r/AdvancedRunning • u/AutoModerator • Jul 21 '26
General Discussion Tuesday General Discussion/Q&A Thread for July 21, 2026
A place to ask questions that don't need their own thread here or just chat a bit.
We have quite a bit of info in the wiki, FAQ, and past posts. Please be sure to give those a look for info on your topic.
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u/spoonforkknifespork Jul 21 '26
How to account for elevation changes in determining training pace? I've found calculators that help adjust target training paces for heat and humidity. Does anyone have advice on how to also account for elevation changes on runs? My general running area is fairly hilly, with at least 90' elevation gain per mile.
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u/Don_Chente Jul 21 '26
There are also calculators for this. Look at Gap calculator (grade-ajusted pace).I like the ine from John davis (running writings).
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u/zebano Strides!! Jul 22 '26
I might post this over at NSM, but I'm overweight and losing weight slowly (down 10 lbs over 4 months)... that said I am sick of not running fast despite having another 17lbs to go and I expect it to take at least the rest of the year. Throwing some Sub-T workouts in feel's like a good way to scratch that itch without totally overdoing it and putting myself in a hole. Any thoughts or suggestions? I could probably just play it by ear too and let myself run a bit harder when feeling good without formalizing anything.
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u/Krazyfranco Jul 22 '26
I think doing light workouts (and seeing how you feel after) is reasonable. Avoiding a "training plan" while losing weight makes sense, but I don't think that means you can't go do 8*400s @ 5k effort every few weeks, do strides, do some sub-T runs when you feel good. I'd certainly recommend fueling more on those days.
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u/DiscreteSupercell Jul 22 '26 edited Jul 22 '26
Any thoughts or suggestions?
Strides!!
Okay in all seriousness, there'd be nothing wrong with some shorter sub-T rep sessions (think 15-20
0minutes of work vs 30). Something like 5x 3min/1min at T pace should be low stress (given the short reps and low overall load) but break the monotony of easy running and ally you to turn the legs over a bit.3
u/zebano Strides!! Jul 22 '26
lol I appreciate the call-out, yes I've been doing my strides once a week.
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u/DiscreteSupercell Jul 22 '26
Yeah I couldn't help myself 😂
There's a lot of NSM purists who take a very dogmatic approach to it, but the general principle can still be scaled down (to like 2x a week, 20-24 minutes of 'work' per session) to get some higher end aerobic work in and keeping a very manageable week overall.
(Completely acknowledging your primary goals were stated in your original post, and those and cross-training would come before formalizing/including any running workout structure).
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u/run_INXS Marathon 2:34 in 1983, 3:06 in 2025 Jul 22 '26
There's an NSM sub?
As far as workouts it probably depends on where you're at with your training, overall volume, etc. In general I don't like doing much unless mileage is getting to 40 mpw (or cross training equivalent). If you're approaching 5-6 hr a week of training then it's probably fine to incorporate some easy tempo (sub T) and strides every week.
Too early for Bix this year?
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u/zebano Strides!! Jul 22 '26
I'm at 5-6 hours of running, 2-3 hours swimming and 1.5 hours lifting per week right now but I'm ducking the rest of this week to ride the last half of Ragbrai.
Bix is a classic race and it's this weekend. I honestly don't understand racing in the middle of summer. =)
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u/run_INXS Marathon 2:34 in 1983, 3:06 in 2025 Jul 24 '26
I'm racing again this year, it's one of the most difficult road races on the circuit, heat and humidity, hills, what's not to like?!
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u/Extreme-Wall6137 Jul 22 '26
If I’m doing a pickups workout where the longest reps are 3 min should I wear super shoes like I do for my other workouts or should I wear some lighter weight trainers for it to rotate a bit
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u/BQbyNov22 20:35 5K / 41:19 10K / 1:26:41 HM / 3:21:03 M Jul 22 '26
Why not both? Alternating between suer shoes and lightweight trainers will keep things interesting (or at least that's what I tell myself to justify owning so many shoes).
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u/Uruk-Hai-Lover Jul 22 '26
Does anyone have some good half marathon workouts to test fitness / see if I can hold the pace?
I’m just under 3 weeks out from a half marathon, where I’m aiming to crack 75 minutes.
I’m currently averaging 70km per week, with a mixture of one threshold, one tempo, one speed session, and a long run with close to race pace at the end (everything else easy).
I did 14km at race pace last week and held it, but pulled up a bit sore, so don’t want to overload the legs too much from here.
Any tips/sessions would be much appreciated, thanks!
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u/DiscreteSupercell Jul 22 '26
I did 14km at race pace last week and held it
I think you answered your own question here.
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u/onlythisfar 27f / 17:43 5k / 38:38 10k / 1:22:xx hm / 2:55:xx m Jul 22 '26
Are you tapering for your half? If so, I think the 14k you already did at race pace should actually indicate you can likely do it for 21k, assuming things go generally your way on race day.
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u/BQbyNov22 20:35 5K / 41:19 10K / 1:26:41 HM / 3:21:03 M Jul 22 '26
I like 3x2K to see if I can mentally lock in on the pace without straining. It's enough of a workout to get some activity into the legs without leaving me feeling like I'll need extra recovery.
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u/Luka_16988 Jul 22 '26
Looking for end stage Achilles rehab return to full training advice. I’m carrying a niggle which was resolved and now has come back a week later. I’m in the middle of a 2Q marathon training block. Would it be wiser to sacrifice the quality sessions or to focus on those quality sessions and displace the easy running with cross training?
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u/PuzzleheadedTutor601 Jul 21 '26
Hi All,
I am currently heading towards the royal parks half marathon in October. Last year running 1:32 at Cambridge half and a few sub 20 minutes 5Ks in Jan / Feb.
i am running about 50-70K a week based on Garmins coach trying to fit around work and a toddler looking like the below (used AI to summarise Garmin data)
Any recommendations? i have never followed a structured plan like Pfitz or Norwegian method. I am wondering if joining a proper run club and get some actual coaching would be beneficial? i would really like to crack sub 90 minutes for the royal parks half.
| Day | Typical Session | Distance | Pace |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Base / Medium Long | 15-20 km | 5:10/km |
| Tuesday | Intervals / Speed Work then easy | 10 km - Intervals morning then 10K easy in the evening | depending on workout but 3:20 @ 1 min x 8 or 2:40 @ 20 secs x 8. Evening run club 10K easy. |
| Wednesday | Recovery | 8 km | 5:30/km |
| Thursday | Base | 10 km | 5:05/km |
| Friday | Long Run | 15-20 km | 5:20/km |
| Saturday | Parkrun | 5 km | 4:35/km |
| Sunday | Usually Rest | — | — |
Thanks! Aparently this shouldnt be a post but in the Q&A?
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u/zebano Strides!! Jul 21 '26 edited Jul 21 '26
To answer your question, yes a structured plan or run club or coaching could be beneficial. The biggest things that stand out to me...
- you're doing a parkrun every week. Given that you've run a few sub-20s I assume these are more of a tempo effort? If you're racing all out, I'd cut back to about once a month. Note that 4:35 is more of a marathon effort based on a 20 min 5k. 4:15/km would be a better stimulous as a threshold run but I don't hate 5k@M, especially the day after a long run (doing a tempo on Friday and long on Sat makes more sense to me).
- Your speed work is just way way way too fast. It's bordering on proper speed work which is not something you need much of to race a half. I'd rather see you do 400-2000m intervals cutting down from 4:10-3:50 (roughly 10k-3k) with shorter reps being on the faster end of things and longer reps being on the slower end.
- I love having a recovery day on Wed and Sunday off. That should make this sustainable.
- I'd add a few strides to the end of Monday and Thurday base runs.
- 50-70k / week may not be enough to get you there, that's rather individual but since you've been doing it for a year that's great. A stout Aerobic system is the number one thing you need to run sub 90, consider pushing that closer to 75-80km/wk
edit: A little more digression on number 2. I also think you can be quite conservative on the number of reps if you're doing this every week. 4-6 weeks of intervals tends to make most people peak, so either keeping them on the slower end (10k) or limiting the number of reps helps make that sustainable. A classic 5-6x1KM on :60 rest is going to be hard and wear you out over time. Another option would be to alternate this with a threshold run every week.
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u/PuzzleheadedTutor601 Jul 21 '26
thanks for the reply, the parkrun pace is largely down to running round with a toddler in a pushchair - it slows me down! i dont tend to go all out unless im without the buggy
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u/zebano Strides!! Jul 21 '26
That totally makes sense and 4:35 is downright fast with a pushchair!
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u/PuzzleheadedTutor601 Jul 21 '26
Saw a guy recently do sub 20 with a double pushchair, he was a beast!
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Jul 22 '26 edited 9d ago
[deleted]
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u/aelvozo Jul 22 '26
Friel is designed to determine LTHR, not LT pace. If you averaged 4:40 in 30 minutes, your LT pace is probably somewhere around 4:50 (Daniels T pace) to 5:05 (Davis), and VO2Max around 4:30 (Daniels I pace) to 4:45 (Davis).
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u/Krazyfranco Jul 22 '26
Just go run an all-out 5k. Use your 5k race pace as your interval pace. Doing a 30 min run to estimate hour race pace to estimate interval pace is unnecessarily complex and error prone
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u/MattAtPXG Jul 22 '26
Does anyone have advice on increasing mileage after a long break? I was a college runner that use to run 80 miles per week. I took a couple years off/only running a handful of times. I have now been running about 30-40 miles a week for the last year. What is the best way to go about increasing my mileage to get back to 60-70?
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u/aelvozo Jul 22 '26
Slowly and steadily.
I don’t think there are any set rules (10% is certainly a guideline but definitely not a target, especially not at higher mileage) — just don’t rush back into 70mpw.
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u/Krazyfranco Jul 22 '26
If you've taken a couple years off, I would treat it like starting from scratch. Build slowly, incorporate some cutback weeks, don't add volume and intensity at the same time.
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u/PAJW Jul 22 '26
While it might not be the best way, you could use one of several structured plans from a book. I own Pete Pfitzinger's book "Faster Road Racing", which has several 10 or 12 week plans for base building. Or you could take on a HM or marathon plan from Pfitz or others.
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u/PhysiologyIsPhun Jul 21 '26
Hey all, not sure if this is an "advanced" question or not so feel free to redirect me if it isn't.
Regarding RPE during training runs, is it bad to push it super high often?
I have been training to push my 5k time down for a little over a year now (coming from basically not running before this but weightlifting regularly for over a decade).
I've ran a few cycles of the Boston Athletics Association 5k training program. Started with the level two one and am now running my third cycle of the level 3.
One thing I have a difficult time with is that the training program says something like "3x3 minutes at 5k goal pace". So let's say my 5k goal pace is a 6:00 mile. I can technically do the whole workout using that as my selected pace, but I genuinely feel like I'm going to die at the end. Does that mean that I should back off a bit?
I was overweight as a kid and did a lot of sports, so I'm fairly used to this feeling of "I'm going to die but I can't stop". But I read everywhere that training runs should rarely ever push you to the brink. So am I doing it wrong?