Run for your life!!!!

coogy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120017285#Comment_120017285

No real focus?? I was more focused during that run than I've ever been in my whole life. 😆

Laineyfrecks

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019456#Comment_120019456

🤣🤣🤣

skyblue46

"Felt it at the end"? Is that when you fooked off up the avenue to the visitor centre at 5k pace? 🤣

coogy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120019785#Comment_120019785

Haha, I was wondering if that would get a mention!

To be honest, I was feeling it a few minutes before that and thought I was going to have to pull up as we crossed Chesterfield Ave for the last time. Speeding up was was one way of making sure I didn't stop before we hit the 14 miles! 😬

coogy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120017233#Comment_120017233

Cheers V, was a nice surprise to see you there! 🙂

scotindublin

Haha, yeah I hadn't realised we were recreating "race mode" at the end of the run. It was a great morning.

coogy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120020528#Comment_120020528

Don't worry about it, you'll know for next time.........😉

coogy

Let's see if I can remember what happened last week.....

Monday 19th December - Rest day

Tuesday 20th December - 4 miles with 6 x 80m strides

Wednesday 21st December - 5 miles progression run

Went down to Griffeen for this. I find it a good motivator doing progression runs in this park, with the 1 mile loops.

Felt strong, especially the last couple of miles.

Thursday 22nd December -

No sooner did I leave the house that the heavens opened but as a lover of running in the rain, I lapped this one up.

Friday 23rd December - rest day

Signed up for Bohermeen.

Saturday 24th December - 11 miles easy

Decided to do the long run today as I knew I wouldn't get out the door for a run on Christmas day. Watch didn't charge properly overnight and only lasted beyond 8 miles. Probably spent longer trying to manually upload the missing part of the run to Strava than I did running the 8 miles.........🤔

Sunday 25th December - Rest day

Santa was VERY good to me this year. 😁 A few new nice running tops and a brand spanking new pair of Puma Deviate Nitro Elltes! First time owning a race shoe (I know) and was blown away with how little they weighed, there's literally nothing to them. Can't wait to give them a spin.

As the morning progressed, I watched on in envy as my Strava feed became choc-a-bloc with runners getting out for their Christmas morning miles, whether it was a Parkrun, the GOAL mile or just heading out for an easy hour. 🤨

As for the weeks ahead, after much protracted umming and awing (humming and hawing?) I have decided to switch over* to the Faster Road Racing half marathon plan. I had a good look through it and I like the look of it. May have to switch my rest days around but that's not really an issue.

Goal time - at present - is 1:29:59. Have yet to break 90 mins in an official race but cracked it during a time trial during lockdown back in 2020 and I feel I am very close now to where I was then. Time will tell over the next 11 weeks or so I suppose. I am feeling really good at the moment and enjoying my running more now than I have done for a long time.

Hope everyone had a great Christmas!

Miles for the week - 30-ish

Mile for the year - 619

*when I say 'switch over', I don't mean I'm swapping plans half way through a block. I was just doing some random stuff up until this week from no particular plan so from this week, I start the half marathon plan proper..........the first week of which, I missed as a result of all my indecision..........🙄

coogy

Have been enjoying everyone's review of their year of running in 2022 but given how the year went for me - injured between January and March, with a self-imposed and restful hiatus of sorts for the first half of the year - there's not an awful lot to report.

One race, the Lucan Harriers 5 mile in September, went just as I had expected, having to stop to come up for air on more than one occasion and crossed the line in just under 38 minutes. Since then, I have been growing in confidence and feeling stronger by the week so happy to have finished the year on something of a high. Excited about what's in store for the year ahead................

Monday 26th December - 7 miles easy

Planned rest day today but the FOMO was too much for me to take! Headed out with the gang and took it nice and handy with an easy and enjoyable 7 miles.

Tuesday 27th December - 7 miles easy/6 x 15 sec hills/6 x 100 m strides

Woke up later than expected so didn't get to do the route I had planned (with better hills). There was a stiff wind for the first mile and a half but once I made it up to Grange Castle, it was mostly sheltered. The hills weren't too bad in the end as they were all into the wind so the effort was decent enough.

Wednesday 28th December - 8 miles endurance

If I'm honest, I didn't really know how to approach this run. I obviously know what endurance training is, but for an actual endurance run, I didn't know what sort of paces I should be doing. After a bit of fact checking, the penny soon dropped. 🙄

Thursday 29th December - Rest day

Friday 30th December - 5 x 1k @ 6:30 pace/off 90 secs

The session in the plan prescribed 8 miles in total, comprising of warm up/18 mins LT interval/4 mins rec/12 mins LT interval/cool down. I don't actually have a copy of the book yet 😂 so I'm not sure if there was a specific session intended.

The bulk of my interval sessions to date have been 30/35 mins duration and there's plenty for me to choose from so I decided to just go with one that I did exactly one year ago which was 5 x 1k/off 90 secs. When I did it last year, the paces were slightly quicker (approx 6:15 pace) so figured I would scale the efforts back a little. Felt strange doing a session on a Friday, when this would usually be my rest day.

The wind was still howling outside (as opposed to inside) so knowing which way it was blowing, I thought I would give the 500m loop at Griffeen a miss seeing as last year too, it was also extremely windy with crosswinds, headwinds, tailwinds to contend with and I struggled a little when it came to hitting the paces. Opted for the long stretch of road at Adamstown to do this which is just over a mile in length. Started off with the wind at my back and was thankfully on pace. As soon as I turned 180 to start the recovery, I was head on into wild gusts of wind so efforts 2 and 4 were a little off pace but kept things pretty consistent. The last rep, even though I had the wind at my back, was tough (as it's meant to be) but was happy to see that my form didn't dip or that I had to deal with thoughts of stopping.

Saturday 31st December - Rest day

Sunday 1st January two thousand and twenty three - 11 miles endurance......HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Went out solo today as most of the regular running crew opted for the New Years Day Parkrun instead. Wasn't really a late one the night before (it was the usual NYE movie with the kids and the ringing in of the new year outside with the neighbours) so felt fresh enough and was out the door by 9am.

As soon as I decided on a route - something that seems to take an eternity these days - I set off on an easy enough pace of 8:39/8:40, knowing I would be gradually ramping it up during the latter miles. Headed up the canal to Corkagh Park for a change of scenery. Ended up running in the middle of their Parkrun (lots of shiny new running gear on display 😊) for about a mile before leaving the park and heading through Clondalkin, ending back on the canal. After mile 6, I decided to up the pace a little and I left it until miles 9-11 before hitting sub-8 pace. The rain and headwind down along the the canal was a nice little challenge too.

Overall, an enjoyable week of running. The weekly mileage may have increased a tad more than it should have compared to last week but I feel like I can handle it once I remain sensible on the whole.

Also, something new (sort of) that I have been factoring into my daily routine for the last couple of weeks has been working on my S&C. Not really new to it but I always lacked discipline when it came to trying to keep it a regular thing. Will try my best to keep this consistent (about 20/25 mins) on each of my rest days.

Miles for the week - 43

Miles for the year - 11

scotindublin

Best of luck with the year ahead and hopefully see you for a run soon.

coogy

Nothing really in the way of updates, just letting off steam really and what better place to do it..........☺️

On the evening of new year's day, started feeling a bit under the weather with a few aches here and there and a bit of a cough. Woke up the next day with a now persistent cough and a pain just under the right shoulder. This only worsened as the week progressed and knew that frustratingly, no running would happen this week. Hearing about lots of folk this week who are experiencing similar ailments, definitely something doing the rounds.

Thoughts are obviously on the training for Bohermeen and what sort of a spanner in the works a week of no running might cause. Not an awful lot I can do really apart from not rushing back too soon and keeping the goal time realistic.

Definitely feeling more human today than I've done all week so will see how things are tomorrow and take it from there.

Mile for the week - ZILCH 😶

coogy

Monday 9th January - 3 miles easy

After a week of no running and getting over man flu my dose, I decided - in my usual over-cautious nature - to scale things back this week and forget about what was on the plan. Started the week with a few easy miles and ended the run with the remains of whatever coughs and splutters I had the previous week.

Tuesday 10th January - 5 miles easy

Shocking weather out but kept with the easy miles.

Wednesday 11th January - 5 miles easy

Another 5 easy miles but picked up the pace for the last mile or so. Felt good afterwards.

Thursday 12th January - 5 miles easy

Didn't get to do this one till late, after dropping Jr. off to athletics and just about made it back in time to collect him. Actually, that's a lie. I was 5 minutes late. Bad dad. 😣

On the home straight, along the canal, very nearly collided with a couple of swans who appeared out of nowhere. The cheek.

Weather was shocking again, enough to make you wonder why.

Treated myself to a new pair of running shoes (Saucony Axon 2) that were too good an offer to turn down. My running shoe addiction is now at a stage where not only do I not tell the other half but also have the shoes delivered to my work address. 🤐 None of my family read this trash anyway.......

Friday 13th January - Rest day

Saturday 14th January - 5 miles easy + hills

Didn't really want the week to pass without incorporating some sort of speed work so went for 6 x 15 sec hills after 5 easy miles.

Sunday 15th January - 11 miles

Another very enjoyable meet up in the Phoenix Park with the Boards crew. Eight of us covered a decent area of the park, starting from the Visitor Centre and thanks to @scotindublin and his uncanny knowledge of the area, led us back to the car park with exactly 11 miles on the clock.

Finished off with a delicious coffee and scone with eh gang before heading home. Looking forward to doing it again.

So, a handy week all round, probably didn't need to take the foot off the pedal as much as I did but not too bothered about it really. Bohermeen will be challenge regardless of what shape I am in so I'm just focused on giving it my best shot when it comes down to it.

Miles for the week - 36

Miles for the year - 46

scotindublin

Great morning this morning, hope the afternoon went well for you aswell.

coogy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120112853#Comment_120112853

Cheers C! Tough crowd this afternoon..........🙄

coogy

Update, just dawned on me that my other half is flying home to Manchester on Thursday for four days. There goes another spanner in the already spluttering works! Will need to do some drastic re-jigging this week to get the most out of it somehow. Will I ever get this thing off the ground?? 😕

coogy

Monday 16th January - 5 miles easy with strides

Just keeping things ticking along with another 5 miles around Adamstown and the surrounding area, taking in the head-spinning number of new housing developments springing up. Even our kids are now able to say "I remember when that was just fields".......🤣

Tuesday 17th January - 2 mile warm up/4 x 2 mins (6:30 pace), off 1 min/4 x 1 min (6:15 pace), off 30 secs/45 x 30 secs (5:50 pace), off 15 seconds/1.5 mile cool down

Cold enough morning but lovely blue January skies with the slightest hint of warmth trying its best to make itself known, Used a session from May 2021 which I quite enjoyed so gave it another spin, with ever so slightly slower paces for each of the sets. Ran about 15 seconds slower for each one I think.

Last set of 30 second sprints were a bit under 5:50 pace and I was well spent by the end but felt good. The 2 minute recoveries between sets were 30 secs walk and 90 secs jog.

Session came in at one second slower than it did in May 2021. 😃

Wednesday 18th January - 5 miles easy

The 5 mile easy runs are becoming really enjoyable.

Thursday 19th January - Rest day

Friday 20th January - 12 miles progression run with last 3 miles @ LT

Knowing this would be my last run of the week, I'd have been a bear with a sore head if I didn't squeeze in a long run. Had been thinking about how to approach this one for a few days. Didn't want to start off too conservatively, leaving myself with too much of a change of pace for the last 3 miles. Also, if I started out too fast, there wouldn't be enough of a progression before the end. Ran a familiar enough route down the N4 and out towards Grange Castle for a few loops of the business park before heading home. Even though I booked the morning off work, I ended up leaving the house later than anticipated....due to work stuff! Remote working is all well and good but even when you're not meant to be contactable, you still are!!! 🤔

The pacing for each mile was working out ok but I couldn't help but wonder if I was even gauging my LT pace correctly. Not done many runs like this one up to now so it was probably reason enough to be doubting myself. That said, by the time I'd reached the end of mile 9 (7:20), not only was I now against the clock to get home in time for work, I was wondering if I'd be able to keep up the LT pace (approx 7:00 min miles) for the rest of the run. I did have to stop for about 20 seconds about half way through mile 10 due to a stitch (this hardly ever happens) but needed to keep going to ran through it with a bit of discomfort. Annoyed that I had to cut the run short but that's the way it goes sometimes.

Ended up running 11 miles with last 2 miles @ LT

Got home to find out scheduled meeting was cancelled.....😫

On the plus side, it's payday (I promise I won't buy any more running shoes until at least next week)

Hopefully, from Monday, I'll be able to see out the rest of the training plan without any further interruptions before Bohermeen. There's still some nice juicy runs left (13 mile progression run week after next and a 10k time trial the week after) so I'm sure I'll be playing those out in my head on repeat until then!

Thanks for reading

Miles for the week - 30

Miles for the year - 76

coogy

Monday 23rd January - Rest day

Threw in about 30 mins of core strengthening exercises

Tuesday 24th January - 8 miles easy with 6 x 15 second hills/4 x 100 m strides

A morning chock-full of meetings was leaving me thinking I'd be facing another evening run but thankfully got out for an early lunch to do this. Legs were motoring along nicely, perhaps could have slowed down a little by 10-15 secs per mile.

Hills were good, not the steepest incline but enough of a test for now.

Wednesday 25th January - 9 miles endurance

Another run between meetings with little to spare on the clock. From the off, the HR on the Garmin was flitting between 78/80 so not sure what that was about. I had the watch charging overnight and only put it on my wrist as I was literally heading out the door. Don't know if that explains it....

As for the run itself, the first couple of miles felt a bit laboured but don't know why. Just didn't feel like the legs were moving as normal. Once I had another couple of miles on the clock, felt ok again but the HR reading was bugging me.

Looking back on the run, it could quite easily pass for a progression run. I get that progression runs would finish with pacier miles, which is why I had to rein it in slightly for the last mile, at one point - once mile 8 had elapsed - I was getting carried away and hitting 6:45 pace.

Thursday 26th January - Rest day

Happy to have a rest day today as it's my one day of the week in the office and there's nothing I hate more that battling my way around the city trying to avoid the meanderthals. On the plus side, I picked up my new Sauconys that I had delivered to work last week. Nice!

Friday 27th January - 2 mile warm up / 6 x 1k @ 5k pace (3 mins recovery) / 2 mile cool down

Stupidly, I had been letting this run get under my skin all week. I can't even explain why, I guess when I see sessions like this on paper, the overthinking part of my brain kicks into overdrive and I convince myself that it's gonna go the shape of a pear. Crazy stuff. Part of it might be explained by the indecision for where to do the run in the first place. My original plan was was to head up to Grange Castle Business Park which has a loop of 1.25 miles. The running surfaces around the loop are not the most consistent and there are sections that have very slight lags (which I have probably made worse in my own head). Too much potential for distraction so I settled for the nice flat surface of the canal, by the 12th Lock. I was so glad that I did.

The run itself? It was ace. Wore the new Saucony's (Axon 2) which felt fantastic all the way through, the first time I have ever had more than one pair of running shoes on the go. Each of the 1k's started and finished exactly the same way - a little too fast, before reeling it in - and finishing with just the right amount of hurt - no more so than for the last ( and fastest) km........but that's why we do this, yes?

Conditions couldn't have been better, a mostly blue sky, a little chill in the air and a deserted canal path. Pure bliss.

Finished the session with both arms in the air and let out a resounding "YES!!"

End result? A much needed confidence boost.

Saturday 28th January - 5 miles easy (recovery)

Decided to venture down to Griffeen Parkrun as it had been quite a while since I did a Parkrun anywhere. Had two miles done with a couple of minutes to spare befroe the start and made my way around the two laps of the park nice and handily (apart from a cheeky sprint for the last 200 metres).

Later in the day, did another half hour of core strengthening.

Sunday 29th January - 12 miles endurance

Another endurance run and another opportunity to test the legs. Made sure the early miles were handy enough before stepping up the pace from mile 8. Happy that the increase in pace came easy enough and by the end, with a 7:25 mile, I felt I could have kept going for another few miles at that pace. Plenty of time for that later in the plan.

Next week's plan has some interesting stuff, with a 40 minute tempo run, 10 mile endurance run and a 13 mile progression run but I feel it's all moving along nicely considering where I was six months ago.

Miles for the week - 44

Miles for the year - 119

coogy

Getting this out of my system, before I change my mind....

Monday 31st January - Rest day

Tuesday 1st February - 2 miles warm up/38 minute tempo run/2 miles cool down

Utter b**ls up is the only way I can describe this. 2 mile warm up was into a stiff wind so I knew no matter where I ran, I'd be running into it at some point. Went up to Grange Castle (yes, I know) and after less than a mile, I found myself running straight into a hard enough headwind for the half km straight on the other side of the loop but was still managng to keep the pace consistent enough. First mile came in at just under 7 mins and already I'm feeling not too hot. Running form felt all over the place and just couldn't get into a good rythym. Pace wise though, mile 2 was pretty much the same as the first mile but running into the wind the second time around felt even harder and the pace dropped to about 7:30 pace. Coming back to meet the tailwind for the third time, and with the pace almost back on track, I just felt exhausted and knew there was only one option, to pull the plug. Didn't even bother trying to pick it up again after taking a two minute breather.

Walked/jogged back home, tail between legs.

There's a lesson in there somewhere, just haven't figured it out what it is yet.

ariana`

There's a lesson in there somewhere, just haven't figured it out what it is yet.

Maybe run to effort rather than pace 😉

Laineyfrecks

I'd have to agree with @ariana` another thing I am trying go get right, especially as Tallaght feels like a wind tunnel almost all of the time, is to run by effort. There's no way the efforts are the same if the pace is consistent & one half is into a strong wind, sometimes the HR is great for keeping me honest. Next time I'd scale it back into the wind then hopefully you won't feel so fecked! I hate the wind more than any other weather 🙈

Murph_D

Absolutely. Figure out your tempo HR and forget about pace. It will release you from all that second guessing and unnecessary anxiety. As I run on the coast almost daily and there is always a wind of some sort, it's the only way to do it without going mad!

Mr. Guappa

Based on the paces you mention, I think I'm right in saying that was supposed to be a 38 minute LT run? That's an absolute monster of a session, and I also think I'm right in saying you'd missed a few of the earlier LT runs which would work up to 38 mins? Would have been no harm today in trying one of the earlier LT runs which are more manageable (but still tough!).

Agreed with the effort/HR advice though... nothing good will come of straining to hit paces in difficult conditions. Need to take that advice myself... I'd similar issues with wind today and pushed a bit too hard as well. Thankfully mine was a much shorter session.

Might sound cliche, but as long as you learn something from it then today was no disaster. No need to beat yourself up about it either.

skyblue46

Echoing some previous comments...effort rather than pace and using HR as a guide. Is sub 7 really tempo? Klaas Lok, the man behind EIM, always stresses effort not pace for race distance efforts. He mentions that you are not tapered, not wearing race shoes, not buzzed with adrenaline and not running with others around you. Slower paces can be equal in effort.

Sunny Dayz

My god, running into the wind absolutely drains the legs. As others have said, run by effort which is easier said than done and may be harder to pinpoint a pace or speed for.

coogy

Thank folks for taking the time to respond, I do appreciate it.

I will hold my hands up and admit that, even after nearly five years of consistent running, I am awful when it comes to understanding HR, and don't pay nearly enough attention to it as I should.

I also know that I am far too hung up on paces during training, to the point where it can sometimes be the sole focus. Clearly, the lines of understanding between what the various paces should be are becoming blurred. Recipe for disaster.

Yesterday was a valuable and timely lesson to take things down a notch or two. I mentioned in my end of week log entry for last week how pleased I was with how things were progressing after the lay-off during 2022 but perhaps I've jumped the gun a little and not given myself the time needed to be in a place where should be, rather than where I want to be. It's only January, DCM is still a long way off.

Again, thanks for all the input/advice!

marathon2022

No harm in running to pace.

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120186097#Comment_120186097

Well it doesn't have to be HR-based - you can always just allow yourself a bit of leeway in terms of split times when running into a headwind.

coogy

Testing, testing.....is this thing still on?

That's better. Well, it's been a while since I last shared a log entry round these here parts. A lot has happened since January and I currently find myself coming out the far end of a pretty horrendous few months in terms of where I am and where I should be, running wise.

Thanks to the perspective and guidance of a number of 'stars in jars', that's behind me now, and it's time to move on. DCM is still my target race but with (for now) slightly lowered expectations.

That's it in a nutshell, really, so from now until 29th October (and hopefullt beyond), I am hoping to keep a regular enough record of my journey along the way.

Here goes nothing..........

coogy

Marathon training officially kicks in tomorrow.

The fitness levels appear to be as good as I coud possibly hope for right now, so physically, I am more than ready for what's ahead. Need to make sure things stay that way.

Four years on from my last marathon though, it might take me another four or five weeks before I'm 100% comfortable with the idea of runing 26.2 at a pace that will allow me to achieve my (current) goal time.

After I signed up for DCM, I had originally decided to use the Boards Grads Plan (it served me well back in 2019) but have now decided to go with the Hansons plan instead. I like the look of the midweek tempo runs, they seem to be just what I need to hopefully keep me focused.

Oh, and logging officially begins tomorrow too 😉

coogy

First off, before I get into the logging, I have decided to go with the P&D plan rather than Hansons. I didn't realise the latter involved 6 days of running which is a little beyond me. Also, P&D has very few interval sessions which suits me fine. Plenty of midweek runs and weekend runs with half marathon/marathon paced miles thrown in so I'm happy with that.

Monday 3rd July - OFF

Tuesday 4th July - 2 miles easy/4 miles @hmp/2 x miles easy.

The plan prescribed 8 miles including 4 at half marathon pace so I broke it up into warm up/4 miles/cool down. Getting to know my training paces is something I had to think long and hard about. Although I will most certainly be chasing a PB at DCM, I would prefer for it to be a sensible one rather than setting myself a goal that is just that bit too out of reach.

Was happy with this run considering it was done mostly in torrential rain and a stiff enough headwind in some parts. Two of the four hm pace miles were done on an incline too so was nice to be able to still hit the paces.

Wednesday 5th July - OFF

Thursday 6th July - 9 miles General Aerobic

Daughter's 14th birthday today (YIKES!) so had to be out the door early to get this done. Finally getting used to the early starts again. Only really good at them when I know I really have to but hoping that as the weeks progress, that feeling of early morning lethargy will disappear.

Friday 7th July - OFF

Saturday 8th July - 4 miles recovery

Ran an easy Parkrun with another mile tagged on at the end.

Sunday 9th July - 12 miles medium-long run

Another early start and just as well. No sooner did I have 12 very enjoyable miles done and dusted that the heavens opened once again. Felt tired at the end of this week but hoping that once things get motoring again, it'll all start feeling normal.

Above everything, am very excited about the next few months ahead and to be back on here, logging and catching up with how everyone's progressing! 🙂

coogy

Monday 10th July - OFF

Tuesday 11th July - 8 miles w/10 x 100m strides

Another nice early start. Mile paces were about 20 seconds too fast. Not sure why, it shall remain a mystery.........

Wednesday 12th July - OFF

Thursday 13th July - 10 miles GA

Slowed the paces right down for this, could possibly have even slowed down even more but still felt very relaxed for the whole of this run. Hopefully, as the weeks progress, I'll get better at making the easy days as easy as possible. I remember this being an issue during training for DCM 2018 so just need to remind myself that easy means easy..

Friday 14th July - OFF

Saturday 15th July - 5 miles recovery

Soaked through due to some insane weather. Headed out to the Forever Young Festival as I was booked to draw caricatures in the Opel Ireland tent for a few hours. The place was a mud-fest, and certainly not suited for anyone without wellies. (that's me, by the way).

Sunday 16th July - 13 mile run (3 miles warm up/8 miles @ mp/2 miles cool down

Throughout the week, it felt like there was a lot hinging on this run, my first real test of running at my planned marathon pace. Perhaps calling it 'make or break' is a bit extreme, especially so early into the plan, but I knew I would have to work hard mentally to make sure it would go according to plan.

As usual, spent way to long trying to work out where I was going to do it. As far away from traffic seemed like the most sensible option so I headed up to Grange Castle - conveniently situated three miles from the house (depending on what side you enter) - before beginning the first of what I had worked out as just over six laps of the inner loop (1.25 miles each) of the business park.

Even though there was a stretch on one side of about 400/500m running into a headwind, the first mile felt good and was grateful from the brief reprieve from the windy conditions over the other side of the loop. I wondered to myself if I would last the whole 8 miles mp doing just loops but with just over 4 laps done - I knew I had had enough of Grange Castle and headed out onto the ring road, down through Adamstown before finally finishing the 8 miles right outside my estate. The paces were pretty much bang on from start to finish and even though I was starting to tire a little over the last mile and a half, I was still able to keep things consistent and at times had to hit the brakes a little when the paces got a little too speedy. A great confidence booster, coming at the perfect time.

Headed back out to Forever Young Festival for another afternoon of drawing punters. Conditions even muddier than the day before. Still , great atmosphere but a little too much cheese for my liking......

The first three weeks of the plan had three rest days which will now switch to two from tomorrow. A little concerned that the next long run that incorporates marathon paced miles comes while we're away on hols in Greece. Really hope I don't lose too much momentum over those two weeks but will have to play it by ear and perhaps pick out which runs in the plan that I'd benefit most from.

Miles for the week - 37

Mile for the year - 914

Lazare

Great week K, keep it motoring.

Don't stress the holiday runs, get out early if you can, don't worry if you can't and miss some.

So much time left, enjoy yourself.

AuldManKing

Do you have the P&D book - I find with these plans its vital to have the book so you understand the runs.

These plans can be very hard as the MLR's and long runs have to be done at specific intensities (I think MP+20% and MP+10% by the end of the run) - so its a lot of 'steady running' and quite often he has 2 days in a row of this - so be careful with it.

coogy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120861819#Comment_120861819

Thanks A. Yes, I have the book and currently making my way through it. 🙂 Not something I'm used to doing, if I'm being honest, so it feels like there's a lot to take in.

It was actually the inclusion of the medium to long runs at half marathon/marathon pace that swung it for me in terms of what plan to use. I knew, going by the suggested paces, that it would be something of a challenge so I was fully prepared for that. Reading the book over the last week has really helped in understanding the whys and wherefores. Lots of questions but they're all being answered as I'm making my way through it!

Mr. Guappa

Best of luck with the training K.

Maybe my maths are off, or maybe you've moved the weeks around, but going by the runs you describe here and those I see on strava I think you might be a week behind on the schedule?

coogy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120881205#Comment_120881205

A, you're absolutely right, well spotted.

I started from the beginning of the plan but a week later than I should have............🤐

What. A. Dope.

skyblue46

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120882756#Comment_120882756

I just hear the words of Roy Keane ringing in my ears ... 🤣

coogy

Monday 17th July - OFF

Tuesday 18th July - 10 miles GA

Nice start to the week. Not used to such long runs as a first run of a new week but really enjoyed this and the paces were nice and relaxed.

Wednesday 19th July - 4 miles easy

Thursday 20th July - 8 miles incl' 4 @ LT pace

A busy day in work, coupled with numerous fruitless attempts to bag myself some stupidly over-priced Taylor Swift tickets, followed by a three-hour drawing gig, left me with no option to do this late in the day. Was tired-ish starting off but my eagerness to get it done saw me through it and a couple of miles in, the paces started feeling nice and controlled. Happy with this one overall.

Friday 21st July - OFF

Saturday 22nd July - 4 miles recovery

Was going to head up to Corkagh for the Parkrun but slept through the alarm so just stayed local. Tried to convince my youngest (12) to join me but he promised me he'd do the Junior Parkrun the next day (this didn't happen either).

Sunday 23rd July - 14 mile medium/long run

No surprise to wake up to another wet morning. Why even wait for it to stop, it's down for the day. Getting used to the addiitonal mileage now and more importantly, have started noticing that I've become more able to separate my head from what my legs are doing..........if that makes sense? During parts of the run, I found myself completely 'zoning out' from what I was doing but still keeping the pace consistent. Read into that what you will.....🙂

I'm learning a lot from the P&D book as I'm going along, but not withough making a few minor schoolboy errors along the way. I guess I'll know better next time.....

Also, big thanks to the eagle-eyed @Mr. Guappa for the timely nudge a few days ago that I was a whole week behind where I should have been on the plan. Note to self: next time, read directly from the book before thinking about typing up a fancy shmancy colour-coded Google doc. 🙄

Abother busy week ahead which will no doubt result in some more early starts.

Miles for the week - 40

Mile for the year - 954

coogy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120888349#Comment_120888349

"Fail to prepare.............." or just any words by Roy Keane? 🤣

coogy

What's that you say? Race report from Jingle Bells you want, is it? Sure go on.....

In my last log entry, I was still a DCM entrant. Things very quickly ground to a halt, mostly due to a niggle that was bad enough to have me sidelined for a couple of weeks but to be frank, it was perfectly timed as it gave me a way out. Just wasn't motivated enough to take on the training this year and be excited enough about the prospect of running my third marathon. So I jumped ship and breathed a massive sigh of relief.

The niggle eventually subsided and I carried on, keeping things ticking over. Lo and behold, the entries for Jingle Bells went up and I managed to nab one before they sold out. Gave me some much needed focus and the opportunity to finish the year on a relative high.

Went straight for the Boards 5k plan for the second time this year (Ran Bob Heffernan 5k in May, crossing the finish line in 19:39, an official pb) so knew exactly what was in store. Sub-19 was considered very briefly but decided that shaving a healthy 20-30 seconds off my pb would be a realistic enough target.

The training itself went very well and over the course of the last 4 or 5 weeks, I found myself able to push that little more than what was required of the plan. As with any 5k race I've done, there's been no small amount of trepidation, knowing the effort needed to come away on the day with a satisfying outcome. Still, I was feeling very positive about how the day might pan out, but not without the usual pre- race nerves which have too often derailed any hopes I had of running well.

The conditions were simply perfect, with blue December skies as far as the eye could see, although the biting chill in the early morning air did take some getting used to during the warm up.

Bumped into Murph D and his Raheny club buddy and we did a nice easy warm up complemented by some drills/sprints before heading over to the start line. Last time I did this race, it was 2021 and I recall positioning myself much too far back from the start, leaving me penned in amongst the hoards, who I eventually shook off once we hit Chesterfield. This time, I got a decent spot about 20 feet from the start line and was happy that the only nerves I felt were the good sort.

My goal pace - if I was to make any sort of in-roads, was between 6:10 - 6:15 min/mile. Bob Heffernan saw me complete my first mile in 6 mins flat and I paid the price towards the end so I tried my best to not get carried away too soon, hoping it would all fall into place if I stayed sensible.

Off we went and straight away felt overwhelmed, surrounded by so many runners. They all seemed so assured and confident, appearing mightily determined in what they were doing. With barely 3 minutes on the clock, the first feelings of doubt arrived. "Can I actually do this?, am I ablwe to keep my legs going at this speed?" I thought to myself, as I briefly considered how I would feel about a DNF. I immediately batted away any negative thoughts, realising I'd invested too much time and effort into training to be entertaining such a ridiculous idea. Buck up.

Up Chesterfield and thankfully no breeze to contend with. A glance at the watch and I was exactly where I wanted to be, even though at this early stage, plenty of runners were passing me out. First mile came in at 6:13. Clearly saw that the markers were in km's so I tried not to pay too much attention to them just yet. Once we turned onto OS Road, I felt pretty ok and was thankful of the slight downhill, even though this particular stretch is always longer than I remember.

All I was trying to focus on here was, well....to be focused I guess, and try to start settling in to the pace I was running at. By now, I was running alongside a pack who all seemed to be doing something similar to me so I stayed with them for the time being. Mile two beeped in at 6:13 again so I knew it was time to up the pace. Come on, just another six mintes or so of this and you're home and dry. The legs felt ok but I could feel my arms getting quite tired and a little tense. Tried my best to block it out and I could see the pace quicken to around the 6 min/mile mark. With about 2kms to go, I felt by now like I was well able to hold this pace, knowing that the famous downhill finish was not far off. Again, the twists and turns of this section of the route was another that seemed to last longer than my memory had remembered, and I was now desperate for the top of the Upper Glen Rd to come into view. Once it did, I knew that even with the downhill, I couldn't afford to ease up in any way so more effort was put into this last kilometer or so. With the finish area in the distance, my sole focus was to maintain this pace as best I could but it was harder than I thought, as by now, all I was doing was willing the finish line closer. Mile 3 came in at 6:01 so now all I had to was to put the foot down for the last 200 and I was home and dry. Just couldn't make the legs work as fast as I hoped I would, knowing how precious every second was. Eventually crossed the line, stopped the watch and found the nearest patch of grass to collapse on.

Looked at my time and saw 19:09. What the hell???? I honestly couldn't believe it. A good 10-15 seconds better than I had expected. I let out a massive "YES!!!" as I watched the crowds spill through the finish. I looked at my watch again and for good measure, I let out an even louder "YES!!" The guy sitting on the grass in front of me turned around slowly and offered me a congratulatory, but seemingly forced fist pump, making me think it was done purely as a deterrent to me letting out yet another over-excited yell. 😁

Got to my feet and collected the all important mug, still trying to process what just happened. Bumped into Lazare (whose words of confidence the previous day made a huge difference to my mindset at the start line) who ran a very respectable 19:20. His wife also ran and came away with a mightily impressive PB. Met a few other familiar faces and hung around for a bit before squeezing in a couple of miles cool down, then back to the car. Found out that in my eagerness to stop the watch at the finish line, I pressed it a tad early and my official chip time was 19.10. Still thrilled with that, a massive confidence booster that came at just the right time.

Walking back to the car with my shiny mug, I bumped into my old coach and gave him the low-down, more animatedely that I probably realised. After a couple of minutes, his parting words were "great to see you with a smile on your face again, says it all". These words stayed with me for the rest of the day, how true it was.

Naas 10 miler in March is next so straight back into it, will be using the Boards 10k - HM plan.

Thanks for reading.

Comic Book Guy

Well done K, very disciplined run and you reaped the rewards accordingly. Big things to come in 2024 for ya....

Mr. Guappa

Deadly stuff K. Hopefully you take loads of confidence from this. Onwards and upwards in 2024 I've no doubt.

AuldManKing

Great report and great to see a top performance! A good 2024 awaits.

Laineyfrecks

Brilliant result for you K, absolutely delighted for you 🤗

coogy

Thanks folks! Really starting to feel like I'm getting ever closer to being 'back in the game' so to speak. 😀