How Hard Is To Go Slow?

The first base run (60-75% HRmax) has been covered. It was actually quite hard to keep a lid on the intensity. It just didn't feel right to be moving so slow, and slow it was. 6:45/km was the average pace. I knew that would be the case at the start. I expect to see a consistent and steady improvement in speed at the same heart rate over the next few weeks as my body redevelops its aerobic conditioning. Yet it is the way that I know works.

As for racing, I'm not competing for the first three weeks as my body goes through the initial adjustment period. After that I'll wait and see what appeals to me. For street orienteering I won't be racing the Spring series, but this is because of my work roster. There's only a couple of races available when I'm not rostered on shift and these one are the furthest away from me. Rotating shift work does make it almost impossible to commit to a weekly event. My roster just worked out well for half of the Winter series.

Overall I think the training will generally feel easier. As there will only be a few key sessions where I will up the intensity, a portion of the others can be relaxing. That is something I have missed over the last few months. The cruising, easy runs that are a true stress release.

Comments

  1. Kit Kat23 August 2008 at 03:30

    I think it gets easier with time, at least that is the case for me. At first I feel like a dog caged with a steak in front of it, then slowly as training ramps up I appreciate the slow stuff...on some occasions I'll even stop and smell the roses :)

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  2. Ewen23 August 2008 at 19:20

    A bit of a shame you didn't get a serious 5k race during that experiment with the speed/power side of things going so well.

    Yes, it's hard to go slow initially. I think there's a fine line to the bottom % HR, so that you're still running comfortably. This probably varies from individual to individual...

    In my EoO, 70%ave seems to be the absolute slowest, which gives me about 6:12/k, while 75%ave is a more natural 5:45-55/k (on a flat course).

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