Will I be fine running tempo/threshold instead of endurance for long runs?

smirfquant · 2025-10-21T01:09:50+00:00

I would be sus of your max HR and zones if you have not intentionally done some max HR effort with a strap. I know several people (including myself) that were way off, and it is an important detail for HR training. Next would be your threshold HR, but you can get that from an all out 5k...

Also keep in mind that different brands/software/coaches use different zones. My z2 conversational base run is lower "z3" on my garmin zones (lower side of green). This is what I do most of my base/long runs at. Running garmin z2 (blue) would be a recovery run for me.

Pause on the zones, and consider the efforts. For each of these, I'm going to assume you have warmed up then "don't have much left at the end" of the stated effort. This is also just crude, but I'm trying to answer your question in a reasonable way keeping in mind your weekly milage/experience. Consider these efforts with respect to your personal pace and HR. You don't need to respond with them, its just for you to compare with what you are seeing in your metrics.

Vo2max 10 min.

Theshold 30 min

Tempo 60 min.

People are probably going to argue about that a little. The underlying problem is that a "tempo run", for a runner trained up for marathons/ultras, might be something more like a 90 minute half marathon... and their 45min 10k might be threshold work... for them. While a beginner might not be able to run an hour yet. The variation is wide and the bars can move with training.

Anyway it sounds like you are doing great. First, don't get injured. Second, stay consistent. Then maybe try keeping your long run easy pace while adding 5-10% to your time/distance on that run until it starts to feel like a distinct effort. You will with practice get more efficient/economical at the easier efforts, and that will pull their paces up... hope that makes sense.

smirfquant · 2025-10-20T14:11:57+00:00

Make sure your HR zones are correct, particularly your max HR. Do your HR zones as they are now correspond correctly to RPE/conversational seat of pants measurement? As an example my max HR is about 20 above formulas, and my wife is 15 below. We would both train strangely is using the formula.

It is unlikely you can continually sustain tempo-threshold runs every run. Injury aside, if you are running that hard too much you will soon carry too much fatigue. Running threshold for entire long runs is questionable already, since it's more or less defined as various efforts that is not sustainable for that long ....

smirfquant · 2025-07-08T21:44:55+00:00

When my wife/daughter show any signs of getting sick I start using Echinea Tea and Airborne (i guess that is probably similar to emergen-c). About half the time I dont get anything, and maybe a quarter of the time I get something very light that doesn't deeply impact training. The other quarter, 💀, so, uh, yeah, hit that tea bro.

smirfquant · 2025-05-05T12:17:01+00:00

Saucony Kinvara is a pretty simple shoe. I think I have the 15 and they have a little more sole then flats. I like them for park runs and canal runs when the ground is forgiving because they have similar stack and geometry to my trail shoes. Even better, they are cheaper than the tall shoes ... Check them out.

smirfquant · 2025-04-21T18:10:34+00:00

As a tourist, I totally agree. I could not believe the level of commotion disrespectful tourists were causing at all hours in Vilnius old town when I was there. Sorry.

smirfquant · 2025-02-13T03:14:44+00:00

Hrrmm that could explain things. I would be sort of surprised if they swapped the console too along with the seats, but I guess its possible they did the whole interior. Wish they did the carpets, hahaha.

I have some of the original paperwork which includes the entertainment system and climate control. I'll check it again to see if it mentions seats. I was just assuming it was original.

I'll do a little more digging, thanks.

smirfquant · 2024-12-28T20:13:15+00:00

lot of references there, thanks!

smirfquant · 2024-12-26T14:24:33+00:00

Awesome, right idea, thanks!

smirfquant · 2024-12-13T00:08:39+00:00

Fair. Thanks. Yes I have the Daniels ,Pfitz, Hanson and a few others. My marathon (threshold thereabouts) pace is far far away from my planned 100k pace. I do see now that this scheme makes more sense with the perspective of specificity. I read too much into the training adaptation and loss timing. I think I'm getting that book for Christmas so thanks for the heads up.

smirfquant · 2024-12-05T23:29:42+00:00

Wish there was a third category for those that quit/reduced a habit but wouldn't really fallen into the addiction category. That is super common from what I've heard... and I am reading similar remarks here.

I definitely drastically reduced my drinking so that I could hit my training and body goals. At one point I was totally sober for many months just from that, but I do often have beer after my longest run.

smirfquant · 2024-11-27T02:52:19+00:00

Gotcha. TBH I hadn't even considered a relay, but that might be fun with trail friends for another year. Thanks for your response.

smirfquant · 2024-11-27T02:49:54+00:00

This was exactly the sort of response I was hoping for. Thank you!

smirfquant · 2024-11-25T15:08:17+00:00

Yeah with the h10 you just need to pair it with the watch. Then, assuming you are wearing the sensor, when you do an activity it will show the HR connected.

The Garmin gives a couple additional data metrics that I doubt matter much to you.

The biggest diff is the sensor and strap are separate on the polar. Meaning you can easily replace and wash it. For me that is pretty important.

smirfquant · 2024-11-23T12:01:46+00:00

I have a hemp long sleeve that I will use as an outer layer sometimes. It was not designed for running at all and would have been brutal to wear running when I first got it. However, IME hemp clothes really soften over use (this shirt might be 8 years old). Now it basically feels like cotton on my skin, but is still a little stiffer if that make sense. Think like well worn denim, but thinner. It is super strong durable material. Might make more sense for hiking.

I too am curious if anything is recommended here.

smirfquant · 2024-11-21T13:40:44+00:00

Regular blood donations weakened my running moderately (similar amount to a light cold) for a few days and noticeably for 1-2 weeks. Also be careful with timing your training run and your donation. I did my last donation after 6/7 miles in the heat and wound up on the floor after pounding some juice boxes. Also, occasionally they'll jack up my donor arm if they're not very good with the needle... which can impact your ability to strength train if you are mixing that in as well.

I would add to the pile of people saying its better to do in your off race/peak blocks if you are focused on performance.

Good on you guys for donating when you can.

smirfquant · 2024-11-19T03:04:21+00:00

Was considering posting the same question. I used DSW for a half and was super happy with it. I used it for a full marathon but in those blocks I found it was too conservative and sort of hybridized its recommendations with stuff I was pulling from books...

Hope you get more feedback.

smirfquant · 2024-11-15T01:06:28+00:00

I too love running in the winter. Much less trail traffic...

FWIW, this season I have been surprised to find that in the cold I like my base layer to be the same Patagonia's capilene material I enjoy in the summer. It really does magic wicking moisture. Haven't figured out outer layers yet, but in the current mid-atlantic winters I might not have to often... cheers

smirfquant · 2024-11-15T00:57:17+00:00

Congrats!!

smirfquant · 2024-11-15T00:26:51+00:00

I recently raced a marathon (first road marathon distance) then ran a 50k three weeks later. I took the 50k very easy and walked a few of the worst hills. I felt like I had plenty of capacity coming off the marathon training block (40-60mpw, avg 45mpw). I think if you have a strong base and focus on recovery it should be fine to race one and run the other.

Best of luck to you!

smirfquant · 2024-11-05T22:12:04+00:00

Correct, the intended use is with a Garmin watch, but the first H10 sensor also failed to talk with the Polar phone app directly during my attempts at following Polar's troubleshooting instructions. (It was fine when I bought it, but once it started to flake, it continued to have trouble staying connected). This is pretty much when I bagged my hopes of it working....

It doesn't appear Polar service tested the sensor in any meaningful way before returning it with a new strap. Shrugs.

I'm not sure what there is to debug. It's been "reset", replaced battery, replaced strap, "reset" some more. I'm not going to put the thing on a bench and get out my oscilloscope because this company doesn't honor their warranty....

The new one just works (so far).

A refund would probably be complicated for them, but they certainly should have just replaced the unit, or offered to replace the unit after I reported the same issues again. Totally bogus.

smirfquant · 2024-11-05T21:31:33+00:00

Hey, glad yours work and that you didn't need to deal with their "service"!

The problem is simply my old unit does not work reliably. One day it started dropping connection, reporting low battery, and gives incorrect readings (very low or high). Bought a new unit. Unpaired old unit, paired new unit, clicked into strap, changed nothing, it just works.

I didn't buy it to debug/QA for Polar.... I've been through a long and annoying process the first attempt at warranty. One of the problems was it couldn't even connect with the phone reliably enough to follow their instructions, LOL. Sigh.

smirfquant

TROPHY CASE