2015 Running Resolutions Update

It's now nearly 5 months since 4am on January 1st, when I posted what I believed were (just about) achievable, but ambitious, running targets for this year. Now, I have absolutely no idea what could have caused me to be so optimistic about my forthcoming performances at that particular time in the morning on that particular day(!), but I have to confess to having had several doses of reality over the past few months. The top three of these have been...

1. My Physio (who is also my running coach of sorts) challenged some of my PB targets, based on the amount of improvement I would have to make over several different types of events during the year. 

2. I know you'll be stunned and shocked to hear this, but apart from a couple of weeks this year, I haven't really been as disciplined in regards to my fitness and conditioning as I should have been. To the extent that I probably wasn't going to get near my existing PBs, never mind the target PBs. 

3.  Due to a combination of laziness, feeling a bit delicate after a Friday night, and actual legitimate reasons, reaching my target of running 32 Parkruns this year (to take me to a total of 50 and a commemorative t-shirt) has become much more difficult. In fact I have run only 5 of the 20 available to me this year, which means I have to run 27 of the remaining 32! Alas, due to holidays and the half marathon (and marathon) events I run, I can already count 11 weekends when I will not be available for a Parkrun. Obviously I need to revise this target down if I'm going to feel at least some sense of achievement for this particular goal! 

After having discussed my targets for 2015 with my physio he asked me how I had calculated them. When I explained that I basically made them up on the spot at 4am immediately after a Hogmanay party (at the Hudson's - great party), he suggested that a little bit more thought might be worthwhile. He proposed that a reasonable expectation, if I really worked hard, was to look at reducing each of my current PBs by 5%. As you'll see below, this should make my targets a wee bit more achievable for everything except the half marathon.

I've also rated what I think my chances are of beating my current and revised target PBs for each of the distances, using the confidence levels Very High, High, Medium, Low, and No Chance. 


5k                                                                              
Current PB:                00:25:27 (Pace 5.05/km)
1st Jan Target PB:     00:22:59 (Pace 4.35/km) (10.7% improvement)
Revised Target PB:    00:24:11 (Pace 4.49/km) (5%   improvement)
Best so far this year:  00:26:39 (Pace 5.19/km)

For the 5k I'm obviously relieved that I'm allowed to run a whole 14 seconds a km slower than my original target PB, but given that my fastest 5k pace this year is 5.19/km I have A LOT OF WORK TO DO. I reckon I've got a good chance of beating my current PB, but the revised target looks a wee bit daunting.

Confidence Level:
Beating Current 5k PB                   - High
Achieving Revised Target 5k PB    - Medium


10k                                                                              
Current PB:               00:51:19 (Pace 5.08/km)
1st Jan Target PB:    00:47:59 (Pace 4.48/km) (6.5% improvement)
Revised Target PB:   00:48:45 (Pace 4.52/km) (5%    improvement)
Best so far this year: No event yet

My first thought here is... how the hell did I manage to run my current PB?? It's practically at the same pace as my 5k PB. Next thought is, I don't really run many 10k events! As you can see I haven't run a 10k at all yet in 2015 so I'll have to be on the lookout for one or two between the regular half marathons I attend. In fact I may end up only running the event in Bellahouston where I set my current PB.

Confidence Level:
Beating Current 10k PB                  - Medium
Achieving Revised Target 10k PB  - Low


Half M                                                                         
Current PB:               01:54:41 (Pace 5.26/km)
1st Jan Target PB:    01:49:59 (Pace 5.12/km) (4% improvement)
Revised Target PB:   01:48:57 (Pace 5.09/km) (5% improvement)
Best so far this year:  01:59:18 (Pace 5.39/km)

Following my target PB revision I now have to run 3 seconds faster during each km than for the original target! To make things more difficult, I am now unable to attend the half marathon in September at which I believe I could at least break my current PB. However, next week's Edinburgh half marathon is a quick one, and even though I'm still working on my fitness, there's a wee chance I could get close to my current PB. I'm certainly going to give it a try!

Confidence Level:
Beating Current Half M PB                  - Medium
Achieving Revised Target Half M PB  - No Chance


Marathon                                                                  
Current PB:               04:50:11 (Pace 6.52/km) -
1st Jan Target PB:    04:19:59 (Pace 6.09/km) (10% improvement)  
Revised Target PB:   04:35:40 (Pace 6.31/km) (5% improvement) 
Best so far this year:  No event yet

This year I'm running the Robin Hood Marathon in Nottingham. Although it does have hills, it looks less challenging on that front than the only marathon I have run to-date at Loch Ness. This is giving me some cause for optimism that I could take a good chunk off my current PB.

Confidence Level:
Beating Current Full M PB                  - Very High
Achieving Revised Target Full M PB  - Medium


Parkrun                                                                  
Original Target 32 during 2015 for a total of 50
Revised Target 22 for a total of 40 (5 down and 17 to go, with 32 weeks remaining)

Early nights on Fridays required !

Confidence Level:
Reaching 40 Parkruns           - High            -

I'll post another review later in the year. Hopefully there will have been better progress than there's been to-date!