Running with the birds or for the birds?

Marthastew

Another very unMarthastew-like update from me, rest assured there have been plenty of dips in the 40 Foot, yoga and Pilates class, Mocha-choco-cinos, Rice Krispie buns, birds, kittens and puppies and even a little running thrown in for good measure.


Disappointing mileage for December 163.65, mostly down to a combination of not wanting to aggravate my niggly calf and organising Christmas for the Stews and the in-laws. However the month also brought a nice 5K PB and some great LSRs that will stand to me next year so I’m more or less happy with how the year is ending.



Highlights over the last week include Goal Mile 7.32, on Christmas day in Irishtown stadium with lots of our wonderful club members. While the mile time isn’t that impressive, the entire Stew family lined up and really enjoyed it despite the fact that the oldest initially said he’d rather go to mass than run on Christmas Day;) Junior ran a lovely 6.40 and his Osgood schlatters has cleared up, the oldest jogged with a pal as he’s off with a rugby injury at the moment and Mr S and I ran with the middle junior, the one who has always disliked running and he really enjoyed it and was thrilled with himself.
The Boards Christmas Dart to Dart Trot (20.01 miles @ 8.17 pace) was one of the toughest runs I’ve had in a very long time and special thanks to Meno and beepbeep for practically carrying me all the way from Bray to Raheny. I’m not overly concerned about the run as it was mostly down to very tough weather conditions, no breakfast and poor nutrition in the last week.

Yesterday morning I joined Ultraman, Aimmo and 2 others for a nice easy run up around Kilmashogue, a really, really enjoyable run in the misty, rainy clouds and it felt great to be finishing when most people were just beginning to think about getting up.

I had thought about racing in the Phoenix Park tomorrow but I’ve decided to give my calf a few days rest instead as I want to start back next week strong and raring to go.



Thanks so much to you all for taking the time to read my log and for the super-duper;) support over the past year, I really appreciate it.
I’m currently putting together an outline of 2013 (lots more lessons learned:)) and also my goals for 2014 (lots of lofty ones:D)


Wishing you and yours health and happiness in 2014


Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go
T. S Eliot

blockic

Well done on a great 2013 MS!

Love that quote!

Dory Dory

Yep, love that quote as well!!!

Thanks for being such a source of inspiration to me and to so many on boards. Your positive spirit and unselfish enthusiasm have helped to make my 2013 a really fantastic year (along with a few fond memories in the form of windows being rolled down and "taxi" and "bus" being shouted ), and for that I am grateful. Happy New Year, Marthastew!!! And please send my best Dory regards to your handsome hubby and darling boys.

theboyblunder

Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go
T. S Eliot

I like the quote too, but its worth remembering another

Ahhh b*llox
Capt. Scott

Seriously, im a late comer to the log but have enjoyed following it recently, you look set for a great running 2014, best of luck with your goals!

Marthastew

3 Day Jason Vale Detox.....

January 2nd
Dip in the 40 Foot
75 minute Hot Ashtanaga yoga

January 3rd 3 Day Jason Vale Detox
Dip in the 40 Foot
75 minute Hot Vinyasa yoga

January 4th
5.33 recovery miles @ 9.43 pace

Why detox? When it comes to diet (in fact when it comes to a lot of things in life) I’m a great believer in moderation, however I also firmly believe in each to their own and I enjoy reading the diet-related threads that sometimes pop up on this forum. I found Theboyblunder’s posts on the most recent discussion very interesting and food for thought (pun intended;)) and the theory (fact?) that messing with diet can drastically change our metabolism did spring to mind before I embarked on this diet. However I also felt that it couldn’t be any worse for me than the red wine + cheese +chocolate diet I had been on over Christmas (Christmas lasted all of December for us) and I wanted something radical to shift my mind-set. I hadn’t gained too much weight but I knew my diet wasn’t healthy and the LSR on the 27th was a stark reminder that running is very much influenced by diet. I know exactly what a healthy diet is and probably should have just cut out junk and left it at that but I really liked the idea of kick-starting the process and a friend of mine mentioned she was doing it so I said I’d give it a go. I downloaded the app (http://www.juicemaster.com/) and hey presto… I was on my way to a healthy liver! Having decided to give my yet-again niggly calf a rest I knew I wouldn’t be running much on these days so the time seemed right.

What is it? The programme I chose basically consists of a juice or smoothie for breakfast, lunch and dinner and unlimited water or H20 detox (three quarters water, with apple, pineapple, lemon and beetroot juice). The juices were mostly vegetable based and blended with an avocado to increase the calorie and nutrient values.

Pros? It made me dust off my juicer and reminded me that I do in fact love juicing, I usually hate washing up after but this time round I realised that didn’t matter to me. Junior tried the beetroot, apple, spinach juice and loved it, anything that gets my boys eating healthier gets my vote. (The older 2 opted to stick with carrot and apple and think beetroot is too earthy). You are supposed to wake up on a juice-high on the 4th day… I woke not quite on a high but full of energy (although I had been going to bed early each night so that could be the reason). The programme suggests you can lose up to 5lbs, I lost 2kgs, which given the fact that I’m not overweight seems about right. I’m sure most of this weight will come back on now that I’m eating normally again, but it feels good to be starting the year without the extra Christmas weight.

Cons? I drink a lot of coffee, so this was always going to be hard for me, the first thing I do every morning is head straight for my beloved Nespresso machine and I start the day with 3 (yes, 3) cups, often having 2 more that morning. I naturally had bad caffeine withdrawal headaches and felt sluggish and sleepy all throughout the detox, I drank glass after glass of hot water with lemon to counteract this. I honestly don’t think it would be possible to train seriously while on the detox, Mr Stew ran 2 days and found it very tough. I did one recovery run on the last day and it wasn’t too bad because I didn’t look at the pace at all, and I just took it really easy. I’m pretty sure I couldn’t have gone any faster even if I tried although Jason Vale says he trained for and ran the London Maraton whilst juicing:eek: (of course I looked up his result, 4.13, a big positive split with a 1.48 first half) I really missed eating normal food but surprisingly instead of missing wine and chocolate I was craving eggs, fish and my brown bread. (This is in fact a pro; any diet that leaves you craving fish gets my vote!)

Did I cheat? Yes, on the first evening I was freezing cold and spotted some tomato soup in the fridge so I cracked and had a small bowl (how very bold of me!) You are advised to eat an avocado or carrot if you really must (:eek:) and I ate a few of these each day. On the last day Mr S (who was also detoxing) decided to end his at lunchtime since he was planning an LSR the next day and he brought junior for a burger (he had been craving meat) feeling a little hard done by I ordered a decaf soya cappuccino (an acquired taste that I may never acquire)

Was it worth it? Yes, now that it’s over I’m glad I did it. I’m not sure I’d do it again or even recommend it but it certainly brought home to me that fact that I’m eating way too much food and it has left me craving healthy food rather than thinking of Rice Krispie buns. I'm also drinking a lot less coffee and still sleeping well.

Sunday January 5th
10.11 miles @ 8.53 Pace
With an LSR planned for Monday my only goal for this run was to warm the legs up and see how the calf was feeling. Still very tight to start for the first few miles but after a while I settled in and Mr S and I enjoyed the wind pushing us in all the way to Sandymount, lots of storm damage, and flooding along the way but the sun even made an appearance so this was enjoyable. He headed off to do his LSR a mile after we turned around and without him for company or to shelter behind my pace dropped considerably, although it was always going to drop given the wind, which appeared to have really picked up at this stage. Again I just ignored the watch and ran; my last mile was into really strong wind along the seafront in Sandycove so I decided to make it more fun by running right beside the sea (but far enough away not to be in danger) even though it was still 2 hours before high tide the water was so high and fabulous. I played “dodge the sea-spray” and won:D I followed this up with a super bouncy high-tide dip in the sea.
Total miles for the week 20.74:eek: (possibly less than digger;))

Cleanman

I'm totally with you on the diet mind set in terms of the everything in moderation motto. I don't see the point in denying yourself any food as long as you're sensible about it. I think you just end up pigging out on unhealthy snacks once you give up the "diet".

I find that if my diet is off the rails (as it has been over the last few months), I like to give up one or possibly two "bad foods". I find that I actually start to pay more attention to my diet as a result and will end up being more careful in general. Why pig out on one food when I'm denying myself of something else. So for January, I've given up Chocolate (I LOVE chocolate and everyone takes the p!ss out of me for the amount I eat) and alcohol (not as hard to do!). All positive so far and my general diet is much better than is was in November and December (obviously:o).

But I don't think a three day detox is any harm whatsoever. It's all healthy foods and as long as you keep up your calorie intake, then it's all good in my book.

Hope the calf clears up soon;)

RayCun

Just juice for 3 days? Were you ever off the toilet?:eek:

jcsmum

As if we all didn't feel bad enough reading about your 40 foot dipping, hot yoga, podium finishes, you had to go detoxing too..... :rolleyes:

Marthastew

Cleanman, how is it going? Are you still off chocolate? Stay strong:)You will really deserve the goody bag in Raheny:D

RayCun wrote: »

Just juice for 3 days? Were you ever off the toilet?:eek:

Surprisingly not.... The lack of coffee counterbalanced the fibre

jcsmum wrote: »

As if we all didn't feel bad enough reading about your 40 foot dipping, hot yoga, podium finishes, you had to go detoxing too..... :rolleyes:

Fear not K, I'm back enjoying the black stuff (coffee, not Guinness:rolleyes:)
See you in Raheny? You're in flying form at the mo, keep up the good work.

Cleanman

Marthastew wrote: »

Cleanman, how is it going? Are you still off chocolate? Stay strong:)You will really deserve the goody bag in Raheny:D

9.5 days down. 16 days and 2 hours to go:eek: I can smell the goodie bag from here:cool::cool:

digger2d2

jcsmum wrote: »

As if we all didn't feel bad enough reading about your 40 foot dipping, hot yoga, podium finishes, you had to go detoxing too..... :rolleyes:

Swimming in the 40 foot every day would leave you needing to detox in any event :D

digger2d2

Marthastew wrote: »

Fear not K, I'm back enjoying the black stuff (coffee, not Guinness:rolleyes:)

I wish people would stop mentioning Guinness

Marthastew

Monday January 6th
22.06 miles LSR
Calf raises and stretches as prescribed by ecoli
No dip in the 40 Foot:(

I was meeting up with a pal for a few miles of this run and I had loaded some martahontalk podcasts for the rest of it for company. Again my calf was tight when I started out but loosened up after a few miles. Another windy, wet day and I was beginning to regret my choice of route; along the coast out to Bray head and back again to Dun Laoghaire. Still feeling virtuous from my detox I had yogurt and fruit for breakfast and only 1 cup of coffee (I would later regret this). By the time I called for my friend I already had 3 miles on the Garmin, I love an LSR that gets broken up into little chunks:) The next 5 miles didn’t exactly go to plan….. we were running into ferociously strong wind UP the hills of Killiney, no fun! My friend occasionally suffers from tummy troubles and before we knew it we were searching for a place for a pit-stop. Soon enough she was all sorted and by then there were 5 miles on the Garmin. She stayed with me for 3 more miles and we parted company before Shankill. The wind was still very strong, there was a lady walking a small dog towards me and I’m pretty sure I saw it take off:pac: I was starting to feel tired and thirsty so I popped into Tesco for a bottle of yummy blue Powerade (Jason Vale would be horrified:eek:), drank half of it and hid it in Shangangh park for the return. I made sure to run in the squishy squashy muddy grass in preparation for Donadea and with the sugar kicking in I was trotting along happily. Before I knew it I was on the promenade in Bray and was rewarded with fabulous views and sounds; great big waves crashing up on the stony beach. I was glad of the distraction of the sea as the wind was just about knocking me down at this stage! Hallelujah! When I turned around for home I could enjoy the view with the wind at my back. There were a few people out walking and as usual I smiled and said hi to them all, one man who was sheltering at a restaurant yelled at me “You should be in on the treadmill”. He clearly was regretting his decision to venture out, but the sun was now out and I was actually glad to be there. By the time I got back to Shanganagh I was parched again and starting to flag a little, I gulped down the rest of my drink and decided I’d have to make another stop in Tesco, I still had almost 7 miles to go and I realised my small breakfast wasn’t such a good idea after all. Funnily enough I was thinking I’d love some Beetroot juice but I doubted there’d be any in Tesco (later I remembered that I was actually in the land of the Krustys I probably missed out on a whole aisle of beetroot fare:)). I’m off chocolate until Donadea (in the unlikely event I get a PB in Raheny I’m allowed to eat the goody bag) EXCEPT on an LSR (must be more than 17 miles to count!) I walked in the door of the shop and spied a Wispa Gold….. Yum! Although the rest of the journey was hilly and tough going the sun was shining, the views were amazing and I was on a sugar high:D I arrived back in Dun Laoghaire with 21.55 miles on the Garmin and I decided I’d have to round it up to 22. The pace was definitely too slow for where I should be at but I’m putting it down to my niggly calf, the hills and the weather combined with the lack of quality sessions over the last few weeks., I’m calling it a good start to the week. I headed into the gym and after a shower and plenty to eat and drink I spent a good while stretching and foam rolling.
I headed down at high tide for a recovery dip but despite plenty of water it was too rough even at the beach side of Sandycove to get in:(

Tuesday January 7th
45 minute hot ashtanaga yoga
Recovery 4. Miles @ 9.46
30 minute spinning class
more stretching and rolling

My legs were a little tired and the calf was still niggly during this run so I didn’t really enjoy it at all:(



Wednesday January 8th
45 minute body pump class
45 minute Rip 60 class
30 minute spinning class
5k on the treadmill
Even more stretching and rolling
Decided to run in the gym to see if maybe my posture/form is affecting my niggly calf. I’m sure anyone who saw me as I spied on myself in the mirror thought I was extremely vain…. I’m not a big fan of the treadmill but at least this session had me concentrating on form; leading from the hips, strong upright upper body and slight lean from the ankles (or at least that’s what I was trying to achieve)

Thursday January 9th
45 minute Circuit training
Yet even more stretching and rolling

Friday January 10th
45 minute hot ashtanaga yoga
45 minute body pump class
9.03 miles @ 9.33 pace

Junior was at a party in Bray so I volunteered with another mum to bring the boys home on the dart rather than have people sitting in traffic on Friday evening. This gave me the opportunity to run out and to Bray. I love a run with a purpose! I popped on my new Asics running backpack with a change of clothes (Christmas present from Mr Stew) and headed over the hills of Killiney to Bray. My first few miles were very slow after such a busy week and possibly because I haven’t run in the dark in ages so I was very wary to start. But I soon warmed up and really enjoyed this run in spite of the rain, I arrived out early so I ran up and back along the promenade, it had turned into a beautiful evening; the sound of the waves on the stones and the imposing view of Bray head pushed me right over the edge into a calm feeling of running Zen... The Zen obviously disappeared on the dart journey home with 7 noisy 10 year old boys;)

Saturday January 11th
Recovery 5.59 miles @ 9.06 pace
More and more stretching and rolling
What a glorious day! A nice easy run along the coast while junior was at GAA training.

Sunday January 12th
LSR 21.5 miles @ 8.33 pace
Not exactly a glorious day and it would seem that my Child of Prague has lost its powers.... Although it didn’t rain as much as forecast so maybe that was the best we could hope for. Mr Stew and I headed out and got 5 easy miles in before joining J, a clubmate, in Monkstown for a really great run. I love running with 3 or more people, I think it really helps to keep the pace up much better than with 2 people. We headed back along the coast (into the wind) up to Killiney and he brought us on a new lesser known route I hadn’t been on before right up to the Obelisk where we were nearly blown over when we stopped to admire the view. J went tearing off down the hill and we followed and I was disgusted when I got to the carpark to see I had forgotten to restart my Garmin for what would have been my fastest part of the run! We headed back down to the quarry with lots of great Donadea training as we splished and sploshed through the muck and puddles. And then back along the coast where we left J home with nearly 16 miles on the Garmin. We stopped in a Spar, not that I really needed to but I wasn’t missing an opportunity for chocolate! All I had this time was a teeny tiny chomp and we shared a blue drink. The last few miles were into the wind and rain but I tucked in behind Mr S and before we knew it we were home! Yay, another good LSR in the training bank. I then discovered the latest greatest recovery food known to man…… Alpen! It is yummy and milky and sweet and nutty! after 2 bowls of it and Mr Stew’s famous poached eggs I was feeling brand spanking new again.

Total miles for the week 65.28:D
A much better week for me, the high mileage is due to the fact that I had to postpone my LSR from last week. Lots of strength work/yoga/classes as rehab for the calf and mostly slow miles with no sessions as I didn’t want to aggravate it. With treatment and support from ecoli my calf seems to finally be on the mend, I am of course keeping my fingers crossed, saying novenas, chasing magpies, looking for black cats…..

jcsmum

Just when I think I'm working hard............ :rolleyes:. Fantastic mileage and yoga and sea dipping etc etc......

digger2d2

You saw a flying dog!.... Are you sure you didn't eat some of Mr Stew's famous mushrooms? :D

Marthastew

Monday January 13th
Dip in the 40 Foot
more and more stretching and rolling
Almost high tide and even though it was raining I really enjoyed this dip, it woke my legs up nicely after the LSR on Sunday. I had planned a recovery run but decided to cross-train (do the housework;)) instead.
My recovery after the LSRs seems to really be improving and I’m pretty sure it’s partly down to the fact that my diet has improved. I’m still enjoying the occasional juice or smoothie and I’m not craving junk so I feel the juice detox really benefitted me. Having said that I’m back enjoying hot cooked food again and as expected I’ve put back on some of the weight I lost (only 1 kilo so that’s fine)



Tuesday January 14th
Dip in the 40 Foot
45 minute hot ashtanaga yoga
4 X 1 mile w 1min recovery
Total including w/u + c/d 8.94 miles @ 8.06

With my calf feeling better every day and Raheny looming I decided I could no longer avoid some sort of session. I took a nice easy peesy option as I really didn’t want to fall at the first hurdle. A nice slow warm up run down to Blackrock park, dropped my jacket and cranked up the disco tunes. Tempo pace for me should be 6.40 – 6.50 but I’d be happy with anything sub 7. It’s amazing how we can work ourselves up ahead of a session and I actually almost enjoyed this in spite of the fact that it has been weeks since my legs were moving fast. I didn’t look at the pace while running and was very pleasantly surprised when I finished. Splits; 6.48, 6.46, 6.56, 6.51(although with 8.94 miles I wish I had looked at the Garmin and rounded it up to 9;))

Wednesday January 15th
12.27 adventurous miles
Even more stretching and rolling
Episode 1396 of this epic tale sees our heroine join Ultraman, Spartacus and The Don for a magical trip up to Fairy Castle:):):)......

The perfect way to spend a drizzly mid-week morning! Because I bribe him with cake Anto occasionally invites me on some of his runs, not only do I have the pleasure of his company but he usually brings along some more like-minded souls and this week he was joined by Don (looking fresh as a daisy only a few days after his podium finish at the AON) and the most adorable little dog called Spartacus. I arrived at Marlay Park a little early so I tootled around for a while to loosen out the legs and away we went. This was my 3rd time running this route so I thought I knew what lay ahead….. Don is in fact a real live mountain goat and before long we were wandering well off the beaten track Rather than attempt to describe the route/terrain I’ll quote form Anto’s log… up,up,up,up,up,down,down,ms on her arse, (note to self, buy trail shoes before next run) down,up,up,up,up,up,up,flat,up,up,flat,up,up,up,up,up,down,down,down
We arrived back at Marlay and Spartacus the dog looked disappointed the run was over (Apparently his PB distance is 43KM). We, on the other hand, were very happy to finish and enjoyed some of our 5 a day in the form of carrot cake and banana bread, YUM! I was mucky, messy and a little bruised but it was one of the most enjoyable runs I have had in a very, very long time.

Thursday January 16th
Recovery 4.23 miles @ 8.56 pace
12 miles easy cycling
Yet even more stretching and rolling
I had a great morning catching up with friends so I decided to get to and from everywhere by running and cycling, a fabulous sunny day:)

digger2d2

I have this image of you all arriving in Marlay and Anto saying "I'm Spartacus", Don replies "No, I'm Spartacus" and the dog barking out "Not this sh1te again lads, let's go run"

ultraman1

digger2d2 wrote: »

I have this image of you all arriving in Marlay and Anto saying "I'm Spartacus", Don replies "No, I'm Spartacus" and the dog barking out "Not this sh1te again lads, let's go run"

I was cricksus...

Marthastew

For those of you wondering who Crixus is....
The resemblance to Anto is uncanny, and he also is on a quest to only wear shorts while running in winter;)

image.jpg

kit3

Marthastew wrote: »

For those of you wondering who Crixus is....
The resemblance to Anto is uncanny, and he also is on a quest to only wear shorts while running in winter;)

image.jpg

Is that the new pacer's gear for DCM ?

jonny99

kit3 wrote: »

Is that the new pacer's gear for DCM ?

Theres about as much room in there as there was in those little green shorts in 2011-well, for me anyways:)

kit3

jonny99 wrote: »

Theres about as much room in there as there was in those little green shorts in 2011-well, for me anyways:)

Maybe that's why so many finished with the 5 hour pacers that year

Marthastew

Friday January 17th
Dip in 40 Foot
45 minute hot ashtanaga yoga
Progression run 8.08 miles @ 8.31 pace
45 minute body pump class
More and more stretching and rolling
A lovely sunshiny day so I stuck to my usual route along the coast for this, started nice and easy with a 9.20 mile and gradually picked it up for each mile finishing strong on a sub 8 mile.



Saturday January 18th
LSR 21.59 miles@ 8.16 pace
Holy Merde! This was most definitely a character building run and if I’m honest I was finding it tough going from about 10 miles into it. Mr Stew and I were delighted to be joined by claralara (yes folks, she is alive and well and training hard:)), meno and cousin Stew. Mr Stew and I had spent the morning on the side of a GAA pitch followed by a rugby pitch (worth our while, our boys did us proud:D) and we had just enough time to get changed and try and warm up before heading out the door in the afternoon. Meno was in charge of the route this time and on another day if I was feeling better I might have appreciated the challenging yet interesting trip he took us on. We basically headed out the door and climbed all the way up to the back of Marlay park, did a loop of the park and then home. Mr Stew had been away with work all week and had a bad tummy bug on Thursday and I had been out on Friday night till 2am up again at 8 (designated driver so no hangover) so we were both struggling a little at the start. By the time we got to Leopardstown Mr S was complaining of a very sore back so he decided to take the sensible option and jump in a cab home. Luckily for me cousin Stew, Meno and claralara were in great form, running along without a care in the world, chatting and entertaining me. The lap around Marlay just about floored me and I was delighted when we headed out into the Centra for a yummy blue drink and a chomp bar (nom nom:)) I had a nice sugar kick for the next few miles and they were all downhill so before we knew it we were back in Monkstown. I was still a little worried as to why I was trailing so much behind CL, meno and Cousin S but I’m assuming it was because of the busy week with Mr S away, the late night and not eating enough on Friday or Saturday morning. When the Garmin hit 19 miles I told them to push on and settled in for a nice 9 min mile to get my breathing and my attitude back on track again. The drag up by the old Dun Laoghaire golf club (half way point in the DLR Bay 10K) was tough going in the dark and the rain so I decided to sing the Pharrell Williams “Happy”** song to myself, in fact I was singing it out loud by the time I reached the top of the hill! Whatever gets you through a long run:D I arrived home and was greeted with yummy food courtesy of Mr S, the 3 musketeers had pushed on and run 22 miles.

Sunday January 19th
Recovery 5.33 miles @ 9.22 pace
More stretching and rolling
Mr S was feeling much better so he decided to do his LSR on Sunday and I convinced him to do the first 5 miles very slowly and I joined him for my recovery run. Hooray for sunshine:):) My legs felt surprisingly good, but then again I had spent most of Saturday evening eating good healthy food in an effort to redress my calorie deficit. Note to self eat properly before my next LSR


Total miles for the week 60.44
Another good week for me, I’m very happy to have finally got a session in (albeit an easy enough one) and I’m hopeful I’ll get stronger and stronger over the next few weeks.



* I'd love to attach a link to the song but I can't figure out how to do so and the dinner won't get itself

pgmcpq

Happy to help !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6Sxv-sUYtM

Marthastew

Monday January 20th
45 minute Rip 60 class
Progression run 11.01 miles avg pace 8.48
45 minute Body Pump Class
more and more stretching and rolling
Sunshine again! What a glorious day. I really enjoyed this run, I started off nice and easy, kept it easy for the first 5 miles then gradually picked it up to finish strong and fast. In along the coast and through Blackrock park and back again, lots of lovely squishy mud to run in:) I definitely need to change my route, the drivers on the Aircoach have started beeping and waving at me since they see me so often!

Tuesday January 21st
Track session; 12 X 400 alternating hard/steady
Splits; 1.30, 1.52, 1.35, 1.52, 1.36, 1.50, 1.36, 1.50, 1.36, 1.52, 1.36, 1.47
Total miles 7.62
Back to the home of the Boards Beer Mile after a month’s break and even though it was raining, windy and miserable I was happy to try and get my legs moving fast again. I headed up early and did a few very easy miles and by the time everyone had arrived I was already soaking wet and covered in muck but at least I had warmed up. Maria had a “nice” session in mind for me and I would be running around chasing the rest of our group who were doing something different. We’ve recently been joined by a guy who is pretty close to me in terms of split times (of course I told him I’d eat him up over 50K distance;)) and having him there really helped keep me on my toes. Conditions weren’t favourable to say the least and the first 200M was into driving wind, this just about killed me and I really pulled back on this part of the track on the steady reps. This winter so far has shown me how much I hate the wind, I’m sure there must be some anti-wind spell or lucky charm that I could incorporate into my training, maybe I’ll ask the cat and see what she says?;) It has been so long since I pushed myself, I really didn’t enjoy the first 4 fast reps, I forgot just how much it takes to get used to the torturous feeling but the last 2 fast reps were almost enjoyable as I began to remember that it actually feels kinda good to feel so bad:D A nice easy cool down and then I paid a trip to Ecoli for some TLC for my niggly calf.

A great way to spend a wet, miserable January morning, as Pharrell Williams would say Happy, happy, happy:D:D:D

digger2d2

Get over to the other thread and start answering some questions

jcsmum

Great training as always O. Am enjoying your Q&A on the other forum!

Marthastew

Wednesday January 22nd
45 minute Body Pump class
15.05 miles @ 9.17 pace
Even more stretching and rolling
With Raheny on Sunday I wanted to get a medium long run in early in the week. After the session and the treatment from ecoli on Tuesday I decided to keep this run very slow and very easy. A nice run in to town and back home again. Sunshiny day with lots of people out making the most of the weather. I started to tire a little in the last mile but that was most likely because I was beginning to get hungry and thirsty; no chocolate allowed on runs unless they are more than 17 miles... I was almost tempted to add on 2 more at the end;)


Thursday January 23rd
5K on the cross-trainer
Yet even more stretching and rolling
Brrr, where did the sunshine go? I woke with a head cold and decided the best option was to stay in the gym, I popped into the sauna after and felt much better for it.



Friday January 17th
Dip in 40 Foot:D
45 minute hot Vinyasa yoga
4.92 miles @ 8.06 pace (w 10 X 100m strides)
Finally a dip in the sea…. and it was worth the wait! I’ve got Raynuad’s (fancy name for hands that get very cold and turn white) and the LSR on Saturday made it really flare up (I was holding my ice-cold blue Powerade bottle in the cold and rain) so I avoided the sea as long as I could. My head cold was feeling much better after the dip. After yoga I headed out into the “soft day” for a nice easy run with some strides, my legs felt great and I really, really enjoyed this run.



Saturday
Rest
A busy day planned with my boys and their sports so I set my alarm to get up early for a few easy miles but just before going to sleep I saw sense and turned off the alarm and opted for a much needed lie-in instead.
Very best of luck to all who are racing tomorrow, if you’re doing Raheny come say hi, I’ll be in a Crusader vest chasing drafting off a tall man in a Crusader vest (Mr S)
Good luck to all in Dungarvan also:)

HelenAnne

Really well run yesterday. Eoin has a great series of you finishing here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/86489211@N00/sets/72157640186446306/page5/

You look great (& delighted!)

belcarra

HelenAnne wrote: »

Really well run yesterday. Eoin has a great series of you finishing here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/86489211@N00/sets/72157640186446306/page5/

What happened?? He simply gave up taking photos once his Missus crossed the line? I would have been in the next few photos!:cool::)