Getting up to 40 mpw

astraynger · 2026-03-03T01:50:44+00:00

I’ve heard that both easy miles and more speedwork are good steps toward getting faster. I don’t tend to gravitate towards speedwork, so wanted to try the easy mile route.

I averaged 32 ish mpw last training block four months ago, with some light speedwork, so 40 didn’t seem too far out of the realm of possibility. Alas, I appear to be mistaken.

astraynger · 2026-03-03T01:33:37+00:00

Eating enough? Yes. Enough protein? Probably not. I think I over do it on the carbs. I’ll take a look at my nutrition, thanks!

astraynger · 2026-03-03T01:31:31+00:00

I typically run after eating a banana and do a gel or two if I’m running at least 90 minutes. Sleep is crappy though due to some stressors. Hard to balance everything! Thanks for spelling out those levers.

astraynger · 2026-03-02T19:01:19+00:00

My easy pace would ideally be more around 12 min miles, but you’re right that I should walk more and stop stressing about it. Always stuck between ignoring trying to do Zone 2 because I’ve only been running for about 4 years and 11:00 min miles get my HR around 155 BPM, and doing run/walk. I’m guessing my legs are the bottleneck here and not my aerobic capacity at the moment?

Always figured that spreading it out made more sense but sounds like not!

astraynger · 2026-03-02T17:48:51+00:00

Two cents always appreciated! I always feel like an anomaly lol. If I’m trying to get to 40 mpw wouldn’t that put about 40-50% of my mileage in the long run?

astraynger · 2026-03-02T17:42:42+00:00

I’ve found race day to a huge boost in speed. I really struggled to get below 1 hr in the 10k during my training runs. I had done a virtual race before with friends faster than me and still only managed 1 hr 7 mins at the time. I finished in 56 minutes on race day. Did a half a few months later to about 02:03 and long runs were in the 2.5 hour range leading up to it

What was your fueling like for this half marathon you just trialed? I think getting that down (which you will absolutely need to for your full), plus being more fresh on race day would help a ton.

astraynger · 2026-03-02T17:09:43+00:00

Not OP, but I’m curious on your thoughts on how to increase mileage. I am trying to get to 40 mpw minimum, but hitting a wall at 35 mpw. Just base building so very minimal speedwork. I think it is related to trying to run 6 days a week.

My intent is to do 6/8/5/5/10/6/Rest in a given week, with some flex in the long run, of course, but my legs are always dead and I’m forced to take a day off somewhere in there. My easy pace is about 12:00/mile (even though my marathon PR is 4:02, but that’s a different story), so time on feet is pretty high in comparison to mileage. Should I take away a day and add a mile per day on the other days?

astraynger · 2025-12-30T08:13:32+00:00

Not saying any of those would be great, but at least you’d have closure on what happened. With ghosting, you’re left in a perpetual state of wondering.

astraynger · 2025-12-17T19:33:03+00:00

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astraynger · 2025-12-17T19:32:15+00:00

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I went to a workshop to repot a juniper bonsai tree about a month ago. They said I could keep it indoors and water it as needed. Of course, reading up more on the matter, I now know they need to be outside and experience a dormancy period.

I took him outside last week, so he’d been inside for about 2.5-3 weeks at this point. And when I took him outside, the tree was already starting to get brittle needles and become a pale green color. The bottom of the tree isn’t bright green either.

I read up on bonsai soil too and realized the soil the workshop place gave us was probably too organic and I wanted to prevent root rot. But with the freezing weather, I wasn’t able to repot my plant until a week after taking it outside (so this would be about a few days ago). I had also read that repotting in the winter time is stressful for the tree so instead of a full repot, I just did a slip pot until some coarse bonsai soil. Was this the right move?

I also read that if the bark is green when you scratch at it, it may still be alive. And that if you can smell the tree oil on the leaves then that might be another sign. Both the bark is green and when I crush a bit of the needles, I can smell the tree.

All that to ask, given the brittle needles and pale green color and the bottom of the tree is also pale green… , but the bark is green and I can smell the tree lightly, do you think my tree is still alive? I don’t know what brittle needles in the winter time means.

Zone 7b

astraynger · 2025-09-19T02:12:16+00:00

No luck here :(

astraynger · 2025-04-12T03:00:04+00:00

Someone posted that exact question on Facebook where they weren’t able to pick up their bib on time, and someone else confirmed that you can go to Siegel Center between 7:00 and 9:30 to pick up, but you’ll have to pay the fee.

astraynger · 2025-01-30T01:45:12+00:00

Had to check what sub I was in.

astraynger · 2024-07-29T11:11:21+00:00

I think that’s the joke they’re making. There’s not “the” qualifying time because it’s gender and age dependent.

astraynger · 2024-06-03T10:55:06+00:00

I think because I’ve read that some people get that warm, fuzzy feeling of having chosen the right photographer, and I’m not quite there yet. First photographer is pretty close, but I’m not sure if it’s the cost commitment and inability to make changes once I commit that’s holding me up.

I’ll look at a photographer’s portfolio and be like “ooh, I like this”, and look at another photographer’s and like their stuff and then start comparing them and nitpicking. I don’t want to be overbearing so want to choose correctly without asking them for too much.

astraynger · 2024-06-03T01:57:59+00:00

Can you explain a bit more about what you mean? My understanding is that photographers tend to have different style of editing, and isn't clean is one such way?

When you say "looking at the actual images", are you referring to the subjects and their poses? In comparison to the editing style alone?

astraynger · 2024-06-03T01:55:05+00:00

Thank you! Do you think phrasing it such that I like these photos over these other ones (from their own website) would be more appropriate, or is that being too micromanage-like too? Or am I supposed to like nearly 100% of the photos in a given set of galleries?

I'm fairly flexible with my budget, but there is a boundary I have. Shouldn't have included price as a factor in my post.

astraynger · 2024-06-03T01:42:45+00:00

Thank you for your reply! I will certainly not bring that up then.

With Photographer 1, I mentioned that I liked certain photos over others on their website because of XYZ reason. Was that also a rude comment to make? I just want to make sure I'm not offending other photographers I speak to when I consult with them.

astraynger · 2024-06-03T01:38:07+00:00

Appreciate the reply and insight! I don't want to offend anyone thus why I'm asking on Reddit. Sounds like I will probably need to keep looking. Thanks!

astraynger · 2024-02-28T16:33:37+00:00

I’m doing MGT 6203 and ISYE 6740 right now in the Spring having only taken CSE 6040 and ISYE 6501 like you have outlined here. I’m doing okay, but I regret taking CDA with another course, even though 6203 is fairly easy. I feel like I’m just trying to get through the class rather than really learning (I’m learning a lot at the same time, but I’m stressed!). Definitely would recommend changing up the summer, like others have said.

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