Low Energy Runs: Quantity and Progression of Long Runs

In day two of analyzing my lack of energy during mid-week runs, I'm looking into the quantity and progression of my long runs.

According to Coach Jenny (via Ask Coach Jenny),

• Quantity of long runs.  A solid half-marathon training program should include a variety of ingredients. When too many long runs are performed on back-to-back weekends, it, too, can cause energy drain. The long run progression should build and cut back regularly throughout the season. The cutback week with a shorter long run is, in its own way, a rest from the demands of building mileage. Without it, your body can experience fatigue. However, this usually is expressed in a continuous low energy level.

• Progression of long runs. If the progression of long-run mileage is too demanding, it can cause fatigue. It is vital to efficient recovery and adaptation (growth) to start from where you are in the beginning of the training plan and progress gradually from there. If you are jumping up by more than one to two miles, this may be your culprit. It is better to go into race day with a shorter long run under your belt than to progress too quickly and toe the line tired.

Though you couldn't exactly call me a devout follower of my marathon training plan, I've done okay with meeting my long runs. I've rarely done the correct long run on its corresponding week of training, but I always knock out the right amount of mileage overall - and if I cut a run short one weekend, I make up for it the next. I haven't done any super long runs* on back-to-back weekends, so it's highly unlikely that Quantity of Long Runs is causing me to feel depleted. 

*I'm calling anything over 10 miles "super long" right now. And yes, I'm fully aware that I have a loooooong way to go before 26.2

Now as for Progression of Long Runs, there's a good chance that this could have something to do with my low energy levels. While I am running the correct amount of days throughout the week, I'm not always running the right amount of time. With the chaos of summer, I quickly realized that I'll just have to do the best that I can with the time that I have and not overly stress about getting the exact number of miles and minutes required by my training calendar. So for the most part, as long as I'm able to get something in each day, I feel like I'm doing okay. As such, I sometimes just set out for my long runs with a lofty goal of running such and such # of miles, without really taking into account that I haven't run everything I should during the week prior. Basically, I'm relying too heavily on my long runs to make up for what I've missed during the week... and it's safe to say that my body is probably thinking "WTF is she doing to me??!" each and every weekend. 

So, it looks like I may be on to something here. Though the best solution in my case is to amp up my mid-week training, rather than scale back the progression of long runs because I still have a very long way to go. Enter the paradox - how do I increase mid-week training when I'm feeling so friggin' tired??

Low Energy Runs: Training Effort

In day one of analyzing my lack of energy during mid-week runs, I'm taking a gander at my overall training effort. Here's what Coach Jenny (via Ask Coach Jenny) had to say:

Training Effort.  Are you training by effort or pace? A common mistake is to train too fast or too hard which leads to a slower recovery process. This is especially true when training in the record heat this summer.  Invest in training at a truly easy, conversational effort for your long runs and let your pace be only the outcome.  Avoid worrying about pace, as the long run is all about teaching your body to run longer and stronger.  This is also the case when training during the week. If it is 85 degrees and humid, your normal running pace will feel much harder (more taxing). Train by your effort (how you feel), and you'll get in a quality workout, recover faster, and regain your energy.

Hmm. Admittedly, neither pace nor effort has been a huge concern of mine. I've been more focused on simply moving, and not necessarily the quality of each run. There are certainly times when I force myself to step it up and squeeze in a few sprints to awaken my muscles and ensure that I walk funny the next day, but for the most part, I stick to a "truly easy, conversational effort" with both my long and mid-week runs. I mostly DO "train by my effort" and how I feel, which is exactly why my mid-week runs are so sluggish... because I feel SLOOOOOW. 

Alas, I fear that Training Effort is most likely not the culprit.

6 Reasons for Low Energy Runs

I've been majorly dragging on my mid-week runs lately, and it has definitely bummed me out in a big way. It's frustrating to feel like I'm mostly sticking to the training plan but my feet just shuffle along like a 90-year old woman racing to the early bird special. 

A large part of it is no doubt the result of my absolute inability to run in the morning lately. Try as I might, my body is permanently glued to my bed this summer until the very last minute when I absolutely HAVE to get up and get ready for work. So my weekday runs have been pushed to after work, when the heat is at its worst and I'm completely and utterly brain dead. 

Coach Jenny just identified six variables that could be weighing me down in a recent post, so I'm going to spend this week analyzing each (one per day) to determine why my body can't seem to keep up. 

Six Reasons for Low Energy Runs (Via Ask Coach Jenny):

1. Training effort
2. Quantity of long runs
3. Progression of long runs
4. Fuel replenishment
5. Sleep
6. Cross-training too hard

Time to get to the bottom of this...