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Prime symbols for minutes and seconds

— Posted in Hardlopen by

So, when I was still on Strava, I quite often saw fellow runners notate interval times using prime symbols instead of writing down 'sec' or 'min'. Although you might think it efficient, or simply cool looking, I always get a bit confused by it. However, I sometimes find myself using these symbols just to keep my running log from expanding too much.

Just as a quick reminder, I'll list the use of prime symbols for time below, together with some examples.

  • Single prime for minutes
    • 3*5′@MP (3 times 5 minutes at Marathon Pace)
  • Double prime for seconds
    • 20*30″@i4 (20 times 30 seconds at intensity level 4)
  • Combining minutes and seconds
    • 5*3′30″@i3 (5 times 3 minutes and 30 seconds at intensity level 4; I would rather just write 3:30 here, by the way)

If you find primes hard to find on your keyboard, you can just use quotes of course, as in 3*5'@MP.

I got my information from Wikipedia. The relevant page offers a line that actually pretty much sums up what you need to know.

Primes are sometimes used to indicate minutes, and double primes to indicate seconds of time, as in the John Cage composition 4′33″ (spoken as "four thirty-three"), a composition that lasts exactly 4 minutes 33 seconds. This notation only applies to duration, and is seldom used for durations longer than 60 minutes. (source: Wikipedia)

There's some useful information in this StackExchange thread as well.

Thanks for reading!

Weight comparison: Forerunner 735XT vs Fenix 6S Pro

— Posted in Hardlopen by

This is a short post with some info I searched for when considering a Fenix 6S Pro during Black Friday.

I used a Forerunner 735XT for a long time, after a 645 (which was practically worthless), and a 230 and a 235, which I loved. The only thing I couldn't really convince myself of was the weight of my Forerunners, which are very light indeed, and the added weight of a Fenix. I opted for the S version, as I have small wrists and it is the lightest version.

First, the weight of the 735XT is 40 grams.

enter image description here

Second, the the weight of the Fenix 6S Pro is 60 grams.

enter image description here

I have weighted both watches multiple times, with the same results. Both watches have the default Garmin straps on them.

Conclusion: the Forerunner 735XT weighs 2/3 or 66% of the Fenix 6S Pro. However, I don't really feel it while running or wearing it during the day. The only time it is noticeable for me is while in bed, but it doesn't really bother me.

Leenderbos Ultra Trail (52K)

— Posted in Hardlopen by

On Saturday May 15th, one of my running mates at RA and I organised a trail run in Leende, Brabant, just south of Eindhoven. As the pandemic is still with us, we kept it small and easy by inviting only our group members and using gpx files for navigation. Ten people participated, and it was a day to remember!

enter image description here The runners at the start of the Leenderbostrail

The courses

We offered routes of 22K, 32K, and 42K, but there was also a 52K ultra trail. All routes were almost exclusively on non-paved surfaces like single tracks and forest paths.

I doubted between doing the 32K and the 42K, because technically I'm still recovering from my 2:46 PB on the marathon last month. However, two of the other runners opted for the 52K and eventually I decided, 15 minutes prior to the start, to join them.

enter image description here The 52K route

A 52K ultra (or, as someone called it, a 'baby ultra')

Although I did taper a bit last week, and I carb-loaded (though not as extensively as last month), this was no perfect preparation, of course. I did not regret it, however! The running went smooth, we enjoyed the forests, paths and company. Apart from one very heavy shower, the weather was quite nice. There were very, very muddy parts, and one part in which the water came up to our ankles, but in retrospect those things are part of the fun. The route wasn't correct all the time and we had to reroute a number of times, but luckily one of us had a Garmin Forerunner 945 with maps, so I had just to follow along. Navigation has never been my strong suit...

enter image description here The 52K group after the trail run

I think the hardest part for me was between 40 and 45K. After that, I was able to speed up the pace again, but I just hit that largely mental point at which I struggled to find joy in what I was doing. Although running together for 52K is great the whole time, for me, these are the times running in a small group keeps me focused. I think one of the other two runners also hit the same point, but later on, just when I got out of it. To be honest, I definitely was the weakest runner of the three, at least when looking at race times, so I couldn't help but feeling I held them up a bit, but they denied that, and apart from that, this was no race. (However, as many runners, I do want to keep a certain pace, of course, which we managed.)

In the end, we finished the 52.1K in 4:05:04, with an average pace of 4:42 per kilometre (that's 7:34 per mile).

enter image description here 51.1K

Given the unpaved, slippery and sometimes rough terrain with and really deep puddles and mudd, I'm very happy with that.

enter image description here It was quite muddy out there...

enter image description here Still great shoes, those New Balance Minimus Trail editions

Afterwards

We bought some pre- and post-run snacks for the group, and my wife offered to bake quinoa-blueberry power bars from Donna Hay, which were delicious.

enter image description here Sticky and delicious

All in all, it was not only great to complete a 52K trail run together, but also to have a day off together, and to enjoy running, company and snacks together!

enter image description here Post-run stretching and eating

Short heart rate chest strap tip

— Posted in Hardlopen by

Recently I bought a new heart rate strap. I have owned a number of Garmin straps, but they all break down when changing batteries, even when replacing the rubber o-ring. There's much to say about that, but let's just leave at the fact that I was fed up with that. As always, I checked many reviews, including DCRainmaker, of course.

In the end, I opted for what many hail as the most accurate heart rate strap, namely the Polar H10. I was, therefore, very unpleasantly surprised that it really didn't work that well. Specifically, going for a run meant having around 3K's of extremely low heart rates. I did all the manual asked of me – yes, I really did read it – and that was exactly the problem.

The problem was that all strap manual ask you to moisten the pads that go on your skin, but I found a YouTube video (see below) that shows how wrong that advice is.

The drops of water have already left the pads, because those are very smooth and slippery. As the video will show you, it is much better to moisten your skin a bit and then properly put the dry strap on. I've tried it, and now the strap works absolutely fine. Thank you, Tom Tech!

Marathon pacing 2021: course, wind, and team work

— Posted in Hardlopen by

As I discussed earlier, I was in doubt whether I should start at a 4:05 pace, and probably race alone, or join a group of another athletics club taking a 4:00 pace. As 4:00 was my plan A, and there was a lot of wind (I felt it immediately cycling to the course), I opted for the latter.

The course and wind

The course was a loop of 5 kilometres which you had to complete 8 times. The loop had a small detour, in order to arrive at the finish at 42.195K instead of 40K. This way, during the pandemic, only a small piece of cycling paths had to be guarded and inspected by volunteers. They did a great job handing out water, keeping the course clean et cetera, so thanks for that!

enter image description here The course (small loop to the right is the 'extra' 2K)

The course itself had a small hilly bit, which, in all countries besides the Netherlands, would probably just count as flat. As I mentioned earlier, each loop had approximately 2K of strong head wind, which was a pity, but given that the weather forecasts predicted snow up until two days prior, I'm not complaining too much. The only downside to the course was a very, very slippery part, which was covered in some kind of mash of wet, flattened leaves. I nearly fell two times, and I wasn't the only one. People asked me whether it wasn't tough mentally to do 5K loops, but for me it wasn't. The nice thing of such a course is that you know exactly how far you are, and after a round or two, you know which parts are the gnarly bits and at which parts you can increase your pace a bit.

Team work

We did the first K at 3:59, then 4:01 (head wind), and then some K's in the low 3:50's. We kept each other at watch for the pace, and after a few kilometres, it evened out at a pace consistently around 3:56-3:58. Fast (for me), but it felt great and changing lead every 2 kilometres worked very well.

enter image description here Team work (this was the full group, I think)

In the first half, when the group was around 8 men strong, this meant head wind only once in 16K, but soon runners started to drop and I think we entered the second half with a group of around 6 people, and after 32, we were left with four. This meant more head wind, but still, it beats running alone! The group work was – in my view – perfect, and it felt good to return favours constantly. At the end, two runners indicated they couldn't bear anymore head wind, to the other one and I took the lead some more. All in all, it was a nice piece of team work.

Final thoughts

I'm am really very glad that I chose to join the 4:00 group at the start. I shaved more than 12 minutes of off my PB (from 2:58:43 to 2:46:37)! We also had some nice small chats, shared some water bottles (which you should'nt, of course, in times of corona), and when some runner messed up the provisions table, making it impossible to grab my last Torq-gel, another runner in the group offered me a piece of banana. That's what I love about running: I guess everyone dreams of racing and winning like Kipchoge, but in the end, were all in it together to beat our own previous PB's and that motivates people to share, care and race hard. Great!

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