It's all about racing

Cleanman

I’ve been agestelling myself that I should start a log – so here goes. I hope it’ll help toinspire others as I’ve been inspired by some great logs here and also get some feedback on where I'm going wrong! I started runningabout 18 months ago. I’ve always been in reasonable shape but have never had agreat aerobic base.

I was a sprint hurdler as a teenager but gaveit up to concentrate on GAA. Gave that up about 2 years ago after a successionof injuries and started going on easy 20/30 minute runs to stay in shape. I joineda club last year and was going well until May. Then injury hit again. Plan isto build up a good base and see where it brings me. My preference is to runshorter races but speed seems to bring on injuries so I’ll see where it bringsme. Short term plan is to concentrate on the 5k. So first off, I’m running Raheny tomorrow.I’ve never ran a 5 mile before so I’m a bit nervous but we’ll see how it goes.The aim is to break 31 mins. I’ll update my race times from last year and mytraining so far this year later on.



Here goes – 31 yrold male hoping to improve

Cleanman

So I haven't raced that much, something I'd like to change. My first race was actually nearly 2 years ago. I caught the bug there and started "proper" training soon after that. My races so far have been:

March 2011 MSB 5k 20:39
Dec 2011 Jingle bells 5k 19:33
Feb 2012

Cleanman

Ooops, posted the last reply by accident. As I was saying

Feb 2012 RAS 5k

Cleanman

this is annoying....

March 2012 MSB 5k 18:33
April 2012 800m 2:13
May 2012 1500m 4:31
May 2012 400m 56:11
Dec 2012 Jingle bells 19:03


I've been building up my fitness again since coming back from injury in October so hope to go ok tomorrow in Raheny. Training I did last week (which was a good week for me) was as follows:

Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 12k run with 5k tempo in the middle in 21 mins
Wed: Yoga class
Thursday: 8k easy
Friday: 6k easy
Saturday: 16k long run
Sunday: 6k easy

I hope to keep going at 4/5 days of running a week. I haven't gone back to the club training yet but will start back for a few Tuesday night interval sessions with them soon....

ecoli

Best of luck with training. Nice 400 pb shows that your 800m wont be long being revised just take it one step at a time and try to remain consistent and injury free and enjoy what your doing

Cleanman

Thanks ecoli, that 400m was without any specific training so I reckon I could go a lot lower if I could hack the training:rolleyes: If I can stay injury free for the next few months, I'll definitely get back to some track races in the summer.

Best of luck tomorrow!

Pisco Sour

Cleanman wrote: »

Thanks ecoli, that 400m was without any specific training so I reckon I could go a lot lower if I could hack the training:rolleyes: If I can stay injury free for the next few months, I'll definitely get back to some track races in the summer.

Best of luck tomorrow!

Looking at those times I think you'd be better off scraping the 5kms and focus on sprints or maybe become a 400/800 runner. Have a read of randymanns log, started off spending his time running slow times for long distance until he figured out he could sprint, and now he is sub 12 and low 24 at the age of 40. 56 off no real training is impressive so that would be my advice to you. Forget the 5k's etc. I may be the only one giving that advice here but its the right advice. Unless you don't enjoy sprinting that is.

ecoli

Pisco Sour wrote: »

Looking at those times I think you'd be better off scraping the 5kms and focus on sprints or maybe become a 400/800 runner. Have a read of randymanns log, started off spending his time running slow times for long distance until he figured out he could sprint, and now he is sub 12 and low 24 at the age of 40. 56 off no real training is impressive so that would be my advice to you. Forget the 5k's etc. I may be the only one giving that advice here but its the right advice. Unless you don't enjoy sprinting that is.

Playing devils advocate here but off that fast time and the drop off there is more potential to be competitive at the longer distances.

56 speed while good is a long way off competitive. I have 56-57 speed myself but would be in no way be considered a speedy guy by any stretch of the imagination.

The drop off's to me just indicates the room for potential for improvement with aerobic development.

Guess it comes down to what you enjoy but strength will help come the summer months. There are alot of 800m runners around the country at the moment concentrating on strength for the summer months with 5k style sessions. They are keeping in touch with speed but the focus is on aerobic development

Pisco Sour

ecoli wrote: »

Playing devils advocate here but off that fast time and the drop off there is more potential to be competitive at the longer distances.

56 speed while good is a long way off competitive. I have 56-57 speed myself but would be in no way be considered a speedy guy by any stretch of the imagination.

The drop off's to me just indicates the room for potential for improvement with aerobic development.

Guess it comes down to what you enjoy but strength will help come the summer months. There are alot of 800m runners around the country at the moment concentrating on strength for the summer months with 5k style sessions. They are keeping in touch with speed but the focus is on aerobic development

Completely disagree. If you were referring to 100m speed then I'd agree with you but 400 requires speed endurance which can be developed.

We have a newcomer in our club who has good speed. Has already run a 54. Yet he has it in his head that he's an 800 runner and has been stuck at 2.10 - 2.11 all season. He'd be far better off focusing on his 400 and getting down to 52 which he is very capable of.

And while a 56 low may not be very competitive, its worlds ahead of a high 18 5k. His 1500m is impressive but I don't agree that 5k is the way forward for this guy based on the info we are given.

Of course if one enjoys one over the other then that's a different matter.

OP what's your 100 and 200 times?

myflipflops

56 speed is decent speed for a 10k runner.

What Cleanman is doing at the moment seems to be based off relatively little training so the scope to improve over all distances is big. No reason why he cannot knock 3/4 seconds off his 400 time and 2 minutes off his 5k time.

They are a long way from being mutually exclusive

Pisco Sour wrote: »

We have a newcomer in our club who has good speed. Has already run a 54. Yet he has it in his head that he's an 800 runner and has been stuck at 2.10 - 2.11 all season. He'd be far better off focusing on his 400 and getting down to 52 which he is very capable of.

He is either very poorly coached or not training very hard. Difficult to envision a 54 second guy not being able to drop down and run at least 61 laps back to back.

Cleanman

Thanks for all the replies. I guess I don't know myself what me best event is. I think that I'm probably a 400/800 guy. I'm very afraid of diving into either of those as I don't believe I can take the high volume of intensity that's needed. That's why I want to concentrate on the 5k for now. I have very little aerobic development and if I can work on that now, it should help to bring my 800 time down considerably. I read some of the links you posted on pconns log ecoli and according to them, 800m running is 50% aerobic. Since I've such poor aerobic capacity, it's seems obvious to me I should concentrate on that first. Surely speed endurance is easier to work on if you are really strong aerobicely?

Pisco, I do really enjoy the shorter training. But staying injury free is my real aim for the season and I think I've a better chance of doing that if I stick with more aerobic training that anerobic training. I follow yours, Randymann's and Oregano's logs with a lot of interest and the gains yourself and Randymann have shown in the last couple of years is impressive....but I genuinely don't believe I'm up to that type of training yet.

As myflipflop has said, my times are based of very little training really so I expect that with consistency, I should be able to knock a good chuck off them all. I don't think I'll ever be "competitive" but the quickest way for me so see gains, I believe, is consistentcy. And I know I can train consistently if I stay injury free.

Cleanman

[QUOTE=
OP what's your 100 and 200 times?[/QUOTE]
I have no idea pisco. I was going to try a 200 last summer after my 400 but injury got me first. I wouldn't expect very low times though, my all out speed isn't very impressive.

Cleanman

Sunday 27th January - Raheny 5

So it just so happens that my first report of a run is a race! It was my first ever 5mile race and longest distance I've raced to date. For the last few months, I've been concentrating on getting consistent miles in and not worrying too much about speed in the hope that miles alone would increase my fitness. As I've never raced over 5 miles (and I'm not sure what kind of shape I'm in), I was unsure of a target. But I knew I couldn't keep up 6 min mile pace, so I settled on a 31 min target. A little arbitary maybe but I 6:10 pace was the plan for the first 3 miles and judge it from there.

It was blooming cold before the race. I tried my best to warm up (and keep warm!) before the race but my hands were still frozen at the start. After a few minutes staning up about 7/8 rows from the start, we were off. I resisted going out too fast and saw a clubmate of mine about 30 yards ahead who is in decent shape so that helped me to hold back. After the first 800m or so, the pace settled and we were into race mode. The first mile passed without incident and I was feeling very comfortable. 6:01 for the first mile. A little quick maybe but I put that down to the first 400m frenzy.

Mile 2 was more steady running against a pretty tough breeze. I was in a group with possibly the four smallest people in the world - nobody to hide behind:p Feck it anyway, just drive on. Two club mates passed me on the second mile and I know they are both in better shape than me so didn't try to go with them (they're small too so no point in hiding behind them either!) Hit mile 2 at 6:14. Still feeling good.

I felt great on the third mile, my breathing was stedy and I was in a great rythm. Hit 3 miles at 18:30. 6:15 for the mile. There's no way I can miss 31 mins I tell myself, just keep going as you are.

Onto the coast road and I'm still feeling good but starting to tire a little. About 30m before the turn, an old geezer passed me and I try to stay with him but BOOM, turn the corner and the incline that comes hits me like a brick wall. 6:20 for the 4th mile and I'm starting to fade.

If I thought things were starting to go wrong, I need not worry, All Saints road is around the next corner:eek::eek:. The gale that hits me nearly knocks me over and the legs go to jelly. Still, I know I'm nearly there and nobody has passed me in the last mile so everyone must be suffering too. The old geezer that past me on mile 4 has passed at least another 10 so he obviously has left lots in the tank. Then with about 400m, about 5/6 in a group pass in one foul swoop. Damn it anyway. I have nothing in response and they go about 10m ahead. I'm starting to shuffle at this stage and feel awful. I remember thinking that I hadn't felt this bad since the last 50m of the only 400m race I had attempted. Everything was like jelly. Time to dig deep. I come around the last bend and tried a sprint. Somehow, I caught and passed the group (and one or two others ahead) and bundled over the line for 31:15. 6:25 for the last mile.

My initial reaction was disappointment at not breaking 31 but then realised that a)that wind was awful, b) 31 was an arbitary target c) I had battled well in the end, I have some strength built up after all and d) it's a pb!!

Ok ok, the last point is a little over the top seeing as it was my first 5mile race but I needed all the self praise as I could at that point. Overall, I'm very happy with the race though. My splits didn't fade off too badly and the last mile was very tough. It'll stand to me for my next 5k. The only other point from the race is the two large blisters I have. I never get blisters but have 1 on each foot right under my small toe on the outside of my feet. I'm a very predominant forefoot striker but have a neutral gait. Maybe the runners have seen their time. Back to Thirstywork2 for a check up me thinks!!

ecoli

That fact that your splits were relatively consistent despite the wind shows that you have a good bit of strength keep the training consistent and once you get into more 5k specific sessions you will knock chunks off that 5k

Cleanman

Monday 28th Jan
No running yesterday. I was feeling tired and a little sore from the race Sunday (no surprise really seeing as I've done little speed work or racing lately). The blisters on my feet were also quite tender so I just did half an hour of stretching, foam rolling and core work.

Tuesday 29th Jan
Headed up the park for a 40 minute easy run. I live just over a mile from the parkgate entrance so it's a great facility right on my door step! Ended up doing a regular route up chesterfield avenue and round by the papel cross, down the kyber, out the gate at Islandbridge and home. 8.4k in all in just under 43 mins. Felt great on this run, a nice easy run to flush out the legs. Threw in a few strides in the middle and the legs were fine. Yoga tomorrow.

Cleanman

Wednesday 30th January
Yogalates class last night. It's basically a core class with some stretching thrown in. Tough going but very worthwhile.

Thursday 31th January
Headed up to the park for a planned easy hours running. After about 3 miles, I bumped into a few lads from the club and tipped around with them for a while. After a couple of miles, my breathing started to get tougher. A quick glance at the garmin confirmed I was "tipping along" at 6:30 pace:eek::eek:. I stuck with them for a couple more minutes and made my excuses. Time to head home. Made it home 61 minutes after leaving having covered 12.6k. Average pace about 7:45 min/mile.

A bit strange but I measure distance travelled in kilometers but pace per min/mile. I think it's because it seems like I've run further than I have if measured in kms. 50 kms sounds more than 30 miles! But at the same time, pace per mile makes more sense to me than pace per km. Like I said, a bit strange!:rolleyes:

Cleanman

I just looked up my training spreadsheet. I had three aims for January:

Stay off the beer. Done:D:D:D
Break 31mins in Raheny. I posted 31:15. Happy enough:D:D
Log 200kms and get to 4 yoga classes. I ran 194kms and made 4 classes so just failed:rolleyes:

Aims for February:
Try not to drink too much!
Find a 5k and post a pb. Current pb is 18.33.
Run 200kms (it's a shorter month!) and make another 4 classes

Anyone have any suggestions on a suitable 5k around Dublin? I was going to run the RAS in UCD but think it's been changed to April.

Cleanman

Friday 1 Feb

A nice easy 6k run today. What an absolute great run! I was trotting along in my own little world, delighted with myself that the weeks graft is over and before you know it, I'm nearly home. I almost went for a second lap just so I could keep running:). But took the sensible option and kept to the plan.

6k in 30 quick minutes @ c8 m/m pace.

RunningKing

There's a free 5k park run every week. Don't think the Malahide course is a PB course, maybe when Marley starts up in March.

There's also the MSB 5k on March 16 in town.
Or try runireland website.

drquirky

Pisco Sour wrote: »

Completely disagree. If you were referring to 100m speed then I'd agree with you but 400 requires speed endurance which can be developed.

We have a newcomer in our club who has good speed. Has already run a 54. Yet he has it in his head that he's an 800 runner and has been stuck at 2.10 - 2.11 all season. He'd be far better off focusing on his 400 and getting down to 52 which he is very capable of.

And while a 56 low may not be very competitive, its worlds ahead of a high 18 5k. His 1500m is impressive but I don't agree that 5k is the way forward for this guy based on the info we are given.

Of course if one enjoys one over the other then that's a different matter.

OP what's your 100 and 200 times?

56 flat and 18 flat for 5k are the exact same thing

Pisco Sour

drquirky wrote: »

56 flat and 18 flat for 5k are the exact same thing

56.00/43.18 = 1.297

18.00/12.63 = 1.425


56.00/47.60 = 1.176

18.00/14.18 = 1.269


56.00 = 568 IAAF points

18:00 = 360 IAAF points

Neither time will be making the news anytime soon but they are not the same thing!.

Pisco Sour

Just seen your 5 mile. Well done. Great start to 2013.

Cleanman

RunningKing wrote: »

There's a free 5k park run every week. Don't think the Malahide course is a PB course, maybe when Marley starts up in March.

There's also the MSB 5k on March 16 in town.
Or try runireland website.

Thanks RunningKing. I had forgotten about Malahide. I'm going to run there in two weeks. I can't do MSB unfortunately. I'm away that weekend. I've ran it last year and the year before. It's a great race.

Pisco Sour wrote: »

56.00/43.18 = 1.297

18.00/12.63 = 1.425


56.00/47.60 = 1.176

18.00/14.18 = 1.269


56.00 = 568 IAAF points

18:00 = 360 IAAF points

Neither time will be making the news anytime soon but they are not the same thing!.

So if I took part in a decatholan and ran 56 flat, I'd get 568 points?

Coming from a GAA background, it seems to me that it's much easier to knock out a 56 400m that an 18 min 5k. Practically all GAA training is build on short explosive exercises with very little consideration for endurance (well most coaches consider endurance but have no idea how to develop it). There are lots of guys that I'm confident could easily break 56 that I've played with down through the years. But I wouldn't think they'd break 18 mins for the 5k.

So what time would get one 568 points in the 5k? Be interesting to see if that time was attainable!

Pisco Sour

Cleanman wrote: »

Thanks RunningKing. I had forgotten about Malahide. I'm going to run there in two weeks. I can't do MSB unfortunately. I'm away that weekend. I've ran it last year and the year before. It's a great race.



So if I took part in a decatholan and ran 56 flat, I'd get 568 points?

Coming from a GAA background, it seems to me that it's much easier to knock out a 56 400m that an 18 min 5k. Practically all GAA training is build on short explosive exercises with very little consideration for endurance (well most coaches consider endurance but have no idea how to develop it). There are lots of guys that I'm confident could easily break 56 that I've played with down through the years. But I wouldn't think they'd break 18 mins for the 5k.

So what time would get one 568 points in the 5k? Be interesting to see if that time was attainable!

Nah the decathlon points is a different scoring tables. The one I quoted is from the 2011 iaaf scoring tables which.is used for comparison purposes. Yes it would be easier for a TRAINED GAA player to run 56 than 18 but that's not a fair basis to decide what's easier as gaa players are trained for speed endurance.

If you got 10 average inactive men off the coach, most will get to 18 far easier than 56.

Cleanman

Pisco Sour wrote: »

Nah the decathlon points is a different scoring tables. The one I quoted is from the 2011 iaaf scoring tables which.is used for comparison purposes. Yes it would be easier for a TRAINED GAA player to run 56 than 18 but that's not a fair basis to decide what's easier as gaa players are trained for speed endurance.

If you got 10 average inactive men off the coach, most will get to 18 far easier than 56.

Agreed. I'm saying that it's easier for me to go below 56 than 18mins as nearly all my training down through the years is based on speed/power (taken that I haven't done any of that type of training in the last few years). That's why I'm enjoying the more endurance based training at the minute. It's completely different.

Cleanman

Saturday 2 Feb

Over a few pints at Christmas with my neighbour and a good mate growing up, we got talking about training methods for GAA players. He manages the local schools team and is also involved in training the Mayo U21 team. The Mayo seniors have an endurance trainer involved as intercounty teams are starting to really realise the benefits of more endurance training. He asked me if I'd do a session with the schools team. So about a month ago I brought them down to the local track and we did 16 x 300 in 1 min with 1 min recovery. I did it with them and acted as "pace maker" and came in at about 55/56 for each run.

Well they were very impressed with the session. My mate was onto me to come down home again for another session. So I was home this morning and went back down to the track. This time I bought a few cones and set them out at evey 50m mark. We did a 15 min effort where we'd run from the start line or 200m start line to whatever cone I called out. Then 4 min recovery followed by a 10 min effort. Another 3 min recovery followed by 5 laps where we sprinted the straights and jogged the bends. The track is exactly 4k from my house so I used the distance as a warm up and warm down for myself. The lads had their own warm up done when I got there. I was a bit shagged running home as I'm not used to the faster stuff. (we were all out on the last sprints) A very different but enjoyable session.

I timed some of the runs and we were doing the 400s in about 80secs and 200s in under 35. Overall, I was impressed with the fitness levels of a few of the lads. I was struggling to keep up near the end!!

85mins and 16k covered in total with 8k of "intervals".

Pisco Sour

Cleanman wrote: »

Agreed. I'm saying that it's easier for me to go below 56 than 18mins as nearly all my training down through the years is based on speed/power (taken that I haven't done any of that type of training in the last few years). That's why I'm enjoying the more endurance based training at the minute. It's completely different.

Indeed. Ya gotta do what ya enjoy. That's why we do this in the end of the day.

Cleanman

Monday 4th Feb
6k recovery run today. My legs were in bits yesterday after Saturdays session. I'm nowhere near ready for that kind of session. A few pints and very little sleep Saturday night didn't help either:mad: I wasn't in the slightest mood to run either today but just had to HTFU and get out the door. I was still sore for the first few kms and by the half way mark, I'd convinced myself that going down to the club tomorrow is a mistake. I started to relax a bit though and somehow (I think) I started to enjoy the run. By the end, I was actually feeling ok. I guess that's the purpose of a recovery run!

6k in 31 mins @ 8.15 pace

Cleanman

Tuesday 5th Feb
Finally made it down to the club tonight. I was still feeling a bit stiff but had to get the first session over with it at some stage. 1k repeats were on the menu. The loop we were doing is horrible with a twisty climb around half way before turning into a nasty wind. Because of the loop, I wasn't too bothered about the time as long as I could keep them consistent. So 5 laps at 3:50 was the plan with 90 sec recovery.

After a 3.5k warmup, we headed off on the first and felt good but the standard was too high (and I was the slowest) and ended up going way too fast. The second was a bit more sensible but then I had to cut the recovery short just to run with the last group on the 3rd rep. I was shot as a result and fell off the group and was running on my own before long. I took the full recovery before the 4th but was running on my own as a result. My time slipped too and the coach told me to leave the last out since it was my first session back. All in all, it was a decent session. If I kept to the planned pace, I would have been able to do all 5 reps. I was going to try it anyway but glad I was pulled out. A short 1k warm down and I was done. Feel pretty good after it so happy enough. Times were:

1) 3:32
2) 3:42
3) 3:37
4) 3:45

A bit all over the place but all well below planned pace. Going to try and make it down every Tuesday for the next few weeks.

Oregano_State

Just found your log now, looks like you had a pretty decent début track season despite the injury. Was it a hamstring problem?

I'd say you could knock chunks off those 400m and 800m times with a bit of practice. I'm going to follow with interest. Best of luck!

Cleanman

Oregano_State wrote: »

Just found your log now, looks like you had a pretty decent début track season despite the injury. Was it a hamstring problem?

I'd say you could knock chunks off those 400m and 800m times with a bit of practice. I'm going to follow with interest. Best of luck!

Thanks OS. I've had lots of problems with my hamstrings over the years (coming from my back) but the yoga seems to be helping to sort them out. My problem last year was my ankle. It was in bad shape about 10 years ago from a horrible tackle playing GAA and it just somehow "broke down" last summer.

You're making great progress with your own training. Looking forward to reading some of your race reports. Are you doing indoors or going to wait for the outdoor season?

Keep up the good work!

Wednesday 6th Feb
Yogalates class tonight. Another tough class. It's the only gym type work I'm doing at the minute so important to keep it up.

Oregano_State

Thanks man. I’ve had hamstring problems myself, but touch wood they’re behind me now. It’s interesting that you’re doing yoga type stuff, I’ve been thinking about trying yoga or pilates for a while now, as my flexibility isn’t as good as I’d like it to be, but I haven’t gotten around to it yet!

Yeah my training seems to be going ok at the moment, but I’m not racing the indoors. Much and all as I’d like to have a go on the track in Athlone, I don’t think I’m race fit yet.

Do you think you’ll be doing much track running this year, or are you just building a base for the moment and seeing where it takes you?

Cleanman

I find yoga excellent for injury prevention. I've been inconsistently doing it for about 18 months now. Whenever I go a few weeks without going, I can feel myself getting tight! The yogalates is also good for general conditioning so if you were thinking about it, you could just concentrate on lifting weights in the gym and leave the general conditioning work you do to yoga. I must get back into the gym myself but bulking up is now my main problem right now.

I went to a few of the Dublin Graded last year and they're good - well run on a Wednesday night and there are meets in both Santry and Irishtown, so you'll find plenty of meets to suit you.

I'm pretty much just building a base right now but I know I'll get impatient with it and try a few track meets once they come around. What distance I try depends on my fitness. The fitter I feel, the shorter the event!

Cleanman

Back down to the club tonight. It was quiet enough with only a few runners around. Unfortunately they were all sub 3 hour marathoners or guys flying on the cross country scene. What the hell, I went out with them anyway. After about 4k of "easy" enough running, they upped the pace and I really stuggled. I fell about 20 metres back and was starting to really puff. I kept working until about the 8k mark and turned back for the club when one of the lads said he was taking it easy tonight and going back. So 9.8k overall in 43 mins. An average of just over 7 min miles. A little too fast for me and as a consequence, I didn't run for as long as I'd hoped. The plan was about 55-60 mins. Anyway, maybe that session will be more beneficial.

Once I got back to the club, I decided to head up the gym for some stretching and even picked up a few light weights. Nothing specific, but included 3 x10 deadlifts and 3x10 rows with a 30kg bar. It's been so long since I've been in a gym that I can feel my hammys tighten already! I might try and do a few weights any night I can make it to the club just to get used of them again. I can work on body weight exercises at home and at yoga.

Cleanman

Finished up work a little earlier than usual. It was still bright outside and I was dying to run. Apart from tight hamstrings from the deadlifts last night, my legs felt fresh. Frigg it, I threw on the gear and got out for half hour of real slow running. It surely won't do me any harm. Got a bit of stretching and core work in when I got home too.

6k in about 33 mins, 8:45 pace

About half way through the run, I started thinking - Are these junk miles? What the hell are junk miles anyway. Every mile should have a purpose? Well this run helped shake out my legs and protect my sanity - does that pass?!:P

RayCun

real slow running is fine, good for recovery

RandyMann

Hey Cleanman, just noticed your log. Its a good read and best of luck with your training.

Cleanman

Felt a bit stiff when I got up this morning but headed out the door and all stiffness disappeared after about 10 mins. For the rest of the run, my main problem was trying to slow down! So the 6k run last night did me no harm at all. Doing a couple miles with one of the guys from the club at just over 7m/m didn't help either. I was planning to do 80-90 mins but got back to the flat after 75 and given that the pace was a little tasty, I left it at that.

15.5k in 75 mins at just under 7.45 pace average

Cleanman

Bought a new pair of racers yesterday and broke them in with a nice easy 6k run this morning. Was surprised when I got back and looked at my watch. 31:30. Felt even slower than that. Just under 8:30 pace

A very good week for me. 52k and 6 days of running, comprising of an interval session, a tempo run, a long run and 3 recovery runs. First time running 6 days but I didn't run too far in total (I've been doing about 45-50k a week up to now). Although I feel very fresh, I might take a rest day tomorrow. No point doing too much too soon....

Cleanman

After a well earned rest yesterday, I headed down to the club for a session of 400s with 1 minute recovery. I was a bit unsure how fast to go but settled on 80 secs. I figured I'd get at least 12 done at that pace. After a 3.5k warm up and some stretches, I took off with the second group and there were a few very handy distance guys in the group so I was weary of the pace they'd head out in. Came in the first at 81 and was happy to keep that pace. However, as the runs ticked along, we gradually got faster and faster. On the 6th, I came in the back of the group at 76. Right, if I go any faster than this, I won't finish the session - it was starting to hurt! But faster I got;).

Got the next three done at 75 and then the coach told a few of us to pull out. But I was still feeling strong - two more I pleaded. The next two came in at 74 and I was feeling great - tired but great. Out of a group of about 10 of us, there was only 3 others running now. That gave me huge confidence. Right, the coach said, two more for ye guys. Since I was still feeling ok, I figured I'd go for it - it's only another two:rolleyes:. The 13th was another 74 and the last was 73 - the fastest of the night. I was wrecked but delighted. The top two guys in the group broke 70 for the last 4 or 5 runs. Savage running. But they really helped to pull me along.

I wore my new super lightweight racers for the full session and I realised doing the warm down that my calfs were getting mega tight. So I cut the warm down to just over 1k and got back to the club for some stretching.

Delighted with the session. I didn't think I had that speed/endurance in me yet so it's given me a lot of confidence - especially the way I finished so strong. This time last year, I wouldn't have got any more than 8 done at that pace!

Cleanman

I've been feeling really tired all week since Tuesdays session. I probably pushed too hard. And instead of easing off, I've stuck with my plan for the week.:o

Wednesday was yoga class - I was in bits after it.

Thursday was a 10k loop with 15mins at tempo pace in the middle and a few weights in the gym after. I found the tempo really tough going. We dipped into sub 6 minute pace for a while and I was shot after it.

Woke up in absolute bits on Friday. Managed a very slow 6k recovery after work though.

Long run this morning. After a late valentines dinner followed by a few pints last night (a day late i know but couldn't do anything Thursday night), I was feeling very sluggish. My girlfriend came out for the first three miles with me at a handy pace - about 9:20 pace. Then I sped up when she left but never really got into my running. Got 16k done in 83mins but didn't enjoy most of the run. Think I need a day off. I'll just do a short recovery tomorrow and rest Monday.

Cleanman

Woke up this morning feeling a lot more energised. I've been really tired for the last few days. Headed down to the club for an easy run. 6k in total in 32 mins, so about 8:30 pace average. It was a gorgeous morning down in the park. I'd love to have stayed running for longer but no point in over doing it.

Cleanman

Took a rest day on Monday. I'd been feeling really run down all last week but I think the rest day did the trick. I was looking forward to getting a session done on Tuesday.

So got down to the club and found out hills were on the menu. I've done a grand total of 3 hill sessions so far and they were all in March 2012!:eek: They were awful experiences too, so I was a tad nervous! Coach split us up into 3 groups. The first group were doing 400m with the second and third group doing about 250m. He sent me off with the first group saying it would be good to keep working on my endurance but after doing 2, he told me to jump in with the second group doing the shorter reps. They were on their 4th rep and were doing 8 altogether. I felt really strong doing these. The recoveries were kept short as we turned straight away and trundelled back down the hill (taking about 80secs) so I was delighted to feel so strong in the end. The last one was tough as I could start to feel the lactic build up in my legs but it's easy to ignore it when you know you're on your last rep:cool:Coach even asked me if I wanted to do a couple more but I've learned my lesson from pushing myself too far last Tuesday (i was wrecked for days after a great session but pushed myself too far) so left it with that. Nice to have a drop in the tank at the end:P

Reps were 79, 81 for the two 4s and 49,50,49,50,48 for the 250s.

Looking at the times after, either the long rep was a bit shorter than 4 or the short rep a bit longer than 250 cos we were definitely moving a lot quicker doing the short reps. Anyway, it doesn't really matter as long as they were kept consistent.

Cleanman

Yoga session on Wednesday. I was absolutely shattered after. One of the girls in my class calls it "bootcamp yoga" and it's very appropriate.

Made it down to the club tonight for half an hour of stretching and core work before the run. The run itself was great. There was a big crowd out and the pace on the warm up was pretty quick. After 4.3ks, we headed into the tempo. I struggled at the start as a lot of the seniors took off at a great pace. Settled into my running though and kept going for 21 and a half mins. Went through 5k in just over 20mins so was happy with that. The legs got a bit wobbly after that though so I called it off. Managed an average pace of 6:30. Back to club for a total run of 12.2k in just over 54 mins. Average pace of 7:10 overall. Got back to the club for a bit of gym work. Just did some deadlifts, squats, rows and bench press. Nothing too onerous but enough for me to feel it in the morning!

Cleanman

Had a good bit of tightness today from the session last night and was pretty wrecked when I got up. Felt grand by the evening time though, just a bit tight around the hamstrings and glutes. A nice easy 6k recovery run was all I needed. I took it really easy so was surprised when I got back and the watch read just under 31 mins. 8.12 pace overall. Maybe a little too quick for a recovery run but it honestly didn't feel like it at the time.:D

Cleanman

90 min LSR

Was at home this weekend. My girlfriend wanted to go for a run so I did a loop that went past her house and back to mine. It was just over 8k. I did two loops picking her up at her house on the first loop and leaving her again at her house on the second loop. So the first 5k and last 3k of the run were at my easy pace and the middle 5k was run really slow. It took 90 mins altogether but it was really enjoyable to just drift along and the time absolutely flew by. I think in general I've been doing my long runs a little too fast as it leaves me pretty wrecked for the day. I was completely fine after today's run although it was done at too slow a pace overall!

16.5k in an average 8:45 pace

Cleanman

I forgot to mention that the 5k loop yesterday is very hilly. Full of small inclines with a couple of big hills. Great loop. The sun was shining this morning in the west and it was absolutely gorgeous out. I did one loop in the sunshine. I had to really concentrate to slow down though. Several times, I was tipping along and looked down to see I was going at 7:30 pace. "It's a recovery run, it's a recovery run, it's a recovery run, slow down!". I'd slow down and then 5 minutes later....grrrr. I have to be a bit more disiplined on these recovery runs.

In saying that though, I've had another good week. 5 runs and 54ks covered. The last few weeks have been precisely the consistency I've been looking for. If I can keep this going, I'll definitely be reaping the dividends in the summer.

Cleanman

3k wu (6X1k) 1k wd

Was going to take an easy week this week but it suits me better to do an easy week next week instead so I headed down to the club for a session. Got there early so got up to the gym for some stretching/core work beforehand. The coach said to try 6 of these and use it as an endurance session. 3 weeks ago I only managed 4 and I was wrecked after. This session felt completely different. I was really comfortable the whole way around. I think I could have done another one at the end. In saying that, the guy I was running beside on the last sped off for the last 200m and I didn't feel like I had it in the legs to keep with him. I was more concerned with keeping the reps consistent anyway but wondered afterwards was it the lack of speed work the made me feel I couldn't have gone with him if I needed to? Anyway, 1k warm down and some stretching and rolling after and I was happy with my nights work. Times for the reps were:

3:36, 3:43, 3:38, 3:39, 3:37, 3:41

Not sure what happened on the second rep but I was very consistent otherwise.

Cleanman

I had yoga again last night. Felt good and really glad I got back into doing yoga again. It's definitely helping my flexibility and strength.

Tonight I just headed out on a 10k run with a few in the club. Kept the pace pretty consistent and didn't push on hard when some of the others upped it to tempo pace. 10k in 45 mins and I was very comfortable all the way around. Back up to the gym afterwards for some bench press, rows, deadlifts and squats.

That's the end of February folks. My aim was to complete 200k - I got to 195k. I've had much more quality runs than I expected though and I reckon I'm far ahead of where I was at the start of the month so very happy overall.It's also my highest running month ever - 1k more than January:D I wanted to race a 5k sometime during the month to pick up a pb but it didn't happen. I'm not going to rush it. I'll race when it suits me and a pb is just a formallity at this stage:rolleyes:. March and April are two extremely busy months for me. Trying to keep reasonably consistent is key for me now. If I can continue to get out 4/5 times a week over the next two months, the summer becomes a much less congested time so thoughts are already starting to turn to the track season and the graded meets and 800/1500 splits....easy tiger!!

Cleanman

Friday 1 March For some reason, I was shattered all day at work on Friday and was not feeling the love for a run at all. Eventually got out the door and my girlfriend came along for an extremely slow 6k run. Didn't bother to bring a watch.

Saturday 2 March I normally do my long run on Saturday but was still feeling a bit "off". So decided to do a 40 min run and leave my long run until Sunday. The first 4k was a real slog but somewhere along the way, the legs freed up and I was starting to feel a bit better by the end of the run. So 8.25k in 41mins ~ 8m/m pace.

Sunday 3 March Made it up to the club and headed off with a couple of guys going at a nice handy pace. The pace gradually rose as time went by and I headed off on my own after an hour and was dipping into the low 7m/m pace near the end. Happy with the run in the end. Managed 15.1k in 80mins ~8:25 average pace.

That's another 50k week. I'm going to have an easy week next week though. I've been feeling a bit tired lately. With long work hours and studying for exams at the minute along with the training is leaving me a little shattered. A step back week should freshen things up. I've to do a session with the county U-21 GAA team on Friday night so just easy running until then.

Cleanman

Rest day Monday followed by a 10k run Tuesday. the 10k was supposed to be an easy pace but ended up averaging 7:36 pace. Nothing too hectic but a little too fast for my easy pace. I felt great throughout the run though so no harm done. Taking it easy this week with just a few light runs. I've an exam next Tuesday so spending a lot of time studying this week so the easy week fits in nicely with my plans. Will probably just do an easy run again tonight.