18.10. - Race Day! Actually , I wanted to be at the starting line of the Dresden Marathon that day and I actually wanted to crown the "Under 2:40" project there with a new marathon best time. Actually! But first of all it turns out differently... What happened? Sequentially!
21 km form test at KnappenMan
On August 29th, the KnappenMan Triathlon went back into competition mode for the first time. The fast triathlon in Lausitz was one of the few events that could take place at all - from sprints to long distances, all formats were available here (great location, excellent organization, highly recommended). I had "sold" myself as a relay runner for the middle distance and wanted to use the 21 km as a form test and position determination. My relay colleagues were very good friends from the training group around triathlon professional Markus Thomschke. Hence the clear claim to performance: on the podium. My minimum goal was to stay under 1:20h.
Long story short: with 1:17:42h I was able to bring my form well to the flat running route, which at 20.5 km did not quite meet the half-marathon norm. Nevertheless, goal achieved. Second place for our relay , I was satisfied (also with my mileage). For the coming weeks, I wanted to extend this pace to double the distance. So far so good. But then came the hard break.
On the one hand, it was already indicated that the Dresden Marathon on 18.10. was canceled due to corona. There were hardly any alternatives. In order to run the best time, you need a "fast track", ie a larger city marathon. Smaller running events over hill and dale were therefore out of the question. Only the Magdeburg Marathon was left at this point, but a few days later that too fell victim to the difficult circumstances in this Corona year... Not that great for motivation, but I wanted to come up with something. Maybe even a self-organized training marathon? Of course, some training colleagues were also affected by the cancellations and suggested a small, exclusive marathon event at Tempelhofer Feld (formerly Berlin Airport, now a leisure area). But even before the idea could become more concrete, all my plans were thrown overboard.
At the beginning of September, a whole avalanche of professional and personal challenges swept over me, which within a short period of time drained an incredible amount of energy from my head and body. The days went by without having run a kilometer - especially in the hot phase, in which it is necessary to increase the volumes to 80/90/100 kilometers per week. At first I thought I could push the project a little further back, but every day it became more and more clear that this project in 2020 had become unrealistic. At the moment I can say: Shit happens. Hook it up, look ahead!
What's next?
The "Under 2:40" project is not dead! I've seen what can be done and I don't want to let the mold completely revert to the basement. Instead, make a fresh start in the coming year with new forces. With a second wave of corona currently imminent and the uncertainty of how the coming months will unfold, I have considered a long-term, structured approach, which I normally practice as a trainer for every athlete: periodic training build-up over the winter and into the 2021 season , which will hopefully be able to take on a more "normal" shape again from spring. Most of the athletes I know have carried over their slots for the various events to next year. We all keep our fingers crossed!
Therefore, I would like to relaunch the training blog, in which I would like to go into more detail on the overarching structuring of the training (periodization, general training principles) on the one hand and on the other hand I would like to present very specific training content in the individual phases.
With this in mind, I keep my fingers crossed for all of us for the coming weeks and months - be sensible, stay healthy!
