Dublin Marathon 2012 - Mentored Novices Thread

Runchick

Donal112 wrote: »

Donal112 wrote: »

I have my first physio appointment this afternoon. Very worried about my calf. I've been limping around since my 5 mile run yesterday. Not as sore today as it was yesterday. Hopefully just a strain from overuse and a few days off/stretching will put it right, but it doesn't feel good at all. Fingers crossed.

Am gutted cos I have been completely injury free up to now and haven't skipped a single run, and out of nowhere..........

Just back from Physio. Tear in my calf muscle.

He says no running for up to 2 weeks until walking, cycling, etc is completely pain free and then start off with some very easy runs and build back up from there if no reaction. Hopefully will be back training in 2 weeks.

First thing thats out is the half marathon next week, no chance according to physio. Marathon: should be ok to run all going well but pretty much going to miss the next 2 weeks training plus have to build back up after.

Gutted.

Not good Donal. But take heart that DCM is still attainable, I eased back to running after 2 weeks off just 4 weeks ago and feel fitter and stronger than before, so all is not lost. It does feel like s##te though:-(

menoscemo

jprender wrote: »

Ah, and there is something that I have always wondered about Garmins and elevation.


Any idea why the route for the pacer shows total elevation gain of 274m, whereas your own shows a gain of 572m ?


Sometimes when I run, I feel that there were quite a few climbs only to see a really small number when checking the garmin afterwards. I wonder how accurate they are ?

My previous marathon (Barcelona) showed a gain of 944m, something that I find very hard to believe.

You should enable 'elevation corrections' in your Garmin. If your garmin Does not have it enabled it literally thinks you are climbing on top of any building you pass. With the corrections enabled it maps your route against known rises in the roads.

FWIW I measured Barcelona as having 200m of climb once 'Elevation corrections' were enabled.

Here is my reading from last year's DCM: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/125644939
With elevation corrections ebnabled it shows a net rise of around 150m

Dilbert75

Younganne wrote: »

Dilbert, Please Please do not skip Rest days, they are a vital part of the plan, better to miss one of the shorter runs....

Good point Anne - I'll see how I'm fixed after 8m tonight. If I'm not ok I'll skip the 4m tomorrow. I am planning to rest Thursday and Sat, Sun & Mon, with my LSR on Friday, so I'm really only banking the rest day for later in the week... ;-)

Donal, bad news but keep your eyes on the prize. You're not training for a half - the full is the priority. It's a pity to miss the half but...

menoscemo

Runchick wrote: »

Guys I read somewhere recently that a good way to work out marathon time is to do a 10km race about 4 weeks before and multiply that time by 5. Seems conservative but sensible to me, anyone else heard this one?

Yes I have heard that is a good indicator for Novice runners. Another indicator is 3 x your 10 mile time or 2.2 x your HM time (as Mr Slow Points out), they should work out around the same in general.

You might think they are a bit conservative but it is much better to start off conservatively in the marathon and speed up a bit at the end rather than starting off agressively and blowing up at the end.I would completely ignore McMillan marathon predictions if you are a novice runner.

Pacing Mule

menoscemo wrote: »

Yes I have heard that is a good indicator for Novice runners. Another indicator is 3 x your 10 mile time or 2.2 x your HM time (as Mr Slow Points out), they should work out around the same in general.

You might think they are a bit conservative but it is much better to start off conservatively in the marathon and speed up a bit at the end rather than starting off agressively and blowing up at the end.I would completely ignore McMillan marathon predictions if you are a novice runner.

Ah balls I can kiss goodbye to 5 hours so.

menoscemo

Pageant Messiah wrote: »

Ah balls I can kiss goodbye to 5 hours so.

Sorry, but best to be realistic!! You should always take the race closest to the Mara as the best indicator of current fitness. What was your 10 mile time?

To get under 5 hours you'd want to be doing the half in just over 2:15 I reckon.

Pacing Mule

menoscemo wrote: »

Sorry, but best to be realistic!! You should always take the race closest to the Mara as the best indicator of current fitness. What was your 10 mile time?

To get under 5 hours you'd want to be doing the half in just over 2:15 I reckon.

Ah don't worry about it - I'm more interested in getting home than getting a time. 5 hours is kind of respectable IMO for a pure beginner as envious as I am of most here aiming for 4 hours

10 mile was 1 hour 45
10 k (DLR Bay) was 1 hour 2

Realistically don't see me breaking 2:15 - probably closer to 2:30 for the half but time will tell (pardon the pun)

menoscemo

Pageant Messiah wrote: »

Ah don't worry about it - I'm more interested in getting home than getting a time. 5 hours is kind of respectable IMO for a pure beginner as envious as I am of most here aiming for 4 hours

10 mile was 1 hour 45
10 k (DLR Bay) was 1 hour 2

Chin Up, you are not far off going by either Formula and pretty conssistent at that (5 hrs 15 from the 10 miles and 5 hrs 10 going by the 10k). A good half will see you good.
Going by the 10 mile time you should get 2:20 for the half. There is not a lot of difference between 10m pace and HM pace, just an extra 5k of pain It is not uncommon to smash your 10 mile PB en route to the HM finish so give it a good lash.

docrock

Hi,I'm a newbie here,I followed the thread two years ago & again last year with the best intentions of running the DCM but picked up a grade 2 calf injury in 2010 which put me out & in a lot of pain from the physio for a while & when I went back running I started having a problem with the calf on the other leg so I said sod it & the interest faded to the point of me saying your too old & too overweight for your legs to carry you etc etc.I had been very sporty up until my late 20's (mostly GAA & then golf in my 30's, but I hated running with a passion when we used to go training, I was know to be sick during a few sessions) but then family etc kicked in so the weight started to creep up - I'm 43 now so I would have been 41 when I decided to give it a lash - mid life crisis & all that - so I was told anyway.I'm 6 feet & just under 15 stone - was about 16 stone when I got the bug.

I watched the DCM on the TV last Oct & like everyone that wants to run a marathon said to myself will I give it a go one last time & see how I get on & if the injuries kick in again its not like I didnt try. I'm a bit of a competitive & determined kind of person so that evening I threw on the running shoes & went for a few km's. I had bought a pair of asics nimbus gel 12's a few months before as I was told that the calf problem may be from the wrong footwear - thanks be to God bar for a few niggles in the calf area in both legs which is probably due to mileage I have been ok but I have picked up a small problem with my knee which I had to get seen to a few weeks ago by a sports doc who gave me an cortisone injection.He says that my quad muscle is weak which is pulling my knee cap out of place & causing some swelling - similar to the IT Band issues.Anyway he gave me exercises to strengthen it & it is getting better but I'll put up with it.

Before I give a rundown of what mileage I do I must tell you that I'm a disaster when it comes to following programmes so I'm not following any marathon plan & I only bought a cheap digital watch a few weeks ago when the LSR increased to give me some indication of times - no garmin for me I'm afraid. In the last 6 months I have driven the various routes so I have an indication of how far they are & then on a Sat or Sun I'd take off & tell the wife "I'll be back" so I had an approx that 10k was taking me about an hour & I was doing a half in around the 2 hr mark.

I did a half in April in 2.04 & I was absolutely wrecked getting over the line, then I did a 15 miler in July in 2.14 which didnt seem half as bad so the times have been getting a bit better.I then said that I'd better do an official 10k to see how fast I was running it so I did one a few weeks ago in 49 mins which I was happy enough with.In the past 3 weeks my LSR has been 29k in 2.57 (wrecked beyond belief,went to bed for an hour when I got home) 20k in 1.52 & last weekend was 24k in 2.15. My usual weeks training is 2 or 3 10k to 12k runs during the week depending on time & the LSR at the weekend which has now gotten into the 30k bracket - no cross training bar kicking a football with the kids & cutting the lawn but I stretch about 3 times a day everyday.I'm kind of watching what I eat but its not easy with a sweet tooth & kids but I know that a half a stone less to carry 26 miles would be easier all round - I also have a new (old wardrobe) as a lot of my clothes now fit me again as I have toned down a good bit in the past few months.

Just reading the posts its encouraging to see that everyone else here is having the same doubts, problems plus ups & downs that I'm having. I took a gel during a LSR lately & lets just say it wasnt pretty, my stomach was upside down & there was a dash in a bar door at serious pace with sweat running down my face:eek: I have tried a few different ones but I dont know, they just dont seem to agree with me so I may just stick with the water & sports drinks.I still havent registered for the DCM as I dont want to jinx it & knowing my luck I'd pick up an injury walking up the stairs after doing it online - did I say that I was superstitious as well:o I have booked the hotel though:eek: weird or what!! I havent really told anyone bar her in doors what I'm trying to do but there a few people hopping off me lately & one fellow said " hey you must be training for the DCM cos theres no way you went that far for a litre of milk the last day" - I've been seen in far away locations from home a few times recently.

Theres certainly doubt that creeps in some days & youd say to youself what the hell are you doing this for you lunatic & other days when your saying yeah you can do it & what are you worried about. At the moment like a lot of posters I'd love to just complete it & not have the St Johns ambuance coming out to collect me & as I have seen on here several times, "sure if it was easy everyone would be doing it".

I'm looking forward to posting here for the next few weeks & hopefully we'll all stay injury free & healthy up to the big day - hopefully for me that will be one year from the day that I started training for it so fingers crossed.

blockic

Best of luck docrock. Great background, thanks for sharing.

rasher_m

docrock wrote: »

I'm 43 now so I would have been 41 when I decided to give it a lash - mid life crisis & all that - so I was told anyway.I'm 6 feet & just under 15 stone - was about 16 stone when I got the bug.

I did a half in April in 2.04 & I was absolutely wrecked getting over the line, then I did a 15 miler in July in 2.14 which didnt seem half as bad so the times have been getting a bit better.I then said that I'd better do an official 10k to see how fast I was running it so I did one a few weeks ago in 49 mins which I was happy enough with.In the past 3 weeks my LSR has been 29k in 2.57 (wrecked beyond belief,went to bed for an hour when I got home) 20k in 1.52 & last weekend was 24k in 2.15. My usual weeks training is 2 or 3 10k to 12k runs during the week depending on time & the LSR at the weekend which has now gotten into the 30k bracket - no cross training bar kicking a football with the kids & cutting the lawn but I stretch about 3 times a day everyday.I'm kind of watching what I eat but its not easy with a sweet tooth & kids but I know that a half a stone less to carry 26 miles would be easier all round - I also have a new (old wardrobe) as a lot of my clothes now fit me again as I have toned down a good bit in the past few months.

I'm looking forward to posting here for the next few weeks & hopefully we'll all stay injury free & healthy up to the big day - hopefully for me that will be one year from the day that I started training for it so fingers crossed.

Thats some improvement in 10km times, I'm jealous. I'm also 6 stone lighter than you and have just as many niggles and run slower so don't let the weight play on your mind.

corny

Thats me done.

The injury to the ITB seems to be following the same course as the last time i had it. Can't do more than 10 or 15 minutes running and thats not gonna change for another few weeks. Another slow build up from there. Distraught.:(

jprender

corny wrote: »

Thats me done.

The injury to the ITB seems to be following the same course as the last time i had it. Can't do more than 10 or 15 minutes running and thats not gonna change for another few weeks. Another slow build up from there. Distraught.:(

Really disappointed to hear that Corny

tang1

corny wrote: »

Thats me done.

The injury to the ITB seems to be following the same course as the last time i had it. Can't do more than 10 or 15 minutes running and thats not gonna change for another few weeks. Another slow build up from there. Distraught.:(

Really sorry to hear that corny, real kick in the a!se.

docrock

rasher_m wrote: »

Thats some improvement in 10km times, I'm jealous. I'm also 6 stone lighter than you and have just as many niggles and run slower so don't let the weight play on your mind.

In fairness the 10k was fairly flat & I was pushing it for the last 2k plus my head was telling me that it was only 10k so I could push on a bit - I still didnt get my breathing right until we had 5k done though.

I'm finding that my recovery after the mid-week runs has gotten shorter in that I feel that my breathing etc is back to a fairly good level after a few minutes where as before it was taking me a lot longer. This has got me thinking on the idea of walking through the water stations to firstly get a decent drink of water on board plus give the legs & mind a bit of a break.I find that my mind starts playing tricks on me during the long runs as some days my legs are fine but my head is wrecked - does anyone else find the same thing happens to them?

career_move

corny wrote: »

Thats me done.

The injury to the ITB seems to be following the same course as the last time i had it. Can't do more than 10 or 15 minutes running and thats not gonna change for another few weeks. Another slow build up from there. Distraught.:(

That sucks man. Hard luck.

LarMan

How do you cool your feet?

I was wondering if anyone has any idea on ways to cool your feet while running. I feel my feet get too hot and this is causing the blisters and general discomfort that I am feeling in my feet.

I only use 1000 mile socks while running which are great but I would love to have cooler feet while running. Anyone got any advice.

career_move

Its all in the mind. Think cool thoughts

limoncella

LarMan wrote: »

How do you cool your feet?

I was wondering if anyone has any idea on ways to cool your feet while running. I feel my feet get too hot and this is causing the blisters and general discomfort that I am feeling in my feet.

I only use 1000 mile socks while running which are great but I would love to have cooler feet while running. Anyone got any advice.

My feet used to get really hot too, but I noticed slathering on body glide helps and I never get blisters now. Really get between the toes and on the bottoms of the feet. I use it everywhere, not just on the feet, to prevent chaffing. although I suggested getting a few bottles for different body parts don't want the foot one going anywhere else.

Murph_D

LarMan wrote: »

I feel my feet get too hot and this is causing the blisters and general discomfort that I am feeling in my feet.

I only use 1000 mile socks while running which are great but I would love to have cooler feet while running.

You're probably aware of 1000-mile socks "no blisters" guarantee. If you're getting blisters with those socks you should get a refund (assuming you still have the original receipt of course!

Murph_D

limoncella wrote: »

I use it everywhere, not just on the feet, to prevent chaffing. although I suggested getting a few bottles for different body parts don't want the foot one going anywhere else.

Why would you need several bottles - you hardly put it back in the bottle after you're done!

tang1

limoncella wrote: »

but I noticed slathering on body glide helps.

Sorry limoncella, had to giggle when i saw this!!

sassyj

Finally booked my marathon place today

leeomurchu

sassyj wrote: »

Finally booked my marathon place today

I'm still on the fence, starting to get splinters

LarMan

murphd77 wrote: »

You're probably aware of 1000-mile socks "no blisters" guarantee. If you're getting blisters with those socks you should get a refund (assuming you still have the original receipt of course!

No Murph I wasn't aware of that but I don't have the receipts either.

Donal112

Dilbert75 wrote: »

Donal, bad news but keep your eyes on the prize. You're not training for a half - the full is the priority. It's a pity to miss the half but...

Cheers for the messages guys. Feeling much more positive today, no pain in the leg today and I have borrowed a bike so I can Xtrain, so will hopefully be back doing easy runs by the end of next week. Also am going to Portugal for a wedding from Friday - Monday so now I can leave the runners behind and relax guilt free cos its Doctor's orders !!

Dilbert, you are spot on! I was probably most annoyed yesterday about the half cos I really wanted to try and beat 1hr45 (would be a new PB) and felt i was well on course after all the training. But the prize is definitely the big dog :rolleyes: and fingers crossed I should be fine for that, and despite missing a couple weeks training be well rested for the rest of the schedule!

Also, I can use my goal for a half as motivation to keep the running/training going after the marathon and target a half in November or December. (After last years DCM I literally shut-down, ran only 1 time between November and April and then had to start from scratch again this year!) Total waste of all the hard work to get there!

Corny, gutted for you mate. Hope it clears up soon and you can get back injury-free.

docrock

Hi Donal112,
I had calf problems in the past 2 years which was mostly down to incorrect footwear & not training properly but I kept running thinking that it was stiffness etc only to find out I had a grade 2 tear in one of them when I finally went to the physio.After 4 months,lots of pain & €€€ I was finally able to run a few km's again but it was a struggle.

Youre doing the right thing going early to get it sorted & youve plenty of time to recover.It looks like you just have a strain which usually clears up after a few weeks of TLC, keep stretching & icing it whenever you can, even if you think its fine & if he gives you anti inflammatorys take them as it definately speeds up the process. I still stretch 3 times a day just to be safe.

best of luck with it & if you take care,it will clear up in plenty time.

LarMan wrote: »

Bad Luck Donal, I had a feeling in my calf during my LSR last Sunday and it scared me but luckily it dissapeared. Hopefully you will be back running soon.

Donal112 wrote: »

Just back from Physio. Tear in my calf muscle.

He says no running for up to 2 weeks until walking, cycling, etc is completely pain free and then start off with some very easy runs and build back up from there if no reaction. Hopefully will be back training in 2 weeks.

First thing thats out is the half marathon next week, no chance according to physio. Marathon: should be ok to run all going well but pretty much going to miss the next 2 weeks training plus have to build back up after.

Gutted.

miguelk

Meant to post about this earlier - did my LSR in the park on Saturday, first time ever.

Push started a car, gave directions to the court house, and met an friendly DCM vetaran and ran with him from miles 5 up to 14 or so.

Now i'm not saying to go by his advice, but it was interesting to get another perspective on it! While a lot of us are pretty anal about our preparations and exactness on times etc it was refreshing to hear his attitude.

Just turned 60 he has completed 8 marathons, his first when he was 50.
I asked him what pace he was doing his run at today, he had no idea, was just out to run for 1 1/2 hours or so.
He has never once got injured, "and do you know what i eat?"....."doughnuts". A gas man.

He brought me out the chapelizod gate and up that big hill and then back in at the top, some climb.

He doesn't stretch (although admitted you should)

Never taken an ice bath, but again has heard of the benefits but hasn't needed one.

All in all, he was just over the moon and so positive to be able to train for a marathon year on year, kind of like the tale of the man who jumps the fence every morning...

He also gave me a tip of wearing a cap for the first few miles and then throwing it away (good idea?)

Some change from my normal "solo" LSR, in fact the first time I've ran with anyone. The miles dragged after he went on his way but god a bit of company and chat makes it all the easier.

And it was no harm to hear what an older head had to say either, what I would take from him is that, at times, we could chill out a bit and enjoy the marathon preparation a bit more .......(and just to add a disclaimer, I am not advocating no stretching and a doughnut diet!).

overpronator

miguelk wrote: »

He also gave me a tip of wearing a cap for the first few miles and then throwing it away (good idea?)

He must be one of those "zen" runners I hear about, just gets out there and runs, mcmillan and hal higdon et al arent a concern!!

What's the thinking with wearing a cap?

miguelk

overpronator wrote: »

He must be one of those "zen" runners I hear about, just gets out there and runs, mcmillan and hal higdon et al arent a concern!!

What's the thinking with wearing a cap?

Ya thats him, mind over matter.

Its like the older generation saying "there were no crutiate ligaments in our day"....(what they really mean is we are soft, and they were hardier).

Re - the hat - He said its cooler in October and you would want to hold onto your body heat until you warm up. Then discard the hat after a few miles.