Dream big, work hard, achieve your goals - My DCM '19 Journey

ReeReeG

Congrats on your first publishing deal Will have to keep an eye out for that book!

Laineyfrecks

Haha thanks, it's actually just 500 words but hey it's a start! I think they are putting all the shortlisted stories in the book so a nice bit of variety

Murph_D

Congrats on the writing - well deserved from what I've seen so far.

What target pace for your 800s, as a matter of interest?

D

Lambay island

Well done E, thats pretty damn cool!

Swashbuckler

Brilliant E. That's great news. These morning lie ins are really helping your writing flourish.

Laineyfrecks

Thanks a mill D, the 800's were 4min/km paces, target time 3:12!

Yeah it is pretty cool D, 1st ever writing competition too

Haha P, yes indeed these lie ins must be doing me the world of good :pac:

ariana`

Wow, that's fabulous, congratulations on becoming a (soon-to-be) published author! You are a lady of many talents obviously

Laineyfrecks

ariana` wrote: »

Wow, that's fabulous, congratulations on becoming a (soon-to-be) published author! You are a lady of many talents obviously

Thanks a mill!

Laineyfrecks

Tues 4th Aug - Easy
50:08 - 5.41mi - 9:15min/mi

Nice easy miles.

Weds 5th - W/U, 5*1km@4mins with 500 rec, C/D

Somehow I stupidly deleted this run! The 1st 3 felt like I was working hard but felt ok. The 4th one I struggled, felt like my head just gave up & I ended up walking a bit of the recovery. Thankfully I felt ok to go for the 5th one & was happy to hit the paces on this. I think I averaged roughly 4:05 per km. There was no logical reason for me not to hit the paces for them all, think the head just gave way for a bit. Again not a bad session & happy to have it done.

Thurs 6th - Easy miles
55:41 - 5.89m - 9:27min/mi

Nice easy run around Corkagh park.

Fri 7th - Easy miles
48:19 - 4.96m - 9:44min/mi

Lovely early run or so I thought, still being taunted by a certain person on here because he managed to get out a min earlier:rolleyes:

Sat 8th Aug - w/u, 10mins @6:50, 3min jog, 6*30 secs hard 90secs rec,c/d

Gorgeous morning for a run:D This was just a light session to see out my plan, originally aimed at Tallaght 5k road race then when that looked doubtful Mondello 5k was booked but Kildare went into lockdown, so no race for me!

Sun 9th Easy miles
1hr - 6.63m - 9:03min/mi

This run was much later than my usual time. Headed out to the PP & what a gorgeous evening it was. Really enjoyed it:)

36.99 Miles for the week

Mon 10th Rest

Tues 11th Easy miles
50:30 - 5.33m - 9:29min/mi

Early start for this run.

Weds 12th More Easy miles
41:14 - 4.32m - 9:32min/mi

A very warm morning but not sunny. Nice run.

Thurs 13th - W/U, 6*200 w 200rec, C/D
3:38, 3:37, 3:40, 3:28, 3:38, 3:34

Happy with this little speed session, although it was very muggy out!!

Fri 14th Easy w strides
22:16 - 2.35mi - 9:28min/mi

Nice run with a few strides thrown in:D

Sat 15th Sh!t or Bust day:eek:

The story behind this was simple really. I had booked Tallaght 5km & had decided at the time that getting a PB wasn't really my goal, I wanted to go sub 20mins! I got it into my head & well as S found out once I decide something like this it's not easy to make me reconsider. His solid advice was to aim for a new PB, which made lots of sense really. My goal was a bit pie in the sky but because of all the uncertainties & the crap during lockdown mentally & every other way I had decided I was just going to go for it! Fook being cautious, what did I have to lose really?? All or Nothing was what i decided on! Luckily S did agree to help me & tweaked the 5k plan for me. It wasn't a full plan but hopefully enough to help me.

Did a 2m warm up, felt quite sweaty already! The weather was quite heavy & warm but calm enough. Started off on the Furze road, hit my 1st km at about 4:05 and I was happy enough with this as I was hoping to pick up the pace a little. 2nd & 3rd km clocked at about 3:59 each & again I was happy with this but was feeling like I was working quite hard & it just felt so warm. Headed into the 4th km & really started to struggle. I didn't really feel in control here, looked down at my watch to see 4:05/06/07, sh!t how is this happening! Tried to push on, fook why can't I maintain the pace, looked again, 4:09, NOOOOOOOOO that was it my head just went! You absolute fool, what made you think you could even go sub 20??? Why did you not just go for a PB???? That was it, I needed to stop, give up, admit I just couldn't do it...I seriously thought about it, but something inside kicked in & I decided I was going to finish it in whatever time I could get. I knew the sub 20 was gone & at this stage I knew a PB was even doubtful but I just wanted to see it out. I dug deep & kept going, it hurt like hell, I really tried to make my little legs run faster & at one stage I thought they were but the watch just didn't seem to be displaying my efforts. I turned onto the Furze road & the finish was in sight. I gave it one final push & finished in a time of 20:56. For the 1st time ever after a race or session I collapsed onto the grass & just lay there... Disappointment & exhaustion meant I lay there for quite a bit. Once I gathered my thought I got up & walked back to my car. As I was walking I realised it actually wasn't that bad. Yeah I didn't get my sub 20, but I didn't regret for one min going for it. I felt proud of myself for having the guts to go all out & attempting it:D I did the training & I never gave up. Some people might think it was a pretty stupid target for me to just go for but that's ok, I do believe sometimes you just have to take a chance & go for it! Up till now I followed strict plans & stuck to all the rules of a plan( well kinda,as Mr Guppa knows from my marathon training;)) So for this TT I wanted to do it my own way regardless of what S said(Karma maybe:p) It has thought me what it feels like to go bust in the last stages of a race & how sh!t it felt, this is usually when I am feeling so strong... hopefully I don't get to experience it again!
Apparently I passed by J at some stage of this run, I was more than likely in a world of my own as I usually am when running!!

Sun 16th Easy Miles
53:34 - 5.71mi - 9:22min/mi

Easy miles around the park.

Mon 17th - Rest

Tues 18th - Easy with strides
43:29 - 4.71mi - 9:13min/mi

Thankfully the rain had cleared & the sun was shining for this.

Weds 19th - Easy miles
33:29 - 3.50mi - 9:33min/mi

Nice little run.

Thurs 20th - Mile TT
New PB 6:01

This was another one I had on my list that I wanted to try again before I get settled into a new longer plan.
Did my warm up & as I was running 2 blokes overtook me & one of them turned & said hello, presuming it was someone from here I said hello but wasn't really sure who it was, turns out it was C, I did kinda think it was him but again wasn't sure, apologies C if I looked a bit confused, next time I will be friendlier:D
As suggested by S i decided to start on the Furze road & then head out onto Chesterfield. I took my position & off I went. I had wrote out on my hand in secs where I should be & this defo helped me at the start. Felt good & controlled, got to the turn at chesterfield & felt I had slowed a little, never really looked at my watch much after this as I was just fighting off the pain & the urge to slow even more! Gave it one last push to see a time of 6:01, absolutely chuffed to beat my last mile time as this is only my 2nd attempt at this distance. Obviously me being me those 2 seconds were all I could think about afterwards just to go sub 6...but it's defo easier said than done. When you are running as fast as you possibly think your little legs can carry you & all you are doing is concentrating on not collapsing then 2 seconds faster seems impossible:eek: Really happy with the effort but as the Terminator said, I'll be back...;)

Fri 21st - Easy miles
46:57 - 5.04mi - 9:19min/mi

A beautiful evening for a lovely run.

Sat 22nd - Easy miles
1hr10min - 7.60mi - 9:15min/mi

A bit of a mixed bag of weather for this run, also went a slightly different route but overall a nice relaxed run.

scotindublin

Sounds like I am in good company J!

Laineyfrecks

scotindublin wrote: »

Sounds like I am in good company J!

Haha I promise I am friendlier when I actually recongnise someone:D

Swashbuckler

Laineyfrecks wrote:

Lovely early run or so I thought, still being taunted by a certain person on here because he managed to get out a min earlier

Ah you've made shyte of me every day since! My reign is over

Laineyfrecks

Swashbuckler wrote: »

Ah you've made shyte of me every day since! My reign is over

Good while it lasted

Laineyfrecks

Sun 23rd Aug - Easy with strides
44:58 - 4.91mi - 9:09min/mi

Nice easy miles around the PP with a few strides.

Mon 24th - Easy run
30.29 - 3.34mi - 9:07min/mi

Easy half hour around the block.

Tues 25th - 2m w/u & 1mile TT

Decided I wanted to have another crack at going sub 6mins for my mile. I was quite determined about this & was lucky to have S on board with me & he was able to adjust my sessions accordingly before I got stuck into a new plan.

I set off on the furze road, pretty much the same route as my last attempt. Again I had the times wrote on my hand so as not to rely on the watch 100%. I felt as controlled as the last attempt & knew to be careful coming around the corner onto Chesterfield road as it slowed me down last time. I felt good & looked at my watch to see 5:57, ok keep this going now I told myself. It started to hurt & it seemed so near but at the same time so far to the finish. I looked again & seen 5:59, then 6:00.... I immediately thought sh!t, there's no way i'm finishing bang on 6mins, so I gave it one final little push & finished in 5:59!!! The grin on my face was huge, yes I'd done it, marginally but I didn't care, I was under 6mins & delighted I'm sure anyone driving by thought I was nuts as I was fist pumping the air, but I didn't care - it's the little things...


Weds 26th - Easy miles
50:28 - 5.31m - 9:29min/mi

Early run with some easy miles.

Thurs 27th Aug - Easy miles
1hr - 6.49mi - 9:21min/mi

Gorgeous morning for another early run.

Fri 28th Easy miles
51:44 - 5.50m - 9:23min/mi

An early easy run in the rain. Went to get my 2nd last tattoo, took about 2 & a half hours but was worth it! very happy with it

Sat 29th Aug - W/U, 8*45 sec hill sprints, 90sec jog, C/D

I was happy to see hill sprints added back into my training, I actually convinced myself that I had missed these! Holy sh!t I forgot how tough these can be. I ran each one at 6:30 effort & seemed to be able to keep it controlled for the all but was pretty knackered at the end of them! Apparently I've gone soft & this new plan will toughen me up

Sun 30th Aug - Easy miles
1:30 - 9.67mi - 9:21min/mi

Nice early easy Sunday miles around Tallaght on a gorgeous morning.

Will continue later...

Laineyfrecks

Tues 1st Sept - w/u, 3*10mins@6:55/7:05, 3min jog,c/d

Had been down in Wexford with my girls, Scott & Leon for a few days in the Amber springs hotel. A well needed break & a lovely family hotel, was perfect for a relaxing break. Spent the day on a train, luas & bus so was no more in the mood of this session but as usual was happy when I had it done. Kept the efforts as honest as I could as there was a strong breeze for parts of it. Once I eased into each rep I felt good, then stronger but felt it then towards the end of each one but overall happy with it. Looking forward to getting stuck into this new plan

Weds 2nd - Easy miles
58:41 - 6.53mi - 8:59min/mi

Very humid run, was absolutely soaked:eek:

Thurs 3rd - Easy miles
40:37 - 4.21mi - 9:38min/mi

Nice early run!

Fri 4th - Easy miles
1hr - 6.43mi - 9:22min/mi

As above

Sat 5th - w/u, 8*1min hill sprints, 90sec jog, c/d

Jaysus I thought last weeks hill sprints were tough!! I tried to keep the pace & effort as controlled as I could. Pushed myself a bit for these but felt like it was a good session afterwards. Going forward I don't think I will program these into my watch, think I will go by feel on them instead of constantly checking the pace on my watch(as suggested by a wise man ) I'll just have to make sure I can keep track of how many i've done!
Set off for my cooldown the way I came on my warmup & it was uphill in the grass, I honestly thought I was walking at this stage trying to get my heavy legs going haha.
Tough but good session!

Sun 6th - Easy miles
1:29 - 9.76mi - 9:07min/mi

Later than usual run out in the park but it was a gorgeous evening! I had a really long soak in radox & Epsom salts the night before & I think my legs were very grateful as this run felt great.

40.6miles for the week

Laineyfrecks

Tues 8th Sept - w/u, 3*12@6:55/7:05 off 2:30, c/d
7:04, 7:06, 7:20

Warm up felt good, was happy to be getting this done before work. Eased into the 1st rep & felt like I was working but nothing I couldn't manage. Recovery went by quickly enough & went into my 2nd rep, same feeling for this & was happy when the recovery came around. 3rd rep was ok for the first couple of minutes but then I started struggling, just couldn't keep the pace, felt so frustrated & annoyed as this was only the start of my new plan. Was running into a headwind & it honestly made me feel like the effort levels were huge. I stopped at one stage, I couldn't believe it, think I still had about 3 or 4 mins to go & I just wanted to give up! I walked then decided I was going to see it out whatever the pace may be...

That was pretty tough to deal with so early on in my plan but I wasn't going to let it define the rest of my plan...a bad day at the office, simple as that!

Weds 9th - Easy miles
40:38 - 4.36mi - 9:18min/mi

Very humid evening for a few easy miles.

Thurs 10th - 20min easy, 20min easy/mod, 10min mod, c/d
55:00 - 6.19mi - 8:53min/mi

Got out early for this run, really enjoyed the varied paces.

Fri 11th - Easy miles
1hr - 6.55mi - 9:13min/mi
Again another nice evening run.

Sat 12th - w/u, 10*1min hill sprints 3-5k pace, 90sec jog, c/d

Decided not to program this into my watch & take S's advice about marking the first min rep at the top of the hill then just running them based on effort without the distraction of the watch. I gathered my 10 stones as I knew there was not a hope in hell i'd remember how many i had done each rep. I talked myself through these from the start, warning myself to control the pace as i usually take off too fast. I then told myself to steady the pace & keep control of my form whilst pushing the effort but not killing myself. They were tough but nothing like the previous week. I won't go as far as saying I really enjoyed them but I was very pleased with how the session went & this is how I will do the hill reps going forward & maybe some day I will even do them without the stones

Sun 13th - Easy miles
1:40 - 11.50mi - 8:47min/mi

Went out to the PP early for this run. It was such a beautiful morning for it. I decided to mix things up a little by running the opposite way than I usually run. I just love the atmosphere out here. All the different runners & running clubs around & the animals in the park, wish I could do all my runs here. Legs felt great for this run, a little too great as I ran slightly faster than I should have which I hope doesn't come back to bite me in the a$s:eek:
43.3 miles for the week

Lambay island

Good attitude on the Tuesday. As I learned myself recently, we all seem to have a bad day at some stage.. 10 stones for the hill sprints- I like that one. Picturing you holding a progressively smaller stone each time

Laineyfrecks

Lambay island wrote: »

Good attitude on the Tuesday. As I learned myself recently, we all seem to have a bad day at some stage.. 10 stones for the hill sprints- I like that one. Picturing you holding a progressively smaller stone each time

Thanks D, that made me smile

mister paul

Just before setting off on the first rep

The Black Oil

Brick sized chocolate brownies?

Laineyfrecks

mister paul wrote: »

Just before setting off on the first rep

Murph_D

Belated congrats on the sub-6 mile. That’s brilliant!

Laineyfrecks

Thanks a mill D

AuldManKing

Catching up here ( & I've lots of catching up to do on Boards).

Congrats on the 'story publication' (sorry - that sounds so bad, given how good it is!!) and the sub 6 - brilliant!!

Now that you have broken that barrier - I bet you'll find it easier to do it again.

Laineyfrecks

Cheers A! Don't know about finding it easier next time :eek:

Laineyfrecks

Tues 15th Sept - w/u, 5*1mile@7:00 off 400m, 4*1min@6:10,90sec rec, c/d
6:58, 7:00,7:00, 7:01, 7:03

Out early for this session & really happy with how it went. I was working for it but not killing myself. 1 min feels like a long time after doing the 5mile reps but i kept them as consistent as possible. After last Tuesday's session being in the back of my mind was happy to have put in an honest effort for this & not struggled


Weds 16th - Easy miles
45:37- 4.92mi - 9:16min/mi

Was a good bit later than usual heading out for this. Could really see the dark evenings creeping back in. Won't be long till my choices are to run in the dark mornings or evenings!

Thurs 17th - 20min easy, 20min easy/mod, 15min mod, c/d
58:02 - 6.57mi - 8:50min/mi

Got out early for this run, again this week I really enjoyed the varied paces.

Fri 18th - Easy miles
49mins - 5.30mi - 9:15min/mi

Some nice easy miles

Sat 19th - w/u, 8mins@7:05,2:30rec,8mins@7:05,5mrec, 15mins@7:15, c/d

Settled into the pace nicely for the 1st rep but as there was a very strong breeze I kept the effort levels at what I knew I should be doing for the given pace. Same for the 2nd & 3rd rep. I kinda had half of each rep with the wind behind me or infront of me. Forgot how much harder it is running with a strong breeze...maybe I am going soft:eek:

Sun 20th - Easy miles
1:40 - 10.82mi - 9:17min/mi

Went out to the PP early for this run. It was such a beautiful morning for it. Had a few drinks last night & a Chinese so was worried this might affect me. Thankfully it didn't, kept to my easy paces & enjoyed the run.

44.9miles for the week

Laineyfrecks

Totally non running related, it was announced today on the Ray Darcy show that the book containing my story goes on sale the 29th of October & is on pre sale now. To say I am thrilled is an understatement:D The icing on the cake is that some of the proceeds from the sale of the book go to an amazing charity The LauraLynn children's hospice.

It's mad to think I ran my very 1st marathon in October last year, something I really wanted to achieve & now something else I have been saying i'd love to achieve for years(but never did anything about it) will also happen in October.

Dream big, work hard, achieve your goals;)

OOnegative

That’s absolutely brilliant E, you should be incredibly proud of yourself. Well done!!

Laineyfrecks

Thanks a mill B

Annie get your Run

Wow! That's awesome! Must keep an eye out