Running changes everything

RubyK

Wed 16/02 - track session.

5 mins hard + 4 mins recovery X 3
150 x 4

4.55 miles covered. Enjoyed the session, but find the sprints tough going. Good news though, legs didn't feel sore/strained after it.

Thurs 17/02 - Off to the beach for a trot around the sandhills. Took it handy enough, even though the legs felt good I still felt pretty tired in myself. Met a washed up dead dolphin at mile 2.5 . Tide was in so miles 3-5 were tough, going from soft sand to lumpy stones, which nearly had me tumbling over a couple of times. 6 miles. Wrecked tired when I got home.

Rest day today.

2 weeks to Ballycotton! Bumped into a guy yesterday, and got talking about the 10 miler. His first two words were "savage" and "hills" .

Emer911

RubyK wrote: »

2 weeks to Ballycotton! Bumped into a guy yesterday, and got talking about the 10 miler. His first two words were "savage" and "hills" .

Oh don't go telling me this?! I'm just getting myself psyched up... :rolleyes:

RubyK

Sat 19/02 - LSR. The first 5 miles were awful. The next 7.35 weren't much better It just never felt right or that comfortable. 12.35 miles in 1.59.40, of which over 6 mins were spent in various ditches, avoiding cars/tying laces/nose blowing/ipod fixing. A disappointing, frustrating run.

RubyK

Emer911 wrote: »

Oh don't go telling me this?! I'm just getting myself psyched up... :rolleyes:

Sorry about that :pac:. But hey, your log shows you've been hitting the hills, so it shouldn't be any bother to you

RubyK

Mon 21/02 - A really enjoyable 6.30 miles avg pace 8.36 mins. Managed to go through mile 2 in 7.53 mins, which is a first for me. Running past the woods at dusk definitely puts a bit more speed into the legs.

RubyK

Tues 22/02 - 5.17 miles avg 9.02 min miles. Misty murky night, right calf felt quite tight from mile 2 onwards. Foam rolled and stretched afterwards. Track session tonight, so I hope it'll behave.

jcsmum

RubyK wrote: »

Mon 21/02 - A really enjoyable 6.30 miles avg pace 8.36 mins. Managed to go through mile 2 in 7.53 mins, which is a first for me. Running past the woods at dusk definitely puts a bit more speed into the legs.

Nice pace Ruby, well done.

RubyK

Wed 23/02 - 6 x 600's 6 x 150's with 50 metre recovery. Tough but enjoyable session. Approx 4 miles covered with warm up/cool down.

RubyK

Thurs 24/02 - After a crappy day I forced myself out the door to clear my head. It was a pretty murky windy night, but the fresh sea air did me the world of good, and I returned home in much better form. Running is great for the mind :pac: 6.33 miles avg 9.02 mins.

Seres

seem to be goin fairly well these times RubyK , working away consistently at the sessions , whats the plan for Ballycotton ?

DigiJem

Good luck in Ballycotton Rubyk, it’ll be no bother to you after Dungarvan

RubyK

Seres wrote: »

seem to be goin fairly well these times RubyK , working away consistently at the sessions , whats the plan for Ballycotton ?

Cheers Seres, I'm happy enough with the way things have been going the past few weeks. I'd be delighted with 83.xx in Ballycotton, but I fear it won't be the case. It sounds like a tough old course, and with the last mile being uphill, it's going to be a real slog.

DigiJem wrote: »

Good luck in Ballycotton Rubyk, it’ll be no bother to you after Dungarvan

Thanks DigiJem. I'm praying for a day like Dungarvan, calm and clear. I'm pretty nervous about it tbh. It's going to be an experience :eek:

RubyK

Sat 26/02 - 12.2 miles in 1.49.23 avg 8.58 mm. First 5 miles were tough, more mentally than physically. Got into it after that. I'm hoping the hills I took in will stand to me for Ballycotton :eek:

Not sure what to do this week? I might change Wednesdays intervals to this evening, and do 6 miles tomorrow, 5 Weds, and 4 Friday.

RubyK

Mon 28/02 - it was such a nice evening, I decided not to go to the track, but to head down the beach and around the sandhills instead. From the first few steps everything felt right. The most enjoyable run I've done in a long time. No mp3 player, no garmin, just my old Agros stop watch and me racing the incoming tide. 6 miles in 50.47 mins. If only every run could be like this :pac:

claralara

Best of luck in Ballycotton Ruby, your training is going great!!

RubyK

Thanks clara, I'm filled with equal amounts of excitment and nerves :eek:

I see you are going for the 20 miler this weekend, that'll see you well on track for a great Conn! It's a huge confidence boost to get the 20 under your belt. Best of luck with it

runrabbit

Best of luck at the weekend - you'll fly it

RubyK

Thanks runrabbit! Feeling more nervous as the days go by.

Tues 01/02 - I really didn't feel like heading out this evening, but the weather was too good not to. Sore tooth due to a lost filling was annoying me all day, so I took 2 neurofen before heading off. 6.07 miles in 52.19 mins.

That'll be the last of the hills until Sundays race. Track session tonight, and an easy 4 miles on the beach Friday (if I'm still in one piece mentally, after my dentists appointment ).

shazkea

I hope you have a good run in Ballycotton and looking forward to hearing about your 83 min PB

RubyK

Thanks shaz! I don't think I'll get the 83 tbh. I think I was being a bit too ambitious when I posted that time

Wed 02/03 - The dreaded track. It's not getting any easier, and there were times I wanted to quit, it felt like my legs were going to buckle. Was delighted when it was over.

5 miles covered in total.

RubyK

Fri 04/03, took myself off to the beach for a handy trot, in preparation for Ballycotton, so it was typical, that instead of finding it easy, I found it a real struggle, and my mind was going into panic about Sundays 10 miler. 4.88 stressed and strained miles avg 9.21 mins.

Sun 06/03, Ballycotton 10 miler. My pb from Dungarvan ’10 was 83.57. My last 10 miler was Dungarvan ’11 in a time of 84.12. So the aim of the day was 83xx.

Left home at 9.50 and arrived at Garryvoe carpark at 11.10. Straight onto the bus, when I discovered I’d left my number in the car! Great start! Off the bus to recover the number. Back onto the bus, and arrived in Ballycotton at 11.30, and looked out for the orange top of Emer911, but I never found her, which is a shame! I found it a bit of a chore hanging around for 2 hrs, and the cold didn’t help with it. With 40 mins to go, left my bag in the field and headed to the start. Lined up around 1.10, and it quickly became bunched in. Gun went off on time, and I crossed the matt after 40 seconds. I found it daunting running in such a tight group. It was hard to pass out runners, and not trip or hinder someone else. Eventually we spread out, but I still wasn’t enjoying myself. I just didn’t feel right, and my legs were feeling very wobbly. Mile 3 came, and after a bit of commotion at the waterstop, I got moving again. The water seemed to do the trick, and I finally started to feel better. At mile 5, I took a glucose sweet and started to enjoy myself. More water at mile 7, and a glucose sweet at mile 8 in preparation for *the hill*. I could see the stream of runners winding up ahead, and dreaded what might happen to my legs, but I was pleasantly surprised that I got up it without any trouble. I did find the last 1000 metres tough, both mentally and physically. I could hear the loud speaker, which sounded so close, but the metre markings along the route told me I wasn’t there yet. I pushed on, left nothing in the tank, and was relieved to get over the line. 81.01 mins.

Delighted with it, couldn’t believe I got a pb of 2 mins 56 secs. However, today, that 1 second is really bugging me!

I enjoyed the race, eventually. There was lots of support along the way, and the marshalling was super.

Mile 1 8.05
Mile 2 7.59
Mile 3 8.22
Mile 4 8.17
Mile 5 8.05
Mile 6 8.10
Mile 7 8.08
Mile 8 8.00
Mile 9 8.00
Mile 10 7.37

yungwan

Congrats RubyK.

What a brilliant time after all you have been through in recent months.

You should be proud!

jcsmum

Wow, fantastic time, well done!

DigiJem

Congrats Rubyk, that's a nice chunk of time to knock off for your pb. Well done!

xebec

Fair play RubyK, that's a great amount of time to knock off the PB! I didn't find the hill anywhere near as bad as people were saying either, but like you the last km was a killer!

claralara

That's savage going, well done missus!

RacoonQueen

Well done missy, great running.

Emer911

Great running! That bloody loudspeaker had me too Someone should tell them they're messing with everyones head with that!?

RubyK

Emer911 wrote: »

That bloody loudspeaker had me too Someone should tell them they're messing with everyones head with that!?

It really was torture wasn't it :pac:

Mon 07/03 - I was feeling really really tired, and a bit stiff, so opted for a rest day instead of going for a run. Did some core work and weights.

Tues 08/03 - Still feeling tired, but knew I'd feel guilty if I didn't get out, so put on the gear, and got going. Strange run, not all that tough but my head and heart weren't really in it. 6 miles avg pace 8.29 mins.

I'm still feeling wrecked after 3 really good nights sleep Track session tonight, that I'm going to struggle with.

RubyK

Wed 09/03 - track session. 600's and 150's. 5.10 miles covered. Still not getting any easier.

Thurs 10/03 - after a stressful dentists visit, I headed off to the beach. Lovely first 2.6 miles with the wind to my back. Woeful 2.65 miles back to the car, with full blown gale in my face. 5.25 miles avg pace 9.16 min miles.