here goes nothing...

asimonov

been reading this thread for a while now, and find it good for motivation. Thanks to all the regular posters.

My immediate goal is the connemarathon which i hope to do in 3:29. Its my first marathon, i started running regularly in october. Training is going pretty well, i am a bit sore around the knees but otherwise in reasonable shape. I run 4 times a week plus once or twice at the weekend. My other goals this year are to do a 1:30 half and do another 10 miler to break the 65:20 i did in dungarvan.

Yesterday: rest after 22 miles on sunday.
Today: 7.1 miles, without my garmin, went out at 7am and it was bright enough to run without the torch, i could still feel sunday in my legs and it took 2 miles for them to ease.

donothoponpop

Best of luck asimonov. Thats a great time for the 10 miler, are you sure you don't want to do a better time for the marathon? The McMillan calculator http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/cgi-bin/calculations.pl has you running a 1:26 half, and a 3:03 full, from your 10 mile time!

Woddle

Yeah my Dungarvan time was 70 mins and that puts me on 3:15 but maybe if its your first you should just enjoy it and learn from the experience. Well done on the 10 miler time especially considering your not running long. Best of luck

asimonov

thanks lads...tbh dungarvan was a dream run, I was really surprised to find i could maintain a consistent pace beyond what i'd normally train at, mind you i was totally hangin' by the end of it!

I haven't picked a quicker time in connemara because i fear that i'd blow out trying to achieve it and then walk away from the whole thing. I very much plan on continuing to run after this, as i get a great buzz from it. With the confidence of one marathon behind me, i feel i could build from there.

donothoponpop

asimonov wrote: »

thanks lads...tbh dungarvan was a dream run, I was really surprised to find i could maintain a consistent pace beyond what i'd normally train at, mind you i was totally hangin' by the end of it!

I haven't picked a quicker time in connemara because i fear that i'd blow out trying to achieve it and then walk away from the whole thing. I very much plan on continuing to run after this, as i get a great buzz from it. With the confidence of one marathon behind me, i feel i could build from there.

Yeah, you're right, and as Woddle says above you should run to enjoy your first one.
I'm on number four now, hence me jumping all over your times/pace/calculations... be warned, marathon running is very addictive:D

asimonov

donothoponpop wrote: »

Yeah, you're right, and as Woddle says above you should run to enjoy your first one.
I'm on number four now, hence me jumping all over your times/pace/calculations... be warned, marathon running is very addictive:D

i've been tracking your log; you've every right to jump all over my times/pace and calculations :-)

asimonov

wednesday:
5 miles at avg 8:16 pace.

Out at 7am this morning, did my shorter 5 mile loop, once again nice and bright with a great sunrise. Average pace was 8:16 and it felt it, slow and a still sore after sunday. I've noticed a big difference between the recovery times between the 20 mile slow run from two weeks ago and the 22 mile slow run.

I'm glad i did the 22 miles, but i won't do it again before connemara.

asimonov

thursday: 5.4 avg: 7:36 per mile.

i drove into town for a rare evening run on pavements and on the ring road. My right shin had started to hurt a bit so I bought a replacement pair of kayanos which felt great and much lighter than the previous model 14. At last, i am getting some feeling of pace back in the legs.

The plan for this weekend is to take it easy, so its 7 miles on saturday and 13 miles on sunday - still undecided about whether i'll run today or not (never a good sign).

asimonov

friday: nada running, but got my forerunner antstick and motionbased website working.

Saturday: 14.8 miles in 1:55, i ran from my sister's house in damerstown over "the ridge" and home, a total of 14.8 miles. A really good 2 mile hill from mile 3 - 5, felt good.

Sunday: My usual route of goresbridge, 6 miles along the river and home. Shortened the route to make exactly 13.1 miles, which took 1:38. I put a few quick miles in during the middle section but i could feel residual tiredness from saturday. For the first time this year i wore long sleeves and it felt too warm, i also wore HRM for first time...felt uncomfortable as well as feeling a little like a lab rat. it must take a little getting used to. Figured out how to put my run on motion based

asimonov

spring is here, the grass is riz....

i did nothing on monday ( or to call it its official name; cross training). My legs are worryingly sore after the weekend...so had a massage last night and today went for a very slow 4 mile run today at lunch; spent most of the time trying to keep some kind of chi form and stopping twice for stretches...it felt great not to finish a run knackered, will do the same tomorrow over a slightly longer distance maybe between 5 - 7 miles.

My goal is to finish this week in better physical shape than i am now at the lower end of mileage scale and have a good long run on sunday.

looseliver

Good on ya Asmonov, it's a tough race but i'm sure your efforts will be rewarded.
these updates are good reading, keep them coming.

asimonov

looseliver wrote: »

Good on ya Asmonov, it's a tough race but i'm sure your efforts will be rewarded.
these updates are good reading, keep them coming.

Thanks, looseliver.

Today was more of the same from yesterday, went for a lunchtime run, slow and easy 5.3 miles with a few stops for stretches. I went to the local hurling pitches to run, regular heckling by the U12's kept it interesting; didn't have the HRM on so can't tell if it effected me or not!

Tomorrow is again more of this with added mileage.

SUNGOD

hi asminov
you have all the hard work done at this point and are nearly into your taper.
4 weeks to marathon with 2 weeks of taper.
so its now about keeping yourself fit/healthy and enjoying the last few weeks running before the big day.
you must be confident , i dont know how many LSR's you did but i see you did one 22 mile run which is great ,a lot of people dont go above 20 in training for their first marathon, me included.
so to have a 22 under your belt is a great confidence boost.
in regards time , 3:29 is a sensible goal. as you said you want to enjoy the day and hopefully be back for many more.
also when you start at this pace if you do have something in the tank towards the end you can push on.
best of luck (but with that 10 mile time im sure you wont need luck):D

asimonov

SUNGOD wrote: »

you must be confident , i dont know how many LSR's you did but i see you did one 22 mile run which is great ,a lot of people dont go above 20 in training for their first marathon, me included.
so to have a 22 under your belt is a great confidence boost.

thanks sungod, i'm somewhere between confident and obsessed at this stage (with a dash of injury neurosis thrown in to the mix) . I'll do one more LSR this week and then taper from there i think.

8.5 miles (average pace 8:25) last night in kk listening to adam & joe podcast; Two things i learned from this run; running and laughing gets you funny looks and concrete paths are no friend of mine.

showry

asimonov wrote: »

listening to adam & joe podcast;

STEPHEN!

asimonov

showry wrote: »

STEPHEN!

just coming! :D:

asimonov

Friday: 5 miles without the watch.
Saturday: Nothing!
Sunday: 20.35 miles with lots of hillwork - average pace 8:03 p/m.

Today was hard going at the start - first 5.4 miles mainly and steeply uphill, after that there was lots of downhill cruising. The mid section has a couple more hills and a couple of loops around the demense - finished with a mile long hill.

Stopped at 15 miles to buy water, and also took an energy gel...not sure if this is counter productive or not while training .
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/2218802

The plan for the week is 5 easy runs and then my last lsr next weekend - even though i'd like to do the dungarvan 10k - but with 4 weeks to go today- its all about connemara.

asimonov

i had to dig this out of the archives i was so many pages down.

ok, so i had a really crap week last week - pretty sick all week and so I managed just two runs. The first of these was a 9 mile run on wednesday - which was my usual 7 mile run with a few hill repeats thrown in and a 20 miler on sunday. As this was my last long run, i went for a fast finish long run (as per mcmillen). i did the first 11 miles in 8:05's, and then picked it up to 7:40 - 7:55 from there to 16, and then finished 7:26, 7:15 & 6:57. i was totally banjaxed by the end of it, average pace 7:51. http://connect.garmin.com/activity/2338172

I tried not to take a gel but conceded at 16 miles; i hadn't really eaten for a few days and the lack of real food told. The hardest part of the run was the first 11 miles, and these were meant to be the easy bit..

i'll miss my long runs for a while, its a great way to escape the kids spend a few hours on a sunday.

Monday was my rest day, and today i did 6.66 miles at an average of 7:13's. It's amazing how 6 miles can suddenly feel like a short run. http://connect.garmin.com/activity/2338181

After about 5 months of running I feel i am as fit now as i have ever been before; and no matter what happens in connemara, that's a result.

asimonov

Its amazing how 6 miles can feel like a total slog. On wednesday I worked late so had to run a 1.5 mile lap around the village. it was a nightmare compared to the country runs i've been used. i know its hard to beat running up boreen's and the like - but this felt like torture. I had to run past my own door 3 times, it was mainly on concrete, i had to cross the road twice a lap and those little ups and downs in pavements annoyed me as well. i wore the watch but forgot to turn it off so i didn't even get a record of it.

Today i did 8.75 miles, average of 7:17 miles. A new route for me it starts with a 190m rise over 3.5 miles, and then drops down gradually to a flat finish. I really enjoyed it and one i'll definitely do again before the day itself - just slower.

asimonov

Sunday the 8th was my first Sunday without a serious run in a long time, my previous 6 Sundays had gone like this:

Sunday March 1st - 20 miles
Sunday February 22nd - 20 miles
Saturday 14th / Sunday 15th - 2 X 14 miles
Sunday Feb 8th - 22 miles
Sunday Feb 1st - Dungarvan 10
Sunday January January 25th - 20 miles

Comparing my actual runs against the HH intermediate plan i set out to do, i fared badly on the medium length marathon pace runs on the Saturday before my long runs - mainly due to a busy work and home life. A consequence of missing these Saturday runs was that i wasn't running 5 days a week enough, and i ended up running my LSR's probably too close to planned marathon pace. On the positive side, i did more long runs than required and last week I have been to the physio and got orthodics on order from TOG to use after connemara that will help sort out my right shin.

Last Sunday i did 13 miles just a bit faster than my planned marathon pace - around 7:30. boring details here. I changed the way i laced my shoes with a loop at the top, this pulled my gt2130's tighter than normal and i ended up with a massive blister on my instep that ended up pretty sore by mile 12 when it popped, like a fool i kept on running, and when i finished it was more like a light burn that a blister. Of course, i made a huge deal of it at home and got loads of attention from my OH and kids - so not so bad. The blister meant no running on monday or tuesday - all good today though.

Wednesday the 11th. I did an "easy" 5 mile run before breakfast, i had no energy and so it was a total grind and i was really glad when it was over.

At this stage the race couldn't come soon enough....

asimonov

Thursday the 13th;
I didn't get to do any running in the morning so went into town to use the ring road. I changed at the Watershed and it was jam packed.

K.C.Harriers had their fit4life and juvenile training sessions on and it was just full of kids and adults training. The 4 astro-turf pitches were in use and the indoor pitches as well...it certainly looks like the new facility is helping generate a new wave of sports and leisure in KK - long may it last.

I think i'll bring my eldest chap who is 7 in next week to try the training - he's done Karate for the last few years (which has been brilliant for him - balance, confidence, physical awareness) and the running would be a nice balance to that.

In terms of the run i did 5 easy miles on the road with stops for stretches and when i got back i did a mile on the track which was a refreshing change - the surface is very forgiving on the knees. So 6 mile total.

asimonov

Friday was a rest day.
Saturday was 4.5 miles without a watch around the demense in Castlecomer. Blue skies, lots of people out and about. I have no ideas how long it took or what pace I was running at but it felt good. Off the road meant on the iPod: qemist rock!

Sunday; 8.75 miles between bagenalstown and myshall. More blue skies, warm weather and the rolling landscape up to mt leinster looked great. I used the HM for the second time, tried to keep it at under 70%, around 155bpm, did that and pace ranged between 7:48 and 7:08. The bonus with tapering is I am really loving the running I can do, must remember that next time I'm cursing a run. This week's plan is three very short runs and then a rather long one on Sunday;-)

hunnymonster

Thanks for coming out on a run with us yesterday. I usually take 37 min for that little jaunt. You hared me around in 34!

asimonov

hunnymonster wrote: »

Thanks for coming out on a run with us yesterday. I usually take 37 min for that little jaunt. You hared me around in 34!

To be honest i spent 34 minutes thinking.."she said it would be slow, this doesn't feel slow" - while trying to keep up with zuppy! If its any consolation, i'm sure it might stand you well for a fast finish at the MdS :-)

asimonov

I think this is the final log entry before connemara.

Training ended on a high yesterday with a fourpointsomething mile run in cork with HM and Zuppylurk.

After so much solo training, it was great to run with other (lovely) people and really test the conversation pace rule. The run left me feeling nicely energised for Sunday.

On Tuesday i had done a 5 mile country run with a pace spread from 8:30 to 7:30. The shins hurt for the first mile and then disappeared.

As per 06 and 08 we're staying beside the sea in louisburgh on the weekend of the race. I'm going to hide some isotonic drinks on the route on saturday at miles 11 and 15. As this year its not Lenane but lough ina for my start, i'll get to drive the first half before i run it.

Bring it on.

asimonov

My first marathon; chip time 3:22.02, finished in 38th position. What a day!

As i was staying in Louisburg with my wife and youngest (our other two having been farmed out for the weekend with their grandparents) i got dropped at the start by my sister, this meant we got to drive from Leenane to Lough Inagh.

The first half looked much much more benign than the second and i was pretty sure i was going to have to get time in the bag on the first half to compensate for the second. I arrived at the start at 9:45 and by the time the ultras had gone through the wind had really picked up. I had met up with a Izoard, a proven marathoner, who was putting his 6 week, anti-taper, marathon training plan (successfully) to the test. It was great to have someone to chat with at the start and after a couple of cheers for various participants we were off. My target was to complete the distance, and do it under 3:30 ..to do this i knew i had to beat 8min miles.


Miles 1 - 6.0
The first six miles were against the wind; we had a nice and handy first mile (8:12), and then injected some pace to catch up with a mixed group of french ( tricolor hair is the giveaway) and irish runners. The next miles passed by easy, 7:40, 7:49 & 8:00. All very relaxed and sociable. Mile 5 was slightly up hill hence a 8:10 split but compensated with a 7:33 downhill to the second water station. I took water on board and threw my sweatshirt away.

Miles 7 - 13.
Once we turned the corner and started up the hill the wind died instantly. I picked up the effort and went through mile seven in 7:51, and continuing uphill (7:21) for mile 8 . We passed the bus with the smashed windscreen that (i think) had gone into the back of another bus when empty. At this stage i started to pass other runners going through 9 (7:35) and 10 (7:13). It was the same process each time, catch the group ahead a few friendly words and move on. At mile 10 i took my first powerbar gel. i was running alongside a guy from Dublin also on a 3:30ish pace (he had done 3:32 at the DCM) and we dropped into Leenane together - but again i drifted ahead.

A passed through Leenane in 1:40; and there was great support there that give me a real lift, i as ready to tackle the first hill. Thanks to Krusty_Clown i was expecting the hill out of Leenane to be like grafton street - when i got there it was more like 28 days later....not a sinner in sight - only other full marathoners ahead. A total stroke of luck...they had all passed and would be starting to spread out by the time i started moving through them.

Miles 14 - 16
At this stage i was feeling good. My plan had been to be leave Leenane feeling fresh and ready to run a half marathon - and i felt positive and lively. Mile 14 (7:33) & Mile 15 (7:53) passed quickly, i had taken my second of 4 gels at this point and i was running with two other marathoners. We were driving each other on through the crowds as mile 16 came in at 6:59 (which was way too fast!) and we all put the brakes on. They must have drifted back as again i was running on my own, moving as quickly as possible through the crowds - often requiring some fancy footwork to avoid tripping or being tripped.

Miles 17-22
At mile 17 (7:14) i met my wife (doing the half), a welcome sight for sore eyes, we just had time for a bit of chat, a quick peck on the cheek for good luck and i was off again. This is where it all starts to get a little hazy at this stage as fatigue started to build. I know I had a toilet break at the school or church on the right hand side and around mile 19 a youngish ultra passed lookin' cool as a cucumber dressed in white with white sunglasses - "go on ultra!".

I was starting to feel my stomach go "off" from the gels during this phase and i was finding the water stations very far apart. Mile 18 (7:22), 19 (7:46), 20 (7:29), 21 (7:28) and 22 (7:43) all passed in this haze - running on auto-pilot.

Miles 23 - 24
I took some jelly babies and high 5 drink at the base of the HOTW and straight away I went for my third gel, in the process of getting this gel my final gel dropped to the ground and i didn't stop to pick it up. I hit the hill and started to struggle immediately. I had done lots of hill training but nothing prepared me for the feeling of helplessness as i saw the ribbon of runners ahead of me stretch into infinity (and beyond!). I knew what i had to do, put my head down, stick to the right where there was space and keep on lifting my feet..i passed the matching blue army crew at this stage, and a couple of other marathoners. About 3/4's of the way up the hill, the elevation lessened and I got a surge of pace, i passed the waterstation (two please!)...the hill was over i was nearly at the finish - hurray!!!. I drank one water and poured the rest over me, elated that mile 23 (8:23) and mile 24 (8:42) were over! The joy of being at the top of the hill soon passed, i could just see the finish area but it looked as if it was in galway city. I ran as fast as i could down hill and as i hit the bottom of the hill every bit of my energy drained away.


Miles 25-26.2
I had run mile 25 at 7:06 and there was only 1.2 miles left...i think i knew sub 3:30 was ok, but my brain couldn't really function well - so the maths were always in doubt. I was stuck in one gear, i couldn't stop (for fear of not being able to start), i couldn't slow down, and i couldn't speed up - all i could do was run at some unknown pace (it felt very slow) so i would make the finish and the pain would go away.

I was really thirsty at this stage and i finished my last bottle of water, took some jellies from a spectator (thank you!) and even picked up a bottle of water to dunk over me and just.kept.running. With a couple of hundred metres to go i saw the spectator barriers, i saw the finish line and i saw the clock...it said 3:2XXX....i had done it!!! Sadly enough, it was arms in the air as i crossed the line!!!! What a rush!

To everyone who has in anyway helped, thank you. So it's runners off for a few days before putting some kind of plan together for a go at sub 1:30 in Wexford and then train through the summer for an autumn marathon.

Running, sure what else would you be doing???

Krusty_Clown

asimonov wrote: »

Thanks to Krusty_Clown i was expecting the hill out of Leenane to be like grafton street - when i got there it was more like 28 days late

You were chased by frenzied blood-thirsty zombies? I meant to say that it was like Grafton Street at 5am. Great time for your first marathon. Time to sign up for the next few. Hopefully see you in Wexford, where I'll be looking for a similar time.

showry

congrats, great running,

asimonov

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

You were chased by frenzied blood-thirsty zombies? I meant to say that it was like Grafton Street at 5am. Great time for your first marathon. Time to sign up for the next few. Hopefully see you in Wexford, where I'll be looking for a similar time.

Not unlike how i felt towards the end . I reckon you're a few good steps ahead of me but looking forward to giving wexford a lash. I registered for dublin this morning.

Krusty_Clown

asimonov wrote: »

Not unlike how i felt towards the end . I reckon you're a few good steps ahead of me but looking forward to giving wexford a lash. I registered for dublin this morning.

My own PB is around the same as yours. Admittedly I'm hoping to take a big chunk off of it in two months time, but, we'll be aiming for around the same goal in Wexford. Looking forward to it now.

hunnymonster

great report and congratulations on such a good result in your first marathon.