Confessions of a never has been.....

Duanington

Murph_D wrote: »

Some final km. Great PB. How did sk8tr boy do in the end?

He strolled in about 30 seconds behind me I'd say, then picked up his board and went off to the nearest halfpipe

Duanington

overpronator wrote: »

Nice PB, I was doing my long run around there on Saturday morning and seeing you guys line up was thinking to myself that it was tough 10k course, well done. Might see you in Waterford, Id say we will be on a similar enough part of the road!

Thanks Overpronator. There's really just the one hill on the course ( twice!) and although its a tough one, there are still a few quick sections to make up the time. That said, the one hill can really drain you second time around.
What's the target for Waterford?

overpronator

Duanington wrote: »

Thanks Overpronator. There's really just the one hill on the course ( twice!) and although its a tough one, there are still a few quick sections to make up the time. That said, the one hill can really drain you second time around.
What's the target for Waterford?

The PB is 1.28.04 so I would love to find those extra 5 seconds. Ill try to hold 1.27 low pace from miles 2-10 (I think there is massive hill in the first mile) and see what state I'm in then. Have you any designs on a time?

Duanington

overpronator wrote: »

The PB is 1.28.04 so I would love to find those extra 5 seconds. Ill try to hold 1.27 low pace from miles 2-10 (I think there is massive hill in the first mile) and see what state I'm in then. Have you any designs on a time?

Good stuff, I'll be going out to get in under 1:30 so you'll probably be a bit ahead from the off, might catch up with you before\after though

Bulmers74

Duanington wrote: »

I'd be happy with anything under 1:30 to be quite honest Bulmers74

Judging by Saturdays race & your sessions of late you're well on course for that & some if we get half decent conditions.

Duanington

17.11.2014

More easy miles tonight, ran home from work nice and easy, dropped the backpack off and it all gets easier again ! I ran a few extra miles without the backpack to bring the total up to 8 miles

Went home to do some press-ups\core work - took a leaf out of TbL's book and put on some AC\DC as the soundtrack ( live in Munich) , great stuff
I got as far as back in black and I was reminded of another great tune so stuck it on and did some more :-)

( TbL, you'll probably have to skip to about 3.10 for it to make any sense to you ;-))


total for the day : 8 miles

ThebitterLemon

Duanington wrote: »

17.11.2014

More easy miles tonight, ran home from work nice and easy, dropped the backpack off and it all gets easier again ! I ran a few extra miles without the backpack to bring the total up to 8 miles

Went home to do some press-ups\core work - took a leaf out of TbL's book and put on some AC\DC as the soundtrack ( live in Munich) , great stuff
I got as far as back in black and I was reminded of another great tune so stuck it on and did some more :-)

( TbL, you'll probably have to skip to about 3.10 for it to make any sense to you ;-))


total for the day : 8 miles

DD,

couple of things,

Why is that lads pants falling down doesn't he own a belt or a good set of braces
Why is he wearing sunglasses in the dark
Why is he "singing" wonderwall and in the process making the Gallagher brothers sound like classically trained singers
Why are people waving the Japanese flag in the UK
Was this some free charity event coz there seemed to be a fair few people there and surely they didn't pay in


Great run at the weekend, the last k was done at some pace, like Bulmers I reckon a big big HM PB is on the cards.

TbL

Duanington

ThebitterLemon wrote: »

DD,

couple of things,

Why is that lads pants falling down doesn't he own a belt or a good set of braces
Why is he wearing sunglasses in the dark
Why is he "singing" wonderwall and in the process making the Gallagher brothers sound like classically trained singers
Why are people waving the Japanese flag in the UK
Was this some free charity event coz there seemed to be a fair few people there and surely they didn't pay in


Great run at the weekend, the last k was done at some pace, like Bulmers I reckon a big big HM PB is on the cards.

TbL

Ha ha ha - good man C. So to sum up...."why doesn't that person sound like AC\DC, Bon Jovi, Whitesnake or Garth Brooks?....and where is his mullet?"...."and when will he play livin on a prayer anyway?"

We'll see on the PB, feeling good at the moment so I'll just carry on regardless

Duanington

18.11.2014

Plan for tonight was to run 16 miles with 5 steady then into 4 hmp miles.

I had actually been dreading this session for a week or so, its one of those sessions that sticks out on the plan as a real intimidating bastid, smirking back at you from the page and rubbing its hands in glee like a fat bully waiting in the schoolyard for first years to start.

Running home from work to get the first 4 easy ( easy pace...p*xy wind made things anything but easy) miles out of the way certainly made things seem a little easier to start with, by the time I dropped the backpack off, I had a quarter of the run sorted ...happy days :-)

After 5 easy miles, I started on the steady section...easing into the pace as usual and before long I had found a nice rhythm. The wind was a killer along the coast though, I was running towards Sutton and the wind was straight in my face. Turned off into Baldoyle, then into Donaghmede to finish of the steady section...feeling reasonably by the end.
I got started on the HMP section headed towards Raheny, a nice bumpy route, turned right towards Killester and then back down towards Fairview.

By the end of the HMP section, I was running back into the wind and I was very, very glad to have it finished. This was a tough session but I never felt like I would struggle to hit the targets I had in mind - while I had to work hard at times, it was more "grit your teeth and get on with it" than " what the f*ck was I thinking?" type effort.
Ran a couple of very slow miles back into the wind at the end to bring the total to 16 and retreated home, very tired but content to stuff my face.

Splits :
8:41
8:47
8:50
8:52
8:35
7:24
7:30
7:32
7:21
7:24
6:48
6:45
6:41
6:34
9:12
8:50

outforarun

Well done on the 10K PB last weekend. I have no doubt you'll go sub 90 in Waterford. Looking forward to seeing how you get on.

Duanington

20.11.2014

Wednesday

AM - 4 miles into work, can't remember much about it to be honest except that I kept the pace right down to allow the legs a good recovery from the previous nights session. I'd be lying if I said the legs felt good afterwards, they were pretty tired all day really

PM - Got the bus home and took in 4 more easy miles along the coast, the wind and rain started to get pretty serious over the 2nd half. I ran this one along my usual route on the coast, passing a running club ( I assume) who were doing what looked like 400m sessions on the grass - not a nice night for sessions, fair play to them, they were all getting stuck into it.

Total for the day: 8

Thursday

Slept like a log last night and hit the snooze button once too often this morning which meant I had to get my run in at lunchtime instead of before work. Headed down to St Anne's for this one, taking in a lap of the parkrun route and running 8x100m strides along the way.
I kept the strides around 5k effort...really just to stretch the legs out and shake things up a bit. Lovely run in the fog...it was nice and still in the park, very few people around either and it felt like I had the place to myself.

I had pencilled in a 3 mile run tonight but I canned it in favour of an early night, I think the early night will serve me better than the 3 miles at this stage in the game, although it does look like the perfect night out there for running.

Total for the day: 5

yaboya1

Was thinking the same myself on the way home, perfect for running. Always the way when you decide not to go out.
In fact, this morning was perfect too. If only it had been like that on the 27th October.....

Duanington

yaboya1 wrote: »

Was thinking the same myself on the way home, perfect for running. Always the way when you decide not to go out.
In fact, this morning was perfect too. If only it had been like that on the 27th October.....

I very nearly got back out of the bed to go out but I stayed strong! Yep, I can imagine things would have been very different for a lot of people if we'd had that weather on the 27th

Duanington

22.11.2014


Friday

AM - 4 miles into work, pleasant enough trot in - I'm starting to enjoy the sensation of running past traffic as it comes to a standstill on the coast road, not in gleeful way, more in a "thank f*ck its not me" kid of way.

PM - 4 miles home from work , missed the worst of the rain and got myself home just before the heavens opened again. Got home, dumped the backpack, jumped in the car then sat in traffic for an hour as I had to get to the other side of the city for the evening :mad:

Total for the day: 8 miles


Saturday

Up and out at a reasonably early hour this morning for a session that I would normally run on Friday nights.
Plan for this morning was:

10x 30 second hill sprints ( @5k effort)
10x15 second hill sprints ( @ faster than 5k effort)
Walk back recoveries for the lot

Ran a couple of miles warm up then headed down to the back of St Anne's for the first set and got started.
I focused on form and keeping the effort consistent throughout each rep, by the 8th I was certainly feeling it on my legs. I held the pace quite well throughout each rep though
Made my way down to a steeper but shorter hill for the second set and got started.
Possibly wasn't as consistent right through the ten reps , I was feeling my hamstring a little by the last one so I eased off just a little as a precaution.

Ran a couple of more easy miles to bring the total mileage to 7.

A different type of session that I've done of late but one that left me feeling both tired and invigorated somehow.

Duanington

23.11.2014

Tempo night rolls around again and the plan for tonight was 11 miles with [EMAIL="8@hmp"]8@hmp[/EMAIL]

I hadn't planned on running yesterday's hill session and tonight's tempo back to back but that's the way the days worked out this week so after a couple of easy miles to warm up and test out the legs ( they felt fine) I started off on the hmp section.

It's a beautiful night out there for running once again, crystal clear skies, cool air ( very cool!) and just a light breeze on the coast so it made for a pleasant first few miles.
I had hoped to find the pace fairly quickly and hold onto it right through to the end of the 8th mile, just checking the watch at each split to make sure they are roughly in line with hmp ( somewhere around 6:50)

The route took me from Clontarf Dart station, up to Baldoyle, a 180 degree turn and back along the coast for a couple of miles - all nice and flat.

I enjoyed this run from start to finish, in fact I had to reign things in a little once or twice over the last few miles because the longer I ran, the better I was feeling. I finished strong and could have gone on. In short, so long as I stay injury free, I've removed any excuses I may have had for not hitting my target in Waterford - which was exactly what I wanted from tonight. I was a little stuck for time so just the 1 mile warm down tonight.

Splits were

8:21
8:21
6:42
6:44
6:46
6:39
6:43
6:37
6:39
6:26
9:15

Total miles: 11

A really positive session to end a good week, a few well earned easy days coming up

ThebitterLemon

Excellent session DD, you're in great shape

TbL

Tom Joad

ThebitterLemon wrote: »

Excellent session DD, you're in great shape

TbL

+1 great session and you are in flying form.

Bulmers74

+ another 1 to that - great run

yaboya1

Good stuff D.
Roll on Waterford....

overpronator

Serious session there man, well done. It's looking very good for you in Waterford.

overpronator

Serious session there man, well done. It's looking very good for you in Waterford.

FBOT01

Nice one. Keep up the good work.

Duanington

29.11.2014

Monday

I would usually run a double on Mondays these days but I took the morning off and got the bus into work instead, I felt that I needed to give the legs a little bit of a breather to allow some recovery.
My run home from work in the PM was quite a slow affair, I was a little jaded after a busy day to start with but about 5 miles into the planned 7 mile run, I noticed that my left calf was a lot stiffer than I was used to and was starting to ache the more I ran. I gave it another few minutes to see if it was one of those aches that tends to disappear as a run goes on but it just got more and more noticeable so I canned the rest of the run and walked the short distance home.
It was uncomfortable to walk home, I wasn't limping but I was certainly noticing the tightness\niggling pain in my calf.
Did a few weights when I got home and tried to avoid thinking too much about the leg!

Tuesday

Decided to take a complete rest day, bus into work and got the bus home. Took a few anti-inflammatory tablets throughout the course of the day just in case! Some core work and press-ups in the evening and I resisted the urge to go for a sneaky few miles later on that night

Wednesday - 4 miles easy after work, very, very easy instead of my planned LSR. Calf was a good bit better but still noticeably stiff ( especially after the 2 mile mark). I did quite a bit of stretching afterwards which really seemed to help, I probably should have done a lot more stretching in the previous 2 days but neglected to do so ( we live and learn).
I did worry for a while afterwards about missing my long run as planned but I was reminded of a conversation I had with Yaboya1 recently which went along the lines of; just as you can't build stamina\fitness in a week or two, you won't lose it either.
I didn't want to risk doing something stupid 5 miles from home and having to limp home in the horrors!


Thursday

AM - out nice and early for 6 easy miles around St Annes on a glorious day for running. The leg felt back to normal thankfully but I still kept things all easy just in case. The rest day had obviously charged up the batteries everywhere else though because I felt as fresh as a daisy and really had to focus on keeping things slow.
I had planned to do a few 10k paced reps on Thursday but I figured that I'd gain more from making sure I got through another few easy miles unscathed than running faster and risking injury.
A few light weights in the afternoon

PM - Back out again later that night for 4 easy miles and I felt even better than I had earlier. I felt much more at ease after this one and was glad of the fact that I had taken the sensible approach over the past couple of days.
Another beautiful night for it, we're having a run of it.

Friday

AM - 4 miles into work, full of beans...very enjoyable run.
PM - 4 miles home, felt the weight of the backpack a little but the legs and lungs were in great form all the way through.

Saturday

7 miles easy this morning, bright and (kind of) early. I headed out before breakfast down towards Fairview, did a loop of the park and headed home. Nice atmosphere starting to build down at the starting area for the Clontarf half\5 mile. I don't think conditions could have been any better for people racing this morning although I have read a few disgruntled comments over on the events thread which is unfortunate - yiz all looked in super form this morning :D

Legs were a little heavy to start with but felt great as the run went on, I've put any fears of an underlying calf strain to bed at this stage and I'll run a good session tomorrow night to keep things ticking over on that front and then start to look forward to Waterford

SamforMayo

What's the target for Waterford? Was your last HM Athlone?

Duanington

SamforMayo wrote: »

What's the target for Waterford? Was your last HM Athlone?

Sub 1:30 SfM - yep, my last half was Athlone which was a bit of a non-event really. Feeling a lot more confident this time though

yaboya1

I could have sworn you ran past me on my way home from work Tuesday night. I was cycling onto the Samuel Beckett bridge and a guy just like you came running towards me in the opposite direction just outside The Ferryman pub. You must have a double

SamforMayo

Duanington wrote: »

Sub 1:30 SfM - yep, my last half was Athlone which was a bit of a non-event really. Feeling a lot more confident this time though

Well Athlone was a disaster for many! Best of luck! It's there for you, no doubt about it.

Duanington

yaboya1 wrote: »

I could have sworn you ran past me on my way home from work Tuesday night. I was cycling onto the Samuel Beckett bridge and a guy just like you came running towards me in the opposite direction just outside The Ferryman pub. You must have a double

That's my route alright P - and thinking about it now, I actually mixed up the Tuesday\Wednesday on the log. I took Wednesday off and ran 4 easy on Tuesday....not the other way around. It was prob me alright :-)

FBOT01

Thought that was you alright who came bouncing along through the start area of the Clontarf half yesterday morning.

Duanington

FBOT01 wrote: »

Thought that was you alright who came bouncing along through the start area of the Clontarf half yesterday morning.

ha ha - not sure about "bouncing" , nice buzz around the place though so maybe I was getting carried away with that !
Should have given me a shout out FBOT01 - next time