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Confessions of a never has been.....
Comments
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shotgunmcos wrote: »Lads practice hollow rocks and basically use that upside-down position for your plank. You will engage your core and protect your back
What the fcuk is hollow rocks, a posh estate in Limerick
TbL0 -
shotgunmcos wrote: »Lads practice hollow rocks and basically use that upside-down position for your plank. You will engage your core and protect your back
Had a quick look and this looks familiar, pretty sure its part of the Pilates routine I do0 -
15.11.2020
Thursday
Had agreed to meet a work pal for a few miles in St Anne's, what a strange feeling meeting a work colleague face to face after so many months working from home. Good chatter around the trails.
7 miles at just over 9 min miles
Core work after
PM - 3.2 miles with a few strides thrown in, I was tired heading out for this to be honest, late enough in the day for me but as always, the strides waken things up nicely
Friday
Working out west again today so headed to Corkagh Park for an hour or so nice and easy. Ground was fairly $hite underfoot so lots of slip sliding around the place
PM - another 3 miles nice and easy with some core work after
Saturday
Up and at it for this mornings session, which was essentially an hour's progression down to 160 BPM which is just over marathon effort in theory.
The wind was blowing hard on the coast and St Anne's was busy so I was torn between running this in the park or out on the coast and more exposed to the wind. In the end, I started in the park then headed out onto the coast, got blown around a bit, looped around Fairview for some shelter then got blasted again over the last mile.
Spotting a trend with the increased focus on HR. Morning steady runs are always slower, the HR is always higher so I get less pace return than I do on the evening steady runs.
The weather wouldn't have helped of course but I'm pretty sure the same would be true even if it was a calm morning.
Anyway, bit of a blowy session, pace went from 7.30 or so down to 6.55 and then slipped back to above 7 min pace when the wind picked up again.
154 - 160 BPM, sneaking into 161 a little over the last mile ( I was really up against a good gale here to be fair)
11.5 miles for the day (with warm up\down)
Sunday
Out and at it for 10 this morning, feeling a little groggy after a late enough night (for me).
Headed out to the causeway, then along the coast and up the kilbarrack road, down to Raheny and into St Anne's ...then on home
Felt awful starting off but felt much better and stronger as the run went on, finishing feeling like I could have gone on for a good bit more. Over the years, these long runs have always held a bit of a fear factor for me so finishing feeling good is a positive sign.
Just shy of 15 miles in 2 hours
A really good week in the bag, lots of core work, strength work, pilates, 2 good solid sessions, a solid long run and just over 80 miles which is the highest I've managed for quite a while.
Onwards !0 -
fair play on the mileage DD.
Is this (additional mileage) something that you are influenced by in that book you're reading? or just enjoying the running? (or both)0 -
AuldManKing wrote: »fair play on the mileage DD.
Is this (additional mileage) something that you are influenced by in that book you're reading? or just enjoying the running? (or both)
The book and some additional Lydiard resources I've come across, A. I'm not really aiming for miles in as much as 10-11 hours running per week during this phase, with an increasing amount at the higher aerobic end.
There were definitely one or two times when I didn't feel like heading out the door but overall, I'm enjoying it and the body is responding well so far.
In an ideal world, there'd be less doubles and I'd have the time to get a couple more 10-12 mile runs in over one go but like most of us, life happens and we have to adjust.
I suppose the real test comes after 6\7 weeks with no "real speedwork" and how motivated I can stay to churn out 10-11 hours work every week0 -
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19.11.2020
Monday
Out at lunch for a sloppy run around the sloppy trails in sloppy St Anne's
A sloppy hour
S+C after
PM - Met FBOT for a few miles along the coast, all nice and easy, good chatter as always
45 mins or so
Tuesday
Back to St Anne's for 70 minutes on the grass, very easy but with some "light fartlek" thrown in
This is one of those vague terms you come across in Lydiard land, my take is that its something that should be a regular feature within the base phase and the "on" bits should be steady as opposed to hard...or at least should be short enough that you avoid any acid territory.
This was very unstructured, running steady\MP effort for 45 secs\1 minute with loads of recovery between ( sometimes up to 3\4 minutes)
Really enjoyed this one actually
Pilates after and then Physio in the evening
Wednesday
80 minutes steady - 149-154 BPM
"Windy Wednesday" was back, it was really blowing a gale outside when I started this, the route I picked would take me along the coast (with the wind) for 1.5 miles before heading up the drags into the wind and Raheny, back down to the coast, with the wind again for a bit and then up a long, drag with the wind in my face for most of it to the Malahide road.
Down the Malahide road, into the wind before turning onto the coast and finishing with the wind at my back.
This was not easy but it was enjoyable, found a very good stride pretty soon into the run and just got it done really, the drag from the coast up to the Malahide road was long and tough at times but the HR monitor keeps things honest and stops you turning it into a race, if the HR goes above 155, its moving towards marathon effort really.
The breeze over the last mile was crazy, I had to back off the pace a little to stop pounding the legs a bit too much. The one issue I have with this run is that its mostly on concrete.
Its a good honest route though
80 mins @ 7.04 min\miles0 -
26.11.2020
Thursday
8 lunchtime miles, St Annes on the grass to aid recovery, all easy
PM - S+C and then 3 very easy miles, using the floodlit pitches in St Anne's for a fair bit, this was a bit of a tired slog but I felt refreshed after
Friday
Met AMK for a few miles in the PP, he acted as tour guide for me again, I'd never run down along the liffey just outside the park before, good chatter, nice run.
7.4 miles
PM - pilates and then just over 3 miles with some very short hill sprints ( with my youngest). This was fun, nice to have her to chase for the 10 seconds or whatever
Saturday
4x15 mins progression - working from 150 or so up to 160 BPM each time
Nice run, HR a little elevated as I've come to expect in the morning, ran this in St Anne's for the first bit then moved out onto the coast for the rest.
160 BPM was getting me 6.30 pace for the first section but then just under 7 minutes when coming back along the coast into the wind.
It really does take discipline not to try to hit a pace when the effort creeps up on a drag or into the wind, but then sometimes its also nice to relax and just focus on the effort.
Just over 12.5 miles for the lot
Sunday
Bit of a wooly head on me if I'm honest, a few drinks were had the night before, trudged around St Anne's and the coast for 70 minutes to close out the week.
Just over 10 hours for the week and around 75 miles. Body feeling good
Monday
Headed down to the trails on Bull Island for a bit before heading into the park for a but more, nice and easy all the way
8.6 miles
PM - met FBOT for some very easy miles along the coast, good chats as always. Just over 4.5 miles
Tuesday
Into St Anne's, started off very easy and gradually picked up the pace to somewhere in the higher aerobic range (purely by feel). Loved this run
7.1 miles
PM
Did a loop around Clontarf\Raheny (sadly on the concrete), 4.5 rainy miles
Wednesday
(AM Pilates)
That time of the week again, Wednesdays are becoming the focal point of my week, it is just steady running but in the absence of any real sessions, its the main event really.
Lovely evening for running, took in more or less the same route as the last two weeks but minus the wind. A couple of stops for traffic and bikes along the way aside, this was a very good run. I never really pushed the effort and felt strong heading up drags.
Finishing along the coast is always nice too
11.5 miles @ 6.58 pace, jogged home for the extra .75 miles0 -
Hey, hope you don't mind me asking a question here. Just wondering about the pilates, do you follow a youtube video for this or something online?. I could do with introducing pilates a couple of times a week. Thanks.0
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Hey, hope you don't mind me asking a question here. Just wondering about the pilates, do you follow a youtube video for this or something online?. I could do with introducing pilates a couple of times a week. Thanks.
Not at all. One of the reasons I started logging again was to share what I've learned ( and am learning) about this kind of thing.
I have a video my physio (who also teaches pilates) did for me which I try to get done once per week and then I have a second routine which I found that works well on days when I'm short on time (physio also approves)
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=pilats+for+runners0 -
Duanington wrote: »Not at all. One of the reasons I started logging again was to share what I've learned ( and am learning) about this kind of thing.
I have a video my physio (who also teaches pilates) did for me which I try to get done once per week and then I have a second routine which I found that works well on days when I'm short on time (physio also approves)
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=pilats+for+runners
Perfect, thanks for that.0 -
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30.11.2020
another week down, 5 weeks in now and while the body is holding up well, no real niggles to speak of, I am tired - there I've said it, I'm tired as a write this. I shouldn't be surprised really, 80 odd miles a week is no joke, throw in the increased focus on S+C and that, nutrition slipped a little towards the tail end of last week (not really worried about what I eat, more about getting enough food into me).
I've noticed that I tend to be very lethargic at the start of most easy runs and finish feeling a lot stronger and more energised in general, bouncing along as opposed to trudging along in the early part of the run.
I had to drag myself out the door a couple of times this week, but glad I did within 10 minutes or so, Lydiard's base building is basically marathon training and that's how it feels alright.
Thursday
70 odd minutes around St Anne's - as above, trudging around to start with but moving quite well by the end
8.6 miles
S+C after
Friday
Working out west again this Friday so headed to Corkagh park at lunch for an hour or so, sloppy enough underfoot in places but picked the pace up about halfway through this and turned it into a bit of a steady effort run from there on, not quite pushing the pace, just relaxing into it and enjoying the run really
7.6 miles or so
PM - Pilates and then 3.2 very easy miles
Saturday
I was a little stuck for time today so had to sacrifice a couple of easy miles at the start of my planned 60 minutes progression.
The idea today was to gradually work down to around 6.40 pace and just hold that around the grass loops in St Anne's. Effort wise, it's probably a little hotter than most stuff I've done lately but a) the grass loops will do that and b) its still well within Aerobic range so fits in with the overall idea anyway.
Really enjoyed this one, a mile to start with along the coast, then into St Anne's, using the grass loop to avoid walkers, it was soft and heavy going underfoot at times but it had that XC feel to it which I always enjoy.
This was all about gradually winding the effort up to a level that I felt I was working but still with some degree of comfort, good workout
8.5 miles in 1 hour
2 miles easy to finish
Sunday
I was tired for this, no doubt about it - but headed out the door to run along the trails on Bull Island, had the place almost to myself which was lovely. Ran along the beach then for a couple of miles before heading back to land to finish up
Wrecked at the start, enjoying it by the end but kept the pace very easy all the way
14.5 miles in 2 hours
82 miles for another very good week0 -
Just read back over your log for Seville there DD. (That's what I've been reduced to now; reading other runners' marathon training build-ups!). That was some block of training you put in. I know you had some underlying things going on that reared their heads towards the end of the block and in the race itself, but have you given much thought to how you'll approach a block for London?Chicago? next year?0
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Glad it was of some use to you...Just read back over your log for Seville there DD. (That's what I've been reduced to now; reading other runners' marathon training build-ups!). That was some block of training you put in. I know you had some underlying things going on that reared their heads towards the end of the block and in the race itself, but have you given much thought to how you'll approach a block for London?Chicago? next year?
I think about it all the time, J.:pac:
I'll definitely change things next time around. I was putting in good strong marathon sessions on a Saturday (running 15,16,17 miles or whatever) or racing hard XC races, running for 18\20 miles+ on a Monday after work and running a hard speed session on a Wednesday (with a good group too).
Next time around:
- I won't stick to speed sessions each and every week and when I do run them, I won't run them at paces that I can't sustain during a race. I'm convinced now that I put my old bones under a lot of pressure in these sessions, flooding the system with lactic etc and struggling to recover.
- I won't hold myself to having to run 2 big runs each week, I think there is definitely room for it but not week after week with a speed session put in there too.
- I didn't really structure the block in any traditional sense, I just knew what I needed to run to get marathon fit and probably just did too much of that...while racing a fair bit of xc along the way.
- I dropped any real S+C sessions which could well have saved my bacon in the end
I actually really enjoyed the whole thing though and landed myself at a place where I was very fit....my body just couldn't handle the load in the end so I'd be a fool to do the same thing again.
In short:
- I plan to go into the next marathon block with a huge aerobic base and a much stronger frame (through S+C)
- I won't run any real speedwork from 6-8 weeks out but will put in a solid long hill phase just before that
- Long slow runs will still feature but only where they work
- Very similar longer sessions but starting these a little earlier in the plan and building them in MP specific duration along the way
- Less racing
- I would hope to spend a good few weeks running a similiar structure to the one I have right now (except the longer runs would need to be getting longer)
As you can see, I've given it some thought !0 -
08.12.2020
A busy week has flown by yet again.
Last week was a bit of a struggle time-wise, I knew by Wednesday I wouldn't quite get the same mileage in as the previous week but it would still be pretty good.
No niggles, a little tired which is understandable.
Monday
AM - A very easy hour around St Anne's, slopping around the trails.
Just under 7.5 miles
PM - S+C and then 4 very easy miles with FBOT along the coast, always enjoyable.
Tuesday
The now usual light fartlek run around St Anne's, never pushing too hard on the "ons" and making sure there is lots and lots of recovery on the offs.
I really enjoy this run, the first couple of surges are always a bit of a shock to the system but once you get into the flow, its enjoyable. The on sections aren't long enough or fast enough to go lactic so while they can get fast, they aren't hard.
7.5 miles for the lot
PM - S+C and then 4.4 easy miles .
I'm finding it hard enough to get out the door for the second run midweek, the cold, dark evenings scream "stay on the sofa" but sure once I'm out I'm grand of course.
Wednesday
12 steady, same route as last week but maybe a little more wind this week. These runs are turning into a kind of progression run which is probably no harm, I do like to keep the HR in the low 150s which is very safely aerobic but also like to take a few miles to get there.
On this run though, the HR shot right up into 162\3 for the first mile or so, which was odd, it didn't feel anything like that - maybe a contact issue on the strap?
Anyway, it settled then and hovered around the 149-151 range. The drags are draggy and into the wind but once you hit the coast for the last few miles, the temptation is really there to put a squeeze on.
12 miles at 6.59 min\miles (150 BPM average)
+ an easy .5 mile to finish
(Pilates in the AM)
Thursday - 70 odd minutes very easy around St Anne's
S+C in the PM
No time to get out in the evening
Friday
Last minute decision to head to the PP, in the lashing rain, horrible, freezing first couple of miles but of course, it turned into one of the nicest runs of the week
7.4 miles
no time for a run in the PM
Saturday
Easy 70 minutes around St Anne's, stuck for time today so rather than compromise the session, I pushed it till Sunday.
No time to get out in the PM, got some core work done though
Sunday
Good session lined up for today.
2 miles ON, 1 mile OFF - ON being marathon effort, off being an honest easy pace (not trudging along) for 9 miles
No heart strap for this, just learning to run by feel again really.
2 miles easy to St Anne's and then I got started, looping around the park before heading out onto the coast towards Howth.
Found myself really settling into a good stride on the faster sections and naturally speeding up towards the end of the off sections.
On miles were anywhere from 6.33 - 6.52 ( need to work on that consistency). Off was in and around 7.40 ( I will increase this over the next few weeks).
ran an extra steady mile at the end just because I could really and I was enjoying the run.
A good session, the kind of run that will replace the slower 2 hour run in 6-8 weeks for a period of time
1.5 miles easy to finish with 13.5 miles for the lot and 74 miles for the week0 -
That Sunday session is a "lovely" one. Luke had those mixed in every second week in place of my long run. 10 miles alternating (1.5 @ 6.40/1 @7.10) . Really found a huge benefit from them. With WU and CD it was 14M all in. Found them tough though.0
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Swashbuckler wrote: »That Sunday session is a "lovely" one. Luke had those mixed in every second week in place of my long run. 10 miles alternating (1.5 @ 6.40/1 @7.10) . Really found a huge benefit from them. With WU and CD it was 14M all in. Found them tough though.
They're straight out of the Luke book alright, he had me run quite a few of those kinds of alternating tempos before I ran Berlin and like you, I really found them beneficial0 -
10.12.2020
A good start to this week, aiming for a step up in terms of mileage on last week and potentially the toughest week I've had in a while.
Something I am noticing is that while the body is generally tired (although nothing major), there are no aches or pains - no hobbling down the stairs first thing most mornings. Why? I would say strength work but then there is no real speedwork happening right now and I am leaning towards that being the major contributing factor.
Appetite is through the roof and for a skinny lad like me, I have to make sure I have food with me wherever I'm going, 2 breakfasts, dinner at lunch, chocolate spread sambos, smoothie in the afternoon, dinner in the evening and usually a bit of cereal before bed. Which is fine, but it does take a bit of planning and trying to get the balance right between getting enough food in and avoiding running steady runs with smoothies sloshing around in there is not easy.
Anyway, the week so far
Monday
AM - Just under 8 miles all easy around the trails in St Anne's, 65 mins or so
S+C after
PM - 4.5 or so miles around the coast loop
Tuesday
"light fartlek" day
This is a workout\session that isn't really a workout\session
Plenty of faster running but also lots of recovery and nothing fast enough or long enough to produce lactic
Quickly becoming my favourite run of the week.
I was a little stuck for time on this so it was just over 5 miles in total
PM - Core work then 6.5 miles around Raheny\Clontarf
Wednesday
weekly steady MLR
Horrible, horrible evening out and for a few minutes I tried to give myself an excuse (or two) to skip this one. The wind was up and the rain was coming down sideways.
In the end, I didn't really give myself too long to think about it, I just got changed once I finished work and headed straight out the door.
The coast was awful, I added a couple of extra drags into the route this week, ignored the HR for the first mile or two and got on with it.
Worked a little harder up the drags off the coast this week, taking in Raheny, Kilbarrack, Coolock, coming back down the malahide road was dicey enough with the wind blowing across my face but when I turned onto the coast road again for the last 2 miles, it was rough going, straight into the wind.
The last few times I've run this route, the wind was at my back for the last 2 miles and the momentum is there, this week, I had to back off the effort to keep the HR in the right zone.
A really good run in the end. 12 miles at 7.03 pace.0 -
14.12.2020
Thursday
Just over an hour around St Anne's at lunch, feeling sluggish at the start and picking up a bit by the end.
S+C later
Friday
Met AMK for a few miles in the PP, good chatter all the way around, solved society's problems between the two of us and finished up with 9.6 miles
Pilates in the PM and then out for just over 3 miles with strides, the strides were very much controlled and form focused.
Saturday
Another alternating effort lined up this week;
10 minutes on, 5 minutes off - on being in and around the 6.40 min\mile mark, off being anywhere around the 7.20\30 mark.
No HR strap for this, while its very helpful to monitor effort and progress, I don't want to obsess over it during these runs. I need to get better at judging real effort levels.
Similar route to last week, starting off in St Anne's, heading up the coast towards Howth then turning back into a nasty headwind.
All more or less on target, apart from the few miles on the way back, eased off slightly into the wind and let the pace slip back - to 6.50s for a bit.
A really good session all the same, almost 9 miles of working back and forth between efforts.
12.5 miles or so for the lot
Sunday
Tired heading out for my long run this morning, lashing rain and very windy too. I settled on heading across the east link towards Blackrock and back, by the time I got to the turnaround point, the rain was gone and the sun was out....and my jacket was a pain.
Pace started out very easy, picked up a little towards the end but stayed easy all the way - I hate these long easy runs, I always dread them but I also know that I need them
15.5 miles to bring the week to 85 miles in total0 -
17.12.2020
After 6/7 weeks of lots of miles, some solid efforts on Wed\Sat runs and a good dose of S+C, the next 2 weeks will be a bit of a step back for me.
It coincides with the silly season of course, which wasn't really by design but it works out fine all the same. I sat down to look through the last 7 weeks worth of training and realised that I hadn't taken a day off since starting this up either, which is not an issue really when there is an absence of intense speedwork.
Feeling tired at the start of the week but no niggles and sleeping well which is a positive.
Monday
Lunchtime - 45 mins very easy, no watch....felt rough at the start and came around by the end. (5.35 miles, guessing this really)
S+C throughout the day (broken into 3 10 minute sections)
PM - 4.53 miles along the coast, felt a hell of a lot better than earlier
Tuesday
Took the day off, Physio visit on the cards so just did some stretching and a little S+C
Wednesday
70 minutes steady this evening.
A different route than normal, to break it up a bit and I allowed myself to let the HR drift closer to marathon effort than I normally do, particularly over the second half. I think I've enough fitness banked now to allow me to push a little harder on these, the Lydiard system allows for it, so long as it stays aerobic.
Another honest route with plenty of drags but plenty of opportunity to free wheel back down too.
10.24 miles @ 6.50 min\miles0 -
Saw that ten miler on Steava and thought to myself there's no fear of you. I ran that a couple of months back and knew all about it.0
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Swashbuckler wrote: »Saw that ten miler on Steava and thought to myself there's no fear of you. I ran that a couple of months back and knew all about it.
ha ha - cheers P.
There actually was a little bit of fear beforehand, I tend to get a little anxious before the longer steady runs but I always know that once I'm 2\3 miles into them, I'm grand. enjoyed the run, I did feel it in the legs a little the next day though, maybe coming back down the hill to the coast did that.
I'll stretch it out to 12\13 miles before mid Feb hopefully.0 -
04.01.2020
Happy New year folks, here's to a brighter, race packed 2021. The thoughts of eating cakes, drinking tea and chatting to other runners post race is as big a motivator as the potential races themselves for me at the moment.
The last couple of weeks have really been a case of keeping things ticking over without sacrificing anything on the home front (I'll be doing plenty of that in 2021 I'm sure).
Runs of note:
22.12 - a decent light fartlek session around St Anne's, a very enjoyable run
23.12 - a very good steady to marathon effort run. Windy conditions, an honest route. The aim was to start out at an effort that kept me just below 155 bpm, so creeping towards marathon effort, then open up a bit more in the second half, allowing myself to sustain marathon effort for 30 minutes or so.
I was pleasantly surprised to find myself cruising along the coast ( the faster stretch of this route) with the pace hovering around 6.15\6.20 pace for 157 bpm after 50 minutes of running. I was tempted to kick on and see what I could muster for the last few miles but reminded myself that just because I felt I could run faster, it doesn't mean I should.
70 minutes @ 6.35 min miles (10.64 miles, the furthest I've gotten in the 70 minute sessions yet)
30.12 Just over 60 minutes steady out to Howth and back, a different run than the previous week in that I was staying away from MHR, a more relaxed effort. Didn't feel great on this one though, too much sitting and drinking no doubt. Just shy of 9 miles at 6.55 pace.
The thing about running these by HR is that it really keeps you honest, if you're slacking, the HR is too low, if you're pushing harder than genuine steady aerobic pace, the HR reflects that. There's no room for egos on these ones
This week will be a case of getting out late at night when its quiet, we've a COVID case at home which we're managing and running will be on the backburner until we're out of the woods there - which should be the end of this week.
Beyond that, it'll be a case of more of the same as the 8 weeks or so leading up to Christmas, gradually starting to push the pace again on the Wednesday session. That should take me up to the start of March where I'll look to time trial over either 10 miles or a half.
I am taking a lot of confidence from both how I felt on a couple of the recent Wednesday sessions and the return I got for the same effort so I'm sticking with building this base until I can see no more improvement there0 -
Sorry to hear about the COVID case D, I guess as the numbers rocket more and more of us will either have it or have a family member with it. Hopefully not serious and they have a speedy recovery.0
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Annie get your Run wrote: »Sorry to hear about the COVID case D, I guess as the numbers rocket more and more of us will either have it or have a family member with it. Hopefully not serious and they have a speedy recovery.
Thanks AM - not serious thankfully, just trying to break the chain of infections really0 -
14.01.2021
Last week was basically a case of laying low and tipping around for 30 mins at night when the roads were quiet. All good on the COVID front, a phone call from the GP confirmed that we were good to let the prisoner out by Saturday but to restrict our movements for another day or so.
So this week is about building some miles back up, working out the tightness in my hip flexors and throwing in a couple of light sessions.
Lots of S+C this week
Easy miles with 1 x fartlek (light) and a steady run of some description this weekend.
MOnday
45mins easy, St Anne's - place was destroyed with muck and slop but didn't wear the trail shoes as they're a little heavy on the legs right now.
PM - 35 mins along the coast, very tight across both hip flexors
Tuesday
Just over 50 mins including some light fartlek around St Anne's, enjoyed this and felt things loosen up with each passing "on' section
Wednesday
30 odd minutes at lunchtime around St Anne's
PM - repeat of lunchtime except on the coast
Thursday
Just over 40 mins around St Anne's - chanced the grass, slip sliding around for a bit, bumped into a young buck from the club and ran with him for a bit.
Amazing how when running solo, I can be focusing totally on how everything is so tight this week, hip flexors are still giving be grief (albeit improving) and this is a bit of a slog, fast forward 10 minutes, a bit of company and chatter and its an enjoyable run.
Target is to hit around 50 miles this week, bump it a bit next week then get back into higher miles for 8-10 weeks0 -
There's something about keeping a written journal of your training that brings a level of accountability (especially when self coached) and that can work for you or against you really. Numbers on Garmin or Strava don't really tell the full story a lot of the time, but words on paper (or a screen) can do just that.
As 2024 rolls in, I'm hoping to keep a semi regular log of training here. For a few reasons really - 1, it might help with the community element here (I may be wrong, but it seems to be flagging a little) and 2, I'm at a stage where I'm really enjoying training, really embracing the process for what it is and maybe sharing some of that process may help others pick up bits and pieces of info along their journey (I've made just about all the mistakes, folks) and lastly, I've tried writing a journal on my training (pen and paper) but I just keep losing notepads !
2023 was one of my more enjoyable years, running wise - lots of racing, in fact I probably just overdid things on that front at the expense of some much needed aerobic development.
I came out of the XC season pretty strong, with a solid base and that mental toughness that only XC brings, had some very strong runs in the spring and early summer, the much spoken about GIR would have provided a good PB if the course had been right and a 17.01 at Bob Heffernan was a surprise to me but maybe shouldn't have been.
Mistake number one last year was not running more 5ks actually, I've always said it "takes a few to get the hang of them" and yet, I left it at the one 5k race last year....I still don't know why, there was surely more to be gained with a bit more suffering over that particular distance.
An ill fated attempt at a PB in Dunshaughlin was enough to tell me that I needed to regroup and focus on training for a bit again, racing anything over 5k in the summer time can be a struggle for me, I do feel the heat but I also felt heavy legged and tired that evening, symptoms of too much faster work maybe, that dreaded acidosis that you hear about in podcasts, read about in books etc...
Achill 10k in July was great fun, a tough but beautiful course with a very fast finish, Fingal 10k was a bit of a box ticking excercise, I'd always wanted to run it, didn't enjoy the course though (too much twisting and turning over the last 2 miles).
August was more about holidays than training but by September I was dusting down the spikes again and making my way over to the PP most Saturday mornings to start to build for a winter of XC
A forced break from running in October meant that I arrived at the first couple of XC races very much underprepared, the Dublin Snrs was tough, Santry was swampy and heavy...I'd never seen it like that and the lack of recent training was found out. The nationals in Gowran was even worse, glue like, deep mud awaited just about every step for maybe 80% of the course. I don't think I've ever seen so many people drop out of a snr XC race.
What doesn't kill us makes us stronger though and by the time the Dublin Intermediates came around, I was approaching half decent shape again....hardened by the traumatic experience in Gowran maybe.
More sessions on the muck each Saturday since then, relying on the rolling hills of the famous Munich Loop in the PP to harden the mind and body without overcooking things while keeping in touch with trackwork each Wednesday ( I tend to run very controlled reps this time of year though, no crazy fast stuff).
Tom Brennan on New Year's Day was an effort to keep in touch with the roads over the winter and maybe a signal of intent for the year, run more 5ks - although it wasn't quite 5k on the day. The result? 17.38 on the clock but closer to 18 in reality, which is pretty solid for this time of the year for me. I made the very deliberate decision to run in an older pair of racing flats (no carbon stuff going on) which I really enjoyed actually.
I'm probably a little behind where I had hoped to be coming into the New Year but there are not quick fixes for that, its just a case of tweaking things here and there session and mileage wise and transitioning back to the roads in 6\7 weeks time.
For the year ahead, its a case of carrying on from last year, enjoying training, embracing the process, racing as much as I can and will hopefully pick up a PB or two along the way.
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Great to see you back logging pal. Best of luck with the year ahead
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Just when I thought I was out - I get sucked back in.
Fwiw - the Digital Diary aspect is huge - I find myself referencing Boards more than Strava/Garmin to see past training / how I felt / What was going on around me.
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Great to see this and I hadn't realised that you were self coached D.
Would be keen to know what aspects of your training you see as the fundamentals/non-negotiables that help to make it sustainable and progressive? Is that threshold, or easy days or S&C or all of it! or something else?
One thing I notice is that you do a lot of what I assume is very deliberate very easy running for your level, are you running in Zone 2 HR how do you govern that?
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That's the hope A - I had started a written journal, lost it, started another, lost it....and so on! There is something about the process of writing things that brings an accountability and a perspective that the data just doesn't give.
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Of course, S - I've been fortunate enough to have met some really smart people in\through the sport over the years, I've devoured just about every coaching manual\biography I can get my hands on and have my family tortured with various coaching or running related podcasts. I regularly help people out with their training (I'm loath to say "coach") and I suppose I've learned a lot through my own training too.
My approach now is pretty simple, there are nuances and finer details but its essentially;
1 - S+C, as one of the Raheny coaches regularly reminds me, its my passport to run....drop it and I won't be running well for much longer. It really is the one thing I can't skip, I missed 3 months during COVID and hated every second of not running\training, I vowed back then to never allow myself to train beyond what my body can handle and that all starts with S+C
2 - Aerobic base - Its no great secret really, easy miles, steady miles, MP miles, they all have their place and all do the same thing ( at different rates). Everything I do in training hinges on having a strong aerobic base to build on. For the past 2 winters, I've ran lots of easy miles (very easy), raced a lot of cross country and generally trained up and down mucky hills. I'm a huge believer in recovery miles being actual recovery miles, easy being actually easy so I do pop on the chest strap every now and then to keep myself honest in that regard.
Most of my weekend sessions have a heavy dose of threshold work (or just shy) + "something"
Over the winter months, I'll usually run without the chest strap but in the lead up to XC, I do run a bit of steadier paced miles....high end aerobic stuff, just shy of marathon effort (something that I'll start doing again from June of this year), the kind of pace that Lydiard would have had his groups running a lot of in their base building phase.
I can generally handle a lot of miles, so long as they're easy - I run a lot with others too so there's a social element to it all these days, so easy is usually very easy.
3 - Periodise - I generally work in patterns with a view to ensuring each block leads into the next and has a purpose (hills building strength for faster weekend reps, Cross Country stuff building that strong engine that just needs to be tweaked for a good racing period in the spring\summer, that kind of thing), no balls out speed stuff without the right supporting base etc
4 - Race regularly - I don't always get this one right, I regularly overdo it or even mess up target races\distances but I enjoy putting myself under pressure in races, its why we train
Aside from that, everything has a place at certain times, I run a weekly track session most weeks but do that at different intensities, depending on the session - its rare that I run anything faster than 10k effort but if the aerobic base is in good shape, then I'll do a few weeks of sharper stuff in the lead up to racing.
Lots of drills, lots of strides, I run a lot in racing flats because enjoy them, I love the sensation of hitting the ground and finding a stride + I just do not enjoy the carbon plated stuff at all, I'll race in them every now and then because I know the performance gains to be had there but even then, I suspect I'm one of those rare folks that doesn't respond very well to "the shoes", maybe some of the newer ones will do the trick in time.
I'm enjoying training, really enjoying it actually but my priority is very simply to keep the show on the road, that has to come first - recover well, race often and take care of the body
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08.01.2024
A solid week's work to kick off the month, albeit with a note of caution towards the end of the week.
Monday
Tom Brennan 5k (17.38 - short course, more likely just north of 18 mins)
Penciled this one in a while back to keep in touch with the roads over the winter months, a no pressure type of race just thrown in to see how I respond to running over the roads for a few hard miles - I haven't raced on the roads since July and haven't raced a 5k since last May (despite me saying it was a priority last year).
I've never done this one so I was looking forward to it, got to the PP nice and early with a pal who was coaching some people running.
After a good warmup with some strides and drills, I lined up with a clubmate who is in and around my level and off we went. The aim was to get out fast and hang on, even with the missed month or so, I'd be fairly confident that the strength had returned and that I could grit out a half decent 5k, despite the lack of specific prep. The first mile wasn't very encouraging, I felt like I'd gone out hard and yet I'd dropped off from the group I'd have expected to be around. No panic, no big deal, reel them back in over the course - which is a bit of a silly thing to think during a 5k, and shows the lack of racing over the distance really.
Anyway, before I knew it, we were headed into the second lap and while I was working hard, I was noticing that I just wasn't generating turnover very well, I was a little leggy, a little gaspy and a couple of glances at the watch told me that I wasn't actually moving very fast for the effort!
Pulling up to the last 800m or so, DH from the club was calling out times to people and I became aware of a young lad ahead of me who would generally be a few places back in XC, it didn't sound an alarm as such but when I couldn't catch him on the run in I did wonder why he hadn't been putting that kind of finish in over some of the club races.
17.38 on the clock for the lot - a bit of a blow out, 17.38 of hard work really (5.49 pace)...on a short course, 200m odd short apparently. I did raise an eyebrow in the postmortem at home but immediately after the race, the conversation centred around the people that had missed out on records, PBs and various milestones.
Got out again that evening for a bit of a recovery shuffle - 30 mins
13 miles all in for the day
Tuesday
S+C in the am, then a lunch run with a work buddy
5.8m
PM - 6.1 miles with M around the homestead
Wednesday
S+C in the am, lunch run with work buddy
7.3 miles
PM - Easy miles + drills and strides -4.5 miles
Thursday
Busy day at the office so had to cram a light hill session in while visiting Mammy D
7.4 miles for the lot, used a local railway bridge to to 12 x 40ish second hill sprints, feeling a little gassed by the end
Friday
S+C in the am
AM - 6.5 local miles on a WFH day, enjoyed these but took it very handy as the body was a little battered
PM - 5.5 miles with M around the area, skipped the strides that I'd usually do on a Friday
Saturday
Planned sesh:
10 mins @ 6.10-6.10, 60 seconds jog, 4 mins @ 5.55, 2 mins jog (times 3)
A very frosty and icy morning meant that underfoot conditions were going to be tricky for this so I wasn't too surprised when I couldn't quite hit the paces over the first few minutes of the session but when I got to a decent stretch of path, the pace still didn't seem to come down for me, despite working very hard. Having put it down to early morning tightness or whatever ( which, sadly, is more of a thing as I age!), I moved on to the 4 min section - decent stretch of path for this but I was working very hard to get anywhere near 6 min pace, is the watch off maybe?
I was 2\3 mins into the second 10 min section when I canned this one, it was silly carry on, busting a gut to get to threshold pace - which of course means its no longer a threshold session.
Anyway, things started to click afterwards and it turns out that my iron levels had dropped significantly over the last few weeks, which is nothing new for me - I've had this before, managed it well, know how to keep it at bay, but obviously got far too relaxed with things like coffee, tea, iron supplements etc. A handy home test from the chemist confirmed the low levels so its now a case of bringing the levels up, being sensible with training (and expectations more so) while I do that and of course, keeping those levels up.
Took Sunday off, did some S+C, watched the masters XC in St Anne's
62 miles for the week
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Glad you are logging again DD - theres a lot to take from your training.
Whats the home test kit from the Chemist?
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Can't remember the brand but its an over the counter job, finger prick, drop of blood into a covid test type thingy and it tells you if the count is low or normal, its fairly basic but enough to confirm suspicions. A coach we once shared used to measure iron stores actually, he was of the opinion (as are many) that we should be constantly monitoring it....but I'm definitely prone to it for whatever reason
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Great post, loads to digest there. Cheers D.
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Are you going to share how that coach suggested monitoring 'it'?
Oh wait, I'm thinking of a different coach. 🤣
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😂😂😂😂
that might be one to “take offline”, D
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11.01.2024
Not much to log really, the lack of iron in the system is really testing my priority of keeping the show on the road, I kind of want to do more but I know its pointless and counterproductive really.....keeping the show on the road means taking a breather and looking at the long game.
Booked in for a full blood count on Monday, that'll tell me what the situation is in numbers. Until then, its an iron tab twice a day with vit c, can't eat this, that and the other within 30 minutes of it. I took the chance to read back to 2017 when this last happened (thankfully I was logging then !) and there are so many similarities, the difference between then and now though, is that I was quick to suspect it this time. Back then, it dragged on for well over 6 months.
Anyway, running wise;
Monday - easy double
Lunchtime miles at work, around the docklands, ringsend and back to BB
PM - nipped out around Raheny\Clontarf in the freezing cold
Just shy of 9 miles for the day
Tuesday
S+C in the am
Lunchtime run with a work pal around the same route as Monday
PM- Met M for our usual Monday route of a Tuesday, spicing things up. Good chats as always, legs feeling a little heavy alright, a sure sign (with no real work done)
11+ for the day
Wednesday
S+C in the am
I arrange track sessions for a group in work each week, today was our first one back in 2024 and we'd a huge group heading down so rather than skip the session completely, I jogged down, ran a couple of reps and jogged around the track a bit
Kept the pace very sensible on the couple of reps I ran but even then, the lack of power and strength was very obvious.
Enjoyed jogging around all the same
PM - regular run with my eldest in the PP, she loves it at night there and there aren't many opportunities to hang out with her these days, I'll be hanging onto this particular run for as long as I can.
3.1 miles, verrry easy
8ish miles for the day
The rest of the week will be easy, maybe some strides but nothing resembling a session and much lower volume than usual.
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Hey some great info in your posts so far, have heard your name a couple of times from other great runners around here😉
Just in regards to the S & C stuff, can I ask do you do your own routine at home or is it gym/classes?
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Howdie! Its a combo of at home or\and in the office. I rarely if ever go to a gym to be honest (maybe I should!)
Its basically a lot of pilates type stuff really, bits and pieces I've picked up from the physio over the years, stuff I've found on youtube, it usually involves either holding positions that runners don't like holding (side planks, sitting into squats and moving weights around, that kind of thing)....or moving very slowly from one position to another, pressups, split lunges, even springing up into the air from a squated position. I've got some very funny looks from colleagues walking by the room I use in the office !
Its amazing what we can do with a resistance band and a kettle bell and our own body weight
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Cheers for that. I suppose its about finding what works for you & keeps you consistent! I'm great with staying consistent with my running but find I need a structured class to stick to S & C.
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15.01.2024
Not a whole lot of training going on this week, I'm more focused on rest, recovery, making sure I'm doing this right and and letting the iron levels come back up.
Thursday - off
Friday - Had a new pair of Takumi 10s arrive in the post so took the chance to take them out for 30 mins very easy with some nice strides thrown in. They're definitely a different feeling type of runner than the Takumi 8s that I have but I cant quite figure out what feels different, nice and light, felt good on the strides.
3.5 miles
Saturday
Met M for a lap of St Anne's bright and early, good chats all the way around and I'm already looking forward to reverting to some local loops when I'm back training fully. I spent a lot of time in the Phoeno over the winter and while I love it, logistically it takes a little work with a busy house etc.
Good chats with M about all things running related, he's in a good place which is always nice to see.
Light S+C sesh in the afternoon
Sunday - off
Took a rest day, even though it was the perfect day for running. Decided to tackle some unruly hedges with a trimmers. The trimmer weighed a tonne so I'm classing this as an S+C sesh
Just shy of 40 miles for the week
This week and next are busy in work so it'll be a case of easy, social running with maybe 1 light turnover focused session ( with long recoveries). From experience, I can work on turnover and form no problem while this thing fixes itself.
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It really is, time is the issue for me when it comes to S+C, I just can't make classes etc but during lockdown I made quite a few virtual pilates classes and picked up loads of stuff there
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18.01.2024
Full bloods taken on Monday so I'll have some numbers to work against in the coming days on the Iron\Ferritin front. Easier runs are feeling quite easy at the moment, but I always find that in the cold weather anyway so I'll keep the champagne on ice.
Monday
S+C in the am (light session) then a lunchtime trot from work with a pal who is stuck for a bit of focus this year, luckily I am not and was able to bore him into submission, he'd signed up for an autumn marathon by the end of the run.
Just over 5 miles and some good chats
Tuesday
S+C in the am
Out at lunch with 2 running buddies from work, good chats all the way. One of the lads has signed up with Emmet Dunleavy's coaching service so that'll be interesting to see this year, he's a quality runner but rarely runs with any sort of plan.
Just over 6 very enjoyable miles
Wednesday - no session today (frozen track but I wouldn't have done it anyway)
Light S+C sesh (bandwork)
+ with the PP closed, myself and my eldest headed southbound to Sandymount for our weekly Wednesday evening jog. Far too busy for her liking but we did get just shy of 4 miles in
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I do a jog along Sandymount coast and then a loop around by Merrion road and back to the coast again. Then you can get a nice hot coffee in the Insomnia in Spar on Bath avenue which is open 24/7.
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22.01.2024
Full bloods returned mid week, iron levels back in the normal range. Interesting that they came back so quickly, it either means that I did a great job in sticking to the rules while getting them back up, or that they weren't quite as low as I feared in the first place. I suspect the latter is true and I caught this fairly early.
Anyway, time to ramp things up again but still with the priority of keeping the show on the road.
Thursday
Took a new pair of Takumis out for a spin, with a view to running 9\10 x 1 min off decent recovery.
Felt a little leggy on the first one or two but by the middle of this one, i was holding back a little to keep things in the right zone. These were only 1 min reps but I really enjoyed the sensation of moving fastish again.
Loved the Takumis, a little stiffer than the 8s, relatively low profile, still light and springy without that crazy instability that the supershoes give.
Just over 5 miles all in
Friday
Nipped out into St Anne's in the late afternoon, don't remember much about this one - except that I enjoyed it. Just over 5 miles.
S+C before
Saturday
Early morning trot around St Anne's with M and C, C is in fine fettle on his way through his Seville plan, great to see it and it did give me a little bit of marathon FOMO for the first time in yonks.
S+C in the evening
5.5 miles
Sunday
Out before the wind got crazy bad to try a lightish sesh.
Tried out the new Brooks Hyperions for this, loved them. Light, quite firm underfoot but still some decent protection - reminded me of the old Adidas tempos that I wore in most of my marathons.
Plan was for 1-2-3-4-3-2-1 with 50% recovery time between reps.
Pacewise, I really did not want to go beyond threshold effort just yet - running the loop in St Anne's can be tricky in that regard though because the watch goes bonkers with the tree cover for quite a lot of it.
Focused way too much on the watch on this one, as opposed to just finding and holding an effort that was comfortably hard.
In the end, the paces were indeed all over the place - surprise surprise and I was definitely working harder than expected.
Paces ranged from 6.10-6.25, nothing spectacular but it does show the lack of anything quicker in the last 3 weeks or so.
I'm unfortunately not the type of runner that can just churn out good threshold runs off easy miles....it does take a little more practice for me to get back into the swing of things unfortunately.
Having said all of that, nice to be back doing some work again
Just shy of 7 miles for the lot
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25.01.2024
Ramping the volume and intensity up this week, not quite to where I would normally hover at this time of year, for two reasons - 1, I probably shouldn't do that anyway and 2, I can't, work is nuts this week.
The aim for the next 5\6 weeks is to top up the aerobic strength with good volume, a bit more XC, a pinch of steady state running and keep in touch with good turnover on the track (without pushing things too hard)
BHAA (Garda) and national masters\inters will be the next 2 races, both should provide good opportunities to push the button a bit and remind the central governor how to hurt.
After that, its time to start more sessions on the road again.
Anyway, back to this week;
Monday:
Lunchtime trot from the office, usual loop around Ringsend\Irishtown, blowing a gale out which had the HR climbing a little higher than I'd like.
40 mins or so
PM: out again from the office after work, more of a steady effort this time, I typically run these by HR and keep them shy of marathon effort (157/158 for me), tipped down onto the coast road at Sandymount from the office and just did an out and back. Nothing special here, left the HR at 147 or so which was getting me about 7.10 min miles, eased off then over the last 10 mins.
Another 40 mins for this one
Tuesday
Lunchtime miles with a pal from work, nice chats all the way, didn't see the miles go by on this one, despite the wind.
50 mins all in
Wednesday
Down to the track for the first real track sesh of the year for me.
Good group for this one, 25 or so from the office, 7\8 in the faster group too which was great.
Usual jog down to the track, drills and strides and then into
3x600, 1200, 3x600
Instructions were to be careful on the first 3 600s, then up the effort on the 1200, holding that for the second set of 600s
Felt good on this, great to have a group to work with. We held 5.55 pace(ish!) for the 600s, ran the 1200 at 5.37 pace then held 5.40 or so for the last set of 600s, pushing the last one a bit quicker
Felt very good on this, working but always in control and focusing on good form
PM - a beautiful evening for the weekly few miles with my eldest. Used the cycle lane on the causeway on Bull Island, then onto the beach for a bit.
Just under 40 minutes ( I think) for this one, very easy pace
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29.01.2024
The days and weeks are picking up pace a bit now that I'm back training (properly), last week was a bit mental on the work and home front so I didn't quite hit the mileage target and had to sacrifice a long run on Sunday morning - not a huge deal, I'm a good bit away from any real target races and have plenty under the belt from the winter so far.
This week sees a bit of a step-up on the Monday steady effort ( although still nothing special), the usual track sesh on Wednesday (controlled effort) and the BHAA 4 miler on Saturday.
Anyway, back to last week
Thursday
Met one of the lads from the club for our almost weekly trot around St Anne's, he's a good bit stronger than I am but thankfully he's on the way back from a stop\start couple of years with injury. Good chats made the miles go by nice and quick, stuck to the grass for most of it
Just under 70 mins for the lot
S+C in the afternoon
Friday
Nipped out at lunch and took in the trails on Dollymount before heading in for a lap of St Anne's on the grass. I love those trails, there are a few places in Dublin where you can feel like you;re a million miles from the city and this is one of them.
56 mins all in
PM: Met C for a few easy miles + strides along the coast, this is a weekly thing these days, very easy miles coupled with 6-8 strides at 80% effort, sometimes a bit more
36 mins for the lot
Saturday
Another mucky session planned for today. Essentially bolting 50% on to last week's sesh.
1,2,3,4,3,2,1 - 1,2,3,4 mins with 50% recovery (but with 70 seconds between sets)
Down to St Anne's for this, 2 mile warmup and got going after a few strides in the spikes. Underfoot still isn't great in the field so the aim here was really to hold a consistent effort across all the reps, its essentially a threshold sesh but its almost impossible to run an actual threshold session when the ground is like this, its so easy to overcook the shorter stuff and then suffer on the longer reps, threshold goes out the window.
Anyway, the effort levels suggested I was in and around threshold for most of this, maybe a tad over at times but I was quick to pull it back when I caught myself racing any sections.
Coffee and chats with M+C after
Sunday
No time for a long run today, 50 mins jog around St Anne's had to do me.
Total for the week was just over 8 hours running (around 60 miles)
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02.01.2024
Monday
Had hoped to double up today but had to settle for the single run in the rainy afternoon.
The second of 5\6 of these steady state runs, this one was a little longer than last week and I pushed the HR a little sooner in the run too.
Used a loop in St Anne's for most of it, to avoid the wind on the coast really. After a mile warmup I upped the effort to bring my HR into the low 150s space, which is a few beats shy of marathon effort (157\58). Held the effort pretty well for most of this, but I definitely felt a lack of conditioning on the road after 30 mins or so, a sign of work to do in the coming weeks\months
Finished up after 45 mins of this, hovering around 6.40\50 for most of it ( barring a quicker downhill mile)
Just over an hour inc warmup\down.
Light S+C after
Tuesday
Time was against me today so no S+C and just the 40 odd minutes of easy running to show for the day, out for dinner and a gig later in the day.
Wednesday
Dehydrated and a little sleepy for today's track session so when the coach told us that we had a bit of a mixed bag ahead of us for the session, I wasn't too fearful because I an generally get away with shorter reps when under pressure and am holding anything longer than 600m reps at a pretty sensible pace for the time being.
1200, 6x400, 1200
Instructions were to hold back on the first 1200 (lovely) then push on for the 400s (boo) before ensuring the second 1200 was quicker than the first (booo)
As it happens, I was lucky enough to have my session pal on the track today, tucked in behind him for most of it but did return the favour on some of the windy stretches - which was every time we hit the home straight, the wind was really an issue today.
1200 - 6.03 pace
400s all between 5.35 - 5.45 pace
1200 - 5.50 pace
No evening run today, eldest daughter wasn't feeling great so we just went for a spin in the car and listened to a few tunes.
Thursday
S+C in the early morning before meeting a clubmate for some easy miles around St Anne's\Dollymount. Lovely run, good chats and perfect running weather
Just over 1 hour 15 for the lot
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02.05.2024
Another good week down, starting to feel like I'm in solid strength building stuff now, albeit with the mileage\training hours just a little shy of where I'd like it to be.
This week brings more of the same really, controlled efforts, some high end aerobic\steady work with a tough XC race at the end. Good times
Back to last week;
Friday - met one of the lads from the club for an easy hour or so around St Anne's, good chats, time flies etc etc
S+C after
PM - Met C for some very easy miles + strides, again around St Anne's, enjoyed this one, opened up well on the strides, loving the feel of the racing flats underfoot
Saturday
BHAA Garda XC (4 miles)
This one came along at just the right time for me, I need to get some tougher efforts under the belt and the course around the famous Munich Mile loop in the PP provides just about everything you want from a cross country race, some tough hills, wind, forests, tight running and then more open running on acres side of the route.
I'd been torturing people in work to get a team entered for this one and thankfully we had 5 of us toe the line.
The loop itself is 1 small loop (which I believe is the original Munich Mile loop, open to correction on that one) before 2 longer loops where instead of coming back up the sharp hill onto the acres from the stream, you take a sharp (and what feels like a steeper!) right and follow the tree line up the drag to the top of the Khyber before swinging left back onto the acres, through the trees and onto the open stretch back down towards the hilly section.
Notably, that gives you 3 x drops right down to the carpark at the bottom of the magazine fort and 3 x climbs straight back up, a real leg burner.
After a decent warmup in the wind and rain, we got going in a near celebratory mood, this particular race is a favourite for many, it really is that good. I had chatted to the other lads beforehand and we knew we had a decent shot at winning the team prize here so the agreement was to start conservatively and work our way through the field.
I became aware pretty soon that either I was being TOO conservative or 3 of the other lads had thrown that idea out the window, in truth, it may have been a bit of both but I was sitting in 4th for our team and people around me were skipping ahead a little as we moved around the acres towards the start of the uneven section. I knew I'd be boxed in for a bit once we hit that section but I wasn't too concerned, there are plenty of overtaking opportunities on this course and I was confident that I'd be picking people off in laps 2\3.
First spin down the big hill was good craic, moving nice and steadily, nothing silly, letting the legs fall as opposed to forcing the pace (which is a mistake by the way), we swung around at the bottom and started the long climb back up, this is where it became clear that a lot of people had gone out too hard, I wasn't pushing the effort just yet, I was happy to just pick people off one by one on the way up the hill, one of them being a team mate, he's a strong runner, knew he'd be fine but I did mutter a few words of encouragement going by. The ground was very soft on the way up the hill so it was going to hurt on the next 2 rounds
Into the forest, still climbing before dashing down into the small valley by the Khyber and the ground was very soft here, sharp left up the tight hill and into longer laps
6.23 for the first mile ( I actually checked it, second mistake)
The first of the long laps was really a case of working my way through people when possible, notably on the more open stretches or on the long hils but I did find myself boxed in again on the tighter sections (200\300m at a time), I chanced a few glances around me to see where my team mate was (3rd mistake!), I could see the other 2 lads up ahead, maybe 6\7 places ahead of me. Lots of encouragement coming up the hill from the very bottom of the course and I was starting to enjoy this now, into the valley by the Khyber, over the soft ground and this time we took the sharp right to follow the route on the longer lap.
Mile 2 - 6.28
As soon as we hit the top of that hill, I was stuck behind a couple of lads who were struggling badly, there was just no room to get around them without going totally off the trail and risking an ankle roll. I decided to stay patient and wait till the top where it opened out more and then took off around them to chase the next runner ahead.
Once we hit the open space again, I really focused on opening the stride up and enjoying the freedom, I chased down another runner on the way past the start\finish area, I was moving well now, definitely working harder and racing.
Mile 3 6.14
Going into the final lap now, side by side with a lad who looked to be working hard but still moving well, my 2 team mates were running very strong races, I could see up ahead that they were gaining places too. The field was quite spread out now and I guessed that I was in the top 15 or so.
Down through the uneven ground, right down the sharp hill and started the long climb up for the last time, the course was cut up badly here now but I was putting in a little more effort and skipped ahead before pinning the ears back a little at the top. Great support again as we cut through the trees and out onto the Khyber side for the last time, no sign of being boxed in here - just 2 lads about 60m ahead that I was trying to close on all the way up the long drag
Around the drag and out onto open ground again, 300 or so to go and I was on my own really, I wasn't catching the lads ahead but there was nobody behind be either, I'd put in a good burst over the last 1.5 miles and deep down I was probably content to hold a good pace and finish good and strong
Mile 4 - 6.18
13th place (I think), first M45 and 1st men's team
Great craic was had afterwards with the crew, great to be back racing, albeit a race with a few errors on my behalf. A good strong effort as part of a full training week should never be underestimated.
Just over 8 miles for the day
Sunday
Up and out just after 9 for some very easy miles around the coast\St Anne's, kept the effort right down here for 1 hour 40 or 11.6 miles
Just over 8 hours running or 60 miles for the best week in a while, I need another 6 or so of these before changing the stimulus
8 -
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