PB or not PB...that is the question

Cartman78

13/01/2019



11K - Road - 52:36 - NB



Ughhh....an early entry for 'Worst run of the Year".



Had planned an 18K+ LSR but a combination of utterly dire weather (cold, windy & wet) and me feeling a bit jaded and meh meant that this was a real slog.



Almost ducked out at 8K but ground out another bit of a loop to bump up the mileage a bit.



In hindsight, maybe running 3 days out of 4 following antibiotics isn't too clever - hopefully get a bit of energy back this week

Cartman78

15/01/2019



8K - Road - 34:40 - AT



Have been struggling a bit with lower back/hip pain since Christmas - spent a good hour or so doing a load of stretching last night to loosen it out a bit. Got a bit of relief but have made a physio appointment for later in the week anyway.



This was a pretty solid workout but if felt harder than it should have to be honest - still feeling a bit leggy and toxic after the antibiotic I think.



Anyway, more stretching tonight - just want to make it to Dungarvan in decent shape now

Cartman78

16/01/2019



Intervals 15 x 400m - Road - AF



A slow run was on the cards until I realised how freezing it actually was at lunchtime (~5 degrees).



I did however take these at a far more conservative and consistent pace (~4:05 per km) than I normally do for 400's.



A good workout in the end - looking forward to physio on Friday evening though as I'm a bit achey at the minute

Cartman78

20/01/2019



10K - Road - 46:48 - NP



Another early entry for Worst Run of 2019!



No run since Thursday - the run fella was sick on Friday so was at home with him all day and then had physio on Friday evening.



Had some work done on my hip flexors and my shoulder/upper arm which has been giving me trouble lately. Was feeling pretty zonked and sore on Saturday and not much better yesterday really but decided to head out anyway.



It was a bit of a struggle tbh - I had planned to do 14K easy but in the end had to settle on 10K. Felt like I was running uphill the whole time :-(



Not sure if it was a hangover from physio or if I'm still getting over the antibiotics from earlier in the month.



Anyway, will rest today and reassess this week

Cartman78

23/01/2019



8K - Road - 34:29 - NB



Took yesterday off as well mainly because of the weather and generally feeling a bit meh.



Did some weights, core work and stretching at home so maybe the break won't do me any harm.



Set out to run this at a decent clip and generally felt pretty ok - would have concerns however if I could sustain this over 10 miles in Dungarvan in 10 days time.



Anyway all good for the moment!

Cartman78

24/01/2019



Intervals - 8 x 800m - Road - AT



Another solid enough set of intervals - nothing out of ordinary at all.



Everyone in the office is sick it seems - there's a permanent cloud of Lemsip powder over by the tea and coffee area. Still not feeling 100% myself either - not sure if it's the tail end of the dose I had or the start of another one lol :-)

Cartman78

Well the good news is that I made it through January without being hospitalised :pac::pac::pac::pac::pac:

No run at all this week - was feeling under the weather earlier in the week, ok now again but the kids are sick so trying to keep all the balls in the air at the minute.

Bizarrely I'm still contemplating going to Dungarvan on Sunday - I'm definitely well tapered and I really enjoyed the race last year. A sub-70 would be acceptable in the circumstances I reckon

Cartman78

03/02/2019

John Treacy Dungarvan 10 Miler


16.11K - Road - 71:47 - NP

A poor showing really but after a very fragmented month of training it wasn't any surprise really.



Expecting to run a half decent 10 Miler on the back of 9 runs (all 10K or less) in 4 weeks was a folly.



Haven't felt right since the virus I got at Christmas; every run since then has been a bit of struggle but having said all that, I'm glad I went yesterday as it's such a fantastically organised and well ran event.


Anyway, moaning over.....got there in plenty of time and did a solid warm up. Took it steady enough for the first few km and felt remarkably comfortable but around 7k-8K (after the long run into the headwind) I instantly went from feeling mildy tired to totally bolloxed in the space of about 200m.


From then on it was a very grim shuffle to the finish - had to take 2 mini walking breaks (:eek:), including one in the last mile, so was just relieved to get to the finish in the end without completely detonating.


Here's the splits fwiw:
1) 4:05
2) 4:02
3) 4:14
4) 4:06
5) 4:05 (20:34 cumulative)

6) 4:12
7) 4:24
8) 4:15
9) 4:19
10 4:37 (42:24 cumulative)
11) 4:17
12) 5:16 *Walking break
13) 4:29
14) 4:43
15) 5:37 *Walking break
16) 4:28


So back to the drawing board this week - still not feeling 100% so might just take a couple of days off to recover I think.



Not sure what my next race will be yet - had my eye of the Duhallow 10 but I might have calendar clash that weekend

Cartman78

06/02/2019



8K - Road - 36:46 - NB



Meh.



Bit of a plod really - not a lot to be said for it other than I got some fresh air.



Legs didn't feel great tbh - Dungarvan still lingering about in my muscles.



Will keep plugging away for another bit and hopefully get a bit of form and energy back

Cartman78

07/02/2019



7.6K - Road - 35:49 - AF



Meh....but maybe slightly less meh than yesterday.



Took a different less hilly route today - nothing major to report

El CabaIIo

I'm probably going to come across as a right ass here but fook it but want to point out a few things that might merit consideration

1) You are sick a lot
2) Your race performances are all over the place in consistency- one week you run close to PB, a week or two later, you are nearly two minutes slower
3)You have weak endurance
4)often your intervals are slower than your daily runs
5) Training is inconsistent in the bigger picture due to missed time
6) You get into peak shape and fall off a lot every year
7) You run fast all the time

Being honest, I think everyone of those are linked to the last one. I'm sorry for being so blunt as it hurts me to see you going through the same loop over and over again. I'm a firm believer in that if something isn't working, you change it. High intensity all the time like you are doing will lead to inevitable bouts of sickness as it pummels your immune system, it also hammers your central nervous system which basically controls everything in your body and when it gets tired, it shuts down shop and leads to it shutting down your muscles, punish it for long enough and it can take years to recover.

The ph of your blood is massively important in controlling your metabolism which is one of the most important mechanism in the human body and has a very small optimal range. When you train like you do every day with that burning lactate accumlating, it starts to mess with the acidity of your blood. Lactate produces a wate product called hydrogen ions and pH stands for potential of hydrogen so the more you run at paces that cause that lactate burn, the lower your blood ph falls until it's well outside optimal which will cause chronic fatigue, much higher potential for viruses and bacteria to flourish and breaking down of muscle and bone density(it makes you weak). Think what happens if you were to feed a plant acid, it starts to break down, your blood is what feeds your muscles and organs.

For a 10k run, the aerobic contribution is almost 90%. This means that endurance is more important than speedwork and that should be reflected in training, aerobic(around marathon pace and slower) training should be the main focus of most of your week, aerobic fitness also the effect of lower blood ph as if your body can use more oxygen, it becomes more efficient at everything from fighting illness to how calm you feel to how fast you can run 10k to running better speedwork as your body can clear lactate faster.

I know you have time constraints but slowing down 30 seconds per k on a 10k run is only 5 minutes more of running but I personally guarantee it will completely alter everyone of those points I mentioned above in a postive way by an order of 100 times magnitude. You are currently hammering your body and it doesn't like it at all which ijs why it's giving you all those signs. Doing so will not be a loss of quality from your training but it will be getting it back in balance and it will pay you back tenfold for it, slow miles are not junk miles, Eliud Kipchoge runs 80% of his mileage at marathon pace or slower and even he is an extreme example compared to what mere mortals should be doing.

Even look at your clubmates to see what they are doing. MC is running 4 min pace or slower most days and he's a sub-70 half guy. NOR is running anywhere between 3:40 and 5 minute pace with the majority slower than 4:30 and he ran 15:40 a cople of weeks back. NS is running between 3:20 and 4:20 pace with most over 3:50 pace and he ran 51 for 10 miles. SD runs 4 min pace most days and look what he done over the winter. It's not giving up quality, it's gaining endurance. I honestly think if applied this to training, you would run much faster than your current PB's by a long way and you would 100 times more consistent. Just my 2c.

Murph_D

Re-read the first post in your log. The ‘Warning to
Myself’ - how much has changed since then?

Cartman78

Cheers for the feedback guys...much appreciated.

There's no doubt I've fallen back into old bad habits recently - things have definitely started to unravel in terms of consistency and performance.

I've been using my running sessions as a short term stress buster, which isn't sustainable in the medium to long term if I have any serious ambitions as a runner.

Dungarvan was a wake up call....back to the drawing board.

Thanks again for taking the time to read my log, and even more so for taking time to provide constructive criticism and advice.

Cartman78

09/02/2019



10K - Road - 46:36 - NB



Up the walls all weekend with stuff at home so not much bandwidth for running unfortunately.



Anyway, this was a steady and comfortable outing, despite feeling a bit stodgy after a late-ish lunch.





11/02/2019



8K - Road - 38:33 - NB



Ran the first couple of km with another guy from work who's just starting back into training.



Again, kept the pace steady after that and no issues to report.



Had planned a longer run tonight but will leave it til later in the week I think.

Cartman78

12/02/2019



8K - Road - 38:37 - AF



Took a different more slightly urban route to change things up a bit.



Generally prefer running on quiet country roads rather than undulating paths/junctions etc. but need to shake up my routine a bit.



Very comfortable at this pace - no desk sweating afterwards as well which is a bonus!





13/02/2019



8.5K - Road - 41:17 - NB



Had tentative intentions of going for a longer run to UL last night but the prospect of 20 mins drive each way didn't appeal to me at all.



So, in the spirit of getting out of my running rut, I dusted off my assorted running lights and head torch and headed off out the door.



The route was basically 3 laps of a country/small town loop - there's maybe a third of each lap that has street lighting, the rest is pretty much pitch black.



I know every bump and pothole on the route so wasn't concerned about tripping etc.



Anyway it went well and might fill a gap until the longer evenings arrive - I could possibly stretch to 5 laps maybe I guess...will see how it goes

Cartman78

15/02/2019



Intervals 8 x 800m - Road - AD



Felt pretty good for these and kept them fairly consistent (all roughly 4:05 ~ 4:15 pace)....there was a fairly strong wind so some were easier than others.



My tentative plans for the Duhallow 10 Miler have been canned due to a clash that weekend, so looking at the Dromina 10 Miler in April instead...not sure yet if I'll be racing anywhere before then, wouldn't mind doing a 5K/10K somewhere so will keep an eye out.

Cartman78

16/02/2019



18K - Road - 88:17 - NP



Took this one nice and easy - the first 10K was quite challenging due to a blustery wind that seemed to be in my face no matter which way I was going.



Kept the pace steady though from start to finish and trotted home quite comfortably for the last 5 miles or so.







18/02/2019



8K - Road - 35:17 - NB



This was a planned tempo run, as opposed to the usual headless chicken efforts that I'm prone to doing :-)



It was complicated somewhat by atrocious weather for the first 3.5K - dirty rain, cold and wind all the way and then, like someone turning on a lamp, the sun came out and it was actually hot :-)



Anyway, felt comfortable at this pace throughout.



Not sure if i'll be able to get out tomorrow - it might be a run in the dark if the weather is halfways reasonable

Cartman78

20/02/2019



8K - Road - 37:45 - AF



Due to crappy weather, work commitments and Liverpool live on the telly last night, I had a rest day yesterday.



However I did do about an hours worth of core and hip flexor exercises while watching the match.



Anyway, headed out today briefly between meetings, went well, very comfortable at 4:40-4:45 pace.



Have a slight tightness in my left knee, suspect it's probably a tightish ITB so will roll it out tonight

Cartman78

21/02/2019



9.35K - Road - 44:45 - NP



A slight miscalculation of the route meant this was a longer lunchtime run than normal.



Again, took the pacing nice and handy - had to battle the wind on a few stretches but no problems besides that.

Cartman78

24/02/2019



21.25K - Road - 106:01 - NP



Got out grand and early on Sunday morning - weather was ok but windy yet again as expected this time of year.



Took the pace nice and steady/slow - the first 8K is a challenging enough loop that I haven't done in a while. Popped a gel after it and felt much better as the run went on.



Still felt strong in the closing few kms so a decent outing and no niggles or injuries to report.



Everyone else in the family is sick at the moment so not sure how I've dodged it so far - felt a bit meh and tired yesterday but not a shock as I'd been up most of the night with the young fella.



Did some core work and weights last night and might get out for a run in the dark tonight if I get a chance.

Cartman78

26/02/2019



9.15K - Road - 44:17 - NB



Recovered from feeling godawful on Monday (mainly due to complete lack of sleep I think).



Headed out around 8.30pm or so....in fairness it was a beautiful night to be out...mild, clear skies, no wind and only met about 3 cars.



Only my 2nd or 3rd time running in the actual dark (no street lighting) - kinda getting to like it I have to say although I'd be wary on a road I didn't know well. I could probably run the route I did last night with my eyes closed

Cartman78

27/02/2019



8K - Road - 34:30 - NB



A glorious afternoon to be out - first time in ages not wearing a jacket, long sleeve top, hat or running scarf/buff :-)



Set the pace threshold on my watch between 4:15 and 4:30 and there was very little beeping as I was pretty much cruising along at ~4:20 pace for most of the session.



The Munster 4 Mile Road Championships are on Sunday - probably a bit too soon for me I think at this stage and prob won't be able to make it in any case.



There's a local 5 miler on as well which might be more feasible - will see how the next couple of days go

Cartman78

28/02/2019



7.75K - Road - 38:47 - AF



A much more sedate run today - could possibly have taken a rest but wanted to get out and clear my head.



Pretty tired generally (not running related) - seems like about 5 years since I had a decent night's sleep! :-)

Cartman78

01/03/2019



5K - Road - 20:46 - AD



A run which possibly flies in the logic of my more recent training strategy, but I had such a bizarre/stressful morning that banging out a reasonably fast 5K was the only antidote to hand.



Again on a Friday, I had a narrow window to get out so it was either something like this or nothing.



Went fairly hard at it but not flat out, and it should be noted I had to slow down significantly or stop a few times at junctions etc. Also tiptoed passed the spot where I fell a few months ago :-)



Not sure what the plan is for the weekend yet.

Cartman78

04/03/2019



10K - Road - 47:14 - NB



No run over the weekend due no time on Saturday and loads of snow yesterday - might be no harm in hindsight.



A mid paced 10K to get the ball rolling this week - avoided the more rural route option and went instead on the flatter ring road instead and it felt super comfortable at this pace.



It's always a nice feeling when 10K feels both short and easy

Cartman78

05/03/2019



10K - Road - 48:01 - AF



Another gentle jaunt, this time on the more challenging hilly route.



It went fine, but still generally feeling a bit lethargic and deffo felt a bit leggy in the last mile or so.



I'm either coming down with the virus that everyone in the house has had for the past 2 weeks (the missus has just finished antibiotics) or I just need a good night's sleep....all to be revealed! :eek::D:mad::(:o;)

Cartman78

08/03/2019



10K - Road - 43:37 - NB



Took a rest day on Wednesday and just did some light weights and core work.



Bit of drama then yesterday - the young fella was a bit under the weather, ended up having to get checked out in hospital ; all ok now but a bit of a stressful day to say the least.



Anyway, back to quasi normal today, decided to blow off some steam and cobwebs with relatively challenging 10K tempo.



Legs felt grand and was happy enough overall - the last 4K or so were into a blustery wind so the pace dropped off slightly.



Not sure what the plan is for the weekend - we're away for a night tomorrow so may not get a run in at all possibly

Cartman78

14/03/2019



10K - Road - 47:16 - NB



Bah - another enforced hiatus through zero fault of my own....very annoying from a running perspective.



Had mentally penciled in a run on Sunday afternoon after getting back from Cork but hail/sleet/snow showers and high winds put paid to that.



Then the young fella had a bit of a relapse as well so I've been housebound with him all week basically - he's ok now again but I've been basically stuck to the couch with a laptop for the last 3 days. Ordinarily I'd have thrown on the hi-viz and heard torch in the evenings but good ol' Storm Gareth had other ideas.



So finally made it out today - good news is that 10K now feels like a walk in the park but it's very frustrating trying to build mileage and consistency at the moment.



Anyway, next event is looking likely to be the County 4 Mile Championship on Sunday week

Cartman78

15/03/2019



8.75K - Road - 42:06 - PB



Felt a bit stiff and sore today - I think 3 days working from home has taken it's toll.



Got on ok I guess in blustery conditions - will be hitting the foam roller tonight

Cartman78

17/03/2019

17.50K - Road - 86:31 - NP

A return to 'long' distance after a bit of a enforced break.

Again no problems running at this pace at all really, but the last 3K were into a very strong wind and rain/hail shower so I was utterly boll0xed at the end of it.

Slight tightness in left knee and both Achilles but nothing to worry about at the moment.


18/03/2019

Intervals - 10 x 1K - Road - NB1400

Felt like doing something a bit different today so eventually settled on long intervals.

Decent workout - the wind played its part again today as did a couple of sneaky hills/drags that I hadn't noticed on this route before

Was fairly consistent throughout (probably averaging around 4:05-4:10 pace) - have no idea what time I'd clock for a 10K at the moment

Will keep plugging away anyway - will be taking it easy for the rest of the week and hopefully be in good shape for the 4 Mile County Championships next weekend.