Run Forrest

gramar

Rather than km today I decided to run for an hour again keeping it slow and easy.
It was cold out probably -2 or -3 but I felt warm enough in a long sleeve top and t-shirt over it so walked up the hill about 500m to start.
It was a bit breezier up there, something I should have spotted as I can see the windmils from the house and within minutes I was freezing
as the northerly light breeze was blowing right into my face perverted as that reads.
I went along the tracks by the windmills and meeting a fella driving a tractor was about the only thing of note although at one stage I was
wondering if it was a magic tractor. One minute it was coming towards me along the track and when I looked a few seconds later it was gone
leaving me wondering if it had turned into a field. But no it had just gone down in a dip.
Running time was 1:05:49 for 12km most of which were about 5:30min/km with the last two a little faster as I was coming back down a bit of a slope. I'm still foostering around with the toe. I think the next day I'll put the toe separator back in and the tape around it and hopefully that'll be
a definitive solution.

gramar

I took a different route today but going in the same direction as Friday so back into a chill wind and it was an long uphill drag for 4.5km with a few
climbs thrown in for good measure. It was around km 5 when the toe separator this time with tape around it came loose again. There is clearly some misleading marketing going on. Silicone wedge of undetermined purpose would be more appropriate but at least there was no discomfort.

I kept it slow and steady and then back around by the windmills before heading back to the village. Another 12km in 1:06:19.
The first 5 were a few seconds under 6min/km and the rest around 5:20/30.

I had new 'old' runners on today. These are same as I had up to August when I left the pair I had with the parents for when I'm over. I've never really taken to the Asics and picked up a same ones as I had before for half price! 15 quid. They might be shíte but they feel better and they have
normal length laces unlike the Asics who barely made them long enough to tie a knot.

HigginsJ

Great going Gramar, really good base building with these runs.

I would suggest at this point that you simply cut off the toe altogether, probably less hassle!!

gramar

HigginsJ wrote: »

Great going Gramar, really good base building with these runs.

I would suggest at this point that you simply cut off the toe altogether, probably less hassle!!

It's going well. Enjoyed today and feeling a bit of tiredness over the last few km but there's a few more km running in the legs.

As for the toe, I've considered cutting it off alright. Might sell it on ebay!

HigginsJ

gramar wrote: »

It's going well. Enjoyed today and feeling a bit of tiredness over the last few km but there's a few more km running in the legs.

As for the toe, I've considered cutting it off alright. Might sell it on ebay!

If you took it a bit slower you'd cruise through 10 miles

gramar

HigginsJ wrote: »

If you took it a bit slower you'd cruise through 10 miles

I think at that pace I'd do 10 miles without too much bother. If I get out next weekend and the run is going ok I might have go at it. One thing I think of when finishing 12km is of fellas doing marathons. Another 30km on top of that...feckin hell!

HigginsJ

gramar wrote: »

I think at that pace I'd do 10 miles without too much bother. If I get out next weekend and the run is going ok I might have go at it. One thing I think of when finishing 12km is of fellas doing marathons. Another 30km on top of that...feckin hell!

Yea "feckin hell" indeed (curls up in the fetal position at the thought of what I'm attempting!!)

gramar

There was a sprinkling of snow on the ground this morning so it was going to be another chilly run.
I headed up towards the windmills again going mostly up various degrees of inclines for the first 6 and a bit km
and there was plenty of heaviness in the legs. Some of the tracks were clay so with a the melting snow it was
sticking to the runners and adding a bit of extra weight I really didn't need.

Turning out of the headwind was like the volume had been turned off. From the wind howling in my ears within
seconds all I could hear was the snow crunching under my feet as everything fell silent. It was tough work getting
up the hills into the wind and I enjoyed the comparative ease of trotting downhill for a km before heading left and up
another hill although this time with the wind behind me. That which will not be mentioned worked it's way loose somewhere
along here so I think nothing short of a silicone implant in my toe at this stage will keep it in place.

The rest of the run was fairly flat with a few rises and dips and I was ticking off the km's steadily until I had hit 10miles which
seemed a long way off as I slogged up hills into a cold headwind for the first few km's.
16.1km / 10miles in 1hr 31mins. The slowest km was km 6 @ 5:57 and the fastest km 10 @ 5:26.
That was the furthest I've ever run and possibly the furthest I ever will in fairly difficult conditions and plenty of hills so pleased
enough with how it went.

HigginsJ

Great going G, half marathon only around the corner!! On a serious note you should have serious performance benefit from these runs back at your normal distances

gramar

HigginsJ wrote: »

Great going G, half marathon only around the corner!! On a serious note you should have serious performance benefit from these runs back at your normal distances

I doubt I'll go for the HM...It was in the legs yesterday though.
Hopefully this will help me in a couple of months when I do a few more intervals. I've no real experience so I don't honestly know but can't do any harm.

No wind and flat track for todays run. I started the watch and didn't look at it again until I stopped. 8km at around 5:30km/min and then upped it for the last one to 4:50 or so. Legs felt a bit sluggish at times but otherwise nothing to report.

gramar

It was 2 or 3 degrees setting off but hardly any wind, the tracks were dry and I was taking a flatter route than last Saturday so 3 things that I had in my favour over the previous week. The idea was to do a loop around the windmills which I reckoned would be between 6.5km - 7km. Two laps of that was the plan. Finishing the first it worked out at a touch over 7km and I realised 3 would be 21 (I know my times tables) or a HM but that would be for another day.

Not long after finishing the first loop I saw a fella I knew coming along in a 4x4. I don't like stopping when I'm running but he had pulled over and I could see the window coming down and there was no way I was getting away with just a wave and a how's it going. The five minutes helped me though as I felt a little fresher after than I had before and the 5:30min/km I was doing before plummeted to about 5:20.

For the last km I upped the pace progressively and then after finishing the second lap I figured I had 500m left to do 9miles so kept pushing on.
14:52km in 1hr 18mins. I covered the last km in around 4:17 or so.

The longer runs are grand but the enjoyment levels on a scale of one to ten where one is running barefoot on lego while having to listen to Coldplay and 10 is being carried along by angels singing the theme tune of The Greatest American Hero...are around a 5.

gramar

A few degrees warmer but there was a decent breeze blowing and today the windmills were facing north so it was going to be cold and it was.
I trudged slightly uphill for just short of 3km despite the moans from my hamstrings before turning right and back on the flat with the wind behind me. I wasn't enjoying it much but I saw two fellas out in a field picking stones and chucking them into the front bucket of a tractor so that helped put things in persepective and reminded me there is always someone worse off.

8.05km in 43:48....5.26min/km Needless to say the first 3 were the slowest at around 5:40, the rest around 5:10.
To finish I wanted to do 4x500m @ 4min/km. The first was back into the wind and with the second half slightly uphill
which I managed at 4:12 pace and then back with the wind at 3:49 pace which included 5 deer racing across the track 20 yards in front of me
with the dog giving chase. I'd had enough of the wind at that stage so called it a day.

gramar

My hip was a bit painful right from the off and I thought about doing just a kilometre or two. I decided to do 5 but instead of turning back after 2.5km I had gone straight on meaning I had another 5 to go just to get home. The pain though not getting any worse didn't get any better and about halfway my toe was sore too so I did't really enjoy this very much. Still though, could be worse...could be watching Liverpool getting beaten at home again.

I'll go out again tomorrow to see if there is any improvement and next Sunday morning I've signed up for a 10km in town.
It's a flat course around the city centre and I'm in no shape for a strong run but I'll try to go at a decent tempo.

10km in 56:09.

gramar

A miserable morning...few spots of rain and a breeze compounded by a bad choice of route as the track to the windmills
is mostly clay. Lovely when it's dry but huge lumps of wet clay get stuck to the runners on days like today and every few
steps I was scuffing my feet to get it off. The last time I had that much muck stuck to my feet was an under-10 soccer match
in Castlecomer many moons ago when there was more grass being smoked on the sidelines than there was on the pitch.
I stuck it out for 2km in 11:22 and walked to the better gravel type track. I did another 2km there trying to go a bit faster but still only
10:45 and wasn't really getting into it.

I perservered however doing the next in 9:50 thinking I'd never manage to run under 50min next week if I was struggling this much
over 2km. I gave it one more go and this time managed 9:22 for the 2km which also saw me bring up 100km for the month.
A slow trot to warm down and I walked the rest and kicked clumps of muck off my runners as I went.

gramar

Not really in the mood but didn't want to go tomorrow with a 10km Sunday and the liklihood of if lashing rain all day.
I did 3km before stopping I felt a bit out of sync. Breathing was off, sore hip, sleeves were annoying me so I took a minute
and then continued for another 2. I think I need to warm up more. Setting off on a run after only about 500m of warming up
is a bit too much of a shock to the system on a Friday evening. 5km in 25:39.

gramar

I was woken at half 3 this morning by the wind and rain pelting off the window. My first thought was hoping that it had buggered off by race time. The rain had cleared off and it was bright although the wind was still strong. I was there in town about 45 mins before off and collected the number and t-shirt and was well warmed up and ready to go. That was when I heard someone say 12:30 and my ears pricked. Turns out there were a load of kids races on beforehand with the main event at 12:30. No mention of this in any of the race info I'd seen but the upshot of it was that now I had just over 2 hours to kill. I seriously contemplated just heading home but went back to the car and read a book I had until 12 and then set off again for another few km's to warm up.

Not looking to do anything other than get around in under 50mins I took my place near the back and set off fairly slow for around 2km aorund the city centre. Not much to report other than a knob who was running on my left shoulder crossed right in front of me to take a right turn. The dick wanted to hop up on the footpath for a shortcut instead of the extra 5m taking the turn properly would have meant. Other than brief feelings of malice hoping he'd trip I felt grand and kept it steady passing the dipshít about 200m further on.

Timewise I was a few seconds over 5min/km for the first 3km all of which I'd have to make back and I was cautious about upping the pace and paying for it later. The 4th and 5th had the wind at our back so I went under 5min/km here and kept it there after turning back into the wind for the next 3km. For some reason the 9th was back to 5min/km despite having the wind behind us again. I upped it a bit for the last and maybe it was knowing the end was near but the last 600 or 700 metres was when I felt most comfortable and I covered the last km in 4:32.
I saw 49:15 on the clock as I crossed the line and the watch said 49:14 so mission accomplished. I could have pushed harder but I didn't feel like bursting a gut today and kept with the plan.

HigginsJ

Well done on sticking to plan Grammar, good result.

gramar

I hadn't been out since last Sunday week and was looking forward to this evening. So much so I even dreamt about running last night.
In the dream I went running on the usual track flying along effortlessly. This evening the dream more or less came true as I was on the same track and it was one of the most enjoyable runs I've had in quite a while. The legs and lungs felt fresh and in general I was full of pep and upping the pace slightly as I went along with minimal effort.
6km in 30:38
5:27
5:17
5:13
5:14
4:55
4:31

HigginsJ

Great stuff G, glad the rest did you well

gramar

HigginsJ wrote: »

Great stuff G, glad the rest did you well

I went out again today before lunch hoping to recreate yesterday's positive vibes. It wasn't quite as free flowing but it went fairly well.
I set out to do 6km starting off easy enough for 3km and then try to get the 6km done in under 30. After a few calculations I had to do the last 2km in around 4:40 so picked it up but still left myself a lot to do for the last and make it by just 4 seconds in 29:56.
5:15
5:15
5:10 had to tie a lace here
5:03
4:51
4:20

gramar

Third day running. 5km in 27:25
It was was an out and back run and it was quite windy meaning the further I went out the longer I'd be running
back in to the wind to I went 2.5km for a 5km run. Took it easy the whole way sticking to 5:30min/km.
I seemed to have a blister forming on Friday which I found surprising and felt it a bit yesterday too but not so much
as a peep out of it today. Must be the anti-blister socks I wore yesterday and today working their magic.

HigginsJ

The break really did the trick :eek:

Can I ask what anti blister socks you picked up?

gramar

HigginsJ wrote: »

The break really did the trick :eek:

Can I ask what anti blister socks you picked up?

I got them as christmas present. I never thought I'd run far enough for blisters and haven't had one for years so I don't know why one appeared on Friday all of a sudden. I'm fairly sure these are the ones.
They've a double layer, the inside layer stays with your foot so avoids the friction that seemingly cause them.
Not sure with a double layer would they be too warm for the summer though.

gramar

After 4 days off again as from Monday to Thursday it's nigh on impossible to get out but the good news is that I feel
reasonably fresh after a few days break.
Tonight I kept an even pace from start to finish checking the watch after the first two km and just going by effort after that.
8km in 42:26 all in or around 5:20min/km or so. The first 4km were with the wind and I thought turning back would be more
uncomfortable but it felt easy all the way and there was plenty more if I'd wanted but hunger and darkness make it an easy
decision to wrap it up there.

gramar

I felt it was time to do some repeats and I really should start setting aside one day every two weeks for this
with spring approaching. Plucking a random time out of my head I I settled on 5 x 1km @4:20 with two minutes rest.
After a decent warm up I set off and the first two 2 went fairly well in that I wasn't screaming for the watch to
tell me the km was up. The third and fourth weren't quite so comfortable with 2min rest seeming wholly inadequate
and the fifth. Well the fifth never happened as I called it a day at four. Best to ease myself back into this.
4:18
4:18
4:16
4:21

gramar

Home early and looking forward to getting out but nearly didn't go as the rain started to pelt off the window about as soon
as I got in the door but I braved it anyway. The first 4.5km were into a strong enough breeze but I felt comfortable enough
at an easy pace. The rain started on the turn and whereas it had only been a few drops before it was now falling steadily. I resisted
the urge to speed up though wanting to leave that for tomorrow and once you're wet you're wet so a minute or two was neither
here nor there.
9km in 47:06.

gramar

Only doing 4x1km last Satruday was at the back of my mind so today I wanted to put that right.
6km was the plan off 2min rest and I eased the pace to 4:30.
I think I pitched it just about right and it certainly felt a bit easier as I was ready to go after 2min
walking unlike last week when for the last two reps 2min didn't feel like nearly enough.
I ended up doing 7 as I had 1km left back to the top of the track so gave it a decent go to finish up.
4:33
4:31
4:34
4:27
4:29
4:26
4:00

gramar

Miserable drizzly morning but mild and good conditions for a run.
The legs were definitely a bit heavy but I think this was more to do with a heap of
squats beforehand than the runs yesterday and Friday.
3km out into the breeze before I turned 180º back into the breeze. Explain that one Evelyn Cusack.
6km in 31:05.

HigginsJ

gramar wrote: »

3km out into the breeze before I turned 180º back into the breeze. Explain that one Evelyn Cusack.

I knew it can't just be me, I had the exact same thing on my long run yesterday!!

gramar

In the midst of a head cold and producing an amount of green fluid from my nasal orifices that is quite frankly ridiculous.
I thought a run would clear my head a bit and sweat some of it out so I set off very slowly on a warm and sunny
afternoon. I was doing around 5:45min/km for the first three feeling ok so decided to continue and turn back at four.
As soon as I did what bit of a breeze was there was behind me I felt a lot more uncomfortable as it felt so much warmer and
I decided to pull up at 6km and walk a bit. There was nothing wrong as such but I certainly wasn't feeling right so walked
for 200m and then ran the last 2km.

8km in 45:18