thursday, for the only class this term, you won’t run by distance (and also a rare occasion when everyone will run the same amount). It will be a by-time run, going out for 12 minutes, then turning back. This is a “negative-split” exercise, in which you try to run the second half faster than the first – finishing under 24 minutes, that is. This approximates the 5K race length.

TODAY’S 2.5 MILES

(with per-mile pace and comparison to your last long run here; target was to match that pace fore this longer distance; if you didn’t time yourself out at stoplights, you probably ran faster than listed here)

Erik B. – 20:35 (8:14 pace, -38 sec. per mile)

James B. – 19:24 (7:46s, +13 sec.)

Olivia – 20:25 (8:10s, +25 sec.)

Amina D. – 25:54 (10:22s, -11 sec.) day’s 3^rd best pacer

Houston – 19:02 (7:36s, -50 sec.)

Bella – 20:25 (8:10s, +25 sec.)

Joey – 28:05 (11:14s, =) day’s best pacer, earning extra credit

Daniel – 20:54 (8:22s, -9 sec.) day’s 2^nd best pacer

Leticia – ran untimed

Aminah K. – 25:52 (10:20s, -12 sec.)

Jessica – 26:05 (10:26s, -18 sec.)

Katie – 26:17 (10:30s, +25 sec.)

James S. – 20:30 (8:12s, -42 sec.)

YingYing – 25:38 (10:15s, -1:15)

TODAY’S 3.4 MILES

(same info as for the shorter run)

Leah – 28:41 (8:26s, +39 sec.)

Tori – 26:54 (7:54s, +24 sec.)

Miguel – 32:55 (9:41s, -35 sec.)

Scott – 27:03 (7:57s, +13 sec.)

Amanda – 26:21 (7:45s, +14 sec.)

Eric S. – 26:21 (7:45s, +14 sec.)

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.