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Project Mile: Week 5 of 6
Not long to go now. Signed up for next week's paced mile – I hope it's actually on, seems to be zero publicity.
What should I make of the performance in the relays? Whatever about our team position, I was a little disappointed when I saw the numbers. I’m going to tell myself that being in no man’s land for the whole lap didn’t help, while it’s also hard to know the exact mile-time equivalent due to the unspecified length of the course (part of Raheny’s secret weapon).
Still, Garmin Connect tells me it contained my fastest ever km, and Strava says fastest ever mile, and while my experience is that these ratings are rarely accurate, I will take that as evidence that things are going in the right direction. To those who feel I looked comfortable and even lethargic en route, well, perhaps I'm just good at looking comfortable. 
Mon 24 Apr
Rest.
Tue 25 Apr
3x (4x400 with diminishing recoveries), 2 mins between sets
The schedule had 200s tonight but swapped for the above as I could make it over to the club for a change and haven’t been for ages. Just did what the club was doing, and will do the 200s on Fri instead. Target was 1:30 but didn’t worry about it too much as still a bit of lead in legs after Sunday’s effort. Just went with the group, eventually breaking out into a smaller group with one other guy as the session progressed and the original group got slower.
Splits:
1:33 1:29 1:35 1:31
1:32 1:30 1:32 1:32
1:30 1:29 1:37 1:31
A bit off the mark for sure, but happy with the effort. Windy out there too on the back straight. Jogged over and back for a total of 13.8k (8.6m)
Wed 26 Apr
7.2 k @ 5:54 (4.5 m @ 9:30)
40 mins recovery around Drumcondra/Glasnevin. Got lost for a minute in an estate beside Johnstown Park. :rolleyes:
WTD: 21k (13m)
MTD: 184k (114)
YTD: 881 (556)0 -
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Project Mile: Week 5 of 6
Not long to go now. Signed up for next week's paced mile – I hope it's actually on, seems to be zero publicity.
What should I make of the performance in the relays? Whatever about our team position, I was a little disappointed when I saw the numbers. I’m going to tell myself that being in no man’s land for the whole lap didn’t help, while it’s also hard to know the exact mile-time equivalent due to the unspecified length of the course (part of Raheny’s secret weapon). Still, Garmin Connect tells me it contained my fastest ever km, and Strava says fastest ever mile, and while my experience is that these ratings are rarely accurate, I will take that as evidence that things are going in the right direction. To those who feel I looked comfortable and even lethargic en route, well, perhaps I'm just good at looking comfortable.
Mon 17 Apr
Rest.
Tue 18 Apr
3x (4x400 with diminishing recoveries), 2 mins between sets
The schedule had 200s tonight but swapped for the above as I could make it over to the club for a change and haven’t been for ages. Just did what the club was doing, and will do the 200s on Fri instead. Target was 1:30 but didn’t worry about it too much as still a bit of lead in legs after Sunday’s effort. Just went with the group, eventually breaking out into a smaller group with one other guy as the session progressed and the original group got slower.
Splits:
1:33 1:29 1:35 1:31
1:32 1:30 1:32 1:32
1:30 1:29 1:37 1:31
A bit off the mark for sure, but happy with the effort. Windy out there too on the back straight. Jogged over and back for a total of 13.8k (8.6m)
Wed 19 Apr
7.2 k @ 5:54 (4.5 m @ 9:30)
40 mins recovery around Drumcondra/Glasnevin. Got lost for a minute in an estate beside Johnstown Park. :rolleyes:
WTD: 21k (13m)
MTD: 184k (114)
YTD: 881 (556)
Nice 400's.
Could you look into your diminishing memory to tell us what the diminishing recoveries looked like. Sounds interesting
TbL0 -
:45 :30 :15, then 2 mins rest before next set.
These were a few secs slow and most of them felt slow to be honest. In the wrong group, and had to lead out myself for the correctly paced ones.
Did tire towards the end though (although I think that 1:37 is possibly a watch error!)
Yes, the diminishing recoveries is a new one on me too. The :15 is hardly worth stopping for, probably easier to do an 800 at that point. It's a good session.0 -
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Nice session D, think if you ran spot on we'd call for stewards enquiry. Do these leave you wiped at the end. They are at 800m race pace?
The course may have been a little short. Or a little long.
Yes, 3:20/km is supposed to be 800 race pace. Could I do 800m in 2:40? I doubt it. But I'll never know til I try.
Pretty wiped after each set, but you recover quickly enough. A bit sleepy now though!0 -
Sat 29 Apr
St Anne's parkrun 24:56
Pacer Saturday at St. Anne's so I signed up for the 25 mins slot. I enjoy pacing, although I'm not the most talented at getting a group vibe going. Not like FBOT and co., running the loop arm in arm singing Kumbaya. Still, I doled out the splits, encouraged my pacees up the hill, and did my best to keep them going through the second half. Inevitably, a good few dropped off but there were still a few hanging in there at the end. One of them tried to hug me afterwards so I might be getting better at the group dynamic. :pac:
Sun 30 Apr
Easy 9.4 @ 5:25 (5.8 @ 8:44)
A pleasant few miles along the seafront in the company of Ferris. So April comes to a close with a fairly light 216k (134 mi).
WTD: 53k (33m)
MTD: 216k (134)
YTD: 913 (567)0 -
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Thu 4 May
7k @ 5:44 (4.4 @ 9:14)
Another fairly sluggish canter along the seafront. Some strides too.
Fri 5 May
8k @ 6:05 (5.3 @ 9:49)
Joined a couple of the DNS crew for a few late-morning miles around the Phoenix Park. Much talk of multiple-choice exams and London marathon. One of us (luckily not me) took a tumble off a tree root but bounced back up like a rubber ball. Can't be too careful on the trails! Coffee to recuperate.
Sat 6 May
5k @ 5:34 (3.1 @ 8:56)
Pre-parkrun half-circuit of St. Anne's, before some volunteer duties. Had the privilege of operating the stopwatch for Mick Clohisey's national record-breaking run. The relaxed Claw style provides a good mental image to draw on tomorrow.
Sun 7 May
Irish Runner paced mile:
5:54 official (PB)
So after six weeks of mile-specific training sessions, it was time to get down to business. An absolutely cracker of a day for running a mile, sunny and warm with hardly any wind. The mrs had signed up too, and we picked up BG, in supporter mode, on the way to the Park. Joined by KennyG at Furze Road, where we collected our bibs in seconds. Wubble Wubble ran past, but couldn't persuade him to sign up. There were not a lot of people about, and we set off up Chesterfield to warm up. We found ourselves challenged by the OPW and the Gardai, who claimed there was no running here as the road was needed for some Russian parade event. We invited them to take it up with the organisers and continued on. FBOT and Ferris had arrived too after their long run, so already the pressure was mounting for a decent performance, as our three supporters would be unlikely to let us away with anything less than a full-on effort.
Assembly time. The Russians were indeed coming, we were told, but there would be enough time for our little event. The assembled participants (maybe 40, ranging from 5-12 mins/mile) were led through an excellent warmup routine and the 8-12 mins group went off. G and I did a few strides up the Avenue while waiting, arriving back to the finish line to applaud the first group home and sympathise with the Mrs who had sensibly dropped out after feeling the effects of her Saturday parkrun efforts.
Then we were up. I was determined to pull this off properly, having learned a little from the last effort in ALSAA in December. I'd simply follow the pacer and be ready to break with KennyG over the final 400 and hopefully race each other to a good time. Anything under 6 mins would do, but it would be nice to get some revenge on G too after being handed my ass during the great parkrun sub-21 smackdown of 2015. Not that this was a race or anything. :pac:
Our six-minute pacer started quite hot and I had a moment of anxiety before he corrected. Smoothly through the first 400m, encouraged by our support halfway down the out-and-back Chesterfield course. G was on the pacer's shoulder and I was a metre or so behind in a fairly congested little group, hugging the right hand side, which meant I'd have a pretty tight turn. KennyG looked very comfortable and I tried to feed off that, telling myself I looked and felt just as smooth. I had the singlet and short shorts on, so I knew I looked the part anyway. :cool: The pacer said we'd have a second or two in the bank to allow for the drag back up the Avenue, but I didn't bother looking at the watch. Finishing in front of the pacer was all the timing I would need. (The splits don't seem to reflect this positive split strategy, but could be a bit off.)
Got a good turn around the cones, inevitably losing some momentum, but not as much as others, because suddenly I had lost most of the group, facing back up the Avenue just behind the pacer and KennyG. This was the time to dig in - lap 3 effectively - and the initial momentum and adrenaline had certainly given way to something more like a grind. I closed the gap and just tried to hang in there. Breathing was good. Could hear G starting to catch the breath a little so that was encouraging. Had a DG pain check with about 600 to go. Everything still working, nothing to worry about, relax and let it in.
At 400, the support crew were giving it socks and G made his move. I knew he would be doing this, and had thought about it. Last time out BG had sailed past from behind at this point, very convincingly indeed, and somewhat bamboozled me. So I would stay behind G, go with him, but keep the powder relatively dry until the final 200m. I felt confident from the several 200 sessions over recent weeks that for me that was the right place to turn it on.
So when G goes at the 400m To Go sign, I stay on his shoulder. He's giving it petrol now, focused on a flagging runner ahead of us. The pacer shouts some encouragement from behind, and I know we're going to be able to stay ahead of him. So now, with the sub-6 apparently sorted, we can have a bit of a race. G notices I'm still there, and seems to dial it up a little more. But I'm feeling good, and I know I can stick this. There's a lamp post up ahead and I decide that's where the auld afterburners are coming on. A is positioned close by, shouting plenty of encouragement. I draw level with G, we pass the flagging runner, and I kick for home. The clock is visible now and from what I can see there's less in the bank than I had thought. 5:50, 5:51... G is not going away and I can hear his response, but another kick takes me clear and safely over the line as the clock ticks towards 6 mins.
I take a moment on the ground before recovering and shaking hands with G and a few other runners. It's been a very satisfying run, executed pretty much exactly as I'd visualised. There is a little anxiety about the time for a while, until BG finds the official result on the way back to the car. To be honest, 5:54 sounds a little generous, but I am happy with anything under 6 mins.
Excellent (and free) event, with very friendly atmosphere, and of course good pacers. Highly recommended, for runners of any ability. Thanks to KennyG for injecting a little spice and definitely helping to motivate, especially during the second 800. It's been fun to ditch the long stuff for a few weeks and concentrate on some speed. The reward is a relatively good time, my highest VDOT and age-grade yet (at any distance), and what will be a no-doubt short-lived tenure of the DNS mile bragging rights.
Project Mile, limited as it was, has definitely been a success. I hope to do some more training and racing at the middle distances, with a more comprehensive approach next time out. Thanks to those, on boards and at the club, who gave welcome encouragement and advice, especially Bungy Girl and Dubgal who were generous with their expertise. Good on yez.
Splits (approx): 1:29 1:32 1:33 1:22
Previous PB: 6:07 (ALSAA Winter League, Dec 2016)
Target: 5:5x
Official Time: 5:54
VDOT: 49.3
Age grade: 75.5%
Verdict: Love it when a plan comes together
So, a few PB beers, a pressure-free Terenure next week, then thoughts will turn to Charleville and qualifying for NY marathon 2018.
WTD: 50k (31m)
MTD: 50k (31)
YTD: 963 (598)0 -
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Very well done D, sounds like great craic and always good to win a sprint finish (even if the other lad had a raced half in his legs )
You're going very well lately, keep it going.
Ps: I've had to defer my dinner, the mental picture of you in very short shorts was slightly traumatising!
TbL0 -
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