If it’s meant to be, it’s up to me.

Kellygirl

Week 1 of 2018 done and I covered 25.5 miles.

Monday: 5 miles at 10:14 min/mile - was just a nice run and nice to be out after New Year.

Wednesday morn: 7 miles at 10:32 min / mile with Storm Eleanor for company! A friend met me half way and continued the rest of the run with me. We had some battle into the wind. On the other hand I thought the storm was gone as I flew along initially not realizing the wind was behind me :-)

Thursday night: 5 miles at 10:55 min/mile with a friend. Very slow but felt good and was an enjoyable run.

Saturday: 8.5 miles at 10.01 min/mile with a friend who is training for a 10 mile. We included Park Run in our route and tried not to speed up during that 5km. It was a tough run. The extra weight I have put on since DCM is not helping though I’m back on plan there so hopefully that is all that is wrong. Just feeling sluggish and legs are like lead. It has also turned out to be me fastest pace run this week so no wonder I was shattered - and I got up too late for breakfast so just grabbed a banana.

I joined the 1000 mile thread. Not sure if that is a good idea or bad idea for me as already I’m conscious of my distances for that! Had a look at plans during the week and paces etc. I’m going to aim to train for Cork full so an 18 week program would start at the beginning of February. My husband is away for a lot of February with work so might be difficult but I think it shouldn’t cause any major problems. I can use a threadmill for some runs and I’ll still squeeze in long runs. Definitely planning on dropping my pace and doing long runs slower than I have been doing.

TFBubendorfer

Kellygirl wrote: »

I joined the 1000 mile thread. Not sure if that is a good idea or bad idea for me as already I’m conscious of my distances for that!

The 1000 mile thread is a just bit of fun and can be an extra source of motivation if you really need it (I don't think you do). If you follow a training plan, keep following the training plan and ignore the urge to log extra miles just for the sake of logging a bigger number. You should easily reach the 1000 mile mark anyway.

Kellygirl

TFBubendorfer wrote: »

The 1000 mile thread is a just bit of fun and can be an extra source of motivation if you really need it (I don't think you do). If you follow a training plan, keep following the training plan and ignore the urge to log extra miles just for the sake of logging a bigger number. You should easily reach the 1000 mile mark anyway.

Thanks TfBubendorfer. I get competitive - with myself mainly as I’m never going to win a race but you are right and I don’t need it as motivation right now but you never know during the year :-)

Kellygirl

Week 2 2018 - 25.5 miles covered

I had a good running week with some very enjoyable runs. Delighted that I got out 4 times again - the most I’ll ever get out really.

Monday night - 5 miles @ 10:22 min/mile.
This was a lovely run with a friend in the rain and paid no attention to pace. Funnily enough did the route 3 minutes faster than the previous Thursday. I was delighted as it was without pushing pace and nice to see my pace naturally picking up again.

Wednesday - 1hr 45 min run at easy pace (9.5 miles @ 11:14 min / mile)
Decided to jump into the middle of Base Training Plan for my weekly long run and try and stick to easy pace. According to the calculator (at the start of the Grad thread) I prob still went too fast - I went with the easy/moderate pace which is 11:18-11:40 and was still slightly faster. However it felt soooo slow. It was 3 degrees out so took more time than usual to warm up. I was delighted to see daffodils beginning to appear in a few gardens so Spring is on the way - yippee! The last 15-30 mins was a real drag and a struggle - possibly just the amount of time I was out I suppose and I deliberately didn’t take a gel going that slow but normally if out for over 1:30 I would have.

Thursday night - 5 miles at 10:42 min / mile
Nothing major to report. Ran with a friend. Nice run and good catch up.

Saturday - 60 min Progression run (11:57; 11:20; 10:32; 9:50) (6 miles)
My first attempt at a Progression run and my first time programming my watch too - now that’s a cool feature :-)

Really enjoyed this run today. The first 15 mins were supposed to be 12:04-12:30 so I went a bit fast - I was actually going so slow I was embarrassed and hoping nobody I knew would pass me - mad I know! When the watch would tell me to up me speed I found it hard to settle into the right pace. I’d up the pace but it seemed by too much and I’d be going too fast. This caused a bit of trouble for the third 15 mins as when the watch went as I was in the park and I think the tree cover was messing with my pace too. Got to the last 15 mins and suddenly my pace seemed more of a challenge and I was breathing heavily. Not sure if I had worked out the pacing correctly but it was fine. The watch confused me a bit as it didn’t stop when the hour was up and I wasn’t sure if i’d misread something so I just kept going until I got back to my car so did an extra 5 mins at the fast pace.



So, looking forward to hopefully doing more runs like this. Will aim for a 2 hour LSR on Wednesday.

skyblue46

Great job, getting used to slower paces takes some time but it will get rid of that tired/ under pressure feeling at the end of runs. It is hard to get adapted to but I have no doubts the benefits will come in the medium term. I'm not expecting much in the way of race times yet but by summer and autumn I'd say we'll really see improvement

Kellygirl

I’ll keep going anyway until I adjust. Just need to make sure I keep up the progression runs and intervals to keep up the speed.

skyblue46

Kellygirl wrote: »

I’ll keep going anyway until I adjust. Just need to make sure I keep up the progression runs and intervals to keep up the speed.

Yeah that's crucial. I've been reading up on it and training at a range of paces is very important at the stage we're all at. I don't think all the graduates will embrace it but I think it's totally sensible.

Kellygirl

Finished this week off by registering for Cork City Marathon and DCM 2018! Yay!

Kellygirl

My week

Monday: 5 miles @ 10:22 min / mile
Ran with a friend, comfortable pace chatting all the way. Weather wasn’t the best and running in the rain and dark as usual. Most notable part of this run was this was run 1 of my training for Cork City Marathon and finally felt there was a purpose to my running again - I need a goal!

Wednesday: LSR 10 miles @ 10:55 min / mile
Set out to do this at 11min/mile so quite happy with my pace. I only had Wednesday morning to do this and Storm Fionn kindly obliged by dropping the winds very slightly and just giving me two to three rain showers while running. A friend joined me after 4 miles and finished the run with me.

Thursday: Pace run 4.1 miles @ 9:33 min / mile
2 degrees out so I wrapped up warmly and headed off. I intended picking up the pace a bit and just started out at a comfortable pace and kept going without looking at my watch which was hidden under layers anyway. I was amused at my 9:33 pace as this is the exact pace I want to do Cork at - well exact average pace as I hope to do a negative split again or variable pace depending on the hills etc.

Saturday: WU 1.65 miles @ 10:29 min/ mile; Parkrun 3.12 miles @ 8:28 min / mile; CD 2.4 miles @ 10:27 min / mile

Very pleased with this. Fastest run in a little while. Official time was 26:35 so still still 45 seconds or so off my pb - not that I was looking for one this morning. It was very muddy and I was leaping over puddles and round piles of mud. Thank God for trail runners. My pace was even enough considering and the 2nd and 4th kilometers being the slowest but also the muddiest parts. (5:13; 5:23; 5:16; 5:20; 5:08). I was breathing heavily but I was still able to sprint at the end and my heart rate was reasonable considering.

Total mileage for the week - 26.22 ; Total year to date - 77.26

All in all I’m happy with the week. I’m delighted to have registered for Cork and Dublin and be back training for a reason. After weeks of dithering over plans I’ve chosen the Hal Higdon Marathon 3 plan. This is because it’s for somebody who can run just 3-4 times a week which is all I can ever do. It’s a 24 week program but I’ve jumped into week 5 as I had the distances covered from the early weeks anyway and that brings me perfectly to Cork on June 3rd. As usual I have to adjust the plan to suit when I can get out so my long runs will usually be Wednesday’s and the other runs whenever I can get out so I will have to play with it. My midweek distances are higher than required at the moment but I didn’t want to drop my distances yet especially as my LSR was only increasing my half a mile this week. I plan on behaving myself with paces this time round and not tearing off at whatever pace I feel like in every run. Two very slow LSRs have shown me how much energy I still have the next day.

Next week is a step back week in the plan and I am going to adhere to it. Home alone with the kids for the week so going to be squeezing runs into days I wouldn’t normally run but will try to do some strength work at home the other days. I’m lacking in that currently.

Baby75

You are doing great, I am looking forward to seeing how you do! I agree with needing a goal as well I am looking forward to having my 5km out of the way and committing to a plan

ariana`

Exciting times K, best of luck with the new plan! I'm looking forward to following your progress

Kellygirl

My week

Sunday - 4 miles @ 11:23 min/mile
Just a slow recovery run really. It was quite enjoyable. I was by myself and loved that it was 10 degrees that night. Felt like spring and summer were on the way.

Monday - 4 miles @ 10:52 min / mile
Squeezed this run into my week as DH was heading off traveling that evening until Friday night. A friend ran with me and we ran really slowly. The wind was picking up and it was a small battle into that and rain for the last mile and somehow we did that mile faster than all the other bring my average pace a bit faster than it really was.

Wednesday - 8 miles @ 10:35 min / mile
My LSR for this week. Storm Georgina hit Tuesday night keeping me awake for hours. The rain stopped for the most part while running. Just one fairly hefty shower got me. The winds were strong though and it wasn’t an easy run. Legs felt like lead for some reason. Maybe because I was tired?

Saturday - WU 2 miles; Parkrun @ 8:35 min / mile (26:53); Cooldown 1.5 miles
This was a fun morning. Operation Transformation came to Ballincollig Parkrun which brought the crowds - be interesting to see how many come back again next week! It was really busy and a really slow start. Once we finally got moving I must have taken off like the hammers of hell because my first km was 5:05 yet it was very stop start at the beginning. I paid for it after that as each km was a few seconds slower than the previous one then. It was 13 degrees and my first day wearing short sleeves this year - felt good!

Total 22 miles

I am now at 100.4 miles so far in 2018. Maybe I should make my goal 1500 miles :-)

So week 2 of Cork Marathon training completed - it was a step back week as officially week 6 of the plan but I stuck to it as i’ve been doing the mileage anyway. Slightly nervous of the 12mile run this week considering I was quite tired this week but hopefully will be fine.

Baby75

a great weeks training I got that heavy legs during Marathon training on some runs I put it down to increasing the miles and being busy just catching up on you plus being a woman and all that entails effects us as well sometimes :cool:

a nice time for your park run I love that time hopefully I will see it tomorrow

Kellygirl

Baby75 wrote: »

a great weeks training I got that heavy legs during Marathon training on some runs I put it down to increasing the miles and being busy just catching up on you plus being a woman and all that entails effects us as well sometimes :cool:

a nice time for your park run I love that time hopefully I will see it tomorrow

Bet you will. Looking forward to hearing about it.

I was interested in the comment you made on Quickbeam’s Strava and was thinking about it today while running. i think I cope better with distance running rather than speed.

Baby75

Kellygirl wrote: »

Bet you will. Looking forward to hearing about it.

I was interested in the comment you made on Quickbeam’s Strava and was thinking about it today while running. i think I cope better with distance running rather than speed.

Thanks I will be working hard for it and I think I agree with you! I like the longer distance myself I will not be in a hurry to do another 5k race aiming for a time for a while not unless I improved dramatically and needed to do it for adjusting my paces for training. if you get a chance read the link

Kellygirl

Baby75 wrote: »

Thanks I will be working hard for it and I think I agree with you! I like the longer distance myself I will not be in a hurry to do another 5k race aiming for a time for a while not unless I improved dramatically and needed to do it for adjusting my paces for training. if you get a chance read the link

Just did there. Not sure if my race results would determine which one I am but i’m def more comfortable running longer distances - less pressure or something!

ariana`

Great week K. You're flying it with the marathon plan.

Kellygirl

My Week

Monday 4miles @ pmp which is 9:33. Actual was 9:38, 9:10, 9:11, 9:12

This was a bit of a mess. Set my watch with upper and lower paces and it was beeping every few seconds. I felt steady enough but I was being told I was too fast and seconds later too slow. I thought I was slowing down but clearly I didn’t. I handled the pace no problem at all but need to learn to run more at the pace I plan to! I didn’t enjoy the run as kept trying to get the watch steady!

Wednesday 12 mile lsr should have been 10:33 - 11:03. Actual was 10:12

I got faster as the run went on. Weather was all over the place with wind, heavy showers and sun. I could see seriously dark clouds rolling in so picked up the pace, sat into the car and the hailstones came! Was nervous of the distance initially but the miles just ticked off nicely and no bother at all. Had two packs of haribos to keep me going.

Thursday 4.2 miles slow. Actual was 10:19
Ran with a friend who is naturally quite fast. Enjoyed it and just went with it.

Saturday 7 miles slow. Actual was slow @ 10.44
Had intended doing Parkrun. I was exhausted and my husband suggested I stay in bed so I gladly took the lie in. It was a showery day and I was procrastinating all day but eventually got out and did the run which needless to say was then very enjoyable. Sun came out and it was lovely. Took some nice photos in the park.

27.2 miles this week.

January total was 116 miles. Well on my way to my 1000 miles.

Baby75

I think you may need to do a 5k race :D

Kellygirl

Baby75 wrote: »

I think you may need to do a 5k race :D

The plan has me doing a 5km race in two weeks but not sure there’s one on around besides parkrun. There were pacers there today and I knew if I went I’d follow the 26 min pacer but knew it was better to do a slow run too. I might do parkrun in two weeks and go hell for leather and see if it makes a difference.

Baby75

Kellygirl wrote: »

The plan has me doing a 5km race in two weeks but not sure there’s one on around besides parkrun. There were pacers there today and I knew if I went I’d follow the 26 min pacer but knew it was better to do a slow run too. I might do parkrun in two weeks and go hell for leather and see if it makes a difference.

I think you do need to do one, or do not kill me slow down what week are you on now

I really like the look of that plan did you do the 5km was that your nice park run time are you working in the 10k

I am trying to work in the race series in to it

Kellygirl

Baby75 wrote: »

I think you do need to do one, or do not kill me slow down what week are you on now

I really like the look of that plan did you do the 5km was that your nice park run time are you working in the 10k

I am trying to work in the race series in to it

Just starting week 4. You’ll see I added in an extra row at the top with the days I run so I actually start the weeks on a Saturday with the medium length run - 7 miles today and 13 miles to do on Wednesday.

I hope to find a 10km to do but all upcoming races round here are on Sundays and I work then. The BHAA races will start in the evenings when the days get longer so I might have to work in a few races then.

I do need to slow down but while i’m quite happy to run at the slower pace like I did today, i’m short of time on Wednesday’s for my long runs so need to watch that.

ariana`

Great week K. You are flying with the plan so far.

Baby75

Kellygirl wrote: »

Just starting week 4. You’ll see I added in an extra row at the top with the days I run so I actually start the weeks on a Saturday with the medium length run - 7 miles today and 13 miles to do on Wednesday.

I hope to find a 10km to do but all upcoming races round here are on Sundays and I work then. The BHAA races will start in the evenings when the days get longer so I might have to work in a few races then.

I do need to slow down but while i’m quite happy to run at the slower pace like I did today, i’m short of time on Wednesday’s for my long runs so need to watch that.

Once you keep it easy or if you get your heart rate monitor sorter keep it in an easy zone, I guess as we get stronger we will find a faster pace easier the races included in the plan I think to allow you to adjust if you need to well I assume anyway.

Kellygirl

Bit late updating my log this week as had a busy weekend.

Monday : 40 min tempo run - 4.2 miles.
10 min warm up, 20 mins @ 8:25 min / mile and 10 min cool down.

I absolutely loved this run. Was with a friend and it was so enjoyable.

Wednesday : LSR 13.2 miles @ 10:22 on average.
First Wednesday in 4 weeks that didn’t have wind and rain. It was 2 degrees and so calm. It was a lovely run. Tackled a hill I hadn’t gone near before which was a challenge. My watch wasn’t recording elevation so i’ll have to do it again. I sent the watch back to Garmin that afternoon and waiting on a replacement. Using a borrowed watch until then.

Thursday: started a 28 day glute challenge

Friday: 5 miles and day 2 of the glute challenge
The 5 miles was at 10:34 and just an easy run.

Sunday: 5 miles at 10:05
Weather was a bit dodgy this evening and snowing but running time is severely limited at the moment so off I went. I started in a heavy snow shower and was wondering was I a small bit mad as there wasn’t another soul around. The shower stopped after about a mile though and I kept going. The sky cleared and I started getting nervous that temperatures were dropping even lower so I started speeding up a little. It was snowing by the time I got back to the car and the drive home got a bit challenging!

Missed my glutes challenge yesterday and today as just no time.

27.4 miles done this week
155 miles done ytd

Step back week this week as I enter week 5 of my Cork marathon training. Tonight’s 5 mile was from week 5 really. I’m supposed to do a 5km race this week but Parkrun is the only possibility really so not sure if i’ll race that. Have a physio session on Wednesday and will decide after that. Going to be a very low mileage week though. Will try to do plenty strength training.

Kellygirl

Quiet week this week with just two runs. - well a third that was in last week’s log but feels ages ago.

Tuesday night - 5 mile run.

Was not really in the humour for another slow run on the same route. Not got a lot of choice in the dark. I started slow and then decided to play a game with myself and decided I had to do every mile faster than the last without looking at my watch. Was quite pleased with the result and enjoyed the run in the end. These were my paces:

10:28; 9:55; 9:23; 9:11; 8:44

Wednesday: Physio session. Had booked in a couple of weeks earlier as had a niggle in my lower back and knew that would start leading to trouble. Was also struggling with my arm in the pool which turned out to be tendinitis. She fixed everything anyway and all back on track.

Thursday and Friday: Hubby away and midterm so no chance of a run!

Saturday: 7:46 miles in total.
1.1 mile warmup and 3.2 mile cool down to get up to 7 miles

Parkrun in 26:17 - pace 8:19 - 0 degrees, fog and ice!

Secretly was hoping for a pb here which is 25:49. I didn’t deserve it after a week of eating rubbish and McDonalds and all sorts but still hoped after the few days break that it would just happen. Also I suppose my speed training is more marathon pace and a bit faster for tempo runs so I was just hoping for a natural improvement as opposed to training for it. Not to be anyway. Still an improvement there and i’m fairly consistent in the 26 min bracket which is good.

Looking forward to getting back into it this week. 4 runs to do and decent mileage which will keep me happy. 15 miles to do on Wednesday. Hoping for good weather :-)

skyblue46

You're training for a marathon K and you've done a few pretty much consecutively. That'll blunt speed but it'll come back for sure. You're a machine on the longer distances.

Kellygirl

skyblue46 wrote: »

You're training for a marathon K and you've done a few pretty much consecutively. That'll blunt speed but it'll come back for sure.

True and the ridiculous thing is I don’t really like speed. I’d prefer a half marathon to a 5km any day!

skyblue46

Kellygirl wrote: »

True and the ridiculous thing is I don’t really like speed. I’d prefer a half marathon to a 5km any day!

Then don't be down on yourself! I feel my training hasn't made me much faster but I could now do a 10k at a faster pace than my pre DCM 5k best and maybe even a half at a similar pace. When you really feel like a 5k best adjust your training to go for it

Baby75

skyblue46 wrote: »

You're training for a marathon K and you've done a few pretty much consecutively. That'll blunt speed but it'll come back for sure. You're a machine on the longer distances.

I agree 100%

Kellygirl wrote: »

True and the ridiculous thing is I don’t really like speed. I’d prefer a half marathon to a 5km any day!

I feel the same I love long runs compared to a 5k race

but in saying that you will see a sub 25 minute it will happen

Huzzah!

Sub-25 is well within your reach. You’re a lot faster than me and my 5k PB is 24.61 (*ahem*). You’re building endurance which is needed for 5k. No doubt a small period of sharpening after you’ve recovered from the marathon will get you your sub-25 (and some).

You’re right, though: 5ks are a different kind of pain! I like to remind myself that at least it will be over quickly

ariana`

I couldn't agree more with all the others K. The 5k time will plummet if you ever decide to train for it - with the endurance you have even 6 weeks of speed work will see that time blown out of the water. And in the meantime you are enjoying what you do best and doing it well so keep at it!!

Kellygirl

Thanks all. Step back week’s mess with my head. Back on track today!!

ariana`

Kellygirl wrote: »

Thanks all. Step back week’s mess with my head. Back on track today!!

I hear ya... It doesn't take much to mess with my head :P

My friend, who i was always neck in neck with until i took the break to have baby #3, knocked another 25 seconds of her 5k time at park run at the weekend. She's now gone well under 24 minutes and is 70 seconds faster than me on our parkrun route :cool:

I find myself wondering where i've gone wrong but then i have to remind myself that i had that break for baby and since i've run 10m, HM & Full Marathon races while she's stuck with 5/10km races . We can't excel at every distance so ultimately it's about owning our decisions.

Kellygirl

ariana` wrote: »

I hear ya... It doesn't take much to mess with my head :P

My friend, who i was always neck in neck with until i took the break to have baby #3, knocked another 25 seconds of her 5k time at park run at the weekend. She's now gone well under 24 minutes and is 70 seconds faster than me on our parkrun route :cool:

I find myself wondering where i've gone wrong but then i have to remind myself that i had that break for baby and since i've run 10m, HM & Full Marathon races while she's stuck with 5/10km races . We can't excel at every distance so ultimately it's about owning our decisions.

Very good point. We can’t have everything! Maybe some day i’ll Get bored of marathons and start to like speed!

skyblue46

ariana` wrote: »

I hear ya... It doesn't take much to mess with my head :P

My friend, who i was always neck in neck with until i took the break to have baby #3, knocked another 25 seconds of her 5k time at park run at the weekend. She's now gone well under 24 minutes and is 70 seconds faster than me on our parkrun route :cool:

I find myself wondering where i've gone wrong but then i have to remind myself that i had that break for baby and since i've run 10m, HM & Full Marathon races while she's stuck with 5/10km races . We can't excel at every distance so ultimately it's about owning our decisions.

This is it in a nutshell. Training is specific to distances. After DCM training we were in a position take advantage of a fitness level way above where most of us started. It opened the possibility of running faster at most distances. Now having achieved that level of fitness it will be harder to make improvement on recent times. By the way Ariana I think you have huge time gains to make judging by training runs.

Kellygirl

skyblue46 wrote: »

This is it in a nutshell. Training is specific to distances. After DCM training we were in a position take advantage of a fitness level way above where most of us started. It opened the possibility of running faster at most distances. Now having achieved that level of fitness it will be harder to make improvement on recent times. By the way Ariana I think you have huge time gains to make judging by training runs.

True - I had a parkrun pb a week after DCM and an 8km pb on a training route I do and was flying it. HM pb too for that matter 3 or 4 weeks after. I suppose I kind of thought while training for the next marathon other improvements would just happen - and maybe they will again after the next marathon.

skyblue46

Kellygirl wrote: »

True - I had a parkrun pb a week after DCM and an 8km pb on a training route I do and was flying it. HM pb too for that matter 3 or 4 weeks after. I suppose I kind of thought while training for the next marathon other improvements would just happen - and maybe they will again after the next marathon.

I'm not so sure. I think you get to the point where the increments of improvement decrease and eventually stop. I improved my times by relatively big chunks but I know that's the end of big improvement in times in the distances I have run this year. If it's any consolation I don't think I'd improve my 5k times after all those fulls and half marathons you did.

Kellygirl

skyblue46 wrote: »

I'm not so sure. I think you get to the point where the increments of improvement decrease and eventually stop. I improved my times by relatively big chunks but I know that's the end of big improvement in times in the distances I have run this year. If it's any consolation I don't think I'd improve my 5k times after all those fulls and half marathons you did.

Oh yeah I get that. My goals are pbs in both cork and Dublin and just maybe i’ll concentrate on something else after that ... or after Clon again maybe ... and the maybe that Burren race could be interesting next year

skyblue46

Haha.. You're nuts!

Kellygirl

skyblue46 wrote: »

Haha.. You're nuts!

I was thinking that myself during miles 10-12 today in my LSR!

ariana`

skyblue46 wrote: »

This is it in a nutshell. Training is specific to distances. After DCM training we were in a position take advantage of a fitness level way above where most of us started. It opened the possibility of running faster at most distances. Now having achieved that level of fitness it will be harder to make improvement on recent times. By the way Ariana I think you have huge time gains to make judging by training runs.

Wish i had your confidence in me But thanks it does mean a lot

Kellygirl wrote: »

Oh yeah I get that. My goals are pbs in both cork and Dublin and just maybe i’ll concentrate on something else after that ... or after Clon again maybe ... and the maybe that Burren race could be interesting next year

Or an ultra....

Kellygirl

ariana` wrote: »

Wish i had your confidence in me But thanks it does mean a lot



Or an ultra....

Well 50km isn’t much more than a marathon so could start with that I suppose 😂

Baby75

Kellygirl wrote: »

Well 50km isn’t much more than a marathon so could start with that I suppose ��

exactly LOL get you on the trails and you could aim for an ultra or this weekend in Glendalough in Wicklow is the Glendalough clover 80km solo or team event :cool:

I wanted to do the team event this year but hubby said no

Kellygirl

Baby75 wrote: »

exactly LOL get you on the trails and you could aim for an ultra or this weekend in Glendalough in Wicklow is the Glendalough clover 80km solo or team event :cool:

I wanted to do the team event this year but hubby said no

I was driving to Dunmanway for work earlier and looking at some of the countryside thinking trail running would be cool actually. I thought it wasn’t big down here but I see more and more stuff popping up about trail running.

Baby75

Kellygirl wrote: »

I was driving to Dunmanway for work earlier and looking at some of the countryside thinking trail running would be cool actually. I thought it wasn’t big down here but I see more and more stuff popping up about trail running.

Yea I see loads out now have you looked up IMRA see if they have anything close to you

Kellygirl

Baby75 wrote: »

Yea I see loads out now have you looked up IMRA see if they have anything close to you

I did and there wasn’t anything on suitable dates but i’ve Seen a few other things pop up since.

Kellygirl

Week 6: Cork City Marathon Training

DH was away all week so roped in babysitters for the entire week. Was lovely to run in daylight all week for a change.

Monday: Planned 4 miles pace (9:33)
Actual paces: 9:17; 9:24; 9:23; 9:42 (average 9:28)

Ran with a friend in the park in the afternoon. We were a bit fast for some reason. I deliberately pulled back in the last mile but had wanted to pull back to 9:33 rather than slower. I’d set the run up as a workout on my watch hoping i’d manage pacing better but apparently not. Having said that the pace was fine considering we were chatting. Also got to do this run in a t-shirt and Capri pants as lovely and warm - 15 degrees. I thought Summer was coming at last :-)

Wednesday: Planned 15 mile LSR (10:33-11:03)
Actual: Average 10:33 but purely due to a couple of slow miles in the middle

This was a fab run at the start. Weather sunny and 1 degree but not a puff of wind so didn’t need a jacket. I added some hills in when planning my route. Sunday’s Well hill is a whopper at 6-7 miles and then a nice downhill and then the drag up to Wilton was a little tough but I was telling myself I’ll thank myself on the 3rd June - was running past the part where I struggled in Cork last June!

I had a mini pack of haribo at 5 miles and by 9miles I was struggling big time and hanging for the next pack. Had them at 10 miles but too late and somewhere between 11 and 12 miles I took the gel I’d stuffed into my pocket earlier. Once that kicked in I picked up the pace again but miles 9-12 were tough. Must fuel properly next time. 4 hours sleep didn’t help. My last mile was then my fastest.

Thursday: Planned 45 mins recovery run (11:00 or slower)
Actual: 10:33; 10:34; 11:02; 11:24

Did this with a friend but paced it wrong again at the start. Funnily enough she wanted slow but kept pulling away a bit and we just ended up a bit too fast. She stopped after the first lap and I paced it better the last half then.

Friday: 15 mins pool running
Physio recommended this - maybe I should have googled first but was at work early and hopped into the pool and ran up and down for 15 minutes feeling like a complete twat! Googled it later and apparently should be in a deep end with a bouyancy belt. No deep end in this pool so hopefully still got some benefit!

Saturday: 8 mile run with 4-6 100 m strides towards the end

Didn’t set this up as a workout as wanted to do my strides while I was in the park which was part of route. Got to the park at 5miles so decided to do them then. Had worked out in my head that I need to run fast for 0.06 of a mile, jog that distance and fast again then etc. I was so busy watching my watch that I totally lost count of my fast runs and had it in my head I was doing it for 1.2 miles but that would have been 1.2 kms! I saw my run on Garmin Connect and realized I had done 9 strides probably way too fast too so that explains why the last 2 miles back to the car were tough going!! Anyway done now.

Total miles for the week: 31.2
Total miles for the year: 198.8

In other news Garmin sent me back a replacement shiny new watch so I feel whole again.

Kellygirl

Week 7: Cork City Marathon Training & Beast from the East came to visit

Monday: Planned 45 min Tempo run
Actual: 10 mins @ 10:20; 25 mins @ 9:04; 8:49; 8:47; last 13 mins @ 10:34

Did this with a friend. She was nervous as struggled on our 40 min tempo run but I did go too fast there. Tables were turned this time and I was the one struggling, mainly with my breathing. Not sure if I was getting a slight cold or if it was the cold temperatures. Anyway, we kept to the planned pace and stuck to the planned paces so I was happy with that.

Tuesday: rest day

Wednesday: Planned 16 mile LSR
Actual - 20 mins interval training on the dreadmill.

Was up and dressed for my lsr and just about to leave the house to drop the kids off to school and crèche when the snow started pouring down. Next thing school was cancelled and that was the end of any plans. We went out sledging instead!

I got on the treadmill that night. I hate them and within a few mins have myself convinced I’m going to faint or fall off or something. Anyway, I did a 5 min warm up and then 6 x 1 min at 12km/hr with 1 minute walking in between. Even the 1 minute at speed was hard :-) I did a 3 minute cool down to bring me up to 20 mins and got off dripping in sweat. Distance covered was 1.8 miles. Hopefully that’s the one and only time i’ll need to use it this year. :-)

Thursday: snowed in - more sledging and pulling the kids round the place

Friday: snowed in - got the skis out and skies down our hill 3 times. Trekking back up in ski boots with all my gear was some exercise! A ski lift would have been nice :-) Also went out for a short walk when my husband finished work mainly to get away from the kids!

Saturday: still snowed in. Was supposed to have a hair appointment in our local town (11kms away). Came up with a plan to wear my ski gear and hiking boots and run/walk/hike in and out again. Major cabin fever at this stage. Not so clever when it took me an hour to do 3.7kms though there were a few stops chatting to neighbours!! Never got to my appointment!

So total distance covered was 5 miles outdoor running. That brought me up over 200 miles for January and February. Not sure if treadmill miles are included in the 1000 mile challenge so didn’t include the whopping 1.8 miles I did on Wednesday anyway.

Plan for this week is a couple of 10kms and to do last week’s 16 miles on Wednesday morning. At least this week was to be a step back week so i’ll Just do last weeks runs this week.

Kellygirl

Week 8 Cork City Marathon Training

Sunday: 6.2miles@ 10:27 Return to running after the snow
This was just a gentle run to ease myself back into it and also needed to be careful as the snow was just thawing. It was really slushy and dog poo everywhere for some odd reason. Just a grand easy run really in the rain.

Monday: Planned 10km race
Actual: 6miles with some fast friends and a pb
(9:09; 8:48; 9:15; 9:10; 9:13; 8:35)
My training plan had a 10km race in it - I wasn’t able to do a race but some of the girls from my WhatsApp group said they’d join me for the run and they happen to be the faster girls. I had the fear heading to meet them thinking I hadn’t a hope of keeping up but went for it. It was amazing. Felt fast at the start and I wondered would I be able to keep up. We were also having the odd chat. As time passed I was really enjoying it. Felt like I was belting along and really wasn’t taking that much out of me. I was out in front with one of the girls and there’s a half a mile drag towards the end and she started pulling away from me. I clung on with a bit of heavy breathing and managed to stick with her. We had to run past the cars to make sure we got to 6 miles. I wish it had entered my head to do 6.2miles and get a 10km pb. I know it’s not a real pb and in a race I’d probably be capable of more considering I was chatting at times but it felt really good.

Wednesday 16 miles LSR
This was the run I missed last week when snowed in. I had to drop the car to the garage for a service and I headed off then. Beautiful day, sunny and crisp. I left my running jacket in the car and warmed up quick enough, mainly because the wind was behind me for the first 6 miles! When I changed direction at that point the wind was quite cooling! The run was a bit stop start at times as running through the city. It’s amazing how one person can take over a whole footpath sometimes. Why can’t people walk on the left or right as opposed to the middle swinging a bag or their arms and traffic coming towards me means I can’t hop on the road to get round them. It annoys me a bit ;-)

Anyway, from mile 7 or 8 the drags and hills started. I planned my route to include most of the 2nd half of Cork City Marathon. I joined the route at mile 10 as I entered Ballyphehane. The hills were fine really and brought back loads of memories of the day last year. Farranlea road broke me last year and found it a drag yesterday and funnily enough when I got to the top and it was behind me I kind started speeding up without realizing it and was trotting along nicely, feeling strong. It was my first time doing it since Cork last year and having it behind me gave me a bit of an adrenaline rush even just on a training run. The heaven’s opened then with 2 miles to go and I got drowned and really cold. I got back to the garage to get my car and spotted a coffee machine and had the nicest cappuccino ever!

Thursday: 6 mile recovery run @ 11:21
Exact same route as Monday and 14 mins slower. Quite pleased with myself for holding the pace but boy was I cold. I never warmed up. I had company for the first 3km which was nice and then I kept going by myself. It was very enjoyable. I heard an ice cream van at one stage. It was 7:30 and dark - who buys ice cream at that hour??

Total: 34.3 miles covered this week. Feeling great.

A little nervous of those hills and where they come in the marathon. Planning on including hills in my long runs as much as possible and towards the end of my LSRs too when I can. Also going to introduce some hill interval training in my plan.

So that’s my week. 12 weeks to go until D-Day.