It's now fun to run

dazza21ie

Monday 19th May 5 miles @ 9:31 – Recovery Run

Tuesday 20th May Letterkenny Inter Firms 5K – 21:01

Plan had a session of 3 x 1 Mile @ 5k pace. Had thought for early on that it might be easier just to do a 5k race. Was meant to do a tune up race on the plan on the Saturday of the previous week but there were none available.

This is probably one of the top 5k’s in the county. Very good course, gets a good field and conditions on the night were pretty much perfect. Up until around the 3k point the race went well. Let the demons in my head get their say in then to leave a pretty disappointing finish. A session might have been easier after all.

Wednesday 21st May 4 miles @ 9:00
This was an evening recovery run but wasn’t watching my pace and ended up going a little quicker.

Thursday 22nd May 0
Was just putting on the runners in the evening to go out the door and then life got in the way. Could have still went out but it would have been a late start and finish and wanted to get Friday’s run done in the morning so just binned it.

Friday 23rd May 7 miles @ 8:35
Nice handy morning run. Done a few strides at the end.

Sunday 25th May 13 miles @ 8:40
This run ticked by quite nicely. Had a slow start but pace picked up as the run progressed.

Monday 26th May 5 miles @ 9:32
First of a few recovery runs planned for the week.

Tuesday 27th May Rest
Had planned to have the week’s rest day on Thursday but decided to change that at alarm clock time!

Wednesday 28th May 7 miles @ 8:50ish with 2 @ MP
Lovely morning for this. Knew heading out that my garmin battery didn’t have too long of a life span. Sure enough after 2 miles it was gone. Decided to postpone the MP miles until Thursday and kept the rest of the run pretty handy.

Thursday 29th May 5 miles @ 8:29 With 2 miles @ MP
A little bit overcast heading out for this but still mild. Have been having a variety of aches and pains at the start of runs over the last couple of weeks. The reassuring thing (I think!) is they are never in the same place. Done two miles pretty hand before the 2 at MP (7:32 & 7:36) and another easy one. MP felt ok, a steady effort.

Friday 30th May 5 miles @ 9:11 with strides
Today looked like it could be quite busy so rather than trying to squeeze another run just for the sake of it went out yesterday evening for the final run. Late going out but it was still quite mild. Kept it very gentle.

So that's the cycle complete. Picked up my race no yesterday and have gear laid out. Plan for tomorrow is to ease my way into it and then see what happens.

pconn062

Good luck!

career_move

Good luck Daz. Give it socks

DOCO12

Best of luck Dazza!!!

dazza21ie

3:44:59 according to the watch. 2nd half was tough going just a case of trying to keep going. That's the marathon itch sorted for s good while!

Runchick

brilliant stuff Dazza, I was thinking of you today, its pretty warm and muggy out there, I'm sure you felt the heat. Hope the celebrations are going well

DOCO12

Congrats Dazza, great going! enjoy the celebrations.

dazza21ie

Walled City Marathon - Derry 1st June 2014

Previous Marathon History
This was my 3rd marathon having “completed” Dublin in 2011 & 2012. The less said about 2011 (time: 6:14:03) the better. I returned a year later thinking I was properly prepared but quickly realising that I knew very little about running (and still don’t!). Set a PB of 4:41:06. Concentrated last year on shorter distances and toyed with the idea of doing the same this year only to sign up for Derry in October/November.

Training
Followed the 18 week P&D’s 55-70 mile plan for this marathon. Had debated between this and the up to 55 mile plan but thought (and hoped) the extra mileage would help with any endurance issues. Before the plan started I built up the mileage getting into the 50’s for 3 out of 4 weeks. Overall training has going all right. The body seemed to hold up ok to the increased mileage, got some good LR’s and MLR’s in. Not going to miss the 14/15-mile MLR’s which involved a 4:00 a.m. alarm. Struggle a bit with the LT runs and didn’t get the last one (7 miles @ LT) done. The VO2 max sessions near the end of the plan were tough but a nice change at the same time. In the end I actually peaked at 68 miles and due to tapering for races the plan became a 50-68 mile plan. I adjusted the schedule for races. The plan seemed to try and put 3 harder (higher mileage) weeks together before stepping back. The way my races fell I seemed to be stepping back after 2 weeks.

Tune Up Races
I ended up doing 3 tune up races: Omagh Half Marathon, SSE 10 Mile Derry & Letterkenny Inter Firms 5k. None of them went according to plan or inspired confidence. They were all useful in preparing for the marathon but each of them dented the confidence a little bit also.

Build Up
Tapering started 3 weeks out and it probably came just at the right time as mentally the training had become a bit of a chore. Can’t say I noticed a dramatic increase in freshness during taper. But most of my runs during taper were done early morning so it always takes a couple of miles to get going with them anyway. In the week before the marathon made sure to do the basics, drank plenty of water, increased carb intake, made sure to get a bit more sleep. Picked the race number up in Derry on Friday. Had heard earlier that day that there was an incident at the Everglades Hotel, the start of the marathon, which caused a fire in the reception area of the hotel.

Race Day
Was up at 5 a.m. which was around the norm for a Sunday long run. Had breakfast and headed over to Derry. Going through Newbuildings saw the first sign of the traffic cones and marathon route started to focus the mind. Parked at Foyleside east and got the shuttle bus back out to the start. Was at the start an hour and half early but that time seemed to fly by. A couple of toilet trips and then getting myself sorted before leave my bag in the bag drop area and it was time to move over to the start line. Despite Friday's incident it was very relaxed around the start area. I had seen a few PSNI Officers around the front of the hotel with dogs but I would say most people would have missed that.

Lined up beside the 3:30 pacers. Plan as such was to head out with them for the first 3-4 miles and see how things felt then. Had thought that pace would ease me into it and should be able to pick it up a little before the first climb on the course between 7-9 miles. Took a gel before we got started.

Miles 1-5
The race started with the sound of a horn and it was a slow get away before we were moving out of the hotel grounds. Out on the road I slotted in beside one of the two pacers. The run down towards Newbuildings was seamless. Felt good, was holding myself back from moving past the pacers. The course turns back on itself in Newbuildings so we meet the leaders come back towards us. Unsurprisingly Freddy the Kenyan was already in a good lead. A quick check of the pace showed we were running low 7:40’s which surprised me. Eventually I realised the pacers were purposely doing this with the course profile in mind probably. Coming back in the Victoria road we branch off onto an adjacent walkway that takes back in towards the city.

Miles 6-10
Took my second gel after 5 miles. Mile 6 had the first run over, or more accurately under, the Craigavon Bridge. Garmin went a bit crazy under this. Getting out on the other side was the first time we meet the crowds out supporting in real numbers, up until then it had been rather quiet but comfortable all the same. I knew miles 8 and 9 would be tough. The pace group quieted down as we climbed up the Letterkenny road. We reached the summit earlier than I was expecting. It should have been an easy back in effort at the top but the pace picked up and for half a mile we were going sub 7:30 pace before the pacer had realised. The injection of pace made me realise that I wasn't able to move ahead and I was going to do well holding on to the group. Took another gel at the 10-mile marker.

Miles 11-16
We had turned off from the Letterkenny road and travelled down a country road before moving onto a walkway that brought us back alongside the river. Plenty of tree cover here which messed with the garmin and the pacer took a pit stop which all messed with the pacing for a while. Went through the halfway marker still out in the countryside in 1:42:42. Was working too hard at this point so eased off a bit and the pacing group slowly moved ahead. Took another gel hoping it would help get me back on track. They had moved out of sight when we made back into the city. A nasty little climb followed up to the Craigavon Bridge. I had lost the comfort of a group and was running solo now.

Miles 17-23
Miles 17 - 18 took in the 2nd major climb on the route, the Limavady road. I really struggle up this and came to a walk a few times on the way up. At this stage it is just a case of trying to get to the finish. A nice downhill stretch had started at the end of the 18th mile but I wasn’t able to make great use of it. We moved down along the river into St. Columb’s park. It was fairly quiet along this section and I struggled some more. Had a couple of toilet stops along here. Seen New Runner from these parts go by me just before a hill in the park, she was going strong. Coming to the end of the park heading towards the Peace Bridge you could hear the noise from the other side of the river. This seemed to pick me up a bit and I started to go past some people and get into a comfortable stride. Crossing the Peace Bridge was one of the highlights of the marathon. I was moving properly again, going past a few people. Some nice views on either side of the bridge and there was a fresh breeze blowing in your face. There was great support on the other side of the bridge and I started to think that I might be able to keep going until the finish now. Unfortunately once we turned off from the Strand Road (onto Bay Road I think) the noise disappeared and we were almost on our own again. I startled to struggle again. Took another gel again hoping it would give me something. I think it was before the 22-mile marker I got hit on the head by a balloon as the 3:45 pacers were going by. I tagged onto the back of their small group and managed to keep with them for half a mile or so before having to ease off again. Legs were really starting to cramp up at this stage. Feet had become sore from 16 miles onwards and it was making it hard to get a comfortable stride going.

Miles 24-Finish
We were heading back in towards the city again and I thought if could get myself going at a consistent pace the noise of the crowds might keep me going until the end. Once on the 25th mile I started to think about the infamous Fahan St. hill. There was a small hill halfway through this mile, which I made it up ok without any real bother and started to think that was it done. Soon realised that I was mistaken! The real climb came at the end of the mile. There was a slight climb before a left turn back and upwards and it look quite imposing from the bottom. It was swarmed with people on both sides and the noise level was unbelievable. I put the head down and just concentrated on keeping going. The higher you got up the narrower the road got as the crowds were narrowing in on us. When you think you got to the top you have to turn right and go through an archway, which has another part of the climb. I had to go past one guy near the top and there was just enough room to make it past him. The route then flattens before gradually giving you back all that elevation. The crowds quickly vanish but it isn’t too hard to keep going now. Only a mile to go! The last half-mile or so is on the flat again running alongside the Foyle once more before turning into Guildhall Square. Think some guy went flying past me on the run into the finish line. I could see the clock in the distance and the time tick over 3:45. Was surprised at that considering that I had been passed by the pacers a few miles earlier. Put the foot down for the last bit and was pleasantly surprised to see 3:44:59 on the watch (chip time 3:44:57).

Was quickly presented with a gigantic medal (weighs a tonne) and there was a relatively smooth transition getting some water, goodie bag and picking up my bag before heading out and meeting up with Mrs. Dazza and the little ones who were there to greet me.

Have had time to have a think about it all and overall I can say I am satisfied with the effort. Managed a 56 or so minute PB despite things not going according to plan. Obviously I had trained with a better time in mind. However, nothing in my tune up races actually confirmed that a 3:15 or 3:20 was actually on. Bearing in mind the course profile it wasn’t a race to try and push at your time limit at anyway. A 19-minute positive split isn’t the most efficient or fun way to run a marathon admittedly.

Was impressed with the marathon as a whole. Very well organised. The route is tough but manageable. The support in the city parts is pretty impressive. There are unfortunately parts were supporters can’t or don’t go which can be difficult. The numbers are up on last year I think and they seem to be learning from past experience. And for those who like a nice medal you probably won’t get a bigger one than here. It was pretty good value at £35 (I think!).

Where to now?
In my head I have unfinished business with the marathon. It is still a nut that I haven’t been able to crack. Am likely to be in Dublin this year for DCM but will be running that with Mrs Dazza who will attempt her 1st marathon. Will likely leave the distance again for another while. Would like to see improvement over shorter distances before attempting another cycle i.e. looking more at strength in races when things get tough more so than improved times. Have earmarked a few 5 and 10ks to do over the summer now. Hoping the mileage done over the last few months will stand to me. Will follow a plan for training but am looking forward to having slightly less structure and just enjoying it a bit more. For the next few weeks it will be a case of taking a bit of rest and then some easy running.

career_move

Well done Daz. Sorry you didn't get the time you wanted and your training deserved. It sounds like a tough enough route and a pb of nearly an hour in a year and a half is super. How are the legs feeling?

dazza21ie

career_move wrote: »

Well done Daz. Sorry you didn't get the time you wanted and your training deserved. It sounds like a tough enough route and a pb of nearly an hour in a year and a half is super. How are the legs feeling?

Thanks CM, forgot to put the link to the route in report. Route had some tough parts but I was actually expecting worse. Legs have come out of it ok. Still a bit of DOMS but nothing major.

Runchick

Hey Dazza brilliant report, you've come such a long way since DCM 12, congrats on such a huge pb! I'm the same as you with the "unfinished business" with the marathon but learning to be patient! Enjoy the break and rest for a few weeks, I think we need time out mentally just as much as physically. Do you know how New Runner got on? I was hoping she might post something around these parts...

dazza21ie

Runchick wrote: »

Hey Dazza brilliant report, you've come such a long way since DCM 12, congrats on such a huge pb! I'm the same as you with the "unfinished business" with the marathon but learning to be patient! Enjoy the break and rest for a few weeks, I think we need time out mentally just as much as physically. Do you know how New Runner got on? I was hoping she might post something around these parts...

Thanks Runchick, assuming I have the right person New Runner had a great race, time of 3:36:03 and looks like a 2 min 30 negative split. Pretty impressive!

dazza21ie

Back for another try...
I stopped logging in this log over 2 years ago now, right after finishing my report for the Walled City Marathon. It was intended to take a break from posting for a while after that but it wasnt intended for the break to be so long. Truth be told I was frustrated both with the performances during that marathon cycle and with logging in general. I had started a new job earlier that year that had eaten into free time for things like logging. At the time I didnt feel I was getting much benefit from the log. I was already keeping an offline track of training so I didn’t think I needed to duplicate it anymore.

I was frustrated at the time about that particular marathon cycle because I felt I wasn't translating the training being done into good performances in races. Looking back now, while there was an element of underperformance in the races I done there was also probably a bit of unrealistic expectations. Looking back further in my log I realised that while the training done for a specific race may not have achieved the desired result in that goal race it just didn’t go away either. A good reference point for this was in the summer of 2013 where I was working towards a 10k race which didnt work out as planned. However, that training helped me achieve a big 5k goal for that year very shortly afterwards.

So why start logging again? I have typed up a few earlier versions of this post but stopped short of posting them. I think I realised after a period of not logging that I wasn’t giving the training the same focus or structure. In the months after WCM I took it easy, done a couple of 5ks and ticked along training wise. I done DCM 2014 with Mrs Dazza, her first marathon. That was an enjoyable experience, doing a marathon without having to push yourself to make a time. We had planned to do it together in 2011 but life got in the way which was probably for the best because we were both much better prepared for it in 2014. After that it has been fairly inconsistent. I have some scattered records of what running I have done since then but nothing coherent. I done one race, a local 5k, last year. I would plan to do a race a few months away, do maybe a month of consistent running and then slacken off. The races never happened and I could take weeks and even a month off without a run. Looking back now my most consistent running happened while I was logging here. Day to day life hasn't got any quieter, we have now got 3 kids and work has become busier than ever so time will have to be carefully used.

Fitness wise I wouldn't be in great shape. I got away with a lot diet wise while in marathon training but unfortunately kept eating as if I was still training for the last two years .Truth be told my diet while marathon training probably left a lot to be desired and didn’t complement the training being done. In short I am now weighing in at 95kg which is a good 15kg at least over what it should be and was. Running wise I am treating it as a restart from scratch but I am hoping that there is some retained fitness deep within.
GOALS - Short term I am going with a mentality of setting the bar low to avoid disappointment! The goals for the rest of the year are simple: get back running consistently and build mileage back up gradually while also gently introducing some speed work. I haven't done a race all year so I hope to do a 5k and 10k just as a fitness test.

Long term - I wasn't doing anything spectacular in 2014 but I would still like to get back to there and then maybe a bit further. I realise that it is going to take time to get back into reasonable shape and it is going to take good training along with a much better diet.

dazza21ie

So onto the running!

After a nearly no running in July and the first half of this month I have tried to get back into it.

I have just started in the last two weeks trying to slow build up the mileage.

So two weeks ago it was a slight shock to the system but I managed 19 miles @ 9:53 mins/mile average.

The week just past was 22 miles @ 9:27 mins/mile average.

Plan for the moment is just to build the weekly total up gradually.

dazza21ie

Monday 29th August 4.2 miles @ 9:11 (Inc 4 x 200m w/ 200 rec)

Sometime last year I really got fed up with morning running or more particularly the morning run alarm and I tried to moving running to evening time which has never really worked for me. But for the last two weeks I have been back out early in the morning and enjoying it again.

It probably helps when you open the front door to a nice crisp morning. I included the 200m reps just to mix it up a little without moving too far away from easy running. The legs were feeling good after a rest day yesterday.

career move

Welcome back!! Glad to hear you haven't abandoned the early morning runs

AuldManKing

career move wrote: »

Welcome back!! Glad to hear you haven't abandoned the early morning runs

What are you up to K these days? Still flittering with the dark side??

dazza21ie

AuldManKing wrote: »

What are you up to K these days? Still flittering with the dark side??

https://ar.attackpoint.org/log.jsp/user_16271 put a life jacket on before opening

career move wrote: »

Welcome back!! Glad to hear you haven't abandoned the early morning runs

Thanks CM, congrats on your race, still haven't finished reading the report yet! Sounds like you are enjoying it all

dazza21ie

Tuesday 30th of August 3 miles @ 9:44 mins/mile
Wednesday 31st August 3 miles @ 9:27 mins/mile

Both short runs around the Twin Towns with slightly different routes. The legs were a little sluggish on Tuesday but okay today.

I got a new Garmin Forerunner 235 delivered yesterday so it got its first spin out this morning. My trusty 205 has served me well for the last 4 years but I decided to upgrade to get the benefit of the automatic upload and HR features among other things. I don't plan to pay too much attention for the next few weeks about the HR data but I hope it will be useful long term.

A mighty 51 miles up for the month and unfortunately this has been one of the better months this year!

dazza21ie

Thursday 1st September 4 mile progression run = 4 miles @ 8:56

The first mile of this was very easy, 2nd mile still relatively easy but a little quicker. After that I tried pick up the pace by 20 secs/mile every half mile with the last 1/2 mile done at 7:38 pace.

Friday 2nd September 4 miles easy = 4 miles @ 9:25
Back to just nice and easy running for this one around the town.

Saturday 3rd September 7 miles easy = 7 miles @ 9:09
First run probably this year out into the countryside. Used a route that has been well worn at this stage but it was the first time going around it this year. Miles 2 & 3 have a pretty constant climb which tested the legs and lungs that were not used to that for a while. But a good run to get done. I am hoping to get the distance for this run up into double digits in the weeks ahead.

That's 25 miles up for the week.

dazza21ie

Monday 5th September 6 miles @ 9:06 (2 miles easy, 6 x 400m w/ 400m rec, 1 mile easy)

A mini session of sorts, still just re-introducing a bit of speed into the runs. The first mile was quite sluggish. There was a light drizzle and a bit of a breeze. Back to my usual spot for these reps starting a few meters from Finn Park. I didn't really have any idea what pace I should be targeting for these, its been a while doing them. So I decided to just start into them and judge it by effort. The reps were 96, 97, 95, 94, 97, 95. Consistent enough and they felt hard at that pace. A nice slow trot home afterwards going the long way to finish up.

I plan to do the New Mills 10k which is run by Letterkenny AC on the 23rd of October. The course for the 10k takes in a good bit of the 5 mile course they use which I have done before. The plan would be to do another local 10k in November and do a 5k in December. I am a good bit off PB shape for any distances so it is just a case of setting a target to train for and then try and set a mark to improve from.

dazza21ie

Tuesday 6th September 4 miles @ 9:52
This was the first real slog of a run for a while. My legs were just tired and sluggish and not really interested. After Monday's harder effort I didn't push it and tried to keep it very easy.

Wednesday 7th September 4 miles @ 9:46
Same route as Tuesday and was feeling much better. Probably could have pushed the pace a little bit more on this run without needing to use that much more effort. I can put it done as a few lazy miles.

Thursday 8th September 5 miles @ 8:41 (inc 20 mins tempo)
Me and tempos have never really worked well together. I plan to start using some of the Jack Daniel plans in a few weeks time once I have built back up the mileage a bit more. So I set an arbitrary target tempo pace of 7:30 mins/mile. After two slow easy miles to warm up I set off into the tempo part. I was even kind enough to leave myself at the top of a nice downhill to begin with. It was breezy out and I was running into the breeze for the first mile. It didn't matter how much I tried I couldn't get myself on target pace and the first tempo mile was 7:39. The route turns back towards town at this point under a bit of tree cover and when I got out onto the main road the pace had dropped to 7:51. It was a bit of an effort to try and get the pace back on track but 7:42 wasn't terrible. Heading back towards town it was getting hard but I thought I had managed to convince myself to dig in until I found myself pressing the stop button on the garmin. I have had a history of doing this during sessions and I was immediately reprimanding myself. If you quit during a session then it is too easy to quit during a race. I took a few deep breaths and got going again. The last 0.62 miles was at 7:32 pace.
A short easy trot home brought up a five mile total for the run.

career move

Good work on the consistency! It's great that you're getting a run done most days. I've had to cut back the running lately and I really miss it!!!

As regards the tempo, I think it's maybe better not to focus on a target pace too much. You might get better results going by effort especially early on. It's much nicer feeling like you've worked really hard but still have a bit left than feeling like you've packed it in. And tempo pace varies so much anyway according to conditions and how you're feeling.

Basically don't be too hard on yourself is what I'm saying

P.S Thanks for the log follow

dazza21ie

Thanks CM

Your right (of course!) I should have been more concentrated on effort as opposed to pace for the tempo. I will probably include a tempo run for the next few weeks, nothing beats practice.

I got finished reading your Itera report, that was quite impressively bonkers! It must have been a shock to the system not getting your 10 hours of sleep during the race! Seriously well done, I hope you get that injury cleared up, you must be long overdue a return to the roads

dazza21ie

Saturday 10th September 10 miles @ 9:07
Same route as last week with a mile tacked on to increase the distance. A little bit less effort was needed to go a bit further. That's a good sign for some levels of fitness coming back. I wore my head torch for the first time in ages. I prefer to wear it with a running hat which helps to stop it moving about. It was too mild to wear a hat but dark enough at the start of the run to need the torch. I tightened the bands as much as I could and went with just the torch.

Sunday 11th September 3 miles @ 9:24
This was Friday's planned run that didn't happen. Didn't have to go out as early as normal. I was listening to a podcast and was nearly thinking of extending the run.

That brings up 30 miles for the week.

dazza21ie

Monday 12th September 5 miles @ 8:50 (inc 5 x 3 mins hard w/ 1 min recovery)

For some reason I thought this was going to quite handy. By the end of the run I was thinking I had bitten off more than I could run! It was dry out but with a strong breeze. My legs were quite tired for the first couple of easy miles which included some stops to adjust my head torch. The hard efforts were being judged by effort rather than pace. They went: 3 mins @ 7:02, 3 mins @ 7:22, 3 mins @ 7:45, 3 mins @ 8:06, 3 mins @ 7:49. Easy to see a drop in pace as the session went on. The first one had a bit of a downhill stretch near the end and after that I kept getting hit by a swirling breeze but I just tried to concentrate on effort rather than the slowing pace. Have realised since that the session should have been 5-6 x 2 mins hard and not 3 mins.

dazza21ie

Tuesday 13th September 4 miles @ 9:33
The usual route around town for this one. It took the legs a couple of miles to get going.

Wednesday 14th September 4 miles @ 9:19
As above - the legs were a little more responsive today. I probably pushed the pace on a little bit too.

Thursday 15th September 5 miles @ 8:42 (inc 20 mins tempo)
This was a repeat of last Thursdays session. I wasn't sure I was going to be up for it as I could feel a head cold coming on yesterday. I felt alright this morning and decided to make a call after a couple of miles warm up. There was no breeze this morning for a change. The legs had a little bit more energy in them for some reason this morning so I reckoned I had to give the tempo a go.

Same route as last week but the plan was to judge the pace by effort as opposed a predefined pace on a watch (as per Career Move's advice ). Just before I came to the end of my two mile warm up I realised that I had my head torch on upside down, I had the benefit of street lighting up until that point so hadn't bothered to turn it on. I probably should have just stopped to fix it but as it wasn't moving around on me I decided to leave it and spent the first minute or two of the tempo section trying to adjust it so that I had the benefit of some light.

After that it was just a case of getting into a rhythm and keep it moving along. A bit of a downhill stretch helped improve the pace of the first mile after a slower first couple of minutes and the effort was kept up until the end. I covered 2.62 miles @ 7:42 mins/mile average (Mile splits: 7:45, 7:42, 0.6 @ 7:39). Happy enough with that. Pretty consistent and no stops!

dazza21ie

Friday 16th September 3 miles @ 9:46

Wasn't feeling great with the cold and after Thurday's decent effort decided to keep this one very easy.

Sunday 18th September 10 miles @ 9:23

I had planned to do this on Saturday but the head cold still hadn't cleared so I had a lie in instead. I was feeling a good bit better this morning but once I got out running didn't seem to have much energy. After two miles I thought it was going to be a real struggle and had some thoughts of turning back for home and cutting it short. That passed and after 3 miles I wasn't feeling as sluggish and the pace picked up. The route turns back towards town onto the main road after 5 miles and I was meet with a strong head wind and rain but this passed after 1 mile or so and then it become quite pleasant. The pace was quite consistent but the legs started to feel the extra distance especially in the last mile. It was the longest run done this year and probably for a good bit longer than that too. Good to have it in the legs.

That brought up 31 miles for the week. 5 weeks out from the first race for the year and consistency over those weeks is the most important thing.

dazza21ie

Monday 19th September 4.5 miles @ 9:36
After Sunday's longer run this was being kept easy. Tried out a new route which took me out of town, took in a strava segment and brought up a little bit extra distance wise.

Tuesday 20th September 4.3 miles @ 9:40
The plan for this was a session involving 200m reps. I was doing my warm up and the legs were moving along quite nicely and then I came crashing down. For all the hills, uneven country roads and uneven footpaths that I have run on over the last few years this happened on probably the flattest surface. As I was lying flat on my face on the ground I was confused as to how it happened. I gingerly got up on my feet and took a look around to see if anyone had seen the embarrassing tumble! I was safe enough, it was around 5:45 a.m. so not too much foot or vehicle traffic about.

It took me a while to figure out what had happened. I had passed over a manhole cover and there was a piece protruding up from it, probably something for pulling it open. It was pretty small, maybe an inch of a rise from the otherwise flat surface. My right foot obviously just landed perfectly behind it to catch it on the way up. It brought me down. My hands done their job and still have the marks to show for it. A stinging sensation came on. I was getting cold standing around so tried to get running again. And after a couple of minutes I was feeling okay. I was half thinking of giving the session a go but then my body reminded me that I was cut and scraped all over and going home was probably the sensible thing to do. So after another 2 miles I went home!

Wednesday 21st of September 4.5 miles @ 9:45
I decided just to do an easy run as I had felt a bit stiff and bruised after Tuesday's fall. Same route as Monday.

Thursday 22nd of September 5.2 miles @ 8:55 (incl 20 mins tempo(ish) @ 7:49)
I decided to scrap the planned 200m rep session that just wan't meant to happen and went for another 20 minute tempo run this morning. Heading out it was noticeably colder than the last few weeks. There was a clear sky with the stars still visible as I headed off. The first two miles warm up were hardly even that. Maybe I needed to go faster! I started into the tempo part. The mile splits were: 7:42, 7:58, 7:53 (0.56 mile).

The pace of the first mile was okay, I was in a decent rhythm. I think from the end of the first mile I started to realise that my route was heading towards the stretch of road where the tragic RTA happened yesterday. It didn't feel right running along there even though the road had been reopened. I started feeling cold again and I was definitely distracted. As I headed back into town I tried to pick up the pace a bit more but there was a part of me that wasn't too interested. Looking now at the HR data I the effort wasn't hard enough for a tempo run. In the whole scheme of things though it doesn't really matter.

dazza21ie

Friday 23rd September 4.5 miles @ 9:32
Basically the same run as Monday and Wednesday without too much incident.

Saturday 24th September 10 miles @ 9:17
Same route and distance as last weekend. It was very wet and windy out. I was soaked to the blubber after 2 miles and there was a strong swirling breezing making sure that the rain got me from all angles. But the miles ticked off and although I was tiring a little near the end the last mile was the quickest.

33 miles up for the week.

dazza21ie

Monday 26th of September 5.4 miles (inc 2 sets of 6 x 200m w/ 200m rec & 400m between sets)

This was the session from last week that didn't happen. And it nearly didn't happen again this week.

I was all ready for an early night. I had been keeping an eye on the golf but turned it off only to turn it back on again when I seen there was a playoff which delayed getting to sleep for another hour. So out early this morning, operating on 5 hours sleep I was pretty pleased by the fact I had made it out of the bed. The 2 warm up miles were slow but easy so I started into the session.

The 200 reps were:
Set 1: 53 seconds, 50, 40!,49, 46, 48
Set 2: 47, 44, 45, 44, 46, 42

The target based on my feel for current fitness was somewhere between 45-47 seconds. It was very disjointed at the start. It took a while for the legs to find any rhythm and the feel for the required effort. I actually stopped after the first one questioning whether it was worth keeping going at all given how far off the pace I was. I misjudged the end point of the third one which made it a good bit short and then had to stop and tie my shoelace somewhere during the first set too. But then the second set worked out alright so overall it was a decent effort. I would have preferred a bit longer of a cool down but was short of time so had to take the shortest route home.

dazza21ie

Wednesday 28th September 5 miles @ 9:33
I was over at the blood donation clinic late on Monday evening so that ruled out a run on Tuesday morning. I was trying to keep this run pretty easy but you could feel the body was working that bit harder. The average heart rate for the run was 140 whereas it is usually low 130's. The obvious thing being that it was the effect of the donation on Monday.

Thursday 29th September 5 miles @ 9:36
Another easy run was planned for this and I purposefully tried to keep the effort down which meant a ever so slightly slower run.

Friday 30th September 6 miles @ 9:19
I had hope to get a tempo run done during this run but just didn't feel like it when I went out - maybe a bit lazy. I done two different loops around town and as I was out a bit earlier I had a bit extra time to get the 6 miles done.

That brought up 131 miles for the Month.

Sunday 2nd October 10 miles @ 9:12
I was at a wedding on Friday so a Saturday morning run didn't appeal. Heading out this morning it was very cold. So much so that I was tempted to turn back for an extra layer. It took maybe 3 miles to get "warmed up" but really the cold feeling never really went away. The first 3 miles were slow but the pace picked up gradually and the last 3 miles were all at 8:40 pace without the effort levels having to rise too much.

That brought up 31.5 miles for the week off 5 runs so happy enough with that.

dazza21ie

Monday 3rd October 5.5 miles @ 9:39
Tuesday 4th October 5.5 miles @ 9:33
Thursday 6th October 5 miles @ 9:37
Friday 7th October 5.5 miles @ 8:53
Sunday 9th October 11 miles @ 9:18

Only 5 runs again this week unfortunately but a weekly total of 31.5 miles is pretty consistent. I tried to do a bit of speedwork on Monday. It probably was a bit to close to Sunday's longer run and it didn't last too long. I setup a session on the garmin which I haven't really done before and then tried a change of scenery. It didn't really work. i went out too hard for the first rep and wasn't trusting my watch in calculating the distance and after 3 or 4 reps I decided to bin it and try it again another day.

Move on to Tuesday and I try again - maybe again too soon but back on my normal stretch where I have done quite a few reps in the past. Again it was a session setup on the Garmin but it was all over the place in measuring the distances and that was too distracting for me so after 3 reps I binned it again.

I didn't make it out on Wednesday - I had the gear on but for some reason just didn't fancy it and binned it for bottle feeding duties with the little one.

i kept it easy on Thursday and then tried a tempo on Friday, again on a different route than normal and again it just wasn't happening. Been the theme for the week. I was due to do my longer run on Saturday morning, I had a few podcasts lined up but forgot the important thing of setting my alarm.

I managed to get out this morning and upped the distance by another mile to bring up the longest run of the year.

Not a terrible week but I could do with finishing out a session over the week ahead.

dazza21ie

Monday 10th October 5 miles @ 9:54
The slowest run for a while. My legs were really stiff and heavy for the first 2-3 miles of this. A little bit of a pick up in pace near the end of the run but the body had decided from the very start that this was going to be very very easy. Obviously the extra mile on Sunday did make a difference.

Tuesday 11th October 6 miles inc 3 x 1 mile @ tempo
It was very very cold out this morning. The legs were feeling a good bit better and after a two mile warm up I didn't feel the cold as much. I done a few strides before starting the tempo miles. It was 3 x 1 mile with 1 minute rests recovery. The mile times were: 7:15, 7:33, 7:35. I would have hoped for anything in the 7:3x range so not too bad at all. The first mile does have a decent downhill stretch at the start which accounts for a slightly quicker time. 20 seconds into the first mile I had to stopped to tie my shoelaces and around half way through the second one I was forced to stop before crossing onto the main road because of traffic.

dazza21ie

Wednesday 12th October 5.5 miles @ 9:38
Back to the mild weather for the rest of this week and this was over the usual 5 mile route that I do. I went out a few minutes earlier to give a little extra time at the end of the run to fit in a few strides. The legs were a bit tired for the first 2-3 miles of this.

Thursday 13th October 5.5 miles @ 9:28
A different route for a change, or part of it was different. I took in part of the course that is used for the local 10k which is coming up in November. Again I managed a few strides at the end but otherwise all kept pretty easy.

Friday 14th October 6 miles incl 6 x 1k @ tempo w/ 1 min rests
I have been using the Jack Daniel's running formula book for sessions over the last few weeks and this week's sessions are from the Red Plan. I think I might start working my way up through his basis plans before doing the 5-10k specific plan.
I had set this session up on the watch the night before - it took forever because I tried to set it up on my phone. It was only during my first 1k rep that I realised that I hadn't actually selected the workout at the start of my run. I carried on with the first rep and used the first recovery to change the autolap on my watch from mile to kilometer. This was session that progressively got harder. The first 2 reps felt nearly easy but I was digging in a bit during the 6th rep. The 1k times were: 4:14*, 4:28, 4:28, 4:33, 4:31, 4:28. The first rep was a small bit short based on a guesstimate on distance before I changed the autolap. After that they were quite consistent all coming in between 7:27 - 7:35 mins/mile pace.
I hadn't given myself enough time for the run so the cool down was very short as I had finished the last rep very close to the estate.

Saturday 15th October 10 miles @ 9:23
When planning out the week I had wrongly assumed that I my window to do a long run was going to be on Sunday morning as opposed to today. So it was intended to do this after yesterday's session. But I reckoned a slower long run was better than no run and that is what I got. The legs were tired but not overly for the first 2-3 miles. There was a pick up in pace after that but not as much as would normally happen.

That brought up 37 miles for the week. The best week so far this year. The next planned race is due to be next Sunday. I will plan the week ahead with that in mind. Life might get in the way of actually making the start line but that can't be helped.

Murph_D

What's the race, dazza?

dazza21ie

Murph_D wrote: »

What's the race, dazza?

It's the Newmills 10k, it starts and finishes at the Aura in Letterkenny

Murph_D

Best of luck! Whats the target?

dazza21ie

Murph_D wrote: »

Best of luck! Whats the target?

Thanks, I am not really sure what the target is, maybe something around 46 minutes is doable

dazza21ie

Monday 17th October 5 miles @ 9:51
i had given myself a bit of extra time for this one with a view of getting six miles in. It was extremely wet and windy heading out and it just got worse while I was out there. Again I took in a good part of the 10k route that is due to take place in a few weeks. I seemed to be running into a wall or rain. I was struggling to even see where I was going and had to stop a few times to fix one of my contact lenses. I was soak through and decided to just take the shortest route home cutting it short by a mile.

Wednesday 18th October 5 miles @ 9:14
I hadn't planned to take Tuesday off until it happened and I had planned to do something a bit quicker for this run but when I got out I just didn't feel like it. I did manage a couple of sets of pyramid strides just to mix it up a little.

Thursday 19th October 5 miles @ 9:28
This was a copy of Wednesdays run with pyramid strides and all included. A little bit slower but easy going all the same.

Friday 20th October 6 miles @ 9:34
Not sure why I saved my longest run of the week to two days before a planned race. I done a reverse loop of an usual route of mine which did feel quite strange running the wrong way. There is a steep climb which I would normally get two miles but came near the end of the fourth mile. Something a little different anyway.

Sunday 21st October - Newmills 10K
I had planned to do a few easy miles on Saturday morning but again laziness got in the way.

This was my first race of the year and first since March 2015 and first 10k for 3 years since I set my PB of 41:29. I had no illusions about getting anywhere near a PB. It wasn't really about time as such anyway. Since my last race there have been many races earmarked as potential races that I might do. I would often try to get back running regular with such race as a goal only to fall of the wagon after a couple of weeks or maybe a month and never get close to the start line. So the important thing for me today was turning up to an extent. Also if I could give it a good effort I would have an idea where my current fitness levels are so that training can be adapted to that level rather than guessing what paces I should be running at.

I got over to registration at the Aura Center in Letterkenny at 11:00 with the race start at 11:30. It was a very relaxed registration that only took a minute and I was back at the car removing the extra layers pretty soon and on my way for a warm up. I headed back in towards the town along the footpath but this soon became quite crowded as the runners all arrived for the start. I done just over a mile of a warm up with a few strides at the end. While waiting for the start i was looking around at the decent crowd that had turned up. There were quite a few familiar faces. It was helped by the glorious weather with a bright sun shining down on us.

Without too much warning the race started rather abruptly. I had given myself a plan of sorts. I had changed the settings on my watch to auto lap every kilometer (but with pacing still in miles!). I didn't want to go out too quickly so the plan was for the first two kilometers to be no quicker than 4:40 each and slower if I felt like it. So with that in mind I was relatively relaxed at the start. As we moved I away I stayed behind the two girls in front of me and didn't try an do the usual manic get away. The start brought us into the town and gaps opened up for me to move through without having to move across the road.

I notice a group of 4 or 5 in front of me and tagged onto them as we headed out by Oldtown turning right at the roundabout. The pace was a little slower than I thought I would be heading out at but I decided to stick with this little group to see how things went. It didn't seem that long when watch beep for the first KM split at 4:58.

I was feeling okay and thought this was a decent way of starting out. There was plenty of time to push on later in the race if I want. Our little group was being lead by 3 guys who were running together, one wearing a LAC singlet and another one whom I knew. There was a man and woman running together behind them and then I was tailing the group. We became a bit fractured during the 2nd km and the 3 guys started pulling away a bit. I decide to go with them rather than the two in front of me so I move past them. The 2nd km is a little quicker @ 4:47.

Again I was happy how things were going but during the 3rd km I started to doubt whether I was able to keep up the pace never mind push on. The 3 guys had opened up a gap of 10-20 meters on me and I found myself in no man's land. It was here that I started to feel the effects of the sun. For someone who has been running in early morning darkness for the last 3 months it was getting a little warm at time but we had the benefit of regular tree cover over this part of the course which helped. The 3rd km split was 4:57.

The route has us on a back road which is a little bit undulating. The 3 guys are still a decent bit in front of me but they start to catch a few other runners. They catch another girl running with a guy in a Convoy Ac top and slowly move past them. it gives me a target though and I slowly catch up to the two runners. I find myself falling in behind them, not intentionally but I wasn't running that much quicker than them to go past. However, just as we finish the 4th km there is a little climb and I move past them pretty easily on this. 4th km 4:57.

The overtaking gave me a little bit of a second wind and I manage to close the gap quite quickly to the 3 guys in front of me. Having closed the gap I didn't feel the need to make any quick move to go past them. However, we are catching a few other runners and as I move past one of these I just keep going and move past the 3 guys as well and got a shout out from the guy I know. 5th km 5:02

Just after the half way point there was a water station and I awkwardly grabbed a cup on the run taking a few sips and splashing my face with some. This slowed things down a bit but a minute or so later we were turning back towards the start and headed over the Newmills bridge that brought us back out onto the main road. I wasn't feeling as warm anymore as this stretch of road is always like a wind tunnel and there was a strong breeze blowing against us now. 6th km 5:06

I was struggling a bit at this stage and felt the effort running back into the breeze and was running on my own. I spot a group of four runners ahead of me and tried to use them as a target. We passed a stretch that had some tree cover and this eased the effect of the breeze briefly. 7th km 4:58

I had closed the gap on those in front of me. From further back it had looked like they were a group but as I drew closer the were running in single file with 10-20 meters of a gap between them. The last of the four was a LAC runner. I tried to focus on my stride and control my breathing and I seemed to move past her with ease. And later in the KM I closed on the next guy wearing a maroon t-shirt. 8th km 5:00

Ahead of me was a guy wearing a blue t-shirt and a bit further ahead of him was a guy in a Lifford AC vest. However, coming past me on my left was a guy in a Gaelforce top who move quite easily by. I didn't have the energy or speed to go with him. I could also hear the breathing of the guy in the maroon t-shirt coming closer to me so I tried to push on a bit more to open a gap on him. The other two guys ahead of me seemed to have move further away rather than getting closer and I was losing hope of catch either of them. There was a bit of a drag as we were approaching Ballymacool and slowly I start to reel in the guy in the blue t-shirt. 8th km 5:00

The climb continues but it is ever so slight but it seems to give me a slight advantage and I catch and move past the guy in blue. It takes a bit to open a gap on him. As I look ahead the Lifford AC vest has pulled too far away so it is a mental game to keep the body moving. 9th km 4:58

Somewhere along here another runner goes past me on my left. I take a quick look over the shoulder and I think it was the LAC runner from the 3 guys that I had been behind earlier in the race. He was only the 2nd person to overtake me at this stage and was moving far too easily to respond to. I keep the head down and am relieved when I get past the roundabout and pointed to turn back in towards the Aura. This little stretch around the building is always longer than you think but I give it a final kick - 10th km 4:55 & 0.03 in 6 seconds!

That left a finishing time of 49:53. Truth been told I would have thought I would have went quicker though not with much certainty. However, it was a good effort. I recorded a HR of 177 during the race which is by far the highest HR that I have had since getting the new watch a few months ago. There might have been some time left out there but nothing substantial. This is where I am at this point which is good to know - now to get a little bit quicker!

career move

Nice consistent pacing. Good job 10k is my least favourite distance. It seems like it should be easier than a 5k cause you're going a bit slower but it never is. And it's twice as long!!!!!

dazza21ie

Monday 24th October 4 miles @ 10:16
I planned to take it quite easy with this run but heading it out my legs felt alright. But the moment I stopped running they tightened right up and the post race doms had truly set it.

Tuesday 25th October 4 miles @ 10:14
Like on Monday it was very very cold out in the morning and I started to wonder whether it was getting to baser layer territory. I probably did plan to take this one easy too but my legs had decided that they were going slow so it didn't really matter what pace the mind wanted.

Wednesday 26th October 5 miles @ 9:55
Every so slowly getting back to myself. Still could feel a bit of stiffness and tightness that only really let up after 3 or so miles in. I had started wearing an extra layer too so I couldn't blame the cold anymore.

Thursday 27th October 5 miles @ 9:54
As I said the progress was slow! The pace here is an estimate as my garmin went dead with a mile and half to go.

Friday 28th October 5 miles @ 9:29
I had notions at the start of the week of getting maybe one session in but by the time Friday came around I was just happy to get a normal easy run in.

Saturday 29th October 10 miles @ 9:18
A nice way to wrap up the week. The usual route which went the usual way of a slow first 2 miles and a bit of a pace increase afterwards.

It brought up 33 miles for the week which was ok.

dazza21ie

career move wrote: »

Nice consistent pacing. Good job 10k is my least favourite distance. It seems like it should be easier than a 5k cause you're going a bit slower but it never is. And it's twice as long!!!!!

Thanks CM. I probably would prefer a 10k over a 5k. You get away with easing yourself into a 10k a little more compared to a 5k but not by much. A 5k is usually a hard effort right from the start which is a scary thought at the moment!

dazza21ie

Monday 31st October 7.3 miles inc 3 x 1 mile @ tempo w/ 1 min rests

Back to the JD Red Intermediate plan for the next while. The general plan is to follow this for the rest of the year but maybe do 2-3 weeks at each face instead of 4 to avoid total boredom. And as I am follow the great JD's plans I might as well go by his rules for intensity of training too. My last race would give a VDOT of just above 40 so until the next race I will use 40.

So for this morning I had a target pace of 8:12 mins/mile for the tempo. A bit slower than I was doing these a few weeks ago but maybe right enough. I done two rather slow miles of a warm up and done a few strides before moving into the tempo miles. It was nice with the bank holiday to not being too restricted for time. I even had time after the tempo miles for a 2 mile cool down for which the legs were moving along quite nicely for. The 3 tempo miles were: 8:00, 8:06, 8:00. It definitely felt a much more controlled effort.

We are due away on Thursday for a long weekend so I will try and extend the runs earlier in the week. I plan to take the runners with me for a change but whether they will see a footpath is another thing.

The next race earmarked is taking place on the 20th. It is run by the local club and I done it 3 years ago and plan to take in the route of the course as much as I can over the next few weeks in preparation.

dazza21ie

Tuesday 1st November 5 miles @ 9:20
A nice easy run over part of the upcoming 10k route.

Thursday 3rd November 5 miles @ 9:14
I didn't get out on Wednesday as we have a sick baby in the house (baby flu) and nearly didn't get out for this one either. We were due to head away but decided against putting the little through that so that widened the window for getting a run in.

It was unusual heading out for a run in daylight. I was also taking a pair of new runners on their maiden voyage. I had been relying solely on a pair of Saucony Kinvara 4's for the last year. However, they were starting really show signs of worse for wear so I ordered two new pairs last weekend. I didn't expect them to arrive as soon as Wednesday. I got a pair of Kinvara 6's (possibly my 4th pair of Kinvaras) and a pair of Saucony Zealots to try out.

So this run was done in the Zealots and they felt very comfortable from the off.

Friday 4th November 5.7 miles inc 6 x 1k @ tempo w/ 1 min rest recoveries
This run was even later that Thursday's - 9:30 p.m. before I got out. It was a few hours since I last ate so I thought it would be worthwhile trying something faster. I has always struggled with stitches in evening runs.

I took the new Kinvaras out for this one. The mistake I made was putting on a sock that was developing a hole in the heel - it turned out to be one run too many.

I chose a route around town and changed my watch to autolap every KM. I done 2 km warm up. The legs were moving very freely and easy pace was a good bit quicker than normal. For the tempo KMs I had averaged 8:03 min/mile pace during Monday's session so I thought keeping it around 8:00 min/mile should be an okay target.

The KM splits were: 4:59, 4:53, 4:44, 4:45, 4:42, 4:47. Kind of consistent-ish. I think the first one warm up the legs and they got into a nice rhythm after that. The 2nd km was slightly uphill and 3rd slightly downhill. I could feel a stitch building near the end of each one more noticeably by the end of the 4th km. However, during the 5th km my mind forgot about the stitch when it was obvious that my worn sock had now a fully developed hole and my heel was taking a beating from the new shoe. I managed to adjust the sock a bit during the recovery before the 6th km, enough to get through the rest of the run but the sock has been duly dispatched to the bin as soon as I got home.

Sock issues aside it was a very satisfying run. Probably the best evening run I have managed in years. The new shoes felt good for the majority of the run. I wouldn't blame them for the issues with the sock. The toebox on the right foot felt a little tighter than normal but this could have been as much to do with house I had tied my laces.

No run possible tomorrow so hope to get a long run in on Sunday. The sessions are due to be repeated again next week before moving on to phase 2. I managed 149 miles for the month of October so the plan would be to try and get above that for this month again.

dazza21ie

I didn't get out for a long run on Sunday. Our sick little one wasn't feeling great in the morning. By the evening time I wasn't feeling great myself and therefore had an early night instead. So it was only 23 miles for last week which is the lowest week for a while now but there were a couple of decent runs within that so I am not too bothered.

Monday 7th November 5 miles @ 9:12
Feeling a bit better I decided to keep it at easy pace over a regular route. It was quite cold out again.

Tuesday 8th November 7 miles inc 3 x 1 mile @ tempo w/ 1 min rest
Same session as Monday last week over the same route. I done two miles warm up and straight into the tempo miles this time. The tempo mile splits were: 7:53, 7:54, 7:49. They were a little bit quicker than last Monday and a little bit slower than Friday's 1ks. I done another 2 mile cool down to bring up a total of seven miles.

dazza21ie

Thursday 10th November 7 miles inc 6 x 1k @ tempo w/ 1 min rest rec

I had a lazy day on the Wednesday which brought forward a day off. I decided to stick to my plan of doing the week's 2nd session on the Thursday. It was a repeat of the session done on the previous Friday albeit this time done early in the morning and over the same route as Tuesday's run. I done the obligatory 2 mile warm up and then the 1ks

1k splits: 4:44, 4:46, 4:48, 4:51, 4:48, 4:55

It is interesting by repeating these sessions you have a ready reference point to compare against. This was nearly the exact opposite of how the session had played out the week before, this time starting out quicker and slowing as the session progressed. When you add the total time up however there is only 2 seconds of a difference.

Friday 11th November 5 miles @ 9:28
i took in part of the upcoming 10k route again for this. The legs were feeling a bit tired but it was only meant to be an easy run anyway.

Saturday 12th November 5 mile @ 9:45
Legs really felt tired for this one. From memory I was quite tired going out. Had some notions of doing a long run but deferred that until Sunday given how unresponsive the legs were and how late I got out in the morning.

A mixture of laziness, family life and more laziness meant I didn't get a run done on Sunday which shows that I shouldn't "defer" runs until the next day if possible. Its best to get them done when you can. It left the week total a bit on the lower side at 29 miles.

Monday 14th November 6 miles @ 9:37
I was out earlier for this one with a view of doing something a bit faster but again the legs were not really all that responsive and despite picking up the pace a bit in mile 3 I knew that it wasn't really there and there was no point in forcing it with a race coming up on Sunday. I had agreed with myself to just do a standard 5 miler but when I got back as far as the house there was no sign of any early risers up and I still had some time left over so I went back out for another mile which doesn't happen too often.

Tuesday 15th November 5 miles @ 9:14
The legs were a ilttle bit more normal which was welcomed. Run over my usual route with a few strides thrown in at the end.

Wednesday 16th November 7 miles inc 6 x 1k @ tempo w/ 1 min rests
One more go at this session. A repeat of last Thursdays run over the same route and out early again. The difference this time was that it was quite windy and wet out with a good bit of surface water on the ground as well, conditions which I would normally struggle with pacing in. The 1k splits were: 4:58, 4:52, 4:52, 4:50, 4:49, 4:51.

Despite the fact that the overall average pace was a bit down on the last 2 times doing this session I was quite pleased with the effort. The conditions were not great but the pace was consistent and felt quite controlled.

dazza21ie

Friday 18th November 5.6 miles @ 9:10
This was done over the forth coming 10k course. Basically, a full loop of the course with the distance coming up a bit shorter because in the race you go back through the start line and repeat part of the course before finishing with half a lap of the track. There was a nice gradual pick up in pace during the run.

Saturday 20th November 3.11 miles @ 10:01
This was meant to be very easy anyway but the conditions when I headed out meant that was probably the quickest I could safely go with the footpaths quite slippy in the early stages.

Remembrance 10k - Sunday 20th November
Only the second race of the year and less than a month since my last 10k. The target was simply to improve.

When I went out before 8 this morning the ground was white from a sharp frost overnight and everything was frozen. But luckily the race didn't start until 11 by which time the ground had mostly defrosted, helped by a little rain that stopped a while before I headed over to register.

As races go any race organised by the Finn Valley ac are extremely convenient for me. It is a nice 0.75 from front door to the clubhouse for registration, a good start for any warm up. The race start then is usually back from the club house, a good bit back for the 10k, so a chance to complete your warm up.

I bumped into a cousin over at the registration and we briefly chatted before I went into register. It was obvious from all the cars parked up on the way over that it was going to be a big crowd. After I got registered I started running back up towards the start, adding a few short bursts of strides on the way. I caught up with my cousin again and his brother was now with him. We started chatting as the crowds slowly moved up from the clubhouse towards the starting line. The results show 518 finishers, a big turnout for these parts. We were told to move back but we found ourselves going back a bit too far resulting in us being near the back of the field as the race started.

Kilometers 1 & 2 5:19, 4:55
Despite the crowd being well spread out across the road it was a very slow get away. I started the watch once the gun went and 18 seconds at least had passed before we got moving a step. Once we did get moving it was quite slow as there were plenty in front of us and the course quickly took a right turn which kept things tight for a bit longer. I found myself running with one of the cousins. I wasn't overly bothered about the slow get away. There wasn't much we could do about it and I had planned taking it easy for the first few k anyway. After the 1st k I done a quick sum in my head and reckoned it would have been on pace had things not been so slow at the very start.

Kilometers 3, 4, 5 4:53, 4:51, 4:48
The course is a bit undulating over this stretch. I went past my cousin in the 3rd k. It was not intended but I took a corner a bit tighter and kept on going then. I passed my second cousin shortly after but was more puzzled how he was in front of us. I settled in behind a group that was moving at a nice pace but they all slowed to take water before the half way mark so I kept on going on my own as we turned out on to the main road heading back to the town.

Kilometers 6, 7, 8 4:47, 4:49, 4:48
In the plan in my head this was the stretch were I was going to pick up the pace. I spotted a group of 5 ahead and using a lone runner that was between me and the group I managed to close the gap and tag on as we came into the town. The run through the main street split up the group and it was down to 3 as we passed super valu and I found myself moving ahead. The next target was a female finn valley runner and I made it past her going up a slight incline before we turned back in the direction of the start. A lifford ac runner came up on my shoulder but I managed to keep pace with him with the Finn Valley runner keeping close behind.

Kilometres 9 & 10 4:53, 4:40
We came out of a back road early in the 9th k and usually it is a simple switch to the other side of the road but someone shouted to watch out for traffic. So the switch was delayed and I then missed the next break in traffic so I found myself on the opposite side of the road than everyone else. I spent a bit of time checking over my shoulder to get across and this all slowed things down. When I got across the group I had passed and the Finn Valley runner were all ahead of me again. After the start of the last k we turned left heading towards the track. A lot of runners were running on the footpath which is what you would do for the 5k over here. I reckoned the footpath was tight for space as there was cars parked up on it so I stayed on the road and was able to pass out some people on the road and a good few who were on the footpath without seeing who I was passing.

We took a left turn briefly onto the rugby field before entering onto the track. I went past a few more here and had a bit of a gap to the next person in front of me on the track. I put the head down and tried to pick up the pace and as we were going around the bend I could see the gap closing quickly and I moved past him as we came onto the straight. The Finn Valley runner who I had passed earlier was in front of me but I didn’t have enough track to get passed her.

My Garmin had a finish time of 48:47 and the official results had 48:44.

Overall I am satisfied with that run. It is nice progress from a month ago. Conditions were tougher with it being very cold and slippy underfoot in some places. It felt like a more controlled run, perhaps too much so. There is definitely a case to be made to be a bit more aggressive from the start of the race but that will come with more racing.

tang1

Great stuff & well raced, over a minute faster on Newmills in less than a month is a nice improvement.

dazza21ie

Monday 21st November 3 miles @ 10:12
I only wanted a short recovery from this anyway but the conditions weren't great for running after a sharp frost overnight. Legs felt okay after the race but the conditions kept the pace very easy.

Tuesday 22nd November 5 miles @ 9:19
When I was getting up for this it sound like there was a storm blowing outside but by the time I got it out it was nice and came and the overnight winds had kept the frost away. It was even a bit milder so perfect morning for a run. Once warmed up the legs felt good and the pace gradually picked up.

Wednesday 23rd November 5 miles @ 9:44
Unfortunately there was no wind to keep the frost away this time and conditions were very bad out. It was probably the slipperiest I have ran on for a while. Usually when you move out of the town on this route the roads are reasonable but even they were quite slippy. And it was very cold too! It was just a case of making it around safely and pace didn't really matter.

Thursday 24th November 7 miles incl 1 x 2 miles @ tempo & 1 x 1 mile @ tempo w/ 2 min & 1 min rest rec
I didn't really think I was going to be able to try anything quicker than easier pace in the current weather. I got up earlier just in case. There was an even sharper frost last night and temperatures were still well below zero starting off. But it was a crisp frost on the ground as opposed to ice which made running on it okay. There were a few patches that were slippy but you would take that.

I ran my usual route. I was listening to Gerry Thornley and Keith Wood argue on an OTB podcasts and missed the beep for the start of the tempo so the first 20 seconds or so were slow. The splits were: 2 miles @ tempo: 8:10, 7:49, 1 mile @ tempo: 7:28. Funnily enough the average pace between the 3 miles was bang on. I think it took the first two tempo miles to get warmed up properly.