Dublin Marathon 2012 - Mentored Novices Thread

RunningKing

peggysue2 wrote: »

Love this idea too I couldn't have done the training programme without the support of this group and would love to be able to give an extra bit of support to someone on the day and vice versa - I like the ribbon idea as it would be really easy to tie a yellow ribbon round ...... Well lets vote for a ribbon colour and where to tie it ;-)

Yellow Ribbons :eek: ................... rather have ITB!!!!!

bren69

Looking forward to hearing how LSRs went today. I'm working today so will be heading out Sunday morning.

Donal112

niteowl1 wrote: »

Don't worry P.M. you'll get back into it quickly. I missed 2 and 1/2 weeks. Thankfully my physio told me not to worry if my breathing was all over the place on my first few runs. IT WAS! but by the 2nd week it was fine and my fitness quickly returned. Best of luck

+1 to this PM. I was out for nearly 3 weeks but was back up to previous mileage very quickly. Be patient (easy to say and hard to do, I know!) and build it up over a few runs to ease the leg back and you'll feel the fitness come back quickly. Good luck!

Donal112

RunningKing wrote: »

Yellow Ribbons :eek: ................... rather have ITB!!!!!

Hahaha yeah will be interesting to see how many male takers there are on the ribbons!! If we're going for the username idea, I already have my name on my t-shirt (I'll just have to add in the 112 part!!). The benefits of an unimaginative user-name

Pacing Mule

Dilbert75 wrote: »

I was only thinking about this too! I was thinking along the lines of just getting my username put on my t-shirt (in small letters above my real name) - and sure who else would have any clue what Dilbert75 means except the folks around here? Alternative might be the "O" logo out of Boards (if we were allowed)...???

My username might get a few strange looks Nobody in a million years could guess where it came from.

Donal112

18 mile LSR done this morning. Have to work today so drove into town for 7am, parked at work and set off on the route pretty much from the start line planning to run the first half and then cut back into town. Now I have a hopeless sense of direction and even though I'm from Dublin I don't know my way around the Phoenix Park at all - I only know how to get to the zoo and how to get to the football pitches cos I used to play there. Took my first wrong turn on North Circular Road and ended up on Cabra Road, so I entered the park at Castleknock gate. Didn't mind this at all because it was a beautiful fresh morning so decided to abandon the route and just do most of my run in the park and head back to town after 13/14 miles. So glad I did the park was gorgeous and I saw lots of deer as I ran. Had to be in work at 10ish or I would have tried to meet up with the organised run (though I'm pretty confident that I wouldn't have found you even if I tried ). The one bit of the route that I really wanted to do was the Chapelizod Hill that keeps cropping up here so I did manage to find the Chapelizod gate, headed out, up the hill and then back down in it to the park again. It's pretty tough :eek: definitely the hardest hill on the course. Felt like I was practically walking going up it, but its not too long thankfully, was much more fun going back down!!

Took 2 gels, at 9 and 14 miles. Again felt they definitely helped. I seem to be able to take them no problem thankfully. Don't know about anybody else but i find the first 4 or 5 miles of my LSR's the hardest, then when I am warmed up the middle miles feel really great. Obviously it gets tough again near the end, but expecting that.

Sorry for the ramble, trying to avoid work!! Sitting here with my leg on ice. I'm going to be pretty stiff by 4pm after sitting at a desk all day after my run!!

peggysue2

RunningKing wrote: »

peggysue2 wrote: »

Love this idea too I couldn't have done the training programme without the support of this group and would love to be able to give an extra bit of support to someone on the day and vice versa - I like the ribbon idea as it would be really easy to tie a yellow ribbon round ...... Well lets vote for a ribbon colour and where to tie it ;-)

Yellow Ribbons :eek: ................... rather have ITB!!!!!

[/Quote

Love that runningking :-)))))

bsile71

Started off this morning with early breakfast, and on the road for 9:30am beautiful morning for it, if a bit windy at times, the route had a few hills as well which this morning seemed steeper than before. Longest ever run this morning 22 miles, delighted to have it done, but it was tough ever mile of it. Got it done in 3:05:00 which was better than I would have hoped for as I have a few aches and pains at this stage, looking forward to the taper down and no more major LSRs and letting the body heal and be ready for the big day!! Not sure yet what pace for marathon but I have a few weeks to think about that and thats part of taper madness anyway.

blockic

bsile71 wrote: »

Started off this morning with early breakfast, and on the road for 9:30am beautiful morning for it, if a bit windy at times, the route had a few hills as well which this morning seemed steeper than before. Longest ever run this morning 22 miles, delighted to have it done, but it was tough ever mile of it. Got it done in 3:05:00 which was better than I would have hoped for as I have a few aches and pains at this stage, looking forward to the taper down and no more major LSRs and letting the body heal and be ready for the big day!! Not sure yet what pace for marathon but I have a few weeks to think about that and thats part of taper madness anyway.

Great run. Based on that as a training run, surely sub 3.30 is in sights?

lrak

After 10 days out with an Achilles tendon injury on the advice of my physio, I was happy to get out last week and get in a 5m and build up to 8m and 10m with out any problems thankfully. I was all set for my last long LSR today where I did 20 m and am delighted that I got through it much better than I thought, the break obviously helping as I felt strong throughout and stayed on my targeted pace which really helped. So I am now confident to run this DCM and will definitely be joining the 5 hour pace group as this is where I will feel most comfortable.
Hooray, can't believe 20 is done and dusted!

npresto

Headed out on my 32km (20 mile) LSR this morning at 9am. Drank 3 litres of water last night and I was quite nervous and didn't sleep well. I got up at 8am and had a bowl of porridge with a banana. I took 2 X 500ml bottles of water with a High5 Zero electrolyte tablet in each bottle, 2 gels and a bag of jelly babies. My legs ached for the first 6-7km but by 10km I was ok. I turned down the sound on my phone so I couldn't hear the updates from Runkeeper. I was nibbling away on the jelly babies for the whole run and took the first gel at around 16km and the second gel at around 24km. The second gel had caffeine in it and I did feel a hit from it. My leg muscles were strong at the end but my ankles and knees were sore. I ran the 32km in 3hrs 6 mins at an average pace of 5min 48s/km which was 2 secs under my planned marathon pace. Chuffed that I did it stronger than my 18 mile LSR two weeks ago. I'd be chuffed with a sub 4:15 on the big day. Best of luck to everyone this weekend on their LSRs. ;)

RunningKing

bsile71 wrote: »

Started off this morning with early breakfast, and on the road for 9:30am beautiful morning for it, if a bit windy at times, the route had a few hills as well which this morning seemed steeper than before. Longest ever run this morning 22 miles, delighted to have it done, but it was tough ever mile of it. Got it done in 3:05:00 which was better than I would have hoped for as I have a few aches and pains at this stage, looking forward to the taper down and no more major LSRs and letting the body heal and be ready for the big day!! Not sure yet what pace for marathon but I have a few weeks to think about that and thats part of taper madness anyway.

Super run and super time. On fresh legs, you'll do it better.
I done 22m in 3:02 and I'm aiming for 3:20 finish (all going well) - this means I wont be going with a pacer.
I toyed with the idea of going with the 3:15 pacers, but fear burnout near the end.

3:30 could be a soft target for you, given the run you just done - but if you want to run with pacers, you can always run the 1st half with the 3:30 pacers and kick on.
But you dont need to follow a pacer! Really all depends how you feel on the day!.
That said - you can stick with the 3:30's and get a superb time.

RunningKing

npresto wrote: »

Headed out on my 32km (20 mile) LSR this morning at 9am. Drank 3 litres of water last night and I was quite nervous and didn't sleep well. I got up at 8am and had a bowl of porridge with a banana. I took 2 X 500ml bottles of water with a High5 Zero electrolyte tablet in each bottle, 2 gels and a bag of jelly babies. My legs ached for the first 6-7km but by 10km I was ok. I turned down the sound on my phone so I couldn't hear the updates from Runkeeper. I was nibbling away on the jelly babies for the whole run and took the first gel at around 16km and the second gel at around 24km. The second gel had caffeine in it and I did feel a hit from it. My leg muscles were strong at the end but my ankles and knees were sore. I ran the 32km in 3hrs 6 mins at an average pace of 5min 48s/km which was 2 secs under my planned marathon pace. Chuffed that I did it stronger than my 18 mile LSR two weeks ago. I'd be chuffed with a sub 4:15 on the big day. Best of luck to everyone this weekend on their LSRs. ;)

Either you are underselling yourself on the pacing or you going to get injured before the run.
Doing 20m at an average pace of 2 secs under PMP is a bit 'crazy' :eek: and doesn't allow the body to make the adaptations neccessary to allow you to run at PMP on fresher legs. LSR are meant to be 30-90 secs per mile slower than PMP. By all means do some milage at PMP - but its not recommended to do all milage at PMP.

I reckon you'll be able to go a bit better on the day. With fresh legs, proper nutrition and hydration for the whole week, a cheering crowd and 14,000 other people to run with!
Watch the pace over the coming weeks. Most of the hard work is done.

on the positive side - a run like that is a great confidence builder for the big day.

irlirishkev

Well.. my 20mile LSR today was a fair aul' struggle, but I made it to the end.
I started out too quick.. That was definitely my downfall, it made the 2nd half very tough. Daft really, because I always try to negative split - maybe it was the excitement of today being the last long LSR. I'll have to be careful on the day!

I ran from home in the city centre, out towards Ranelagh, and up Clonskeagh Hill (ick), down Foster's Ave, up the N11 (ick) as far as Cabinteely, then down to Blackrock via Rochestown and Deansgrange. Out to the eastlink and through the city to home.
The last 5 or 6 miles were hell on my ankles, and I had stitches everywhere! A bit of HTFU though and I made it back to base..

I did 20miles a couple of weeks ago and it was a lot easier than today, so I'm not too concerned.

Still a bit confused about my Pace though.. All my LSRs over 14miles have been average 10.06s/m and that's all I have in the tank.. I'm hoping for a 4.15 finish. I guess I don't see how I can suddenly be able to run faster on the day - and as I'm used to negative splits, I won't be able to follow a pacer.. or am I approaching it the wrong way??? This pacing lark is all very confusing.

Well done to everyone on their LSRs today.. some great reports coming in.

I'm so glad it's Taper Time!

Trampas

Did 33km this morning at 6.12km pace.

Which was around the target pace.

The pits stop in the park took a few seconds longer than in f1.

Haven't uploaded the session so can't see the breakdown but happy enough.

Carried 4 gels about a dozen babies and 2 jaffas. 500mls of powerade and 500mls of water going by advice on here to carry what you plan to carry on the day. I say I will be leaving the jaffas at home on the day. Might take a power bar on the day with me instead as I like something solid to hit the tummy when i am hungry.

Consumed about 4 babies 500mls of water and 250mls of powerade.

No idea if that is good bad or ok but I didn't fall over the line.

It was warm in the sun out there and I hope it isn't like that on the day.

I was thinking on the day if like this I would be pouring more water over me that through me.

Well done to everyone doing the runs today and tomorrow.

Just a few words for everyone

Taper time

RedRunner

irlirishkev wrote: »

Well.. my 20mile LSR today was a fair aul' struggle, but I made it to the end.
I started out too quick.. That was definitely my downfall, it made the 2nd half very tough. Daft really, because I always try to negative split - maybe it was the excitement of today being the last long LSR. I'll have to be careful on the day!

I ran from home in the city centre, out towards Ranelagh, and up Clonskeagh Hill (ick), down Foster's Ave, up the N11 (ick) as far as Cabinteely, then down to Blackrock via Rochestown and Deansgrange. Out to the eastlink and through the city to home.
The last 5 or 6 miles were hell on my ankles, and I had stitches everywhere! A bit of HTFU though and I made it back to base..

I did 20miles a couple of weeks ago and it was a lot easier than today, so I'm not too concerned.

Still a bit confused about my Pace though.. All my LSRs over 14miles have been average 10.06s/m and that's all I have in the tank.. I'm hoping for a 4.15 finish. I guess I don't see how I can suddenly be able to run faster on the day - and as I'm used to negative splits, I won't be able to follow a pacer.. or am I approaching it the wrong way??? This pacing lark is all very confusing.

Well done to everyone on their LSRs today.. some great reports coming in.

I'm so glad it's Taper Time!

My target is 4:15 and I do my LSRs avg pace 10 to10-15. I intend to try stay with the 4:15 pacers. You'll be surprised how much energy youll have in the first 10 miles so it is important to maintain a sustainable pace.

I was all over the place with my pacing last year and I remember the 4 hr pacers passing me about mile 15-16.:( Eventually finished in 4:45 absolutely shattered.This year I've managed my pacing in training much better so hopefully that'll stand to me on the day. It has certianly helped with the half marathon. I took 14 minutes off last years time.

If you've been training well then I think the 4:15 is there for the taking.

LarMan

I need reassurance

So I finished my 20 mile run and it was a tough run. I ran from Bray out to Blanchardstown via the phoenix park.

I suppose I was hoping for a run where at the end I would feel good and that another 10K would be no problem. In the end I got a run where despite the pace being 6:10 which was what I was hoping to do and which is 30 seconds per KM slower than my marathon time. I was really suffering. I had to take a couple of walk breaks, one in the phoenix park as I ran up Chesterfield avenue and one a couple of kilometers later in CastleKnock.

My left Achilles was really sore which was a new one for me. At the end of the run I couldn't imagine being able to do another 10K and certainly not at marathon pace.

So someone tell me it will be OK on the day, that after taper on fresh legs, with the adrenaline from race day and the support of the crowds it will all come together on the day.

joe40

Hi everyone. Some great runs the last few days. I would just like to add my thanks to all the people who have posted advice and encouragement, it is all very useful. Other novice runners sharing their experiences is also a great help. (It is a strange human condition but we can handle hardships better when they're shared) We are all at different levels and there will be a range of finishing times but everyone is putting a great effort into to this training lark.
Delighted to get my 20 mile run done today. Finished in 3 hr 14 mins so hoping for 4.30 finish. (Would be estatic with 4.15 but cant see it happening). The pace felt comfortable enough and was fairly constant throughout the run but I don't really think I could run much faster. At this pace I would have to do the last 6 miles in an hour to finish at 4.15 which would not be a problem earlier in the run but after running 20 miles it will be a different story.
Water and gels worked well today I organised the run so that I passedthe car a few times and picked up water bottles. I had 2 gels and a bar during the run. Gels were great, maybe not exactly like popeye eating the spinach (Showing my age now) but definitely gave a boost even if it is placebo I'll take it.
Anyway great to get this far looking forward to the taper good luck to everyone.

shortie_chik

20m done with FiiFii this morning (although it's actually taken my entire day between hobbling home, stretching, feeding, showering, checking boards, now I need a nap, then want to do a new running playlist... )

Delighted to have survived it! The last few miles were tough, especially since I accidentally hit the lap button at 14.4m so the watch said I'd done 20 laps when we were only at 19.4m. VERY disappointing to realise we had an extra 0.6m to go! Even worse for FiiFii listening to me whinging the last few miles: "I'm tired, not another f*$@# hill, my knee hurts, there wasn't a hill here the last time I ran this route, etc etc..." :rolleyes: Glad to be into the taper now & hoping my legs will recover to a magical extent & be like that fawn in the park on race day!

Compeed plasters: you are not up to marathon training! I have 2 regular hotspots (the edge of the inside of my feet, kind of below the ankle) which get blisters with every LSR. Today I put compeed plasters on optimistically preventatively. One foot: no blister, hurray! The other foot: the biggest blister I've ever gotten, just formed under the plaster! Gah! :mad:

LarMan wrote: »

I need reassurance
So someone tell me it will be OK on the day, that after taper on fresh legs, with the adrenaline from race day and the support of the crowds it will all come together on the day.

Larman, it will be ok on the day. You've the hard work put in now, so your fresh legs & adrenaline & support on the day will carry you the last 6m. That's what I'm telling myself!

joe40

LarMan wrote: »

I need reassurance

So I finished my 20 mile run and it was a tough run. I ran from Bray out to Blanchardstown via the phoenix park.

I suppose I was hoping for a run where at the end I would feel good and that another 10K would be no problem. In the end I got a run where despite the pace being 6:10 which was what I was hoping to do and which is 30 seconds per KM slower than my marathon time. I was really suffering. I had to take a couple of walk breaks, one in the phoenix park as I ran up Chesterfield avenue and one a couple of kilometers later in CastleKnock.

My left Achilles was really sore which was a new one for me. At the end of the run I couldn't imagine being able to do another 10K and certainly not at marathon pace.

So someone tell me it will be OK on the day, that after taper on fresh legs, with the adrenaline from race day and the support of the crowds it will all come together on the day.

Every single run I have done I always feel I couldn't do another 1k. I know exactly how you feel I am still worried about the last 10 k even after running 32 k today but we can only trust that the programme will have given us the fitness that is needed and the rest and shorter runs will be the real benefit from now on. I'm not an experienced runner at any distance so can't offer any better advice but nearly all the experienced runners here have talked about bad experiences and bad runs but they learned from them and got mentally stronger as a result so just stick with it. We are all in this together.

ncmc

Congrats on everyone who completed their 20 mile lsr today, some great runs and times and it doesn't sound like anyone has had a major blow up!

I'm quite jealous of those who have their lsr done. Not looking forward to mine tomorrow. I've decided to do the Cork to Cobh race (15 miles) and tag 5 miles on at the end. I hope phychologically I will be able to manage those extra 5 miles. I know it will be tough when every one else has finished their race. But the alternative is a long boring 20 mile run by myself, so I think the race will be good for a change.

My shin is a bit sore today, have no idea why. So I'm a bit worried about that. All in all I'm just a bit pensive about tomorrow. Wish me luck!

menoscemo

ncmc wrote: »

I'm quite jealous of those who have their lsr done. Not looking forward to mine tomorrow. I've decided to do the Cork to Cobh race (15 miles) and tag 5 miles on at the end. I hope phychologically I will be able to manage those extra 5 miles. I know it will be tough when every one else has finished their race. But the alternative is a long boring 20 mile run by myself, so I think the race will be good for a change.

Have you considered maybe doing 5 miles before the race? I think psychologically it would be much easier to finish off your 20 miles that way. It could be really hard to do 5 miles after the race especially because you will likely go a little faster than LSR pace in the race itself and be a little more tired than you would normally be after 15 miles as a result...

dechol

menoscemo wrote: »

dechol wrote: »

Seeing him tomorrow morning so fingers crossed it is nothing serious.

me too, let us know how you get on.....he is a serious man for fixing a problem.

Thanks for recommending. Went to him today.Pain in shin gone this morning and hopefully other niggles I had on long runs now solved.

ncmc

menoscemo wrote: »

Have you considered maybe doing 5 miles before the race? I think psychologically it would be much easier to finish off your 20 miles that way. It could be really hard to do 5 miles after the race especially because you will likely go a little faster than LSR pace in the race itself and be a little more tired than you would normally be after 15 miles as a result...

I did consider that Meno, but then I was worried I'd mistime it and maybe have a delay when I got to the start line or even worse, miss the start! Maybe I could try a 3 mile warm up and then two mile cool down? 2 miles at the end shouldn't be too daunting.

Trampas

ncmc wrote: »

Congrats on everyone who completed their 20 mile lsr today, some great runs and times and it doesn't sound like anyone has had a major blow up!

I'm quite jealous of those who have their lsr done. Not looking forward to mine tomorrow. I've decided to do the Cork to Cobh race (15 miles) and tag 5 miles on at the end. I hope phychologically I will be able to manage those extra 5 miles. I know it will be tough when every one else has finished their race. But the alternative is a long boring 20 mile run by myself, so I think the race will be good for a change.

My shin is a bit sore today, have no idea why. So I'm a bit worried about that. All in all I'm just a bit pensive about tomorrow. Wish me luck!

Do you grab your t-shirt and goody bag as you fly through the finishing area

lrak

LarMan wrote: »

I need reassurance

So I finished my 20 mile run and it was a tough run. I ran from Bray out to Blanchardstown via the phoenix park.

I suppose I was hoping for a run where at the end I would feel good and that another 10K would be no problem. In the end I got a run where despite the pace being 6:10 which was what I was hoping to do and which is 30 seconds per KM slower than my marathon time. I was really suffering. I had to take a couple of walk breaks, one in the phoenix park as I ran up Chesterfield avenue and one a couple of kilometers later in CastleKnock.

My left Achilles was really sore which was a new one for me. At the end of the run I couldn't imagine being able to do another 10K and certainly not at marathon pace.

So someone tell me it will be OK on the day, that after taper on fresh legs, with the adrenaline from race day and the support of the crowds it will all come together on the day.

LarMan, 5 weeks ago on my 18 m LSR I barely made it back to my car after hitting the wall at 16m, mix of a warm day and bad pacing and I really thought that was it, I'm not designed to run any further! But I suffered an injury, had 10 days rest and as posted earlier, paced correctly and felt great on my 20 m today ( never ran 19 at all) so I jumped from 18 - 20. Now, I'm not going as fast as you, but your taper will help you rest and regain strength, you will be fine, positive thoughts, positive outcomes.
Might be worth checking out your Achilles with a physio, I injured mine and they can be tricky. Best of luck

career_move

ncmc wrote: »

Congrats on everyone who completed their 20 mile lsr today, some great runs and times and it doesn't sound like anyone has had a major blow up!

I'm quite jealous of those who have their lsr done. Not looking forward to mine tomorrow. I've decided to do the Cork to Cobh race (15 miles) and tag 5 miles on at the end. I hope phychologically I will be able to manage those extra 5 miles. I know it will be tough when every one else has finished their race. But the alternative is a long boring 20 mile run by myself, so I think the race will be good for a change.

My shin is a bit sore today, have no idea why. So I'm a bit worried about that. All in all I'm just a bit pensive about tomorrow. Wish me luck!

Best of luck Missy. Will be thinking of you as I'm plodding around Athlone! I was going to add on another 2 miles at the end as well just to bring my total up to 500 since wk 1.....probably a stupid notion :rolleyes:

I've had a crap day today. I'm completely knackered and a stupid horse I was riding tripped up on the gallop and fell over. Off I go out over his head and the ******* gave me a good kicking as he got up. I'm actually vicious about it - have to rant here as everyone else is sick of listening to me complaining. My left buttock is black and blue and I'm walking like a cripple. The only painkillers I have are crappy paracetamol but I'm going to take a couple of them in the morning and hope for the best

ncmc

career_move wrote: »

Best of luck Missy. Will be thinking of you as I'm plodding around Athlone! I was going to add on another 2 miles at the end as well just to bring my total up to 500 since wk 1.....probably a stupid notion :rolleyes:

I've had a crap day today. I'm completely knackered and a stupid horse I was riding tripped up on the gallop and fell over. Off I go out over his head and the ******* gave me a good kicking as he got up. I'm actually vicious about it - have to rant here as everyone else is sick of listening to me complaining. My left buttock is black and blue and I'm walking like a cripple. The only painkillers I have are crappy paracetamol but I'm going to take a couple of them in the morning and hope for the best [/QUOTE

Best of luck in Athlone, you'll have no bother! That's awful about your riding accident, you were so lucky not to get really hurt. That's bound to be sore tomorrow. Take it handy during your race and don't worry if you don't keep up with the pacers. You're training has been faultless up to now and I have no doubt that you'll have no bother breaking 4 hours on the 29th. So be kind to yourself and don't push yourself too hard if you're not 100% in the morning!

ncmc

Trampas wrote: »

Do you grab your t-shirt and goody bag as you fly through the finishing area

LOL pretty much! People will think I'm either simple or lost!

dechol

Well done everyone on long runs today ! So close now. Actually looking forward to my run tomorrow as its final one before taper!