[OFF TOPIC] Your Own Excercise Thread

[heywoodu 14,942]

We're having another virtual competition on a Dutch forum, this time based on allround speed skating: 500m, 3000m, 1500m, 5000m. We've got four days for every 'stage', the times are calculated to points based on the 500m like in speed skating.

 

Today I'm going for the 500m, that is going to hurt like hell  No idea what to really expect, since I don't usually do something like this, but based on some 250m intervals and fastest 1km times and so on I'm hoping for a time under 2:00.0

[heywoodu 14,942]

I did not expect that  

 

 

1:32(.5), more than half of the time staying at or above 20 km/h and as you can see in the speed graph absolutely dying like a true middle-distance semi-sprinter is supposed to do  

[heywoodu 14,942]

Right, stage two: we've had Monday, Tuesday and have today and tomorrow for the 3km. The previous two days and tomorrow would be difficult due to work and besides, my legs still feel like crap after the full retard 500m of Saturday. This morning it is, 3km, with a rather optimistic goal of sub-14:00. 

 

Ave Totallympics, morituri te salutant.

[heywoodu 14,942]

That was not fun at all, some very loud protesting from every fiber in my body in the last kilometer. I am, however, very satisfied: 4:38, 4:25 and 4:10 (my fastest ever kilometer) for a total of 13:12,5 minutes  

 

Next up is the 1500m, which I've seen described as 'Dying with a capital D'. It being sort of an extended almost-sprint making it the most feared distance. Fan-freaking-tastic.

[Olympian1010 7,951]

You’re killing it man! I’ve been impressed with your times, so cheers from one runner to another 

[heywoodu 14,942]

3 minutes ago, Olympian1010 said:

You’re killing it man! I’ve been impressed with your times, so cheers from one runner to another 

What's your 1500m PB?

[Olympian1010 7,951]

4 minutes ago, heywoodu said:

What's your 1500m PB?

I ran the 1500m one season in middle school. I don’t have the times for that, but I’d guess high 5mins or low 6mins. I ran 3km and 5km Cross Country in the fall. In the spring, I ran the 3000m and 800m in middle school. I long jumped and high jumped in both middle school and high school. I began triple jumping in high school. I was never any better than average at any of those. I enjoyed competing and training though, so it was worth it. I believe my fastest 5km was a 21:42 at a cross country invitational.

[heywoodu 14,942]

2 minutes ago, Olympian1010 said:

I ran the 1500m one season in middle school. I don’t have the times for that, but I’d guess high 5mins or low 6mins. I ran 3km and 5km Cross Country in the fall. In the spring, I ran the 3000m and 800m in middle school. I long jumped and high jumped in both middle school and high school. I began triple jumping in high school. I was never any better than average at any of those. I enjoyed competing and training though, so it was worth it. I believe my fastest 5km was a 21:42 at a cross country invitational.

Right, that's what I'm going for  

 

I mean, 4:10 today was my fastest ever kilometer and that pace would bring me to 6:15, but then again, that was after two already very tough kilometers and Saturday I'll start with 'fresh' legs, so I should be able to go faster. Three half kilometers a teeny tiny bit under two minutes would be awesome.

[Olympian1010 7,951]

1 minute ago, heywoodu said:

Right, that's what I'm going for  

 

I mean, 4:10 today was my fastest ever kilometer and that pace would bring me to 6:15, but then again, that was after two already very tough kilometers and Saturday I'll start with 'fresh' legs, so I should be able to go faster. Three half kilometers a teeny tiny bit under two minutes would be awesome.

Do you go out fast, and then settle into a rhythm; or do you run a consistent pace throughout? 
 

I always struggled with my pacing a little bit. I has a tendency to go out slow, and then run consistent, until having way too much left at the finish. I really enjoyed kicking people down in the last 200m.

[heywoodu 14,942]

2 minutes ago, Olympian1010 said:

Do you go out fast, and then settle into a rhythm; or do you run a consistent pace throughout? 
 

I always struggled with my pacing a little bit. I has a tendency to go out slow, and then run consistent, until having way too much left at the finish. I really enjoyed kicking people down in the last 200m.

 

I have never really ran a fast 1500m yet, but my plan is to sort of start roughly the same as my 500m, then slow down and get into a bit of a rhythm that's very painful but not impossible to keep up and then just keep going for what feels like at least 55 minutes until I'm at 1500m. It's too short of a distance to be able to afford any kind of getting into a somewhat comfortable rhythm, but too long to just go full retard. I guess there's a reason they call it the hardest one  

 

Today in the 3k I thought I started out pretty strongly, but if my last kilometer was almost half a minute faster than my first, there probably was a bit more to win there. But, as I'm sure you know, there's that fear (well, more like a factual knowledge) of it going to hurt like an absolute bitch and not starting too fast (or fast enough) feels like a way to ease that.

 

Last Saturday's 500m had no pacing. It absolutely hurts like all hell and you feel like you've just inhaled the core of the sun into your lungs, but at least it's straightforward: go out sprinting as fast as you can and don't stop moving until 500m is done even if your legs are really, really, really struggling to simply keep your body upright in the last 150m.