Be still my beating heart

menoscemo

The 5 mile start was moved because the road onto the beach was flooded
https://www.facebook.com/112053348865749/photos/a.150127665058317.38708.112053348865749/776203535784057/?type=1&theater

Normally you would have ran into that water and turned around in the middle of it (waist deep apparently) back to the start/finish area.
For the half they rerouted the course up the side of the entrance to the beech along a prom and then took a slope down onto the beach to rejoin the course (the course measured bang on for the half btw).
The 5 mile obviously had to turn before the water so they moved the start back as a result. Obviously something went wrong though......

Well done anyway, don't focus too much on the distance, I am sure the purpose of the race was a good hard effort which you achieved, and I'd say it's far enough to take the Garmin PB in the circumstances.

yaboya1

Well done on the PB.

Sub 40 in Raheny?

Ososlo

menoscemo wrote: »

The 5 mile start was moved because the road onto the beach was flooded
https://www.facebook.com/112053348865749/photos/a.150127665058317.38708.112053348865749/776203535784057/?type=1&theater

Normally you would have ran into that water and turned around in the middle of it (waist deep apparently) back to the start/finish area.
For the half they rerouted the course up the side of the entrance to the beech along a prom and then took a slope down onto the beach to rejoin the course (the course measured bang on for the half btw).
The 5 mile obviously had to turn before the water so they moved the start back as a result. Obviously something went wrong though......

Well done anyway, don't focus too much on the distance, I am sure the purpose of the race was a good hard effort which you achieved, and I'd say it's far enough to take the Garmin PB in the circumstances.

Thanks. Yes the aim of the race was a good hard effort which was achieved and I'll take the watch time but it still annoys me that they couldn't put the start point at exactly 5 miles.

I was running fastest towards the end of the race though and that's not incorporated into the garmin time... as I'm using the first 5 miles for my pb time. Oh well...
Cheers

Ososlo

yaboya1 wrote: »

Well done on the PB.

Sub 40 in Raheny?

At the very least! Bring it on!

Thank you!

ThebitterLemon

Great running today O, very consistent splits and plenty more to come.

For me, personally I wouldn't take an official PB from a Garmin, too unpredictable. The headphones seemed to work for you today but you'll probably need to get used to racing without them.

Well done, it seems to be coming together for you

TbL

Ososlo

ThebitterLemon wrote: »

Great running today O, very consistent splits and plenty more to come.

For me, personally I wouldn't take an official PB from a Garmin, too unpredictable. The headphones seemed to work for you today but you'll probably need to get used to racing without them.

Well done, it seems to be coming together for you

TbL

Thanks TbL. It's only the start for me:)

Yeah I know what you're saying about the Garmin time, but the time on my watch at 5 miles is way closer to reality than the finish time for a 5 mile race that was 5.3 miles! It's not just me being a moany biatch by the way, everyone's complaining about it being long on the events thread too:).

ThebitterLemon

Ososlo wrote: »

Thanks TbL. It's only the start for me:)

Yeah I know what you're saying about the Garmin time, but the time on my watch at 5 miles is way closer to reality than the finish time for a 5 mile race that was 5.3 miles! It's not just me being a moany biatch by the way, everyone's complaining about it being long on the events thread too:).

Hey O,

In no way trying to rain on your parade or suggest that you're been moany, you would have broken your PB anyway. Well done again

TbL

Ososlo

ThebitterLemon wrote: »

Hey O,

In no way trying to rain on your parade or suggest that you're been moany, you would have broken your PB anyway. Well done again

TbL

No worries. No big parade to rain on anyhow:)

pistol_75

Great running A. Sorry to hear about the mix up in distance but at least you got a good racing experience from the day.

If you come out of the race ok I'd be inclined to run the 5K next weekend, if you get the approval ;-)

Duanington

Nice PB Ososlo - well done! Some really nice consistency on those splits too, congrats.

barryoneill50

Good solid run, well done. The weight of those headphones adds about 5 sec per mile you know:)...

Ososlo

Duanington wrote: »

Nice PB Ososlo - well done! Some really nice consistency on those splits too, congrats.

It's really weird actually as I ran the whole thing without looking at the watch but splits are so consistent! Course is completely flat and next to no windso easy maintain an even effort I guess.
Cheers!

laura_ac3

Good to get the racing mojo back, well done Ososlo. Hopefully a sign of plenty more to come.

Ososlo

barryoneill50 wrote: »

Good solid run, well done. The weight of those headphones adds about 5 sec per mile you know:)...

Ha ha here we go...
I deserve all I get with the headphone comments

Tom Joad

Well done on the PB - nice running.

Calvin Johnson

Well done, nice splits.

Do the Jingle Bells, you'll love it!

Ososlo

Calvin Johnson wrote: »

Well done, nice splits.

Do the Jingle Bells, you'll love it!

I did it a couple of years ago as my first race in 39 mins

SamforMayo

Well done today. Nice 10 km in Ballina next Sunday if you fancy it!!!!!!!

Ososlo

SamforMayo wrote: »

Well done today. Nice 10 km in Ballina next Sunday if you fancy it!!!!!!!

That sounds great! If it wasn't so far away

Dubgal72

Fantastic, well done! Loved the race report. Personally, I would take the LAST 5 miles for my PB. See you next week at Jingle Bells. *new thread: poll for Ososlo's next race next weekend?!

AuldManKing

Nice work young lady.

2 things impressed me;

(1) The fact that you ran fairly consistent splits.
(2) The fact that you made sure to get the "make up" comment in, as we may see you in the photos .......nicely played.

There was a lot of comments about the course being long and the organiser himself voiced his frustration on FB about it, while taking responsibility.

It still doesn't detract from a very solid performance from you and one that should give you buckets of confidence for your next race.

Dub13

Super work Ososlo, I like the Clontarf course but was away yesterday so could not do it. For your park run I would suggest St Anne's great flat course and no problem at all with parking.

Ososlo

Sunday 30 November
7 miles easy
AIS pre run (felt too sick to do the lunge routine:o)

Ventured out from under the covers at 4pm! Had a thing on last night which involved drinking and lots of dancing until the wee small hours. I think the dancing actually actually aided the legs in recovery as I woke up feeling fantastic. Well my legs were anyways. Can't say the same for the rest of me!
Only actually slept for 3 or 4 hours but I was just enjoying lying there thinking nice thoughts and listening to the radio and some music:)
Was going to skip this run completely as I felt so dreadful but said I'd give it a shot and planned on doing 3 miles at recovery effort but once I was out there I immediately felt great in the lovely cool winter night air. Another perfect night for running with barely a breath out. I must say the legs don't feel as if they've done a race yesterday. No sign of a twinge or niggle at all and in no way tired. They were raring to take off tonight! My legs in general feel super strong these days. Now if only I had a pair of lungs to match I think we could put together a decent runner:)
7 miles total @ 9:42 pace avg

Weekly total: 36 miles (only 5 days running due to the week that was in it)
Monthly total: 190 miles (highest ever)
Yearly total: 1624 (doubt I'll make the 2k this year)

Not sure about Jingle Bells. I think I'll skip it and focus on 3 really good weeks of training and throw a Parkrun into one of the longer runs. Christmas is going to be messy as I have a family wedding too so training will be a bit hit and miss for about a week so I think I need to get a good chunk of training in before the mayhem starts.
I'll target Raheny 5 as the next main race... fairly sure... or a suitable 10k in late January.

Ososlo

Dub13 wrote: »

Super work Ososlo, I like the Clontarf course but was away yesterday so could not do it. For your park run I would suggest St Anne's great flat course and no problem at all with parking.

thanks Dub13! Yeah I really liked the course yesterday too! I liked everything about the race except for the distance!
I've done St Anne's a few times and train there regularly. Might try Poppintree for a change and I don't think it's too far from me!

Ososlo

AuldManKing wrote: »

Nice work young lady.

2 things impressed me;

(1) The fact that you ran fairly consistent splits.
(2) The fact that you made sure to get the "make up" comment in, as we may see you in the photos .......nicely played.

There was a lot of comments about the course being long and the organiser himself voiced his frustration on FB about it, while taking responsibility.

It still doesn't detract from a very solid performance from you and one that should give you buckets of confidence for your next race.

Thanks AMK! Yes it does give me a bit of much needed confidence!

ha ha I found a photo. A pair of dark shades can cover up a multitude:cool:

AuldManKing

Ososlo wrote: »

Might try Poppintree for a change and I don't think it's too far from me!

I'm from Poppintree originally - must pop over myself to the homeland for one of these.

Ososlo

Monday 1 December
am: 35 mins easy
AIS, LM pre run
Another stupendous morning for running. Felt great this morning. Still no delayed muscle soreness or anything but kept it very comfortable with a slight 3 min pickup towards the end.
9:57 avg pace

pm: 45 mins easy w/6x 25 sec strides
AIS, LM pre run
My pm run on double easy days is now extended to 45 mins. Happy Daze
So it seems like I'm still running "in the bucket" according to the powers that be. Back to really focusing on form and pushing hips up and out and thinking of my pelvis as a "hinge" for my legs and my legs should swing through "in pendulum fashion". Oh dear, so much to think about:(
Tried it on my run this evening. I think I 'get' it but it is taking a bit of work and it is making me run faster than I should for easy runs. I found it easier to do on the flat and with the wind behind me and when doing the strides especically, but once I was running against the wind and on any kind of incline, my form failed. Will keep working on it over the coming weeks.
Myrtl routine post run
9:36 avg pace

8.5 miles daily total

I got my new schedule for the next few months. Lots of interesting stuff in there. I'll never be bored. That's for sure:D Can't wait to get stuck into the first session tomorrow!

rom

Well done on the PB

Ososlo

rom wrote: »

Well done on the PB

Thanks rom:) I know I can't claim it officially due to the **** up with the race distance but it's a good indicator of where I'm at and the improvements I've made since the summer.

Interestingly, my brother living in New Zealand was doing a race on Saturday too where there was a big mess made also:). It seems that marshals make ****-ups on the other side of the world too:rolleyes:

From his race report:

It's all go all the way in the 5 miler isn't it- did you have time for a drink or did you bother. I ask as I was dying for a drink yesterday in the 12 k as there was a drink station but I took the strategic step to keep going as my main challenger was on my tail and he took a drink and I was able to get a lead.
The whole thing turned into a disaster for me as I was in the seldom seen experience of me being in the lead, losing it by taking a wrong turn due to bad signage( signs were triangular. A triangle has 3 points. Dumb eh)
So me and the guy behind me and the guy in third all caught up with each other and figured out where to go. The big **** up took place 2 k from finish. The course came to a junction on a road near a farm yard- I took a right as the trtiangle was point that direction- there were 3 supposed marshalls there - mute and let me go wrong way - two behind me went right way. I was really pissed off at this stage, kept going but wouldn't have been able to catch up again even if I had the heart.

Ranted a small bit when I walked over the line as 4th was still a bit behind.
Real pity as I was giving my all for nothing- very frustrating- Didn't hang around and went home- would have hung around as there was a 21k as well and a bike event. Nice coastal scenery and river crossings on track too.

Posted to race FB page - got an apology and they said they wold get back to me after a debriefing on Thu.

RedRunner

Hi A. Just catching up here. Firstly Hope your Dad is doing better now and well on the mend.

Well done on the race. Pity I'd forgotten that it was on, I could have gone down to cheer you on. Was down for a walk on part of the HM course later and saw all the bottles and signs up. You're getting great work in lately. All your times will tumble in 2015 for sure!

Ososlo

RedRunner wrote: »

Hi A. Just catching up here. Firstly Hope your Dad is doing better now and well on the mend.

Well done on the race. Pity I'd forgotten that it was on, I could have gone down to cheer you on. Was down for a walk on part of the HM course later and saw all the bottles and signs up. You're getting great work in lately. All your times will tumble in 2015 for sure!

Thanks R! Yes I feel things are finally kicking off for me! All good on the personal front too thanks
hope your injury woes are improving in a big way and 2015 will be a great one for you!

Ososlo

Tuesday 2 December
LT session: 10 x 3 mins off 30 sec rec
AIS, LM pre run

Woke up with slightly tender glutes and neck which I'm putting down to practicing the new running form yesterday (engaging the glutes more) and the butt clenching throughout the day which should assist in helping me climb outa "da bucket"!

A three hour meeting this morning without being able to move my butt around (except for the clenching which may have appeared quite odd to my colleagues if they were watching closely) didn't help matters! The question of my contract continuing for next year arose during the meeting. I only work there 1 or 2 days a week, but a big little part of me was hoping they'd say they didn't need me anymore so I'd have more running time in 2015. I know it's ridiculous to be wishing away work/money in this day and age, but I'm a simple girl with simple needs. As long as I have enough dosh to buy new runners and put petrol into the car to get to the Phoenix Park now and again I'm happy:)
The bad news is that they do need me next year

Was looking forward to doing this session. However it actually turned out to be a little harder than I thought it would be. In an ideal world, the pace of the reps would have been around 8:05-8:10 pace, but I was doing it totally by feel and maybe the race is still in my legs a bit so it turned out a bit slower than I hoped. Also, I find I have so much to think about with the new running form that I'm a bit distracted by that. Anyways, excuses excuses will get me nowhere in life
8:31, 8:11, 8:19, 8:12, 8:34
8:11, 8:10, 8:18, 8:08, 8:04
The 30 second recoveries flew by ridiculously quickly! They felt like 5 seconds! I definitely felt better as the session went on and had a few more reps in me if called for so I suppose I'm happy enough in hindsight despite the slow paces as I did put in a good effort.
Did a few cooldown miles whilst once again focusing on good running form and pushing the pelvis and hips up and out.
Total: 9 miles @ 9:20 avg pace
Easy tomorrow and my mostest favouriteist of all - the Strides Session Thursday!

Lord Byron

Did the headphones come out on the 5th rep or did you stop to apply some slap? Well done - that's a hard session.

biketard

Really enjoying your thread, Ososlo. Thanks for posting.

Ososlo

biketard wrote: »

Really enjoying your thread, Ososlo. Thanks for posting.

thanks biketard!

Ososlo

Wednesday 3 December
6 miles w/6x25 sec strides
Very sore neck all day. Really bad. Didn't fancy popping the muscle relaxants so just suffered through. It was very sore during the run. I think I'm tensing up more these days, ironically since I started focusing on a more relaxed running form. When I'm concentrating on pushing my pelvis and hips up and forward, I'm tensing my neck and between my shoulders. When I'm concentrating on keeping my head up and shoulders relaxed, the running form of my lower body if faltering. This is very hard work! It probably didn't help that I spend hours in work today looking at videos of good running form and trying to take in all the advice. It's wrecking my ****ing head!
6 miles @ 9:39 avg pace

Thursday 4 December
Strides session
3 x (6 x 40 secs strides @ mile effort) jog back recovery. 4 mins jog between sets & 2 mins @ 2 mile race effort

Went to my usual Strides Track at the back of Homebase only to find it invaded by teenage boys. Wasn't worth the hassle of continuing the session there with the grief I was getting. If their mothers could hear the filth that was coming out of their mouths!!!
First lot of reps were a bit all over the place as a result as I couldn't focus.
7:12, 7:26, 6:56, 6:48, 7:57, 6:52
6:51, 7:07, 6:54, 6:50, 6:48, 6:59
6:44, 7:15, 7:12, 6:50, 6:47, 6:56

All went fine once I found a nice quiet flat spot to do the second and third lot of reps. The jog back recoveries took about a minute and I was able to hold a decent enough effort and wasn't dying on my feet.
I used the 4 min recoveries to check out my reflection in the large windows of the shops to observe my running form from different angles. I hope no one was looking:D.
Then did the 2 mins @ 2 mile effort. Hard to judge this. I put in a really hard effort but controlled at the same time. It came in at 7:07 pace which would be close enough to where it should be I guess.
What I love about my training these days is that I'm getting lots of opportunities to run at lots of different paces/efforts. This is giving me more confidence. If I can run a few minutes now close to 7 pace, what's to say I can't race close to that pace sometime in the future. Hopefully it'll happen if I continue to put in the work. Which I will of course!!!
9.9 miles @ 9:29 avg pace

gerard_65

Be careful about trying to change your running form. Remember Micheal Johnson had an unusual running style and it did him no harm. I believe you should run naturally as you feel.
Its like this nonsense about fore-foot striking, its actually be shown that the majority of top marathon runners are mid-foot strikers.
Just my two cents.

Ososlo

gerard_65 wrote: »

Be careful about trying to change your running form. Remember Micheal Johnson had an unusual running style and it did him no harm. I believe you should run naturally as you feel.
Its like this nonsense about fore-foot striking, its actually be shown that the majority of top marathon runners are mid-foot strikers.
Just my two cents.

Good point. There's herself also of course, Paula. Didn't do her any harm either!
I think I need to think less about it. Maybe try and implement one new thing at a time or something.

pconn062

gerard_65 wrote: »

Be careful about trying to change your running form. Remember Micheal Johnson had an unusual running style and it did him no harm. I believe you should run naturally as you feel.
Its like this nonsense about fore-foot striking, its actually be shown that the majority of top marathon runners are mid-foot strikers.
Just my two cents.

+1

I wouldn't be taking advice about running form from anyone apart from maybe an expert in bio-mechanics. Unless you are assessed properly and shown that you have an actual bio-mechanical issue that is impacting your running negatively any change will just most likely end up doing more harm than good.

DarByrne1980

pconn062 wrote: »

+1

I wouldn't be taking advice about running form from anyone apart from maybe an expert in bio-mechanics. Unless you are assessed properly and shown that you have an actual bio-mechanical issue that is impacting your running negatively any change will just most likely end up doing more harm than good.

+1 from me also. every1 has their own natural running position/style so u wud need to be careful to be tryin to change dat.

barryoneill50

Just put the old rusty bucket to one side and get those pendulums swinging and you shall be floating along nicely......

Ososlo

barryoneill50 wrote: »

Just put the old rusty bucket to one side and get those pendulums swinging and you shall be floating along nicely......

ha ha no problem getting me pendulums swinging it's getting me arse outa the bucket that's the challenge:D;)

ThebitterLemon

Ososlo wrote: »

ha ha no problem getting me pendulums swinging it's getting me arse outa the bucket that's the challenge:D;)

Shockingly enough the above could apply to me currently

TbL

SamforMayo

Ososlo wrote: »

ha ha no problem getting me pendulums swinging it's getting me arse outa the bucket that's the challenge:D;)

I'm completely lost!

Ososlo

SamforMayo wrote: »

I'm completely lost!

don't worry. You'd have to read back a bit. It's all above board:)

Ososlo

Friday 5 December
AIS, LM pre run
6 miles easy
A bit too fast for easy but I was feckin freezin and it was net downhill. Neck not sore today and glute tenderness completely gone.
Didn't stress about the running form tonight but did try to maintain an upright posture with head up and chest out. But not too much ;-)
6 miles @ 9:41 avg pace

Saturday 6 December
AIS, LM pre run
6 miles easy
Woke up with a sick stomach. Dunno why. Touch and go for a while but felt a bit better as the day went on. Today was to be Long Run day. Drove to Phoneix Park. When I got there I realised I forgot my Garmin. Didn't have any other watch to measure even the time running so headed home again. Decided to scrap the long run and just did my easy run instead in local park thinking that maybe in hindsight it was better not to do the long run with 'stuff' on an iffy stomach.
Stewards setting up the park for what must be the novice cross country. Lots of activity to keep me entertained!
6 miles @ 9:39 avg pace

Sunday 7 December
AIS, LM pre run
20 mins easy, 60 mins HEAE (high end aerobic effort (2hr race effort), 20 mins easy)
Long run with stuff today. Sleep was terrible last night and stomach not great either this morning.
Did this locally. The idea was to run the HAEA at 2-hour race effort and not wear the watch at all. We all know that's not going to happen now don't we;), as I need:rolleyes: my stats for review and preview (mainly to keep account of my mileage) so I covered up the pace display and just had the clock on show.
This is the way my long run is going to be structured every week for the next 6 months so I was told to 'get used to it'!
It took me a while to get into any kind of rhythm and I hadn't eaten enough for breakfast. I found an old bagel in the freezer which I toasted but it tasted vile and didn't help my stomach issues so I couldn't finish it.
The run definitely got better as it went on and I put in what I would describe as a low-ish-level hard effort where my breathing was a little heavier than usual but still very controlled and my body felt very relaxed. I did have an inkling of a stitch here and there so I had to wind down the effort a bit to keep it at bay. Ate a little too close to the run I think. I'll get these things right when I tackle it again next weekend. All in all I'm happy enough with it and look forward to doing it again next weekend.
11 miles daily total
Weekly total: 58 miles

Can't wait to get stuck into Week 2 of this new schedule with a little bit of progression in 2 of the sessions. Feeling good and handling it all very well so far. Taking Kinnetica 100% Recovery after all my harder sessions and longer run for the past 2 months now and I think it seems to be doing the trick!

pistol_75

Always important to have something to reference isn't it ;-)

Ososlo

Monday 8 December
AIS, LM pre run
6.5 miles easy

I let the WORLD Atlas of Wine (a very large heavy tome) fall on my right toes on my way out the door to do this:( The pain was so bad I felt a bit sick. It didn't hurt me when running thankfully, but it was very sore and bruised to the touch and later that night in bed.
6.5 miles @ 9:47 avg pace

Tuesday 9 December
Strides Session: 3 x (6x40 sec @ mile effort off jog-back recoveries) 4 mins jog between sets & 3 mins @ 2 mile effort
AIS & Lunge Matrix pre run

No sleep:(. Went to bed extra early so I'd feel really refreshed this morning but alas it wasn't to be. Had to be up early to be at a meeting and to do a training session so knew I had to be at the top of my game this morning. But as per usual, when the pressure's on, the body lets me down

I was zombie-like all morning but managed to do what I needed to do at work despite the tiredness but the pre-run nutrition/hydration was abysmal. I only ate a small bag of brazil nuts and a handful of seeds and a cup of coffee all day and headed out to do this at 3:30pm. I wanted to do it in the local park while it was still bright so I had no time to eat properly. I had no water all morning either as I was too busy to be visiting the loo! so was a bit thirsty heading off. Wasn't sure what to expect for the session but as often happens in these situations, it turned out fairly well in the end.
My mile pace is just under 7 min/mile so even though the paces don't look very consistent the effort felt even at the time. Focused on good running form and a nice upright posture. I preferred today's session to the same strides session I did last week as I did it in the daylight so I could actually see where I was going and the paths were lovely and even and straight and quiet unlike last week when I had to watch my footing. Therefore I felt a lot more relaxed and in control. I really enjoyed it overall and felt good throughout.
Took 4 mins jog recovery when the 3 sets were done and then onto the 3 min effort at 2 mile race effort.
Hard to judge this one and might have run it a bit fast. What I found on this rep was that my arms started to feel really weak and tired about 2 mins in. The lack of food was probably kicking in but not sure why my arms felt so weak and not my legs or any other part of me The last time I remembered feeling this sensation in my arms was when I did the 1 mile TT last year. Weird...

All done by effort, no Garmin watching...
Set 1:
6:26, 6:43, 6:38, 6:45, 6:36, 7:02 (pace)

Set 2:
7:15, 6:47, 6:49, 6:53, 6:48, 7:05

Set 3:
6:40, 7:02, 7:04, 6:57, 6:59, 7:03

3 mins @ 2mile effort: 7:03 (the last 20 seconds of this were wind assisted so that might account for the faster pace than last week)

Couple of miles cool down at 9:57 & 10:02 pace

9 miles total @ 9:34 avg pace
Myrtl routine post run

barryoneill50

First set a bit fast was it?

Ososlo

barryoneill50 wrote: »

First set a bit fast was it?

Yeah defo barry. Didn't feel it at the time though.
Obviously I felt fresher at the start and a bit more tired as the time went on but the effort felt the same.
Oh to have those lovely even splits that so many Boardsies seem to be able to manage... To me it's impossible unless I'm watching the garmin!