Can I do it?

LarMan

Monday

3 miles, I have not been feeling great the last few days, some stomach issues. This was meant to be an easy run but with the heat and feeling a little under the weather it was a bit of a slog. I noticed my heart rate was in the 150s for a lot of the run and it normally would be under 135 at the pace I was going.

Weight was up to 83.6KG I really need to get back on track food wise.

Trig1

hI Larman..
Just read through your full post and I was amazed at your progress- fair play to you.. I was not as heavy as you when I started but i'm around the same weight now.. I found I was stuck at a certain weight for ages until I started doing a lot of swimming- half stone fell off in literally 3 weeks.. might be an idea to get to your target weight... on saying that..you do seem to be very hung up on the weight.. a watched pot never boils!!!! dont worry about the weight-with the amount of training your doing it will fall off.. i only weigh myself now maybe once every 2 weeks- I think you should do the same- also throw in a bit of cross training to get away form running every day. some cycling and swimming is great..look at your first post and look at how much weight you've lost since then!! savage!!!:eek:..
keep it up!!

LarMan

Wednesday

I didn't feel well on Tuesday with a bad head ache so gave Tuesday a skip. I was actually looking forward to the run on Wednesday. It was warm with a little breeze and I headed out along my usual route for a 5.5 mile run.

Summary 9KM in 49:16.2 @ 5:28 per KM

Weight is 83.2KG

LarMan

Thursday

two sessions today.

Session 1 was interval training 10 X 400 with 1:30 rest in between

Summary 5.77km in 35 minutes @ 6:04 per KM

Session 2
4 easy miles.
Summary 4 miles in 37:42 @5:48 per KM

LarMan

Sunday

A nice 7 miles after all the rain had stopped. Very cold at the start and the sea was really churning. It certainly was more like winter than summer.

Monday

Got out at 9:30 for a couple of loops of the block near home. 3 miles. This is the last week before taper week and the race is in two weeks time.

LarMan

Tuesday

6 miles in the rain - when will the summer return:(

LarMan

Wednesday

Well what passes as an Irish summer arrived on Wednesday. It was a nice warmish evening and this evening was a 50 minute tempo run. My target time for the tempo run was to run the middle stint at 5:00 per KM pace and the other two sections at 5:30. In the end the 1st section was a little faster than 5:30 and the end section was a little slower(pretty much all up hill so can't complain too much)

Summary 9.53KM in 50:03 @5:15 per KM

Weather outside is brutal so will be doing todays run indoors

LarMan

Thursday

4 miles on the treadmill.

Sunday

8 miles in nice warm weather, was wearing my running jacket as it was cool at the start but regretted having it after 45 minutes when it warmed up significantly. This was the last of the long runs before the race. It was mostly downhill apart from the last 2KMs.

I ran this after a late night at a wedding and a 3 hour drive home so it was nice to stretch the legs and nicer to finish. After the run I felt like I was going to pull a muscle in my calves. I actually put this down to the dancing the night before as when I was in bed I felt like I was going to pull a muscle just moving my legs.

It's taper this week and I think my legs could do with the break.

LarMan

Monday

Lovely evening so hit the road with the intention of doing a normal easy run. The pace at the start was pretty fast and I just kept going. After the 4th KM which I did in 4:43 I decided to see if I could break the 25 minute barrier so ran hard at the end to finish just under 25 minutes for 5K which is a new PB for me.

I will definitely slow it down for the remaining runs as I want to be fresh for the race on Sunday. Weather forecast at the moment is for rain and cool temperatures but that could change hopefully. I would like a nice morning for the run with cloud would be best.

LarMan

Tuesday

3 miles at easy pace. Mainly uphill for this one, weather was fine.

Summary

5KM in 28:23 @ 5:41 per KM

LarMan

Parkwest 10K race

Last few days have been strange, I was due to do some small runs on Wednesday and Thursday but just didn't feel up to it. In fact I don't know if I am feeling under the weather or just lacking enthusiasm. I've been waking up with a sore throat and the kids have had viruses so it is probably something like that.

Anyway it came to Sunday I decided to just give it a go. My target coming up to this race was to do it sub 50. I had already done that time so that was the minimum I would have expected. I decided to take one KM at a time and aim for under 5:00 and see how long I could sustain it.

I arrived at the start of the race about an hour and 15 minutes before the start and I was by myself so it was bit lonely :rolleyes: Registeded and then just hung around until the warmup. This is my third race and this warmup was by far the most energetic - to the point I felt I needed to slow down or I would not have any energy for the race!

The race started on time, there was no segregation of people so I just wandered up to near the front leaving room for those that would be faster. The race started and off we went, the first km was pretty fast for me at 4:23 and I was obviously a bit forward as I was being past rather that passing anyone. I slowed down the pace for the second KM and this came in 4:53. I continued just trying to keep that pace but I have to say I did not feel at all comfortable and thoughts of starting to walk were coming in to my head.

The 3rd KM was 4:58 and then we hit a slight incline at the start of the 4th KM. I should say the weather was good for the race and I was soon feeling warm and looking forward to the water stop at the 5KM mark. I ran the 4th KM in 5:04 so not too bad and I had some time in the bag from the earlier KMs. At this stage I was starting to feel like I was getting a stitch which was a little worrying with not even half the race gone. The 5th KM passed in 5:01 so still not too bad. There was no sign of the water at the 5KM mark and I was really suffering and was now worried that there was no water!

The water station was in turns out at 5.6KM and was basically some people giving out water in cups. When I arrived at the station there was no water poured out so I had to wait for them to fill the cup and then I walked while I drank it. All this took about a minute but I needed it, it is always hard to start again once you stop but I was back running again and the 6th KM was 5:35.

Kilometers 7,8 and 9 were just a grind and were done in just over the 5 minute mark and that jus tleft the 10th. My aim for the last KM is to run it flat out and basically fall across the line. I tried to do this but I was wiped out and instead of running flat out I had to stop and walk for a few seconds before eunning again and trying to finish fast.

So I finished in an official time of 49:23 which is a PB for me. So while happy to have done it in that time I did not enjoy it and didn't feel it was a good race. On the positive side if I had been feeling better I may have broken the 49 minute barrier and that has got be my target for the next 10K I do.

Summary 10K in 49:23

Trig1

WELL DONE!!! good time posted there!!

LarMan

Wednesday

I gave myself a couple of days rest and then decided to start the marathon training program. I will repeat the first week starting next week week which is the official start of the marathon training.

So last night I did 5 miles at pace which was 5:30 per KM. It also involved a bit of a steep climb which was very tough. The only downside of the route is that a couple of kilometers are on a road with no pavements and some severe bends so at times cars were on top of me before they knew it. One taxi driver was quite surprised to see me! Also I had to stop for a few seconds to allow some cars to pass as the road was only wide enough for two cars not two cars and a runner.

Summary 5 miles in 43:35 @5:27 pace

LarMan

Thursday

3 miles at the top end of Mcmillians easy run recommended pace.

Summary 5KM in 28:26 @5:41

LarMan

A new challenge

So while I have not signed up just yet, I have decided to do the DCM 2012. With that in mind I started Hal Higdons Novice II training plan.

Tuesday
3 miles, I'm having trouble getting the pace correct so this was faster than it should be at 5:20 per KM where it should be 5:48 at most according to McMillian.

Wednesday
5 miles at pace, nice run on a mostly downhill course. The pace should have been 5:30 but it was a little faster at 5:20 given the downhill nature of the route.

Thursday
going out tonight so needed to get the run done early in the morning and with the rain I decided to do this in the Gym. Also good to give the knees a rest from the harder surfaces. This was an easy 3 miles but was very boring and felt harder to finish than any of the other runs.

LarMan

Saturday

First of the long runs on my marathon training. 8 miles with a couple of what I would consider tough climbs. I enjoyed this run as some of it was on roads I had not run before. No issues to report and glad to have started on another program.

I do need to get my diet back under control as I have been neglecting that side for the last few weeks with lots of social events giving me the excuse to cut loose with the impact being I've put on about 4 kilos over the last 4 weeks. I am going on vacation next weeks and am determined not to put on any weight while I am away. Having the running will help to keep me motivated.

Summary 8 miles in 1:15:30 @ 5:48 per KM pace

LarMan

Tuesday

As I am going on holidays I need to get these runs done early to free up my evenings, so I am doing these runs at lunch time, which has its drawbacks but at least it gives me some new routes. I still need to slow down a bit more as the pace should be at most 5:48 per KM. I did feel comfortable enought at that pace but I did notice my calf muscles feeling a little tense. I think I am running with my legs too tense and I need to relax them as I run.

Summary 5K in 28:21 @5:40 pace

LarMan

Wndesday

5 miles around the leafy foxrock suburbs near work. I'm sure the air was purer!

Summary 8KM in 45:51 @5:41 per KM

LarMan

It's weather like this that makes me glad today is a rest day

Younganne

good luck with the marathon training...

LarMan

Back after two wonderful weeks vacation in France, nice weather for the most part and lots to see and do.

As for the running I am glad to say that I completed all my runs inclusing my longest run for some time, an 11 mile trip to the nearby town and back. Where we were staying was pretty flat so ideal for running. Temperatures were ver bearable but all my running was done in the morning and evening to avoid any real temperatures.

The only negative side was that I ate like a pig while I was away. No though of diet so I put on a good bit of weight. I will hopefully knuckle down now as I would like to lose at least 10KG between now and the marathon.

LarMan

Thursday

5K around the estate at work. Still finding it difficult to keep the pace down at the recommended level.

5K in 27:00 @5:22 pace

LarMan

Friday

Another 5K around the estate

Saturday

My wife was heading down to Cork on Saturday so I decided to combing driving her to the train station and my run. I like the idea of running to a point and not worrying about the way back or repeating the same route again in reverse. So I decided I would run the 12 miles and get my wife to collect me and the drop her off at the train.

Weather was nice on Saturday morning so I strapped on my drinks belt with a couple of containers of Orage Juice. Now I was looking forward to this run as after the last 4 miles are pretty much downhill so I was feeling good about it. This would be only the 3rd time I had covered this distance but the other runs so far have been good. The first 3 miles went by very quickly, again this was mostly downhill so was expected. After the first 3 miles it was flat for the next 2 miles and then the next 3 miles are all uphill, nothing to extreme just a climb. All went well and then I hit the downhill which took me down the stillorgan dual carriageway past fosters avenue and I finished at Donnybrook fire station. Definately could have kept going and while my knees were a little sore I had no ill affects. Next weeks LSR is a step back to 9 miles and then in two weeks times will be 14 miles which is the longest distance I have run so that will be interesting.

Summary 12 miles in 1:48.53 @ 5:38 per KM pace

LarMan

Tuesday

5KM at easy pace. Again a bit too fast and I did feel a little drained during this run. It was raining lightly at the start but was coming down pretty heavy by the end.

I also officially signed up for the marathon and the half marathon. It was a bit shocking to think that the half marathon was only 6 weeks away. Having said that covering that distance should be no problem. Covering it at the pace recommended by McMillian will be a different proposition entirely.

I really need to knuckle down on the diet. Ideally I need to be at least a stone lighter by the time the marathon comes along, but I haven't really been good enought diet wise to lose any weight.

davenewt

Impressive stuff LarMan, and I'm hearing you re the diet good luck with the marathon(s)!

LarMan

Thursday

So another 5K today nothing unusual about the run except my first 'run-in' with Joe Public. As I was running past 3 kids (2 teenagers and 1 little fella who looked about 7 or 8) the little fella sticks his leg out to trip me. Now to be honest I was wary of these people as I was passing so was not surprised, but it is dissapointing that at such a young age he feels confident enought to have a confrontation with some one much bigger than him. I stopped and this gave him a momentary fright but he regained his bravado quickly and put up his fists almost immediately. I just ran on

I hope that as he grows older he will get somewhat wiser but alas he probably will not.

LarMan

Sunday
I was visiting my sister in Monaghan so it was nice to do a different route for a change. This week was a step back week so the LSR was 9 miles. Got up in the morning to grey skys which quickly turned to rain. No choice to delay the run as we were going out that day, I put on my rain jacket and headed out. Monaghan has what can be called rolling hills so this was nice run for hill training. At time I would crest a hill to be greeted with a downhill section leading to what seemed like a huge incline, but by the time I'd get to the bottom of the hill the incline would seem like a gentle incline.

The rain kepy up for about 45 minutes and I was wearing glasses which became useless so I had to take them off and run semi blind.

My Garmin 405 is pretty much dead at this stage and again gave up after about 10 minutes of rain. Luckily I had my phone and was using the mapmyrun app to give me pace, so I was able to track how long I had run which was just as well as I took a wrong turn at one point and was not sure how long I had been running.

This week will include the longest run I have ever done which is 14 miles and in some perverse way I am looking forward to that.

Summary 9 miles in 1:24:09 @ 5:47 per KM

LarMan

Tuesday

Legs felt dead today, the milage is picking up now with the mid week runs getting an extra mile so today was 4 miles. My garmin is officially dead and won't take a charge so I used the garmin fit app on my phone. It is a good app for recording your workout but it would be better if it could give voice prompts about your pace like the mapmyrun app does.

Summary

6.58KM in 37:52 @ 5:46 per KM

LarMan

Wednesday

Hard run of the week, 7 mile pace run. Armed with my new Garmin 610, my 405 now dead, I headed for a run, the first couple of KMs are downhill so i run these with the aim of taking advantage and storing up a little time for the harder uphill KMs ahead. The pace was supposed to be marathon pace at 5:30 per KM and the first couple were faster than this. After the downhill it was uphill for a few KMs before it levels out. I managed to keep the pace around the 5:30 except for one KM which was 5:32.

The KMs coming back were again downhill so these were a bit faster. What this run thought me is that I am a long way from being able to run a marathon at this pace so I hope the next 12 weeks goes well

Summary 11.2 KM in 59:12 @ 5:17 pace

LarMan

Thursday

This was meant to be an easy run but it felt anything but easy. It was a warm afternoon and my legs felt very heavy. I kept the pace slow but it was a real struggle. Sweat was also getting in my eyes which made life difficult. I was delighted to have finished and am looking forward to the da ys break before the long run on Saturday. It will be my longest run ever so it will be nice to have set a new record so to speak.

Summary 6.43KM in 36:47 @5:43 pace