It's a new dawn ......... it's a new day.

Speedy44

Had planned to do 12 x 400m today, I managed 4 !

Not sure what caused the meltdown. Felt like sh**, right achilles was sore, not too bad so as to stop me from going out, but I think it was getting worse as the run went on.
My times were 87, 87, 91 & 92, they would normally be 85 or 86 for the 12. Had no energy and breathing wasn't the best either.

Had a stressful day at the office which probably didn't help. I know I've been training hard but I felt fine yesterday. I was also ravenous today, even more so than usual. I had a large bowl of porridge for breakfast with a banana, mid morning I had 3 slices of wheat toast & a poached egg, then for lunch I had shirmp & pasta, 2hrs before I ran.
The missus has a bad cold so maybe I'm picking up something. May actually take a day off tomorrow.

Distance :- 6.5mls

Speedy44

"Hi, my name is Speedy and I am a runaholic"

There, now that feels better!
I just about managed to take a day off today. I actually got my gear on and ran 50 yards, only to turn around again when I thought I felt a bit tired.
After feeling like cr*p yesterday, taking today off made the utmost sence, but I must have gone back & forth 3 or 4 times on the pro's & con's of missing a whole day.

Speedy44

March 3rd

6 x 1ml on the track with 75 secs/rec with the club. Times were 5:56, 5:51, 5:53, 5:56, 5:54 & 5:57.

Good session. Had spent the whole damn day driving around the country and was only able to get in a 6min warm up compared to my usual 3mls + drills, strides & stretching.

Felt ok for the first few, was tempted to pick it up a bit, I think more so to run off the frustration of been stuck behind a wheel all day, but by the time the last 2 rolled along I was hanging on.

Did the same session 5 weeks ago, only did 5 though and had 90 sec/rec. Times that time were 3 secs slower on average, so we must be doing something right.

Distance :- 7.75mls

March 4th

10.5mls easy. Felt ok, never felt comfortable though, legs a bit sore. Was running sub 7:30's though at about 152 rpm and wasn't really tired at the end, so I guess it was ok.

March 5th

Last really hard session before Craughwell 10. 3 x 17.5mins @ thr. I think this is a really good session and will stand to me when it counts. It tests your mental strength as well as the physical.
Compared to last week, the hr was well within the range that it should have been. Although they were hard, wasn't really struggling on any of them, and like last week felt strongest on the last one.
Had company for them all as well which always makes it easier.

Distance :- 11.75mls

Speedy44

March 6th

6.5mls easy on the grass. Good recovery run after yesterdays tough session. First ml was 8+ but after that I was doing about 7:20's. Felt pretty good throughout, no ill effects.

March 7th

Beautiful 'almost' spring morning. Running with a group of 11 which was great. Never even felt the mls go by. Faster than we normally go for a long run but felt strong right through to the end.

Distance :- 14.25mls.

Speedy44

March 8th

8.5mls at a nice leisurely pace with the club. Felt good after yesterday.

March 9th

Decided to take the day off. Was origionally going to take Thursday off but ended up doing a lot of spring cleaning which left me kind of tired, so it made more sence to take it off today instead.

March 10th

Last club session before the big day. This was supposed to be a bit easier than our usual workout, but it was still a good stretch of the legs. Didn't feel too bad and definintely had a lot left in the tank.

We did 1 x 12mins @ 6:20 pace on grass, then we did 1 x 1ml in 5:50, 1min/rec, 1 x 800m in 2:50, 1min/rec, 2 x 400m in 80 & 77 with a min rec.

Next few days I think I'll be doing something like this:

Thursday - 8.25mls easy
Friday - 4 x 400m in 90sec with 400m rec (6.5mls total)
Saturday - 5.5mls easy (maybe a couple of 50m strides)

Speedy44

March 11th

8 1/4 nice and easy. Felt good, cruising along really. Pace was about 7:25 and hr 148.

March 12th

6 1/2 with with 4 x 90secs thrown in for good measure. Didn't do them too hard, just wanted to stretch out the legs.

March 13th

4mls very easy. Nothing to report, so its all systems go for tomorrow.

Havn't ran a 10ml race in 18mts, my time then was 64:50, I'd like to think I have improved slightly since then !

Hesitant on predictions, but what the hell, 61-61:30 :eek:

Sosa

Best of luck tomorrow speedy,looking forward to the report.

Speedy44

Craughwell 10 miler - 62:24

Splits were
1ml - 5:49
2ml - 6:17
3ml - 6:05
4ml - 6:17
5ml - 6:08 (30:36)
6ml - 6:19 (10K - 38:14)
7ml -
8ml -
9ml - 56:02
10ml - 6:22 (31:46)

Well, I suppose it could have been worse. I kinda knew when I moved after 2mls that I shouldn't have. I was running without my Garmin so had no idea of the pace. I think if I had it there's no way I would have let myself go through in 5:49. At that stage though of course I was feeling great so when we coasted through 2mls with a 6:17 I figured that I may be on for a very good day and that it was too slow. I was running in a group of 6 or 7 (including Pauline Curly - womens winner in 59:10 or so).

I got a small gap but then I eased up a bit and let them come back. We were still together as a group through about 4mls but then it broke up and it was down to 3 of us.

Was feeling ok but then about 6mls or so started to struggle and we broke up. Hit the water station just before 7mls and I took on a gel. My clubmate was only 15-20mts ahead of me and I still thought I could reel him in. Then in a matter of a couple of 100mts I seemed to lose it and he increased the gap. Was really struggling at this stage with the usual thought of pulling out in my head. Another lad that I train with caught me at 9mls, I went with him up the hill but then he got the gap easy enough on me. At this stage I was just hanging on and looking for the finish.

Pissed off but nothing like after DCM. No excuses, just didn't have it.

Sosa

Speedy44 wrote: »

1ml - 5:49
QUOTE]

Pity you didnt have the Garmin Speedy....first mile did you...pity.
but,there will be many more.

Speedy44

Sosa wrote: »

Speedy44 wrote: »

1ml - 5:49
QUOTE]

Pity you didnt have the Garmin Speedy....first mile did you...pity.
but,there will be many more.

thanks Sosa. Still, my 10K split was only 10 secs slower than what I ran at the Fields of Athenry so I suppose it could have been a lot worse.

Plan is to take a few days off and then start on my training for the track season. Probably won't do as much mileage but will be doing more quality work, 200's & 400's and the like.

Speedy44

Well, after last weekends 'not so perfect' race, I had planned to take it easy this week before I get stuck into the next period of training.

The week went as so:

Mon - off
Tues - 4.5mls light jog
Wed - 6.5mls @ 7.30/ml
Thur - off
Fri - 8.25mls @ 7.25/ml
Sat - 5mls @ 7.25/ml

Which brings me to today .............. '8K' race in Ballinrobe.

Finished 1st (:D), not just in the old guy catogory, but the whole thing.

Nice idea to schedule it the same day as Ballycotton, meant all the usual speedsters were otherwise occupied! Still, I'll take it, who knows if it will ever happen again.
Was glad to see a guy who I have been battling with show up (he beat me by 1sec in previous 8K). I am still without my garmin so was a little bit nervous about my pacing after last week. So my plan was to stick with him like glue. Turned out to be a good plan cause when we went through the first k in 3:58 I had the urge to pick it up but he told me it was long, as was the whole race.

It came in as an 8.19K and I ran 30:25, think that equates to something in the region of a 29:40-45 (pb)

Running together, we passed a few of the usual early race leaders and stuck together through halfway. When I heard him say a bad word (:rolleyes:) I had an inkling that it may not be his day.
Some lad had caught us and had a gap of 20-25yds on us. I was hurting at this stage but he wasn't really increasing the lead so I figured if I can stay close I may be in with a chance.
I was just taking it 1K at a time, I caught him after 6K but he surged again and rather than staying with him I let him off. This happened another couple of times but after 7K when he tried to surge I stayed with him and put the pedal down a bit.
The last k was a lot of up & down so I was really hurting and just trying to stay focused and keep pushing it. I was almost afraid to look behind me cause I wasn't really sure how much I had left for a sprint. Still, I managed to pick it up over the last 100 just incase. Would have liked to have got the splits but I think I paced it pretty well and that it was even enough.

littlebug

Well done Speedy (an appropriate username if ever there was one!).
I'd forgotten about that race being on today. I wouldn't have run it but would have gone to cheer you on if I'd thought of it.

Were there many running?

Speedy44

littlebug wrote: »

Well done Speedy (an appropriate username if ever there was one!).
I'd forgotten about that race being on today. I wouldn't have run it but would have gone to cheer you on if I'd thought of it.

Were there many running?

tx littlebug. I don't think there was as many as last year, which is ironic considering that last year it was pelting down hailstones and today there were blue skies ! If I had to guess I'd say 60 or 70.

littlebug

Speedy44 wrote: »

tx littlebug. I don't think there was as many as last year, which is ironic considering that last year it was pelting down hailstones and today there were blue skies ! If I had to guess I'd say 60 or 70.

I don't know what it is about the Mayo races but they just don't get the crowds at all There was Tobbercurry during the week as well which may have affected the numbers too.

Congrats on the win again Speedy. What an achievement!

Sosa

Speedy44 wrote: »

Which brings me to today .............. '8K' race in Ballinrobe.

Finished 1st (:D), not just in the old guy catogory, but the whole thing.

We can a couple of winners on here lately...yourself and abhainn
Well done Speedy...i have never even got a top 10 yet !

Krusty_Clown

Congrats Speedy! A great win! Indeed a good day for the loggers, with two wins!

Speedy44

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

Congrats Speedy! A great win! Indeed a good day for the loggers, with two wins!

tanx Krusty, lets hope its 2 or many more to come. Just read Abhainns report and don't think I'd put it in his catogory, Ballinrobe & Cyprus are a worlds apart, and not just geographically speaking. Still though, I'll take it

misty floyd

great race there Speedy. Congrats!

Speedy44

Mon - 8mls easy with the club. Nothing to report, so no news is good news I suppose.

Tues - Circuits & 6.5mls at about 7.20/ml pace. Felt pretty good. Have to get back into the habit of wearing the hrm though.

Wed - Back on the track after 2 wks away, funny how it feels like ages. Did 8 x 1K with 90 secs (200m) recovery. Times were 3:28, 3:30, 3:31, 3:32, 3:32, 3:31, 3:30 & 3:27.
Very happy with that, but boy was it tough. Really had to hang in there for the last couple. Happy with the consistency of the times too. I'll have to check but I think we did a similar session last month and the times were about 10secs slower.
Did a 3ml warm up and 1ml warm down as well to make it 10mls for the day.

pgmcpq

Speedy44 wrote: »

Finished 1st (:D), not just in the old guy catogory, but the whole thing.

Belated congrats. Great to see one of us 'old guys' pull away at the end. Nice time too.

Speedy44

Woke up this morning still exausted from last nights session. Really didn't think I'd make it out for a run today, had actually decided to take the day off and rest the old bones. Thought it made sence, no point in pushing it too much.

So I only ran 7 1/2mls

I supposes its a good sign that I recovered enough to not only feel like running but to feel damn good while I was doing it. Averaged about 7.15's for it.

Speedy44

3 x 17.5mins @ threshold heart rate, only thing is I forgot my strap for the monitor. Just more or less winged it then, had a few of the lads from the club for company so that helped to keep pushing the pace. Havn't got the distance's covered yet, think the first one was 1.84mls or something.

Felt pretty good doing it, especially on the first & 3rd reps. Was tough though, this session always is, but like I said before I think it is paying off.
Next week we move it up to 3 x 20mins for 3 weeks, then thats it for the winter' strength program.

Distance = 11.75mls

Speedy44

I was a bit off when I said 1.84mls, I meant to say 2.84k, anyway, here is the breakdown from tonights session courtacy of my training buddy. He dropped off on the last one at about 12mins so I was by myself after that, not quiet sure how the max speed spiked to 4:55 though ?

Distance - 2.83k, Average speed - 6.11, Max speed - 5.15
Distance - 2.77k, Average speed - 6.19, Max speed - 5.18
Distance - 2.64k, Average speed - 6.38, Max speed - 4.55

Speedy44

nice easy 6.5mls today. Remembered hrm as well, was ticking over nicely at about 145-148 bpm. Pace was 7.14/ml and it felt like a stroll in the park. Pleasantly surprised after yesterday's tough session.

Also did some circuit training this morning.

One more note, in yesterdays session it was obviously miles I was covering and not km's as I put down. Damn session was so hard I couldn't think straight

Speedy44

Beautiful morning for it. 10 of us out, miles just flew by. Wasn't 100% as I had a couple of glasses of vino last night, and the lost hour didn't help either ! Still, felt pretty good, a bit tired towards the end.
The time was 1:38:26, which I believe equates to 7min/ml pace. Definitely didn't feel that fast, I must have screwed up somewhere. I'll have to check with one of the lads with a garmin.

Distance = 14mls

Week Distance = 64mls

Speedy44

Mon - 6.5mls easy at 7.24 pace, felt pretty good

Tues - Did circuits in the morning but by the time the evening rolled along the cold thats been threatening for the past few days finally arrived. Could have possibly gone out but the high winds, rain & cold made up my mind for me!

Wed - Club track session today. Still have the cold so wasn't 100%, but decided to give it a go anyway.
The plan was for 4 x 400m in 80-85 with 1min/rec, 90sec/rec then 3 x 1ml @ 6min pace with 1min/rec, another 90sec rec and then another 4 x 400m. Managed all except pulled up at 800m on the last of the mile reps. Could have pushed it to the end but for most of the reps the legs felt like jelly and I was breathig heavy.

Splits were 80, 80, 80, 77, 5:53, 5:59, 2:55, 77, 76, 80 & 77.

Distance :- 9mls

Speedy44

8.25mls easy. I think the cold has decided to leave, thankfully. Felt pretty good today, didn't get out 'til 7pm. Finished just before the sun went down and the tempertures plummeted.
Wore HRM, average about 152-155bpm. Pace was 7.09, had to force myself to pull back at times and save myself for tomorrows session.

Speedy44

Plan was 3 x 20mins @ threshold heart rate, managed 2. Me & my buddy ploughed along through the hailstones for the first 2, but when they turned into virtual golf balls we decided to comes to our sences and call it a day.
Of course no sooner had we got into our cars when the damn sun cam out to have a laugh at us :mad:, ah well, I'll try not to feel too guilty about it.

Distance - 9mls

Speedy44

After accidently (:rolleyes:) taking yesterday off (ended up having a few pints in town in the afternoon - another reason to run in the moring!), I headed out at 11am by myself for my long slow run. Normally I get this done at 11am with the club so I wasn't looking forward to going solo on this.

Surprisingly I felt good and was clipping along at an average pace of 7:17 (even did a 7min/ml on mile 12 when I got carried away thinking about my next race).

Distance :- 14.75mls

Note :-
I took 2 days off this week and want to make sure that I don't get into a funk and lazy. Thats what happened last year, after a great winters base, I did 6 weeks averaging something like 30mls or so.
I still did almost 50mls for the week so I got to thinking that maybe its not too bad taking the odd day off, especially if there are a number of quality sessions during the rest of the week. Opinions welcome.

Speedy44

6.5mls easy. Very windy but nice n' mild. Felt ok after yesterday,a small but of a twinge in the right quad and the left calf was also a bit sore. Definitely time for new runners.

Probably puhed it a tad too much for an easy run, hr was 152 average and pace was at 7:08/ml.

Distance :- 6 1/2mls
Time :- 46:23