Running

focus on increasing km time

I'd advise against this.

In my head I'm always running too slowly which might be the problem...

I think if you're time-pressed, you can make some short-term gains from increasing quality/intensity, if you're just targeting parkrun/5k, but you can't blag the endurance required for the half marathon. Unless you're already running 5/6x/wk with a long run that's over race distance, chances are you will improve your half marathon time by simply running more miles at an easy pace, more often and with a longer weekly long run.

That's not to say you can't throw in some faster sessions on a regular basis, not least to keep things interesting. Icing on the cake for any race distance is race-pace quality sessions - or thereabouts - so for HM, anything from mile reps @ 10k pace to longer continuous tempo efforts @ between marathon pace - HM pace, will help with speed-endurance. Everyone fades in the last three miles (because it's a bloody long way to race!), so progressive tempo runs are good practice, e.g. 5/6 miles starting marathon pace, work through to final mile @ 10k pace. But only once you've got a decent mileage base.

progressive tempo runs are good practice, e.g. 5/6 miles starting marathon pace, work through to final mile @ 10k pace.

ouch.

Just signed up for my first half marathon (in Feb). Pretty excited.

oh yeh, Gamma ray..... mmmmmmm Gamma

fuck parkrun

cycling is the new golf, Golf three days a week is cool as fuck, waaaaay better than cycling in lycra on three grand crabon on a sunday weekly

which one? February is a good time for half marathons.

Brighton

Good race, and quite fast... depending on wind direction!

Yes, I live just off the seafront. I never know whether to run into the wind on the first or the second half of my run!

I've been extremely lucky with my Brighton race history, a HM pb and current 10k pb, both involving a mild westerly wind blowing you home for the last few miles. Looks like I'll benefit from similar conditions tomorrow, a little further along the coast as I struggle over the Seven Sisters. Eek.

Is the Brighton HM part of the marathon event? I assume not as that's usually in Spring before VLM

Yes, that looks like a really tough course!

The Brighton half is at the end of February. The marathon is in April and has a 10k on the same day.

Good Luck. I'll think of you when I'm at parkrun.

I'm doing the brighton half and full.

I pb'd the half in 2015 but was also the race where i got flu the day after and pretty much haven't got back on track since.

Cheers!

BTW, has anyone been on the South Downs lately? Is it very firm going? Any muddy bits? I'm still trying to decide between trail shoes and Boston Boost for the race.

Last hard session before the ballbuster duathlon next week, was last night, 3x25 minutes at the border between tempo and threshold, which is as long as it is hard, did the same session last year, but last year had 6 minute recoveries between intervals vs 3 minutes of last night, was pleased to see that I was slightly faster this year vs last!

hopefully it bodes well, although I still don't feel like I'm as fit as I was last year, and I'm definitely about 4kg heavier :/

Went out for an afternoon run, felt good, decided in the first 100m to try for a 5km pb (hoping to break 20min). 20:18. Fark.

Might have to find a flat course to cut those 18s - seems like I'm on pace for the flat bits, its the slight climb that pushes the middle mile pace to 6.50.

/CSB

there was a squishy looking photo up on walthamstow parkrun's Facebook page earlier

this

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Ha! I wore the Bostons in the end but no regrets. The muddy sections were relatively short.

Exciting race. I was in a lead group of 3 for 6 miles before dropping off the pace on awkward downhill sections. Faceplanted after tripping on a tree root and overtaken at 7 miles, ralleyed and took back 3rd on an uphill shortly after. Fastish few miles in the middle, overtaken again by a different runner around mile 16. Spirits bouyed by a kiss and a gel from the gf at 19 miles and onto the nasty Seven Sisters feeling strong. Spied one of the guys who had been leading, not far ahead and obviously struggling. Overtook him on one of the steeper inclines (but still managing running), had 2nd in sight but couldn't close the gap. Finished strongly on a relatively fast finish. St John Ambulance cleaned up some bloody war wounds on my knees that looked worse than they felt.

Stats: 3rd overall, 3hrs 2mins. (Winner 2:56.) 7 mins quicker than 2009. I measured it a little short, but it's still 3,500 ft of climbing including 300 steps! 3 pints Sussex Best so far, popping out shortly for some more fuel. Happy days. :)

well done Phil!

Bostons FT3rd!

Great work.

If you could only learn to descend...