Time To Get Serious

DULLAHAN2

I have started to start up a training log for the reason that i can look back time to time to see where i was when i started taking running seriously and somewhere to write how i feel in training and races as i think my wife gets tired listening to me going on and on and on . For the last year and a half i have been just doing what i felt liked in training on the day,some days i would run for an hour whilst other days i would run for half an hour. I have never started a training plan just did what i wanted.

My 10km training consisted of just running the distance and trying to beat the last time i ran it in. I have never done and speedwork consistently so that's probably why i cant break 50 mins in a race. I am currently training for a half marathon on 26 Jun and again i am just working my way up the milage with no speed work.

This isn't ideal i know but i find training plans a bit tedious that is something that has to change.I am going to start training for DCM in Jul. I am not looking for a specific time as this will be my first marathon and i intend in taking it easy, soak up the atmosphere of the day. I am just looking to finish it. I haven't decided on a training plan but when i do i intend to stick to it religiously.

PB'S
5KM 23.21 MINS ( STREETS OF SLIGO 5K 2011)10KM 50 MINS ( NORTH WEST 10K 2011)10 MILES 80 MINS ( THIS IS A TRAINING PB)Warriors run 1hr 28 mins 2010HALF MARATHON ???????FULL MARATHON ???????

LONG TERM GOAL SUB 2HR 50 MARATHON was sub 3hr but might as well aim for the stars. Hopefully in the next 10 years :D:D

DULLAHAN2

Just back from a fantastic 10k that i do as part of my training. I had a few niggles at the start of the week which has kept me from running. Every time i ran i got a pain in my shin on my right leg, went to the physio and she got me sorted. I was going to run an easy 5 mile but just before i left the house i couldnt remember the last time i ran fast so i decided to do 10k attacking the hills.

SUMMARY
A HILLY 10KM IN 49.12

Heart Rate Avg 159 bpm.

slowsteady

Good luck with the log.

Starting the log in itself shows a degree of commitment to getting serious - a audience viewing it for one puts on a degree of pressure:D.

I'm in the same mode at the moment, trying to pick a plan for October. Will watch your progress with interest.

DULLAHAN2

slowsteady wrote: »

Good luck with the log.

Starting the log in itself shows a degree of commitment to getting serious - a audience viewing it for one puts on a degree of pressure:D.

I'm in the same mode at the moment, trying to pick a plan for October. Will watch your progress with interest.

Thanks Slowsteady, Picking the right plan for October seems to be harder than the training is going to be , trying to find the right programme that will enable me enough time for it and the family. I am just glad i am not looking for a specifc time, it would be alot worse if i was.

Just back from an 11 miles LSR this morning, lovely morning for it, the wind picked up on the way back and in some parts of the run it felt like i was going backwards. All in All a very enjoyable run:D

SUMMARY
11 MILE. avg pace 09:09 min/mi 1hr 40min 45sec
Avg HR: 148 bpm
An 8 on the comfort zone scale.

DULLAHAN2

I went for my first swimming lesson tonight. I did swimming lesson's a couple of years ago got the basic's and stopped. I taught it would be a struggle to get used to being in the pool again but it came back to me fairly quickly. I hope to get to the pool at least 3 times a week to get some practice in.

HAPPY DAYS!!!!

DULLAHAN2

well just back in from a 10k run. I ate way too much today so i struggled abit. I am finding the hills alot easier now so i am looking forward to the curlew 10km in boyle on sunday.

SUMMARY

10 KM IN 50 MINS
Avg BPM 157

DULLAHAN2

Swimming today. I did half an hour consatrating on my technique. I found it tough to comibne everything and the breathing is hard to get used to when i am trying to remember to kick from my hips as my instructor kept telling me in class the other day.

''PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT'' as they say

couerdelion

What's your goal for the DCM?

It helps to write it down so you know where you are aiming to be in a few months time.;)

DULLAHAN2

couerdelion wrote: »

What's your goal for the DCM?

It helps to write it down so you know where you are aiming to be in a few months time.;)

Not gunning for a specific time as this will be my first marathon i just want to do it to soak up the atmosphere ,but in saying that according to my 10 km time, looking at 3 hours 50 mins. I am doing the strawberry half marathon sunday week so will be able to judge it better then.

DULLAHAN2

Well that was a horrible run. After 4.5 miles it started to ge tough and by the time i got to 8.5 i was drained i couldnt run anymore. I had the radio on my phone on so i went off way to quick but never noticed it until it was way too late. I am really disappointed not being able to finish the run but i guess....i dont know..... lesson learned........ keep an eye on my pace.

DULLAHAN2

This was a tough and very enjoyable race today. Got there at about half 10 for reg. Met a couple of guys from here. Seen Luke ''the ming'' flanagan walking up to the start, not often you see TD's doing a 10 km. I got chatting to a guy at the start and he told me there was a couple of hills near the end. Thank God he did, i had that in my mind the whole way.

Looking up the hill at the start line and i nearly turned around Very steep climb as i said to the guy beside '' it must of been a sadist'' that designed the course. When the bell went off at the start i was ready to tear up the hill but couldnt start running as there was walkers four across, but i managed to squeeze past just after the start and tried to get into a comfortable stride. When we started to go down hill i just let gravity do the job and crusied down the hill overtaking a good few runners.

When the second climb started just after the first downhill at 2km i think. there was a couple of GAA heads flying up the hill past me and i coulndnt understand how they could go that fast up the hill, they didnt last long at that speed i went past them at the first drink station and didnt see them again. I seen a guy just after this at 4 km looking in awful shape another victim of the second hill i think. I was on my own from here for the next 2 km i was trying to reel in a couple of guys one in a red jersey and the other in a white hat. I went past the guy in the red jersey just before we turned off the main road, but could not catch the girl in a white cap. I would be catching her on the climbs but she would open a gap up on downhills.

I kept looking over my shoulder to see if the guy in the red was near but he was well gone. Just before the 9km mark i looked behind me and there was a guy tearing up behind me and since there was only one km left i put the foot down to try to stop him from overtaking and to catch the girl in the white cap. Running down the big hill we ran up first i taught i would catch her at the bottom of the hill i started to up the pace to catch a guy in green as i knew the girl was gone, and i got him about 10 meters before the line, It was a great feeling to finish stronger than i normally do and to pass him out.Seen Krusty at the end. Fair play to him on win.

All in all a great race on a lovely day. If it was raining it would be treachous. One for the books next year.
Time 51.18 only 1.12 mins slower than my PB so happy days

DULLAHAN2

So today was a lesson in how not to pace myself and its great getting a five k P.B but it shouldnt be done in a 10 km race. At the start line there was 2 pacer's one for 45 and one for 50mins. So i decided for the crack that i would follow the 45 mins pacer to see how far i could go with him bad idea. We started off handy enough, felt great, no niggles or anything.

We went through the first km at 4.11 min/km. I knew i wouldnt last when a guy behind me said '' 1k done, 9 left, 4k of hils'' but i plugged onwards. At two km i knew it was time to ease up as we went through this km at 4.21 min/km. So i fell into stride with this girl for the next 2 km and felt refreshed and was feeling confident. 3km and 4 km were both 4.44 min/km then just as we came to 4.5 km there was a hill that i wasnt expecting and the 3 extra pound i had put on my holidays made it very tough on the legs and i began to suffer i didnt think i could finish the race. I said if i just ease up and stay ahead of the 50 min pacer, i would have a PB so at 6k he caught up with me and i stuck beside him hoping to hang on the whole way.

The last 4km were the toughest i ran in a long, long time.There were so many hills i couldnt get a rythm going, my mind was telling me to stop, i wanted to walk alot of the hills but i stuck beside the pacer hoping to break 50 mins. He told me that we would easily come in under 50 mins but i doubted i would last.
Pump the arms on the hills i was told, so pumped them i did. With 500 m to go i made a big push to get the race over and done with, i had enough at this stage i lasted about 300m before i had to slow down or i would be having a cardiac. I slowly made it across the finish in 49.21 a PB by 1 min.

I learned alot today about pacing and just how much work i have to do to get where i want to be. Ya live and learn i guess

DULLAHAN2

No running today as i am on babysitting dutys. I just checked out how many miles i ran in 2010 against 2011 and i have 100 miles more ran this year than last year, i am abit shocked by this as i have missed 10 weeks running this year. Ya gotta love the garmin

DULLAHAN2

Went to the track today i did 8 x 400m. 90 sec recovery
Splits 1.42, 140, 1.39, 1.42, 1.40,1.42, 1.42,1.35

Happy that i kept them within a few sec's of each other as i do find it hard to pace myself sometimes. I Went to the gym after and practiced my swimming, i swam about 120 meters this is the fartest i have ever swam and just 2 weeks ago i could barley swim 30meters. Really enjoying the swimming a few more lessons will be needed tough.

DULLAHAN2

5 miles today. nothing exciting to log about.

5 miles

9min/mile pace

T runner

DULLAHAN2 wrote: »

Went to the track today i did 8 x 400m. 90 sec recovery
Splits 1.42, 140, 1.39, 1.42, 1.40,1.42, 1.42,1.35

Happy that i kept them within a few sec's of each other as i do find it hard to pace myself sometimes. I Went to the gym after and practiced my swimming, i swam about 120 meters this is the fartest i have ever swam and just 2 weeks ago i could barley swim 30meters. Really enjoying the swimming a few more lessons will be needed tough.

Dullahan. I have a session that may be of use to you. Its for improving 5k and 10k times. I started it 5v weeks ago and have PBed in both.

Run short intervals at 5k race pace with one min recovery.

5k pace is 1:52 for 400m, and its 84 for 300.

I would suggest starting with 12 by 300 jogging the remaining 100 to make the minute. This shouldnt kill you. Add 2 300s a week and pretty run you will be running a signifcant distance at 5k race pace.

This will help your form and running economy as well as boosting your aerobic capacity.

Yous hould think about form for every rep. Glide, run tall, relax. Think about these for each rep and pretty run youll be running a 10k, the pace will feel very easy and later on in the race when the legs usually slow they will be hard wired to keep turning over.

Your time for the reps will come down but keep running at 5k effort.

You can also add a second weekly session at tempo pace or long intervals at 10k race pace. When you need to start the long stuff for teh marathon youll have good turnover in your legs which will increase the speed of the longer sessions and therefore increse your marathon pace.

DULLAHAN2

T runner wrote: »

Dullahan. I have a session that may be of use to you. Its for improving 5k and 10k times. I started it 5v weeks ago and have PBed in both.

Run short intervals at 5k race pace with one min recovery.

5k pace is 1:52 for 400m, and its 84 for 300.

I would suggest starting with 12 by 300 jogging the remaining 100 to make the minute. This shouldnt kill you. Add 2 300s a week and pretty run you will be running a signifcant distance at 5k race pace.

This will help your form and running economy as well as boosting your aerobic capacity.

Yous hould think about form for every rep. Glide, run tall, relax. Think about these for each rep and pretty run youll be running a 10k, the pace will feel very easy and later on in the race when the legs usually slow they will be hard wired to keep turning over.

Your time for the reps will come down but keep running at 5k effort.

You can also add a second weekly session at tempo pace or long intervals at 10k race pace. When you need to start the long stuff for teh marathon youll have good turnover in your legs which will increase the speed of the longer sessions and therefore increse your marathon pace.

Thanks i will try that. Speed sessions are something that i lack in my training.

I havent ran since 28 jun over a week ago and to a certain extent i wasnt lookin forward to the run. I have an awful sore heel when i run, the physio told me get some orthodics made up but i hear there expensive, i finally got around to going into ELVERYS after work and bought gel arch supports and they worked a treat i must say. Here they are cost me 15 euro in the shop.

I did the warriors road section taking it easy. i did 11.6 km in 1.03 hour. I felt very strong throughout the run my only gripe about it is i met 4 cars in the 11 km and they all came when i was running up the glen road so i had to stop running so they could pass without hitting me.
I remember last year when i did the same run i was so wrecked after it, through the run i was getting little flashebacks to how i felt at certain points in the run. I really enjoyed todays run.

DULLAHAN2

I ran just over 15 km today in 1.5 hours taking it handy. I ran from kevinsfort playground out to strandhill up the glen road down the far side and back to carpark.

DULLAHAN2

Couldnt make it dublin today for the irish five miler so i went and did an 8 km run today. I was very happy with it managed to do it in 40 mins 11 sec and felt very strong on the hills.

DULLAHAN2

9 km done today i tried to keep the same pace going for the 9 km including going up the hills. It was tough but i really enjoyed this run

DULLAHAN2

A nice easy 3 mile run today with 4 strides, heart rate avg was 141 i felt like i wasnt moving half the time. I started my marathon training yesterday i decided to do this one i have jumped in in week two so that brings me up to the day of the marathon. I just have to enter that and the half now.

DULLAHAN2

I did the warriors road section today and for the first time ever i managed to run the whole route without stopping. I felt very very comfortable on the hills which is unuasal for me normally i find the hills after the glen alot tougher than i did today.I think i have the pacing down for the now so hopefully there will be alot more improvement to come over the next few weeks.

11.58 KM IN 62.49 MINS

DULLAHAN2

8 KM RACE was the order of the day. The weather was excellent practically no wind perfect race conditions the sun was hot but not too hot.Towards the end of the first half of the race my mouth got very dry, i didnt think i was dehydrated as i was drinking lot of water before the race started got a cup of water at the drink station stopped until i had drank it then i was fine for the rest of the race. Weird. I did it in 37 mins a massive pb for me by three mins. There was alot of speed bumps which i taught were going to take its toll but i felt very strong finishing although by the looks of me you wouldnt think so. The run today has given me great confidence in my running hopefully there will be a few more P.B's to come this year

DULLAHAN2

16 km today lovely day for it. after yesterday's 8k race i was surprised I felt comfortable throughout the run hills were easy. avg pace was 5.31 min/km avg heart rate 146bpm

DULLAHAN2

Today was Tempo day. The plan was two mile GP then 4x 1 mile tempo with 1 min recovery followed by two mile GP. I worked it out and should have done it in 66 mins i did it in 67 mins. It was a very hilly run so to be down only 1 min over 8.4 miles i'm happy with the workout. When i was doing my tempo section i tried to run comfortably hard for the mile as i found it hard to gauge the speed when i was going up and down the hills. So i taught it would be the best way to gauge it. Since i upped the miles i feel myself get stronger on the roads, i am really enjoying my running at the moment.

DULLAHAN2

3 miles with 5 strides was the order of the day. so i took the easy 3 mile route from my house which has one big hill ( 50m of a climb) and the rest is all downhill. avg was 8.19 mile avg heart rate 139 bpm thanks to running 85% downhill.

DULLAHAN2

I did the full warriors run today, I did it in 1.30 avg heart rate was 151. I got a bit lost, well i taught i was lost but i was only out by .1 of a mile. I took it easy today and got a pb of 30 secs. Quite happy with that. Not sure what tactics i will use in the race tough. Questions that went through my head

Should i go out fast and take my time on the mountain?

Should i do what i did today take it easy until reach the mountain and go faster up the mountain with little walk breaks?

I know on the day that i will go a little faster than i did today but if i can keep my heart rate low below 150 i am going to get to the mountain faster than i did last year and today. But should i walk hard up to the cairn then run fast home?

I have alot more questions on what the best tactic's for me are. I dont want to come down to the carpark and my legs go completly like last year. I want to come down and speed up on the way home.

dna_leri

DULLAHAN2 wrote: »

I did the full warriors run today, I did it in 1.30 avg heart rate was 151. I got a bit lost, well i taught i was lost but i was only out by .1 of a mile. I took it easy today and got a pb of 30 secs. Quite happy with that. Not sure what tactics i will use in the race tough. Questions that went through my head

Should i go out fast and take my time on the mountain?

Should i do what i did today take it easy until reach the mountain and go faster up the mountain with little walk breaks?

I know on the day that i will go a little faster than i did today but if i can keep my heart rate low below 150 i am going to get to the mountain faster than i did last year and today. But should i walk hard up to the cairn then run fast home?

I have alot more questions on what the best tactic's for me are. I dont want to come down to the carpark and my legs go completly like last year. I want to come down and speed up on the way home.

Good going. You are obviously improving a lot.

I have some of the same questions as you have about tactics on the day - but none of the answers either. You at least have the advantage of having done this before.

Did you find it gets too busy on the Knocknarae section and that other people slow you down there? I am thinking that I do not want to be stuck behind a line of other runners on the hill sections, especially the downhills so I might want to get ahead of a group before then. However it would probably be better to be in a group for the last section when they may be able to pull you along.

For me my weakness will be the last few kms so I was thinking of holding back for the first few so i have something in the tank for later but still not sure.

Are you doing the Horseshoe 10K next week? For me that will be my last race before the Warriors. It may let me see what level I am at and help pace myself for the big one.

DULLAHAN2

dna_leri wrote: »

Good going. You are obviously improving a lot.

I have some of the same questions as you have about tactics on the day - but none of the answers either. You at least have the advantage of having done this before.

Did you find it gets too busy on the Knocknarae section and that other people slow you down there? I am thinking that I do not want to be stuck behind a line of other runners on the hill sections, especially the downhills so I might want to get ahead of a group before then. However it would probably be better to be in a group for the last section when they may be able to pull you along.

For me my weakness will be the last few kms so I was thinking of holding back for the first few so i have something in the tank for later but still not sure.

Are you doing the Horseshoe 10K next week? For me that will be my last race before the Warriors. It may let me see what level I am at and help pace myself for the big one.

The only place where there is a line of runners is just when you get on the mountian. There is a small sheeps trail that goes up along the wall this is where alot of people go as it looks easier. What i did last year was to try and overtake them my going above this path but i dont think this helped. At around the 3 mile mark you turn left and go up from here to the seafront you wont get any lines of people.

I am thinkin about starting comfortable hard for my until i get to the turnoff on the glen and then walk. After mile 3 the surface kind of levels off alittle which makes running easier. i will go at just above a light jog on this area and hope this makes a difference to my overall time. When i get down to the road again i will be going as hard as i can. Weather permitting.

The horseshoe i am not sure about, if i can make time i will do it. Its meant to be a hilly run so will be good practice for the warriors.

dna_leri

DULLAHAN2 wrote: »

The horseshoe i am not sure about, if i can make time i will do it. Its meant to be a hilly run so will be good practice for the warriors.

The horseshoe is definitely hilly - see: mapmyrun

DULLAHAN2

DULLAHAN2 wrote: »

The horseshoe i am not sure about, if i can make time i will do it. Its meant to be a hilly run so will be good practice for the warriors.

I just remembered i cant do this as i am in Manchester that day oops