The Power of TWO

Pandesal Training Updates

I have lost some of my fire and intensity after a couple of sub-20 5K runs. I was a little proud and I was little complacent about my upcoming 10K races. It has been three consecutive runs already that I was somewhat flat and lazy. I was also missing in action for my last few scheduled Sunday long runs. I was in deep sleep after shutting off my morning run alarm clock.

Please forgive me and my shortcomings.

Lately though, I'm regaining the spark. That magic and fire to train relentlessly in pursuit of a wild dream. I only have a few days left to tackle a sub-40 10K goal. And with time ticking tirelessly, do I still have the chance to regain my speed and form for this week's Pocari Sweat 10K race and next week's Globe 10K run?

I would very much like to think positively. For 2010, I have adapted the two-week training principle to guide me on my running quests. How this principle allowed me to recover after a flat and lazy week? Kindly read on.

Season 2: The Road To Boston

Chapter 2. Road Work
2.7 Two-Week Wonders

The thinking must be done first, before training begins. - Peter Coe, Father of Olympic Gold Medalist Sebastian Coe

The Usual Training Schedule

This entry right here will expose one of my personal traits - I am a running addict.

I am a running addict. Addicted enough and serious enough as a runner, I wanted a structured running schedule to track my progress and prepare for a race. It has not been that way from the start.

I took my first race last 2008 and did not have any training schedule to prepare for it. The next one, Milo 2009, same thing. I just ran a few times before the race and that's it. I did not have any training schedule.

I used to follow what my body told me - to rest and sleep after long office works.

I saw the need to train when I joined a half marathon. I reckoned that a 21kiometer run isn't something I could just do without sufficient training. Here is my very first 21-kilometer training schedule.

After that very successful half marathon, I realized the significance of good training schedule. The need to plan and prepare properly. It was an eye opener.

Analyzing that training schedule, I found a few little points and principles that apply:

1. The schedule begins on a week of short runs aimed to accustom the body to running.
2. The schedule slowly increases in length and intensity as weeks progress.
3. As weeks progress, I should also be progressing and improving in terms of kilometers run and speed work.
4. It predicts that I will be at peak form a few days before the race.
5. It does not address the possibility of injuries or a tight busy schedule (emergencies, busy work load).

We do see this common type of running schedule. It guides us to train us and prepare us for our future races. Great!

But what if something happens on the middle of that schedule and you were not able to strictly follow the scheduled runs? These things happen right? Like we runners do suffer from injuries. We also experience some off days and some laziness wherein we could not run as much as what the schedule requires us to run.

The schedule might say a Tuesday morning 10K Tempo and your body says I can only run 5K and I want to be back in bed to nurse and rest my sore left foot. Then we go on and rest and still try to stick to the schedule on the following days.

We might be able to get away with it and still be lucky to be in peak form come race day. But more probably, we won't as our schedule assumed that we have followed it by the numbers.

The Power of Two

WARNING: This may not apply to all runners. Careful thoughts and consideration required. Thank you.

When I watched Ryan Hall, the fastest American marathoner today, discussed about his marathon training methods and schedule, I was jumping up and down in excitement. No I did not literally jump up and down, but I was indeed excited. He explained the benefits of the two-week principle and I did jump on this idea.

What exactly is the two-week training principle?

I copied and pasted here a section of our discussion from Chapter 2.2.

(7) Seventh, follow the 2-week training principle. My usual training schedule last year consisted of weekly progressive running. I increase my weekly mileage from week to week trying to get stronger and building my stamina. Week2 is slightly longer in mileage than week1. Week3 is then longer and harder than week2 and so on and so forth.

The 2-week training principle is still a progressive schedule. The major difference is that we will have to repeat the same routine stronger on the following week. For illustration purposes, check the speed work training schedule below. Week2 and Week3 are the same. Then Week4 and Week5 are also same except that they are longer and harder than week2 and week3. The repeat week (Week3 and week5 on this simple example), requires that we get better and stronger as compared to the previous week. So while Week4 and Week5 both have the same 3K Tempo distance, we have got to run better on Week5 as compared to our performance on week4.

Working on this 2-week principle, we get to gauge our development in 2 weeks time. On the repeat week, we can already tell if we are getting better and faster by doing the same routines we did the previous week. Early feedback means a lot so we could adjust our schedule and tell how much we are progressing within each passing week. We would always want to beat ourseleves on the repeat week. This competitive attitude would then fuel us to improve and do better. (We still need to cutback on mileage from time to time to let the body recover.)

Alright then. What are the benefits of this type of running schedule?

1. It provides more flexibility than the usual training schedule. With this schedule, we can adjust easily on the following week since we do the same training runs for two weeks. If we missed or did not complete the 10K Tempo this week for whatever valid or invalid reason, we still have the same run next week to adjust and compensate.
2. We can gauge our performance by comparing the previous week with the improvements we made this week. On just two weeks time, we could tell if our training methods are effective. Are we improving much? Modern runners know the significance of analyzing each runs and what to improve on. With a two-week schedule, modern runners could quickly react to improve or reorganize the the training runs to suit their needs and goals.
3. With weak-strong weeks, the weekly runs will make ourselves much more competitive in training. Who runs as quick and as long as you can do? Who knows your strength, weaknesses and habits that they could exploit to beat you? Who runs at exactly your pace and knows and understands your strategy as much as you do? Yes! Correct! YOU. So who is your best competition then? Yes! YOU. With this schedule, you compete against yourself and you try to beat yourself on the repeat week.
4. It is a progressive training schedule. You progress in two weeks time.

Case Study

The two-week training principle is a nice idea. How does it perform on practice? In a real life situation?

In my recent case, I am still right on schedule after a lazy week enjoying my 5K success. That is a huge help for these desperate times. And I would like to close this topic with a case study of my successive 5K runs: The Century Tuna Superbods and then the Centena Run on the following week. I believe that these two-week races provide a strong case in favor of the two-week training schedule.

My Century Tuna Superbods Run: Bloopers and Results
My Centena 5K Run: A Sub-20 and a Top 10 Finish.