Back to the Future

Bungy Girl

Thanks so much for today, Redrunner! And apologies for stepping on your heels more than once

RedRunner

Bungy Girl wrote: »

Thanks so much for today, Redrunner! And apologies for stepping on your heels more than once

Haha..only noticed that once and it didn't affect me at all. Well done and sorry I couldn't have been better on the day. There's more time to come off that PB yet for sure.

RedRunner

Mixed emotions on this one. Reflecting on the goals for today

Goal #1 : Come through the race in one piece - Check

Goal #2 : Help Bungy Girl to a new PB if I can(no pressure)- Check( At least I hope I played some small part in the first 5k )

Goal #3 : Go sub 45 myself - Fail


45:39 on the watch (45:50 official time).I'll take the 45:39 as I started it on the gun and took several seconds to cross the start line.

On the plus side, picked up a surprise team prize.:)

Full report and post mortem later.

tang1

Well done RR, great you came through in one piece.

hillsiderunner

That's still a great time RR, well done. Sounds like the pacing was a big help to BG too.

adrian522

Well done today, I think the most important thing was to get through injury free so you'll take a lot of confidence from that!!

Firedance

yeah agreed, you got through injury free and you know you have a sub 45 in you for next time well done & good on you for getting BG to 5K

annapr

You were close enough... and a great help to BG by all accounts. Maybe you have a future as a personal pacer

Dubgal72

Well done today, looking forward to reading your race report and analysis. You're disappointed, I think? Hopefully writing it down will help you extract the positives and identify what you can change.

Murph_D

Well done, R. Now take a few days off.

RedRunner

annapr wrote: »

You were close enough... and a great help to BG by all accounts. Maybe you have a future as a personal pacer

Thanks. As regards the pacing. A job half done as far as I was concerned.

Dubgal72 wrote: »

Well done today, looking forward to reading your race report and analysis. You're disappointed, I think? Hopefully writing it down will help you extract the positives and identify what you can change.

Thanks. Yes disappointment with a hint of realism, I think.

Murph_D wrote: »

Well done, R. Now take a few days off.

That's the plan D ! One easy week coming up:)

RedRunner

KClub Report:
So where do I start with this one?? Ok let's go back to why I wanted to run the race in the first place. The hotdogs!
No seriously , I had done a reasonably good 5k recently (21:07)off the back of inconsistent enough training but I knew a 10k would give me a better indication of where I am at currently after my long layoff. The K Club was ideal because it was soon after andI had heard great things about it so that would be the right place t test myself.

The lead up to race:
Looking back, the buildup over the last few weeks hasn't exactly been great. Mileage wise the last four weeks were 33,22,28 and 16 before the race.One long run of 12 miles+, one MLR 10 miles + and a couple of sessions. Will come back to this later. Was sick a few days and had some back issues for a few days on a couple of occasions during this period, more recently in the early part of this week.
Some people were advising not to run and I welcome that advice as sometimes you need others to help you see sense. On this occasion
though I felt I knew my body would be up to it. I'm getting more in tune with the back problem as time goes on.

Race Day:
Picked up a work mate who lives nearby and headed off to KClub nice and early to register and get a decent warmup done.We had a few work people running today which was great as I set up the club and am trying to promote the BHAA events as much as possible. Arrived in plenty of time and got ourselves registered and headed out for a warmup. Met AuldManKing and Meno outside registration and had a brief chat before heading back to car to change and go for a warmup.

Headed out along the route of the race as far as the main gate and came back again, meeting AMK,Meno and Overpronator coming in the opposite direction on their own warmup in the process.
Met another workmate when we got back to finish area and as my colleague chatted to him I went off and did some more warming up, throwing in a few strides here and there.
Today I was to try and help Bungy Girl to achieving a new PB. It seemed like a good idea since she was aiming for a time that the calculators were predicting I should be doing based on the 5k time.By running together I felt it could serve both our causes very well, that was the general idea anyway.
Saw Firedance and Adrian522 during the warmup period too.At this stage I was scanning the area to see if I could spot Bungy Girl and eventually I did up near the clubhouse.
A few pleasantries exchanged,excess layers dropped back to the car and we made our way up to the starting area separately and met up a few rows back from the line. It was very congested so knew this would mean a slowish start until we got some space.I felt that this might be a good thing and would prevent us from going out too fast so didnt dwell on it too much.
Plan was try and keep it 7:05-7:10min/miles all the way. BG had a stopwatch so she would check the 1km marks too.
So off we went. Took it handy enough until we got to the gate as you had to be careful of tripping with bodies criss crossing and got slowed down in some places as there wasnt really any way round, but wasnt too bothered as knew it would thin out once we got out onto the road, and so it did.
Feeling fine in first mile and got into a comfortable rhythm quickly enough and we were on pace. Wind was a bit annoying at times but knew we would have it on our backs on the way back.
First mile went by in 7:03 so just nice ,not too fast and a little ahead of where we wanted to be.Was just focussing now on maintaining an even pace at this stage. We were working our way through the pack without pushing it in anyway. Second mile was slower but I think the wind had a lot to do with that. Still on course at 7:11 but wouldnt want to go
too juch slower than that if we were to hit the target. Getting onto the loop at the end of the course was a welcome relief from the wind and the slight downhill gave a good chance for mid race recovery. Heading into mile three, I was beginning to feel a little uncomfortable,but I thought ok this is normal, its a race, just work with it and it'll be fine.
BG was on my shoulder or just behind, running a very disciplined race thus far. Coming up to the 5k mark I definitely wasnt feeling right and knew instinctively that my goose was cooked. I think if I remember correctly BG had checked the 5k splits and confirmed all was good for her target. At this stage I just knew I couldnt keep this pace up for the whole race. BG had asked me how i was feeling and I had to come clean and let her know I was struggling. I didnt really care about my own race to be honest but felt like i was letting BG down. I felt like stepping off the course like you see the real pacers do on the track events after they've brought the real athletes to a certain point.
If I'm honest I felt a little embarrassed to be struggling so early on but the right thing to do was to tell BG to push on from there (about 5.5k I think). I pointed out a girl in front who I thought was around the right pace and told
BG to try hang onto her and she should get in on target.
So while BG pushed on I eased off a slight bit to gather my thoughts. Was thinking about the Tunguska mantra of welcoming the suffering in but this was a general suffering, not just one particular area of pain. I even started
repeating Tunguska,Tunguska,Tunguska. God knows why, sounds a bit weird thinking back now. Pace was dropping now and just tried to keep it around 7:30 if I could. Could see BG in the distance about 100m ahead and tried to keep her in sight for as long as possible.
Going through 8K it was all mental now. I was just concentrating on keeping the legs turning over and telling myself it will be all over soon so just keep going. The turn back towards K Club was a welcome sight as I knew there would be respite from any wind that was still there and it was the homeward stretch. Was getting passed by a few people at this stage and BG was disappearing into distance by now and I knew sub 45 was out the window.
Turning into the K CLub again I was happy for the downward slope down to the roundabout where there was a group of four or five ahead of me. I got it into my head that I would take these guys on the hill and I summoned everything I had left to do just that and pumped the arms and legs all the way up the hill to the finish. Got a couple of shouts on the way up the hill but have no clue who from, so thanks whoever it was.

Stopped the watch as I crossed over the line, walked a few yards and proceeded to dry wretch three times so I knew I had given it everything I had on the day. Someone else was wretching too so I felt I was in good.
Once recovered my thoughts immediately turned to Bungy Girl, hoping to catch sight of her at the finish with a big PB grin on her face. Walked to end of the chute and there she was. I said "Well ??" and she told me she had 44:42 on her watch so I was delighted for her as I thought that was a PB for her. Official results have it at 44:43 which equals her PB but between the non-mat start and funny timings etc, it was defintitely a run worthy of a PB.
As for my time, the watch said 45:39 , the official result said 45:50. No idea where the 11 secs went to since I started the watch when the gun went ,not when I crossed the start line??
Anyhow, wont criticise BHAA as they do such wonderful work and it was not relevant one way or another for me anyway in the grand scheme of things.Great spread afterwards and we won a team prize!

I was a bit disappointed with missing the sub 45 but having had time to reflect on things it was probably a bit optimistic considering the low mileage and haphazard training I've had lately.Coupled with that I think the lack of long runs has impacted my performance too.Probably the most disappointing aspect for me was when I dissected the mile splits
the second half of that race was run slower than the two half marathons I ran last year so I've definitely got some ground to make up. If I compare the splits to the last 10K I did last July (Fingal 10K) it doesnt make for pretty reading either. I know they are different courses but even allowing for that..
Fingal KClub
6:34 7:03
6:42 7:11
7:09 7:12
7:16 7:39
7:12 7:34
7:29 7:35
(6:04) (6:17)

6.23 miles @7:20avg plus 1.67 warmup gives a total for day of 7.90 miles

I don't want to be too downbeat about it but the object of the race was to see where I was at and I found out exactly that. I still have a lot of work to do to get back to where I was at my peak last year and then I can think about further progression. So for now its an easy week ahead and focus will be on building up the mileage again while minding the old back.
Sorry if this was a bit long and boring but had to get it off my chest I suppose.

Onwards and upwards

annapr

Great report, R, I think you are being very hard on yourself... or maybe just impatient, which is understandable... you'll get back to your peak and beyond once you can train consistently. Loved your description of how you pushed yourself on, good for you.

laura_ac3

Sorry to hear you're disappointed R and comparing the times from last year might be a tough exercise. I know you know it but I'll say it anyway - it's worth adding a little appendix * to that comparison given that you had such a layoff and are still coming back from it and getting into training. Am I right in thinking this is only your second race since?

You weren't a million miles off the sub 45. You have a new plan now, so with some proper focus and consistency you'll give a proper account down the road. As you said, this weekend just laid down a marker. If nothing else use it'll be good motivation to get through any tough days in training.

tang1

Great, honest report Robbie, your moving in the right direction you know that yourself. Bit more dedicated training will bring you on no end, takes a big man to admit he was struggling. I'm sure Bungy Girl was very happy with your 5k of pacing.

Dubgal72

I can only agree with them three up there Very honest report, enjoyed reading it (not boring at all!) and now you can use it to build. Best of luck!

Firedance

Dubgal72 wrote: »

I can only agree with them three up there Very honest report, enjoyed reading it (not boring at all!) and now you can use it to build. Best of luck!

What she said don't be too hard on yourself, onwards & upwards for sure.

Bungy Girl

tang1 wrote: »

Great, honest report Robbie, your moving in the right direction you know that yourself. Bit more dedicated training will bring you on no end, takes a big man to admit he was struggling. I'm sure Bungy Girl was very happy with your 5k of pacing.

Absolutely, this is my very happy face :

You made the first half of the race very easy for me, and, as a result the second half was much more comfortable than I can ever remember feeling in a race. So thank you! I really appreciate it.

It's hard coming back from a layoff. I've been there several times and am all too familiar with balancing the return to previous levels of fitness with minding the issue that caused the layoff in the first place. It can be very frustrating, but patience and having a good (flexible!) training plan in place can help. Onwards and upwards ? Couldn't agree more.

overpronator

Great report R and really good to meet you again yesterday. I think you might surprise yourself with how quickly you can get motoring again, you just need a wee bit of luck and consistency, the rest will look after itself.

menoscemo

Hey RR.
I had the same thing happen me RE the results. I came in with a group and I was credited with 5 seconds slower than them!!
I *think* they might have some kind of parkrun funnel system working whereby they match your time to your chip based on finishing position. Did you notice them writing down the numbers of the bibs after we crossed the line? I think perhaps you lost a position or two with the dry wretching and maybe lost a position in the funnel?

That's my theory with what happened to my 5 seconds anyway!!

annapr

menoscemo wrote: »

Hey RR.
I had the same thing happen me RE the results. I came in with a group and I was credited with 5 seconds slower than them!!
I *think* they might have some kind of parkrun funnel system working whereby they match your time to your chip based on finishing position. Did you notice them writing down the numbers of the bibs after we crossed the line? I think perhaps you lost a position or two with the dry wretching and maybe lost a position in the funnel?

That's my theory with what happened to my 5 seconds anyway!!

let it go, Meno, let it go

RedRunner

laura_ac3 wrote: »

Sorry to hear you're disappointed R and comparing the times from last year might be a tough exercise. I know you know it but I'll say it anyway - it's worth adding a little appendix * to that comparison given that you had such a layoff and are still coming back from it and getting into training. Am I right in thinking this is only your second race since?

You weren't a million miles off the sub 45. You have a new plan now, so with some proper focus and consistency you'll give a proper account down the road. As you said, this weekend just laid down a marker. If nothing else use it'll be good motivation to get through any tough days in training.

Not quite. I had a PB run in the ROck nRoll HM (1:39:43) and then a DNF in the Frank Duffy (Hamstring). Since then, yes it is my second race.
You're right, its a marker to work from. It's not the end of the world.
Thanks Laura.

RedRunner

tang1 wrote: »

Great, honest report Robbie, your moving in the right direction you know that yourself. Bit more dedicated training will bring you on no end, takes a big man to admit he was struggling. I'm sure Bungy Girl was very happy with your 5k of pacing.

Thanks B.

RedRunner

menoscemo wrote: »

Hey RR.
I had the same thing happen me RE the results. I came in with a group and I was credited with 5 seconds slower than them!!
I *think* they might have some kind of parkrun funnel system working whereby they match your time to your chip based on finishing position. Did you notice them writing down the numbers of the bibs after we crossed the line? I think perhaps you lost a position or two with the dry wretching and maybe lost a position in the funnel?

That's my theory with what happened to my 5 seconds anyway!!

Yeah, I remember a guy calling numbers out, but don't recall losing my place in line before the number call. I definitely did afterwards though, as I wretched! Not fussed about it, just usually nice to know how it might have happened. You might be right with your theory though.

menoscemo

annapr wrote: »

let it go, Meno, let it go

Haha!! It doesn't bother me as I was almost a minute away from my PB anyway but if I had ran a close PB I'd be :mad::mad:

But seriously i do think their chip system (which is their own) works like that. They ask you to stay in position after the finish, take your bib number down and then collect all the bibs again after the finish. Writing down the Bib numbers effectively acts as the finish token while also getting the clock to record a finisher. But like in parkrun, if you lose a position in the funnel you are credited with another person's time.

RedRunner

annapr wrote: »

Great report, R, I think you are being very hard on yourself... or maybe just impatient, which is understandable... you'll get back to your peak and beyond once you can train consistently. Loved your description of how you pushed yourself on, good for you.

Thanks Anna. Yes , the more you read my log the more you will realise "impatience" is my middle name. I'm sure Murph will agree.

Dubgal72 wrote: »

I can only agree with them three up there Very honest report, enjoyed reading it (not boring at all!) and now you can use it to build. Best of luck!

Thanks A. I find honesty always elicits the best feedback and advice.:)

Firedance wrote: »

What she said don't be too hard on yourself, onwards & upwards for sure.

Cheers. Much appreciated.

Bungy Girl wrote: »

Absolutely, this is my very happy face :

You made the first half of the race very easy for me, and, as a result the second half was much more comfortable than I can ever remember feeling in a race. So thank you! I really appreciate it.

It's hard coming back from a layoff. I've been there several times and am all too familiar with balancing the return to previous levels of fitness with minding the issue that caused the layoff in the first place. It can be very frustrating, but patience and having a good (flexible!) training plan in place can help. Onwards and upwards ? Couldn't agree more.

Thanks G. See you at the top.:)

overpronator wrote: »

Great report R and really good to meet you again yesterday. I think you might surprise yourself with how quickly you can get motoring again, you just need a wee bit of luck and consistency, the rest will look after itself.

Cheers S. I'm in awe of your training at the moment. Inspiring stuff.

Murph_D

Sounds like a good run to me under the circumstances (and you're still well ahead of my PB so I'm jealous!) 10k is a tough distance, I think - to me the pace feels almost as hard as a 5k but twice the suffering. Good stuff!

yaboya1

Nice comeback R. At least you know exactly where you're at now.

RedRunner wrote: »

you will realise "impatience" is my middle name.

What were your parents thinking? :P

RedRunner

12/4- Rest. Just did 30 mins easy on the static bike with some stretching exercises. Bit of a niggle in the right Achilles since K Club so iced it a bit .

13/4 - 3.74 miles @9:26 recovery run

Gentle run along the coast to help the legs recover from race. Achilles was a bit tender on my return. More icing ensued.

Not sure what to do with this, rest or run easy and continue icing.

adrian522

I'd consider resting and icing it until there is no more pain and then go back easy running and try and do some heel drops/calf raises to strengthen the area.