Running away

ariana`

Baby75 wrote: »

I hope that is the end to the sickness good to see you back out again

Swashbuckler wrote: »

Rest up, get better, don't rush back and then try to prioritise running regularly again. Don't overthink plans or sessions for a while. Short runs to start with til you know you've shaken it. Mind yourself!

eyrie wrote: »

You've had some unlucky run of things with the sickness and everything. Here's to a much better few weeks and months ahead! All in good time, no rush Hope you're feeling better now

Thanks everyone

BrownEyes79 wrote: »

That was a nice 12 miles on Saturday despite being out for so long, it must of felt good knowing your fitness was still there? Hopefully that’s the end of the sickness for this year!!

Thanks but i think it was a bit too much really considering where i am at the moment, we got to the start of park run too early so kept running to avoid getting cold so that was an extra mile unplanned and the route ended up being a bit further than we estimated also. I'd have happily stopped after 8-10 miles, i was struggling at the end which wasn't a particularly nice feeling

ariana`

Week 7/01/2018 - 13/01/2018

Monday: 1hr, 5.25m @ 11:25min/m, avg hr 151 bpm

Wednesday: 1hr, 5.75m @ 10:47min/m, avg hr 151 bpm

Thursday - Saturday: Back to the doctor again Thursday morning and prescribed yet another course of antibiotics and more rest days. The only upside of being sick for most of the past month is I've got through a pile of good books which had been gathering dust and loads of quality time with the kids, can't beat old fashioned board games

Sunday: Feeling much better. 7.65m @ 10:05 min/m, avg hr 156 bpm. Really felt the loss of fitness on this one, well i was too warm for a start totally over-dressed for the current ambient climate but really just felt wrecked by 3-4 miles in. I was running with a couple of lads and the runs are always a bit pacier with them, usually i'm delighted to run a small bit quicker but today i simply wasn't able but of course i was too proud to admit that i was fooked :pac: The last 2.5 miles were particularly quick for me (9:40, 9:27, 9:07).

I'm supposed to race 8km next Sunday. I know it's going to be a train wreck and i'll probably come away feeling very defeated but if i'm feeling ok health wise i think i'll give it a lash all the same, i'll get new training paces from it. I've been using the training paces off last May's 5k and sadly i'm nowhere near that level of fitness at the moment :cool:

Huzzah!

ariana` wrote: »

I'm supposed to race 8km next Sunday. I know it's going to be a train wreck and i'll probably come away feeling very defeated but if i'm feeling ok health wise i think i'll give it a lash all the same, i'll get new training paces from it. I've been using the training paces off last May's 5k and sadly i'm nowhere near that level of fitness at the moment :cool:

Really sorry to hear you're on a another round of antibiotics. No doubt they're also taking it out of you. While I definitely think getting new training paces is worth it and, as you know, I had to take a humbling cut on my own recently, I wouldn't race the 8k unless you feel fully over your illness.

ariana`

Huzzah! wrote: »

Really sorry to hear you're on a another round of antibiotics. No doubt they're also taking it out of you. While I definitely think getting new training paces is worth it and, as you know, I had to take a humbling cut on my own recently, I wouldn't race the 8k unless you feel fully over your illness.

Thanks Huzzah, i'll be sensible i promise! I'll play it by ear as the week goes on. I'm feeling pretty good today though which is a great sign. I finish the antibiotic on Wednesday so i'll stick to a couple of easy 3-4 milers this week and make a call then toward the end of the week. It is a bit soul destroying to see the paces drop but fingers crossed we'll both be back at our old paces and beyond them again in no time :cool:

Baby75

ariana` wrote: »

Thanks Huzzah, i'll be sensible i promise! I'll play it by ear as the week goes on. I'm feeling pretty good today though which is a great sign. I finish the antibiotic on Wednesday so i'll stick to a couple of easy 3-4 milers this week and make a call then toward the end of the week. It is a bit soul destroying to see the paces drop but fingers crossed we'll both be back at our old paces and beyond them again in no time :cool:

You will get them back in no time at all once your better

eyrie

Ugh, you poor thing!

Baby75 wrote: »

You will get them back in no time at all once your better

Exactly. And all the more so if you're training at the right level for where you are, I reckon. Or at least that's what I'm telling myself. (I'm not sick but am also planning to race a 5 mile and I'm nowhere near fit for it!)
But like Huzzah! says, don't be putting extra pressure on yourself if you're not better.

ariana`

Week 14/01/2019 - 20/01/2019

Monday: 4.5m @ 10:57, avg hr 154 bpm

Tuesday: Usual strength class

Wed: Long run, 7.65m @ 10:33, avg hr 165
Started to feel very very unwell about 2/3 of the way through this run, managed to finish but i was barely home before my head was stuck over the toilet, followed by 24-36hr tummy bug, just what i needed :rolleyes:

Thurs/Fri: Nothing

Sat: 3.4m @ 10:20, avg hr 152 bpm

Sun: 8k race, 4.99m @ 8:16min/m (41:15), avg hr 170 bpm
1.1m cool down @ 11:33, avg hr 150 bpm

Total: aprox 21 miles.

I quite often say i don't know what to expect going into races but this time i genuinely didn't. My 5k & 10k times from from last year predicted 38:xx but considering how the last 12 weeks have panned out i didn't expect to be anywhere near that. My 8k pb is 40:26 from the same race last year. I thought maybe i could get close to that considering that was soft at the time too (i was still carrying an injury from DCM 2017). Anyhow, it wasn't to be, conditions were better yesterday from my memory but i ran out of gas after 3 miles. The last 2 miles were pure torture, it took everything i had not to stop & walk. But i'm happy i did it, no regrets, i have new training paces now, slower ones admittedly, but i'm feeling good. My 3yo has a nasty chest infection at the moment so I just hope i don't catch that, I've had my share of sickness surely for while! The big flashing red light for me after this race is that it takes me too long to recover from marathons, the first one was worth it because i loved every second of the experience and it was a huge achievement that i'm very proud of, the second one wasn't worth it and there won't be a third in the near future, it's just too high a price, different priorities for now. So that's the latest installment, I'll race again in about 6 weeks time and i hope to see myself edge a bit closer to previous times but it will take a while. Thanks for reading this far

eyrie

Interesting food for thought in that E. I had a really positive experience with the marathon (thanks to yourself and the others) and I'm glad I did it, but the recovery has been so huge that I totally get what you're saying here. Something to think long and hard about before doing again, for sure.

Congratulations on the race anyway - it sounds like you did amazingly well to keep going without stopping when it was that tough. Impressive. And as you say, new paces and a new start now!

Hope you manage to steer clear of the chest infection

ariana`

eyrie wrote: »

Interesting food for thought in that E. I had a really positive experience with the marathon (thanks to yourself and the others) and I'm glad I did it, but the recovery has been so huge that I totally get what you're saying here. Something to think long and hard about before doing again, for sure.

Congratulations on the race anyway - it sounds like you did amazingly well to keep going without stopping when it was that tough. Impressive. And as you say, new paces and a new start now!

Hope you manage to steer clear of the chest infection

Thanks and look I wouldn't want to put anyone off doing subsequent marathons. You most likely not carrying quite as many old wear & tear injuries as I am (i've 2 slipped discs from spending my youth in a boat). My back doesn't bother me too much once i avoid certain things (hoovering sets it off big time so OH has to do that ) but i am probably compensating somewhere else and the reason i have those disc issues is most likely a weak core which is still weak. When i started training hard in my teens, Pilates didn't exist and yoga was definitely not on the radar, far too hardcore for yoga :rolleyes:. How naive. There are many who run marathon and after marathon and don't take 12 weeks to recover - Kellygirl ran 3 last year and 2 this year and is flying it since a week after the last one.

You seem to be flying now since again despite taking the few weeks to recover. Your sessions this week looked strong. You may surprise yourself in Raheny. But either way it'll give you something to work off again.

Huzzah!

Nicely done at the race. Very difficult to keep digging in when it's not going your way. I'd have walked. Not too far off where you were last year all the same, although I appreciate you feel that was a soft PB. Nice, shiny new paces to work off too. Lots of positives, really.

I hear you on the marathon. For me, it doesn't really matter what I'm training for, whether it's a half or the big M, the training is much the same in terms of commitment, but I'd no idea about the recovery. It's more than a little off putting. I recover terribly from the half distance as well, so I should've known!

eyrie

ariana` wrote: »

Thanks and look I wouldn't want to put anyone off doing subsequent marathons. You most likely not carrying quite as many old wear & tear injuries as I am (i've 2 slipped discs from spending my youth in a boat). My back doesn't bother me too much once i avoid certain things (hoovering sets it off big time so OH has to do that ) but i am probably compensating somewhere else and the reason i have those disc issues is most likely a weak core which is still weak. When i started training hard in my teens, Pilates didn't exist and yoga was definitely not on the radar, far too hardcore for yoga :rolleyes:. How naive. There are many who run marathon and after marathon and don't take 12 weeks to recover - Kellygirl ran 3 last year and 2 this year and is flying it since a week after the last one.

You seem to be flying now since again despite taking the few weeks to recover. Your sessions this week looked strong. You may surprise yourself in Raheny. But either way it'll give you something to work off again.

Ah I wasn't having a moan, I just meant the extent of the recovery needed wasn't something I had anticipated, so I get where you're coming from. Certainly some people manage to do multiple marathons with no issue, but unfortunately not everyone :cool:

But hey we get to play around with all sorts of other stuff now and not be tied to anything, so there's a lot to be said for that :pac: Will be keen to see how the next one goes for you, I've no doubt you'll get back to where you were and plenty more besides soon.

ariana`

Huzzah! wrote: »

Nicely done at the race. Very difficult to keep digging in when it's not going your way. I'd have walked. Not too far off where you were last year all the same, although I appreciate you feel that was a soft PB. Nice, shiny new paces to work off too. Lots of positives, really.

I hear you on the marathon. For me, it doesn't really matter what I'm training for, whether it's a half or the big M, the training is much the same in terms of commitment, but I'd no idea about the recovery. It's more than a little off putting. I recover terribly from the half distance as well, so I should've known!

Thank you. It's interesting what you say, for me i think it was the recovery from the training as much (maybe more) than the run/race itself. So slightly different to you where you felt it was run? I said it to K the night before DCM in the hotel that i felt the training had left me at the brink of injury, there was nothing wrong that i could put my finger on but i just felt it. I don't think my body was prepared enough for 40+ mile weeks, it was too much too soon in hindsight, the base wasn't there for it. I won't be hitting 40 again without a much better base.

I think another factor for me which needs addressing is my lifestyle which is hectic to say the least. I know it's the same for a lot of people and i'm not complaining because most of it is my own life choices (though i'd happily give up the work part if it was an option ) but i think it was a factor in all the sickness I've had over the past 4-6 weeks. Kids, a full time job and endless community based committees/volunteer type stuff that i just can't seem to say no too. Admittedly I'm getting much better sleep than when the children were babies and that's good for recovery but i get very little down time and i think it's important too, the body and mind need to recharge occasionally. I'm not sure how to address it but i'll have to try or i'm going to keep after these crash & burn type scenarios every so often. Anyhow, i'm rambling and going off tangent and complaining again :pac:

eyrie wrote: »

Ah I wasn't having a moan, I just meant the extent of the recovery needed wasn't something I had anticipated, so I get where you're coming from. Certainly some people manage to do multiple marathons with no issue, but unfortunately not everyone :cool:

But hey we get to play around with all sorts of other stuff now and not be tied to anything, so there's a lot to be said for that :pac: Will be keen to see how the next one goes for you, I've no doubt you'll get back to where you were and plenty more besides soon.

Thank you, i hope so very much, fingers crossed

Huzzah!

You make an interesting point: although I didn't increase my mileage hugely - there was about a month in difference between when I hit 1,000 miles for the year in 2017 and 2018 - recovery was probably as much about recovering from the training as the day itself. I certainly didn't feel full of energy when I lined up as I was expecting.

I know you're not complaining and it's worth listing out what your commitments are to get them straight in your own head as much as anything.

Baby75

Some great points Ariana although I do think you were unlucky in a way it just seemed to one illness after another for you, which I know loads of runners suffering the same and only getting back right now.

but I do wonder and I guess with the training paces/efforts I have now, are we overtraining when we go out and within a few minutes know we are just not up to whatever pace that is planned for whatever reason but instead of listening to our bodies and going by effort we push on so we hit that pace on the watch which is pushing ourselves too hard. tipping the balance over towards overtraining


I am so glad your well on the mend and you will be back feeling stronger and faster with a few good weeks under your belt

Funny you should mention rowing, I used to work with horses for years and it can affect hips down from sitting long hours in the saddle and I may have to do some rehab work on that to correct any bad posture from it!

skyblue46

Hmmm the FOMO pendulum keeps swinging back and forth! :pac:

Listen missus you're being a little bit harsh on yourself. DCM didn't go how you planned more due to illness than anything else. Forget about any idea that you didn't have the base for 40 mile weeks. You had a really consistent base. Just look back at Strava if you have any doubts. Also forget about the idea that you over trained by straining to hit target paces. This wasn't an issue at all. You know I'd spot that in an instant.

Hopefully you can put recent illnesses behind you and get back on track. As I have said to you many times before there will be huge PBs ahead for you.

ariana`

Week 21/01/2019-27/01/2019

Monday
5.3m @ 10:32, avg HR 153bpm

I had no plan heading out for this run and what happened was an enjoyable run chatting with a friend all the way. Sat down after and planned out the rest of the week a bit better as i want to be careful building back up again and i knew it was going to be a busy week with a work trip midweek and a leisure trip at the weekend to work around

Wednesday
Long run: 8.8m @ 11:06, avg HR 158bpm

Thursday
Recovery: 3m @ 12:25, avg HR 136 bpm

Friday
CV Session: 3x3min (8:21, 8:00, 8:18) + 3x2min (8:02, 8:01, 8:10)
Total: 4.5m @ 9:53, avg HR 149bpm

It was getting dark when i started this and i was on country roads by myself, i couldn't see the watch and there was definitely an element of nervousness by the last few as it was pitch dark by then. It's going to take me a while to get used to doing sessions again and getting the feel for the paces but overall it felt good just to tick off a session of some sort even if the paces were a bit all over the place.

Saturday
Easy: 3.5m @ 11:50, avg HR 163bpm

I'm blaming a late night and poor hydration for the high HR here.

Sunday
Easy: 3.5m @ 11:29, avg HR 148bpm

Total: 28m aprox.

This is the first week I've been quite happy with in a long time. It's a great feeling

Sheep1978

Great week E. Well done

Swashbuckler

ariana` wrote:

This is the first week I've been quite happy with in a long time. It's a great feeling

Excellent!

skyblue46

Swashbuckler wrote: »

Excellent!

I'm loving seeing you two starting to feel good about running again! Me too! :pac:

Huzzah!

ariana` wrote: »

This is the first week I've been quite happy with in a long time. It's a great feeling

:):)

Swashbuckler

skyblue46 wrote: »

I'm loving seeing you two starting to feel good about running again! Me too! :pac:

I'm loving it too!

Kellygirl

ariana` wrote: »

This is the first week I've been quite happy with in a long time. It's a great feeling

Swashbuckler wrote: »

Excellent!

skyblue46 wrote: »

I'm loving seeing you two starting to feel good about running again! Me too! :pac:

Ha ha - lovely to see you all of you getting back to your happy places again!

ariana`

Kellygirl wrote: »

Ha ha - lovely to see you all of you getting back to your happy places again!

Hopefully it lasts now for a long time

BrownEyes79

Yay, lovely week of running and nice to get a session in too

eyrie

ariana` wrote: »

This is the first week I've been quite happy with in a long time. It's a great feeling

Ah this is great to read. Delighted to hear it

ariana`

Thanks everyone for the lovely comments last week

28/01/2019-03/02/2019
Monday
Tempo/Threshold session: 5 mins Tempo (9:00) + 3x5 mins Threshold (8:31, 8:29, 8:33)
Total incl w/u & c/d: 5.15m @ 9:44, avg HR 163 bpm

Target pace for Tempo is 8:55-9:09 and target pace for Threshold is 8:30-8:42 so i’m really happy with the splits on this, it was dark as usual and i couldn’t see much of the watch but i got into a nice rhythm for each of the intervals. Baltic cold night so was good to be running a session to stay warm.

Tuesday
45 mins easy
4.1m @ 11:33, avg hr 152 bpm

Wednesday
60 mins easy (ended up doing 70 mins)
6.5m @ 11:14, avg hr 156 bpm

Had to reroute on this run as the back roads were lethal, the main road was marginally better but still found myself quite tense trying to watch my footing in the dark, no love but got it done.

Thursday
REST

Friday
6x400 off 2 mins (8:00, 7:37, 7:57, 7:56, 8:01, 7:41)
Total incl w/u & c/d: 5.2m @ 9:57, avg HR 146 bpm

Struggled to keep the pace in the right range for these, the target was more like 8:05-8:15, ooops. A bit of navigating around slippy spots going on, thankfully i had daylight, i could even see the watch for a change so no excuse there. Felt great to stretch the legs

Saturday
OFF

Sunday
90 mins long run
8m @ 11:15 min/m, avg HR 144bpm

Total 29 miles.

Aim was to keep to similar mileage as the previous week but reduce to 5 runs and i achieved that. May be just a blip but nice to see the HR start to drop in the latter part of the week, hopefully fitness returning, slowly slowly but happy days

Swashbuckler

Very good week E. Nice consistency coming back to your training.

ariana`

Swashbuckler wrote: »

Very good week E. Nice consistency coming back to your training.

Thanks P. I've really enjoyed the last 2 weeks. I was wondering if i'd miss the bit of free time i had while i wasn't running much and yip for sure more free time would be a nice luxury but nothing compares to that lovely tingle of fatigue that i have my legs after a long run, a session or running a few days on the trot. It's a strangely wonderful feeling

Now, i'm dodging an assignment that i better get back to

Kellygirl

Another good week, that’s great. Hard to get the pace right in the 400s I’d say. I need a longer distance to get the pace right usually.

skyblue46

Are you following a plan E?