Going all in- The search for X% to go sub 3

shotgunmcos

179hr on that tempo? :eek: Average or max? What is your max hr?

sideswipe

shotgunmcos wrote: »

179hr on that tempo? :eek: Average or max? What is your max hr?

:eek: is right.....179 bpm avarage!
Last hard 5k I did I hit 192 max. Resting is 45 according to garmin, always thought this was a massive range, especially when I see other peoples on Strava!

I did a test about 18 months/2 years ago and had 60 vo2 max, LT HR of 179 bpm. Max was 192 bpm on that also. I ran a 3:07 marathon with avg hr at 174 bpm. So I do seem to have a naturally high HR.

The new garmin has settled down and has me at 179 bpm for my LT pace.

What do you reckon?

Itziger

sideswipe wrote: »

Wednesday 29th Jan: 5 miles recovery @ 8:32 min/mi, HR 145 bpm.

Just ran easy again while club mates flogged themselves doing k reps on a muddy pitch. The Hanson plan calls for Wednesday to be a rest day which I've substituted for a recovery run thus far, actually quite enjoy them. Since recovering from a dose in mid December I've ran everyday bar one, current streak is 43 days. Might break that soon as I always feel if a streak gets long I'm reluctant to break it even if a rest day is exactly what i need. Sometimes it's harder not to run.

Thursday 30th Jan: 8 miles tempo @ 6:46 min/mi, HR 179bpm.

Felt like I was getting ready for a race as I got my gear together this morning before the school run. First step up to an 8 miler and I was somewhat nervous about it for some reason. Had a rub down from the physio yesterday and the legs felt good as I got into it. Used the PacePro feature on the garmin for the first time and found it good even though it meant looking at the watch a bit too much and racing the session a bit if the pace dropped on the hills or into the wind.
I won't lie I found it tough in a few spots and had to mentally talk myself out of splitting it into 2 x 4 miles:o but persevered. One of the things about not having tune up races in the build up that has concerned me is the lack of opportunity to practise that race toughness from pushing through when the needle is moving towards the red. Used today as an opportunity to HTFU, no doubt there'll be a few more so I feel less concerned about not doing tune up races!

1.5 miles warm up and down for 11 miles total. Glad to have it in the bank.....on to the next one.

I found a few of the MP tempos tough. There was one where I couldn't get the bloody pace down at all, felt I was nearly sprinting to try to bring the avg to where I wanted it. Don't worry too much. It does seem to be a key part of the cumulative fatigue idea. I have done more than 16k @ M pace in other plans but almost certainly not two days after a session. A case of trust the training and the plan I guess.

sideswipe

Itziger wrote: »

I found a few of the MP tempos tough. There was one where I couldn't get the bloody pace down at all, felt I was nearly sprinting to try to bring the avg to where I wanted it. Don't worry too much. It does seem to be a key part of the cumulative fatigue idea. I have done more than 16k @ M pace in other plans but almost certainly not two days after a session. A case of trust the training and the plan I guess.

Cheers. Yeah I’m the same as you, have done up to 14 miles during a long run using P&D but would have been slightly more recovered going into that. That’s the manta for now anyway- ‘trust the process’.

sideswipe

Friday 31st Jan: 6.5 miles Easy @ 8:20min/mi, HR 160bpm.

Last run of January, it really does feel like a loooong month- 250 miles for the month with some good quality in there, happy with how things are going.
There is still a little cloud of doubt as to weather I'm overreaching. This run was with a club mate and was enjoyable to not look at the watch and run easy. On review the heart rate was still up after the tempo so I was effectively working too hard.

Saturday 1st Feb: 8 miles easy treadmill @ 8:10 min/mi, HR 141bpm.

Had a choice of get up early and run or have a lie in and combine the treadmill with childminding duty. Chose the later coz I'm a lazy bastard and I wanted to make sure the heart rate was under control. MTV download chart on full blast and my 9 yr old daughter doing a spin class to S***e songs.

Sunday 2nd Feb: 15 mile LR @7:20 min/mi, HR 167 bpm.

Legs felt good as I set off for this. Headed off into a head wind and tried to get the pace down to 7:20 which is the fastest end of the guideline LR pace. Bit too hard as the first 4 miles were- 7:16, 7:13, 7:09 & 7:17. Was working hard into the wind and was looking forward to the turnaround point. Turned and the wind seemed to be still in my face, a Saw Doctors song wormed it's way into my head. Pace came down naturally enough as the route was draggy rather than hilly but got through it. Stopped twice for a toilet stop and to get a drink. Definitely feeling the bite of cumulative fatigue. Another decent week under the belt so happy with that. Weight down to 77.5 kgs as well. Looking at my weight history on the app I have shows me down at 74kgs on race day when I ran my PB so thats the target again.

Don't put much store into the Strava Fitness & Freshness but it's always nice to see it moving in the right direction!!

sideswipe

Monday 3rd Feb: 6 miles easy @8:24 min/mi, HR 148 bpm.

Just a case of getting the prescribed miles in. Bumped into a runner I know so had company for half of it which passed the time nicely, He ran Manchester last year so was good to quiz him up a bit. Epsom salt bath and some foam rolling when I got home, legs feeling good.

Tuesday 3rd Feb: 3 x 1 mile off 400's w/wu &wd Avg @7:18 min/mi, HR 163 bpm.

Splits:
1. 5:58
2. 5:56
3. 6:06

1 & 3 were slight drags into the breeze. Happy enough even though but was surprised at the last one as I thought it would be faster, couldn't see my watch but thought the effort was spot on. Last of the speed sessions done before moving to strength sessions next week. Feel they should be easier as I've done the Macmillan 10k workouts before which are faster being 10k race pace, I suppose time will tell.

Had intended to do a hour S&C when I got home but by the time I'd eaten dinner I was too tired. Stuck on the recovery boots for half an hour instead.

I was feeling hungry all the time so did some research into what my calorific needs should be, the calculation I came up with was somewhere between 3500-4000 cals which seems high. I think I'd easily fall short of 3000. I think one of my shortcomings is not eating enough during the day and then letting the hunger overtake me in the evening when I end up eating too late. Need to try to get a handle on this. In previous training blocks I've left myself short to shift some weight and ended up training under fuelled which did me no favours.

shotgunmcos

I'm in the 180lb category. Years ago when I was training 2-3hrs and up to 6hrs per day 6-7 days a week, I was involved in a study at the University of Limerick. A professional sports nutritionist had me keep a diary etc and then analysed everything in great detail. The summary of it which shocked me was that I wasn't eating enough carbs.. the right carbs, low GI brown, wholegrain versions. What she also came back with was I needed 3,600-3-800 kcals per day.

4,300-4,600 seems excessive! what is the source of this table?

sideswipe

Yeah I was surprised at the table. I plugged my stats into the calculator in the Hanson method book and came up with similar figures. I just found the chart from a US university online.
The take away for me is I’ve always tried to train and loose weight at the same time, I’m beginning to think fuelling probably for sessions and recovery is more important that getting weight down.

AuldManKing

Interesting chart.

As another 180lb runner who watches what he eats - I do find that the timing of when you eat just as important.

I've got into a habit of having 2 breakfasts a day - 1 protein based / 1 carb based (usually overnight oats) - and I snack a lot during the day in work, primarily fruit and granola bars.

My evening/afternoon runs/workouts feel fine with this - and then its dinner when I get home after a run.
I monitor my weight frequently as a measure for not losing weight but really go by how I feel during runs.

I do feel that as this cycle ramps up, I'll need to add more carbs to the diet.

sideswipe

AuldManKing wrote: »

Interesting chart.

As another 180lb runner who watches what he eats - I do find that the timing of when you eat just as important.

I've got into a habit of having 2 breakfasts a day - 1 protein based / 1 carb based (usually overnight oats) - and I snack a lot during the day in work, primarily fruit and granola bars.

My evening/afternoon runs/workouts feel fine with this - and then its dinner when I get home after a run.
I monitor my weight frequently as a measure for not losing weight but really go by how I feel during runs.

I do feel that as this cycle ramps up, I'll need to add more carbs to the diet.

Thats interesting. I like the idea of second breakfast (must be the hobbit in me) as I never feel hungry in the morning. I also don't snack until evening time which isn't ideal so I'll aim to rebalance that a bit.

Wednesday 5th Feb: 4 miles recovery @9:03 min/mi, HR 143 bpm.

Again a case of wait in the car while junior athletics is on or do a few miles easy. Was tempted to break the streak (day 49) but decided to do a few very easy. Enjoyed it listening to The Morning Shakeout podcast.

Thursday 6th Feb: 8 miles Tempo @6:52 min/mi, HR 170 bpm.

After last week I decided to drop the pace slightly and see how the effort levels were. It was much more comfortable and the heart rate was down 9 bpm on average over the same route. One more 8 mile before it moves up to 9 so will bring the pace back up a tad next week but feel much better about the effort level given I've run marathons with average HR @ 175 bpm before.
Garmin flashed up a message saying my Vo2 Max was up to 57 and my fitness age was 20 years old:pac:.......I'll take that with 2 months to go.

sideswipe

Friday 7th Feb: 6 miles easy @8:38 min/mi, HR 146bpm.

Very easy miles. Legs felt tired for this after the tempo and an hour of strength and conditioning the night before.

Saturday 8th Feb: 13 miles easy @ 8:36 min/mi, HR 143bpm.

Messy weekend for running slots. Got out early pre breakfast and ran 13 instead of the scheduled 10 as I wasn't sure what if any chance I'd get to do the other 10 miler on Sunday. Forecast was brutal but the weather was perfect, enjoyable run.

Sunday 9th Feb: 10 miles easy treadmill @ 8:02 min/mi, HR 140bpm.

Daddy day care duties meant I couldn't get away for a run and would have to make do with the treadmill. With the weather the way it was I wasn't too upset! Set my nine year old up on the spin bike and just got the miles done.

Another decent week, 60 miles and a couple of S&C workouts. Weight holding steady at 78.5kgs. Watched Game Changers on Netflix at the weekend, interesting stuff. Will be a bit more conscious of food choices after watching it, in fact I'm toying with the idea of cutting out meat for a while to see if it suits me.

sideswipe

........and onto another week. 8 weeks to go. The window for making gains gets ever smaller.

Definitely feel the fitness has improved well with the Hanson plan. The quality sessions are one thing but the focus on running easy in-between has helped me as I feel I've possibly overcooked things between sessions on other plans.

It's funny that I took a holistic view of looking for percentage gains from every conceivable place both in running, lifestyle, recovery etc and in the meantime Nike are releasing Alphaflys with an alleged 10% positive return!! I've worn the Vaporflys in races since they were released and can hand on heart say I don't think they've given me the benefits being spoken about. There is talk now of responders and non-responders based on gait and foot strike. I've always been a forefoot runner, perhaps this doesn't marry well with Vaporflys and I could have saved myself some €€€. Will I buy the Alphaflys? Probably:o

Monday 10th Feb: 8 miles easy @ 8:07 min/mi, HR 151bpm.

Ran this a little harder than intended but the weather was so ****e I just wanted to get it done, the joys of Spring marathon training blocks! Hands were so numb when I got home I was struggling to open the door. Listened to the Science of Sport podcast- The Shoe that broke running which helped pass the time well.

Tuesday 11th Feb: Hanson Strength session 6 x 1 mile @ 6:39 min/mi avg, HR 161bpm.

Looked out the door and was very tempted to hit the treadmill in warmth and comfort as the rain, sleet and snow lashed the window driven by icy cold winds. Had a bit of chat with myself as I seemed to take ages to get my gear together. We don't get the chose the weather on race day so being able to not let the conditions or other things going against us worm their way in as an excuse is important to practise.....positive thoughts.

Had this set on my watch but fupped it up by setting recoveries to .4 of a mile rather than .4 of a kilometre! Tried to compensate by not letting the HR drop too much on the recoveries but in truth I was working hard with the wind and cold. I just couldn't get warm as it started to sleet again on the second rep, luckily it stopped and I just focused on getting it done. The weather seemed to settle and wasn't as bad as expected, perhaps that was down to attitude.

Happy to get the first strength session in the bag. Felt easier than the speed work but not sure if the recovery being a bit longer played a part.

sideswipe

Wednesday 12th Feb: 5 miles recovery @ 8:53 min/mi, HR 141bpm.

I've been adding these easy recoveries since the start to boost overall milage and I'm beginning to wonder if there's a stink of junk miles coming off them (see below).

Thursday 13th Feb: 8 miles Tempo w/wu & cd. Tempo pace: 6:50 min/mi, HR 176 bpm. Total miles 11.5 miles.

Not an ideal start for this as I got very little sleep, kid having sleep trouble caused by problems in school. Had to go in and try to sort out some issues with her this morning and felt drained afterwards and not in a great frame of mind for a tempo. Got the gear and got on with it. Same route I've been using but decided to run it in reverse so I'd face the wind on the way out rather than way back. Headed off into an 18mph headwind and up a long drag for the first 4 miles. The effort was up and didn't settle until I got to the halfway point were I'd left a drink and turned around. I was feeling quite over cooked at that stage and wanted to throw the toys out of the pram but managed to calm myself and grind it out.

Disheartening run tbh. Final 8 mile tempo before moving up to 9 next week. I'm still questioning my ability to hit the sub 3 pace targets but I guess everybody does when they have lofty personal targets. I will stick to plan with a few adjustments. The first being the above mentioned recovery run, I'll take the rest day next week to see if it makes a difference. The reality is I'm adding extra miles to the plan, even though there has been a doubling of the Tuesday SOS distance albeit at a slower pace. I definitely feel the extra 'Strength workout' miles of Tuesday in pretty horrible conditions were still in the legs- I suppose that's cumulative fatigue for ya. I've added longer warm up and cool downs, longer runs on non LR weekends and the recovery instead of rest on Wednesdays which may be unnecessarily adding to that fatigue and effecting the quality of SOS sessions.

ps I f**king hate the wind. Seen the forecast for the weekend and it looks like another garage of yellow and orange wind warnings:mad:

shotgunmcos

I often felt similar during the program. The MP miles felt tough. It's the cumulative fatigue. Headwind will make it harder. Look, you are hitting the paces. You are sticking to the plan. It's supposed to be tough. Take the easy days easier if need be. When you taper (and it's a short taper) you will still be questioning. On the day your legs will feel fresh. That's all that matters.

sideswipe

shotgunmcos wrote: »

I often felt similar during the program. The MP miles felt tough. It's the cumulative fatigue. Headwind will make it harder. Look, you are hitting the paces. You are sticking to the plan. It's supposed to be tough. Take the easy days easier if need be. When you taper (and it's a short taper) you will still be questioning. On the day your legs will feel fresh. That's all that matters.

Cheers M. It's gas how much I underestimated the Hanson plan because of the lack of 20/22 milers. Not as nervous about not doing those longer runs at this stage as hitting all the other sos stuff is challenge enough.
Appreciate the input.

sideswipe

Friday 14th Feb: 7 miles easy @ 8:43 min/mi, HR 143bpm.

Took this very easy as I was still feeling the effects of the tempo. In truth I felt pretty good and enjoyed the run in nice calm conditions.

Saturday 15th Feb: 8 miles easy @ 8:13 min/mi, HR 151bpm.

I was once more tempted to hit the treadmill but decided to embrace the suck and head out. The weather always looks worse from behind the glass and I enjoyed the run. Ran quicker than intended but it wasn't a day for running too slow. Hot tub and compression boots for 30 mins afterwards to try and freshen the legs up afterwards.

Sunday 16th Feb: 16 miles LR @ 7:16 min/mi, HR 161bpm.

Longest run of the plan, weird even typing that. Legs felt good as I headed out into the wind once more. The route was pretty lumpy and had mix of tail/cross/head winds. Tried to run by feel and eased back on the ups and pushed the downhills. Felt strong for this and could easily have kept going at the end which was a nice feeling after the thought tempo on Thursday.

Happy with a another decent week. 67 miles and 3 quality sessions. Slacked off with the S&C as I only got 2 half hours sessions in. Have done well with the recovery in terms of nutrition, hydration, some self massage and epsom salt baths.

It's 10 days since I've eaten meat which is something I said I'd trial after watching Gamechangers on netflix, well worth a watch. I've not found it difficult to be honest, do I feel any better on runs or in general? Hard to say, it's been a case of good session, bad session, good session. Will keep it going for a while anyway.
I've felt tired all week but sleep has been s**t so that's a big focus for this week.....he says on the laptop at 11pm on a school night:o

sideswipe

Monday 17th Feb: 6 miles easy treadmill @ 7:40 min/mi, HR 135bpm.

Legs were a little tight so did 20 mins foam rolling and ran easy on the treadmill before jumping into an epsom salt bath. Used the Hypervolt massage gun to give the calves, hamstrings and gluten some tlc.



Legs felt like I was walking on clouds afterwards. All the extra time I've invested in recovery has been well worth it. Yes it takes up a lot of time but I really feel the legs are benefiting.

Tuesday 18th Feb: Hanson strength session #2.
4 x 1.5 miles off .5 mile recovery @ 6:39 min/mi avg per split, HR 165bpm.

Did this at lunchtime as I was busy all evening. Sitting in the car before hand was like being in a car wash, couldn't see out the window for the sheets of sleety rain being driven by the now ever present wind. Tried not to think about it and just got out, pressed the pre set workout on the watch before leaning into the wind and rain and shuffling away from the warm comfort of the car.
A mile and a half into the warm up and I pressed the lap button and got to it. Wind was from the side so not too bad, legs felt surprisingly springy, all the TLC from the night before was noticeable. Finished the first one feeling strong and jogged the recovery before the watched beep again for what should have been number 2 but the watch said 'Cool Down'.........I'd fupped up programming the session onto the watch for the second week in a row! Restarted the workout for each rep to ensure the distances were correct ad generally got through them feeling good. Happy with the session in woeful conditions again.

Did an hour S&C in the evening after getting home earlier that anticipated and stuck on the compression boots on for 30 mins.

Run streak stands at 62 days. I'm taking today as the first rest day since the 18th of December. In the past I've built up streaks of 3 and 4 months and at times ran when a rest would have been more beneficial to overall training. Breaking the streak today is strategic........plus I need to make sure I keep my OCD in check. Even writing that makes me a little uneasy, there is something deep within that wants to go for a run today to keep the streak going!

sideswipe

Wednesday 19th Feb: Rest day!

Thursday 20th Feb: 9 mile Tempo @6:56 min/mi, HR 176 BPM.

Another tough run. Felt more sluggish after the rest day which was weird. The wind was a joke, freezing cold and started off in the rain, found it hard to get going. Had a rain jacket on which I intended on ditching when I got warm.....I never did. The jacket was acting like a parachute in places. Had to forget about pace and run by effort which was high. I keep thinking one of these tempos will be easy at some stage but the fatigue is really biting now. Got through it anyway. Wrecked this evening and hadn't the heart to do the intended S&C session. Lots of lads I know doing a local 5k tonight, it's been a bit of a downer watching all the auld activity feed on strava with the PBs rolling in, feel like i'm training my ass off with no visible payoff. I suppose its all about the long game, miss doing a few races though, if I were to do Hanson again I'd definitely schedule in a few races for the head if nothing else.

sideswipe

T-6 weeks till D-day.

Need a big 5 weeks if I'm going to get close to the target. After the tempo last week I was in a bad mood all evening. I had resigned myself to adjusting the target feeling sub 3 was a step too far for me. The inner debate/excuses of far from ideal conditions with the wind and legs that were unrecovered from a build up of sessions swirled in my brain. Had a durty take away and a bottle of wine on Friday evening and stopped feeling sorry for myself. I'll keep the head down and give it everything I've got for the next few weeks and see where I'm at then.

Ideally I'd like to shift some weight too, it's holding steady at 78kgs but its hard to stay fuelled for the sessions and lose weight at the same time. Sleep has improved greatly helped by picking up a book rather than the phone or iPad in the evenings. Got 2 S&C sessions in this week as well as some epsom salt baths and, foam rolling and using the compression boots. Drinking plenty of liquid and the bottle of wine and take away aside have been doing every thing possible in terms of running and non-running to give myself the best shot possible come race day.

Friday 21st Feb: 6 mile Easy @ 8:22 min/mi, HR 142 BPM.

Just another easy run in windy conditions. Legs felt good after Thursdays tempo and the HR seemed low enough. The same paced easy run the day after a 7 mile tempo 6 weeks ago had a HR avg of 150 bpm so perhaps thats a sign of progress.

Saturday 22nd Feb: 10.5 mile Easy @ 8:23 min/mi, HR 145 BPM.

Felt weird to have a weekend 6 weeks out from a marathon and have a weekend scheduled with 2 x 10 mile runs easy! Blowing a gale again for this and got it done. Headed up into the Wicklow mountains after in search of snow with the family and ended up walking 5 miles. Did an hour S&C while watching the football in the pm.

Sunday 23rd Feb: 12 miles easy @ 8:10 min/mi, HR 146 BPM.

Beautiful morning for a change but was on daddy day care duty till lunch time so ended up out in the garden trying to tackle the mess of leaves, branches and other people recycling all the wind has left. Met up with a club mate which was a nice change and the miles tipped by nicely. Was supposed to be 10 miles but wasn't paying too much attention and ended up running 12. The wind reared it's head again over the last few miles to remind us it hadn't gone away.
Decent week........on to the next.

Singer

You're doing great. The weather isn't helping at all, but the consistent training you're putting in is. Maybe feel free to take it easy on the S&C over the next few weeks and focus on the running.

sideswipe

Singer wrote: »

You're doing great. The weather isn't helping at all, but the consistent training you're putting in is. Maybe feel free to take it easy on the S&C over the next few weeks and focus on the running.

Cheers B. The weather has been tough alright, just hoping this virus malarkey doesn’t put all the hard work to waste, things could get serious pretty quick!
Interesting you’d recommend stepping back from the S&C. I Really feel the legs are stronger than previous training blocks....then again running in the wind of late has been a strength session in itself!

shotgunmcos

I did S&C during the program. As the cumulative fatigue set in, it evolved from more S to more C to just stretchy easy yoga

sideswipe

shotgunmcos wrote: »

I did S&C during the program. As the cumulative fatigue set in, it evolved from more S to more C to just stretchy easy yoga

Yeah I think it's getting to the 'less is more' stage with the S&C. I have to say though, I do feel the difference on some of the harder sessions. Will definitely try to put more focus on it in the future. Was also looking at some of the activation videos posted on Mellow yellow's log, some great stuff there to take on board.

Might as well update while i'm here!

Monday 24th Feb: 8 miles easy @ 8:19 min/mi, HR 144 BPM.

Just miles in the cold and wind again. I'm at that stage in the plan when runs that aren't sessions seem to blur together. Legs felt relatively rested after a weekend of easy running.

Tuesday 25rd Feb: Strength workout: 3 x 2 miles of 800's.

Splits:
1. 6:26 min/mi avg, HR 169-177 BPM.
2. 6:33 min/mi avg, HR 175-178 BPM.
3. 6:30 min/mi avg, HR 171-177 BPM.

This was always going to be a challenging session. Did it on the way home from a meeting and sat in the car yet again as rain, sleet and snow swirled around with strong winds shaking the car...... It really has been a tough period for marathon training. I've tried my best to use it as a way to mentally toughen up but Tuesday had me actually laughing out load at how horrendous the weather outside the car was. Psyched myself up and got to it, I was already soaked by the time I'd locked the car.

The adrenaline was up a bit and the warm up was done under 7:30 pace. Pressed the lap button and got stuck in. Had to leave the rain jacket on and with the conditions it was had to monitor the pace on the watch so just tried to dial into where I thought I should be. Looked at the watch after the first rep and was slightly worried it was too fast at 6:26ish pace with 6:40 the target. Eased back on the second rep at the sleet eased....6:33 pace seemed better. Was feeling strong as I took off into the third set. I'd done the recovery towards a huge black curtain of cloud that was approaching to unleash another round of misery. massive €2 coin sized flakes just started to pelt down as the watch beeped, I turned to do the rep in the other direction, running back out of a full on blizzard and then trying to stay ahead of it. 6:30 pace for the final two miles. Felt strong at the end and delighted the session was in the bag. The feeling didn't last long as I turned to jog back to the car through the wintery mix that had caught up with me. 10.6 miles total
Epsom salt bath and compression boots later in the evening. Gave myself a pass on the S&C.

Wednesday 26th Feb: 5 miles recovery @ 8:43 min/mi, HR 141 BPM.

Had a physio session at lunchtime. Legs felt good after that. Only one slight niggle that needed looking at, a slight tightness in my right hamstring. A bit of painful elbowing and fingering:o seems to have nipped it in the bud. Have some exercises to do to keep it in check.

Ran a few enjoyable windfree miles during club training...... why does it always seem to be better weather on non session days?


Thursday 27th Feb: 9 miles tempo @ 6:52 min/mi, HR 175 BPM.

The wind was back, this time with extra chill! I changed location form the usual tempo route to a looped park (home of Shanganagh Parkrun). It made a change from the long drags into the wind making the windy sections shorter to give some relief and stop the heart rate drifting. It also meant that the pace on my watch was all over the place, not helped by the tree cover. I was starting to get anxious looking at the watch and seeing 7 min/mi + on the screen even though I was working hard. In the end switched to heart rate screen and ran off effort. Good bit of weaving for extendable dog leads and buggies. Happy with the effort, would love to be running 5 seconds faster per mile for the same effort but think with rested legs and better conditions I'd feel better.

Did an hour S&C in the PM followed by 20 mins in the hot tub and 30 mins in compression boots while googling alternatives to Manchester if the Corona virus scuppers my plans there. Possible options- Tralee, Limerick or MCI's 24 hr event in UL which has a marathon distance race, 26 and a bit lap of a trail in UL:eek:

Laineyfrecks

Your hardwork, determination & consistency is amazing especially in this weather!

sideswipe

Laineyfrecks wrote: »

Your hardwork, determination & consistency is amazing especially in this weather!

Cheers. I would consider myself to be a good trainer but a bad racer. I've yet to put together a great training block topped off with a well executed race. Hope to put that right soon, body, weather and COVID-19 permitting!
The last time I put a really good block together it was in similar challenging weather, cold, snow, wind etc. Got to the start line in London and it was 24 degrees at the start line, died a death that day!

Laineyfrecks

sideswipe wrote: »

Cheers. I would consider myself to be a good trainer but a bad racer. I've yet to put together a great training block topped off with a well executed race. Hope to put that right soon, body, weather and COVID-19 permitting!
The last time I put a really good block together it was in similar challenging weather, cold, snow, wind etc. Got to the start line in London and it was 24 degrees at the start line, died a death that day!

Well i really hope this time is different for you because the hard work deserves to be rewarded!

sideswipe

Friday 28th Feb: 7 miles easy @ 8:33 min/mi, HR 144 BPM.

Went out at lunchtime and it became obvious within a couple of miles I was wearing way too much. From zero degrees the day before the temp was up to 12 degrees.....still windy though. Just easy unremarkable miles.

Saturday 29th Feb: 9 miles easy @ 8:05 min/mi, HR 148 BPM.

Dropped my daughter to her horse riding lesson and got in some easy miles before Jorge hit. Weather was grand, getting used to the wind. Have a Stryd footpod since I was in the US, have started using it lately. Very interesting to see the wind effect graph and the difference it makes to power output. Just wearing it to allow it to get to know my stats before drilling down into the numbers and perhaps using it during runs to ensure I'm running in easy, recovery etc.

Sunday 1st March: 17 miles LR @ 7:13 min/mi, HR 162 BPM.

Down in the in-laws after driving through the worst of the storm on Saturday, pretty hairy on the M8 in spots, my shoulders were pretty tense after fighting the stirring wheel for 2 hours on the way down. Late night and bad sleep had me up early. Had breakfast and availed of a lift to run back to the in-laws avoiding looking to make up miles around town. Drove through snow showers and eventually jumped out (after planting a drink at the half way point). Hard to start into LR pace from cold but lashed into it as I tried to warm up. Miles passed by nicely, views of the snow capped Galtee's was spectacular. Felt strong and was happy that the heart rate seemed low enough although it did pick up as the wind returned from nowhere. Got to 16 miles under 2 hours and decided to add 1 for luck to bring me over the 2 hours and making the weekend total 26.2ish miles:o #OCD

Epsom salt bath and compression boots for 30 mins after driving home had me feeling like I hadn't run a long run at all.

Good week. Weight down to 77kgs. Legs feeling good and responding well to proper refuelling after sessions as well as the S&C plus TLC. Will ease off on the S&C a bit and add more foam rolling in the week ahead. Sleep has been bad again, not helped by reading commentary on COVID-19. It's strange to have the feeling my training is coming together while simultaneously seeing the strong possibility of the event I'm training for being cancelled. I was positively pissed off on Friday but have decided to keep the head down and see what happens for now.

sideswipe

The days and runs seem to blend and blur together. The reward for a productive week is doing it all again. Harder, faster, further. Welcome to peak marathon training.

And so another week begins. Five weeks to race day and into peak training. I feel the next few weeks could make or break my race. In the past marathon training cycles I've been guilty of drifting along at this point. I haven't given due attention to this important period to make it count, another 3/4 weeks and It'll be a case of maintaining and tapering rather than gaining fitness, of course there will be plenty I can do then to make sure I give myself every opportunity to hit my goal but I still feel the next few weeks is crucial.

The whole point of this log was accountability for going all in and looking for every possible percentage gain to help on race day. In the past I've drifted along in a bit of a daydream and only woke up when I'm too close to race day to effect real adaptations. With that in mind my focus has been on all the areas I can think of: Diet, hydration, sleep, recovery, strength & conditioning, physiotherapy as well as the actual training miles. I've managed to satisfactorily tick all those boxes and hope to double down on them till race day. Sleep has still been a problem, it has improved but could be better I started using these after see some good reviews-





Not sure if they'll make any difference but worth a try anyway.

And the miles keep rolling by.......

Monday 2nd March: 7 miles easy @ 8:52 min/mi, HR 141 BPM.

Very easy with a club mate. Nice to have company for a change, miles ticked by nicely. He was due to do Bohermeen but can't make it and offered me the entry, am tempted to drop the 9 miles tempo on Thursday and go and give it a lash but a large part of me wants to stick to the plan. Decisions, decisions......
Garmin told me this run was unproductive. VO2 Max at 56 where it's been for ages.

Tuesday 3rd March: Hanson Strength 2 x 3 miles off 1 mile.

Splits:
1. 3 @ 6:33 min/mi avg, HR 163-175 BPM.
2. 3 @ 6:35 min/mi avg, HR 167-174 BPM.

Got out at 5pm in the sunshine with no breeze, even a smell of fresh cut grass as I ran down the road, finally training for a spring marathon in spring weather.
Had the watch set and just got into it after 2 miles warm up. Both reps ended up a bit fast seeing as they are supposed to be MP -10 seconds so should be 6:40ish per mile. I was happy enough with them though and have felt strong running the strength workouts so far. I've found the hard part is then running 9 miles at tempo pace 48 hours later.

Didn't do the S&C after but used the compression boots and hot tub followed by some light hamstring stretching as it was a little tight towards the end of the session.

sideswipe

Wednesday 4th March: 5 miles recovery @ 8:50 min/mi, HR 147 bpm.

Easy run with a club mate who wasn't doing the session because of Bothermeen. Great to have company again although the HR is definitely when running and chatting. Was weighing up the pros and cons of doing the half myself but decided I wouldn't as it would mean dropping the Thursday tempo and possibly having a knock on effect on next Tuesdays strength workout. Miles ticked by nicely and had an epsom salt bath, 30 mins compression boots and light stretch of the hamstrings which I've felt were tight lately.

Thursday 5th March: 10 miles Tempo @ 6:47 min/mi, HR 169 bpm. 14 miles total.

This was supposed to be the final 9 mile tempo but I had made a pretty big decision about the goal race overnight. I booked the Balbriggan Marathon which is a low key East of Ireland marathon club race. It's 6 days before Manchester so I've rejigged the plan to suit. I just feel 90% sure Manchester will not be going ahead. The numbers in Balbriggan are small so it has a much bigger chance of happening. Things are getting more serious by the day and it's starting to feel quite petty spending time fretting about a race when there are far more important things to be concerned with. On the flip side I've put a lot of effort in and am starting to feel things click.
Balbriggan is a lapped course which will be a different challenge, not sure about the profile but will try to run it before hand to try it out. Of course there is still a chance racing will be off the menu if thing continue to escalate in which case I suppose it will be the least of my concerns.

The run itself felt like a breakthrough. It seemed like I was running in perfect conditions for the first tempo run of this training block. That following on from a good nights sleep had me not second guessing my sanity getting out of the car without the usual wind, sleet and rain to get stuck into the session. 2 miles warm up and off I went, tried not to pay attention to the watch as it was an uphill start and generally just tried to settle into the effort which I've become accustomed to. Had a drink left out so I could practice fueling a bit. If I am doing Balbriggan I'll have the advantage of having the opportunity to place drinks for myself which can be availed of every lap. Grabbed a drink 5 k in and saw the pace was up on the Garmin PacePro I'd set on the watch (6:50 per mile) I was more interested in the HR which was way down on previous weeks, lack of wind? Fitness improving? I didn't care as I got on with it and ran at MP for the first time feeling it could possibly be race pace. The heart rate ended up 10 bpm lower than a month ago which is positive. Just hope I get to build on it and make use of it now. 14 miles Total

PM Hot tub using a massage stick to roll out the legs followed by compression boots had the legs feel good. Part of the rejig involves doing the final 16 @ LR pace this weekend so hopefully I'm not asking too much of them.

AuldManKing

I done the BB HM last St Patricks day - its an 'undulating' route (if its the same route x2?)

I'd be incorporating some hills at RP if you are going to be doing this.