I can see the sun in wintertime

racheljev

That's a line from one of my favourite 80's songs - In a big country. I'm not sure why I think it's a good title for my log but the song came on this morning when I was running and it just sounded good. And let's face it, it's been a long enough wintertime and I need to believee there's a bit of sun. So that's it!

2011 - what's the story? Well, first race will be the Raheny 5 at the end of January. Did this in 44:11 last year, would like to better that but not sure if I'm in the shape yet. The first big one is Barcelona in just about 9 weeks, 6th March, really looking forward to that. The ultimate aim is New York, 9 months later on 6th November. Let's see how the year goes...

So to start - 1/1/2011, 12.47 miles in 2:02:33. Kept the miles slow, between 9:50 & 10:00. Belted the last mile in 9:10, because I liked the song on at the time! Not a bad start to the year, and 5th day consecutive running

digger2d2

racheljev wrote: »

That's a line from one of my favourite 80's songs - In a big country. I'm not sure why I think it's a good title for my log but the song came on this morning when I was running and it just sounded good. Let's see how the year goes...

Ahh...The wonderful Stuart Adamson RIP......Good luck with this year's running!

metamorphosis

All the best for the new log and goals Rach.

Roll on Barcalona.

Emer911

Good luck with the new log Rachel.

Bally8

Best of luck with your goals for 2011 Rachel, sounds like an exciting year!

racheljev

4.3 miles in 41 mins, should have been 6 but didn't have time. But... 6 consecutive days and 35 miles for week - more than I've done in a loooong time. Now, off to support the boy in GAA tournament, come on the Vins!

maria74

Great first week in new log!

racheljev

3.8 miles in 34:18. Decided to try a quick one this morning.
Mile 1: warmup 9:34.
Mile 2: 4x1min fast, with 30sec recovery, 8:23.
Mile 3: Steady speed, aiming to keep below 8:50, actual 8:45
0.8 mile cooldown 7:35.
Best pace was 7:11 (for about 20 secs probably ). Right calf like a fricking rock now, off to do some work with the tennis ball. 7th day in a row...

racheljev

Felt like absolute sh** yesterday morning when the alarm went off, so wussed out of yesterday's run. Felt crap all day, really thought I was coming down with something. Alarm went off this morning and didn't feel too bad so got out of bed before I could change my mind. 8 miles in 1:17:48. Kept a fairly steady pace and felt like I could have done a couple more by the time I got back. Happy enough with that after feeling so bad yesterday... hopefully whatever it was has passed me by.

racheljev

4.2 miles in 39.35. Couldn't find my jacket and it was very fricking cold out there - horrible little bits of frost to slip on in the dark. Stupid snow better not be on the way back, Barcelona is too close now... Thinking of doing the Aware 10k next week. Didn't sign up for it in December, just forgot about it in the end. But closing date is extended I think, so might just do it. Already signed up for Raheny 5 so that would be two races in January, nothing in Feb and Barca in March, yahoo! Still feeling a little on the sh** side, hoping mind over matter keeps me well.

shazkea

Finally found your new log as I was wondering how you were doing. Good luck with it. I can't beleive Barca is so close...not long left before Taper :eek:

How are you set for it - you seem to be looking forward to it?

racheljev

shazkea wrote: »

I can't beleive Barca is so close...not long left before Taper :eek:

How are you set for it - you seem to be looking forward to it?

Bit nervous tbh, haven't done enough long runs yet. But Barca is not a goal race, it was my plan b after DCM got canned. Just going to try and enjoy it if possible! Long run this weekend and Aware 10k next week will give me an idea of where I stand.

racheljev

3.9 miles in 37:27, avg pace 9:31. Did my mini-hill workout, 5 inclines of about 0.2 miles each. Pumped my arms, as instructed in chi running workshop They're only small little hills but they help me feel a bit more confident. Signed up for Aware 10k yesterday - finally! Just have to collect my number (or get OH to do it )

Tomorrow is a big lsr for me, it should be 17 miles. It was at this stage of the last program that I got the stress fracture so I'm quite nervous about it. I really need this one though, I've nowhere near enough long runs done so fingers crossed it goes ok. And I don't have to get a taxi after 3 miles like last August...

metamorphosis

Best of luck at the Aware 10k this weekend.

I know how you feel about tomorrow, felt that way when i did the same distance NYE last Friday - had been my longest since I came back from injury like yourself but it was grand, just slow it down, you will be grand.

RubyK

Best of luck with the 17 miler racheljev, I know you are nervous after your what happened during the summer, but just head out the door and take it handy, mile by mile. It will be a huge confidence boost for when you get it done, and injury-free

Bally8

Fingers crossed for your lsr rachael. Nice and slow, you can do it!

racheljev

17.1 miles in 2:47:02, avg pace 9:46. Hurray! Got my lsr done, yahoo. Had to stop at 10.5 miles for desperately needed loo break, almost a baaaad situation, but got back out and finished my run. Injury free as well, unless you count the big jammy dodger of a knee I now have from slipping and falling on a drain thingy with only a mile to go. My feet went left, my body went right and I went down. Ripped my running tights and took a lump of skin off my knee, which is now feeling stiff. Crap. Anyway, the main thing is I got my 17 miles done. Broke it down into half hour stints, didn't think beyond that. Had a jelly baby every 2 miles and that seemed to work. So apart from the dodgy belly and bloody knee, all is good. Happy out.;)

shazkea

Rach that's cracking stuff, well done and at a great pace . Sounds like a sore fall and I hope its nothing serious.

digger2d2

Ouch...Hope the knee is ok... R-I-C-E (disclaimer: that's not medical advice I'm merely stating a food type);) It was quite slippy out there this morning though...

maria74

17 miles...Wow! 2hr 47 run...WOW! And a great pace!!
Thats fantastic. You must be delighted. Hope your knee is okay and not too stiff. In fairness though, you deserve a rest after that run so put it up and smile at you accomplishment. Like the idea of the half hour stint to

racheljev

Thanks folks, happy it's done! Currently icing my knee in the hope it'll be ok. More upset that I ripped my running tights Off to Wiggle to see if they've any bargains...

menoscemo

Fair Play Rachel!! You must get some time off and come for a long group run some weekend. Your pace is exactly what we're doing most of the big group runs at...deffo looking good for Barca now. Any particular time goals? I'll be available for 4hr pacing gigs I think....

racheljev

Ooooh I'd love to think I could give 4 hrs a smack... I'm registered as more than 4 hours cos I honestly didn't think I'd be able for anything else, but maybe we'll see closer to the time. I might be calling on your expertise Meno!:D

Emer911

racheljev wrote: »

Injury free as well, unless you count the big jammy dodger of a knee I now have from slipping and falling on a drain thingy with only a mile to go. My feet went left, my body went right and I went down. Ripped my running tights and took a lump of skin off my knee, which is now feeling stiff. Crap.

I had to laugh when I read this... There must be something in the air!
If it's any consolation, my knee is doing fine now, nice and scabby You'll be right as rain in a day or so.

racheljev

5.06 miles in 47:36. Knee very stiff to start with, got a bit easier and then got a bit more painful so cut short the proposed 7-8 miles. Finally, common sense reigns! No soreness at all from yesterday's lsr, except of course my knee and my pride. Mileage for the week 42.06, chuffed with that. 5 days in a row as well. Have to decide now what to do for next week - do I take it easy in preparation for the Aware 10k on Saturday or do I say, sod it, Barcelona is more important and run the 10k as part of the week's mileage. Decisions, decisions...

eliwallach

racheljev wrote: »

Have to decide now what to do for next week - do I take it easy in preparation for the Aware 10k on Saturday or do I say, sod it, Barcelona is more important and run the 10k as part of the week's mileage. Decisions, decisions...

Second one.;)

racheljev

4 miles in 36:09. Felt like there was absolutely nothing in the tank this morning - had initially intended to do sprints but did 3 quickish miles instead.
Mile 1: 9:31 warmup
Mile 2: 8:56
Mile 3: 8:43
Mile 4: 8:56 supposed to be cool down but just went quicker than intended.
Avg pace 9:01. Better than expected outcome - really not in the mood this morning, very tired and head feels a bit like there's a cold coming on - dry and itchy throat, snuffly nose. But now I'm smug and happy because I did a decent enough session even though I didn't want to... Nice cup of tea and a biccie now (not choc, back on the healthy eating plan as of this monrning :rolleyes:)

racheljev

I KNEW I didn't feel right on Monday! And sure enough by Monday evening I was poleaxed with a bad cold. Only a cold, not the flu, but enough to wipe me out till yesterday. As soon as the kids were in school, I got back into bed and that's something I never ever do. And my new Mizuno shoes, courtesy of the Running Review, arrived Monday and I was too ill to do anything except open them up. I used them to walk to the school on Tuesday and Wednesday - couldn't trust myself in the car cos I was dosed up to the eyeballs on paracetemol and Nurofen cold and flu. (I know they're not supposed to make you drowsy but they space me out a little bit...) Wednesday evening I felt a wee bit better, and better again yesterday. So this morning did 3.3 miles in 32:47 in the new shoes - soooo sloooow and it felt really hard So, not holding out much hope for Aware 10k tomorrow. I'll go along and give it a go but if I finish in under an hour I'll be happy.... So much for "this will be a good week, I'm doing so well for Barcelona" yadda yadda yadda. Sometimes real life really kicks you in the a$$.

metamorphosis

I feel your pain, my chest still is no better this morning Rach. I know there's no chance of me racing Waterford now.Was chatting to Brian as I was heading down with him and he said to wait til the morning, maybe I can do it as an MP run but I know right now I wouldn't be able to breathe and sure I'd just make myself sicker then. So I am trying to think about Barca - the bigger picture.

Don't be too down on yourself, you're flying it. Remember you just whooped that LSR last week too. Better off not getting sicker and taking it easier and doing great in Barca rather than having to take longer off.

racheljev

Sitting outside the park, waiting to head into race. It's raining, it's cold and I have my usual pre-race dodgy tummy. Why do we do this?? Not holding out much hope for anything good today - if I come in under an hour, it'll be ok. Update later.

racheljev

Started today with my usual pre race dodgy tummy and headache so wasn't holding out much hope for a good time. The cold poleaxed me for most of this week and I honestly didn't think I'd do ok today. Added to that, the wind and rain were just mad. I said to myself before I went, just finish under an hour. That was my goal. Got to the park nice and early and parked in my usual spot just outside the park walls. I stayed in the car for ages because I just didn't want to get too wet too early - what a wuss! Eventually headed up to the start line and left my bag. There was a warmup with the bootcamp crowd, which was a bit of a distraction and helped pass a few minutes in the cold and rain. Got started and headed off. The crowd seemed to thin out quite quickly, possibly helped by the man in the lime green mankini who passed me around the 1km marker... jeez, that was a sight Anyway, at that stage my pace was about 5:30/km which was my ideal pace last week before I was sick. It didn't feel too tough so I thought I'd keep it going. 1&2km were ok because they were flat and the wind was behind, but going past the Pope's cross was mad windy. Heading down by the back of the 15acres, the trees shaded a bit but heading up the first of the hills, the wind was back. I just kept plodding and plodding and the time was still okay. I had a bit of a head/legs battle around 5/6km, the head wanted to walk but the legs said, nah we're alright for another bit. Hitting the top of the second hill close to 8km was a great feeling and I was still hitting 5:31/32 pace. Knew when I came out of the Furry glen that I was nearly there so started to speed up - came over the line in 5:06 pace:D Final time 54:27. Absolutely frickin delighted with that, confidence restored after last week's small illness setback. Headed back to the car with a huge smile on my face. Happy days.:)

metamorphosis

Well under what you had hoped, well done

racheljev

Thanks v much! Almost 2 mins faster than last year's Great Ireland run which is same course, very happy with myself

metamorphosis

racheljev wrote: »

Thanks v much! Almost 2 mins faster than last year's Great Ireland run which is same course, very happy with myself

You should put the feet up now with some chocolate

as much as it niggles at my mind, no way I would have been able for Waterford today after the chest infection all week, went out for 6 miles and couldn't go any faster than 8:47 when my target was about 1:27-28. Rest tomorrow and LSR during the week. Barca is fling up on us now like.

Emer911

racheljev wrote: »

Almost 2 mins faster than last year's Great Ireland run which is same course, very happy with myself

Great run - especially given the horrible weather!
Well done.

menoscemo

Great to get these races done isn't it? They can really prove to be great confidence boosters, so much more valuable from a normal long run. Well done.

racheljev

Decided to give myself the morning off yesterday, with the intention of going for a run in the afternoon. Got hit by the warning signs of a migraine about 1p.m. Took tablets which turned it from migraine into just bad headache, but wasn't able for run then. So last week was VERY BAD MILEAGE.

Anyway this week started with 4 miles this morning in 38:57, nice steady pace. 7 weeks of training left for Barcelona at this stage. Not feeling massively confident about a great time, but would be happy enough with a 4:1? That's what I'll aim for. The next few weeks have to have big mileage and long runs, no matter what. Definitely time to HTFU and SIU I think....

racheljev

4.6 miles in 43:43. Did my mini-hill workout this morning, 5 little up-and-downs as quick as possible. Conpletely knackered because smallest girl was up during night with cramps and bad dreams about "piders", possibly caused by show in school called "Mini-beasts"... She did say the bad dreams weren't about ladybirds because she likes them... Anyway when the alarm went off I couldn't move, but basically bullied myself out of the bed. Went out with the intention of a quick 2.5 miles and did a bit more, so happy now.

racheljev

6.8 miles in 64 mins. Should have been 8 but dodgy tummy struck around mile 4 and I did well to get home in time - NOT pleasant...:eek: Really glad that's over! Will try 6ish tomorrow to make up for today.

racheljev

4.6 miles in 43:17. Didn't go out yesterday - calves and shins felt awful, really tight and stiff. I am literally terrified that something bad is going to happen again before Barcelona, like the stress fracture before DCM, so I took yesterday off and did some serious tennis ball work and stretches. They felt ok this morning so headed out nice and slowly. Picked the pace up over miles 3 & 4, only a little bit but still felt ok. More tennis ball rubs and stretches today, and hopefully 18 miles tomorrow... please...

racheljev

18.16 miles in 2:58:09. Very happy with that. Had to go out early to fit in the miles - Saturday in our house is split between GAA for oldest and gymnastics for middle child. Normally youngest goes with OH and stands at side of pitch so I can run, but she's not well today so I had to be home in time. So... I left the house at 5:50 :eek: Did the same as last time - broke the run down into half hour stints, had a jelly baby every 20 mins up till 2 hours. The last half hour was very tough because my stomach was playing up again and I honestly didn't think I'd get home in time. It's happened a few times to me now, mainly on long runs - something that might need to be checked, maybe the jelly babies aren't working? Anyway got home before 9 a.m. with a very smug smile on my face. Very happy it's done and I feel ok (except for the dodgy tum). Off to put my feet up and mind my baba for a while, just hope I don't get what she's got!

racheljev

7 miles in 65:32. A bit knackered after yesterday's early start but the legs felt ok, just a bit stiff. Headed out with the intention of 5 but kept going for 7. Speeded up a wee bit after first mile of 9:41 - following miles were all between 9:15 and 9:19, last mile 9:22. Also did a route that meant I had a good bit of uphill, and of course a bit of downhill A good one this morning, and a total of 45.16 miles for the week.:)

RacoonQueen

Great going Rachel. You're going to run a cracker in Barcelona. How are the legs? Any trouble with them?

racheljev

RacoonQueen wrote: »

Great going Rachel. You're going to run a cracker in Barcelona. How are the legs? Any trouble with them?

Thanks RQ. Calves still tight after most runs, so doing extra stretches and tennis ball rubs through the day to loosen them up. Tempted to go for a sports massage but the massages hurt too frickin much! Honestly, I'm constantly nervous now, in case something happens over the next few weeks - it's getting too close now for something to go wrong again! Just once I get to the start line in one piece, and I get around in 4:1? I'll be happy

RacoonQueen

racheljev wrote: »

Thanks RQ. Calves still tight after most runs, so doing extra stretches and tennis ball rubs through the day to loosen them up. Tempted to go for a sports massage but the massages hurt too frickin much! Honestly, I'm constantly nervous now, in case something happens over the next few weeks - it's getting too close now for something to go wrong again! Just once I get to the start line in one piece, and I get around in 4:1? I'll be happy

Sports massage doesn't technically have to hurt to be beneficial! :pac:

racheljev

Mondays for the next few weeks are going to be cross training days, so walked for 4.1 brisk miles this morning. It's strange walking, when you want to run, but I swung my arms and opened up the lungs! I'm also doing a Zumba class tonight (not a frickin clue what it is) for an hour so that will be the second part of my cross stuff.

Found this on youtube, it's the song my log title is from - enjoy the '80s fashions!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bw2o_Go4QWI&feature=related

RubyK

It's a great song alright, I heard it on the radio yesterday, and the first thing I thought of was your log :pac:

I realise that makes me sound like some kind of wierdo . I'm not, honestly!!

(but I do admit that I did turn a little scary during the 3 week taper last October).

shazkea

racheljev wrote: »

18.16 miles in 2:58:09. Very happy with that. Had to go out early to fit in the miles - Saturday in our house is split between GAA for oldest and gymnastics for middle child. Normally youngest goes with OH and stands at side of pitch so I can run, but she's not well today so I had to be home in time. So... I left the house at 5:50 :eek: Did the same as last time - broke the run down into half hour stints, had a jelly baby every 20 mins up till 2 hours. The last half hour was very tough because my stomach was playing up again and I honestly didn't think I'd get home in time. It's happened a few times to me now, mainly on long runs - something that might need to be checked, maybe the jelly babies aren't working? Anyway got home before 9 a.m. with a very smug smile on my face. Very happy it's done and I feel ok (except for the dodgy tum). Off to put my feet up and mind my baba for a while, just hope I don't get what she's got!

Thats brill Rachel, congrats. In shock at the time you got out bed to do it - very impressed!
I used to get stomach problems on any run I did but especially the long runs. A doc friend of mine recommended fibre supplements to combat it and I have to say its working a treat - no more hassles.

racheljev

4.6 miles in 44 mins. Very tired this morning after last night's Zumba class - great craic, basically dancing for an hour with no real break, great cardio workout! But it finished just after 9 and I was back up at 5:55 to run, so I'm knackered... Anyway, 4.6 ok miles. Calves still stiff, mainly right one, so will book a massage for next week I think, after the Raheny 5.

menoscemo

racheljev wrote: »

after the Raheny 5.

Didn't know you were running it. See you there so!!

racheljev

17 miles in 2:47:03 (15.1 in 2:25:14, 1.9 in 21:49). Jeez that was very frickin tough. Because of the Raheny 5 mile, I didn't want to do lsr on Saturday. But I didn't want to miss it, so I decided to do it this morning after school run. That meant I had my porridge and I reckoned it'd be a fairly good indicator of where I am. Also, because the tum has been playing up on long runs, I thought I'd give the jelly babies a break to see if they were causing the problems. So just water for the long run. Ran out past Raheny, then back in and did some of the 5 mile route and ran up Watermill road so it won't spook me on Sunday - it's actually grand, it's prob just because it's at the end of the race that it feels tougher than it should. Headed all along St. Annes Park, back towards Clontarf, up and down roads. Felt fine for a good while, then bam. 12 miles hit me like a bloody hammer. 12 to 15 were as tough as I've had in a long time. At about 12.5 miles I ran up one road that has a steady uphill for about .5 mile and I was absolutely f**ked when I got to the top. At 15.1 miles I hit the reset button on the garmin and just jog/walked the last 1.9 miles. No tummy problems at all but no energy either. I'm sort of happy I've another 17 under my belt but I'm gutted it's not 20.