Be still my beating heart

Neady83

Enjoy Lusk tomorrow A

There's a rough dirt road around a pitch that I like running around these days, it's about the size of a track and every time I run one particular section of it I think of you and how you'll be doing this over and over again in Belfast. It's going to be bloody tough but there's no better person for the job Keep up the brilliant training, I'm in awe.

Firedance

Oh yes! + 1 to the good luck wishes, have fun

Bungy Girl

Best of luck tomorrow!

Ososlo

Awww thanks everyone! But.....

Was advised not to run this morning as I had a foot niggle on my run home from work on Wednesday so better to rest it for a few days - bigger picture and all that....

I did a test run this morning and all is perfect
Happy out, and delighted in hindsight I didn't chance running the marathon and possibly developing an injury.

Bloody perfect morning for a marathon run though!!

UM1

Ososlo wrote: »

Awww thanks everyone! But.....

Was advised not to run this morning as I had a foot niggle on my run home from work on Wednesday so better to rest it for a few days - bigger picture and all that....

I did a test run this morning and all is perfect
Happy out, and delighted in hindsight I didn't chance running the marathon and possibly developing an injury.

Bloody perfect morning for a marathon run though!!

Was at the lusk race marshallin,remembered u sayin u be doin it..prob better to get injurys or niggles now rather than nearer race time..mite see u for a race in conn:)

Ososlo

UM1 wrote: »

Was at the lusk race marshallin,remembered u sayin u be doin it..prob better to get injurys or niggles now rather than nearer race time..mite see u for a race in conn:)

Was very disappointed to miss it but definitely the right thing to do as the niggle is gone now. Hope it went well. I had a ball at Staplestown. A great 2nd marathon experience! I'm sure Lusk was just as good. I did a recce of the course a few days before and it looked like a fun route and I love the loops. Ah well...next year!

Hope the training is going well for Conn! I'm so excited about it! I'll be a long way behind you I'm sure but see you at the start. Not long to go now...

Ososlo

Neady83 wrote: »

There's a rough dirt road around a pitch that I like running around these days, it's about the size of a track and every time I run one particular section of it I think of you and how you'll be doing this over and over again in Belfast. It's going to be bloody tough but there's no better person for the job Keep up the brilliant training, I'm in awe.

Haha I have a very high boredom threshold luckily! However, that will certainly be tested to the max come June!
It's not on a track this year due to numbers, it's in a local park and the loops are a bit longer so not quite so monotonous.
Thanks Neady!

Ososlo

RedRunner wrote: »

OMG!...I've been away from this log too long!
The 24hr is the perfect challenge for you A IMO.
Good luck with everything.:-)

Thanks a million R! It's all a bit mad alright but sure as you say 'the perfect challenge'!
I'm enjoying following Operation Transformation RedRunner! Best of luck and fantastic to see you getting back to where you were on the running front. You'll be back pb'ing before you know it.

Ososlo

Bit of a catchup overdue here!

Monday 22nd & Tuesday 23rd Feb - Rest
The plan was to take a few days off and have a bit of an easy week culminating in a nice relaxed marathon run at the weekend.
I was like a biatch not running for those 2 days though!

Wednesday 24th Feb
3 miles easy @ 10:01
Absolutely dying to get on the road after work after the 2 days off. 2 miles into the run however, I felt a bit of discomfort on the sole, towards the edge of my right foot. I just couldn't really run properly on it. By the third mile is was most definitely a niggle and just didn't feel right. It felt like there was a knot in it or something. I was stuck in Drumcondra, a good few miles from the car, so it was a case of jog/walk/stumble up the hill back to the car. Running on my toes felt fine so I did that for a bit, but obviously this was not a great idea for a prolonged period so mainly just walked. T'was a sad 'n sorry and worrisome walk


Thursday 25th and Friday 26th
Embarked on an extensive programme of WERI* (*Worry, Elevate, Rest & Ice) rehab for the foot
Haven't been injured in well over 2 years and even then I was only out for 4 days. The prospect of being off for any prolonged period filled me with terror My coach didn't seem worried about it at all, unlike moi! I sent him a pic of where the sore spot was and gave a detailed description of how it was feeling and he was sure there was nothing broken or torn, just a bit of aggravation or inflammation to the peroneal muscles, of which there are 3 - two down the side of the leg and one going into the bottom of the foot. The one going into the foot wasn't happy for some reason. I was going to rush off to a physio, but J was very sure it was nothing that a few days of rest and a little self myofascial release wouldn't sort, so I did a DIY physio session to try to release some of the tightness. I had a series of little bruises all the way down along my calf after it so might have gone a bit too hard on myself:eek:

Again, I was like a total biatch for those 2 days so apologies to anyone I had any dealings with over this time! I felt so depressed about not being able to run and worried about being out of action for a prolonged period and it was horrible. I bottled up those feelings and will take them with me to Belfast, so that in my darkest hours, when things get really tough, I'll remember how horrific it was NOT to be able to run at all, and I will count my lucky stars that I'm able to run (if indeed I am able to run at that point )
Btw, the foot didn't hurt at all when walking but I continued to treat it with WERI on and off religiously for those 2 days!

Saturday 27th Feb
No Lusk marathon . Test run of 3.2 miles @ 10:39
Foot felt perfect. Was sooooo happy!!

Sunday 28th
Another test run of 4.6 miles @ 9:53
All felt good. Maybe a very slight ache towards the end of the run but I wasn't too worried.

Weekly total - 11 miles

Monday 29 February
5 miles @ 9:58
Foot felt good for first 3 miles then I could feel a bit of an ache as the run went on so cut it short. Worried again...:(

Feb total: 215 miles (100 less than January due to niggle-gate)

Tuesday 1 March
7 miles @ 9:49
Foot felt good for first 40 mins or so and then could feel the ache again so ran on the grass for a bit and that didn't hurt at all.

Wednesday 2 March
10.3 @ 9:51
Started "Operation Grass Running". Decided to take to the grass due to the softer impact. I generally avoid grass like the plague as I always feel so sluggish when running on it and just don't like it, but I don't like running at all a lot more than I don't' like running on grass, so I'll do whatever it takes to allow me to train.
Not a peep out of the foot for the whole run! Was over the moon, so round and round and round I went, around the Polo grounds for 10 miles. I think I did 18 laps! Enjoyed every single step and was so grateful that the niggle stayed at bay.

Thursday 3 March
10 miles @ 9:49
As yesterday was such a success with Operation Grass Running, I took to the Polo grounds again for a repeat of Wednesday. Foot felt perfect and aerobically, I felt good and strong. Kept it all super easy and foot didn't complain once. Yay!!! I was up to my knees in muck as it had was quite wet in parts but I couldn't care less. I now LOVE LOVE LOVE running on grass! Will incorporate weekly grass and trail running into my weekly schedule from now on.

Friday 4 March
10.2 @ 9:49
Thought yiz'd all think I'd lost it altogether if I posted yet ANOTHER 18 laps of the Polo grounds for the 3rd day in a row, so I found me another grassy route. Started near Papal Cross and did a big 2 mile circle down by US Embassy and around by the hospital and back up the other side of the field. Did that twice but there was a dodgy looking dude hanging around me so I took the run over to the slightly busier loop around the football grounds. Did that loop 4 times. Alternated between grass and path to get the body used to running on the harder surfaces again. All good. Thoroughly enjoyable. Foot didn't complain on the paths.

Saturday 5 March
am: 6 miles easy @ 9:54
Was going to do half on grass and half on path but bit the bullet and did it all on the paths and not a peep outa the foot and even wore my much lighter ST5s (had been wearing stability Mizunos through the dark days of Niggle-Gate). Felt like I have a brand new foot today!

pm: 6 miles easy @ 9:36
Felt fantastic aerobically. Like the morning, I ran on paths and wore the racers. Same effort as morning run but way faster. Could have run all night. I'll get a chance to do that very soon IRL ;-)

Sunday 6 March
13 miles easy @ 9:51
Very poor night's sleep and was a bit lack lustre for the first few miles. Raced a few people up the hills around the S-bends and got my mojo back. Got a bit tired then so just sat back and relaxed and enjoyed the scenery. Was gonna do a few more miles to bring the weekly total into the 70s, but thought I might get into trouble for not doing what I was told so left it at 13.

Weekly total: 68 miles

So, all back to normal now, and will start building from here by increasing the mileage gradually with longer doubles and building the long run back up. Only 5 weeks to Connemara which I'm thoroughly looking forward to, and after that, the REAL fun begins in preparation for Belfast

I'm one helluva lucky gal

snailsong

I was wondering what had happened to you but was afraid to ask...

Glad to see you back.
You really love running don't you? I like it myself but you're a hard case.
You should do it more often. ;-)

If I ever need my enthusiasm for running boosted, (and I don't) I can just read your log.

Firedance

Delighted to hear niggle-gate is over, hope it stays that way. What a super idea to bring those feelings with you to Belfast! Happy running

Ososlo

snailsong wrote: »

You really love running don't you? I like it myself but you're a hard case.

Eh, yeah, maybe just a little bit

too much!

snailsong wrote: »

You should do it more often. ;-)

I will be:D

Firedance wrote: »

Delighted to hear niggle-gate is over, hope it stays that way. What a super idea to bring those feelings with you to Belfast! Happy running

Right back at ya mrs!

pconn062

All three peroneal muscles (brevis, longus, tertius) actually go into the foot, but only the longus goes under the foot and inserts into the 1st (big toe) metatarsal. The other two connect into the 5th metatarsal on the outside of the foot. I sometimes get some small aching pain there on the outside of the foot, due to over inversion of the foot before landing. Strengthening the peroneals with a theraband helps.

Glad to hear it's nothing serious and sorted now.

The Muppet

Good to hear the niggle is nothing serious.

Your milage is unreal to us mere mortal runners.

The best of luck with the " new foot" .

Ososlo

pconn062 wrote: »

All three peroneal muscles (brevis, longus, tertius) actually go into the foot, but only the longus goes under the foot and inserts into the 1st (big toe) metatarsal. The other two connect into the 5th metatarsal on the outside of the foot. I sometimes get some small aching pain there on the outside of the foot, due to over inversion of the foot before landing. Strengthening the peroneals with a theraband helps.

Glad to hear it's nothing serious and sorted now.

Cheers and thanks for the suggestion on the theraband.
Delighted to see things are on the up for yourself now.

RubyK

Glad to hear the foot problem has cleared up!! Onwards and upwards now, not long to go to Conn Exciting times ahead.

Ososlo

RubyK wrote: »

Glad to hear the foot problem has cleared up!! Onwards and upwards now, not long to go to Conn Exciting times ahead.

Absolutely! Really looking forward to tackling the distance in Conn!

How is marathon training going? Feeling confident?

Ososlo

Monday 7 March
am: 6 miles @ 10:16
Very sluggish this morning.
pm: 7 miles easy @ 9:56
Felt a lot better - niggle behind knee.

Tuesday 8 March
am: 6 miles easy @ 9:53
pm: 4 miles easy @ 9:17
Aerobically I felt fantastic. V. fast for easy.
Started 24hour fast at 8:30pm after dinner.

Wednesday 9 March
4 miles easy @ 10:11
Knee niggle a lot better. Kept this one super easy due to not having eaten for 22 hours!
No problem with the fast. Kept myself busy in work all day and drank lots of green tea and water. Ran home from work very slowly. Ate again at 8:30pm. It didn't take much to fill me!

Thursday 10 March
10 miles easy @ 9:56
Knee niggle gone. Easy one home from work. I had a very light backpack for 4 miles of this but my neck was very sore after it. My neck is my one big worry for Belfast, as when it gets tired on a long run, it gets very stiff and sore. If anyone knows of any good physios who are good with necks, gimme a shout thanks.

Friday 11 March
6 miles easy @ 9:42
Felt great this evening.

Saturday 12 March
am: 8 miles easy @ 9:48
Sleepless night. Insomnia from now on is also known as 'Training for 24hr Race'!

Went to the Phoenix Park so I could run some of the hillier bits of the park with Conn looming. I know I should be going to Howth to run some 'real' hills in proper preparation for Conn but was advised to keep things handy this week and avoid very hilly runs in case the foot issue returns or the knee niggle develops. Belfast in the A goal so need to keep that in the forefront of my mind. Enjoyable run on an absolutely glorious day but for some reason no one would say hello to me on this run I forced a few reluctant hellos eventually. People looked too 'in the zone' and focused on their business to be very friendly in the main. Strange....
pm: 6 miles easy @ 9:49
Very sad to hear about the death of Jim McNamara. I didn't know him but his face was very familiar to me from the Park probably and different races around Dublin. I do know his brother though quite well and have a heartbreaking chat with him this afternoon and he relayed some lovely stories about his brother's passion for his running and coaching. He is absolutely devastated to lose his 'best friend'. We're going to go for a jog together some day soon and I look forward to hearing lots more about Jim.

Most enjoyable run this evening. Perfect weather for it!

Sunday 13 March
17 mile LSR @ 9:49
Back to my usual North Road/Chesterfield Ave loops for this one. I had a bit of a knot in my stomach for most of this run which I had from when I woke up this morning, so I felt a bit of discomfort for a lot of it. Not as enjoyable as recent long runs but I think it's no harm to have the odd 'less fabulous' run as it'll 'learn' me to get on with it, and push through when things get tough in Belfast. I started out at a crawl and disregarded the pace and just locked in to my 'run forever' zone/pace, and I actually felt much better later in the run and finished strongly.

Weekly total: 74.7 miles

Not a bad week even if it was all plodding, but the main thing is that I am 100% niggle-free so will be introducing a bit of faster stuff next week now that things are back to normal.
All the usual AIS done before each run religiously and Lunge Matrix done most days and Myrtl done 3 times.

Dub13

Some great hills out in Howth, I used to only run Howth the very odd time but doing a long run over the hills there now at least once a week. You should do a few runs over it, I find it much better than the park. Plus I am right beside it should use it more.

snailsong

Well done on picking back up the milage after your niggle.

I have had issues with the neck and shoulder area in the past. I found it helps to wear a buff about the neck to keep the muscles nice and warm. When you're well warmed up you can stick it on the wrist and it's a sweat band. Hope that helps.

Ososlo

Dub13 wrote: »

Some great hills out in Howth, I used to only run Howth the very odd time but doing a long run over the hills there now at least once a week. You should do a few runs over it, I find it much better than the park. Plus I am right beside it should use it more.

Yeah I really do need to!

Well done today! Just read about it on other thread. Great going!!

Dub13

Ososlo wrote: »

Yeah I really do need to!

Well done today! Just read about it on other thread. Great going!!

Cheers, was a bit unexpected but kind of puts more pressure on.

Dub13

On Howth here is my garmin link to what I think is the best hilly route up the hill. Its a hard one but well worth it after doing a few.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1067442329

Ososlo

snailsong wrote: »

Well done on picking back up the milage after your niggle.

I have had issues with the neck and shoulder area in the past. I found it helps to wear a buff about the neck to keep the muscles nice and warm. When you're well warmed up you can stick it on the wrist and it's a sweat band. Hope that helps.

thanks a mill. I might try that and see if it helps. I think I have one somewhere from a Waterford half a few years ago!

Dubgal72

Would you consider an osteopath for your neck? I was thinking a cranial osteopath. I had a couple of sessions early Jan and was blissed out...and also very relaxed. I get very tense around the neck and shoulders and I found this particular treatment really good for that.

Ososlo

Dubgal72 wrote: »

Would you consider an osteopath for your neck? I was thinking a cranial osteopath. I had a couple of sessions early Jan and was blissed out...and also very relaxed. I get very tense around the neck and shoulders and I found this particular treatment really good for that.

Cheers for the suggestion. I really know nothing about osteopaths! Time to do some research!

Dubgal72

Ososlo wrote: »

Cheers for the suggestion. I really know nothing about osteopaths! Time to do some research!

Yeah it seems like a bit of a fuzzy science at first but the fact that Paula Radcliffe - amongst others - used an osteo as part of her integral maintenance swung it for me. They do the same thing as chiropractors but take a less invasive route. Lots of theory about the body's fascia too. I had a really interesting chat with my osteo mid bliss. Clean your ears though, they go "in' :eek:

mathso

I'm enjoying your training and all the help im getting from the other posters, i am also training for the Conn ultra and I am hopeful i will finish it.
You should enter the EOI Marathon on Howth head as a training run the tíming for it is perfect for Conn 26th March
I'm also a little curious about the Fasting was that running related or training advice?
I am looking for all the help i can get

Ososlo

mathso wrote: »

I'm enjoying your training and all the help im getting from the other posters, i am also training for the Conn ultra and I am hopeful i will finish it.
You should enter the EOI Marathon on Howth head as a training run the tíming for it is perfect for Conn 26th March
I'm also a little curious about the Fasting was that running related or training advice?
I am looking for all the help i can get

Hey mathso, thanks a mill. I will have a look at that marathon and see if the date suits.

I think you're a lot more experienced than me so not sure I can be of any help!
I'm getting help from someone outside of Boards and I'm very new to the whole Ultra thing so it's all a learning experience for me.
Here's Enduro's opinion on Intermittent Fasting
It's just something I'm trying once a week from now on to train my body to use fat stores as energy. It's really with Belfast 24hr in mind, not Connemara. I haven't been doing it long enough to be able to tell if I have reaped any benefits yet but I don't think it's doing me any harm and I actually 'enjoy' depriving myself of food in a weird way:) plus I save a bit of money :)
You should ask about it on the Ultra thread or Conn thread where TFBubendorfer and Enduro who have loads of experience in the area of ultras will be able to help you.

How's your training going?

mathso

Ososlo wrote: »

Hey mathso, thanks a mill. I will have a look at that marathon and see if the date suits.

I think you're a lot more experienced than me so not sure I can be of any help!
I'm getting help from someone outside of Boards and I'm very new to the whole Ultra thing so it's all a learning experience for me.
Here's Enduro's opinion on Intermittent Fasting
It's just something I'm trying once a week from now on to train my body to use fat stores as energy. It's really with Belfast 24hr in mind, not Connemara. I haven't been doing it long enough to be able to tell if I have reaped any benefits yet but I don't think it's doing me any harm and I actually 'enjoy' depriving myself of food in a weird way:) plus I save a bit of money :)
You should ask about it on the Ultra thread or Conn thread where TFBubendorfer and Enduro who have loads of experience in the area of ultras will be able to help you.

How's your training going?

Training is going well, I'm not doing as many miles as you but im getting there, small problem with my Hip.
I have a fair bit of Marathon experience but its the longer distance that I am training for now.
50k i can handle, but like you i have a target race and I am only using Conn for training.
Any new idea i can try i am interested, i check out the ultra tread and see what I can get from it.
The person who advised you about the Fasting is he an Ultra runner speaking from experiències, just wondering has he tried it himself.
Thanks

Chivito550

Reminds me of a great documentary I saw on YouTube a while back on the golden generation of Swedish athletics and the lengths they'd go to try achieve Olympic and World glory, all the way down to what youth athletes were doing to their bodies. There was one extreme example of a high jumper (can't remember his name but it wasn't Stefan Holm) who said he would practically starve himself in the leadup to a competition to try get as lean as possible, while still training away during this time. It struck me as utter madness. I've no idea if other high jumpers do this or if it was some crazy idea his particular coaching team had.

I've no idea if fasting will help or hinder a 24 hour athlete. Others will be better judges of that than me. But it's certainly not good for one's health. Be careful with it anyway.

demfad

Chivito550 wrote: »

....I've no idea if fasting will help or hinder a 24 hour athlete. Others will be better judges of that than me. But it's certainly not good for one's health. Be careful with it anyway.

I don't want to send Ososlo's Log off on a tangent but just wondering what your basis is for the bold section?

Myles Splitz

Pretty good overview on the science behind the approach for anyone interested here

http://easacademy.org/trainer-resources/article/intermittent-fasting

demfad

Myles Splitz wrote: »

Pretty good overview on the science behind the approach for anyone interested here

http://easacademy.org/trainer-resources/article/intermittent-fasting

Its an overview but the science seems to be inconclusive. Seems to be good results for animals but poor results for humans mainly because many of the humans tested were experiencing Ramadan and therefore also deprived of water. There is one study claiming that fat oxidation does not increase whether fasted or fed. This seems to be contradicted in other studies.
Crucially performance is not measured in the study.

I would imagine that which muscle fibres adapt to using fat during training is important. This may be relevant for improving max lipid power, or the max force you can output using fat oxidation. I guess you'd need to train the stronger available fibres for this purpose. Canova uses a similar strategy in marathon buildups. He depletes glycogen with 5 x 2k @ LT effort in the middle of a fast 35k run. The last couple of reps are glycogen depleted so the strongest available fibres are forced into use using fat oxidation as energy. The initial glycogen element would need to be missing from an equivalent 24hr type session (therefore fasted and pre-depleted) which could be run from anything from max lipid power pace to race pace with desirable effects on adapting relatively strong and/or specific fibres.

Also, going for a fasted training run at race pace will generally be specific training for a 24hr race as that is in effect what you are doing for most of it.

This is just theorising on my part though. As the science is sketchy at best on this topic the most concrete evidence would be gleaned from ultra runners experiences on this. Enduro's opinion would carry weight here obviously.

walshb

Chivito550 wrote: »

Reminds me of a great documentary I saw on YouTube a while back on the golden generation of Swedish athletics and the lengths they'd go to try achieve Olympic and World glory, all the way down to what youth athletes were doing to their bodies. There was one extreme example of a high jumper (can't remember his name but it wasn't Stefan Holm) who said he would practically starve himself in the leadup to a competition to try get as lean as possible, while still training away during this time. It struck me as utter madness. I've no idea if other high jumpers do this or if it was some crazy idea his particular coaching team had.

I've no idea if fasting will help or hinder a 24 hour athlete. Others will be better judges of that than me. But it's certainly not good for one's health. Be careful with it anyway.

Which makes MJs choosing to race looking like Mr. T all the more strange.

ososlo, some serious miles you are putting in. How do you fuel for it, and on average how much time is spent sleeping or trying to sleep?

Murph_D

demfad wrote: »

As the science is sketchy at best on this topic the most concrete evidence would be gleaned from ultra runners experiences on this. Enduro's opinion would carry weight here obviously.

Well to be fair the article does not suggest the science is sketchy - it states that there are NO studies linking fasting in humans with performance increase (the Muslim Ramadan studies found a modest performance decline, which could be partly explained by dehydration). So there is no evidence linking intermittent fasting to performance improvement OR the acquisition of a "lean, strong physique".

Assuming the review is comprehensive, and still current (written in 2014).

demfad

Murph_D wrote: »

Well to be fair the article does not suggest the science is sketchy - it states that there are NO studies linking fasting in humans with performance increase (the Muslim Ramadan studies found a modest performance decline, which could be partly explained by dehydration). So there is no evidence linking intermittent fasting to performance improvement OR the acquisition of a "lean, strong physique".

Assuming the review is comprehensive, and still current (written in 2014).

From the article:

Currently, the bulk of the scientific evidence for the health benefits of intermittent fasting has come from animal studies (review: (Longo and Mattson, 2014) and the negative effects of intermittent fasting have stemmed from Muslim athletes during Ramadan (review: (Chaouachi et al., 2009), both with limited ability to be translated to the general athletic community.

By 'Sketchy' I guess I meant inconclusive, in application to athletes. I think the collective experience of experienced ultra athletes used to these methods trumps the science in this case.

I may be mistaken but I don't think any of the studies were conducted in order to measure performance. Rather, many were conducted to measure fat metabolism under varying conditions.

Ososlo

mathso wrote: »

Training is going well, I'm not doing as many miles as you but im getting there, small problem with my Hip.
I have a fair bit of Marathon experience but its the longer distance that I am training for now.
50k i can handle, but like you i have a target race and I am only using Conn for training.
Any new idea i can try i am interested, i check out the ultra tread and see what I can get from it.
The person who advised you about the Fasting is he an Ultra runner speaking from experiències, just wondering has he tried it himself.
Thanks

What's the target race if you don't mind me asking?

Defo post your queries about IF on the Ultra thread. Here's the link: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=98923604#post98923604
Better to speak directly to those who might have tried it on the forum. I'm sure you know all about Enduro's success with Ultra running and he's very knowledgeable about fuelling and nutrition (or not!) for long distances etc.
I hope the hip problem disappears super quick for you!!!

walshb wrote: »

ososlo, some serious miles you are putting in. How do you fuel for it, and on average how much time is spent sleeping or trying to sleep?

Hey, walshb, well on the days that I'm not starving myself I just eat normally. I'm big into vegetable juices, so almost every day, I'd have a juice made from beetroot, courgette, broccoli, carrot, celery, kale, spinach, cucumber, ginger and a few other things! I try to get some chia seeds, macca, hemp etc in most days. I live for bread so probably eat way too much of that! I eat a lot of seeds and nuts daily (too many if possible!) and lot of beans and pulses and tofu, but I think my high protein diet is helping keep the body intact (in the main). I rarely get sick (touch wood) and my injury history has been very good except for a foot niggle lately. Before a long run I generally have a banana, a few nuts and a croissant or bagel.

On the long run (over 2.5 hours) I'll have a few sips (more if warm) of nuun in water and a homemade gel (top secret recipe from my coach) every 1.5 hours.

Sleep is abysmal in the main (varies from 2 hours to 5 hours, 6 hours considered a brilliant night for me). I spend a lot of time trying to sleep by going to bed early but that invariably leads to waking in the early hours and being awake most of the night so lately I've just been going to bed later.
I've accepted it though, as getting stressed about it makes it worse and leads to a vicious circle. Before I started running, my insomnia was also dreadful but I'd lie awake letting dark thoughts take over whereas now I'm thinking happy thoughts during the sleepless hours:) I do spend a lot of time counting sheep though, although in recent years that's changed to counting runners jumping over hurdles:D One night recently I counted backwards from 500 but I still couldn't sleep...

IF
On the IF thingy, I've read so many papers and websites about it and looked at both sides over and over again. I know it's seen as controversial by some and wasn't going to talk about it on my log but I think it's important to include it so as to have a thorough honest account of my training and all that goes with it, so that if I'm every crazy enough to try something like 24hr races again, I'll be able to look back on it and see what I was doing and learn from it. Bottom line though is that I'm giving it a go and I don't believe it to be unhealthy if done right and if taking on plenty of liquids and eating really well afterwards. If it all goes pear-shaped then I invite you all to come back and say 'I told you so'!

I'm enjoying the discussion but perhaps it might be more appropriate over on the Ultra thread. As demfad said, those who are experienced in the area can give their opinions as they probably won't be reading this.

walshb

Thanks, ososlo for the informative reply. As long as you are up for it and enjoying it and looking forward to it then that is 90 percent of it. The 10 percent is the unknown.

Ososlo

walshb wrote: »

Thanks, ososlo for the informative reply. As long as you are up for it and enjoying it and looking forward to it then that is 90 percent of it. The 10 percent is the unknown.

There's probably a little bit more than 10% unknown when it comes to 24 hour racing but sure all will be revealed in a few months!
Yep defo enjoying it all so far thanks!

Maximus Alexander

Ososlo wrote: »

Sleep is abysmal in the main (varies from 2 hours to 5 hours, 6 hours considered a brilliant night for me). I spend a lot of time trying to sleep by going to bed early but that invariably leads to waking in the early hours and being awake most of the night so lately I've just been going to bed later.
I've accepted it though, as getting stressed about it makes it worse and leads to a vicious circle. Before I started running, my insomnia was also dreadful but I'd lie awake letting dark thoughts take over whereas now I'm thinking happy thoughts during the sleepless hours:)

I'm not the only one!! Seems you actually have it a bit worse than me in terms of total hours sleep, but this almost perfectly describes my relationship with sleep in general. Running has really helped oddly enough - I'm still a poor sleeper but I just accept it now, go to bed later so as I'm actually ready to sleep, and the dark thoughts don't come.

I've found that going to bed later, when my eyes actually start getting heavy, lets me bank a solid six hours these days. Whereas when I used to go to bed earlier and try to force it I'd end up lying there awake for hours, getting more and more stressed that I wasn't sleeping, and feeding the cycle.

Ososlo

Maximus Alexander wrote: »

I'm not the only one!! Seems you actually have it a bit worse than me in terms of total hours sleep, but this almost perfectly describes my relationship with sleep in general. Running has really helped oddly enough - I'm still a poor sleeper but I just accept it now, go to bed later so as I'm actually ready to sleep, and the dark thoughts don't come.

I've found that going to bed later, when my eyes actually start getting heavy, lets me bank a solid six hours these days. Whereas when I used to go to bed earlier and try to force it I'd end up lying there awake for hours, getting more and more stressed that I wasn't sleeping, and feeding the cycle.

yep totally. Really bad idea trying to force it. Running did help mine initially (first 6 months from starting or so) but it's gone back to being as bad as it ever was now.
Anyways, let's not dwell on it Sweetdreams tonight!

walshb

Ososlo wrote: »

There's probably a little bit more than 10% unknown when it comes to 24 hour racing but sure all will be revealed in a few months!
Yep defo enjoying it all so far thanks!

You're right. I knew the figures didn't sound right. 10 percent? It's not a measly 5k parkrun!

BTW, I would have thought that exercise and activity to the degree you have been doing would have had you sleeping like the proverbial baby.

Ososlo

walshb wrote: »

You're right. I knew the figures didn't sound right. 10 percent? It's not a measly 5k parkrun!

BTW, I would have thought that exercise and activity to the degree you have been doing would have had you sleeping like the proverbial baby.

Yes you would think the training would have me conking out at night but unfortunately it doesn't work that way for me anyway. But I think for the first time in my life my insomnia will work in my favour for this race!

Ososlo

Monday 14 March
am: 6 miles recovery @ 10
No sleep and still have a knot in my stomach. Was sweating buckets. Maybe I need a day off...
pm: 7.5 miles easy @ 9:37
Felt AMAZING. So weird...Could have run all night. Pattern forming here of awful Monday am runs and fab Monday pm runs. Only set out to do 6 laps of local park but the sky was breathtakingly beautiful so I stayed out for a 7th loop just so's I could experience it again as I crested the brow of the hill. Totally worth it.

Tuesday 15 Mach
am: 6 miles easy @ 9:51
Lovely morning, feeelin gooood
pm: 6 miles easy @ 9:46
Another amazing night with this beautiful pink sky and different lilac hues.

Wednesday 16 March
18 mins @ LT/ 1hr race pace
It's a long time since I've done anything at this pace/effort so wasn't sure what way it'd pan out. No point in running it to a specific pace as I've no idea at the moment what my race times would be as I haven't done one for many months. Just locked into an effort I felt I could hold for an hour. It felt tough, like I'd like to stop if allowed, but just about manageable to sustain for an hour. Paces were: 8:05, 8, & 7:29 for the last few mins.
9.5 miles total @ 9:05 pace

Thursday 17 March
Wrecked tired from little sleep but really enjoyed this one. Only time for one run today due to mega house cleaning project. You know the kind of thorough deep clean you have to do when yer ma comes to visit!
6.3 miles recovery @ 10:01

Friday 18 March
am: 7 miles @ 9:58
OMG I was to tired getting up this morning. Sleep terrible. I can cope fine for one or two night without any, but the third night really gets me. Felt better running than not running though so a good sign for Belfast that I can keep on keeping on when I'm fcuked.
pm: 6 miles easy @ 9:59
Was a bit faster in reality. GPS shenaigans.. Very enjoyable.

Saturday 19 March
20 mile LSR @ 9:38 estimated pace based on first 15 miles
If you could conjure up the dream long run then this was it. I had to do it much earlier than usual as had to take a trip to KK in the afternoon. Just had 2 slices of toast beforehand. Conditions were perfect if perhaps a little on the cool side. Parked the car in my local park so I could stop off for a drink when necessary and not have to carry it so the plan was about 20 x 1 mile laps.
First few miles were below 10 pace (all done by effort) which is faster than I'd normally start off running as I take a bit of time to warm up. Then the 9:40s felt easy and then the same effort had me running 9:30s and even low 9s. At mile 15 when I looked at the watch and noticed it had frozen about half a mile back. Didn't stress, just ran home and got my old 305 to continue the run with but it wasn't powered up properly and died so just did another 5 laps of park to ensure I had the full 20 mile run covered. In the end I'd say I ran over 21 miles. Tried to upload the run when I got home but no success. Gremlins within. Did the old hard reset which worked a treat but it also deleted the run from the history so no stats
Breathing was perfect throughout, legs felt amazingly full of zip, I glided along and mentally felt in the zone for the full run. The 20 laps didn't faze me one bit.
I felt amazing after the run and really felt I could go out and do the same again and felt great all night and the next morning. Not a twinge or ache in sight and no fatigue. Happy days.

Sunday 20 March
5.5 miles recovery @ 10:03
Hilly run in the homeplace.

Weekly total: 80.3 miles First time in the 80's!

Next week might be a bit tricky on the personal front so might have to take 2 days off :eek: :eek::eek:

robinph

Stablemaster - Do not post on this thread again.

RubyK

How is the taper going ososlo? Not long now, you must be raring to go

Ososlo

RubyK wrote: »

How is the taper going ososlo? Not long now, you must be raring to go

Raring go? Most definitely

Tapering? Well it'll be a mini taper. After considering advice from the boss man and Enduro and others, I'll be approaching this race fairly conservatively - like a first marathon - as there's too much to lose by going out even a tad too fast, due to it being my first ultra, and due to the last third of the race being very challenging. I want to come away from it that evening having had a great experience and not a hellish one! I don't feel there is a need for a long taper. I'll have a longish run this weekend and then ease back next week and take a day or two off, so that the legs are nice and fresh for Sunday week. Can't bloody wait:D Anyone who reads this or knows me, knows that this mind-set before a race is very unlike me, but this time it's different. I'm very excited and mildly nervous, but in a really healthy way! BRING IT ON!

So how is your training going? Dying to know!!!

RubyK

Ososlo wrote: »

Raring go? Most definitely

Tapering? Well it'll be a mini taper. After considering advice from the boss man and Enduro and others, I'll be approaching this race fairly conservatively - like a first marathon - as there's too much to lose by going out even a tad too fast, due to it being my first ultra, and due to the last third of the race being very challenging. I want to come away from it that evening having had a great experience and not a hellish one! I don't feel there is a need for a long taper. I'll have a longish run this weekend and then ease back next week and take a day or two off, so that the legs are nice and fresh for Sunday week. Can't bloody wait:D Anyone who reads this or knows me, knows that this mind-set before a race is very unlike me, but this time it's different. I'm very excited and mildly nervous, but in a really healthy way! BRING IT ON!

So how is your training going? Dying to know!!!

Sound like you are all set so, I've no doubt you will run a fantastic race, your training has been great to follow. Looking forward to a full and detailed report

Training going ok for me, had a blip last weekend, but happy enough with the 23m I got done today.

So You just enjoy the build up during race week and then bring on the fun Sunday!!

Ososlo

RubyK wrote: »

Sound like you are all set so, I've no doubt you will run a fantastic race, your training has been great to follow. Looking forward to a full and detailed report

Training going ok for me, had a blip last weekend, but happy enough with the 23m I got done today.

So You just enjoy the build up during race week and then bring on the fun Sunday!!

Thanks so much!

Well done on the 23 today and delighted to hear things are back on track for you now. It seems inevitable that there will be at least one blip per training programme for us all, so it's good to get it out of the way in good time.

Oh and touche on the race report