As of today I’ve completed 4 weeks of my training plan leading up to the May 3rd Cox Providence 1/2 Marathon. The first few weeks were mostly in place to get my body used to mileage. As mentioned in my previous post my training has most recently been focused on shorter and faster races. With that said, the miles haven’t been much of a problem but my body definitely needed the base to get used to the volume. Like any new training program your body gets aches and pains in places your not used too. The nice thing about sticking with a plan is watching your body adapt to the training and the noticeable comparisons to a workout you may have struggled through just 1 or 2 weeks prior.
Some people just like to run and train based on feeling but I’m a data junkie and like to train by the numbers. At a certain point subjectivity in your training will only take you so far. For this race I have a training buddy that is doesn’t change its mind or give in when I may waiver a few miles into an intense workout. Timex is letting me try out the new IRONMAN ONE + GPS and I have to say its been a treat. The watch is like a training partner and coach all in one.
So here’s the problem with custom training intervals, and workouts for road races. You need a laptop to basically keep up with everything and track the data. The alternative would be to get on a treadmill and set the paces to ensure accuracy but I’m all set with staring at a wall for an hour. The IRONMAN ONE makes setting up these workouts easy and gives you options that are all in one place. For my training plan, my tempo runs are based on a Heart Rate zone with a recovery relevant to a running pace. I have distance repeats that are set at a specific mile pace and being the data junky I am, I want to know that my workouts are accurate. The IRONMAN ONE + GPS lets me set custom intervals and measures heart rate while giving me audible feedback as to whether I’m hitting my marks. Products like the IRONMAN ONE + GPS are allowing recreational runners to train with data that would only have been available to professional athletes. Being able to set custom intervals relevant to distance, heart rate, and very accurate pacing is something you just couldn’t find all in one place. In the past, I would have had to alter my training program relevant to what I could feasibly measure. Its nice to finally have a training partner where the sky’s the limit. I haven’t asked if it works in space so who knows maybe I’m still setting the bar too low.