The Next Step

PaulieYifter

Well done chief - raging I missed it - finally got back running (on egg shells) over the weekend after 3 weeks out

theboyblunder

Great stuff neil, big improvement on dungarvan. looking good for conn

Nules10

well done neil. great running

outforarun

Brilliant performance - very aggressive and positive run, negative split fastest mile on mile 10, reeling people in, sprint finish. Cracking time. Well done.

neilc

Tuesday Mar 6th
7 miles - Time: 1:04:28 - Avg Pace: 9:13 min/mi (treadmill)
Recovery run, very tired and feeling a bit of pain in the right hip.

Wednesday Mar 7th
10 miles - Time: 1:26:27 - Avg Pace: 8:39 min/mi (treadmill)
VO2 Max session 4 x 1200. Very tough session 3 miles warm-up, then 4 x 1200 @ 6:27 pace with 0.25 mile recovery jog at 5 mph. 3 miles cool-down.

Friday Mar 9th
10.5 miles - Time: 1:30:41 - Avg Pace: 8:38 min/mi garmin link 1 & 2
11 miles medium/long run. Even though I don't work to far from the Phoenix Park I never actually went down for a run after work before so decided to put that wrong right today. Wish now I hadn't. Not being too familiar with the park I loaded up an 11.5 mile route in the garmin last night and was good to go.

First mistake I made was to head off without loading the course in the watch, so within a quarter of a mile had to stop it and start again. Actually that wasn't my first mistake, my first mistake (even though I didn't realise it at the time) was to park at the Papal cross, its gates close at 6pm and I was heading out for an 11.5 mile run at 5:30.

The next nine miles were blissful, slight niggle in the right hip for the first mile or so but apart from that great. Me marvelling at what a great facility the park is, remembering last years marathon as I got to the Chapelizod gate for the second time, when for some reason checked my pocket and realised my fcuking car key was gone.

Immediately turned around and started retracing my steps, I reckon that was around 6:45pm then. Somewhere between the entrance to the Ordnance survey and the top of the lower glen I took my head torch out of my pocket so reckoned it must have fallen out then and decided to concentrate the search around there. I rang the Park ranger too (luckily had the phone with me, nearly left it in the car), that's when I discovered my first mistake. He was deadly though, over and back between Knockmaroon exit and the Ordnance survey entrance non stop in his van up on the grass using his head lights. He even drove me the full way around the park perimeter just in case, he couldn't believe I had ran soo far . Then just as we were about to give up, back up on Knockmaroon road at twenty past nine, Gerry (the park ranger) said lets just check once more over here and low and behold there they were. Such joy. One last job for Gerry was to bring me back down to the papal cross car park, unlock the gate and let me out:D. What a gent, went far beyond the call of duty. By this time herself was just arriving into the park to collect me as I've no spare key for the car, totally lucked out this time.

Is it wrong though that I was more pi$$ed off about only getting 10.5 miles of the 11.5 planned ones done than losing the key .

Weekly miles - 28
Annual miles - 420

PS - In my innocence, had no idea the sh1t that goes on up at the Knockmaroon gate :eek:

belcarra

Sounds like quite the eventful evening!! And you were how long hanging around knockmaroon??
;-p

neilc

belcarra wrote: »

Sounds like quite the eventful evening!! And you were how long hanging around knockmaroon??
;-p

:D yeah I know, of all places to lose them. Unbelievable how blatant it is though, the park ranger had some stories to tell :eek:

Younganne

Neil, that was a fun evening in the park for you;) .... had to laugh at you being p'ed off at not completing the run:p

beeduybe

Reminds me of a 5k race I done in Carlingford a couple of years ago when I realised just seconds before the start that I had lost my car key. I decided to run anyway and look for it afterwards. I got a few funny looks when I kept running after I crossed the finish line as I ran back to the start to trace my steps. Fortunately somebody had found the key and handed it in to the organisers. Would have saved myself a half hour of frantic searching and fearing that I was going to get stranded in deepest darkest Louth for the night had I checked had anyone found it first though :rolleyes:

neilc

Saturday Mar 10th
4.43 miles - Time: 38:42 - Avg Pace: 8:45 min/mi garmin link
Recovery run.

Sunday Mar 11th
20.79 miles - Time: 2:59:19 - Avg Pace: 8:38 min/mi garmin link
Long run. Had one normal high 5 and one iso high 5 on this run as an experiment for Connemara, found the normal one more comfortable to take so will go with them. Felt strong enough throughout this one.

Glad that week is over though. With no taper before the half last week and no recovery after it this week it's been a tough one. Feeling plenty of niggles at the minute too, right achilles, right hip and left heel. They're all pretty mild though, so it's good timing that the taper starts for Conn this week.

Weekly miles - 53
Annual miles - 445

Younganne

Any sightseeing running in the park this week;)

Good luck with the race tomorrow...are you planning on hitting the big smoke (Navan) after?? we'll be there!!!:D

neilc

Younganne wrote: »

Any sightseeing running in the park this week;)

no haven't been back since, still recovering from last time!!

Younganne wrote: »

Good luck with the race tomorrow...are you planning on hitting the big smoke (Navan) after?? we'll be there!!!:D

Thanks, the race is not till 2 tomorrow so Maria will be going ahead into Navan with the kids before me but I'm hoping to get a lift in after in time for the rugby which I think is at 5 o'clock. Will definitely hook up, let us know where ye plan on going.

Younganne

neilc wrote: »

:


Thanks, the race is not till 2 tomorrow so Maria will be going ahead into Navan with the kids before me but I'm hoping to get a lift in after in time for the rugby which I think is at 5 o'clock. Will definitely hook up, let us know where ye plan on going.

will do:D ye Rugby at 5!!

neilc

Tuesday Mar 13th
8 miles - Time: 1:12:43 - Avg Pace: 9:05 min/mi
VO2 Max 5 x 600m @ 6:23 pace w/ 90s recovery. Tough session.

Wednesday Mar 14th
6 miles - Time: 56:47 - Avg Pace: 9:28 min/mi
Recovery Run.

Friday Mar 16th
4 miles - Time: 36:24 - Avg Pace: 9:06 min/mi
Recovery Run w/ 6 x 100m

Weekly miles - 18
Annual miles - 463

neilc

Fr. Murphy 5 Mile Race
5 miles - Time: 32:18 - Avg Pace: 6:28 min/mi garmin link

Didn't really know what to expect from todays race not been to experienced with the shorter stuff. With my three runs during the week averaging more than 9 minute miles because of tiredness the confidence wasn't too high.

Arrived out in Kildalkey with around half an hour to spare, in and out of the community centre pretty quickly to get my number and off to get a bit of a warmup before the off. To add to the pressure of my first five mile race I somehow ended up with bib number 1, obviously totally based on when I signed up rather than talent .

Met up with beeduybe just before the start and following our chat was feeling more relaxed when the whistle blew to start us off. First mile started off as most races do for me, a bit too fast. Half a mile in and with the garmin reading 6:00 pace, I knew if I didn't cop on fast there would be an enormous explosion within a couple of miles. Mile one clocked in at 6:25. Mile two was pretty much the same as the first, felt comfortable enough and it clocked in a bit slower at 6:40. Mile three brought us down a country road with plenty of puddles to avoid. At this stage I found myself running fairly comfortably in a group of four or five but because the road was quite narrow I couldn't manage to get by for a while. Mile three clocked in at 6:33.

By the four mile mark I had caught up with the next group an pulled up along side one lad ready to pass when I seen a car approaching on the right so pulled back into line. With the momentum gone so was my chance and that group gradually moved away into the distance. Soon after this we were brought off road through some bogland and I found myself running pretty much alone. It was very hard to keep the pace going now, the gap ahead was getting bigger and I didn't want to look behind to see how that was developing. Eventually after a long straight we finally returned to Kildalkey and the finish through a housing estate. Initially this caused a bit of confusion cause I had assumed we'd be hitting the finish line from the other side. At this point I realised the guys behind had closed the gap when a spectator shouted 'well done lads', so upped the pace and held them off till the finish.

Not having passed too much heed to the mathematics of my earlier splits when I turned the final corner and seen 32:xx on the clock I really couldn't believe it. Managed to sprint to the the line for an official finishing time of 32:18. Absolutely delighted with that for a first ever 5 mile race, learned a lot today.

Chatted with beeduybe afterwards again who also put in a great performance and blew away his old PB. Also chatted to Krusty Clown afterwards who's just at a totally different level but still gracious enough take the time out to chat. All in all a good day.

Weekly miles - 26
Annual miles - 472

Krusty_Clown

neilc wrote: »

Fr. Murphy 5 Mile Race
Also chatted to Krusty Clown afterwards who's just at a totally different level.

I wouldn't be in a rush to say that! My previous pb for 5 miles was 32:19 and you beat that today, so you're just around the corner. Good talking to you today, and hopefully see you after Conn. Congrats on the PB!

neilc

Sunday Mar 18th
15.72 miles - Time: 2:13:47 - Avg Pace: 8:30 min/mi garmin link

For taper week 1, it was a tough one. The plan called for a 16 mile LSR today after yesterdays 5 mile tune up race, a daunting prospect.
Still though it was a beautiful morning and what better way to blow off the hangover than a LSR. The body felt surprisingly okay and the miles ticked away quite nicely.
Next weeks milage drops down to 32 so it should feel much more like tapering and I suppose that's when the madness will begin.

Weekly miles - 42
Annual miles - 488

PaulieYifter

Well done on the 5 miler - I find those shorter races a more daunting prospect than the marathon itself - enjoy the taper

neilc

Tuesday Mar 20th
7.53 miles - Time: 1:03:24 - Avg Pace: 8:25 min/mi garmin link
Handy general aerobic run with 8 x 100m strides. Pretty uneventful.

Wednesday Mar 21st
Skipped session. Very, very stressful day. Couldn't face running.

Thursday Mar 22th
8 miles - Time: 1:09:08 - Avg Pace: 8:38 min/mi
Today's rest day became yesterdays skipped session. Very tough one, 3 x 1600m intervals. Went with the treadmill to make it easier to maintain the interval pace of 6:36. 2m warmup, 3 x 1600m with 800m recovery and 2m cool down.

Weekly miles - 16
Annual miles - 503

neilc

Friday Mar 23rd
5.21 miles - Time: 43:17 - Avg Pace: 8:18 min/mi
Recovery run with 6 x 100m strides. Pretty uneventful.

Sunday Mar 25th
13.58 miles - Time: 2:00:42 - Avg Pace: 8:53 min/mi garmin link
Sligo run. Down home for the weekend. Plenty of Guinness Saturday night so pretty hungover for the run. But on a beautiful sunny Sunday morning what better way to clear the head.

Tuesday Mar 27th
6.40 miles - Time: 57:46 - Avg Pace: 9:01 min/mi garmin link
Very easy recovery run. Great to be able to get out for a road run in the evening after work. Hopefully that's the end of the treadmill till October except maybe the odd speed session.

Weekly miles - 6
Annual miles - 528

neilc

Wednesday Mar 28h
7.56 miles - Time: 1:02:52 - Avg Pace: 8:19 min/mi garmin link
Dress rehearsal, w/ 2 miles @ MP. Not really feeling the effects of the taper as much as I thought I would. First 5 miles were an absolute slog but the last two at MP felt fine, what's up with that :eek:

Friday Mar 30th
5.36 miles - Time: 45:07 - Avg Pace: 8:27 min/mi garmin link
5m w/ 6 x 100m. Still not feeling great, pretty sluggish, even felt a slight ache going on with my right calf. Miss counted the strides too, even though had the garmin, so messed up the last one. Not sure what's going on at the minute, didn't suffer any taper madness this time at all so it's not that, just hope it all comes together Sunday.

Weekly miles - 19
Annual miles - 541

Nules10

Best of luck Sunday Neil. Will be no bother to you. I will keep an eye out for you

menoscemo

neilc wrote: »

Wednesday Mar 28h
7.56 miles - Time: 1:02:52 - Avg Pace: 8:19 min/mi garmin link
Dress rehearsal, w/ 2 miles @ MP. Not really feeling the effects of the taper as much as I thought I would. First 5 miles were an absolute slog but the last two at MP felt fine, what's up with that :eek:

MP at 7:10 neil? what's the target? C'mon man I worked had to get my marathon time better than yours, give me some space :pac:

Are you up for the beers in Galway on sunday night? (see conn thread).

neilc

menoscemo wrote: »

MP at 7:10 neil? what's the target? C'mon man I worked had to get my marathon time better than yours, give me some space :pac:

Are you up for the beers in Galway on sunday night? (see conn thread).

:D:D glad to be able to provide that motivation meno!!
Don't worry though your time is safe and I reckon after Berlin in sept you'll be uncatchable for me.
Training went really well and if it was Dublin I'd be hoping for 3:10 but it's Conn so I don't know. I'm doing the usual agonising over pace bands, have 4 printed and ready 3:10, 3:14, 3:15 & 3:20. I reckon I'll go with 3:14 and hope for the best. That would get me in for Boston or London next year, Dublin I think comes too late for next year so will have to wait till April 2014 if I miss it. With the second half hills on Sunday though it could go badly wrong.
Would have loved a night out in Galway but when we booked we opted for Clifden so will be having the beers out there. Will ye be having any at maam cross at the finish before heading back to Galway?

menoscemo

neilc wrote: »

:
Will ye be having any at maam cross at the finish before heading back to Galway?

for sure. Don't they say that the first hour is vital for rehydration? see you at peacocks after the race:D

theboyblunder

Best of luck neil! Some great training in there, hope you enjoy the race

beeduybe

Best of luck Neil. I'm sure all your hard training over the winter will stand to you tomorrow

neilc

Sitting on the pier at the end of Beach rd in Clifden looking out over the bay. Half way through my easy 4 miler, waiting for herself to catch up on her walk. Life is good

Younganne

Best of Luck tomorrow Neil...hope it all goes to plan or even better:D. Enjoy your weekend away....... Say Hi to "herself"...Talk soon!!

neilc

I followed the P&D 12 week 55 mile program for this marathon training cycle. Normally I’d have gone for the 18 week version but a 2-3 week lay off with injury around Christmas put paid to that. Training went great though and I picked up a couple of nice PB’s for both the 5 mile and half marathon along the way. Punching those times into McMillan the half marathon predicted a finish time of 3:17:39 while the 5 mile predicted 3:10:00 dead. Back last September for Berlin, McMillan predicted my time within something like 10 seconds off a 10k time so with that in mind I settled on a very ambitious target of 3:14:00.

Following a 6:30am breakfast of porridge, toast and coffee we were bussed to the start line at the picture postcard location of Lough Inagh leaving us with around an hour to kill before the off. Once the ultra leaders passed we were promptly away at 10:30, bang on schedule. I was determined not to go out too fast this time and settled into a comfortable pace with a group of four or five runners for the first three or four miles. I gradually started to move away from them then but also found myself passed by other runners too. I was feeling strong but resisted the urge to go with them and instead stuck to the plan. It was here we made a right turn towards Leenane and the first major climb of the day. Obviously the hills I done in training were paying off because the pace barely dropped off in this section and I was starting to pass the runners again who had passed me earlier. On the top of the hill there was a lovely wee church with a sign outside inviting everyone to stop and pray but I was feeling great so kept going (if there was one on top of HOTW it might have been different).

For the next couple of miles I found myself running alone into a pretty strong headwind which actually lasted right into Leenane without letting up. By mile ten I caught a group and struck up a conversation with one lad who had much the same goal as myself so we ran together for the next four miles or so. This is the first time I chatted to someone in a race and it really did help the miles tick by. Having done the race himself last year he had plenty of advice for the second half and warned me to save something for the HOTW.

By now we were coming into Leenane and in the distance you could see the half marathon crowd starting to ascend the hill out of town. I have to admit this did cause me some concern because by the time we got there the road was jammed with people. In fairness though as soon as most people seen you were doing the full they promptly moved aside and encouraged us on our way. In a way it was a great distraction trying to get by people and before I knew it I was over the second biggest hill of the day (mile 14 & 15) without too much grief with a 7:50 and a 7:59. Even though downhill I put in my fastest mile of the day on 16 with a 6:57. By now I noticed I had lost my running buddy so ploughed on for the rest of the race on my own remembering what he said about saving something for HOTW.

The next five miles went by without too much of a problem, still feeling strong, plenty of little hills along the way to gradually sap the energy and one really sharp downhill which rattled the joints. Knowing HOTW started at 22 all of 21 was spent psyching myself up for what lay ahead. I downed a gel at the base, had a sup of water and went for it. I know a lot of lads reckon it’s not too bad but for me it totally lived up to its name. After the first mile which went in at 8:35 I downed my last gel, put my head down and didn’t look up again till I was on top of the hill. That second mile took 9:31, the slowest of the day. Once over the top of the hill I tried to pick it up on the downhill but to no avail. My fried brain was telling me I could still break 3:20 if I could just put in two good final miles but the body just wouldn’t respond. Crossing the line in 3:21:09 the race director shook my hand and told me I had just done a great time, a nice touch and a great way to finish a great race.

A couple of days on I’m feeling good. Delighted with the time, a nearly 2 minute PB on a pancake flat Berlin course. The provisional results have me at 37th out of 673 finishers which completely shocked me but which I’m delighted with. I’m going to take a couple of week’s recovery now before getting back into it again. The next step for me then will hopefully be a sub 40 in Dunshaughlin in June and a good for age time for either London or Boston in DCM in October which for me is sub 3:15.

Garmin Link