Tie Your Runner Down - A Log

christeb

5 miles around the Raheny 5 course. nice morning, pushed myself from the off and got around in just under 36 mins, 35:56. Average 7:13 or so. Happy enough, away for a few days before the exams start on the 5th Jan, running will be sparse at best...

Happy New Years to all

christeb

Was down in Spanish Point, Clare for a few days over the New Years. Excessive in every way so runs fell into the "prophylactic" category.

A short spin around the Beach with herself, no more than 3 miles, she wasn't feeling too hot throughout

christeb

5 miles from Spanish Point to Miltown Malbay and back. We needed to pick up some extra supplies for the evenings activities, so lumped a run in to kill 2 birds with one stone.

Decent enough pace, was running with my buddy who is also on the football team too. Felt the better afterwards but I wasn't in great shape during the run :-)

Exams all next week, so I'll be embarking on a few runs to break the monotony of study and get away from the books :rolleyes:

christeb

Fri 2nd: 1.5 miles purely loosen up as I was getting bored in the house studying

Sunday, 1st Rovers session of the year, combined with 3.5 miles (up and back from training). Crap session, only 6 of us there. You have to start somewhere I suppose. 1st exam tomorrow morning, think I'll run home from the exam hall (5.5 miles) if all goes according to plan...

christeb

Nearly 5 miler home from town after the exam this morning.

Tired, heavy bag, cold, coming on...these are my excuses to say I was slow!
Still, it's miles in the legs. Also think I've put some weight on over the hols, a serious sit up / push up plan will be in place when I get back from my trip. Spoeaking of which, off in 6 days, this day next week I'll be heading for the Great Wall of China

christeb

A tougher-than-it shoulda-been 5.5 miler through St Anne's Park, down the Causeway, along Dollymount beach via a few dunes and back up via the Wooden bridge.
Cold but nice to get out.

2 exams down, 2 to go....then it's goodbye DBS - FOREVER!

christeb

5.7 miles @ 7.38. Started strong but fell off bad enough. Had a buddy following me on the bike so seemed a lot quicker than it was, nice to chat on the way around though.

Last run before the big trip to Beijing and then to St Petersburg on the Trans Mongolian Express, BRING IT ON!!!

Hope you all have a great few weeks and that you all hit your goals in the Raheny 5

christeb

Back late last night from the trip - tough but rewarding 3 weeks. 8,515 km by train over 6 full days (not all in 1 go mind).

4 easy miles with the OH this morning to ease back into things. To and from her place and around Bushy Park a couple of times - it was chilly but after experiencing -26 degrees in Irkutsk and a dip in -13 degree waters (Russian Holy Day and all the locals were doing it...) gives you no excuse to complain. Although after 3 weeks in the ice and snow - to hear it'll be snowing here tomorrow is quite ironic! Looking forward to getting serious now, I have a 9 miler lined up before I start the new job tomorrow morning...

christeb

9.3miles this morning. Up at 0730 and out the door, no food in the belly. Found it really tough, into the wind most of the way (point to point route). The feeling of getting lashed with snow coming through Clontarf on the seafront was unpleasant to say the least. Pace was no more than about 8:45, the Garmin is acting up so can't see the stats right now.

But good to get the miles in the legs and hopefully continue with a good training week tomorrow.

christeb

Back training with the Raheny Rovers, indoor thankfully! Easy enough sesh considering we normally do a 2.7 miler which tends to take the edge off us in the beginning. Nice to get back with some football though, some sprints and then a match - scored a few crackers which helps! Calves are very sore from yesterday, I'll try to manage a 5 miler tomorrow morn but we'll see, I might just stay in my warm room and do some sit-ups instead...

christeb

5 recovery miles @ 8:18 pace

Scraped myself out of bed for 0615 and got out for a 5 miler - Raheny 5 route, Nice morning, didn't even need the gloves.
On a crappier note, the Garmin 405 is acting seriously up on me, claiming low battery when I charged it over night and generally annoying me. It also doesn't beep, although this can be attributed to me dropping it on the ground over Christmas. Hmmm, it's seeming less and less like money well sepnt

Krusty_Clown

Hi Christieb, send the Garmin back. Simple as. A friend had an issue with his, and sent it back, and they replaced the lot (even though he only sent back the watch). It's hard to get through to the Garmin crowd, but once you do, their support is superb.

You need to contact their support team to get an RMA number (also ask for a replacement 405, for while you are waiting (they mighn't do this, but mention that you have some races coming up). You'll need the original receipt.

Support numbers: Garmin European Support

Oh, and don't mention the drop!

christeb

Thanks KC. Unfortunately this was an eBay purchase - do I have any options without a receipt?

christeb

Woohoo - 3 runs to report over the weekend...happy as I had a fairly hectic weekend up in Belfast and was out on Friday night too.

*Flicks into Garmin History*

Friday 6th Feb
7.2 miles @ 7:48 pace. Nice run along the canal starting out from the KCR and back. Happy with the pace also. I cycled 3 miles immediately before this, I wonder can I count it as some sort of duathlon "brick" training session??

Sunday 8th Feb
5.6 miles @ 8.21 pace. Most of this was with a buddy who isn't as fast, but this made the run all the more enjoyable. Again along the canal, lovely evening for a run.

Monday 9th Feb

4.4 miles @ 8.39 pace

Tough morning as I was cold and pretty tired. Would have been nice to stay in the big warm bed but glad I got the miles in!

christeb

Nice indoor training session with the Rovers last night. Great match and plenty of sprints / upper body exercises afterwards.

Thinking I'll try and get out for an 8/10 miler tonight, need to get a bit of mileage in. And it'll save me from watching that crap from Croker!

Also bought "Lore of Running" by Noakes and "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running" by Marukami this weekend, so plenty of inspiration will be read! Halfway through the latter, pretty interesting stuff.

christeb

8 miles @ 8:20 - HR 152

nice evening to pound the roads, wasn't cold at all. Took the bike home from work and ran shortly thereafter which takes the edge (although I don't have much of an edge!) off the legs intially. Very enjoyable overall and probably could have pushed a couple more miles out easily enough....

christeb

A good astro park session with the Rovers last night. Plan was to run up and back (~3 miles each way) but didn't want to push it, maybe next week...

A couple of long slowish runs this weekend is the plan...

Krusty_Clown

christeb wrote: »

Thanks KC. Unfortunately this was an eBay purchase - do I have any options without a receipt?

Sorry, just noticed your question. Yes, they will absolutely fix it for you, for a fee. But you never know, you might get lucky, sometimes they don't bother charging, beyond postage. Do you not have some form of eBay receipt? The 405 is only about a year old anyway, so it should still (theoretically) be covered by warranty.

I snapped my USB ant stick in two. Don't think they'll cover that!

christeb

Only a couple of runs to report this weekend:

Sat 14th - 4.8 miles @ 8:40. Horrible run, had intended to go a lot longer. I learned a lesson, if your bowels tell you to turn around after a mile, listen to them. 'nuff said.

Sun 15th - 5.8miles @ 7.58. Felt a whole lot better today, had intended to go a bit longer but happy enough with it. Beautiful evening, can I be so brazaen to suggest that springtime is almost upon us???!

christeb

3 miles @ 7.47

then a Rovers indoor training session. No matter how hard I train I'm always tired after one of these!

Big match tonight again RCSI, although only a friendly a couple of our lads will be on their team so plenty at stake

christeb

Wed 18th PM - match Raheny Rovers vs RCSI
We lost 2-1, both goals scored by oine of our own players who also plays for RCSI! Nice to get some match action in, I played 40 mins in what was a scappy enough affair.

Thurs 19th Feb
Ran the 3.5 miles to training with a buddy in what felt like 7:45 pace or so. Could certainly feel this in the legs at the end of the training session, there was more than a few shouts for me to start tracking back etc.!

Fri 20th Feb
4 miles @ 8:38 pace. Veeerrry tired and slow, I was out the door at 0610. Looks nice out there for the BHAA tomorrow, if it's raining though I'll stay home and get some miles in instead.

Slogger Jogger

Hi christieb, Does the football help or hinder the running or vice versa? I've concentrated totally on the running in recent years. If I was to play a game of 5 a side football, the body would be a stiff and sore wreck for a few days (age catching up on me!)

christeb

Hey SJ - to be honest I don't think its helping too much. The footie combined with daily cycles in/out of work obviously helps with overall cardio fitness, but not much in terms of pure running stamina. We tend to do plenty of sprints when training which will (I hope) have some speed benefit when I get a higher mileage base, but that's very much further down the line. Plan is to kick (apologies for the pun!) the team in early Summer so I can concentrate fully on building up to a good DCM time in October.

christeb

The last 3 days were written off to a mixture of a hangover and other stuff, no excuses now!

5 miles around the Raheny 5 route @ 7:49 at 0615 this morning. Legs felt very fresh as they tend to do after 3 days of rest, it's great to be able to ust throw on short and a tee and head out the door, can I be so bold as to suggest Springtime is upon us?!

christeb

Rovers training, easy enough although I find myself getting lazier in training matches. Not sure whether it's due to the run in the morning or lack of enthusiasm, either way I'm going to be concentrating on running from here on.
Hopefully get a nice 5 miler in this evening before the Liverpool match.

Also need to formulate a training plan for the rest of the year, want to perform well in the Dublin duathlons and the Great Ireland Run in April

christeb

5 miles @ 7:28 pace

Nice run, temperate evening and good motivation knowing Eamo and Bill will be in the studio waiting to regail me with their wisdom when I get home!

Today's run (robbed from ike): enjoyable

Woddle

Some good running. Have you any races lined up or do you have to wait for footy season to finish. Regarding the raheny road races I think theres 2 more left in the series, the next one being a 1 mile race but they also have them throughout the summer. It never even occurred to me to give you a shout, maybe next time

christeb

Hey Wod - actually tonight I'm going to do a super plan from here until DCM, this will entail all races in between. Funny I was on the Raheny site yesterday and never thought to check out the fixtures :rolleyes: But I will certainly factor in those races coming up, the 1 mile too should be fun if nothing else!
Other races will include the Great Ireland Run and possibly that 5k you're doing in March.
So I hope there'll be a few chances to see how far behind you I am now!

christeb

AM - some weights and core work at home. Have a weights bench in the garage which got far too little attention over the winter, hope to make use of it a couple of times each week.

PM - Rovers training. Tough sprints and a bit of a match, didn't jog up as want to get my run in tomorrow AM - in case there's a night out on the cards in the evening

christeb

4.5m @ 8:20 pace

Struggled out of bed to get some miles in. Nice morning but damn I was tired!
Hopefully get a semi-long (at least for me) run in this weekend.

Today's run: juiceless!

christeb

90 mins with the Rovers - scored the best goal of my "career" but unfortunately we only drew 1-1. Our slim league chances are now faded, we shold have won 10-1.
You never really experience anything like the pains after a match when running, it's a total body thing - not just legs. Few beers last night, feeling a bit rusty now but should make it out for 5m this evening

christeb

3 cold, rainy, windy miles to training @ 7:50 pace and then a good Rovers training session. Felt a lot better after it, I was in pain again yesterday from the match, it really gets deep down and stays there for a couple of days when you haven't played a match in a while.

One thing I've not really mentioned here is the amount I cycle. Ok it's only in/home every day, therefore not structured, but 12 miles virtually every day adds up - or at least I hope it will!

christeb

Wed 4th Mar: 5m @ 7:43pace, started at 7:15pace for mile 1, that's not how a Kenyan would do it! Very interesting article, I'll try to follow it next time out. Cold and enjoyable run.

Thurs 5th Mar AM: weights (bench-press, bicep curls) tricep dips, push-ups, variety of sit-ups in the garage. Nice way to start the say and something I hope to do a lot more of

christeb

Thurs 5th Mar PM: 3.25m run to training @ 7:54 pace with a teammate. Good training session on the astro.

Fri 6th Mar AM: same weights session as yesterday. It's good to be tired in the upper body as opposed to the legs all the time - feels good. Weekend schedule is quite full, doubt I'm going to get any running in before Sunday, and even then we might have a match

christeb

Sun 8th Mar: Fri PM and Sat were write offs - played 65 mins for the Rovers in our Sunday league match. Tough conditions, were grinded out a 1-0 victory which was satisfying. Took a few knocks, although not feeling too bad 24 hrs after.

Mon 9th Mar AM: early morning weights and core session in the garage

christeb

8.35 miles @ 8:10 pace
Felt tonight was a bit of a turnaround. Felt great and was dying to get out all day, especially after being a hungover lazy mess for most of the wknd. Not a nice evening but got out anyway, delighted I did. Started off v slow but picked it up ever so slightly as I went along. Finished with the last .35 in <7:00 pace, encouraging and I felt I had plenty left in the tank.
My racing flats and new gear got delivered today and reg'd for the MSB 5k at the weekend which should be a laugh - hope the weather is nice.

christeb

Tues 10th AM: core session and weights - 30 mins

Tues 10th PM: Rovers training. Indoor, some really savage sprints, we were about to keel over. Good session with good numbers considering the match was on simultaneously

Wed 11th AM: 5 miles @ 8:28 pace. Not much pep in the legs after last night. Dick Hooper, local running hero and ex-Dublin (and New York?) marathon winner passed me with some nice words a couple of times. His efforts looked a lot more graceful than mine I'm sure! Glad I got out, might head out again later depending on the legs and timing, would like to catch the United Inter game...

christeb

Wed 11th PM: 5m @ 8:02 pace
My first proper "double" ever - does this mean I can seriously call myself a runner???!!!! Gorgeous evening, very mild and had to take off the base layer half way through. Bi of a kick in the legs in the end which was encouraging.

Thurs 12th AM: 30 min weights and core session.

Things are going well, I feel good and really looking forward to the MSB 5k on Sunday - all I need to do now is stay sober on Sat night...

christeb

3.36m @ 7:52 pace followed by Rovers training on the astro. Tough tough session, a match followed by some savagely long sprints. I could feel the training in my legs though, I think I finished a lot stronger than some of the other guys. Tempted to even run home, got chilly though so I'll bring the gloves and hat next week.
Everything this week has been a double session, albeit mostly weights. Feeling in pretty good shape. Long may it continue!

christeb

5.14m @ 8:29 pace. Beautiful morning running around St Anne's Park, the soft ground made it a lot easier on the legs, although slow enough pace. It's great to get out and hear nothing except nature!
That caps a pretty good week for me, I'll take it easy tomorrow, maybe a few weights thrown in, in anticipation for Sunday morning. Hope to get a nice sub 20 min....

christeb

Today called for a rest day but it was too nice, so I took the tri bike out for a spin up Howth Hill. Went up the village (hard) side, it was TOUGH! Plenty of wind allround but thoroughly enjoyable, the bike was spinning great too.
13.5 miles or so.
And then Torres et al did the business against Man Utd!

Woddle

Where's your race report, waiting :cool:

On a seperate note I hate the pool with a passion

christeb

No stats from the garmin, again a sign of bad prep (and tall buildings). Although looking back it's another reason to be happy with the time, did it on "feel"

Mini report here, not much else to add without the data to back it up. Great race though, Macmillan has me down for a 3:12 marathon at yesterday's pace (19:47), although given my lack of mileage it's extremely hypothetical.

I think yesterday is actually the first time I've felt like a "runner" as opposed to a "jogger", wearing Martin Lel's racing flats helped there too - no excuses if he can run London in 2:05 in them!

Next race up is the Great Ireland Run, wonder can I creep under 40 for that given only a few weeks extra training, and I'll be missing ca. 5-6 days on various trips....

christeb

5m @ 7:57 pace.

Amazing evening for a run, went out with one of the lads from the football team. Flew by, stomach felt a bit dodge at the start but settled down. Legs felt fine after the race, another reason to love those slightlly shorter distances.

christeb

7.25 miles @ 7:51 pace.
After an enforced hungover/rest day yesterday I had to do something this evening.
Mad night for a run, the Northside is covered with a thick fog, like something out of the twilight zone! Nice evening, ran with a buddy form the football team.
I was tired when I got home after work but a power nap and I was ready to go again soon after.
Some amount of runners out there recently, anyone else notice this? Along the coast there were lots and lots, it's really getting popular this year I find. Can only be a good thing.

christeb

3.3m @ 7:43 run to training with the backpack.

Tough training session, couldn't give it 100% as my knee is a bit "twinge-y". It's like there a little needle prick when it bends at a certain point. Good session tonight though, 20 people down - most ever! We were given our new high tech adidas (Rovers branded) training tops in anticipation for the biggest game of the season - Cup Semi Final on Sunday.
We beat our opponents 4-3 last time out, but we have 1 or 2 injuries. It'll be tough. Don't think I'll get any running in in the meantime, need to ice the knee some more over the weekend.

Fri 20th Mar AM: Weights session early doors. Feel refreshed.

christeb

Sat 21st Mar: Weights in the afternoon pre-a massive day in sport!

Sun 22nd Mar: Quick cycle loop of the Hill of howth with a buddy. Pedestrian pace due to match int he afternoon.
Semi final of the Cup, we lost 1-0. All over the opposition, a quick ball over the top and that was us done. Its the bitterest feeling when that happens, we were by far the better side. We're in the Herald but I'm not sure I want to buy it! I got 20 mins at the end. Crazy thing with the football, even though I was only on for 20 mins I was still tired after. Whatever way the adrenaline or the huge increase in tempo hits you...

Mon 23rd Mar: few exercises in the morning. PM: 5.45 miles @ 8:22. With a buddy who hasn't run in a while, beautiful route along Dollymount and through St Anne's Park in the dark. Only the city to guide us along most of the way. Knee still quite sore, I'll get one ot eh lads to take alook at it tomorrow - he's a physio. Messy few days training, heading on a lads weekend to Madrid Fri morn so that's another few days gone. The Great Ireland run won't be near sub 40 by the looks of it....

christeb

Wow - a week since I done anything proper...:o

The knee wasn't feeling great last week, then we had a 4 day lads long weekend in Madrid....:D

Tues 31st Mar: 3m @ 7.59 pace to training and an indoor session. Just played a match. Only 10 there but it was prob the funnest session I've had all year. We were all up for it and we basically kicked legal lumps out of each other, nice and tense! Plenty of bruises this morning.
Knee wrecked at the end - it's right on the inside behind the knee cap. Our default physio says it's really tough to get at without a good rubdown...

Wed 1st Apr: Weights AM

christeb

3.2m @ 7.48 pace to training

Savage training session after the run, lots and lots of sprints in all different forms. Big gmae of Sunday, feel a bit bad leaving the lads in teh lurch to run the GIR. I'll go down in the morning, if they really REALLY need me (i.e. short on numbers), I'll be playing.
Otherwise looking forward to Sunday, hope to get a decent run in this evening and take it relatively easy tomorrow

christeb

100 posts

Just back from the Science Gallery @ TCD, they're running a 2-day fitness themed programme where you can get your figures in different areas:

So here's me in numbers!
Height: 191cm
Weight: 85kg
BMI: 23 (in the middle of the healthy zone)
Fat %: 12.7 (quite good)
Reach: 24cm (OK)
Vertical Jump: 42cm (hmmm not great)
VO2 max: 54 (again OK, could be better)

There was also a spinning class there, 45 mins on the bike was tough going! HR average was 148 though which was pretty low.

Overall great fun, they had the winner of the Connemarathon getting his lactate and VO2 measures. He got up to 21km/h for 3 minutes at his peak - some performance!!!