Send in the Clowns - BAC 10K Challenge

Krusty_Clown

Last night: One hour swim lesson - dropped back a class, and am happy with the decision, as the enjoyment is back. I'll focus on improving my technique some more, before working on the distance.

Tonight: Schedule called for a one hour tempo run, so decided I would do my near-regular Tuesday run to Bray Head, and follow it up with a couple of easy miles, as I have my last hard interval session of the program tomorrow. According to the Garmin, I was 50m under water, for a mile. My swimming must be improving, as I barely noticed. Beautiful night for a run, with a glorious full-moon and crashing waves along the sea-front.

Summary: 8.35 Miles in 1 hour, @7:12 per mile, HR=150.

Seres

well done on the xc race , gruelling work compared to road , did my first one in years there couple of weeks ago and came way with the same feeling of preplexity as yourself at end of the race , did i enjoy it or not ? !

Krusty_Clown

Seres wrote: »

well done on the xc race , gruelling work compared to road , did my first one in years there couple of weeks ago and came way with the same feeling of preplexity as yourself at end of the race , did i enjoy it or not ? !

Ah yeah, but you probably won your race! I only managed 43rd out of 77 (which I'm still pretty happy about!).

Krusty_Clown

Tonight: 12x400m intervals, with ~75 seconds rest. Was wrecked all day after working 16 hours yesterday and getting less than a handful of hours of sleep, so didn't want to do this interval session, but I'm out for the first Xmas drinks of the season tomorrow night, so this was probably the last chance to get this tough session done. And it showed. Didn't enjoy it, and was tired throughout. Just happy to get it completed. I'll be glad to go back to Marathon training, with its more rewarding 5k pace intervals.

Average pace: 5:18min/mile, but with a wild swing (5:11-5:31).
Average time: 1:19

The only consolation was the intense fog and the full moon, which conspired to make me stop and gaze up at the wonderful trippy patterns.

Summary: tired.

donothoponpop

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

The only consolation was the intense fog and the full moon, which conspired to make me stop and gaze up at the wonderful trippy patterns.

It is an incredible moon tonight. Keep letting your freak flag fly Krusty.

Krusty_Clown

Tonight: 6 Miles easy pace. Supposed to do 3 miles at planned race pace, but after a 60 hour working week, the mind and body just wasn't interested, so slowed down after 1.5 miles. I badly need to catch up on some sleep, before I can do some tougher sessions again.

Summary: 6 miles in 42 mins, @7:07/mile, HR=143

Krusty_Clown

Today: 13 miles at a reasonable pace. I'm still feeling tired, so my plan to head up the hills was swiftly dropped, in favour of a run through Tullyvale to Cabinteely. Half way up Heronford Lane, I got attacked by two dogs, one of which took a nip at the side of my knee, but fortunately only brushed the skin with his teeth. I immediately stopped, and faced them off. I waited for a few minutes while they shrank back, hoping the owners would come out, but they didn't appear. Eventually I headed on in frustration, only to find that my path was obscured 300m further on, by LUAS works, so I had to head back the way I came. Those barsteward dogs were waiting for me. So again, a mexican stand-off, and no sign-of the owners. I was really pissed off at this stage, and would have hit one of the dogs a swipe if they came near me.

Eventually, once again in frustration, I hit the road. I'm still wrecked, from a tough week, so couldn't hit the kind of pace numbers I was supposed to, so I did a few extra miles instead, rounding it off at 13 miles instead of 10.

Summary: 13 miles in 1:34, @7:13, HR=146

Slogger Jogger

Checked the map for where that road is.. and I think the same bas****ing dogs chased me and my mate 2 weeks ago. I wanted to call into the property as the dogs came out through the fence down the road after us. Kept doing through. Luckily we had come from the direction you were heading and we didn't have to double back.

Krusty_Clown

I think they belong to Stephen Roche, who lives on that road. It's not the first time I've had an encounter with them either. Sorry to all the ISPCA supporters out there, but if that damn dog tries to bite me again, he's going to get a box in the head.

RacoonQueen

There's dogs where I do my hill sessions as well who went for me once, if I see them now I just stop to walk so I don't startle them. Dogs are lovely creatures altogether.

Krusty_Clown

RacoonQueen wrote: »

Dogs are lovely creatures altogether.

They are indeed. Particularly when slow-roasted for 6 hours, with a nice spice rub.

Yesterday: Swimming - one hour - some improvements, but class was over-jammed.

Tonight: Barcelona Marathon Training Program - Act 1 - Scene 1
Started my 12 week P&D 55 miles per week program this evening, with an 8 mile aerobic run, with 8x100m strides. I started the program a week early, as I've got a week off to hit the slopes in January for some high altitude training. So I'll try and merge the first week of marathon training, with the final week of the 10k program.

Tonight's run started a little too quick (filthy mood), but I soon cheered up with a nice run in the dark, along the coast, finishing in the park to do some strides, and to scatter some of the dog-walkers who have started jumping out on me at night (they mostly come out at night, mostly).

Summary: 8 miles in 58 mins., @7:18min/mile, HR=142

Krusty_Clown

Tonight: 4 Mile recovery run, around the park at a very easy pace.
4.23 Miles in 35 mins, HR=125. Bit if a twinge in the achilles for the last two days, so one to keep an eye on.

Exchanged a few e-mails with the infamous Bart Lasso yesterday, who's sending me out a Runner's World calendar for xmas! I'll have to do some of those yasso 800s at some stage!

kennyb3

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

Bit if a twinge in the achilles for the last two days, so one to keep an eye on.

hope its nothing but do be very careful. nasty things, once they get damaged they dont fix easy. i missed 2 months in the summer with this and wasnt really right for 3 to 4, but like i say hopefully it will be nothing and clear up.

Krusty_Clown

Thanks for the advice Kenny. It's definitely not any better tonight. I'll rest up tomorrow, and decide on the race on Saturday morning. It could be the straw that brakes the dog's back, and it's not an important race for me in the grand scheme of things, so no sense in risking my marathon program.

Tonight: 9 Miles @7:12 aerobic run - loop around Killiney hill. Had planned to run the lot @7:30, with the race on Saturday, but misjudged the pace a little with the hills. HR is in the right zone though for aerobic, at around 76%. Running is feeling good at the moment, except for this worrisome achilles twinge.

Summary: 9 miles in 1:04, @7:12min/mile, HR=146

village runner

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

Thanks for the advice Kenny. It's definitely not any better tonight. I'll rest up tomorrow, and decide on the race on Saturday morning. It could be the straw that brakes the dog's back, and it's not an important race for me in the grand scheme of things, so no sense in risking my marathon program.

Tonight: 9 Miles @7:12 aerobic run - loop around Killiney hill. Had planned to run the lot @7:30, with the race on Saturday, but misjudged the pace a little with the hills. HR is in the right zone though for aerobic, at around 76%. Running is feeling good at the moment, except for this worrisome achilles twinge.

Summary: 9 miles in 1:04, @7:12min/mile, HR=146

If in doubt back out. You are going well so an easy week will do you no harm even a visit to a physio who might get it before it proves troublesome.
Heard you were talking to a work colleague of mine. He is mental aint he.

Krusty_Clown

village runner wrote: »

If in doubt back out. You are going well so an easy week will do you no harm even a visit to a physio who might get it before it proves troublesome.
Heard you were talking to a work colleague of mine. He is mental aint he.

Ah the handy fella? Gas. I've known him for many moons, since college days. I saw Ike appear on his (and Woddle's) facebook page, and was chatting to him over a few pints at the weekend. Small world (small country!).

Krusty_Clown

Today: After hearing about the mess with the Aware 10k 9k race last night, I had decided not to bother racing, and stick to the P&D marathon schedule instead, which called for a 5 mile recovery run. The OH was heading into Phoenix Park anyway, and I was awake early, so figured I might as well do my recovery run with the OH during the race, and enjoy a change of scenery. Having the OH there was handy, as it meant I stuck to a recovery pace, but the temptation to kick the heels in, and start over-taking the people who were over-taking me, was very strong (competitive streak). Can't say I enjoyed the experience, as I was still feeling a little peeved. I had hoped to take around 42 seconds from my 10k time and record a time that started with 37:xx. That'll have to wait until next year.

Still feeling slightly disillusioned and unsatisfied when I got home, I took the bike out for the first time in a while, and covered 10 miles, with a climb up around Carrigologan. Even that didn't serve to improve my mood, as the gears on the bike were slipping under load, which was annoying on the steep climb. Thankfully, for the first time in 5 runs, I didn't get any punctures. Typically this was after I have bought the pump, and the saddlebag with the tyre wrenches, spare tube and repair kit.

Summary:
8.9998898 km recovery run, real slow, with real low heart rate.
10 Mile hilly cycle around Carrigologan in 42 mins.

Krusty_Clown

Today: 13 miles with 8 @PMP. I'm glad that I blew off the aware 10k yesterday (or at least racing it anyway) as today's run was a great start to the new marathon program. A 4 mile warm-up, mostly uphill, followed by 8 miles at my planned marathon pace, and a 1 mile warm-down. I was getting pretty tired towards the end, but it's only the first pmp run in the program (at the end of weeks 1!) so hopefully, the increase in distance will make these runs a little easier. The pmp section was slightly downhill, so I ran a little faster than PMP to compensate. I always seem to run a little better if I can get a hill climb into the legs early on. It feels good to be running long and hard again. Happy Clown.

Lap1: 4 Miles @7:53
Lap2: 8 Miles @6:40
Lap3: 1 Mile @8:07

Summary: 13 miles in 1:33, @7:09, HR=149.

Krusty_Clown

Last night: Swimming - Felt I made good progress again, so happy days

Tonight: 11 miles at Aerobic pace (I think). I need to get the calculator out. Not because I'm obsessed with the numbers, but more because my average heart rate was 143, which seems a little low for an aerobic run. These days, it seems I have no problems with the heart rate and the lungs. The limiting factor for future improvement will definitely come down to bio-mechanics.

A nice run anyway (if a little hurried, as I had to leg it to the O2 to see the legendary marathon runner - Eddie Izzard). Headed to Bray, and traveled about a half a mile down the Bray-Greystones walk, before the terrain got a little too uneven, and became difficult in the darkness. Looking forward to getting a proper head-torch so I can go further down this path at night. Eventually I turned back and finished up with 5 miles in the park, to an incredible star-scape when there was a break in the clouds. Enjoyable running.

Summary: 11 miles in 1:21, @7:26/mile, HR=134.

Slogger Jogger

You're flying it Krusty. Well done.

Krusty_Clown

Slogger Jogger wrote: »

You're flying it Krusty. Well done.

Thanks SJ. Even 40 miles a week is a bit of a slog at the moment, between work and the weather.

Tonight: Another tough session: 8 mile Lactate Threshold run. Did a 2 mile warm-up, then 4 miles at 1/2M pace (desirable, rather than actual) and finished up with a 2 mile warm-down.

2 Miles @8:16
4 Miles @6:20
2 Miles @8:16

Took delivery of my Petzl Head torch (and I was never very good at waiting until Christmas, to open up my xmas pressies) so took it out for a spin in the park. Wow, what a great difference it makes. Look forward to hitting the hills some evening for a change from the more recent routes.

Summary: 8.25 miles in 1 hour, @7:21, HR=147

Krusty_Clown

Today: 6 Mile recovery run. A fab day for running. Nice and crisp, cool, and sunny, with just a little head-wind (mother nature's way of letting you know that you can't have it all your own way!). Cleared the hangover, collected the car from the pub, and did my recovery run all in one go. Mission accomplished.

Summary: 6 miles in 46 mins, @7:43/mile, HR=151 (a little high, but probably down to the hangover/head-wind).

Krusty_Clown

Today: Fantastic, amazing and thrilling, are all adjectives that could be used to describe today's run. Schedule called for a 15 mile medium long run, but I wanted to HTFU, and stretch myself a little, so the plan was to head for the hills and grind my way through a hilly run, to toughen the body and the mind. After a mile or two, the roads were getting icy, so decided that Johnny Foxes was off the cards (too many cars skidding up and down icy roads) so took the Puck's Castle road to Carrigologan. As I climbed, the roads got worse and worse, until the ice was closer to snow, and I didn't have to flat-foot the road as much.

I turned into Carrigologan and headed for the peak, running to the top without having to slow to a walk (wahoo!). Feeling so good afterwards, I decided to take on The Scalp too, which was a blast. Leaping from snowy rock to snowy rock parcour-style, wondering if this is what it must have been like for Chris McCandless before things started to go wrong. A few downhill miles at sub marathon pace, before finishing up with some slower miles in the park, occasionally glancing back up at the hills, which a short time previous had been the object of much fun. A very enjoyable run, and proof if any were needed, that wintery conditions doesn't have to be a bad thing.

Summary: 16 miles in 2:04, @7:48/mile, HR=148

Krusty_Clown

Last night: One hour of swimming lessons.

Today: Took a half day to finish off the xmas shopping. Hmm.. It's nice and sunny.. Shopping or run..Shopping or run.. The right thing to do was go and finish the shopping, so instead I headed to the park with my mudclaws and sun-glasses, and did my 8 miles aerobic, with somewhere between 8 and 14 strides (I always lose count). Despite the lovely conditions, the run hurt a little. The mudclaws had stiffened up completely since their last outing at the Dublin XC intermediates (and subsequent wash), and the grass/trails were rock solid, so have a few new blisters to pop this evening. Job done, evening off. As for the xmas shopping...Engraved calculator watches for everyone.

Summary: 8 Miles with lots of strides, in 58 mins, @7:21/mile, HR=154.

belcarra

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

As for the xmas shopping...Engraved calculator watches for everyone.

...from "Burnham's"?

Krusty_Clown

belcarra wrote: »

...from "Burnham's"?

Oh, do you do your chrimbo shopping there too?

Krusty_Clown

Today: Sneaked out of work early (not early enough for your run though SJ ) and did 5 recovery miles in the park. Hope the thaw comes soon, as I don't fancy doing my 11 and 17 mile runs in loops around a couple of fields.

Summary: 5 miles in 39 mins, @7:49/mile, HR=143.

Krusty_Clown

Yesterday: not sure if it counts as exercise, but went for the traditional dip in the sea at the forty foot with some friends, to celebrate the birthday. I stayed in the water for around 45 seconds, outlasting my buddies by about 30 seconds. I hope to see my appendages again, before next Christmas.

Krusty_Clown

Today: Fab 11 mile aerobic run, up around all of the trails near my house, with lots of up, followed by lots of down. Had to change routes a few times, due to very thick ice, but a lovely run altogether with some great views, to set up the day. Happy xmas to one and all! Hope y'all have a great running year next year. Now it's time for too much alcohol!

Summary: 11 miles in 1:22, @7:30/mile, HR=142.

belcarra

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

Oh, do you do your chrimbo shopping there too?

Only on fuel purchases over €10!