I have no idea what I'm du-ing

pointer28

Tuesday 1/7/14

20k with 2 x 20 mins @ M Pace

This was a really stupid thing to do. I felt really crap all morning so took it easy for a few hours. I started to come around about lunchtime so tackled this session in the afternoon.

It was brutal. The heat nearly killed me and I had to work really, really hard to hit M pace whereas it usually comes quite easily and I have to keep an eye to make sure I'm not too far under it. My HR never dropped to it's normal levels for the Easy pace intervals and my stomach was making funny noises the whole time.

In hindsight I should have called it quits but pig headed stubborness make me keep going. I went out for dinner about an hour afterwards and was honestly falling asleep at the table. I've done this session before including before work in the morning and it usually leaves me with a great buzz and feeling great. Not this time.

Today, I'm staying on the sofa and watching TV, still don't feel great and think I might be coming down with something.

pointer28

Monday 7/7/14

Turbo - 50 mins with 35 mins between Sweet Spot and Threshold Power

Forecast was dodgy so did this in my shed/furnace of hell. I should have gotten wet instead. Miserable with no air but all I wanted was to get my legs moving again after 5 full days off.


Tuesday 8/7/14

Run - 8k @ 5:18 mins/km AHR 152

Great to be back out again and the legs felt great. I would have loved a good blow out but I have two half marathons at the weekend so it's strictly nothing but easy running leading up to that.

After my bad session last Tuesday, I rang my PT and managed to get an appointment for Wednesday. As well as her magical hands she's also great for advice and putting me back on track in a sensible way. A lot of the time she's just confirming what I already know but another opinion always helps and she's also not afraid to tell me when I'm a gob****e (quite a lot of the time apparently).

Looking back at last year's training vs. this year I always followed a plan of some sort last year and always hit the targets I was aiming for, this year I was making my own plans and have not yet hit a target with half the year gone. This tells a couple of things:

# I'm not at all qualified to write training plans for anyone, even myself.

# Proper plans contain structure and have recovery built in, eg 3 weeks build, 1 week recovery. I didn't, I trained hard until I fell apart and then I was sick or sore so took a week off.

So, after this weekend, I'll take an easy week and then I have the last 8 weeks of a Jack Daniel's HM plan to prepare me for Athlone in September. I did his plan last year and smashed my PB, just as importantly though, I also enjoyed the plan as there are lots of different sessions and I didn't get bored as easily.

Dory Dory

^^^ Sounds like a smart plan!

pointer28

Wednesday 9/7/14

Bike - 40k AHR 143

Didn't feel like doing this but I did it anyway and really glad I did.

It was lovely out and reminded me that I actually enjoy riding my bike. Avg Speed was a little higher than normal and the effort felt pretty easy throughout, usually my AHR on these spins is a lot lower as my legs are always tired and I'm just not able to push on as I'd like to. The fact that I was able to maintain a higher HR means that my legs were able to keep up with my heart and lungs for once.

Maybe this whole rest and recovery thing has something going for it.

pointer28

Thursday 10/7/14

Run - 8k @ 5:21 mins/km AHR 155

Horribly sticky, sweaty day but legs felt good which is the most important thing.

pointer28

Friday 11/7/14

Bike - 40k AHR 143

Like Wednesday's spin, felt good and held a decent speed throughout. Feeling a hell of a lot stronger on the bike lately, and finally thinking that the training is paying off.

pointer28

Saturday & Sunday 12/13 July 2014

Stone Mad Ultra 2 Day Half Marathon

I have a very strange confession to make, and that is that I actually won this race last year. However, I never tell anyone this (other than jokingly) as while I did technically win the race, there was only 3 competitors, one of whom was a lady wearing a knee brace and the other was, ummm, a different age group shall we say.

Funnily enough, because there were plenty running only one race on both the Saturday and Sunday, I didn't realise there were so few in the 2 day race and I ran both days at my easy pace, doing 1:57 or 1:58 both days. After finishing day 2 I just jumped in the car and went home only to get an email later to say I had missed the prize giving and had to drive to Dublin to collect my crystal trophy (which still resides over my TV in the living room). Anyway, enough about last year.

Day 1 - 21.6k - 1:45:22 - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/542225750

My original plan was to just run both days at easy pace as I had no illusions of actually being competitive anyway, lets face it, last year was a fluke and I knew there would be more and better runners here this year.

I felt good at the start and when the gun went I found myself following the leaders at about my 10k pace, which I knew wouldn't be sustainable, so knocked it back a bit and decided to just run by feel looking for a steady effort rather than a specific pace. While this route might look great on paper being net downhill with no uphills at all, I actually find it quite hard as it's the same pace and same muscles for the entire race with no opportunities to get a breather at all, almost like running on a treadmill.

After the race I stood in the river for 20 minutes drinking a free non-alcoholic beer and enjoying life. I finished 4th of the 2 day competitors but was a long way off and would be happy to keep my 4th place on the following day, let alone improve. Plus, because I'd ran harder than planned I didn't know what my legs would feel like in the morning.


Day 2 - 20.5k - 1:40:05 - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/542225799

My legs didn't feel great at all this morning, I tried to run for ten minutes as a warm up and they just felt dreadful. Anyway, I'm here so I'm running.

Today was a much tougher course with lots of uphills for the first few kms, then some quad thrashing downhills followed by a long flat stretch. Again, I threw the plan out the window and just ran by feel, meaning taking it easy on the uphills, picking up some time on the downhills and then throwing caution to the wind for the final flat stretch. Truth be told, my head has been absolutely fried lately with different crap and I just wanted to suffer, and suffer I did.

After the final CP at about 13.5k I just lit the afterburners and ran without thinking. I knew full well I wasn't going to catch anyone, but I just wanted to make sure than no-one caught me and that I went as fast as I could. When I spotted the finish line I gave my best impression of a sprint and did the last 500 mtrs at 5k pace. I really gave it my all and it's the first time this year that I've actually been happy and proud of my performance in a race, I even felt a bit emotional at the finish but managed to hide it 'cos I'm a man and don't do **** like that ;-)

Strangely enough, all the more experienced guys agreed that today was easier and faster because there was a chance to get a breather and use different muscles unlike the day before.

Done and dusted for another year and I really can't wait to go back for next year. I just hope it's well supported enough to keep going as it's a fantastic race, really laid back and friendly with a great atmosphere. It would be a huge pity to see great races like this go by the wayside in favour of dull, boring, flat and featureless commercial races. www.stonemadultra.com


Tuesday 15/7/14

Run - 7.2k @ 5:17 mins/km AHR 152

My original recovery plan was to avoid all running this week and just ride my bike instead, but I just enjoy it too much so headed out for a short one. Happy with how the legs felt after the weekend, didn't seem to be any nasty after effects.


Wednesday 16/7/14

Bike - 141k - AHR 134

I said that there were no after effects of the weekend's race in my legs, I was wrong!

They initally felt great starting off but I stopped for a coffee break at 60k and they just never came back to me after that so I took it easy and just pottered about. Some strong headwinds in places and very hot and humid also, I got quite burnt in spots even though the sun didn't feel intense, hence the lecture at home about skin cancer, not using sun cream and being an idiot. I suppose I really should listen.

Today's long ride probably wasn't a great idea at all but the forecast is bad for the rest of the week and working at the weekend so I tried to just get 'er done. I'm starting to think that maybe the greatest advantage of having a coach would be someone to tell you to cop on and NOT train at times.

Anyway, I don't think I did any damage and certainly slept well last night.

pointer28

Thursday 17/7/14

Bike - 30k - AHR 121

Terribly dull and boring but I think my body wanted dull and boring. Small niggle in my upper calf on the right leg, never had it before so will keep an eye on it but hopefully nothing too serious.

Dory Dory

Hey...very well done on the 2 day half marathon!! Fantastic result all around! And definitely mind the body!

pointer28

So, I hadn't done much in the 3 weeks after Stone Mad apart from the odd run here and there with no specific purpose. To be honest, I just got a bit fed up of the constant training and needed a break from the whole lot including the log.

I read somewhere recently that "lots of long slow training leads to long slow racing" or something along those lines and I was getting a bit fed up of facing into another plan of the same training for a HM and Marathon all over again.

With that and bearing in mind that I hadn't actually entered anything yet I decided to throw that plan out the window and tackle Jack Daniel's 5 to 10k training plan between now and Christmas with some cycling on top. Mainly to break the monotony of what I've been doing and also to try and get some speed (relatively) into my legs and hopefully after Christmas this will help me when I revert back to the longer stuff again.

It's completely different to what I've been doing for the past 2 years with lots of short, very hard intervals, shortish threshold runs and lots of recovery runs. Even the LSR's are quite short, starting at only 15k, when I've been used to running 20k+ twice a week.

Training Paces as follows:

Vdot 48

E - 5:34 mins/km
M - 4:41 mins/km
T - 4:24 mins/km
I - 4:03 mins/km
R - 3:40 mins/km


Monday 11/8/14

Run - 16k @ 5:27 mins/km

Tuesday 12/8/14

Run - 5.4k + 10 strides

Wednesday 13/8/14

Run - 13.6k with 16 x 45 secs @ R Pace, 90 sec RBI

Thursday 14/8/14

Run - 5.5k + 8 strides

Friday 15/8/14

Run - 8k @ 5:19 mins/km
Bike - Trainer Road Mont Albert - 60 mins - TSS 72 IF .72

Saturday 16/8/14

Run - 12.5k with 4 x 45 sec @ R, 2 x 1.6k @ T, 4 x 45 sec @ R

Monday 18/8/14

Run - 16k @ 5:21 mins/km

pointer28

Tuesday 19/8/14

Run - 6.6k + 10 strides

Lovely run, felt effortless and floaty, these stride things are great.

I must admit it does feel a bit weird heading out the door 3 times a week to run for 30 minutes, before this my short runs were usually about 8k and sessions about 20k but I suppose that's the whole point, a change is as good as a rest.

pointer28

Tuesday 19/8/14

Bike - Trainer Road - Mont Albert - 60 mins - TSS 52 IF .72


Thursday 21/8/14

Run - 4 x (45 sec R, 90 sec Rec, 45 sec R, 90 sec Rec, 90 sec R, 180 sec Rec) Total 13km

Avg. R Pace = 3:30 mins/km

I was meant to do this session on Wednesday but wasn't well and had to take an unscheduled rest day so this session was done after a day's work involving over 6 hours driving which I hate and left me sore and tight all over before I even started running. The session itself went quite well but very sore afterwards, my hamstrings especially are very tight and I'm completely convinced it's the driving that does more damage than the running. Lots of stretching and rolling for a few days and it seems to be improving a bit.


Friday 22/8/14

Run - 8k + 8 strides

A bit stiff starting off but warmed up nicely and definitely felt better for doing it.


Bike - Trainer Road - Frewin & Laragh @ 90% - TSS 65 IF .81

Rather than doing the same recovery sessions all the time which I get bored of very quickly, I picked a harder session and just dialled the intensity down to 90%. Maybe 85% would have been better with today's session in mind but either way it didn't completely trash the legs and was mostly aerobic.

pointer28

Saturday 23/8/14

Run - 3 x 1.6k @ T Pace (avg 4:19 mins/km), 6 x 45 secs @ R Pace (avg 3:26 mins/km)

Legs felt like death all morning and taking medication for an allergy which really floored me but eventually felt half human around 5 pm and got this session done. It was definitely hard work, especially the 6 x 45 secs with the legs full of lactate but I suppose that's the whole point of it.

Surprisingly enough, I feel a thousand times better this morning after such a hard session, I thought my legs would be trashed.

pointer28

Sunday 24/8/14

Run - 7.2k + 8 strides

Forecast is bad for this afternoon so got this done this morning, nice run and no nasty after effects from yesterday which is a good thing as Mr. Daniel's has a real humdinger planned for me tomorrow.

pointer28

Monday 25/8/14

Run - 17.3k with 14k @ M Pace + 6 strides

Avg M Pace 4:38 mins/km AHR 170, Target Pace 4:41 mins/km

Absolutely horrendous weather and got completely soaked through. I was looking out the window all morning and watching the forecast for a gap in the weather which wasn't materialising so just took a HTFU pill and headed out the door in the rain.

Not so bad once I got going but miserable for the first few minutes. Happy with the session though, the strides at the end were tough but loosened up the legs after 60+ mins at M Pace.

pointer28

Tuesday 26/8/14

Run - 7k + 10 strides


Wednesday 27/8/14

Run - 4 x 45 sec @ R, 90 sec RBI, 4 x 90 sec @ R, 180 sec RBI, 4 x 45 sec @ R, 90 sec RBI

Warm up and cool down for a total of 13k. Horribly windy day but managed to get these done and a good bit faster than planned, averaging 3:28 mins/km for the R pace, when the target pace was 3:40. It's very hard to get accurate pace from the Garmin for short intervals so I just go hard for these intervals and worry about the pace when I get home.

The good news is that my pace for these intervals the last 3 weeks is constantly dropping and 4:00 mins/km is feeling a hell of a lot easier than it used to.

pointer28

Thursday 28/8/14

Run - 8.2k + 8 strides


Friday 29/8/14

Run - 8.1k Easy


Saturday 30/8/14

Run - 15k with 7 x 2 mins @ I Pace

Happy with this one, reps were at an easier pace than the usual R pace but slightly longer and with shorter recoveries. Target pace was 4:03 mins/km and I managed 4:00 mins/km over the 7 reps. The constant short and hard reps I've been doing for the last three weeks certainly made the 4:00 pace feel a lot easier than it used to.


Sunday 31/8/14

Trainer Road - Lightning Bolt - TSS 86 IF 0.93

Absolutely savage session, I haven't been riding much lately and haven't re-tested mt FTP either so there's a fair chance I was over-reaching on this one. I was certainly close to vomiting towards the end of the intervals.

Over-under intervals each lasting 10 minutes alternating 45 seconds increasing from 90-110% FTP with 15 seconds increasing from 105-135% FTP. Recoveries between intervals are each 5 minutes long.

Main objective is the development of the ability to handle changes in pace while maintaining a high level of work.

The surges flood the muscle with metabolic byproducts bringing with them the desire to ease up, don't.

Hold that burn, then back off only slightly during the work valleys in order to work through the burn and effectively train your muscles to process the lactic buildup while still doing a lot of work.

These intervals will increase your ability to better process lactate thereby increasing not only how long you can work above FTP but also increasing FTP itself.

It also simulates the demands of a paceline where the effort may change when it's your turn at the front, but the speed & cadence - as long as you shift into a bigger gear when you're "in the wind" - remain steady.

Totals in Power Zones

Sweet Spot - 7 mins
Threshold - 9 mins
V02 Max - 11 mins
Anaerobic - 5 mins

pointer28

Monday 1/9/14

Run - 13.1k @ 5:22 mins/km AHR 150

Bike - Trainer Road - Corduroy 60 mins TSS 61 IF .78

This week is meant to be a recovery week so all my bike sessions are going to be easy and will continue that way for the next few weeks. At the moment they will be more about getting back into the habit of regular bike work and also burning calories while not leaving my legs cooked for my run sessions.

My weight is still hovering about 71 kgs which is 14kgs less that when I started running but to actually get faster and make running easier I think I really need to be in the 66/67 kg range to see any worthwhile gains.

pointer28

Tuesday 2/9/14

Run - 5.5k + 10 strides

Bike - Trainer Road - Parklife - 45 mins TSS 45 IF .77

Slow, easy run this morning but sticky and warm out so would have been horrible to do any kind of work in anyway. Turbo again this evening, a thing of nothing in terms of quality work but it really helps my legs and burns a few calories at the same time, better than sitting on the couch either way.

I'm really sorry now that I don't have a mountain bike to take for a spin in the evenings after dinner as I couldn't be bothered constantly changing wheels on my road bike for the sake of a short spin.

pointer28

Thursday 4/9/14

Run - 6k @ 5:28 mins/km AHR 145

Bike - Trainer Road - Layla - TSS 44 IF .77

Recovery week this week so not too much running to be done. I wore the Mizuno Wave Ultimas and I really don't like them, they're perfectly comfortable underfoot and the fit is fine but they just feel heavy and awkward. I'll continue to wear them for recovery runs and the like but I think I'll stick to Wave Riders in the future.

pointer28

Friday 5/9/14

Run - 6k Easy

Bike - Trainer Road Layla 45 mins - TSS 44 IF .77


Saturday 6/9/14

Run - 4 x 45 secs @ R, 5k @ T, 4 x 45 secs @ R

Another tough Jack Daniel's session but finished it strongly due to it being a step back week so 25% less mileage in the legs than other weeks. As per usual, the R intervals were faster than planned but this had the effect of making the T effort feel quite pedestrian.


Monday 8/9/14

Run - 16.2k Easy

Another dull and boring LSR which are my absolute least favourite runs of the week. At the moment I'm in Phase 1 of the JD plan which has every 3rd weeks LSR with some decent M pace mileage thrown in, I'm looking forward to Phase 2 where I have some M Pace mileage every second week.


Tuesday 9/9/14

Run - 6.8k + 10 strides

I did this in Rosslare after driving across the country and forgetting my running socks so it felt dreadful for the first 5k and only got going towards the end. I think the main problem was being stuck in a car for 3 hours but the plain socks I wore were also horrible and loose and just felt all wrong. Anyway, not important as it's only a simple recovery run, I'm just glad it wasn't an important session or something.


Wednesday 10/9/14

Run - 5 x (45, 45, 90 secs @ R Pace)

The last 4 weeks, this Q1 session has been a total of 12 minutes running at R Pace, today it stepped up to a total of 15 minutes (25% increase). Tough, tough session and struggled at times but never felt like I couldn't get them done. Strangely enough, looking at Garmin Connect my pace actually improved towards the final intervals while I would have expected to slow down a bit.

pointer28

Thursday 11/9/14

Run - 6.8k + 8 strides

I'm now running 6 days a week, and 5 of those 6 days involve getting some sort of speed into my legs even if they are only 15 second strides. I do feel that they help loosen out stiff or sore legs though and they are something I'll definitely continue doing in the future.

Bike - 35k

A few hours to spare so out the door for an easy spin. Lovely weather for it too.


Friday 12/9/14

Run - 6.2k Easy

Early morning run this time and most of my running for the last few months has been midday so felt very sluggish starting off but after a km or two it started to feel really nice and floaty. I don't know why I fell out of the habit of running early as I really enjoy it, especially when it's something short or easy.


Saturday 13/9/14

Run - 14k with 4 x 1.6k @ T Pace, 4 x 45 sec @ R Pace

I've had visitors for the past few days so two nights of little sleep on the fold out couch, on top of lots of rich food and accompanied by about 6 cups of strong coffee for breakfast do not make ideal preparation for a tough run session.

The paces and HR numbers were both (surprisingly) good but my stomach was not at all happy with the effort and I was terrified of an embarrassing moment but luckily got through it unscathed. Won't be doing that again.

pointer28

Monday 15/9/14

Run - 19.5k with 14k @ M Pace

I'm really starting to think that the reason I had such a bad year in all my races bar one is that I neglected exactly this type of long steady tempo session. I'm great at doing short, hard intervals and they definitely have their place but when it came to sustaining a steady pace for a decent length of time that where I always failed. Anyway, lesson learned and I'll pay far more attention to a proper plan in future.

I know this is going to sound stupid considering what I just said but breaking from the plan, I've entered a 10k this Saturday in Roscommon. The plan for the moment is to run it a little faster than T pace but not all out as I want to jump straight into a full week next week.

pointer28

Tuesday 16/9/14

Run - 6.5k + 10 strides


Wednesday 17/9/14

Run - 8k @ 5:26 mins/km AHR 144

Tough R paced session scheduled for today but felt like crap all day and just knew that I couldn't do it justice so went for an easy one instead.


Thursday 18/9/14

Run - 10 x 90 secs @ R Pace

Yesterday's planned session done a day late but at least I was fit to get it done and hit all the numbers. Still a tough session and the end of these weekly R paced sessions that Jack Daniel's has me doing for the first six weeks. Apparently the hard work starts next week.


Friday 19/9/14

Run - 8.5k Easy

Another easy one, no HR data as the battery seems to have died in my strap, and when I did manage to find a battery in deepest, darkest Longford where they still eat their young, I couldn't find a precision screwdriver to change it.


Saturday 20/9/14

Run - 3k Warm Up then Cuisle 10k - 43:30 - 4:20 mins/km

Although I set off a little hot, I reined myself back and let lots of guys pass me in the first km, to see them again later. Even though I set a minor PB of 6 secs that wasn't today's focus but rather to put in a good solid tempo session and still be able for a full week's training afterwards. While I kept an eye on my watch , I ran more to feel and kept it comfortably hard rather than eyeballs out 10k pace. The course was quite hilly in spots and I was happy to drop off the pace a little and pick it up again on the way down. I'm very happy with the way I ran this race and certainly feel I'm a lot fitter than a few weeks ago. I'm a little tired and achy afterwards but neither is too bad and more a sign of a good workout than a thrashed body.

No cycling again this week, I'm housesitting for friend's in the arsehole of nowhere and even though I brought my bike, turbo, trainer road setup etc, the one thing I did forget was my bike shoes. Luckily the GF has gone home today for a few hours so she'll bring them back along with some decent screwdrivers for my HR strap.

pointer28

Sunday 21/9/14

Bike - 25k

Planned rest day and up early so all the jobs done around the house, lawn mowed etc and GF brought my bike shoes so I went for a short, easy spin which I really think is as good as a massage.

pointer28

Monday 22/9/14

Run - 18.2k @ 5:24 mins/km AHR 151

Gorgeous day out, beautiful route with a few good hills thrown in, legs a little fatigued as to be expected but no niggles or injuries.

Day 1 of Phase 3 of Jack Daniel's 5k plan, the Q sessions are now back to back on Thursday/Friday rather than Wednesday and Saturday as they were in Phase 2, that'll be fun. Either way, Mr JD seems to know what he's doing so I'll roll with it.

pointer28

Tuesday 23/9/14

Run - 8k + 10 strides

Weather didn't look great through the window but actually quite pleasant when I got going, nice cool breeze and a few drops of rain but not enough of either to cause any displeasure.

Legs weren't great at the start after 7 hours of driving again today but felt a lot better by the end.

pointer28

Wednesday 24/9/14

Run - 8k Easy
Bike - 25k Easy

Thursday 25/9/14

Run - 15.8k with 4 x 1.2k @ I Pace

Not a bad session, held the I intervals comfortably enough for an average of 3:57 mins/km.


Friday 26/9/14

Run - 14k with 4 x 1.6k @ T Pace (Avg 4:19mins/km)

Jack Daniels warns in his book that Phase 3, which this is the first week of, is the hardest part of the plan and it's these two back to back sessions that make it so. Started off easy enough for a 30 minute warm up, legs felt loose and pain free, the first two T reps were grand, 3rd was a bit harder and the 4th took real determination to get through. It's not the pace or the length of the intervals that caused the problem but rather the fatigue from yesterday's session, but I suppose that's the whole point.

pointer28

Saturday 27/9/14

Run - 8k @ 5:20 mins/km AHR 144

Happy with these easy runs lately, HR starting to settle in the proper range, and effort feeling easier even with the average pace picking up a bit.


Sunday 28/9/14

Bike - 33k Easy

Rest day from running so just an easy spin to avoid sitting on the couch eating biscuits, no hard efforts, easy spinning just to loosen out the legs.

pointer28

Monday 29/9/14

Run - 19k with 16k @ M Pace + 4 strides

Avg M Pace - 4:38 mins/km - AHR 165

In all honesty I didn't feel in great form for this at all this morning but headed out the door anyway and decided I'd chance it as I wouldn't have time to do it tomorrow if I missed today. Warm Up felt sluggish and the first 3 to 4k of M Pace were horrible, really felt like I was pushing to hold it and I honestly didn't think I'd get the whole 16k done. Settled into the pace eventually and really started to enjoy it from the halfway point and even felt strong for the last km when I would have expected to be flagging a bit.

Over the moon with this afterwards, all the reps were well within the HR targets for the pace and all within in couple of bpm of each other, not even rising towards the end. I'm really starting to feel that I'm improving for the first time this year and not just chasing my tail.

Bike - 18.5k

Just a spin around the block, keeping the effort easy, more a recovery session for the legs than anything else.