Time for a New Adventure

Neady83

nop98 wrote: »

Neady, has the unthinkable happened, and are you actually taking a break? :eek: It's eerily quiet here.

aquinn wrote: »

I was going to post the same earlier. Brilliant, finally a rest.

I have a confession to make ...... it's been 11 days since I've done a scrap of training. It's the longest stretch of non-training days all year.

I've started a new project in work so been travelling to wrap up the old project and travelling to kick start the next. This has meant days of 2:15am and 6:16am busses to Dublin city and airport and silly o clock returns.

That and I have to admit, I'm tired, really tired and I've lost my mojo for training a little bit. I'm enjoying my free time though but starting to feel energised and looking forward to getting stuck into some light training and some hill walking. I hear there's a dusting of snow on the Reeks

I've also neglected Boards ....... I've soooooooo much catching up to do

In the mean time though, I'm following the world adventure racing championships in Brazil. I wince every time I read a report, it's sounds like torture. Even the top teams don't seem to be enjoying it too much.

aquinn

A break, finally. Excellent and it'll do you the world of good. Enjoy it.

aquinn

I'm over this break now. You've had ten days, what's happening?

Neady83

The reason I love this log and this forum ..... the other boardsies keep me honest and give me the kick up the ass that I need when I need it, thanks A

I took two days off to go to Westport last week to get myself back on track, packed the car with all my running, hiking and biking gear, and low and behold hurricane Barney decides to cause havoc. So instead of training I read books for two days and did not much else but eat chocolate and chips.

My diet has gone to the dogs since DCM. You know when you go to the shop for a bar of chocolate and the regular 8 square bar of cadburys chocolate is €1.35 but the 40 square one beside it is €1.50 so it makes economical sense to buy the big one and sure "I'll only have the 8 squares and save the rest". I've been doing that A LOT lately and I have no problem eating all 40 squares. This has been a common occurrence since the marathon. The cycle then continues, I'm wired from the chocolate, stay up late, wake up with a pain in my head and can't get out of bed to train, need more chocolate to give me energy. It's a horrible cycle to break - Sugar, it is definitely the enemy. I've given the chocolate the ol heave ho now though so things are coming together. The last week of pulling myself back together has looked like this

Thursday Nov 19th: 4 miles easy

Friday Nov 20th: 3 miles easy (heavy legs & stiff :O from yesterdays 4)

Saturday Nov 21st: Nada bar a walk around the farm with my Dad

Sunday Nov 22nd: A walk along the cliffs in Kilkee with Mum

Monday Nov 23rd: 4 miles easy

Tuesday Nov 24th : Circuit training

Wednesday Nov 25th: Feet up & working late

Thursday Nov 26th: Circuit training

Team ARSE and our unofficial hiking group the Mountain Hares are hitting for Kerry at silly o clock tonight to do some hiking/climbing on the reeks at first light tomorrow. Weather permitting, a few of us will rope up and climb up Howling Ridge and meet the others at the top of Carrantuohill. I've the mountain bike thrown in the car to do some mountain biking around Gelnbeigh on Sunday if we don't overindulge in the hostel tomorrow night

Next week will hopefully see more structure in training, more time on the bike and some sort of a plan for the next month or so. I seem to work better when I have a plan to follow.

sconhome

Nice plan Neady!

Are you setting sights on ITERA or it that a deep dark secret for now?

Neady83

AKW wrote: »

Nice plan Neady!

Are you setting sights on ITERA or it that a deep dark secret for now?

One of the ARSEs sent around a provisional team training plan for 2016 this week and ITERA was pencilled in so it's definitely on the radar

We'll have a proper chat about it tomorrow but I'm pretty sure we're going for it. I'm asking Santa for contributions towards my race entry. I could have a sun holiday for the entry fee and we only have until January 7th to get in before the entry fee goes up.

I'm also a bit afraid to commit, it will make it real then and I won't be able to go to the Alps

You guys entered yet?

career move

How was Kerry??? Report overdue! Tick tock tick tock

Neady83

career move wrote: »

How was Kerry??? Report overdue! Tick tock tick tock

Storm Clodagh ruined most of our fun

Neady83

Saturday November 28th

About ten Mountain Hares and ARSES made our way to Cronins yard at the foot of Carrauntoohill for first light on Saturday morning. The plan was to walk in together and split into two groups with four of us roping up to climb Howling Ridge and the rest of the group to head up one of the gullys.

It was clear from the way the car was shaking with the wind and rain on the way to Kerry that there was no way we would be doing any sort of climbing. Storm Clodagh had landed. We got our wet gear on, told John Cronin to have the fire lit and the apple pie ready for our return in a few hours and off we went.

It was quite blustery and wet on the walk in but nothing the gear and boots couldn't handle. We took to the right on the way in and headed up Curve gully even though there was a nice waterfall on it's way down against us. There was a nice wind growling and we knew we'd get the brunt when we got over the the top of the gully and made the last dash for the top. Wow, it was seriously windy, blow you off your feet windy, I kept having to go down on all fours to ground myself.

Needless to say, we didn't hang around on top too long (not even for a picture) and tried to get down to the start of the Heavenly gates as fast as possible. There was shelter on the way down the heavenly gates and we hopped skipped and jumped our way back to the yard where true to his word, John had a roaring fire on and apple pie and scones out of the oven.

Back to the hostel where Shelia, the lady of the hostel, had the fire on for us too. we cooked up a storm and downed a few pints in anticipation of a nice mountain bike ride the following morning. It just wasn't to be, there were gael force winds blowing at 8:30 when we were eating breakfast and we were heading further West to the coast where we would be further exposed. There was no way we would be able to stay on the bikes.

A disappointing weekend given that the same weekend last year we did a long trek across the big gun ridge, onto Carrauntoohill, helped the locals bring the generator down after they had reattached the cross that some hooligans had cut down and got out for a good 12 miles the following morning too.

I've attached some of the pics one of the guys took on Saturday.

career move

Neady83 wrote: »

Storm Clodagh ruined most of our fun

Boo hiss :mad:

Mmmh apple pie and scones though .... John Cronin sounds like my kind of man

Dilbert75

career move wrote: »

Mmmh apple pie and scones though .... John Cronin sounds like my kind of man

Diet still going well then K?

Might be looking for some recommendations for run routes in Galway next week S - in the city prob Sun pm - Thur pm (in a hotel with no feckin' pool or gym :mad:). Nothing crazy mind...

career move

Dilbert75 wrote: »

Diet still going well then K?

Oh the diet was to lose a couple of pounds for Mireya's race last week. Job done :P I've actually just finished my post karate snack - two slices of chocolate, date and nut loaf washed down with a gallon of tea

Neady83

career move wrote: »

Boo hiss :mad:

Mmmh apple pie and scones though .... John Cronin sounds like my kind of man

He's a pretty cool guy and he makes sure that your car is safe in his farm yard while you're off wandering around. Great initiative by a farmer to make a few euro and keep the hikers and walkers happy. There's also shower facilities and camping pods If yer ever hitting the Reeks it's the place to go from.

Neady83

Dilbert75 wrote: »

Diet still going well then K?

Might be looking for some recommendations for run routes in Galway next week S - in the city prob Sun pm - Thur pm (in a hotel with no feckin' pool or gym :mad:). Nothing crazy mind...

Sure thing, there's lovely running routes that can encorporate the prom (though the concrete is tough on the legs). If you can get out during the day there's lots of pitches around the University and nice track along by the rive. There's a running track in Westside thats open to the public for use at all time and outdoor exercise equipment.

I'm not sure where you're staying but you could PAYG at the pool at leisureland in Salthill: http://www.leisureland.ie/swimming/swimming-prices-schedule. If you're staying in town, short run to leisureland, swim, short run back to the city centre.

My pace is a lot slower than yours but if you fancy a slow run, I'll keep you company.

Neady83

This weeks training has gone something like

Monday

4.5 miles @ 8:44/mi
Had to get this out of the quick so I went off a bit of a clip. Really enjoyed it.

Tuesday

Circuits
Can't quite remember the sequence but it was lots of sprinting, medicine ball twists and bear crawls type stuff.

Wednesday

45 minutes getting reacquainted with the wattbike. Keeping the rpms steady and trying not to burnout before circuits/x-training.

Circuits: 4x60 seconds on each

1. Core training: standing up straight, one foot in front of the other. With straight arms, life weight bar, palms facing up, up over head & back down with controlled movement. This was a new one on me and bloody hard, could really feel it on the tummy.
2. Renegade rows & pushups/ pull ups on the machine
3. Boxing combined with side jumps
4. Chin-ups combined with sing leg squats
5. Rowing combined with push-ups
6. Lunge walking with weights/ bear crawls

Thursday AM

Circuits: 4x60 seconds on each

1. Ball slams combined with jumps
2. Kettle bell squat & press above the head
3. Sprints & lunge walk with weights
4. Same weight bar core exercise as last night
5. Boxing & side jumps
6. Renegade rows & press ups

Thursday PM

45 minutes on the wattbike keeping the rpms steady and trying to be as efficient as possible with my cycling. Found this tough and my thighs were burning. Couldn't wait for the 45 minutes to be over.

I've become quite unfit since the marathon. Bit of making up to do, especially on the bike.

Dilbert75

Neady83 wrote: »

Sure thing, there's lovely running routes that can encorporate the prom (though the concrete is tough on the legs). If you can get out during the day there's lots of pitches around the University and nice track along by the rive. There's a running track in Westside thats open to the public for use at all time and outdoor exercise equipment.

I'm not sure where you're staying but you could PAYG at the pool at leisureland in Salthill: http://www.leisureland.ie/swimming/swimming-prices-schedule. If you're staying in town, short run to leisureland, swim, short run back to the city centre.

My pace is a lot slower than yours but if you fancy a slow run, I'll keep you company.

Kool and the Gang. Wouldn't mind a jaunt out the prom to see the spot where the legend that is Teresa Mannion stood for her report the other night. :P. https://youtu.be/bzx3MeYonT8

If you're up for a jog happy days - no worry about pace; I'd rather company than a faster solo run. Will pm you. Timing is my only concern - I'll prob be out early mornings because I'm up for work with a gang so will be trying to fit it in between work and meals.

Neady83

Have to stop leaving such long breaks between logging. Friday was a wash out, literally, I refused to leave the house because of the wind and rain - see link above in Dilberts post

Saturday

60 minutes on the Wattbike, 33km
It went something like 10 minutes on each gear, 1 to 6, using the gear lever. Keeping cadence on each gear steady. I've got a Wattbike plan that I'm going to follow once I get a few weeks of base building behind me.

There was a guy on the treadmill in front of me that had a poncho on over his t-shirt while he was running. He had it tucked into his shorts and had the hood up. It was very strange, maybe he was trying to make weight for something but surely the sauna would be a better way to sweat it out to make weight.

3miles on the treadmill @ 10:00/mi @ 1% incline
I did this straight off the bike.

Sunday

6 miles @ 9:12/mi
I couldn't waste this pretty sunny day and not get out on the prom. After the darkness of the past week it was great to be out in the warm air and see everyone smiling and enjoying the fresh air.

Monday AM

6 miles @ 9:17mi
I did this at early o' clock with Dilbert from around these parts. A fresh morning on the prom, as my Dad would say. Dilbert very kindly slowed to my geriatric pace while I pointed out the scenery (in the dark). It was really nice to be out so early while the rest of the city slept and to have such great company - I couldn't do this on my own every morning though.

I need more boardsies to visit Galway to motivate me to get up and get out early.

Monday PM

70 minutes on the Wattbike
15 minutes each an gears 1 to 4 followed by 10 on 10.
This was a sweaty drippy one. The guy on the bike next to me, a triathlete as he had a tri top on, was there when I got there and was there for an hour of my session so he was putting in the time. He went through 3 iso-gels from the time I got there and he didn't sweat a bit, not a drop. He didn't even have a towel with him meanwhile there was a puddle forming underneath me. How is that? Was he just uber cool?

Tuesday AM

Circuits: 8 stations @ 4x60 seconds each
This was one of those tear the shoulders off you circuit sessions. There was a whole pletera of new exercises that were so difficult that we just couldn't hold the positions and they were in a sequence that when your arms were burned, you got to do more arm stuff.

1. Split lunge squat pushing dumbbells over the head on the raise
2. Squat jumps with dumbbells - squat, jump while holding the squat & hold dumbbells out with straight arms. Try it, it's torturous
3. Push-up sliders/dragging yourself across the floor (feet sliders)
4. Side planks while playing dyna band tug of war with my partner in crime
5. Bosu ball front lunges with a kettle bell
6. Medicine ball push ups
7. Clamshell with resistance band - good for hip flexors I was told
8. Sit-ups & push-ups

Dilbert75

Geriatric pace, my eye. At 6:30 in the night, particularly against that wind, I was delighted with our pace.

Twas a lot less pleasant this evening - colder for one. Also, nighttime exercisers in Galway seem a lot less friendly than early morning exercisers - my mission to greet multiple total randomers fell on its face this evening. Either that or yesterday they were all greeting you...

annapr

You could always come to Dublin for early morning runs

....new adventures???? well.... did I miss something?

Dilbert75

Yeah...shiny new log title....

Neady83

annapr wrote: »

You could always come to Dublin for early morning runs

....new adventures???? well.... did I miss something?

Does a 5 day non-stop adventure race count as a new adventure?

Should be up in Dublin a good bit in the Spring for work so that could become a reality

Dilbert75 wrote: »

Yeah...shiny new log title....

It's not very imaginative but it feels like it's the start of a whole new Chapter

Neady83

Dilbert75 wrote: »

Geriatric pace, my eye. At 6:30 in the night, particularly against that wind, I was delighted with our pace.

Twas a lot less pleasant this evening - colder for one. Also, nighttime exercisers in Galway seem a lot less friendly than early morning exercisers - my mission to greet multiple total randomers fell on its face this evening. Either that or yesterday they were all greeting you...

Ha ha they sure weren't greeting me but I agree they were very friendly compared to my usual experience and after being out with you, I've realised that I'm not great at saying hello myself. Will keep up the Dilbert sunshine hellos on the prom from here on in

Dilbert75

Neady83 wrote: »

Ha ha they sure weren't greeting me but I agree they were very friendly compared to my usual experience and after being out with you, I've realised that I'm not great at saying hello myself. Will keep up the Dilbert sunshine hellos on the prom from here on in

Bahahaha - Galway might grow to tolerate it. I don't normally get such a warm reception when I run in Dublin. Parents hush their children away and stare suspiciously at me. Other people prepare to fight or flee. Older people are better - they normally engage.

I just reckon you never know when you'll be the only person who says a kind word to someone all day.

Dory Dory

Neady83 wrote: »

Does a 5 day non-stop adventure race count as a new adventure?

I was hoping you had decided to master the art of swimming and were going to sign up for a triathlon!

Dilbert75 wrote: »

I just reckon you never know when you'll be the only person who says a kind word to someone all day.

A kind word is free. A smile is free. You are so right, Dilbert, sometimes the most simple of acts can make someone's entire day. Thank you.

Oryx

Dilbert75 wrote: »

Bahahaha - Galway might grow to tolerate it. I don't normally get such a warm reception when I run in Dublin. Parents hush their children away and stare suspiciously at me. Other people prepare to fight or flee. Older people are better - they normally engage.

I just reckon you never know when you'll be the only person who says a kind word to someone all day.

We have a marine watch scheme here where people patrol and watch for potential suicides. They approach and talk to them. Since it started noone has been lost to our river. It works.

aquinn

New log title, new adventure. TELL US more.

Neady83

Dory Dory wrote: »

I was hoping you had decided to master the art of swimming and were going to sign up for a triathlon!

A kind word is free. A smile is free. You are so right, Dilbert, sometimes the most simple of acts can make someone's entire day. Thank you.

So true, you two are little rays of sunshine

aquinn wrote: »

New log title, new adventure. TELL US more.

I've booked a course of swimming lessons for January so fingers crossed I'll be able to wander into the deep end without needing saving. This will be my third attempt at learning to swim, once as a kid and once as an adult. Third time lucky hopefully

The big new adventure will be a five day adventure race with a marathon thrown in as training maybe

Neady83

Tuesday PM

3.52miles @ 9:24/mi
This was done at very dark o clock at night.

Wednesday

60 easy spinny minutes on the Wattbike in the AM. My legs just don’t want to go round and round very fast in the morning.

Thursday AM

Circuits – can’t remember the exact circuits but there were lots of push-ups.

Thursday PM

6 miles @ 9:37/mi
Still no pace in these legs.

Friday AM

60 minutes on the Wattbike.
This felt better than Wednesday. Now that’s the base building done. Some sessions to be done next week.

Sunday

7 and a bit miles @ 8:49/mi
After watching/cheering on the xc runners in Ennis, I decided that I better get out and do something so a nice 7 lumpy miles around Kilmihil it was. All the xc runners deserve serious kudos for going out there, you can really see the suffering they go through by their faces, it’s a tough sport.


Monday

70 minutes on the Wattbike:
30 min warm up
5 x 5 mins (2mins @ 100rpm, 3 mins @ 85rpm)
15 mins cool down
The first two sets @ 100rpm were tough but I managed to hold onto 190ish watts but the third set was coming undone after 90 seconds. All at level 1, I couldn’t sustain the 100rpm at a higher level.

This was followed by 2 miles @ 9:20/mi on the treadmill.

Tuesday AM

2.5 miles @ 9:04/mi on the treadmill before Circuits

Circuits: 8 stations @ 4x60 seconds each
This is all a bit of a haze as it was one of the toughest sessions I’ve done in the morning. I was the closest I’ve come to getting sick in a long time.

Tuesday PM

6.11miles @ 9:55/mi
A very sweet little old lady told me that I was doing great and to keep it up as I ran by her. It put a great big smile on my face until I started thinking that maybe I looked like I was suffering as I was going at such a slow pace and she was feeling sorry for me.

Dory Dory

Merry Christmas Needy!

Dilbert75

Yep merry Christmas S!