Still trying to figure it all out.

hot buttered scones

hot buttered scones wrote:

Note to self: Don't be sh1t.

I wasn't sh1t!!! 3:21:45 official. Short version: felt really strong up to Roebuck. Felt tough after Roebuck but I was able to get back on pace. Faded over the last 1.5 to 2 miles, but not badly and I knew I had a decent time in the bag. LHS glutes behaved. Can't believe how good I felt for most of it. Left it all out there. Off to Liverpool for a few days tomorrow so there'll be no full report for a while. Changing pace to account for the climbs and decents really worked out well. Absolutely thrilled. Previous PB was 3:38:39. P+D is the job. I'm walking like a zombie.

diego_b

Well done, that's a great chunk off your time!

jake1970

Well done, great running.

Singer

Fantastic stuff, well done!

hot buttered scones

Cheers lads. Absolutely bate now. My legs are in bits. I'd a couple in McGrattans and 2 more just there now in the hotel and I'm only fit for the bed. The ghosts of 2015 are well and truly laid to rest.

denis b

Super run HBS. Congrats.

Ososlo

Sounds like you paced that brilliantly! I'm sure you'll sleep well tonight! Congratulations on super new pb!!!

hot buttered scones

Well that was a rubbish sleep. I got about an hour between 10.30 and 11.30 and was awake then until 2ish. Woke up again around 6.30. My legs were very sore which didn't help and neither did the excitment of the day. My RHR ranges from around 38 to 42 usually - its 55 this morning!! Wow. But what a day. I don't think there's much I would have done differently. Dublin is a tough, tough course and in my (limited) experience is best run by effort. Miles 10 to 15 and 21 to 22 are where you'll get caught out (provided the park hasn't done you in). The support is amazing. It is absolutely fantastic to have participated in this event once more, surrounded by thousands with the same goals, motivations and understanding as yourself. Now, if they could just build a tunnel through the bottom Roebuck Road it'd be perfect . I'm off to demolish a fry. No more porridge for me for a while!!

yaboya1

Great run HBS. Well done.
Enjoy the recovery!

hot buttered scones

yaboya1 wrote:

Great run HBS. Well done. Enjoy the recovery!

Cheers and thanks for talking a bit of sense into me earlier on in my log. I'll go into my plan more when I do the report but lets just my goals were fluid. I opened the supplement in the Indo today and there I am at the bottom of page 3. 1657/16797 final position. 379/2506 in my age group. 1541/11064 in the male category. I'm just glad it all worked out on the day and I really really enjoyed that race (well most of it anyway).

Kennyg71

Great race enjoy the recovery, well earned

Mrs Mc

Super stuff M well done

hot buttered scones

So the dust has settled on a great day, and I’ve returned from my travels so its time I finished off this section of my log with a race report. It’ll probably be a bit disjointed, because that was a week ago and some of the finer details have been blurred out due to a good few pints during the week, and a couple of nice ales tonight while I'm writing.

DCM 30/11/2016

Saturday:

I was lucky enough to have someone drive me to Dublin which was great as driving seems to take a lot out of my legs. I had my normal pre race dinner pre cooked and was able to heat it up in my brother in laws house before going back to the hotel to relax while the rest of the family were out an about. I got a great nights sleep that night which was a first as I usually can’t sleep the night before a big race.

Sunday:

I woke at 6 and went downstairs to the coffee bar on the hotel. I almost panicked when the guy said they had no porridge, but then he went off to he kitchen and came back with a big pot of sloppy gruel, so I ordered a bowl of that and some brown bread. I managed to get about half the porridge into me and devoured the bread (something new on race day, but needs must). The BIL and his friend where off supporting his friends brother so they were able to pick me up and drop me into town for about 8 which was great. I was really, really nervous. I had spent Saturday day and night with two heat pads stuck to my glutes which still felt a bit tight. I met a few Cork heads which was nice and had a bit of a chat with FBOT01 in the queue for the jacks, but to be honest I really just wanted to be alone and get my head right) I did a half hearted attempt at a dynamic warmup with some easy glute stretches. I was not felling confident at all. I hadn’t a clue where to start. The 3:20 balloons where right up near the front as far as I could see. I turned around and saw the 3:30 balloons way down the back, so I just stayed where I was about half way between the two. Then the national anthem played, the gun went for the wheelchair race and it was time to get rid of the jumper and do some final prep - I retied my laces, did some random stretches and the like. And then we were off. The walk to line started, and then the slow jog. It was nearly all over before it began because some toolbag had dropped their water bottle on the ground, which I stood on and almost went over on my ankle. After some unparliamentary language I crossed the line and was off. I had decided to download and print off the pace band from marathon pace site I referred to in the main thread - the strategy was to have a fairly slow start, maintain a fairly even effort (i.e. pace would be adjusted up or down for the hills and descents), had a slight negative split and also factor in a slight fade over the last few miles. I kind of stuck to the for the first few miles, but in the end I just used it as a guide for when to push and when to hold off and it worked really well.

I settled on a goal time of 3:22 - I knew I’d pace of my watch, that my watch would read long or I would run a and line at times and that extra 0.1 or 0.2 miles would amount to 1 or 2 minutes. So why not run a good line or pace off the mile markers? I was trying to be realistic and work within my capabilities. I felt 3:20 was just a tiny bit out of reach and pushing for it might lead to a blow up, but I was comfortable with 3:22.

Nutrition:
High 5 Isogels at miles 6,10,14,18,22
Saltstick Fastchews at mile 3,6,9,12,15,18,22 - these are great chewable/dissolvable electrolyte chews that you just pop in your mouth and suck or chew. I popped 8 of them in a small zip lock bag which I had safety pinned to my shorts. These were awesome. I’d picked them up in The Edge in correct for €4.50 for a roll of 10. The kind of tasted a bit like those Refresher sweets of Love Hearts you used to get when you were a kid - I had no issues with cramping or anything like that for the entire race. I can’t recommend these highly enough.
Water - I took water at all the water stations, but drank only a mouthful for the first half of the race. I was drinking the full bottle by the end but was never really gasping for a drink until the last water stop.

At lot of the race was broken into “2 miles until a gel, 1 mile until a salt tablet” etc which was great for breaking it into manageable chunks

I also avoided checking my HR because this has panicked me in races before and sometimes the FR235 can give you a false reading, so I just went off feel - this was a decision I made literally 400m into the race

You’ll have to forgive some of the geography as I had no idea where I was for vast portions of the race.

A

Miles 1-3 7:57, 7:45, 7:58

The first half mile was the usual crowded start and I was feeling good - no pain or anything. Slight technical hitch though - my shorts were falling down! I had to quickly untie them and tighten the drawstring while on the move without them falling down while looking ahed all the time - that’s a new skill learned anyway. I think I ran some extra distance over the first 2 mile because my watch was out from here until the end so I ran a pretty poor line here. The climb up Stoneybatter kind of freaked me because the effort felt too hard for the pace so I backed off - I thought to myself there must be some slight downhill at the end of this mile and sure enough there was and my average pace was on target - if not a bit high actually. But I was feeling relaxed heading into the park and the cool morning was really suiting me.

Miles 4-7 7:39, 8:01, 7:54, 7:39

I was well loosened out at this stage and feeling happy. I think I pushed the pace a bit coming down the North Circular and round the back of the zoo, but claimed won once we hit Chesterfield Avenue. Although I was slightly ahead pace wise, I was slightly off distance wise, but I was prepared for this. I hadn’t mastered the skill of running off the mile markers so I was happy to run using the watch splits. I passed the Eiffel Tower guy here - he’s 70!!! I felt really relaxed running up through the park, letting people pass me (as I had been since Stoneybatter) and my confidence was really starting to build here. I could see the mist on the grass in the park and I had loads of room to run. I was feeling great here and although I new I was putting in effort, it felt ok. We came out of the Park then and into Castleknock to some amazing support. Either the road dips slightly here or I got carried away with the support but I picked up the pace here a bit before the downhills.

Miles 8-10 7:19, 7:18, 7:28

I took controlled advantage of the downhills here - a little bit faster than my pace band suggested, but I was feeling good and in control. I had a bit of chat with a guy from up north and was able to hold a full conversation so all was good. Now Strava shows a bit of hill going round by Mount Sackville and back into the Park which I don’t remember. I remember the 9th mile flying down the hill back through park. The start of the 10the mile was the same, but about halfway through we came out of the gates of the Park onto Chapelizod road. I did a quick systems check here (as I would do many more times) - shake out the hands, drop the shoulder, deep breaths and relax the body and the breathing. I backed off the pace a little here because I knew there was a hill to come. It was here I first started thinking of all those midweek medium long runs - “10 miles was nothing, sure I was doing them on tired legs before breakfast in training” - that kind of thins. More great support here

Miles 11-15 7:42, 7:26, 7:33, 7:48, 7:35

This is the real make or break section in my opinion. Even if you’ve tackled the Park correctly you’ll lose it here if your not careful. Firstly, the hill at St Laurence Road under the bypass - I let my pace drop right back here to around 8:30-9:00 for this short section and I felt it had taken something out of me when I crested the hill, but I soon recovered and was back on pace again. Then another short climb before a bit of respite on the Sarsfield Road and was soon back into my stride and feeling strong and loose - none of my niggles were giving me trouble. I was still in medium long run range, and felt like I was holding back. It was all good so far. Kilmainham was fantastic. There was such great support and as I turned the corner I saw the descent ahead and adrenaline got the better of me and the pace briefly hit 6:50 or something like that for about 300m, but I copped on and reined it in. The pace band was indicating that miles 12 and 13 were either slightly downhill or flat so I was able to put a bit of effort in her. I saw the brother in law and friend (RK and JOC) at about halfway which gave me a big boost. Miles 14 so a drop in pace again to take into account the drag with mile 15 being the same for the first half. I was still feeling good and strong.

Miles 16-20 7:18, 7:37, 7:16, 7:16, 7:18, 7:13

By the 15 mile marker I had decided it was now time to push on. I couldn’t really read the pace band anymore - I was now focussing on my form and it was becoming a distraction. I just used it as an elevation guide from here on in - fast pace meant “easy mile” and slow pace meant “tough mile”. I had to have a quick loo break at mile 16 and made a mistake of tearing off to try and make up time, but pulled myself up fairly sharpish. I was passing people from here on in now, running tall and feeling good - I almost couldn’t believe it myself. It felt great to running like this at this pace so far into the race. I think I overdid it slightly over these miles though, but I didn’t pay to high a price for it. It was the second half of the race, I was feeling ok and decided to capitalise on it. i was really enjoying it down through terenure, past Bushy Park and Rathgar and on into Miltown. I remembered hardly none of this from last year, and only remembered Terenure because I used to live there years ago. 17, 18 and 19 were lovely downhill stretches were I felt like I was eating up road. There was a few around me who I was keeping up with and some pulling ahead, but there was a lot that I was passing too. This was my favourite part of the race, although I was feeling it by the end of this section. Around mile 18.5 I did feel a sharp pain in my toe - fecking blisters (I was wearing socks I’d only really tried once before and never on a long run like a dumbass). I panicked slightly then I remembered reading a race report while back where someone just ran through the blister pain because they knew the pain would subside when the blister burst - so thats what I did, and the pain went away.

Miles 21-23 7:29, 8:04, 7:40

The Mantra here was “only 2 hard miles left and then a straight run home”. At around mile 20.5 I think there was an auld lad with a camera standing on a traffic island. He was calling out to all the runners something like “get ready for the hills ahead. Get your mind ready for some hill running”. This was great and did a good systems check and prepared myself for 2 tough miles. While I found the drag up through Clonskeagh ok, but tough going, Roebuck Road was massive challenge. I made it up it ok, I slowed right down, used my arms, deep breaths - but it still took a whole lot out of me. Now for the first time I had to push myself - it was getting really hard and the first bit of doubt was starting to creep in. Had I got carried away earlier on? Would I pay a dear price? I was able to pick up the pace on Foster avenue and down onto the Stillorgan Road, but my legs were starting to feel heavy and I was sweating heavily. I think I spotted Jerry Kiernan here, which (if I’m being honest) inspired me a little bit. I was still passing people all the time, but was about to enter my rough patch.

Miles 24-26.2 (and a bit) 7:37, 7:53, 8:16, and 7:47 for 0.2 and the bit

I was definitely feeling better again, but there was no way I was going to hit sub 7:20 pace here. I had heated up, but that was ok. I think mentally I knew a PB was a banker, C goal of 3:30 was achieved, B goal of 3:25 was more than likely. I;d have to work for my A goal of 3:22, but my A* “pie in the sky” goal of 3:20 was probably just out of reach - but that was fine. As I came down off the Stillorgan flyover RK suddenly appeared on my left shoulder, with JOC just waiting down the road a bit. I was delighted to see them. RK ran a bit of the road with me, but when he tried to talk to me I was so focussed on what I was doing I muttered something about “being in the zone” which kinda sounded like “f*ck off and leave me alone”, but to be honest I was starting to struggle at this stage. Anyway, he fed me pizza afterwards so he mustn’t have taken too much offence!! I was starting to really hurt at this stage - my feet were killing me, I had pain my arches and my calves were starting to tighten. As I rounded the corner onto Nutley lane I got a pain under my ribs on my right hand side - a stitch!! I let out a moan of both pain and dismay. I slowed a bit and did some deep breathing and just stuck my fingers into it and it eased off a bit. The last two miles were painful. I just wanted it too end. I was still passing people, but now I was being passed too. I took all my willpower not to stop and walk. I had a bit of an interval session - slowing down a bit, then speeding up a bit. I t was a real mental battle to keep going. My feet were really painful at this stage, in fact I think my whole body was. I got a bit of a boost as I passed the RDS (If you look at the photo from last year in this thread you’ll see why). I knew I had a good time in the bag - maybe I could have pushed a tiny bit harder?. Anyway I caught site of my family about 500 or 600m from the finish, so I put on a bit of a show for time. I think I did the last 0.05 of mile at 6:45 pace or something, but in reality I was spent - there was to be no 800m sprint finish today. As I crossed the line and stopped, my legs nearly went from under me and I was suddenly drenched in sweat. I actually felt quite emotional for a bit. It was over, I had done it despite all my doubts. I was proud of myself and I’d had a really good time too (well mostly!!). I don’t feel like I hit the wall - it was more that my legs gave way a bit over the last two miles. It was more pain and tightness that slowed me down rather than running out of energy. The wall was looming though.

I don’t think I’d have done much differently. I would have preferred a stronger finish, but its a marathon and Heartbreak Hill really does steal what remains of your resources.

Afterwards met FBOT01 again briefly, had a few chats with randomers or anyone who might be from Cork, then headed to McGrattans where the family where waiting. I couldn’t face food - so just had some soup and bread and a couple of pints. I spotted Killerz - who I’d met last year when he was pacing and also up at St Annes a couple of years back (met through the brother in law)- so I said a brief hello before the food. It was then I realised the only boardsies I’d met in real life were probably him, FBOT01 and probably Mrs Mac (although I don’t remember and if I did it was pre boards) - and TBL once, but he wasn’t there. RK had just headed off home so we just left and went to his house for Dominos!!

So a successful day really - I had unfinished business with Dublin, which I think is done now (the business that is, not DCM!). As for marathon running - is a sub 3 attempt within the next 2 years a possibility? Maybe on a flat course? Who knows?

HR stats: 146, 155, 161, 163, 158, 157, 165, 160, 159, 157, 164, 166, 168, 169, 169, 172, 175, 175, 170, 172, 172, 170, 170, 177, 174, 174, 177 for the bit.

Position: 10k - 49:21 - 2822, Halfway - 1:41:28 - 2371, 30k - 2.23.01 - 1994, Finish (Gun) - 3:22:53 - 1653, Chip time - 3:21:45 - 1618.
386/2530 M40, 1557/11149 Male

Strava Link: https://www.strava.com/activities/760505386/overview

hot buttered scones

Recovery:

I flew out to Liverpool for few days with the family on the Monday after DCM. I basically ate, slept and had a few pints too for 5 days. We did a good bit of walking - maybe 3 or 4 miles day?? This was tough for the 1st couple of days, but in a way it help loosen everything out too. I was some sight walking up and down steps. Dublin airport was funny on Monday - you could spot the marathoners - even those who weren't wearing there race shirts. I managed 2.5 easy miles around Albert Dock on Wednesday - I had to cut this run short due to the previous nights couscous royale (10:02, 9:13, 0.5@8:31). I'd have loved to have done more running around there - there was a lovely route all along the waterfront. Great City with plenty to do. Anyway a long day on Friday with a late flight and a drive back to Cork. I managed 4.2 easy miles today @9:33 with an average HR of 129. MY RHR seems to have come back down to the normal range. I appear to have some tightness on the outside of my right calf running down into the top of my foot which I'll ned to keep an eye. I going to try and follow the P+D recovery plan for the next few weeks at least.

jake1970

Great report and congrats on the PB. So whats the next target for you?

denis b

Well done HBS. The meticulous pacing stands out without you being a prisoner to it either. Well researched and executed. Will be trying to source those salt tabs.

dr24444

Students and Teachers locked out

Younganne

Great report and congrats on the PB. Must try those salt tablets. Something I need to look into as I sweat quite a bit! Where did you get them??

hot buttered scones

jake1970 wrote: »

Great report and congrats on the PB. So whats the next target for you?

For now - I've registered for the Dungarvan 10 on the 2nd of February. I'll probably try and get a 5k in over Christmas. Probably work on getting my times down for the shorter distances for the first half of the year. I'm swaying between the plans Myles put up on the 2015 graduates thread or a plan for the Pfitzinger and Latter book "faster road racing", but I'll be doing nothing but easy stuff for a few weeks anyway. Negotiations for another autumn marathon are currently at a very delicate stage (basically at the moment I'm not doing one). I'd love to try my hand at a flatter course, but I also love Dublin so I don't know. I'd love to go sub 3 eventually.

hot buttered scones

denis b wrote: »

Well done HBS. The meticulous pacing stands out without you being a prisoner to it either. Well researched and executed. Will be trying to source those salt tabs.

Younganne wrote: »

Great report and congrats on the PB. Must try those salt tablets. Something I need to look into as I sweat quite a bit! Where did you get them??

Thanks folks. I got the salt tabs in The Edge in Cork. They jsut had a box of them on the counter. They also do capsules. I think there very popular with triathletes.

This is the company website. I bought the fastchews.

http://www.its-running.de/en/brands-products/saltstick/fastchews.html

or the US site:

http://saltstick.com/

Edit: After a bit of internetting I found a Dublin based supplier:

http://shop.base2race.ie/collections/nutrition/products/saltsticks-fast-chews

There's a few more spread out around the country too, but these guys do online sales.

tang1

Might help you next year, don't turn up for the Dungarvan 10 on the 2nd of Feb, you'll be on your own, it's not on till the 5th!!!

hot buttered scones

tang1 wrote: »

Might help you next year, don't turn up for the Dungarvan 10 on the 2nd of Feb, you'll be on your own, it's not on till the 5th!!!

Yes, but that way I'll win!

Mrs Mc

Great report M congrats. Funny that faster road racing book is on my locker gathering dust must brush it off and read it one of these days !!!

chickey2

Mrs Mc wrote: »

Great report M congrats. Funny that faster road racing book is on my locker gathering dust must brush it off and read it one of these days !!!

I've just dug out my copy!

Those salt tablets look good. I like how they can also be used for excess alcohol! I'll pick some up next time I'm in Base to race.

hot buttered scones

chickey2 wrote: »

I've just dug out my copy!

Those salt tablets look good. I like how they can also be used for excess alcohol! I'll pick some up next time I'm in Base to race.

I just noticed the alcohol thing. I'll be getting a few packs in for Christmas.

hot buttered scones

Sunday 6/11

5 miles - 8:54, 8:55, 8:50, 8:55, 8:50. Pace a bit fast for recovery, but HR was 136 average, just creeping slightly over 150 for the last mile. Felt good.

Monday 7/11

Back to work - rest day from running.

Tuesday 8/11

I'd planned to go for a short one before work, but I felt crap when I woke up so I didn't bother. I'm feeling progressively worse as the day goes on, so if this carries on and I have to rest tomorrow as well it'll be my longest break since Nov 2015.

hot buttered scones

Wednesday 9/11

Felt ok when I got up. 5 miles@8:42 Legs felt light and this run felt easy.

Thursday 10/11

Pre night shift run. 5 miles@8:29. Enjoyable

Friday 11/11

Rest

Saturday 12/11

7 miles@8:14 - with a couple of small hills. I was going to do a Parkrun, but spent an extra couple of hours in bed instead. I kept dropping the pace and the unconsciously speeding back up, so it kind of turned into a very unstructured easy fartlek. Nice run around town

Sunday 13/11

4 miles@8:40. Was supposed to get up early and do about 6 before work, but hit the snooze button, so I slipped out at lunchtime. I just felt a but tired, but forced myself out because I'd only run 3 times this week already.

I'm falling back into old bad habits. All these runs should have been recovery pace. The effort feels ok at the start of the run with the HR in the right range, but then drifts upwards into easy range, and probably a bit higher. The runs early on in the week just felt good, but I was tired on Sunday. I was fairly enthusiastic early on in the week, but had to drag myself out on Sunday, and I'm in absolutely no humour to go out today, even though I have the day off.

I've not really made my mind up about what to do going forward. It's almost like I felt I had recovered a good bit from the marathon, but being over zealous this week has set me back a bit in terms of general fatigue. I'm going to try and stick to proper recovery pace this week, with a few strides thrown in maybe. The main thing to work on will be sleep. There's a BHAA 5k on Sunday at 11am that I might have a lash off just to see where I'm at. I don't think I'm in the right frame of mind to commit to a training plan - on the other hand I wouldn't mind a bit of structure.
The plan I'm looking at for Dungarvan goes up to 57 miles a week, but now I'm thinking why the hell would I do that much mileage if I'm not marathon training. I'm thinking of doing the sessions from the plan and just doing as much/little easy stuff as time allows - I've a bit of catching up to do at work which is going to involve extra days/nights in work so that eats into my training time.

Anyway, enough rambling, I should probably go out and run. But later. Maybe.

hot buttered scones

Monday 14/11
CBA

Tuesday 15/11

Crack of dawn job. 6@8:48. Felt easy. HR too high for recovery pace so more of a General Aerobic run.

Wednesday 16/11

Another early morning. I'm happier about getting up early 2 days in a row than either of the runs
6@ 9:06. HR in recovery range, but this felt harder than yesterday. Probably just tired from work.

Thursday 17/11

Felt like sh1te warmed up. The beginnings of a head cold again, or it might by just the central heating/work aircon causing allergy issues. 3.1@9:21 - but the effort felt harder than the day before.

Friday 18/11

In between night shifts. Felt crap when I woke up. It was also freezing. Wore a ridiculous amount of clothes and headed out for an hour before work. Did 7 miles@GA pace with 9x100m strides. Was supposed to be 8 but I lost count. I run faster in the cold. Strides felt good I did 7 of them into a strong breeze. All in and around 20s or so.
Pace: 8:11, 8:04, 8:22, 8:22, the 8x100m with 1 min jog recovery, 0.6miles@8:18(first 100m was a stride by mistake), last mile in 8:52. HR in GA range for the 1st 4 mile, but higher during the cooldown, although there's a hill to climb.
Blew out the cobwebs a bit. I forced myself to do this run - I was debating with myself up to the very last minute, but in the end I found it really enjoyable.

With the weather being crap I might chicken out of the 5k on Sunday. This week was strange - like a delayed reaction to the marathon. I was more tired than last week, sleeping more and very hungry all the time.

hot buttered scones

Saturday 19/11

Unscheduled rest. I woke up after night shifts in pain - I had a real tender spot just over where the head of the femur is, which I could feel down my thigh. It was really uncomfortable - definitely an "oh sh1t that's not good" pain. So no running. I foam rolled and used the trigger point ball in the areas surrounding it which brought some relief.

Sunday 20/11

No 5k race for me. I had already decided to skip due to yesterdays pain, but I had set the alarm anyway - just in case, like!! Somethings up. I went to sleep at 1am, having gotten up at 2pm the day before (night shifts - around 5 hours sleep). I woke at 9, and went straight back to sleep - I eventually woke at 2pm again!! The hip felt a lot better, and eased out more during the day. I decided to test it out that evening around 7pm - I felt no discomfort from the off and ended up doing 10 miles - 7:28(very downhill), 7:55, 8:06, 8:00, 8:05, 8:02, 8:21 (coughing fit), 8:43 (more coughing), 9:10, 8:35 (last 3 mile all uphill or a long drag, but I was also bate!). Another enjoyable run in the freezing cold - I finished this actually looking forward to winter training, whilst also having a word with myself to slow the f down.

Monday 21/11

I'm a nawful tit. Hip pain worse than ever today. Panic stations set in. I should have rested yesterday, but no, I had to go out chasing some arbitrary yearly mileage goal. I made a physio appointment for this evening. There's a new physio there and she did a thorough assessment. The pain is coming from the TFL. She thinks its because my hip adductor on the same leg is not activating causing imbalances, overuse etc. on the hams,quads, glutes, TFL. Everything she said made sense. I've had serious trouble with this hip adductor before. She did a bit of release and activation work and gave me some exercises - I'm not to run at all until Friday or Saturday at least and only very easy at that if I have too. I really hope this is not the start of a long layoff. Also my core is weak, I'm not breathing properly, my glutes aren't activating. I'm a mess.

hot buttered scones

Tuesday 22/11 - Thursday 24/11

Rest - 4 days off which is my longest break since Jan/Feb 2015. The hip pain (which was right on the bone) abated. I was foam rolling and doing some activation exercises daily. Working Wednesday and Thursday so that provided a distraction

Friday 25/11

6.3 miles @9:15. Average HR 151 which is a bit above where it was a few weeks ago. Hip felt a lot better

Saturday 26/11

6.2 miles @8:31 - it was dark and cold so I ran a bit faster!! Average HR higher than usual again. In between night shifts

Sunday 27/11

Once upon a time (and a half) - an extra night shift and a mild night so I decided to see how thing were by doing some LT intervals.

3 x 10 minutes @LT pace (around 6:50 - 7:00) with 3 minutes recovery (jogged)

Warm up 1.5 miles @8:43

Interval paces:
6:48 - felt ok, even with climbing the bridge over to Haulbowline and back again. Last two minutes felt hard
6:51 - on the flat with a slight tailwind. Counting down the clock from about 3 minutes left
7:03 - Totally bate for this one. Slight headwind, and HR ended up a bit higher than LT threshold for the last few minutes

Cool down: 1:24 miles@9:10

Total 8 miles

I enjoyed this session, felt good to be training again. I'm happy enough with the paces, although I'd prefer to be able to do this session in the 6:45 - 6:50 range. I'm definitely feeling some small loss of fitness, but nothing major.

Monday 28/11

I had planned to do a few easy miles, but decided against it - just felt a bit tired really. I went to the physio again who was very pleased with my progress. I don't have to go back, but I'm going to have to keep up the activation excercises. Back in work again tonight so I'm going to be wrecked this week. The work Xmas party is on Friday so I'm planning on getting a longish run done on Wednesday because that'll be my last chance to get one in for a week.