What are your goals?
Each year right around this time I start to have this conversation within myself about which races I need to focus on and which races I can go out and enjoy. Each race has a different type of challenge and usually I don’t just go out and race for fun…it becomes a game we play with ourselves. Which can you let go at the start line and which are you going to focus and train specifically for. A running coach once asked me which race was my “A” race through “C” races. From that conversation on I have prioritized my training and the focus for the race season.
This year’s type “C” races and schedules. Here’s how I set it up and start thinking about this years’ races. Which race is a race I could come close to an age group win? Which races is going to be a PR race? Which race is something new I have never done before? I started this year by looking for longer races 50 milers, 88K’s, and Goruck endurance distances. All three of these races have been on my radar for some time, but I have never really gotten up to the challenge due to stress and the fear of something new. I call these “C” type races because will be going out and just trying these races this year. I don’t plan on going all out or to beat some course record, but I want to go out and give it my best. It will be a good opportunity to just see if I like the new distances. When it comes to “C” type races I will be training, but not necessarily for that distance. I know 50 miles will be a daunting amount of miles, but I can cover a lot of the training for this race in the training for an “A” type race.
“B” type races and why I think they might be the most important races to help get ready for the years running. Whenever I sign up for a race that I consider a “B” race, I use that race as a check for training. My first “B” race is coming up at the end of this month. I start with a ½ marathon to judge my pace and to judge my endurance for that distance. It is not a long race, but it has hills and gets me on the road to work on my road work. It lets me know what I need to work on for the big races; nutrition, hydration, shoes I wear…lots of things. I generally plan at least 4 “B” races a year as check points. I go as fast as I can, but it is not about winning or placing, it’s about the feeling of being comfortable on the runs. I usually have three or four of these races a year, but it’s not really needed. One, maybe two would be a good gauge of the amount of work you either need to do or have done.
“A” races are the ones that you push yourself to win. I am not going to get to ahead of myself, I wouldn’t be able to outright win basically any of these races, but I know I could have the age portion of the race locked down. The Dirty German is a race I have done for the last three years and only have ever done the 50k. This year I am shooting for the 50miler and running for the age win. My “B” race at Batona will tell me how much work I have to put in to make this happen, but it’s a great pairing of races. The other two “A” races are also by endurance racing in Philly, the ½ Saur ½ kraut in the summer, and the trap pond 50k. The only other “A” race is the Spartan Ultra Beast in NJ. I call this an “A” race, not because I could win for my age, that would be ridiculous, but because it is such a taxing race, that I want to make sure I am prepped for it. The last time I did this race (2018) it took me less than 12hrs to run. Any race that takes you upwards of 12 hours should be an “A” race, mainly because of the taxing amount of pounding on your body.
As the year continues along I will be writing shorter blogs about weekly trainings, miles I completed, and general overall feeling of how things are going. Subscribe or like a Blog as you read through. Put the like button on this one so I have some feedback!!