My gaelforce training.. the joke is OVER!

Wonkagirl

Right.. less than 6 weeks to go.

Need to prepare for the 66km gaelforce beast. Anyone wanna join my thread with their progress on a daily basis? we can spur each other on?

At the moment i'm only doing keepfit.ie (bootcamp- incorporating endurance running/intervals/circuits) 3 times a week, nothing else really.. mind you that's all i did last yr, and i finished in just over 6 hours which is OK.

GOing to change my weekly training (from NOW) to this:

Monday evening: Keepfit 1 hr (cycle to and from, which is only 5km but still:))
Tues morn: Spin class in Jackie Smellys
Tues eve: 6km run, flat
Wed morn: Outdoor 15km cycle incorporating gentle hills
Wed eve: Keepfit (another cycle afterwards for an hour)
Thurs eve: Ticknock run (hill running- 1 hour)
Fri morn: 30 min weight session in jackie smellys
Sat morn: bootcamp, followed by 2 hour brick session.
Sunday- climb sugarloaf, and if not hungover incorporate a cycle.. the 'if not hungover' bit is unlikely though, as a single girl i love my saturday nites out on the town!

Am i mental?? going from 3- 4 hours exercise a week to 11, or is that OK?

I need to buy some whey, in order to give my muscles the best possible chance to repair

Comments/suggestions welcome, and as i said, please join in with your own progress, GFW10 is only around the corner!

Wonkagirl

Did a 6km run in the rain last nite.. almost chickened out, but figured it coudl rain on aug 21st!

29 mins 33.. happy with that. Had major fire in my belly after talking myself up- and i reckon i knocked 2 mins off my time due to listening to Elbow's ''one day like this'' on repeat!!

ThisRegard

Have you been up the Sugar Loaf yet ? It's a short but tough little bugger, hands and knees job at the peak but nice none the less.

Are you changing your diet much to reflect the additional training ? When I started extra cycling I was bloody hungry all the time and ate like a pig.

Wonkagirl

Havent been up SL since Xmas- gonna give it a whirl this sunday.. the last little bit is a steep fu**er alright! The view are incredible if you get it on a nice day..

NOt changing my diet really- apart from including more protein, such as tofu, chick peas, eggs etc.. just making sure i include some in every meal.. thinking about getting some whey alright though.

GoHardOrGoHome

I head up to Ticknock reasonably often with friends to run or bike. I can show you some trails. You've done Gaelforce before so you know that for parts of it is more efficient to walk rather than run. So it could be a good idea to head to Ticknock for 2 hours rather than one and mix up the running with hiking to get your breath back and let your legs recover. I went up with a friend who is struggling with running continuously (for short periods) but really enjoyed a 2 hour session during the week.

Cycling is my weak point so I'm hoping to improve that significantly over the next 6 weeks.

Seres

hey wonkagirl , am doing the GF also and have very little done specifically for it , your sechedule is very jam packed , are you not goin to give yourself a day off in the week ?

Wonkagirl

Thanks gohard- that woudl be great

Like you, cycling is my weak link too. Just purely because i find it a bit of a chore.

V V pleased with myself today.

Went to keepfit last nite- did the usual interval running and circuits for an hour, then hoppped on my bike and did a 18km cycle out to dunlaoghaire, incorporating the hills that join merrion road to the stillorgan dualer. Great spin.

Got up this morning then and did a 6km run- although slower than usual (31 mins) as i always find it harder in the mornings, and my legs were tired..

I'm in the ZONE!

Now I need to go and buy some whey/gels etc to make sure i am properly fuelled..

Wonkagirl

Seres wrote: »

hey wonkagirl , am doing the GF also and have very little done specifically for it , your sechedule is very jam packed , are you not goin to give yourself a day off in the week ?

In reality i probably will alright. I'm going to be careful to mix it up a good bit, ie not do too much running in suscession.. i'll probably end up taking sundays off though, but if i dont, an incline-walk on that day is no harm really is it?

I turn into a crazed lunatic when i'm in the ZONE.. i hope i dont end up injurying myself now.

Wonkagirl

Did a 20km cycle (incorporating 2 hills- newtownpark ave and merrion ave- 52 mins, happy enough with that

Got up this mornign and did a 30 min punishing weights session in the gym this morning- free weights on the bosu ball/swiss ball, and a good bit of core work.

Taking tonight off ahead of my brick session tomorrow.

Wonkagirl

Weekend didnt quite go according to plan- vino blanco got in the way:rolleyes:

I did however manage to do bootcamp training on Saturday morning for an hour (60m sprints with boxing drill X 16 sets, and then circuits) followed by a 1 hour cycle- my usual route which incorporates the gentle hills of newtownpark avenue, merrion avenue and carysfort avenue..

managed a few laps of dunlaoghaire pier yesterday which was a miracle given the nite i had on saturday!

Back to the grindstone this week, hoping to cycle 100km and run about 25km, definitely need to get a hill run in. Rain or no rain!

Wonkagirl

Only 3.5 weeks training left for GFW..

Did 3 hours mountain biking on Saturday, preceeded by an 8km run.. felt a bit weak afterwards, but had no food during the biking so that's a lesson learnt.

Badly need to get into the hills for some hill training.

Plan for the week:
Mon: Run tonite, followed by 1 hour cycle
Tues am: 6km run
Wed: Run/Cycle
Thurs/Fri/Sat: are out, galway races
Sun: Brick session
Monday: as above

Cutting it fine, but hey- can only do what I can do now for the next 3 weeks.. how's everyone else getting on?

ThisRegard

Wonkagirl wrote: »

Only 3.5 weeks training left for GFW..

That bit really hits home ! I had an ok week last week but didn't do as much as I wanted due to work commitments. This week it gets serious, I did a seriously hard and fast cycle this morning into the office, 20k in 40 mins which I thought was quite good considering rush hour traffic and the fact that I stop at all red traffic lights Would obviously do much better on a stretch of road with no lights or traffic congestion.

Obviously a cycle home this evening but will extend it by a good distance and will time it so that I will finish the cycle as my hour running session begins, then hop on the bike again to go home. Will try do that a few times this week and then get either a long mountain run or cycle in this weekend sometime.

Wonkagirl

20km in 40 mins is bloody brilliant, i did 25km in an hour and thought i was mrs lance armstrong

yeah, 3.5 weeks.. i'm going to go all out. part of me yesterday was thinking ''ah it's too late now'', until i heard those guys on newstalk earlier- marathon 25/32 in 32 days and they are getting faster with each one. they were an inspiration- it's definitely not too late, we can gain great fitness in 3 weeks if we put our minds to it

Seres

Wonkagirl wrote: »

20km in 40 mins is bloody brilliant, i did 25km in an hour and thought i was mrs lance armstrong

yeah, 3.5 weeks.. i'm going to go all out. part of me yesterday was thinking ''ah it's too late now'', until i heard those guys on newstalk earlier- marathon 25/32 in 32 days and they are getting faster with each one. they were an inspiration- it's definitely not too late, we can gain great fitness in 3 weeks if we put our minds to it

it take two weeks to see the benefit of a training session so some serious training for the next 10 days will reap benefits
have been doing very little GF specific training , no long cycles , no hill cycles , no speed work on bike or hill runs , not too worry , just want to enjoy the day , havent even booked accomodation !!

metamorphosis

Not long now - looking forward to it?

Adventure race deffo on the cards next year for myself. Never had positive experiences in a kayak though!

Wonkagirl

Seres get moving on the accomodation, or you'll end up miles out!

yeah ULstudent, really looking forward to it.. you should definitely get involved next yr. great buzz, great achievement, and makes you keep your eye on the training which is always a bonus.

Did my bootcamp class tonite, followed by a 25km spin incorporating hills.. did it a few mins quicker than last time- well pleased with myself

Seres that's good to know about the 2 week thing- am going to go hell for leather on that basis!

curiousts

Hey Guys,Im a newbie to GF this year and all your talk about training is really scaring me!! I'm wondering will I be ready with the amount of training I've done so far!

I cycle in-out to work every day 10k each way takes about 20-30mins depending on traffic, lights etc. I was training for the Killarney Maxi Marathon so can run comfortably 15miles in 2hrs 13mins was pretty chuffed with myself as I really put in the effort, I usually then either cycle and run on the same day or cycle and play tag Rugby its good for circuit training I find... but where I'm starting to worry now is that I havn't put in any training for Long cycles or cycling and then running to get used to that mushy feeling!! or Hill training. Sure there are hills on most of my running routes but nothing like running up a mountain!
Do I still have time over the next few weeks if I start running or should I say walk\run up Ticknock or Bray Head and then get on my bike afterwards to be prepared for it?

Another thing I was wondering about was how to pack your bike for the day? Do you run with a small bag on your back so you can have a bit of food, energy gel, water etc or do you just leave all this at your bike? Also the Kayaking section would most of you take off your runners for this section so they don't get wet and your not running in soggy runners for the rest of the day or does this matter??

Sorry for all your questions! Any adivce would be a great help

Wonkagirl

Hi Curiousts!

curious is the right name for you:)

re long cycles: longest i did last yr was 20km prior to race day.. i survived ok. obviously, you'd be better getting a 40km-er in if possible- i plan on doing that on sunday..

re hill training- have done only 1 this yr- is it too late- no! definitely not. i'm also doing ticknock this weekend. it's never too late- unless it's 5 days prior to race day. give it your all for the next 3 weeks, then wind down.

re pack- 90% of people carry small camelbaks, with anything from 1-3ltrs of water in it. you need 500mls of liquid on average per hour.

i had an energy bar, a small moro and some sweets in mine too- then some plasters and wipes, nothing else

re the kayaking- no, didnt change my shoes- not once. they were soaking from early on- you kinda stop caring!!

i'd definitely recommend cross trainers- for grip, both on the grassy bits of the run, and croagh patrick too..

feel free to fire any other Qs and besta luck with the training!

curiousts

Thanks Wonkagirl, that's cleared up a lot and put my mind at ease. I'll be away this weekend surfing so reckon I'll have to try fit Bray head in Monday when I get back, can't let another weekend go b!.
I did a 25k cycle this eve from Dundrum to Enniskerry and back it was hard..there were a lot of hills and I was tired after wrok, but nothing too strenuous either so I'll try add on another 10miles next week!

Is it not hard to run with a little backpack on your back?

ThisRegard

Well I broke my legs yesterday evening. Cycled 20km to the office that morning so obviously had to cycle the 20k home again but I decided I'd fit in a 10k loop of the Phoenix Park on the way home making it a 30k trip.

Rather than do an easy cycle I settled on the tougher (well I believe so anyway) clockwise route around the outskirts on the hills around Military Road against what was a decent wind yesterday, back around by the Zoo and up the Kyber against the wind again trying to keep my pace as high as possible. Did that in a decent time but after I left the park and hit the final long incline on the way home I thought my legs were going to fall off.

Mentally and aerobically I was perfect, not out of breath or wishing I was finished, but from my knees to my calves were just screaming stop ! Slowed down and recovered but just in the last 1k it hit me again, never felt pain like that before.

Feel fine today though so I'll see how I get through this evenings run.

Wonkagirl

curiousts wrote: »

Is it not hard to run with a little backpack on your back?

well.. not reallllllllllly.. but you're definite as well off to do some training with it on, to get used to it..

Wonkagirl

ThisRegard wrote: »

.

Mentally and aerobically I was perfect, not out of breath or wishing I was finished, but from my knees to my calves were just screaming stop ! Slowed down and recovered but just in the last 1k it hit me again, never felt pain like that before.

.

I have that problem lately too- cardiovascullary (!!??) i'm fine, but i get the burn in my thighs (as opposed to calves in your case). Frustrating. I guess we need more strength. In your case it COULD be dehydration too?

military hill is a great call- a nice long one. i do newtownpark avenue in blackrock, that's similar although probably not as steep as military.

was on the piss last nite (premiere of 'grown ups') so no training done yesterday and highly unlikely i'll get any in tonite either as i'm hanging, didnt get home til 4.30am:mad:

ThisRegard

Wonkagirl wrote: »

In your case it COULD be dehydration too?

That's what I initially thought but I had more or less drank 500mls of High5 during the session, I'm thinking it was because I had a hard training session the evening before and it was a bit of a shock to the body for a sudden increase in intensity in such a short amount of time.

curiousts

Fair play to you with that cycle, i thought I was doing well adding on an extra 10k to my cycle last night to make it 17!! I think your right its a shock to the system, your body was out of its comfort zone. the burn is good you know your working hard!!Did it take you long to recover,if it did I would be more worried?
Right on the cards tonight 17k cycle then 10k run reckon I'll be lucky to get through the run my legs will be like mush!
Did you get the email re race numbers etc, totally ****ting it now!

ThisRegard

Recovery wise I'm grand, I felt fine soon enough after finishing and no aches and pains the next day, of which I was expecting lots. After a hard session I take some High 5 recovery drink, mix it with milk for a nice shake, it seems to work for me anyway.

Yeah, got the mail this afternoon, not long now ! Only really 2 weeks of training left as I expect most people won't be doing much the week of the race.

curiousts

Hey ThisRegard, is it the High5 4:1 that your taking? I was reading on the gaelforce forum that this is really good and easy on the stomach! Can you get it in most health food stores or do you have to order online?I wouldn't mind trying it out this weekend training I'm hoping to do a 40K cycle Sat and then a run 10K run sun around bray down to Bray head then up and down and run home 10k so reckon I could try it out then.