So that's "your thing" now is it?

kin9pin

So, having completed my first marathon at DCM in October under the guidance of nop98 (and everyone else who helped the 2016 novices) I've found I have missed logging my runs. I've been told plenty of times over the last year how useful a log can be so here goes. I do aim to update it at least weekly so hopefully I can stick to that.

46 yrs old, running since December 2014. Some PB's:
5k: 21:46 - Jingle Bells Dec 2016
10k: 48:38 - Virgin Night Run May 2016
10m: 1:20:19 - FD 10m 2016
HM: 1:50:18 - Contarf July 2016
Marathon: 4:20:47 - DCM Oct 2016

Pretty sure I could be faster after DCM, especially for 10k, but for now I'm concentrating on the marathon again as I have a charity place for London.
Plan A for DCM was sub 4. However, after sticking with the pacers pretty comfortably for 16 miles I hit the wall pretty badly and had to run/walk the last 10 miles. I'm not really sure if this was due to bad fuelling or the 2 weeks I was out with injury about 6 weeks before.
For London I am following the Hal Higdon Intermediate 2 plan, mainly because I like the Saturday pace runs before the Sunday LSR. This 18 week plan has me running 5 times per week, mainly easy runs during the week, pace or easy run on Saturday and LSR on Sunday. Weekly mileage peaks at 50m.
HH does talk about 3/1 runs for some LSR's so I'll increase pace at the end of some long runs, depending on how I'm feeling.

The thread name? Something my wife said, twice now, when I told her I also wanted to run DCM 2017.

For London I'm aiming again for sub 4 and my training paces are roughly:
PMP: 9:00
Easy: 9:30-10:00
LSR: 9:45-10:15
Rec: 10:15-10:45

Week 3: 2-8 Jan 2017 - 23.6 miles
Day|Distance|Type|Pace|Avg HR
T|0|-|-|-
W|6m|Easy|9:12|140
TH|3.15m|Easy|9:54|133
S|6m|PMP|8:20|155
SU|8.4m|LSR|9:55|135

Not a great start to the plan on Tuesday. Flew back from England and didn't have the time to get out.
Wednesday easy run was a bit quick, but looking at my HR I was still in zone 2. What's the saying about running by feel?
The pace run on Saturday was again a bit fast. I blame the route I took, first half mile is very much downhill and I got a head of steam. Note to self to control that as the mileage increases.

Week 4: 9-15 Jan 2017 - ## miles
Day|Distance|Type|Pace|Avg HR
T|3m|Easy|10:02|133
W|7.25m|Easy|9:49|141
TH|-|-|-|-
S|-|-|-|-
SU|-|-|-|-

Legs felt very heavy on Tuesday, wasn't feeling it at all. It's strange how the shortest, easiest runs can be a struggle. Did I drink enough?
Ran home from work on Wednesday and felt great. Maybe it's the cold weather, I love running in the cold. Avg HR up slightly, but the last 5 miles is pretty much all uphill.

That's all for now. Let's see how long I can keep this going.........

Wubble Wubble

Great stuff A, fair play to you for starting this up. Loving the log title! Those PBs are all very beatable. Even if you're focusing on London for the moment, I can see you taking massive chunks out of all those times. Best of luck!

tailgunner

Great to see you starting a log. Our PBs are very similar - I'll be following with interest!

Murph_D

Good luck with this! HH Intermediate is a good plan for a second marathon I think. But yes - watch the pace. Especially the MP and easy runs which are pretty useless if done too fast.

Any tune up races planned? Good for judging progress, and checking whether Pace targets are appropriate. The fact that you struggled badly in 2nd half of DCM should tell you a lot about the need to focus on endurance rather than raw speed.

All the best.

kin9pin

Wubble Wubble wrote: »

Great stuff A, fair play to you for starting this up. Loving the log title! Those PBs are all very beatable. Even if you're focusing on London for the moment, I can see you taking massive chunks out of all those times. Best of luck!

tailgunner wrote: »

Great to see you starting a log. Our PBs are very similar - I'll be following with interest!

Thanks guys. Hopefully catch up with you at the Raheny 5m.

kin9pin

Murph_D wrote: »

Good luck with this! HH Intermediate is a good plan for a second marathon I think. But yes - watch the pace. Especially the MP and easy runs which are pretty useless if done too fast.

Any tune up races planned? Good for judging progress, and checking whether Pace targets are appropriate. The fact that you struggled badly in 2nd half of DCM should tell you a lot about the need to focus on endurance rather than raw speed.

All the best.

Thanks, I chose this plan because of the endurance focus so that's just what I needed to hear. As far as tune-up races, I have the Raheny 5m on 29th Jan and the Brentwood HM on 19th March. That's my home town so looking forward to it, but it's not the flattest course.

The Muppet

Always good to see another log staring, the best of luck with it and London.

kin9pin

Week 4: 9-15 Jan 2017 - ## miles
Day|Distance|Type|Pace|Avg HR
T|3m|Easy|10:02|133
W|7.25m|Easy|9:49|141
TH|3.5m|Easy|9:49|135
S|-|-|-|-
SU|-|-|-|-

Legs felt very heavy on Tuesday, wasn't feeling it at all. It's strange how the shortest, easiest runs can be a struggle. Did I drink enough?
Ran home from work on Wednesday and felt great. Maybe it's the cold weather, I love running in the cold. Avg HR up slightly, but the last 5 miles is pretty much all uphill.
Thursday: Lovely easy run. Wore the DCM hat. Discovered my gloves don't give any protection from the cold at all. Leggings (with shorts) did the trick though.

The Muppet

Is that the Blue Hat from the half? Ive given that an outing this week , Its hard to know what to wear because after a few minutes i don't really feel cold .

kin9pin

That's the one. I know what you mean, I'm the same, but that was a really cold wind tonight.

The Muppet

kin9pin wrote: »

That's the one. I know what you mean, I'm the same, but that was a really cold wind tonight.

See, that's why I went out at lunchtimne . It;s just the initial shock of going out of the nice warm house I tend to overcompensate when its really cold like today. I know I should HTFU though most runners Ii met yesterday were well wrapped up.


Glad its a rest day today severe frost out there this morning.

kin9pin

Week 4: 9-15 Jan 2017 - 33.3 miles
Day|Distance|Type|Pace|Avg HR
T|3m|Easy|10:02|133
W|7.25m|Easy|9:49|141
TH|3.5m|Easy|9:49|135
S|6.2m|PMP|8:49|144
SU|13.3m|LSR|10:00|135

Legs felt very heavy on Tuesday, wasn't feeling it at all. It's strange how the shortest, easiest runs can be a struggle. Did I drink enough?
Ran home from work on Wednesday and felt great. Maybe it's the cold weather, I love running in the cold. Avg HR up slightly, but the last 5 miles is pretty much all uphill.
Thursday: Lovely easy run. Wore the DCM hat. Discovered my gloves don't give any protection from the cold at all. Leggings (with shorts) did the trick though.
Saturday: 6 miles PMP according to the plan. Again, started off a bit fast, but the downhill to Stillorgan makes it an effort to slow down (1st mile in 8:30). Felt strong through the whole run which was a nice confidence boost.
Sunday: According to HH the Saturday pace run should tire me out enough to mean I keep a sensible slow pace on the long Sunday run. I had this in mind and made a conscious effort today to keep it easy. Felt surprisingly comfortable despite the 700ft elevation gain. Got a lovely thumbs up and a smile from a lady I passed on Glenamuck Rd, always gives you a little boost.

Think I may need to retire one pair of shoes. I'm currently rotating 2 pairs of Saucony Ride 9's, but one pair has clocked around 550 miles. Will probably end up buying the same model, but I have been reading good things about the Hoka Cliftons. If I can find them cheap I might take a punt.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2:Week 5

Tuesday: 3m easy at 9:56 pace, Avg HR 132.
New pet hate is people walking with their face buried in their phone. Had my first "bump" when a guy drifted suddenly into my path. Despite my best side-step I couldn't avoid him. Not sure how he kept hold of the phone, but apparently it was all my fault and I should look where I'm going!

Wednesday: 7.25m easy run home from work at 9:56 pace, Avg HR 139. Same as last week, HR slightly higher due to the 400ft elevation gain. Should I slow down on this run? Still in zone 2 so probably not. No phone zombies to contend with tonight. Really enjoy this route so I might make it a weekly event as long as it matches the plan.

Bit the bullet and ordered a pair of Clifton 3's last night. Saw another pair, same model, in flame orange tonight so I ordered them as well. The plan is to send one pair back

Wubble Wubble

kin9pin wrote: »

HH Intermediate Marathon 2:Week 5

Tuesday: 3m easy at 9:56 pace, Avg HR 132.
New pet hate is people walking with their face buried in their phone. Had my first "bump" when a guy drifted suddenly into my path. Despite my best side-step I couldn't avoid him. Not sure how he kept hold of the phone, but apparently it was all my fault and I should look where I'm going!

Wednesday: 7.25m easy run home from work at 9:56 pace, Avg HR 139. Same as last week, HR slightly higher due to the 400ft elevation gain. Should I slow down on this run? Still in zone 2 so probably not. No phone zombies to contend with tonight. Really enjoy this route so I might make it a weekly event as long as it matches the plan.

Bit the bullet and ordered a pair of Clifton 3's last night. Saw another pair, same model, in flame orange tonight so I ordered them as well. The plan is to send one pair back

Agreed 100%. It's often hard enough getting around people even when they're not doing this?

Murph_D

Wubble Wubble wrote: »

Agreed 100%. It's often hard enough getting around people even when they're not doing this?

I like to shout "PHONE!" as I nudge them out of my path.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2:Week 5

Thursday: 3.1m easy/steady at 9:30 pace, Avg HR 132.

Saturday: 7.1m easy at 9:46 pace, Avg HR 131.

Sunday: 14.5m LSR (3/1)
First 11 miles at 9:48 pace. Avg HR 132
Last 3.5 miles at 8:57 pace, Avg HR 151
I ran the DCM route to from Stephens Green to Milltown for this, but skipped straight through Phoenix Park via Wellington/Military Rd.
Felt very strong today and enjoyed the Crumlin climb much more than in October! It was nice to know that I could pick up the pace after 11 miles as I remember struggling on my DCM route LSR's at that stage last year. I do feel that I'm in better shape already so let's just hope I can stay injury free.

35 miles for the week. Next week the plan reduces mileage, but I'll reduce a bit more as I'm in for Raheny on Sunday so my plan is 3,7,3,5,5.

Wubble Wubble

Excellent work A, keeping it nice and steady, no point in going too hard in the early weeks. Stick to the plan, like we were always told Have you a target time in mind for next week?

kin9pin

Wubble Wubble wrote: »

Excellent work A, keeping it nice and steady, no point in going too hard in the early weeks. Stick to the plan, like we were always told Have you a target time in mind for next week?

Thanks J. The plan is pretty easy to stick to at the moment. Not sure how easy it wil be when I have a 10m pace run on Saturday followed by 20m LSR on Sunday though.
Really not sure what to aim for next week. Based off my 5k time http://www.runningprs.com/calc2/index.php indicates 36:00, but I'll probably start out at 7:30 pace and see how I go.
You going for sub 35?

Wubble Wubble

kin9pin wrote: »

Thanks J. The plan is pretty easy to stick to at the moment. Not sure how easy it wil be when I have a 10m pace run on Saturday followed by 20m LSR on Sunday though.
Really not sure what to aim for next week. Based off my 5k time http://www.runningprs.com/calc2/index.php indicates 36:00, but I'll probably start out at 7:30 pace and see how I go.
You going for sub 35?

I'd still like to think so. PB is 34:08, going way back to Terenure 2014. I got PBs in all my other "main" distances last year, so it sticks out even more like a sore thumb. I may need most or all of the cards to fall my way to crack it this time though.

kin9pin

Wubble Wubble wrote: »

I'd still like to think so. PB is 34:08, going way back to Terenure 2014. I got PBs in all my other "main" distances last year, so it sticks out even more like a sore thumb. I may need most or all of the cards to fall my way to crack it this time though.

Good luck for Sunday then The thoughts of 5 x sub-7 miles is beyond me so fair play.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2:Week 6

kin9pin wrote: »

Next week the plan reduces mileage, but I'll reduce a bit more as I'm in for Raheny on Sunday so my plan is 3,7,3,5,5.

Came down with a cold on Monday so my midweek mileage didn't/couldn't stick to the plan.

Tuesday: Didn't run.
Wednesday: 4.75m easy at 9:40 pace. Avg HR 139. Didn't fancy running home from work, but I did manage to get out. If anything it cleared my head a little.
Thursday: Didn't run. Got home from work late and just didn't feel up to it.
Saturday: 4.8m easy/steady at 9:27 pace. Avg HR 137. Not sure what happened here.Meant to be an easy run at around 10:00, but I swear I was bouncing along.
I tried out the new Clifton 3's and found them great, really comfortable. Ran a few strides at the end and WOW! that meta rocker thing they have really does work. It really did feel like my feet were moving faster with less effort.

Sunday: Raheny 5 mile
Not sure I'm a fan of afternoon starts, spent most of the morning just waiting to leave for the race. Loads of traffic so I'm glad I left early. Parked somewhere, I don't know where, just saw other cars parking so followed them. Walked to the start area wishing I'd downloaded that "Find My Car" app from Garmin.
Today was my first Raheny 5m so I had no idea what to expect. First thing I noticed was how packed it was and how narrow the start/finish seemed. No problem I thought, I'll hang back, take it easy until the field opens up. Isn't that what nop98 told me last year for the race-series?

Mile 1: Split: 7:50 - Err, I think I started too far back (started at the corner of the finish straight). The clock was at 1:59 as I passed the start line. Found it very hard to pass people so I did relax a little and wait for it to open up. Not too far off the 7:30 start pace I wanted though.

Mile 2: Split: 7:34 - This section felt as if it should be faster, but I found myself having to run the wrong side of the cones to pass people before ducking back in. I have to say, the drivers seemed to be really patient as they hung back as people spilled onto the road.

Mile 3: Split: 7:26 - More of the same here. I was generally passing people rather than being passed so feeling good.

Mile 4: Split: 7:34 - It was nice to get into the park. I'd say it's a lovely parkrun here, must try it one day. I still felt held up a little bit, but that was probably because I didn't want to run on the wet grass. I did relax a bit on this mile though as I wanted to have a good strong finish.
Passed a guy around 3.5 miles, about my age, wearing a rain jacket. He seemed to be losing ground on a lot of people, maybe that's why I noticed him.

Mile 5: Split: 7:22 - At around 4.5 miles I had to double-take as I passed the rain jacket guy AGAIN. I really don't get why someone would do this. Did he go home and say "Hey honey, I cut 3 minutes off my 5 mile PB"? Yes mate, that's because you also cut the guts of half a mile off your 5 mile race. Rant over.
Anyway, the support near the finish was great with loads of encouragement. I still felt strong so when I heard someone say 500m to go I managed to pick it up. I put in a sprint at the end and looking back, I ran the last 500m in 1:56. Maybe I did hold too much back??
Chip time 37:54 Avg HR 162

Very happy with the time. My first official 5 mile race so at least I now have a PB to aim for. Despite the congestion I really did enjoy the race, the support was fantastic and my kids really appreciated the goody bag! Maybe next year I'll start a little further forward or not worry about a time.

Only 14.5 miles for the week. Next week the plan picks up again so it's 4,8,4,8,16.

paddydriver

Great race report A.. Just had a read thru the log and its good reading. Got to maybe consider one myself. I've had a stop start last 2 weeks now with a knee issue. Should have taken longer off but agitated it last weekend. Hoping to get back to easy running in few days, possibly on grass.

Best of Luck in the weeks ahead with the London training.. will look out for you in Sandyford.

kin9pin

paddydriver wrote: »

Great race report A.. Just had a read thru the log and its good reading. Got to maybe consider one myself. I've had a stop start last 2 weeks now with a knee issue. Should have taken longer off but agitated it last weekend. Hoping to get back to easy running in few days, possibly on grass.

Best of Luck in the weeks ahead with the London training.. will look out for you in Sandyford.

Thanks H. Take it easy with the knee, hope to see you passing me in Sandyford soon.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2:Week 7

Tuesday: 4 miles easy at 9:41 pace. Avg HR 139.

Wednesday: 8.4 miles easy at 9:50 pace. Avg HR 139. Getting used to the run home from work. The plan called for 8 miles so I ran via Stepaside Village to bring the mileage up.

Thursday: A big fat zero. Couldn't face going out in the wind and rain.

Saturday: 8 miles PMP at 8:39 pace. Avg HR 150. The curse of the downhill start strikes again. Should have been running around 9 min pace. Felt good though.

Sunday: 16.1 miles at 9:58 pace. Avg HR 137. I can see what Mr Higdon is doing now. Started out feeling really good, but I could feel the effects of yesterday's pace run in the last 3-4 miles. It didn't help that my route was a loop into town and back home via the uphill work route.

Wore the Clifton 3's today, a bit disappointing. It almost felt like the insole compressed the further I ran until I had an uncomfortable spot under the ball of my left foot, as if my sock had creased. Stopped for a minute, took shoe off, checked sock, all ok. Put shoe back on and the "hot spot" had disappeared, almost like memory foam expanding again. Did this twice.
Not sure this will be my marathon shoe. I think I'll stick to my Ride 9's and maybe use the Cliftons for shorter recovery runs.

36.5 miles for the week. Plan for next week is 4,8,4,8,17, all easy, no pace runs.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2:Week 8

Tuesday: 4 miles easy/rec at 10:18 pace. Avg HR 131. Slowed this one down after the 8m + 16m at the weekend.

Wednesday: 8 miles easy at 9:51 pace. Avg HR 132. Enjoyed this one. A few steady climbs, up Brewery Rd, Kilmacud Rd etc.

Thursday: 4 miles at 9:39 pace. Avg HR 137. Lovely cold evening. Managed to run this without looking at the watch and was surprised at the pace, thought I was slower.

Relatively easy mid-week, just 8m tomorrow and 17m Sunday to look forward to. 72 days to London.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2:Week 8 (cont...)

Saturday: 8 miles easy at 9:43 pace. Avg HR 136.

Sunday: 17 miles at 9:52 pace. Avg HR 142.
Lovely cold run. Ran from Sandyford into town, joined up with the DCM route at Kilmainham and followed that to Milltown before getting the Luas home. Wind was a bit annoying, but that calmed down a bit as I got nearer Dublin. Had a chocolate craving near the end so stopped for a minute to buy a Twix on Fortfield Rd. Best Twix ever!

41 miles for the week. Looking back at DCM training I never reached 40 miles. This plan peaks at 50 miles so I really need to pay attention to my pace. Last thing I need is an injury.

Week 9 calls for 4,9,4,x,HM race. I have a HM planned for week 13 so I'll just run 13 miles at somewhere around PMP this Sunday.

kin9pin

Catching up with the last week and a half..........

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 9

Tuesday: 4.25 miles easy at 9:59 pace. Avg HR 135.

Wednesday: 8.25 miles easy at 9:56 pace. Avg HR 138.
Getting used to the run home from work now. Surely the ~5 mile climb from Ranelagh to Sandyford is building my strength! Certainly feels easier anyway.

Thursday: 4.5 miles at 9:07 pace. Avg HR 146.
Slap on the wrist for me here. Meant to be easy, but I was going out after work and thought it would be a great idea to work up a thirst! It worked, but not my best idea given the planned PMP run for Saturday.

Saturday: 13.14 miles at 8:49 pace. Avg HR 152.
Plan called for a HM race, but as I have one lined up mid-March I thought I'd run this at just under marathon pace. Two loops of Phoenix Park with a quick stop at the car halfway to refill water.
This was a real confidence boost as I ended up running my 2nd best HM time...on my own...while feeling pretty comfortable. I missed the Dublin HM last year with injury so it was nice to get one in for London.

30 miles for week 9.Week 10 calls for 4,9,4,9(pmp),19 so I'd better keep a check on the midweek pace!


HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 10

Tuesday: Life got in the way so had to skip the 4m run.

Wednesday: 9 miles at 9:55 pace. Avg HR 140.
Another uphill run home from work, extended this time up to Stepaside to get the full 9 miles. Rained all the way. My "water resistant" jacket isn't very resistant.

59 days to go.........

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 10 cont...

Thursday: 4.25 miles at 9:41 pace. Avg HR 136

Saturday: 9 miles PMP at 8:45 pace. Avg HR 152.
Windy 3 laps round Marlay Park.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 10 cont...

Sunday: 19 miles at 10:13 pace. Avg HR 144
Kept the pace slower for this run after the 9M PMP yesterday. Ran from home to Marlay Park, 4.5 laps of the park, then ran home.
The wind was something else and it started raining pretty much as I stepped out of the door. 1,100ft elevation on this run which would explain the slightly higher HR.
Overall very happy with how the run went. Legs felt tired on the run back home, but I still felt I had a few more miles in them. The wind/rain kept Marlay really quiet and I had most of the paths and trails to myself, apart from a few other runners and some crazy people out walking in jeans and no coat.

41 miles for the week. Next week calls for 5,10,5,10,20 with no pace runs.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 11

Tuesday: 4.9 miles at 9:43 pace. Avg HR 143
Carrying on the theme from Sunday. It rained, I got soaked. Made the mistake of leaving my jacket screwed up in the porch.

Wednesday: 2.7 miles at 9:36 pace. Avg HR 133
Meant to be 10 miles easy, but of course my jacket was still soaked from Tuesday because I'm an idiot. Started raining, again, about half a mile in before the whole sky emptied on me. Cold, wet, rang my wife to come and pick me up. That's the first time I've ever bailed on a run.

Thursday: 8.4 miles at 9:30 pace. Avg HR 137
What have I been told too many times? Don't try to make up missed miles.
What did I do? Tried to make up for missed miles. In my defence I knew I had 80 minutes to kill before my daughter finished her club, but I still ran a bit fast. Rained again.

Saturday: 10.2 miles at 9:40 pace. Avg HR 135
Phase 1 of my first 30 mile weekend. Felt good and in control the whole run with pretty even splits. No rain!

Sunday: 20 miles at 10:01 pace. Avg HR 135
Headed out to Phoenix Park for this. Legs felt pretty strong for 17 miles, but I certainly felt the effects of Saturday's run for the last 3 miles. No drop in pace though and very even splits for the whole run. Really don't think I've ever seen so many runners in the park on a non-race day.

46 miles for the week. Next week is a step-back week, 5,6,5,6 pmp,12.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 12

Tuesday: 4.4 miles at 10:00 pace. Avg HR 133

Wednesday: 6 miles at 9:07 pace. Avg HR 139
This turned into a marathon pace run. I think, knowing that I would be skipping Thursday's run, I just felt like putting more effort into this.

Thursday: Work night out, few pints, good laugh, no running.

Saturday: 6.1 miles pace/progression at avg 8:05 pace. Avg HR 150
I blame Martin Yelling for this! I was reading one of his London Marathon blogs on Friday that was giving training tips. The tip about running some runs faster than planned pace to make marathon pace seem easier stuck in my mind.
Splits were 8:33, 8:18, 8:11, 8:01, 7:59, 7:39.

Sunday: 9.8 miles at 9:46 pace. Avg HR 129
12 miles was on the plan, but I had a very strict time period to run between dropping my daughter at a party and picking her up again. I am noticing that my long/easy run pace has increased slightly with no real additional effort. Maybe this training lark really does work!

26.3 miles for the week. I have the Brentwood HM next Sunday so this week will be all easy 5, 8, 5 then rest until the race.

41 days to go!

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 13

Tuesday: 5.3 miles at 9:44 pace. Avg HR 137

Wednesday: 6 miles at 9:31 pace. Avg HR 142
Ran this on grass while my daughter had training. Only had an hour so it was just the 6 miles.

Thursday: Rest. Taking it easy before the HM on Sunday.

Saturday: Rest. Back in the UK for the weekend. Had a few pints on Friday night with my brothers. Not too many though! Did a lot of googling about the pros/cons of drinking alcohol 2 days before a race. I settled on the argument that it would help me relax

Sunday: Brentwood Half Marathon. 13.1 miles at 8:09 pace. Avg HR 162
I had heard that the course was quite hilly so drove it on Saturday afternoon, mainly to check on the 1 mile climb to the finish. Glad I did as I made a firm plan to hold something back for it.
The start of this race is really something else. Arrived with a friend 30 minutes before the start to find the Brentwood Imperial Youth Band playing the Game of Thrones music. At 9:50 the band then marched the runners to the start line. It's a memorable way to start a race!

There were no pacers at this race so I knew i had to plan my pace. I was hoping to beat my PB of 1:50:19, but wasn't really sure how much the climbs would take out of me. The first 2 miles are downhill and the road widens very quickly after the start. I managed to keep a controlled pace with 8:00 and 7:57 splits.
After 2 miles we were out of the town and in the surrounding countryside for the next 10 miles. The hedges either side of the road gave some shelter from the wind (which was nowhere near as bad as expected) and there were great crowds at the villages we ran through.
Miles 3-7 were undulating with a net elevation gain of around 50ft. Splits were 8:06, 8:14, 8:09, 8:03, 8:02. I was feeling very strong here and knew I was ahead of my target pace. Still a little nervous about the finish, mile 8 was uphill, a 60ft gain, so I dropped the pace back to 8:25.
Still saving myself for the finish, splits for miles 9-12 were 8:03,8:18, 8:19, 8:32.
Now for mile 13. I didn't really know how much energy I would have left and I was waiting for my legs to slow, but they didn't. I felt that I had loads more to give so, concentrating only on the 10 metres in front of me, I increased my pace for an 8:06 split. I've never passed so many people at the end of a race and managed to put in a good sprint at the finish for a 1:46:53 chip time.

24.4 miles for the week and the HM was a big confidence boost. This week is 3, 6, 5, 6, 12.

Wubble Wubble

kin9pin wrote: »

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 13

Tuesday: 5.3 miles at 9:44 pace. Avg HR 137

Wednesday: 6 miles at 9:31 pace. Avg HR 142
Ran this on grass while my daughter had training. Only had an hour so it was just the 6 miles.

Thursday: Rest. Taking it easy before the HM on Sunday.

Saturday: Rest. Back in the UK for the weekend. Had a few pints on Friday night with my brothers. Not too many though! Did a lot of googling about the pros/cons of drinking alcohol 2 days before a race. I settled on the argument that it would help me relax

Sunday: Brentwood Half Marathon. 13.1 miles at 8:09 pace. Avg HR 162
I had heard that the course was quite hilly so drove it on Saturday afternoon, mainly to check on the 1 mile climb to the finish. Glad I did as I made a firm plan to hold something back for it.
The start of this race is really something else. Arrived with a friend 30 minutes before the start to find the Brentwood Imperial Youth Band playing the Game of Thrones music. At 9:50 the band then marched the runners to the start line. It's a memorable way to start a race!

There were no pacers at this race so I knew i had to plan my pace. I was hoping to beat my PB of 1:50:19, but wasn't really sure how much the climbs would take out of me. The first 2 miles are downhill and the road widens very quickly after the start. I managed to keep a controlled pace with 8:00 and 7:57 splits.
After 2 miles we were out of the town and in the surrounding countryside for the next 10 miles. The hedges either side of the road gave some shelter from the wind (which was nowhere near as bad as expected) and there were great crowds at the villages we ran through.
Miles 3-7 were undulating with a net elevation gain of around 50ft. Splits were 8:06, 8:14, 8:09, 8:03, 8:02. I was feeling very strong here and knew I was ahead of my target pace. Still a little nervous about the finish, mile 8 was uphill, a 60ft gain, so I dropped the pace back to 8:25.
Still saving myself for the finish, splits for miles 9-12 were 8:03,8:18, 8:19, 8:32.
Now for mile 13. I didn't really know how much energy I would have left and I was waiting for my legs to slow, but they didn't. I felt that I had loads more to give so, concentrating only on the 10 metres in front of me, I increased my pace for an 8:06 split. I've never passed so many people at the end of a race and managed to put in a good sprint at the finish for a 1:46:53 chip time.

24.4 miles for the week and the HM was a big confidence boost. This week is 3, 6, 5, 6, 12.

Super run A. This is particularly positive with London in mind. Over 3 mins off the PB and you know now that you could have got more.

kin9pin

Wubble Wubble wrote: »

Super run A. This is particularly positive with London in mind. Over 3 mins off the PB and you know now that you could have got more.

Thanks J, yeah this one has given me a massive boost for London.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 14

Tuesday: Meant to be a 3 mile recovery, but I skipped it after Sunday's race.

Wednesday: 6 miles at 9:42 pace. Avg HR 134

Thursday: 4.8 miles at 9:35 pace. Avg HR 129

Saturday: 6 miles at 9:25 pace. Avg HR 137
Ran the Marlay PR as part of this. First time I've run a parkrun as an easy run. Really enjoyed it

Sunday: 12.2 miles at 9:31 pace. Avg HR 135
Lovely run in the sun. Must wear sun cream in future!

29 miles for the week. This week is 5, 10, 5, 10 PMP, 20. Then it's taper time!

The Black Oil

Live long and taper.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 15

Tuesday: 5 miles at 9:29 pace. Avg HR 133

Wednesday: 9.9 miles at 9:32 pace. Avg HR 145
Probably ran this a bit fast considering the 5 mile climb to Stepaside.

Thursday: 5.2 miles at 9:43 pace. Avg HR 131
Tried to run this one easier to save something for the weekend.

Saturday: 10.1 miles at 8:50 pace. Avg HR 138
I was a bit worried about this run followed by the Sunday long run, but FBOT01 reminded to stick to the plan. Really glad I did now as I found the whole run very comfortable. Big confidence boost.

Sunday: 20.6 miles at 9:49 pace. Avg HR 135
Have to thank paddydriver for this as I saw his route for Saturday on Strava and copied it. Beautiful day, prepared well, put on factor 50 (so responsible), and headed out at 12.
I used this as a rehearsal for London, taking 3 gels (at miles 8/12/16) and an energy bar in a flipbelt. Also wore a hydration backpack as I wanted to run without stopping to buy water. For London I'll add 1 more gel to take at mile 20 and possibly carry 1 more bar (obviously won't be taking the backpack).
The route took me through Foxrock, where I swear I saw a house the size of a hotel, down past Cabinteely, to Dalkey, then along the coast and up to Donnybrook, Clonskeagh, then up to Stepaside. It's amazing how many people visit the coast when the sun comes out. A really good vibe around Sandycove, kids playing football, shirts as goalposts and all that.
Felt really strong for most of the run with a pretty flat pace the whole way. The climb from Clonskeagh from Stepaside was tougher, but that's to be expected.

50.9 miles for the week, my highest ever week. Just checked and I've completed 487 miles out of 519 for the first 15 weeks of the plan. Just 3 weeks tapering now to hopefully avoid injury.

This week is 5, 8, 5, 4 PMP, 12.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 16

Tuesday: Meant to be 5, but I skipped it as the legs were still a bit tired after the 30 mile weekend.

Wednesday: 8.1 miles at 9:42 pace. Avg HR 138
The usual Wednesday uphill run home from work.

Thursday: 4.9 miles at 9:42 pace. Avg HR 132
Tried to run this one easier to save something for the weekend.

Saturday: 4 miles PMP at 8:28 pace. Avg HR 147
A little quick.

Sunday: 12.5 miles at 9:41 pace. Avg HR 133

29.5 miles for the week, an enjoyable first taper week.

This week is 4, 6, 4, 4, 8.

Been thinking a lot about pace. At the start of training I said I was aiming for sub-4, but I'm now wondering whether I should try to go out with the 3:50 pacers. I have noticed that my easy/long run pace has been getting quicker and, looking back on Garmin, my average HR for PMP runs (8:45-50) is now the same as my easy pace runs 6 months ago (10 min pace). My HM time a few weeks ago of 1:46 felt relatively comfortable so it gives me hope.

kin9pin

kin9pin wrote: »

Been thinking a lot about pace. At the start of training I said I was aiming for sub-4, but I'm now wondering whether I should try to go out with the 3:50 pacers.

Hmmm, just seen that there are no 3:50 pacers, it's 3:56 or 3:45. I have some thinking to do.

kin9pin

HH Intermediate Marathon 2: Week 17

Tuesday: 3.1 miles at 9:41 pace. Avg HR 134

Wednesday: Meant to be 6, but I took the night off. "You can only do too much" right?

Thursday: 4.6 miles at 9:35 pace. Avg HR 136

Saturday: 4 miles PMP at 9:00 pace. Avg HR 144
The curse of Martin Yelling again. I was listening to his live Q&A on Friday and he suggested running a couple of miles on the last long-ish run at marathon pace. I decided to test out the 3hr45 pace in the middle two miles of this run. Still not decided on what time to aim for, but I'm edging towards the more conservative sub-4 rather than 3:45.

Sunday: 6.1 miles at 9:50 pace. Avg HR 134
Mentioned to my wife that I'd be running for about an hour. Finished the run in 59:59. Today I was a pacing ninja!

This week calls for 3m Tues, 4m Wed, 2m Sat and a little 26.2 on Sunday
Flying to London on Thursday morning and heading straight to the Expo. Really looking forward to this now. Just have to avoid colds for a few more days.

The Muppet

The best of luck A Looks like you're in good shape

Wubble Wubble

Good luck A. Training has gone well, go ahead and seal the deal

aquinn

Well done, just had a good stalk at the results. Hard last few miles by the looks of it. Great photo of you with Big Ben in the background. Recover well.

kin9pin

aquinn wrote: »

Well done, just had a good stalk at the results. Hard last few miles by the looks of it. Great photo of you with Big Ben in the background. Recover well.

Thanks A, yeah it was warmer than I expected and I found the congestion really hard to deal with. Seeing the 4:30 blue pacers in front of me after the 3 mile point, and trying to get past them and the 4:15 pacer too quick, probably didn't help.
I suppose at least I was still running, or giving that impression, at Big Ben Great day though.

Wubble Wubble

Well done A, glad it was a success and you enjoyed it. Any chance of a race report?

kin9pin

Haven't updated this since London (small summary of my day here), but I'm back on a plan for the Clontarf half in July so let's catch up with the last couple of weeks. Also signed up again for DCM.

For Clontarf I'm loosely following the last 8 weeks of the HH advanced HM plan. I figure I already have the endurance part from marathon training and this plan adds some intervals and tempo runs while keeping the Sunday long runs (only up to 2 hours though).

May 1-7:
Monday: 3.3 miles at 8:58 pace. First run after London, legs felt fine.

Wednesday: 7.1 miles at 9:17 pace. Run home from work. A bit faster than similar runs during London training, but I'm aware I'm now training for a sub 1:45 HM (pb 1:46:53). McMillan has my easy run pace between 8:31-9:32. Anyway this is my plan, get used to running a bit faster (for longer) over the next 5 months to make that 9 min pace last 26.2 miles!

Friday: 4.25 mile tempo run at average 8:40 pace. Nice to do a little speed work on this plan. Mile splits 9:30, 8:18, 7:42, 9:09.

Sat/Sun: Cheeky weekend away so no running.

14.7 miles for the week.

May 8-14:
Monday: 9 miles at 9:16 pace. 3/1 Long run postponed from Sunday so ran home from work (the longer route). Felt comfortable pushing the pace to 8:30 for the last quarter.

Wednesday: 7.3 miles at 9:23 pace. Run home from work.

Thursday: 4.8 mile tempo run at average 8:56 pace. Mile splits 9:29, 8:40, 8:14, 9:00, 9:21.

Saturday: 3 miles progression run at average 7:48 pace. The plan said 3m race pace run and I planned to run the parkrun, but didn't get up in time.
First run in my new runners, Supernova Glide 8's, and they felt great. Mile splits 8:36, 7:34, 7:16.

Sunday: 90 minute long run planned...........

kin9pin

Sunday: 9.5 miles at average 10:00 pace.
Decided this morning to see what it's like to run up Three Rock.

Pretty tough

Made it to the top, despite taking a wrong turn which actually took me on a lovely half mile trail. I spent a good while just taking in the view before running back down.
I think next time I'll take a longer route down that isn't so steep. I found the descent pretty uncomfortable as you're constantly applying the brakes. Still, very enjoyable and I'll certainly do it again.

Just under 34 miles for the week.

kin9pin

Tuesday: 4.1 miles at average 8:47 pace
8 x 400m intervals (5k pace) tonight. Headed over to Marlay so I could run without worrying about crossing roads etc. Can't remember the last time I ran intervals, but I enjoyed the session. Held the pace pretty comfortably through the intervals, if a little too fast on some (was aiming for 7min pace).

Time: 1:41, 1:45, 1:46, 1:41, 1:39, 1:43, 1:43, 1:41
Pace: 6:43, 7:01, 7:05, 6:46, 6:35, 6:53, 6:54, 6:43

kin9pin

Wednesday: 7.1 mile run home from work at 9:43 pace. Legs still feeling a bit heavy from the intervals.

kin9pin

Friday: 7.1 mile run home from work at 9:32 pace. Didn't get out for the tempo run on Thursday so decided another run home from work was on the cards.
Communion weekend, family over from UK, so this would be my last run of the week. Only 18.3 miles for the week.


Tuesday: 9 mile run home from work via Stepaside, avg 9:30 pace. Big mistake, I didn't bring any BodyGlide into work. Didn't realise it was so warm. Pretty painful chafing, but thankfully no blood. Lesson learnt.

Wednesday: 3 miles round the block at 9:30 pace

Thursday: 5 mile tempo run. Pace ranged from 9:20 to 7:50 and back to 9:30 for the cool down. Very warm tonight, loads of people out in Marlay.

kin9pin

Saturday: Life got in the way so I skipped the planned 4m run. Nothing at all to do with the rain, really, nothing at all....

Sunday: Plan called for a 1:45hr 3/1 run. I didn't really plan a route for this so ended up running closer to 2 hours. First 9 miles at a lovely easy 9:40 pace with the next 3 miles at 8:42, 8:19 and 8:08. Really enjoyed picking up the pace and felt really good as the last 1.5 miles was a long drag up Ballyogan Rd.

Around 29 miles for the week.
Heading away on Thursday. Bringing the running gear, but I might have to make do just ticking over with some short runs while away.