From Couch 25k To Where Ever

The Black Oil

On the fridge is best, not in it.

The Muppet

60 mins very easy today. Chose an uphill course for this one to add a little interest.

5.4 miles @ 11.04 avg hr 125

The Muppet

8 x 1 hills 3 mins recovery with 1 mile warm up and cool down.

Was in St annes for this one , the hill was a little short but that's where I was.


All went well 7.14, 7.02, 7.03, 6.55, 6,57, 7.04, 6.25, 6.54.

The Muppet

5 easy miles this evening @ 10.33 . Nice run but quite warm.


Pilates class after with some nice stretches.

The Muppet

A little indicisive this morning, couldn't decide whether to do the lsr today and session tomorrow or stick rigidly to the plan and run session today and lsr today. I'm not sure if it would make much of a difference going out the door I decided to stick rigidly to the plan.

The plan today had 15 minutes tempo (8.40 to 8.50) 4 minutes recovery and then 10 minutes threshold (8.15 - 8.30) . headed to the cycle track/path on the howth road for this.

The session went well and I felt good throughout . 6 minute warm up and cool down , possibly a little short .

1.7 miles in 15 minutes @ 8.40
1.2 miles 10 minutes @ 8.12

I have a couple of niggles at the moment. I felt my right groin twinge on the cool down after Wednesdays hill sprints, i thought nothing of it really at the time but its sill a little tender, I felt it again today on the threshold run, nothing major but it's there. My right Glute is also sore this morning, not sure why but it diidnt bother me on the run. Just niggles nothing major but I like to log stuff like that for future refernce if needed.

3.8 miles running in total today (recovery not included).

The Muppet

I hr 45 easy this morning. On the road before 8 to try avoid the heat but it was still warm.

Was feeling tIred this morning , it took me a few miles to get into it . Battery was dead in my MP3 player so no music could have been a factor. I always listen to music or radio on my easy runs.

Easy pace is from 10.55 up and I stuck to that today , did the conversation test a few times just to be sure, sure where's the harm in talking to youself. . I ran from swords into santry and back , I had 10 minutes to add in santry so I went into ososlo's park for those . Nice in there with a pond and some hills .

Got the full week in this week . Ran 6 days with 2 sessions and a decent long run mostly at prescribed paces.

No reaction from groin or glutes today .

9 weeks out from Newcastle

9.84 miles @10.53 pace avg hr 121 max 138 today the upper end of my easy zone is 138.


30.6 miles for the week

The Muppet

Monday 10th

20 minutes recovery in the local park 1.92 miles @11.10 pace .

Tuesday 11th
60 Minutes very easy . kept this very easy , a bit fast by calculator but effort felt right .
5.54 miles @11.07 pace

Wednesday 12th
5 x 5 minutes Cardio Vascular pace (7.52 to 8.03) with 4 minute recovery.

St Annes park the venue for these this afternoon, It was warm , not too many running. After a short half a mile warm up i felt good to go. Hit my targets comfortably enough. 7.49,7.50,7.51,7.50 and 7.44 happy enough with those. 4 minute walk recovery, felt good to go after 2 but stuck to the plan.

A short cool down and in out of the sun. Great to have the energy to run on days like today.

4.49 miles@10.57 pace. Max hr 151, Average HR for CV splits 135

The Muppet

Thursday

No Pilates today . Instructor on holidays so I just took a rest day and moved my 60 easy run to Friday. Suited me better that way as I was minding one of my grandsons .

Friday
60 minutes very easy today . Another warm day but there was a nice breeze on some of the route. Just stuck on the headphones and really enjoyed the run , got the odd song in too , you can't beat a bit of Elvis ��

6.34 miles @ 10.45 pace

The Muppet

session day today 3 x 8 minutes threshold with 3 minutes recovery, This is the same session I failed miserably at 6 weeks ago. When I saw this session on the plan earlier this week I was determined to complete the session properly this time.

I ran this along the coast on the howth road same as last time . Last time my calculated threshold pace was 8.29 , i mainained that for the first one but the second an third splits I struggled and only managed 8.50 pace so with that fresh in my mind I was really focused on mainitaining the paces this morning.

I'm using a different pace calcultor the last few weeks and my threshold pace is now 8.14 to 8.23. I always aim for the faster end of the range so 8.14 was my target today.

After a 10 minute warm up I started the first split into a stiff breeze which meant I had to work a little harder and ran the 8 minute split at 8.11 pace , max hr was 150 ,

My second split was easier as I had to turn and the brezee was behind me,i ran it at exactly the same pace as the first 8.11 pace max hr 145 this time.

For the third split I ran some of it with the breeze behind me and then turned to finish it into the breeze, my pace this time was 8.07 ,max hr 146

1 mile cool down back to the car then at 10.45 pace. Really happy with the session today as I felt quite comfortable throughout, I feel I can now officially put my dip in form of a few weeks back out of my mind.

No doubt there will be more dips but for now I feel I am moving forward again which is a relief 7 weeks out from my target race.

5.36 miles @ 10.23 pace

The Muppet

1.45 easy today. Legs were a liitle heavy , yesterdays session probably a factor . Got out in the afternoon on my usual route

10..38 miles @ 10.38;pace.

Had a nice 2 mile walk this evening just to get moving again and I needed to measure 300 meters in the local park for next wednesdays session.


Decent week for me again 6 days running all session completed successfully.

34 miles for the week

The Muppet

Monday

20 Minutes recovery , really easy recovery run, I was feeling quite tired all day

1.92 miles @10.54

Tuesday

Lovely day, finished work early to meet my seven year old grandson at the beach, had a swim and a lay around in the sun , did some core work too. herself arrived with smoked cod and chips for tea, not ideal prep for my run later. I left it 2 hours to settle but I still felt quite queasy on the run . Don't eat that stuff very often , you have to have the odd "treat". My run 60 minutes very easy

5.39 miles @11.04 pace

Wednesday Session day

Today it was 10 x 300 meters @ miles pace (7.12) with one minute recovery. I was running this in my local park and had measured out 300 meters with my watch on Sunday evening.

re the pace I wasn't sure what mile pace means on the plan, My mile pace on my 5k run i use to calculate my paces is 7.45 but I've ran a paced mile in 7.12 so as I've ran other longer session quicker than 7.45 I decided my target pace should be 7.12 . That was my logic anyway still not sure of I was right or not, I'd love to know though.

so after a nice easy one mile warm up it was into the repeats.

I ran the first 300 on my measured route and did walk recovery , I started the second one after the minute but started from the wrong place and so guessed when I had run 300 , Stopped a little short i think , so I stopped the session and reprogrammed my watch into kilometers and displayed lap distance so I would be doing things right. On restart everything went ok from there . Pace is a little quicker than it should be but I'm no great judge of that and I can't be looking at the watch too much when running fast (for me).

I also have a habit in sessions of starting quickly and easing back, i think it should possibly be the other way around, I've seen that mentioned in other logs here but I and conscious i may not build up to the required pace in time if I start slowly. I eased back a fair bit or that's how it felt on a couple but not all of today's repeats.

a half a mile cool down completed the session. I was happy with how it went.
Interesting the heart rate raising for the latter repeats

300 meter splits with max heart rate for each.
6.48 @ 139 bpm,
6.47 @ 139bpm,
6.42 @ 139 bpm,
7.04 @ 142bpm,
6.52 @ 142 bpm,
6.58 @146 bpm,
6.44@146 bpm
7.13 @145 bpm,
7.01 @ 145 bpm,
6.53 @ 144 bpm

The Muppet

Thursday

60 minutes easy felt meh before going out but got into it and ended up running it faster than I should. Cant remember much about the run except I felt good after it.

Pilates Class in the evening.

6.26 miles @9.49 pace.
Friday:
Rest day

Saturday

Session day and today was 4 x 8 minutes and half marathon pace (8.30) with 90 seconds recovery. after a 10 minute warm up I got into the faster running up and back on the Howth road. Felt good on this , splits felt comfortable, for the last split I had a slight breeze behind me so upped the pace to keep the effort right. 8.5 minute cool down.

1 8.00 @ 8.30 max hr 144
2 8.00 @ 8.28 max hr 144
3 8.00 @ 8.26 max hr 145
4 8.00 @ 8.13 max hr 145

5.67 miles .


Sunday

1.45 easy. woke late for me 9 am and headed straight out for this, Ran on empty. Headed up the main street of swords to see the early birds getting ready for the Fingal 10k, I met Singer and his wife and had a quick chat and wished them both luck. I felt a little envious of all participating today, I had decided when things were not going so well a few weeks ago that I would not run it as I wanted to stick to the plan I am following for September and I knew that would mean running it as part of an lsr and that didn't interest me really , there's always next year.

With much of swords blocked off for the race i headed over to Malahide, up the back road by the castle and then back to Swords via the estuary. It was my favourite running conditions staring out this morning, drizzle and coolish. Really enjoyed this run today. I got back into Swords to catch the end of the Fingal 10k and stopped at the fire station to cheer on a few participants.

10.24 miles @ 10.16 pace.


Happy with the week, ran 6 days , hit all target paces and distances, stomach is feeling bit off the last few days but its not affecting my runs,

Next week looks like a bit of a step back on the plan so looking forward to that.

32.81 miles for the week.

The Muppet

Monday

20 minutes recovery , whats to say

1.73 miles in 20 Minutes @11.36 pace

Tuesday

60 minutes very easy , I had Wednesdays session in mind so with the mantra of keep the easy days easy in mind that's exactly what I did.

5.45 miles in 60 minutes @11.01 pace

Wednesday Session Day

8 x 1k @ cv (8 minute mile pace) with 400 m jog recovery

I was quite apprehensive about this session before hand. Its the first session where I have ran a distance instead of a time and it was jog recovery I usually walk. To add to my worries it's a gusty evening here in North Dublin.

I usually run my session in the local park , on the avenue in St. Anne's or along the Howth road , all flat surfaces with no need to cross roads etc. Today I decided to run this on one of my usual 5 mile loops of swords, intending to turn back for the recoveries to fit in the 8k plus recoveries in 5 miles.

just under a mile of a warm up , all uphill and then it was into the first 1k @ pace , I had a gusty win in my face for this one and worked hard to keep on pace. Split 2 was also mostly into the wind and again I worked hard. 3 was also tough but a little easier , don't know what the wind was doing but it appeared to be in my face all the time. Split 4 was easier again no wind and there was a down hill section . Split 5 6 7 and 8 i was really getting into it and finding them a lot easier than the early ones, my heart rate date indicates i did find the last 5 easier than the first 3. Was into the wind again on some of them but I was feeling strong .

The jog recoveries worked well so much so I think i will try do them all the time from now on. After the 3rd split I was felling it and walked the first 100 m of that recovery but by the last ones i was jogging all recoveries and actually think I recovered as well if not better as I did when walking.

1k splits and max heart rate

1 8.00 pace @148 bpm
2 8.01 @ 151 bpm
3 8.00 @ 148 bpm
4 7.52 @ 147 bpm
5 7.54 @ 143 bpm
6 7.50 @ 144 bpm
7 7.55 @ 144 bpm
8 7.40 @ 148 bpm

8.08 miles @ 9.25 pace max hr 152 avg hr 130

The Muppet

60 minutes very easy today. Quite tired today , glad it was a very easy .

Off to pilates now

5.42 miles in 60 mins @ 11.05 pace Avg hr 123, (max 157 starting out but it must have been a spike) .

The Muppet

Friday 28th

Usually rest on Friday but had a busy weekend ahead and knew I wouldn't be able to run both days so I moved Saturdays session to Friday. Not ideal as I was far from fresh but I did sort of get it done. I ran it up and down twice in the local park , I stopped after the first loop and though about abandoning but persevered and did a second loop.

27 minute tempo@ 8.30 pace.

Saturday
Saturday was a write off except for a 60 meter race. The estate I grew up in was 50 years old and we organised a field day old style and a party that night in the local Gaa Club so i was busy all day with that. The race was the fathers race and I was smoked by 20 something year olds, There was no grandfather race, I may have fared better in that. They did have a grandmothers race, My wife entered that and came second , I'll never be let live that one down no matter how much I try make excuses .:D

Sunday

Another write off , I did intend to get out for my 70 minutes easy but having socialized heavily the night before with old friends I hadn't seen decades and little sleep I was fit for nothing but the couch for the day.

Monday
Still ropey but i had to get moving again and did my 20 minutes recovery
20 mins @10.38 pace

Tuesday
60 minutes very easy on the plan, again not feeling great but once i got going i did blow off the cobwebs. I change my usual rout a little and discovered lovely path to run on, behind a wall on the opposite side of the road i usually run on.

progression run really . 5.32 miles @ 10.58 to 9.19 pace avg 10.14

Wednesday

Session 12 x 400M CV (8 min mile)with 1 min recovery

Went to the avenue in St Annes for this, stuck for time so no warm up, not good as is evident by the first split , in fact the first 3 were tough enough but I got going then and all was good.

400 m splits
mile pace/ max heart rate
8.21 @139
7.30 @142
7.54 @142
7.53 @145
7.56 @146
7.59 @144
7.56 @143
7.47 @143
7.47 @143
7.51 @148
7.50 @148
7.44 @148

The Muppet

Thursday

60 minutes easy. Ran this in reverse with longer up hills on the new route I found recently.

5.78 miles @10.25 pace.

Friday rest

Saturday session

4 x 10 mins hm pace 8.30 with 2 min recovery.

Ran this on the howth road . 10 mins warm up and cool down. Nearly got hit by cyclists twice while running on the footpath. Really enjoyed this session.

10 min splits and max heartrate
1 @ 8.25 145bpm
2 @ 8.19 140 bpm
3 @ 8.23 138 bpm
4. @ 8.15 149 bpm

6.7 miles in total

Sunday

Two hours easy. Was in Crumlin today for this so I headed for the canal and ran an out and back. Got drenched , shirt was stuck to me so I stopped twice to wring it out. Nice and cooling though and a good run . No heart rate recorded but I was wearing the monitor. Pace was easy though I was tiring near the end . My longest run in months I think.
11.7 miles @10.17 pace

That's another week down. All 6 runs completed all target paces and distances met

34.8 miles my weekly total.

The Muppet

-Monday

20 minutes recovery 2.07 miles @ 11.04 pace

Tuesday
Was up north for in newtownsteward a few days with Family so this had to be an early one , was very late to bed but woke at 6.30 and headed out for my 60 minutes very easy. Not knowing the area it was a run on country roads, Not keen on that for safety reasons but there was little traffic and all went well, quite hilly , it was a beautiful sunny morning.

6.1 miles @ 10.38 max hr 131 avg 122

Wednesday Very tired today, a lot of driving the last few days , diet not great either so I wasn't really feeling the love for a session.
10 , 7, 3 threshold to cv off 2 minutes. I was in Belfast for these and had looked on map my run fro a flat running route for these. Ormeau Park appeared to fit the bill , and my hotel was a mile form there so ideal or my warm up. i made it to the park and started the session but I wasn't felling right mentally for it , too many people/dogs to navigate around so changed the plan after 8 minutes at threshold 8.30 . I decide to switch to Saturdays planned run of 30 minutes tempo with the intention of running the session Saturday instead.

30 Minutes @9.24 a little slower than it should be due to slow warm up (10.14) but the last two miles were on pace( 8.50). max hr 155 avg 126

Thursday still in Belfast for my 60 mins easy , another 6.30 am start but it was lovely, ran back to Ormeau park via a longer route and ran all the paths in the park and back to hotel before everyone else woke up.

5.48 miles @10.30 avg hr 119 max 161 at start obviously a blip

Friday Rest Day

Saturday was on home ground to try Wednesdays abandoned session,

10,7,3 mins threshold to CV 8.30 to 7.52 with 2 minute jog recovery. After a mile warm up I got into the quick stuff and all went well

10 minutes @ 8:30 max hr 148 bpm, 7 minutes @8:10 max hr 155 and 3 mins @7:37 max hr 155.

.6 of a mile cool down.

4.43 miles @9.29, very happy with the session.

Sunday I hr 45 easy. (10.52)

Headed out towards Malahide for this really intended to stick to proper pace for this one but was a little faster, Did check my pace a few times and did the conversation test a few times, Had the headphones on for this, I was a sight singing along with Shania Twains "I fell like a woman " on the back road past Malahide Castle, I had a chuckle at that at the time. did some strides in the last half mile , don't know why as they were not on the plan. Nice morning.



10.17 miles @ 10.38 pace avg hr 120 max 136



Not a perfect week on many fronts but with a little juggling I got all runs in reasonably close to what they should have been , I'm happy enough with that .

31.42 miles for the week

The Muppet

Monday

20 Minutes recovery , spilling wet evening , considered whether it was worth getting wet for a recovery run but stuck to the plan and got drenched.

1.98 miles @10:52 pace

Tuesday
60 minutes very easy
Nice run around swords. have started running this route in reverse of late as it is a longer more gradual climb this way. I think it may be a better workout this way. Nice run

5:87 Miles @ 10:21 pace

heart rate 128/155

Wednesday

Today's Session was 16 x 400 meters threshold (8:14-8:26)with 30 second recovery

I'm always apprehensive about the sessions, doubting I can hit or maintain specified pace and duration. The main avenue at st. Annes was today's chosen venue as it was a little windy along the coast. After a 1 mile warm up i got down to the repeats and was pleasantly surprised when I found them comfortable enough. 1.2 mile of a cool down taking the mileage to over 6 miles for the session.

Had not set lap time on my watch so stopped after repeat 4 to reset my watch as I needed lap time for the 30 second recoveries , tried guessing for the first 4 with varying success.

Very enjoyable session today


400 m splits with max hr
8:15 @193, monitor spike obviously
8.15 @122
8:13 @125
8.13 @145
8:07 @108
8:08 @142
8:03 @137
7:58 @142
8:05 @145
8:06 @145
8:10 @145
8:11 @145
8:07 @144
8:11 @142
8:09 @142
7:49 @143

6.3 miles at various paces

Kennyg71

Fair play getting out on Monday, was going to do 25 min recovery myself but had same thoughts, but I stayed in:), good session today.

The Muppet

Thursday
60 minutes easy , started out in sunshine, 10 minutes in the clouds opened, my second drenching of the week. I love running in the rain so it's no bother.
5.69 miles @ 10.23

Pilates class in the evening.

Friday. Rest

Saturday
Session 4 x 12 minutes @ hm pace 8.30 with 2.30 recovery. Didn't get to this until the afternoon and it was quite blustery so I headed to St. Anne's park for this as there's a bit off tree cover there as opposed to my usual route along the coast .

Warm us was a 10 minute jog up and back from the main gate on the main avenue.

Split 1 was down the avenue, right at the end towards the rose garden , tough going near the end , quite a busy area but I got it done. 1.42 miles @ 8.30

For Split 2 I decided to run on it on the park run course . 3 minutes in I check pace and was much too slow. Upped the effort to see if I could get back on track, not used to that, I usually start too quick an ease off , delighted to catch up and the split felt better than the first . Finished just before the hill, planning. 1.46 miles @ 8.11

Walked up the hill for recovery and into split 3 , same route as 2 as it had gone so well. This one was the same , getting into it now and feeling good. 1.48 miles @ 8.15 pace

Walked the hill again and decided to use same route instead of heading up avenue back to car as that would have left me not doing a cool down . Enjoyed this split too , felling quite comfortable aerobically , could feel the legs though. 1.45 miles @ 8.20 pace


Cool down was 1.12 miles back to car @ 10.12 pace

Really happy with this session.
7.97 miles in total.

Sunday. 1 hr 45 easy.

Up and out earlyish for this one. Ran on empty on a new route I had concocted during the week. A loop of swords and out towards malahide and back along the estuary. Lovely morning, cool breeze but dry. I ran it a little to quick , just went with it today. Legs were tired from the off but I felt strong, strange one for me. Enjoyed it , tired enough on completion and right glute was complaining a little near the end, just under 19 miles in 24 hours probably a factor

10.64 miles@ 9.57 pace

Heartrate

125/141


That's another week chalked off, all runs completed to plan. 3 weeks from goal race the plan starts easing off this week.

Total for the week 38.63 miles

The Muppet

into week 12 of the plan.

Monday:

20 minutes recovery,

Kept this very easy . Was still feeling soreness mentioned after Sundays Run so being careful. Blew the cobwebs off the foam rolling and had a party, I forgot how enjoyable the foam roller is, Not.

Tuesday
60 minutes easy

Took the easier route , less hills on this one, still minding myself. and kept a good eye on pace . Things seem to have settled down anyway , had another foam rolling session after. Something weird happened with my watch, looks like i recorded some of my drive to work as part of my run so not recorded properly but on the plus side I got a new 5k pb , 3 minutes , beat that.

5.45 miles @10.40 pace


Wednesday 6 x 4 minutes @ cv 8.00 off 2 min jog recovery

This was going to test any weakness. The wind didn't appear too bad today so I headed to the coast from Sutton to St. Annes . Parked up in Kilbarrick and ran a mile warm up my route.

I noticed it was windier that I though when I got there, I decided to run the first 2 splits into the wind the next 3 with the wind and last one into the wind again calculating this would leave me back where I started the paced stuff for another mile cool down back to my car.

The first split was tougher than I expected, was tiring near the end but got it done and my 2 minute jog recovery
4 mins @ 7.56 HR 129/146

split 2 had to work harder to hit this one as is evident in max HR, was tiring near the end. Some walking for recovery too.

split 3 was with the wind and so was easier than the first 2, a second off pace, should have kept a close eye on the watch. Jog recovery
4 mins @8.01 HR134/146

Split 4
Wind assisted but still felt like tough going near the end, walk recovery after this one.
4 mins @ 7.57 HR 136/145

Split 5 Wind assisted too felt easier than all the others. walk recovery, felt i needed to so id be right starting the next one
4 mins @7.56 HR 131/142 Split

Split 6 back back into the wind,
Just put the head down and went for it. Happy I was able to maintain pace for this one.
4 mins @7.50 HR 140/149

Really tough session not made any easier by the wind but happy to complete it. Recoveries not all to plan but I did my best. Probably should have ran somewhere with a little more shelter. No soreness during the run or after but will be sticking to proper paces from now on , getting too close to the day to mess things up by being stupid.

1 mile cool down back to car @9.58

Total for the day 5.33 miles @51.05


Helping someone with couch to 5 k so was out again this evening for week 1 day 2 of that plan, very easy pace.

The Black Oil

The Muppet wrote: »

Helping someone with couch to 5 k so was out again this evening for week 1 day 2 of that plan, very easy pace.

Good to keep your log title alive.

The Muppet

The Black Oil wrote: »

The Muppet wrote: »

Helping someone with couch to 5 k so was out again this evening for week 1 day 2 of that plan, very easy pace.

Good to keep your log title alive.

I will always be a couch 2 5 k runner, it's special to me . My wife shocked me last week by declaring she was starting it this week . Was out Monday with her too . Early days yet but she says she wants to run a 5k with me. She's as unfit as I was starting so it's not going to be easy on her . I am going to run all her runs with her to make sure she keeps it sloooow. Well see how it goes as you know it can be tough going.

annapr

The Muppet wrote: »

I will always be a couch 2 5 k runner, it's special to me . My wife shocked me last week by declaring she was starting it this week . Was out Monday with her too . Early days yet but she says she wants to run a 5k with me. She's as unfit as I was starting so it's not going to be easy on her . I am going to run all her runs with her to make sure she keeps it sloooow. Well see how it goes as you know it can be tough going.

That's brilliant, good for her!

Well done on the session, that stretch is always bloody windy...:rolleyes:

The Muppet

annapr wrote: »

The Muppet wrote: »

I will always be a couch 2 5 k runner, it's special to me . My wife shocked me last week by declaring she was starting it this week . Was out Monday with her too . Early days yet but she says she wants to run a 5k with me. She's as unfit as I was starting so it's not going to be easy on her . I am going to run all her runs with her to make sure she keeps it sloooow. Well see how it goes as you know it can be tough going.

That's brilliant, good for her!

Well done on the session, that stretch is always bloody windy...:rolleyes:

Thanks A , I should have gone into St annes for it , I've struggled before along there.

I'm following your log with interest , the meno plan looks interesting .

annapr

The Muppet wrote: »

Thanks A , I should have gone into St annes for it , I've struggled before along there.

I'm following your log with interest , the meno plan looks interesting .

Hah, yes, interesting is a good word... it nearly killed me in 2015 but set me up very well for DCM, will see how I manage this year

It's a plan that has worked well for lots of people here.

When is your Great North run? Coming up soon?

The Muppet

annapr wrote: »

The Muppet wrote: »

Thanks A , I should have gone into St annes for it , I've struggled before along there.

I'm following your log with interest , the meno plan looks interesting .

Hah, yes, interesting is a good word... it nearly killed me in 2015 but set me up very well for DCM, will see how I manage this year

It's a plan that has worked well for lots of people here.

When is your Great North run? Coming up soon?

I had seen it before and condidered it last year but it looked a little daunting for a first attempt. Firedanceor AGYR was on it at one stage I think.

My thoughs are wandering to the next goal DCM 2018 I think so I'll see how it works for you. What sort of weekly milage were you on in the run up to the plan ?

This Sunday Forthnight is the Great North Run. I'm all set for it I think . I'm really looking forward to it. The atmosphere the whole weekend is supposed to be excellent .

The Muppet

annapr wrote: »

The Muppet wrote: »

Thanks A , I should have gone into St annes for it , I've struggled before along there.

I'm following your log with interest , the meno plan looks interesting .

Hah, yes, interesting is a good word... it nearly killed me in 2015 but set me up very well for DCM, will see how I manage this year

It's a plan that has worked well for lots of people here.

When is your Great North run? Coming up soon?

I had seen it before and condidered it last year but it looked a little daunting for a first attempt. Firedanceor AGYR was on it at one stage I think.

My thoughs are wandering to the next goal DCM 2018 I think so I'll see how it works for you. What sort of weekly milage were you on in the run up to the plan ?

This Sunday Forthnight is the Great North Run. I'm all set for it I think . I'm really looking forward to it. The atmosphere the whole weekend is supposed to be excellent .

The Black Oil

If she starts asking to run with you on holidays, or weekends away then you'll know she's been converted.

The Muppet

The Black Oil wrote: »

If she starts asking to run with you on holidays, or weekends away then you'll know she's been converted.

Can't see that happening, I think she does be delighted to see me disappearing off down the road on my runs .:D

The Muppet

Thursday should have been 60 minutes very easy but life got in the way 'no run.

I did get to my pilates class . Some new exercises introduced , was feeling a little delicate afterwards.

FRIDAY planned rest day but did thursdays missed run instead. Groin sore since pilates, (overdid things a little on a stretch). Watch died again a mile into run . Can't have charged properly overnight . Annoying .

5.5 miles at apron 10.30 pace

Saturday. Session 35 minutes tempo (8.50)

Made sure watch was on charge for this . I drove to Fr Collins park for this . 1 lap warm up and just under a mile and then into tempo . I calculated that I would run 4 miles @ 8.45 pace in 35 minutes so that was the plan. Finished up with half a mile cool down. 8.51/8.46/8.48/8.38
Hr 138/159


Total 5.5 miles @ 9.41

Bought a new running watch suunto ambit 3 see how it goes . Love my garmin 220 but it's acted up a little lately . Tbh that could well be user error but no harm having a backup.

Sunday 2 hrs easy

A lovely run around North Dublin but boy was it warm. Had to stop and buy water at one stage as I felt I was wilting .

11.4 miles @ 10.30 pace

I wore both watches to compare data at the end . Both matched .



That's another week down all to plan
36 miles for the week.

Into taper mode next week .

The Muppet

Monday
20 mins recovery, the local park as usual for this one .

1.81 miles @11.19 pace AVG HR 119

Tuesday
1hr easy

Ran this around the local park on grass, Nice run , feeling good

5.9 miles @ 10.59 pace AVG HR 124

Wednesday
2 x 20 mins HM 8.30 with 5 mins recovery.

I just wasn't in the mood for this at all, went to Howth road fro this , quite windy which didn't do anything to improve my mood. A mile warm up and the into the first 20 Mins @ hm. Into the wind for the first mile and the turn and back with the wind for the second. hard to explain it but my head just wasn't in the game today, 17 minuets into the first split i was back where i started from and just stopped, I was not finding it easy but I could have kept running had i wanted to but I just didn't want to . Very disappointing , I stood for a few minutes and decide to call it a day , another mile back to the car @ 9 pace that was it

4 miles @ various pace avg hr 124 max 145

I still haven't got the hang of my new watch it's missing a mile form this run, not sure why, possibly from when I stopped , i did press the button on restart but it looks like it didn't start.

Thursday

60 minutes easy , still not feeling it so postponed this run until Friday's rest day , was going to miss Pilates class too but went in the end and had a good class, I really enjoy Pilates , always feel good after it.

Friday
60 Minutes easy

Ran this from Coolock to Father Collins Park , 1 lap and back, Stopped my watch to cross the road, it didn't restart again so .3 of a mile not recorded . Nice run other than that annoyance

5.3 miles @ 10 43 hr 122/131

Saturday
Park run on the plan ,

Really stuck for time had an appointment at 10.45 in town , I wanted to go to St. Anne's but Fr Collins suited better as I had to pick someone up near there on my way to appointment. 1 lap warm up , felt ok . This was my first park run here , I finished in 25.39 , not really happy with that but I felt tired and that was it . Watch didn't start again really getting fed up with it now. Got a pain on the left instep after this , New to me , cleared up after an hour or so.

4 miles total 1 @ 10.49 / 3 @ 8.16 pace

Sunday

70 minutes easy .

Watched the Hurling final and headed out after that, checked my watch a mile in, not recording, I had stopped it to cross a road 100 meters into the run but was sure i had restarted it, obviously not , Getting fed up with it now , think I'll go back to my garmin , never had that issue with it though I like the features the new on has if only it would record the runs properly, Probably user error but annoying none the less.

Back to the run 2 miles in pain in instep returned, was running uphill at the time . I stopped and though about phoning home to be collected, remembered I had not taken my phone with me so that option was ruled out, I decided to continue the run and stop at my Mums to arrange collection if pain continued, happily pain eased and I completed the run. I kept on pace and really enjoyed it in the end.

7.6 miles @ 10.36 HR 123/140

A bit of a meh week tbh, certainly not what i wanted at this stage but it is what it is. I'm still feeling positive enough for next Sunday

Just under 29 miles for the week.

I can put the violin away now:D

The Muppet

Monday

In taper mode so just rested, 20 minutes recovery on the plan.


Tuesday

45 minutes easy on the plan. my usual lap of Swords , nice easy run to get moving.

4.1 miles @ 10.35, HR 126/140

Wednesday

6 x 1 minutes vo2 (7.30 pace) with 2 minutes recovery . My final session on the plan, its been fun, mostly.

The avenue in St Anne's the venue, Warm up 10 minutes down the avenue and turn and back for the vo2 runs. A nice breeze in my face coming back . I find it difficult to run at pace and look at my watch so pace is a little more that prescribed. 5 minute cool down after The last one I just gave it a blast for the crack. Splits 6.45,7.15,6,42, 6,24, 6.32, 5.48

2.8 miles @ various paces HR 129/162

That's just about me done, 45 very easy tomorrow, Travelling to Newcastle on Friday, 20 easy Saturday and then The Great North Run On Sunday. The plan for that is to sit in behind Mo for the first 50 meters and take it from there, optimistic I know.


I've really enjoyed the training plan The variety has kept it interesting and I could manage nearly all the runs as prescribed, those i didn't were down to me and no fault of the plan which is the 2016 DCM graduate plan designed by Testosterscone/Mylessplitz afaik, The work put in to helping the likes of me train properly with some form of structure is really appreciated. Thanks

Annie get your Run

Best of luck on Sunday T!! Sorry you've probably said this already but what's the goal time?

annapr

I'm sure you'll give Mo a run for his money T!

Was just catching up and getting worried about your woes last week, glad to see you're back in form now. Hope you have a great PB-tastic trip to Newcastle!

The Muppet

annapr wrote: »

I'm sure you'll give Mo a run for his money T!

Was just catching up and getting worried about your woes last week, glad to see you're back in form now. Hope you have a great PB-tastic trip to Newcastle!

Woes last week were mental I think , PB is the A goal all going well but you know me once I have what I consider a decent run I'll be happy. Think I ll leave mo for another day.

The Muppet

Annie get your Run wrote: »

Best of luck on Sunday T!! Sorry you've probably said this already but what's the goal time?

Thanks AM , No I didn't say , I've only ran one half, last years DHM in 2:12 so anything under that will do .

eyrie

I followed that plan earlier this year too and found it excellent, really brought me on. Only copped on towards the very end (somehow the name itself wasn't enough of a giveaway) that it's specifically for marathon graduates (which I am not) but even for my beginner level it was great, and enjoyable too.

Good luck in the race!

The Muppet

eyrie wrote: »

I followed that plan earlier this year too and found it excellent, really brought me on. Only copped on towards the very end (somehow the name itself wasn't enough of a giveaway) that it's specifically for marathon graduates (which I am not) but even for my beginner level it was great, and enjoyable too.

Good luck in the race!

Thanks , I used the 2015 graduate plan last year , it improved my running too and I ran DCM in 2016 and have used the graduate plan for 5k and half marathon training , I think its an excellent plan, Love the running by time rather than distance aspect of it .

Good luck with the running , perhaps we shall see you in the 2018 marathon thread. Just planting that seed.

eyrie

The Muppet wrote: »

Thanks , I used the 2015 graduate plan last year , it improved my running too and I ran DCM in 2016 and have used the graduate plan for 5k and half marathon training , I think its an excellent plan, Love the running by time rather than distance aspect of it .

Oh yes, I didn't mean that to sound like I was telling you it was a good plan, just that I agreed with you! I actually read your log and experiences of it previously, which was what prompted me to try it in the first place (hope that doesn't sound creepy but your log was the first one I ever read on here, and was a massive inspiration for me so I owe you!)

The Muppet wrote: »

Good luck with the running , perhaps we shall see you in the 2018 marathon thread. Just planting that seed.

I very much hope so (seed is already firmly planted)

The Muppet

eyrie wrote: »

Oh yes, I didn't mean that to sound like I was telling you it was a good plan, just that I agreed with you! I actually read your log and experiences of it previously, which was what prompted me to try it in the first place (hope that doesn't sound creepy but your log was the first one I ever read on here, and was a massive inspiration for me so I owe you!)



I very much hope so (seed is already firmly planted)

Delighted to hear that , thanks, the best of luck with the plan, it's all about time on your feet, build a good base of constant mileage over the winter and the marathon training which is the hardest part of running one will not be a bother to you. Keep me updated on your progress .

Edit: Scrap that I just found your log . I shall he following with interest. I have a similar plan as yourself for the winter months . Might even give Hadd a go .



Btw I didn't think that at all .

Huzzah!

I'd love to run the Great North Run some day! The very best of luck with it. I'm looking forward to reading the race report already.

denis b

Well Tom, the absolute very best for your International Adventure in Newcastle this Sunday. Brendan Foster was always a hero of mine (there is something about his spirit) and he has instigated a truly wonderful social and sporting event. Not surprised that you chose this race given your own running philosophy.

I hope that your Suunto behaves itself and that you have the race that you have prepared for. Give it socks.

Kennyg71

Very best of luck T, have a great race, have seen race on TV couple of times and looks like a brilliant event.

The Muppet

Huzzah! wrote: »

I'd love to run the Great North Run some day! The very best of luck with it. I'm looking forward to reading the race report already.

Thank you, there will definitely be a race report .

denis b wrote: »

Well Tom, the absolute very best for your International Adventure in Newcastle this Sunday. Brendan Foster was always a hero of mine (there is something about his spirit) and he has instigated a truly wonderful social and sporting event. Not surprised that you chose this race given your own running philosophy.

I hope that your Suunto behaves itself and that you have the race that you have prepared for. Give it socks.

Thanks Denis, The GNR has been an ambition of mine since I learned running the distance was achievable, I have great time for Brendan Foster myself. I will always run just for the enjoyment of it so having watched it many times on tv I guess this was an obvious choice.

The suunto has been behaving itself since I started pressing the correct buttons , I'm hoping for a good run myself.

Kennyg71 wrote: »

Very best of luck T, have a great race, have seen race on TV couple of times and looks like a brilliant event.

Thanks G , 57000 runners this year I believe , the atmosphere the whole weekend is supposed to be excellent. I guess congestion may be an issue for the first few miles I shall report back.

Unthought Known

Best of luck for Sunday Tom. I'd love to run that one day, the atmosphere looks amazing.

The Black Oil

I had a feeling your were following that plan, but wasn't 100% sure. Will be great to put it into practice now. Best of luck.

The Muppet

Unthought Known wrote: »

Best of luck for Sunday Tom. I'd love to run that one day, the atmosphere looks amazing.

Thanks Andy , I shall do my best not to let the class of 2016 down.

The Black Oil wrote: »

I had a feeling your were following that plan, but wasn't 100% sure. Will be great to put it into practice now. Best of luck.

Thanks B , hopefully I can, I was using the 10k half version of the plan using paces calculated on my 5k time from the link you gave me in your log. The calculated pace is probably a little hot for the whole race for me ,I plan to start out 40 seconds or so slower and take things from there , hoping conditions will be favorable for that plan if not I'll alter the plan as I go .

it will be interesting to see if I've improved over the last year, I feel I have so time to put the training to the test.

Singer

The Muppet wrote: »

57000 runners this year I believe , the atmosphere the whole weekend is supposed to be excellent. I guess congestion may be an issue for the first few miles I shall report back.

Wow, I didn't realise it was so big. Enjoy the whole thing T, really hoping the race goes well but more importantly you get to soak it all up. I know this is important to you, so take it all in and enjoy it!

Annie get your Run

The Muppet wrote: »

Thanks AM , No I didn't say , I've only ran one half, last years DHM in 2:12 so anything under that will do .

You're not getting away with that my PB is 1:56:xx and you're faster than me now - just sayin :pac:. Joking aside (although you are faster!), soak up the atmosphere and have a great run, you'll undoubtedly PB with all the work you've put in.