In article <
[email protected]>, amh wrote:
>> This is one of those pieces of "conventional wisdom", that I don't really agree with. You can't
>> fully simulate racing conditions in training. For a start, you
>
> You can't get up in the morning drive to a location and run 3.1 miles hard without 100 other
> people around you to experiment? Please explain this to me.
If you're going to do this, why not pay the entry fee and enter a race ?
For people who don't have readily available races, this is the next best thing, but if you are
living in a place where races are held regularly, then it seems silly to do all the work when you
could enter the real thing.
Also, there are annoying details and administrivia that don't come up until race day (e.g. using the
bathroom before the lines get too long, picking up your race packet, etc)
>> are running much faster in a race than you are in training, which in itself makes a huge
>> difference. The logistics and travel are also different.
>
> I'd say slight difference. Is it really that different to run 5 miles hard one day? Does this pale
> in comparison to being in a race so much that nothing can be gained from it?
I'd say that a race is closer to a race than a 5 mile training run. I'd also dare point out that you
probably will not push yourself as hard in the training run. I remember when my fiancee was starting
out, she used to run about 2min/mile faster in races than in training, even though she was just
planning to finish the races. Most people will always run faster in a race than in training.
> Certainly you can figure out what foods will make you vomit,
If you run really hard, yes. But even then, this is only true if you time everything exactly as you
would on race day. That means you have to get up at the same time as you would in a race situation,
get to the race location, etc 30 min early (if you would in a "real race"), eat breakfast, etc.
> what shirt won't iritate your nipples, what socks feel better in your racing shoes and so on.
Again, you'll need to run pretty hard to test all of these. Which begs the question -- why not just
enter a race ?
If you're going to
(1) get up early
(2) eat exactly as you would on race day
(3) get to the race location half an hour early
(4) run as you would in a race,
(5) wearing your racing clothes, and all
then would it not be simpler to just enter a race ? What is gained from this simulation ?
>> IMO the best training for racing *is* racing. That is, if you're doing a big
>
> Yes siree, you're right there. No better teacher than experience.
>
>> important race, you will greatly benefit by also running smaller (in importance) "low stakes"
>> races where you can do your experimentation. Races
>
> But I think you take racing more seriously than the original poster.
If you're not taking the race as seriously, then the answer is much simpler: just view the race as a
training run/experiment/learning experience.
> For some racing is not high competition where personal limits are tested to the max. It is just a
> chance to run fast and see how fast you can go and then hang around collecting post race goodies
> with friends.
For those people, I would argue that such meticulous preparation as attempting to accurately
simulate race conditions is a waste of time.
Cheers,
--
Donovan Rebbechi
http://pegasus.rutgers.edu/~elflord/