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Run run run run run run run....
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25-04-2014 11:52am
Yep that is the best title I could come up with. Time to start my first log here after following others for so long, I think it's a great resource and I've learned a lot from boardies round here. I have been blogging my recent marathon journey but I think it's nice to interact with folk similar to you and bounce ideas off each other so here I am.
The primary goal this year will be the Dublin Marathon in October which is signed, sealed but yet to be delivered. I had a disappointing result at the Rotterdam marathon where a failed 2:50 attempt can only benefit me for the next one.
Background
31 years young, running just over 3 years with a 9 month break in Asia thrown in. I feel my strengths lie in the endurance arena but have yet to really push myself at speedier stuff, the next few months are a chance to test that. When I came back to Ireland in December gone, I had a strong appetite to bring on my running to the next level and jumped straight back into marathon training, slightly overzealous maybe and took me a while to adapt to the distances again. Having run a 2:59 in Dublin '12 and 2:54 in Barcelona '13 previously, a sub 2:50 was the next natural progression but I missed out on it in spectacular fashion. I'll probably look back on Rotterdam and realise it was a good thing, nothing is ever that simple, I made a few mistakes and it was a wake up call but I'm hungrier than ever for Dublin.
Targets for this year
I've already ticked off my sub 60 10 mile target (58:46) last month and over the next few months my goal is to target 5k and 10k PBs along with a half (my hometown strawberry half) before diving back into marathon training for Dublin. The target for Dublin? I'm reluctant to put a number on it now, I think to go sub 2:50 should be well within my capabilities, whatever I go beyond that I'll be happy with, targets will be decided closer to the time.
Goals:
10k: 35:xx
10m: 57:xx
5k: 16:xx
1/2: 77m
Marathon: < 2:50 and beyond ???
I'm a member of Donore Harriers in Dublin, I only got to spend a few months training with them before going travelling and since I came home I've moved to Cork on a 6 month contract. I've just joined up with Leevale AC and did my first session with them last night which was enjoyable. The plan is to work in with them for the summer working on my shorter distances before hitting the marathon plan again in August under the guidance of my Donore coach Jim.
I think this will be a little easier than updating my blog regularly with long winded posts and will hopefully come across likeminded individuals to share ideas and advice with, It might even prove useful to others :pac: on we go!!!25
Comments
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Sunday - 7.5m Easy @ 8:00 min/mile
2nd week of marathon recovery so still taking it very handy. Home for the weekend so nice jog around Enniscorthy, with my sister for 3 miles who is recovering from a broken pelvis and then just jogged the next 4.5 miles around the town on my own. Nice and easy, legs feeling ok, made a fool of Easter dinner and eggs.
Monday - Swim
Joined the excellent Mardyke gym & pool and I think I'm gonna like it here, amazing facility. Learned how to properly crawl while away last year so came down in the evening and did some easy lengths. Hope to make this a regular part of my training now.
Tuesday - 5m Easy @ 7:24
Everyday I'm starting to feel more and more rested and feel the recovery is going well. Didn't have a planned pace for this but felt comfortable around 7:15 pace and slowed it right down for the last mile.
Wednesday - Gym
Something that had always been part of my training was neglected since I moved to Cork but time to get back to it, I feel there's great benefit complementing your running with resistance training. Worked on arms and chest when I could get a bloody bench, place was jammered!
Thursday - Club - 6 x 1000m @ ~5:40min/mile (9m)
Headed down to Leevale tonight and had a decent first session without pushing it too hard. The much respected olympian Donie Walsh oversees training down here, it's a good setup with some quality runners so I think I can learn a lot from them. 20 mins warmup and then worked in with a group for 1000m intervals on the track. I planned on taking it fairly easy, maybe 4 reps depending on how I felt but I found the pace surprisingly comfortable and ended up doing the whole 6 and the last rep on my own as the others just dropped off. 2 mile cooldown and good to be back training.
1. 3:32
2. 3.42
3. 3.47
4. 3.40
5. 3.43
6. 3.380 -
Friday - 5m Recovery
Nice relaxed pace today after yesterdays session. Felt quite sluggish throughout, it was a windy dull evening and just wanted to get this one out of the way so I could go out to dinner.
Summary: 4.98m in 40.53 @ 8:13 min/mile
Saturday - Gym
Was planning on doing a mile time trial this morning on the track, I'd be interested to see what sort of shape I'm in but I decided against it. I had felt a worrying pain on my ankle yesterday every time I rounded a corner so I decided against it and headed down to the Mardyke for a gym session, much less packed today = happier Conor.
Sunday - 10m
Feeling good today, beautiful sunny morning in Cork so threw on the singlet and headed down Blarney street and out the Carrigrohane/Model farm loop. Legs felt fresh throughout though it was pretty spicy out there for an April morning. I settled in at a pacier than planned pace hovering around 7 min mile which was comfortable though I did tire a little near the end. Chelsea Liverpool time!
Summary: 10.8m in 1:17:21 @ 7:10 min/mile0 -
Monday - Steady Run
So my first week back to the grind, I'm excited about what lays ahead for me and really motivated to put in the hard work required to achieve my goals. Beautiful evening again, set off down towards the city, settled into a nice steady 6:40-45 pace after the first mile. Felt pretty comfortably for the most part, weaved through the city streets for 6 miles at that pace and then 1 mile cool-down up the killer hill.
Summary: 7.95m in 55:19 @ 6:57 min/mile avg.
Tuesday - 3 x 9min track session
Time for my second club session and it was bloody hard work but worth it in the end. Wasn't feeling particularly great today, smothering with a cold and didn't particularly feel like a session but I knew I was able for it even though my brain tried to talk me out of it. 2 miles warm-up and then headed into the planned session of 3 by 9 mins at pace with a 3 minute recovery. I started with a group of 5 lads, one of which ran 2:29 in the London marathon just gone, yikes. The planned pace for the group was 5:20-5:40 but by the 2nd rep the group had split into distinct groups, the 3 quicker lads and then myself and another runner at a similar level, it was good to have someone to push me, really needed it. First rep was too quick because I was trying to stick with the faster lads but soon I realised that wasn't my pace and saw sense. It was a tough tough session, by the 2nd rep I wasn't feeling I'd make the 3rd but I stuck it out in the end and managed to run the 3rd one pretty well.
1. 1.67 miles @ 5:26 min/mile
2. 1.63 miles @ 5:34 min/mile
3. 1.63 miles @ 5:35 min/mile
Happy with that session, met a few new people and also bumped into Donore club mate John Travers who was wandering around the Mardyke, looking pretty fresh from his cracking run in the states during the week. 15 mins cool-down and a lovely* cycle back up the hill, nearly collapsed with hunger.
Total: 9.6 miles0 -
Youi're only 31? Oh! :pac:0
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Wednesday - 4m Recovery + Gym
Woke up feeling pure shyte this morning, stuffy head, snots falling out my nose, usual cold bollox. Was planning on doing pre-work recovery run in the AM so I could gym in the evening but it wasn't happening, it just wasn't. Went to work and felt a little better in the evening so I plodded on down to the Mardyke, ran (the long way down) for 3 miles, very easy and did a decent arms & chest workout. Ran 1 more mile home.
Thursday - 5 x 1000m & 1 x 200m
After a horrible wet morning, the skies parted in spectacular fashion this evening, cracking weather but was still feeling the effects of the cold so I wasn't overly enthusiastic. I wanted to push myself a more than I had last week as I was only getting back into so I jumped into the intervals with chap (same guy from Tuesday session) and our target was 5:20-5:25 min/mile pace, a fairly significant increase in pace from last week (~5:40) but I felt I could manage since that felt pretty comfortable last week.
Overall it went to plan, I found it very, very difficult near the end but thats why I'm in here a club, to push myself hard and we ended up hitting the targets. I'd find it tough to keep that pace up if I hadn't have had someone with me. An enjoyable 200m sprint at the end and a 2 mile cool-down on the pitches with the lads. Again a great session and I really think I'm gonna really benefit working with these guys.
1k Splits
1. 3:23 @ 5:18 min/mile
2. 3:24 @ 5:15 min/mile
3. 3:25 @ 5:20 min/mile
4. 3:28 @ 5:25 min/mile
5. 3:24 @ 5:13 min/mile (almost died)
1 x 200m in 36s @ 4:46 min/mile
The garmin was a bit of a pain in the neck today, I kept accidentally hitting the touch bezel and knocking the screen off when I tried to hit the lap button so distances were longer on some reps, does this happen to anyone else? it's so frustrating, maybe it's time to just use a stopwatch on the track.
Total: 9.7 miles0 -
Friday - 2hr cycle + Gym
After work I went cycling to see a man about a car, and bought the car. The cycle there was full of hills, hunger, rain and more hills but I had company so it wasn't so bad, still didn't plan on it being 2 hours, hugely under-estimated. Was planning on a small recovery run but figured the cycle was enough recovery for me so just headed down to the gym in the evening for shoulders and back work.
Saturday - Club Session: 10 mins hills & 6 x 3 min on grass
A misty Saturday morning but not enough to ruin a good session. Met up with the club near the greyhound track in Curraheen, 2 mile warmup around the pitches and then headed off to do some hills. This involved 10 mins of 200 meter repeats with a jog back to the start recovery. I slotted in with a group and knocked out 6 of them at an avg. of 43 seconds (5:45 min/mile).
Next it was back to the pitches for 6 x 3 mins on the flat pitches. I was in a group of 4 runners and we ran these at 5:45 min/mile pace (0.52 miles) with a minute recovery. A 15 min cool-down and that's a good first weeks training bagged I reckon.
Total: 9 miles
Total for this week was 51 miles, I plan to ramp up the non-session day and long run mileage over the next couple of weeks and then consistently hold 60+ mile weeks over the summer, should be a good base for Autumn marathon season.0 -
Sunday - 13m Long run
A little fatigued from the hard weeks training but overall this felt quite comfortable, most miles hovering around the 7:20 mark, I was reluctant to do it any faster. A slightly depressing grey misty morning but to its credit the heavy rain staved off until the afternoon. Felt slight pain in the arch of my foot (probably due to wearing the spikes yesterday, been a while since I took em for a spin) but it eased off later and I finished feeling pretty good.
Summary: 13.1 miles in 1:36:39 @ 7:22 min/mile avg.
Monday - 8m treadmill + 1.25m track
Horrible windy and wet day in Cork so I shamefully retreated to the safety of the gym for a planned 8 miles steady. Some people think treadmills feel easier than road or track but I felt I was running way faster than what it told me, 7:16 min/mile avg but really felt sub 7 so who's lying, probably me. Of course just after I started the session, the rain cleared up and because the treadmills look out onto the inviting Mardyke track, I felt like a hamster in a cage waiting to jump out and run on the track. That was my plan when I got to 5 miles but when it came to it I didn't want to break the rhythm, I was feeling good so I sweated it out, literally, and finished the 8 miles. The other half Jenny arrived just as I finished so I joined her on the track for a few laps cool-down, 5 laps, 1.25 miles @ who knows what pace.
Headed into the gym for some core work and AIS and then retreated to the steamroom for some steamy action...which involved me sitting there thinking about dinosaurs and things.
Summary: 9.25 miles0 -
Today - Track session: 3 x 9 mins
Left this session today feeling not entirely satisfied, pace was slower than last week and felt sluggish at times. The elements played their part, the rain hammered down on the 3rd rep and we were battling a tough headwind at times. Still though, the body didn't feel quite there today, I'm thinking the Monday steady run needs to be slowed a little given that I'm going to be doing 3 tough, speed focussed sessions every week. I worked in with 3 new lads this week, ended up quite spread out by the last rep with myself sandwiched between them. After 8 mins on each rep we picked up the pace for the last minute and took a 3 min recovery before the next.
I know I'm not going to walk away from every session beaming, I just gotta get on with it and heed any warning signals my body is trying to tell me. 1 mile cool-down cut short due to a darting pain in my calf which I'm hoping is a minor strain
1. 1.57 miles @ 5:44 min/mile
2. 1.57 miles @ 5:44 min/mile
3. 1.60 miles @ 5:37 min/mile
Total: 8.97 miles0 -
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Wednesday - 6.6 mile Recovery AM + Gym PM
Up at the crack of dawn, well 7am, for a light jog around the concrete jungle of Hollyhill. The left calf was causing me trouble at times but pace was very leisurely (8:15min/mile) so I didn't worry too much about it. Down to the gym in the evening for arms & chest.
Thursday - Club session - 3 x 1000m
Yeah, only 3 reps of a planned 5. Had to prematurely pull out of this session on the 4th rep, the calf was feeling fine throughout warmup and the first 3 reps but then I felt a stabbing pain in it just after starting the 4th so I was forced to pull up and cut the session short. Really frustrating as I was feeling good today and hitting some decent splits. Will take tomorrow off completely, calf is under the ice as we speak and hopefully not too much damage doneargghghhhh!!
1. 3:20 @ 5:13 min/mile
2. 3:22 @ 5:19 min/mile
3. 3:22 @ 5:18 min/mile
Total: 6.1 miles0 -
Friday - Rest + Gym
No running today to allow my young calf to heal up. That didn't stop me heading to the gym in the evening however, worked on back & shoulders and did some deadlifts I later lived to regret, walking like a hunchback today.
Today - Easy running + 4 x 6 mins on grass
Was just eager to get through this session with the calf intact and I'm now happy to report it's feeling prettttttty good. An extremely blustery start to the day so up we got and drove to the farm for 9:30am and started with some easy jogging. I opted out of the hill repeats today so ended up just running laps of the pitches with another guy, probably averaging 7:30 min/pace and feeling pretty good throughout, despite the wind. After about 5 miles, the group came back from the hills and we jumped into a set of 4 x 6 mins around the pitches with a 2 minute recovery. Calf was feeling fine from the easy running so I said I'd give this a go. In with a group of 4, target pace around 6 min/mile. Overall the pace felt ok, didn't feel I had to push too hard and got through them all averaging 5:50 min/mile for each 6 mins. Here's hoping that's the end of the calf trouble, taking it easy enough tomorrow with a 10 miler on the grass.
Summary: 10.66 miles
Weekly total: 55 miles, happy with that considering I had to cut a session short and take 1 day off. Next week should be interesting, on Thursday evening it's my first race since the marathon, the Cheetah 4 mile in Fota wildlife park, looking forward to it :pac:0 -
Sunday - 10m on grass
Headed back out to the farm in the morning for an easy 10 miles on the grass to ensure the calf doesn't cause me any more bother. Surprisingly I wasn't too bored doing laps of the pitches, it was a beautiful morning bar a couple of brief showers so I just relaxed and enjoyed the jog, no injury complaints afterwards.
Summary: 10m in 1:13:45 @ 7:21 min/mile avg.
Monday - 8m easy
Headed for my usual monday route, into the city and around the Carrigrohane/Model farm loop. Pace felt nice and comfortable, enjoyed this one, thought about many things.
Summary: 8.3m in 59:32 @ 7:10 min/mile avg
Tuesday - Easy run with club
Was ordered to not do the club session today with the 4 miler race coming up on Thursday so I just did a light 20 min warmup followed by 35 mins easy on the pitches with a club-mate and then a a few strides on the track.
Summary: 8.1m in 1:05:34 @ 8:04 min/mile
Today - 5m Easy
This hasn't happened yet but I'm putting it in anyway. I'll fit this one in at lunch time, I promise.
In other news, Strava is the business! so long garmin connect :pac:0 -
Thursday - Cheetah 4 mile
I don't know how Krusty and the lads remember so much detail for their reports, I can barely remember a thing but here we go anyway...
It was a cold winters morn...no it was a warm spring evening myself and Jenny headed out to Fota wildlife park, a really smashing evening, the sun still spitting the rocks at 7pm and everyone in great spirits. Parking was a breeze and everything being kept in order by the excellent organisation of Eagle AC. I was excited yet nervous, this was my first race since the disastrous Rotterdam marathon so I was out to banish some 26 mile demons, over 4 miles.
We got our race numbers and headed out for a 20 min warmup around the park and a chance to have a little recce of the course. It was hillier than I imagined but what surroundings for a race. I'd never been here before but there was something nice about warming up though the wildlife park, the Ostriches racing you behind the fence, wallabies, peacocks, kangaroos wandering around freely and the buffalo and zebras roaming the prairies. For 12 euro, I'd already got my moneys worth on the warmup.
After a couple of strides, it was time to line up and get going. There was a pretty impressive turnout, 789 runners in all and a great atmosphere in the air, still pretty warm too at 8pm. I lined up near the front with the Leevale lads and suddenly we were off. This was my first 4 mile road race, it's a tough distance to gauge, I hadn't a clue what to aim at but I set the goal high at around 22 mins, requiring a 5:30 min/mile pace, I'd go out hard and see how I go.
Mile 1
First section was all downhill so felt pretty comfortable and as usual got caught up in a faster pace than I should have. A quick glance at the watch saw me hitting 5:15 pace before I relaxed and settled into a more comfortable rhythm. A lead group quickly formed, there were about 6-7 in there and they were flying, see ya lads. I was leading a 2nd group but was quickly passed by about 4 runners who opened up a 10-15 meter gap on me, I was ok with that and said I'd just keep them in sight. A difficult climb at the end of the first mile knocked me back a little but clocked a 5:32 and starting to feel difficult.
Mile 2
I felt I settled a bit into the 2nd mile, it was a lot flatter but being out on my own, it was a little difficult, still I kept the lads in front of my in view though they had spread out now and I could see 3 lads ahead of me. I clocked a 5:42 and when I saw that, negative thoughts started consuming me, I'm slowing down, how am I going to keep this pace up? I decided to just forget the watch and stop worrying about pace.
Mile 3
I was really feeling the heat now, I could hear runners closing in on me from behind and was just waiting to be overtaken but this also spurred me a little. One of the 3 lads that was ahead of me pulled up with an injury, well that's one out of the way I thought. This patch felt the most difficult but I just kept going, we were running up a drag and I felt I was slowing but suddenly I realised I was gradually reeling in the guy ahead of me. I concentrated on just this guy and just before hitting the 3 mark, I had taken him on a corner and felt that familiar strong finish brewing. A disappointing 5:51 for this mile and I think I was lucky I didn't see that on the watch.
Mile 4
We hit the mile 4 mark and now I had another target, the runner in front of me though he was a good 20 meters or so ahead, was also slowing. I felt energised knowing it was the last mile and the pace gradually picked up. A nice downhill gave me some brief respite and I charged on from there, taking the runner ahead of me with about half a mile to go. I knew there was a difficult climb coming, the same one from the first mile so I eased slightly for it knowing there was still a good 500 meters to go after it. I got through the climb still feeling good and I gave it socks for the last stretch. The finish was way further than I expected, I was heaving and giving it everything and finally the line came into sight. I had nobody around me or in front of me, which was strange but it meant I could soak up all the cheers. I crossed in 8th place in a time 22:39, final mile of 5:32. Happy.
Overall, I was delighted with a top 10 finish but disappointed in my 3rd mile where I felt I lost a lot of time, I would have hoped to be closer to 22 minutes but with some more focus on the track over the summer I can improve. I can't be too hard on myself, I have nothing to compare it to really, I'm definitely heading in the right direction and I'm really happy with that last mile effort and strong finish. Based on this race, I should be able to "renew" my 5k PB in 2 weeks time at the John Buckley 5k here in Cork.
I chatted for a bit with clubmates, had a cup of tea and headed for a lovely 3 mile cooldown around the park with the OH Jenny (who ran a brilliant 28:29 for only her 3rd race ever) and we really got the moneys worth out of this event. A top top race (alright Jamie) and I can see why it's so popular, everything went like clockwork, hope to be back next year.
Summary: 4 miles in 22:39 @ 5:41 min/mile. 8th overall. (8.7 miles total).0 -
Nice report and a strong race by the sounds of things, especially that last mile. Coming off the final hill strong and finishing fast are very good signs!0
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Great report and time. Never ran a 4 mile race, say it a difficult one to judge alright! Looks like you are in great shape to knock out a cracking 5k.0
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Friday AM - 5m Recovery
Up early for a light post-race jog, body was feeling fine except for minor shin splint trouble. Usual boring route around the neighbourhood. Hoped to get another easy jog in the evening but a 4 hours drive to a stag in Carrick-on-Shannon with a strict schedule for dinner and drinking dictated otherwise.
Summary: 4.74m in 37:47 @ 7:58 min/mile
Saturday - 11m easy with 3m @ 6:45
A big concern with this weekend was how to fit my running around a stag, it's tough to find that balance of trying not to be a complete boring bastard on the nights out, still wanting to have a few pints but yet still getting your training done in reasonable shape. Lucky for me I had a running buddy on the stag so we headed off home at 2am on Friday night which was early relative to the rest of the stag and we got our run in in the next day. Wasn't in the greatest of shape all morning, can't drink for **** anymore but once I got going I sweated all the bad stuff out and felt better. My mate is aiming for a sub-3 marathon next week so he was doing a PMP run with 3 miles at pace. We had a 10 min warmup and then we did that 3 miler at 6:45 min/mile in the back arse of Leitrim and it was a ruddy hard work given the circumstances. He headed back to the hotel then and I kept going for a few more miles, shin started flaring up again after 6 miles but pain gradually disappeared and I really enjoyed the last few miles getting into a good rhythm, job done.
Summary: 11.06m in 1:21:20 @ 7:21 min/mile
Sunday - 10m Easy
Saturday was a much tamer affair as it usually tends to be on stags, went to see the FA cup final, played some pool and went to a late pub, good fun and didn't drink much so was much fresher for my 4 hour drive back to Cork in the morning. Eventually got back in the afternoon and headed out to Ballincollig regional park, I was pretty impressed with the place, plenty of variation for a long run. Ended up running on every surface known to man, road, pathway, grass, gravel and trail. Ok slight exaggeration, 5 surfaces. Nice run, slight niggle still with the shin splints but much better than yesterday. Pace was comfortable despite the ever changing surfaces and that's a decent weeks training with a race and a stag thrown in, 56 miles. Feeling well recovered and ready for next week.
Summary: 10.07m in 1:16:31 @ 7:36 min/mile.0 -
Good stuff getting the work done around the stag. Proper commitment that is.0
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A big concern with this weekend was how to fit my running around a stag, it's tough to find that balance of trying not to be a complete boring bastard on the nights out, still wanting to have a few pints but yet still getting your training done in reasonable shape.
I'm going on a stag's next week and I've been thinking exactly the same. I'm probably going to bring my gear with me and head out for a long run before I drive home on the Sunday. I'll have to give myself Friday and Saturday off though :pac:0 -
I'll be honest. I'm away for a stag at the end of next month and the last thing i'll be bringing are my runners (even though Ryanair now allow two bags so now excuse)! Great dedication.0
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It's very rare to have a fellow obsessive runner on a stag so I was lucky, he took most of the heat and abuse because he wasn't even drinking the Friday night
My prediction DR? I bet you'll cave and "see a nice pair of runners" in a sport shop on your stag0 -
It's very rare to have a fellow obsessive runner on a stag so I was lucky, he took most of the heat and abuse because he wasn't even drinking the Friday night
My prediction DR? I bet you'll cave and "see a nice pair of runners" in a sport shop on your stag
Will ye stop, already making me feeling guilty :pac: Any races coming up?0 -
Got a 5k in a weeks time followed swiftly by the Cork Half and then Strawberry 5 mile, pretty hectic schedule but feeling up for it. All going well I should PB them all comfortably, famous last words!
How about you? Good to get that half marathon in at the weekend, you seem to be on your way back. Few weeks now you'll be tearing it up again, Fingal 10k in July? Think I'll do that, could be the showdown!0 -
Got a 5k in a weeks time followed swiftly by the Cork Half and then Strawberry 5 mile, pretty hectic schedule but feeling up for it. All going well I should PB them all comfortably, famous last words!
How about you? Good to get that half marathon in at the weekend, you seem to be on your way back. Few weeks now you'll be tearing it up again, Fingal 10k in July? Think I'll do that, could be the showdown!
Looked at the Cork Half but it's all signed up. I'd say you should be targeting sub 1.20 at the minimum looking at your training and racing. Don't know about tearing it up! Last year was my honeymoon phase. I have a feeling I will have to work twice as hard to get half the improvements of 2013.
Well this could interesting, I will be doing that 10k. Hopefully by then I will be aiming for a good run and possible PB. Time to lose that 4-5kg I put on!
I may have to throw a pair of runners in the bag now......:)0 -
Monday 19th May - 8m Steady
Not much to report on this one, standard Monday route. Pace was nippy enough hovering just above 7 min/mile for most of the run but comfortable overall.
Summary: 8.03m in 58:04 @ 7:14 min/mile avg
Tuesday 20th - 4 x 6 min track session
After a fairly wet day, the weather kindly played ball for this session. 30 min warmup and then into 4 reps of 6 mins with a fairly large group, picking up the pace for the last minute of each rep and then a 3 minute recovery. We averaged about 5:45-5:50 min/mile pace for each and I'm happy to say I found them comfortable overall never quite pushing too hard or out of my comfort zone. Though I felt I could have gone harder it was probably the right session after the race last week.
Total: 10.6m0 -
Wednesday 21st - AM: 60 min recovery PM: Gym
Up early for a lovely jog around Cork city on a beautiful morning. Streets were empty, sun was shining and the pace was relaxed, enjoyed this one but the shin complained a bit. Down to the mardyke in the evening for some chest & shoulders work.
Summary: 6.8m in 55:10 @ 8:06 min/mile avg
Thursday 22nd - Track: 6 x 400m & 4 x 300m
Started off as a smashing sunny evening but quickly transformed into a wet wet horror scene about halfway through the session but got 'er done. Plan was 6 x 400's with 400m recovery followed by 4 x 300's with just 100m recovery, these were killer.
Started in a quite large group which quickly divided into smaller groups, about 4-5 in my pack by the end. I had some good pacers around me and we all took turns at the front keeping the reps pretty consistent. Once we finished the 400's in the lashing rain, it was straight into the 300's with a brutal 100m recovery but I really felt this was a quality session and will stand to me a lot, so glad to have finished that last 300. 20 minute cool-down and pretty satisfied with this session, splits below.
Total: 9.3m
400's (400m recovery)
1. 76
2. 76
3. 77
4. 76
5. 75
6. 73
300's (100m recovery)
1. 58
2. 55
3. 54
4. 540 -
Friday - AM: 45 min recovery (5.4m)
Felt like crap the moment I woke up and it didn't get much better on the run. Terrible run, lethargic, sluggish, stomach felt terrible and I knew something was up. Jenny had been sick with a stomach bug the last few days so I knew I had it though I didn't want to believe it. Bah! Had planned on a 2nd easy run in the evening followed by a gym session but after work I had no energy and the stomach was in terrible pain, got an early one in the hope I'd be better for a planned 10 miler in the morning.
Saturday - 6 miles easy
Nope! Still not happening, still feeling terrible but headed into the city for a while to do some shopping and hoped I'd be feeling better for an easy jog later in the afternoon. Myself and Jenny headed down to the Mardyke track in the afternoon, I know I should have just left it but I wanted to get a few miles in, for my own sanity. 2 mile very easy and I was struggling, then onto the track where I said I'd do 20 more minutes but suddenly I felt the shackles loosen and felt good, picked up the pace and got 4 more miles done. Feeling much better, glad I did it and then it was time to relax with a champions league final and a cold ale.
Summary: 6m in 47:34 @ 7:54 min/mile avg
Sunday - 60 mins easy (9m)
Didn't want to try catch up on the 10 miles I missed, instead I'd (kinda) stick with the coaches plan and that was 60 mins easy today. Stomach still not completely right but much better and felt on the mend. This was a great run, headed down to Parc Ui Caoimh and parked up. There's some great routes around there to run, there's an old railway line which had been paved and was packed with runners which led into the Cork heritage park. Felt good, settled into a 7:10-7:15 pace after a few miles and finished feeling strong, an extra cheeky 6 minutes to get it up to 9 miles. Still managed to squeeze 55 miles in this week. Next week, 5k race tuesday and then easy running until the Cork half on the Bank Holiday Monday.
Summary: 9m in 1:06:20 @ 7:23 min/mile avg
Monday - AM: 35 mins easy (4.6m)
Light jog out this morning before work giving me plenty of time to rest up until the 5k on Tuesday evening. Feeling much better now, energy levels are better despite feeling some slight hangover effects lingering from the bug but should be fully fit for the race :pac:0 -
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This is the most popular race of the Cork BHAA Calendar, a lovely setting close to the banks of the Lee, only 8 euro and a super flat course so no wonder they turn out in their droves for this one. The competition would be fierce attracting Corks finest, I had a quick glance at last years results earlier where 31 people ran under 17 minutes. Sub 17 would be my only target today though my time at the recent 4 mile race suggested I wasn't quite there yet. I felt I'd been training well and up for the challenge, it's a flat course so I'd just go out hard and see how I go. Either way I was on the hunt for a PB, all I had to to was beat 17:21, easy right? Target pace: 5:28 min/mile
Got down early, a fine evening for a race I say. Registration was a breeze and got a nice 20 minute warm up done with Jenny on a lap of the course with a few strides thrown in. Chatted with a few club mates who were running and soon it was time to lineup. It would be a simple 2 lap course with nice gradual bends and a straight finish of about 200 meters.
With almost 1000 folks running, congestion would be inevitable at the start. I ended up getting pushed back about 4 rows which wasn't the worst but I hadn't realised there was no starting mat and it was being timed by the gun.
Note: My garmin is now dead as a doornailso I have no splits except for mile 1 and 2 which were shouted out by a steward.
Mile 1
Bang! said the gun, and off we went. A lot of jostling and elbows, shimmying and dodging but after about 500 meters I had enough breathing room to relax and work my way into the race, not the worst start. I settled into a good rhythm, breathing was relaxed and I started making up a ground on what looked like as massive field ahead of me. I'm no good as estimating but I'd say there was about 7000 runners ahead of me. Cruised along nicely picking a few people off early and heard a shout of 5:24 for the first mile, that's fine just fine.
Mile 2
I started feeling a slight cramp in my side but it wasn't affecting my pace, I was still passing a few people though I glanced at my pace and saw I was up near the 5:40 min/mile mark. I had now started lap 2 of the course and wasn't too worried about that pace as the garmin has a tendency recently to display volatile lap predictions, I felt I was going well so I didn't worry about it too much. It started to feel like a real struggle as I closed in on the mile 2 mark but I was still positive and chugging along nicely. I'd already preempted mile 2 being difficult so it was just a matter of pushing through the pain. I vaguely remember a shout of 10:56 as we hit the mile 2 mark, making that a 5:32 mile, still on track I thought, just keep going.
Mile 3
I was working extremely hard at this stage, breathing heavy but still moving well and knowing it was the last mile, I was mentally in a good place. I must have picked up 5 or 6 place on this last stretch, confidence building with each place I gained but still the primary target was not place but a sub 17 and I wanted it bad. I hardly looked at the watch for this mile, I didn't want to know what distance was left or what my time was I just pushed and pushed keeping the momentum. I was giving it all and finally approached the last corner before the straight. I had a right ding-dong battle with a guy over the last half a mile, I had taken him before the corner but he drew level with me on the straight which didn't really bother me, all I was looking at was the clock above the finish line ticking onto 16:40...41....42.....I'm still a bit away, can I do it? No time for sums Conor, just run, run fast! Finally that moment came when I knew I had it in the bag, I crossed in 16:56 having giving it absolutely everything over the last mile, job done. Kiss my face.
I'm not sure what the split was for the last section, but I ran the last 1.1 miles in 6 minutes = unofficially 5:27 min/mile pace. I may never know if my garmin doesn't wake up. I reckon with a starting mat and had I been a bit closer to the front I could have taken a few more seconds off that but still absolutely no complaints.
Really delighted with my effort this evening and though I'm only with the club 4 weeks now, the track sessions are already paying off. That's another target for the year ticked off in May and now we see how far I can push that 5k down over the summer, dare I dream of a 16:3x?Nice 30 minute cool-down and that's a good days work.
Summary: 5k in 16:56 (5:27 min/mile) and 34th place overall. (9 miles total)
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