If found in bar, please return to race!

mister paul

A bit late with this weeks update

Plan: DCM Training - Meno Week 4
Monday: S&C
Tuesday: 5 miles easy
Wednesday: 10 miles easy
Thursday: 5m recovery + S&C
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 3m rec + strides
Sunday: South Dublin 10k

Actual:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: 5 miles easy. Left hip was tight beforehand, but eased it out and run was grand.

Distance: 5.01 miles @ 9:15, avg. hr: 122

Wednesday: 10 miles easy

Distance: 10.01 miles @ 9:14, avg. hr: 125

Thursday: 5 miles easy

Distance: 5.01 miles @ 9:22, avg. hr: 124

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Fairview Parkrun very easy w/ strides

Distance: 3.13 miles @ 9:32, avg. hr: 126

Sunday: South Dublin 10k - PB: 42:38

A bit late for a race report, but I'm stuck somewhere between happy and slightly unsatisfied by this one. A PB by 40 seconds and over 4 minutes faster than the same race last year, but felt that I could/should have run sub-42.

My previous PB was in the GIR a few months ago when I was still building fitness, and since then I've knocked over 40 seconds off my 5k PB. As I said, target for this starting off was sub-42, which I didn't think was too agressive. First k was stuck in traffic and about 15 seconds off target already. I decided against chasing the sub-42 and instead stuck to the original per-k pace target, hitting it pretty much for every k up until the canal. Like last year, I again struggled in the heat along the canal, although not to the same extent as last year and I finished strongly.

I definitely think that there's further improvements to be had at this distance, but they'll have to wait until after DCM.

Laps|Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
1|04:25.1|0.62|36|0|07:07|137|157|185
2|04:11.2|0.62|7|7|06:44|159|160|186
3|04:13.2|0.62|10|7|06:47|161|167|185
4|04:09.3|0.62|0|20|06:41|163|165|184
5|04:11.6|0.62|0|16|06:45|161|163|184
6|04:11.6|0.62|16|30|06:45|160|169|180
7|04:13.2|0.62|7|16|06:48|167|172|184
8|04:19.9|0.62|16|0|06:58|171|174|182
9|04:26.1|0.62|3|0|07:08|172|174|181
10|04:09.5|0.62|13|16|06:42|174|176|183
11|00:08.0|0.03|0|0|04:30|175|175|194
Summary|42:39:00|6.24|108|112|06:50|162|176|183

Distance: 7.18 miles in total

Weekly totals
Running: 30.1 miles
Cycling: 29.8 miles

YTD totals
Running: 764 miles
Cycling: 869 miles

mister paul

Plan: DCM Training - Meno Week 5
Monday: 5 miles recovery
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: 6.2 miles easy
Thursday: 10 miles w/ 6 @ MP
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 5m easy
Sunday: 16 miles LSR

Actual:

Monday: 4.2 miles recovery with A on a local loop. A flatter route probably would have been recommended. Calves were tight and legs were tired in general.

Distance: 4.22 miles @ 9:33, avg. hr: 133

Tuesday: Rest

Wednesday: 10.3 miles w/ 6 @ MP

I'd booked a sports massage for Thursday evening, so brought this forward to Wednesday, once I'd done a quick systems check and determined that the legs felt sufficiently recovered from Sunday morning. All went well although the MP miles were a bit on the fast side. Got a bit of a "stitch" on my right side late on during the MP miles, although it was a bit higher than I'd expect a stitch to be. Not going to worry about it at the moment, as diet had been fairly appalling in the days beforehand. Target pace for the MP miles was 7:43-7:55. After the first 3 MP miles uphill, which were tough enough, the remaining miles felt relatively easy, even accounting for the stitch.

Laps|Step Type|Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
1|Warm Up|08:43.6|1|56|0|08:44|126|137|172
2|Warm Up|08:36.5|1|23|20|08:36|127|137|172
3|Warm Up|04:22.8|0.47|3|16|09:15|129|134|169
4|Run|07:54.2|1|56|49|07:54|142|155|175
5|Run|07:34.0|1|33|26|07:34|151|159|179
6|Run|07:42.3|1|59|3|07:42|157|161|178
7|Run|07:38.9|1|26|23|07:39|156|159|178
8|Run|07:33.9|1|0|39|07:34|154|157|179
9|Run|07:25.2|1|3|26|07:25|157|159|181
10|Cool Down|08:54.8|1|13|16|08:55|145|160|174
11|Cool Down|07:32.1|0.85|0|59|08:54|139|144|174
Summary|Workout|01:23:58|10.32|272|282|08:08|144|161|176

Thursday: 5 miles recovery

Calves tight again, but sports massage later on in the evening mostly sorted that out. As this was a recovery after a tough enough session, I kept it to 5 miles with a view to adding an extra mile or so to Saturdays run instead.

Distance: 5.01 miles @ 9:29, avg. hr: 129

Friday: Rest

Saturday: I ran down to Fairview and back for Parkrun. Got to see a new male record of 15:50 being set. He flew past me early on my second lap and by the time I finished that lap, he was ready to scan barcodes. He seemed to be part of a group over from the UK. Looking at his profile, his PB is 14:37 from York Parkrun. Coming up towards the finish line, I could hear someone working hard trying to catch me, but I was having none of it and finished with a "stride" :P

Distance: 7.01 miles @ 9:17, avg. hr: 127

Sunday: Managed to get out early enough and headed along the canal as far as the old homestead near Coolmine and then followed the Carpenterstown Road onto Tower road and entered the PP at the Furry Glen. Got more miles in around the park and then headed home for a total of just over 16 miles. Glutes and hip on the left are both a bit tight after the run. I foam rolled them briefly this morning and I'll be attacking them again this evening.

Distance: 16.25 miles @ 9:23, avg. hr: 132

I'm happy enough with how the week went, even though I switched a few of the days around. The changes were sensible enough IMO. Got through another 16 miler, this time having run 7 miles the day before. I definitely got tired near the end and will probably need to start looking at fueling before this weeks 18 mile run.

Weekly totals
Running: 42.8 miles
Cycling: 28.4 miles

YTD totals
Running: 807 miles
Cycling: 897 miles

mister paul

Plan: DCM Training - Meno Week 6 (44-50 miles)
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 6.2 miles easy
Wednesday: 2 mile WU, 20 min steady, 20 min @ MP, 10 min @ HMP, 2 mile CD
Thursday: 5 miles recovery
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 5m easy
Sunday: 18 miles LSR

Actual:

Monday: Foam rolling and stretching of glutes and hip

Tuesday: Did some active isolated stretching beforehand and then ran one of my fairly standard 10k loops out to Clontarf and back along Griffith Avenue. Left hip and glutes started to get achy on the uphill back along Griffith Avenue, but not so bad that I'd consider stopping. More stretching and foam rolling afterwards.

Distance: 6.23 miles @ 9:01, avg. hr: 128

Wednesday: Did some more foam rolling and static stretching of the hip and glutes at lunch time.

Did the same active isolated stretching routine as on Tuesday before heading out. I was apprehensive about the niggles and whether doing the session was a good idea at all, so the leap and credit cards were brought along just in case.

Started the warmup uphill into Phibsboro and then along the North Circular and into the park. Everything felt good and I had a bit more confidence upping the pace.

The session itself was a progression with 20 minutes steady, 20 minutes @ MP and 10 minutes @ HMP, all continuous.

Target paces were
- 8:00 - 8:10 for the steady
- 7:40 - 7:50 for the MP
- 7:00 - 7:10 for the HMP

As for the session itself, it went surpisingly well, although with every pace increase, it took me a few minutes to get the feel for the increased pace.

Laps|Step Type|Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
1|Warm Up|21:57|2.43|85|33|09:02|128|142|173
2|Run|20:00|2.46|62|20|08:07|146|153|178
3|Run|20:00|2.59|30|56|07:43|152|158|182
4|Run|10:00|1.43|13|59|06:59|159|166|185
5|Cool Down|18:55|2.1|20|82|09:02|142|165|179
Summary|Workout|01:30:52|11.01|213|249|08:15|144|166|179

During the cooldown, I struggled a bit to get the HR back down into the 130's, partly because I struggled to slow the pace after the HMP, as anything above 9 minutes and I felt I was hardly moving. That said, the average CD pace was the same as the warmup.

Distance: 11 miles in total

July totals
Running: 174 miles
Cycling: 122 miles

I'm happy with how July has gone. I didn't miss any runs, although I did have to move a few around, but that's to be expected. I need to get on top of the niggles and have started trying to do so in the last few days. I think that it's having a positive impact already and I need to keep it up and if anything extend it.

I was prescribed an S&C programme in late June and only did it once. This needs to change, but the main blocker I've found is making the time for a 45 minute session twice a week, which in reality doesn't sound like much. Just read a comment by DD on Swashbucklers log about splitting his S&C into 10 minute blocks over the course of the week. This sounds far more manageable to me so I'll give it a try and see how I go.

ReeReeG

That's a great session, well done. Really enjoying following your training!
How's the fatigue, if any? The plan looks intense enough.

mister paul

ReeReeG wrote: »

That's a great session, well done. Really enjoying following your training!
How's the fatigue, if any? The plan looks intense enough.

I'm actually enjoying the plan so far and haven't really suffered from any really noticeable fatigue, even though July was my highest mileage week ever by 25 miles. That said, this time last year I was averaging about 140-145 miles for a few months in a row when Luke was coaching me for Charleville.

Thus far, I don't think the plan is in uncharted water for me, with the exception of the LSR distance increasing. Last year I usually had speed sessions on Tuesday or Wednesday and a tempo type of session on the Saturday before the long run on Sunday. Without the tempo on Saturdays now I'm coming to the long runs a bit fresher, which makes the distance less taxing (not that it's "easy" by any means).

mister paul

Thursday: Easy recovery miles. Calves were a bit tight but good other than that.

Distance: 5.01 miles @ 9:15, avg. hr: 127

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Poppintree Parkrun with aquinn, anna_pr and murph_d supporting the Sanctuary Runners and then ran back down the hill from Ballymun to home.

Distance: 5.5 miles in total

Sunday: 18 mile LSR along the Waterford Greenway. This went well until the final few miles. Right glute tightened and I started to struggle in the heat, with that part of the greenway not providing much in the way of shade. The middle miles were a bit on a fast side as well, but "I felt comfortable". Lesson learned, just because you feel comfortable doesn't mean that you should let the pace increase. Fuelling consisted of a couple of slices of toast with butter and honey and a banana beforehand, along with 7-8 jellies during the run. I carried a water bottle as well that holds around 300ml. I emptied that just as I finished the run, but if I'd had more water, I'd definitely have poured some over my head in the last few miles to help keep cool.

HR was up compared to recent runs, but there were a number of factors at play; wine on Saturday night in combination with the heat and humidity of the morning.

On the tight right glute, I was pushed a bit for time leaving in the morning and focussed on the left side that has been niggling. Hopefully another lesson and stretching both sides fully will help this in future.

Distance: 18.01 miles @ 9:23, avg. hr: 135

Weekly totals
Running: 45.8 miles
Cycling: 19.2 miles

YTD totals
Running: 853 miles
Cycling: 920 miles

The Black Oil

Oh, curious about the greenway. Is it just tarmac? I have done Waterford & Suir Valley Railway.

And how are you getting the breakdown of the HR data for the Weds stuff? I only get the overall. Must be a setting (Garmin 235).

Know what you mean about the 18 miler.

mister paul

The Black Oil wrote: »

Oh, curious about the greenway. Is it just tarmac? I have done Waterford & Suir Valley Railway.

It's mostly either tarmac or compacted gravel, both good to run on. There are a few tunnels, etc. that have concrete, but they're thankfully short.

The Black Oil wrote: »

And how are you getting the breakdown of the HR data for the Weds stuff? I only get the overall. Must be a setting (Garmin 235).

I set the session up on Garmin Connect on desktop or phone beforehand and transfer it to the watch. Once that's done it records each step in the workout as a lap. You can grab the data from Garmin Connect on desktop, under the "Laps" tab (not very easy to spot). I just switched to Fenix 5s Plus from the 235, so I've a bit more data now. When using the 235 it had these fields for each lap and also averages for them.

Laps, Step Type, Time, Cumulative Time, Moving Time, Distance, Elev Gain, Elev Loss, Avg Pace, Avg Moving Pace, Best Pace, Avg HR, Max HR, Avg Run Cadence, Max Run Cadence, Avg Stride Length, Calories

You get something similar if you're just manually pressing the lap button on the watch during the workout instead of using a preset workout. For last weeks workout, I turned off the "Auto lap" feature on the phone, so each step within the workout isn't split into separate miles in the report.

I just copy and paste that into excel to filter and chop out the columns I don't want to post.

The Black Oil wrote: »

Know what you mean about the 18 miler.

This is all a learning experience for me as DCM will be my first marathon. Hopefully preparation for this weekends 18 miler will be better and I'll manage it without any issues.

mister paul

Plan: DCM Training - Meno Week 7 (40-50 miles)
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 5 miles easy
Wednesday: WU + 2 x 4 miles @ MP + CD
Thursday: 5 miles recovery
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 5m easy
Sunday: 18 miles LSR

Actual:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: For once, I actually remembered to include strides in a run. First two miles were mostly uphill and calves started to tighten but once I got onto the flatter surface they eased although they still weren't 100%.

Distance: 5.25 miles @ 9:00, avg. hr: 134

Wednesday: Plan had 2 x 4 miles @ MP with ~2 miles WU and CD, so about 12 miles or so all-in. Current training MP target is 7:40-7:50. Worked out a route through Tolka Valley Park as far as Ashtown and then onto the canal to Castleknock, before turning for home through the park and Phibsboro. The first 4 mile block was net uphill with the second downhill, but with a half-mile drag in the last mile.

The session itself went well. As is often the case, I wasn't looking forward to this but once I got out on the road it went well. There were a few times that I wasn't hitting the MP and if anything felt I was a bit quicker, but in most cases I think it was dodgy GPS, as the "lap pace" would suddenly drop 7-8 seconds and into the "desired zone".

Pacewise, everything was in or around the target, with only the first mile 0.6 of a second slow. I think I'll let myself away with that this time. A few of the miles were a bit on the quick side, but I consciously pushed on up the hill on the final mile.

Step Type|Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
Warm Up|09:10.0|1|66|59|09:10|128|139|182
Warm Up|05:29.5|0.6|26|10|09:06|137|142|181
Run|07:50.6|1|23|13|07:51|147|153|187
Run|07:45.6|1|69|16|07:46|154|158|189
Run|07:37.0|1|30|0|07:37|155|160|190
Run|07:40.0|1|33|16|07:40|156|159|189
Recover|05:00|0.55|20|7|09:10|148|158|185
Run|07:47.5|1|10|36|07:47|149|154|186
Run|07:39.6|1|0|52|07:40|151|154|186
Run|07:42.7|1|3|33|07:43|151|156|184
Run|07:33.4|1|30|26|07:33|158|163|188
Cool Down|09:10.5|1|7|26|09:11|143|151|183
Cool Down|07:47.2|0.86|0|56|09:00|138|143|180

Overall, delighted with how the session went. I focused on cadence, which I only really need to do at easier paces. My cadence naturally increases as the pace does. As a result, the cadence was a bit higher than I'd like in the MP sections.

Distance: 12.01 miles in total

Thursday: I was tired from the session but also tired generally and decided that I'd cut this short if I was struggling. Kept the pace very easy and managed to get through it in one piece.

Distance: 5.01 miles @ 9:55, avg. hr: 124

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Saturday was a busy day. I'd considered bringing the long run forward so that I could enjoy a few pints after the Dublin match, but in the end just wouldn't have had the time.

Cycled over the Tolka Valley Parkrun and got a short half mile warmup in before we set off. Settled in to an easy/moderate pace. Kicked on up the final hill for a fast finish and a time of 26:12. Did a few more loops to bring my total distance for the morning up to 5 and then cycled home again via the barbers, then shower a quick breakfast and over to Ballsbridge for the rugby before racing back across town for the Dublin match, dinner and pints.

Distance: 5.00 miles @ 8:44, avg. hr: 135

Sunday: I was tired on Sunday morning after a few pints of Guinness after the matches and didn't get out until after 4. Fuelled beforehand with some toast with butter and jam as usual, packed some jellies in the flipbelt and headed out.

The first half of the route was similar to Wednesday's session, with a longer tour of the park and home via the canal from Ashtown. It was great running weather, a bit of a breeze and not too warm. Unusually for me though, I needed a couple of pee breaks and at one point thought I'd need more, but thankfully it was only a gas leak. After that with the pressure relieved I was much more comfortable.

This week went much better than last Sunday and although I was still tiring by the end, HR was under control throughout. The weather was definitely better for running this week, but the route was lumpier, which I generally managed well. I didn't touch the jellies during the run. Calves and hamstrings tightened up a bit after the run but I eased them out and they're much better today.

Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
09:32.4|1|72|66|09:32|133|149|178
09:11.9|1|43|16|09:12|134|140|182
09:30.0|1|30|16|09:30|137|142|182
09:58.2|1|69|13|09:58|137|144|183
09:50.7|1|23|10|09:51|134|142|183
09:59.3|1|66|13|09:59|131|140|181
09:01.5|1|7|85|09:02|126|134|181
08:59.1|1|16|52|08:59|130|136|181
09:20.2|1|33|43|09:20|129|135|179
09:14.4|1|43|59|09:14|131|138|178
09:16.7|1|33|3|09:17|132|139|179
09:23.9|1|33|3|09:24|135|138|182
09:28.6|1|13|7|09:29|133|137|181
09:22.1|1|13|7|09:22|134|137|177
09:22.9|1|10|46|09:23|133|139|176
09:23.2|1|0|16|09:23|135|139|179
09:30.5|1|0|7|09:30|136|139|179
08:55.2|1|0|79|08:55|138|143|180
01:05.8|0.13|0|3|08:34|141|143|180
02:50:26|18.13|505|541|09:24|133|149|180

Distance: 18.12 miles @ 9:24, avg. hr: 133

Weekly totals
Running: 45.4 miles
Cycling: 33.3 miles

YTD totals
Running: 898 miles
Cycling: 954 miles

skyblue46

P, is everything alright with your good lady wife?

mister paul

Plan: DCM Training - Meno Week 8 (45-55 miles)
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 6.2 miles easy
Wednesday: WU + 8 miles alternating MP + CD
Thursday: 5 miles recovery
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 5m easy
Sunday: 20 miles LSR

Actual:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Easier than normal miles. HR was elevated initially, possibly a mis-read but after half a mile or so it lowered and stayed low, despite the faster than usual pace. There was soreness in my right heel starting off, but intending to get to shop to get new runners on Thursday evening.

Distance: 6.4 miles @ 8:31, avg. hr: 131

Wednesday: Wednesday was the longest midweek MP type run so far; warm up, then 8 miles continuous, alternating MP +/- 20-30 seconds per mile and a cool down.

Targets were 7:15-7:25 and 8:05-8:15

I was surprised by how well this went, hitting all of the paces successfully, although the third fast rep uphill into the wind was more of a challenge. The final reps were both at the lower end of the target paces, although both were with the wind at my back and net downhill.

Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
1|26|3|08:10|142|150|181
1|43|0|07:19|157|162|184
1|10|30|08:10|149|158|183
1|0|33|07:19|152|156|183
1|7|36|08:10|147|154|181
1|49|0|07:19|159|162|173
1|13|30|08:05|151|161|182
1|0|36|07:15|155|162|177

Distance: 12.25 miles in total

Thursday: A smidge too fast for a recovery run, but everything felt good so I went with it.

Distance: 5.00 miles @ 9:03, avg. hr: 129

Friday: Rest

Saturday: I was going to the Leinster triple header in Donnybrook (men pre-season vs Coventry, women interpro vs Connacht, U19 interpro vs Ulster), so decided to bring the long run forward to Saturday, so that I could enjoy the afternoon and evening. In the end, tiredness took over and we gave the third match a miss. The good news is that Leinster won all three matches, playing some good rugby along the way.

The run started well, as I headed across city to visit Tymon Parkrun, taking in some of the DCM route from Dolphins Barn to Walkinstown roundabout along the way. Tipped around that at an easy pace (29:11) and then back across the city taking in some more of the DCM route through Terenure. I started to struggle in the latter part of this as the day warmed up. Tried to stick to the shade, but it wasn't always possible. Glutes definitely felt the last few miles, but I made it home safely. Fuelling was two slices of toast with butter and jam beforehand and a few jellies along the route. I'll definitely be looking into getting some gels before the next 20-miler in two weeks time. I'll also be looking into not drinking the day before, not ideal planning.

Distance: 20.01 miles @ 9:21, avg. hr: 134

Sunday: Sunday was a double, with a dash down to 14 Henrietta Street for our 1PM tour (0.24 miles @ 9:56, avg. hr: 125) - They all count . Finally got out for the scheduled run later on in the evening. This was a nice and easy recovery run with A, who's getting back on the horse. Glutes tired a bit in the final mile, but overall the body was grand after the 20 miler on Saturday.

Distance: 5.09 miles @ 9:24, avg. hr: 125

Weekly totals
Running: 49 miles
Cycling: 27.3 miles

YTD totals
Running: 947 miles
Cycling: 981 miles

mister paul

Plan: DCM Training - Meno Week 9 (30-35 miles - Step back week)
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 6.2 miles easy
Wednesday: 10 miles easy
Thursday: Rest
Friday: 3 miles very easy + strides
Saturday: Frank Duffy 10 mile
Sunday: 4 miles recovery

Actual:

Doing up the stats at the bottom of this post, I see that I passed the 1,000 mile mark in cycling this week and will likely pass it in running next week.

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Easy morning runmute. My left hip and glutes had been tight since Saturday, although grand when running, so I'd booked a physio appointment at lunchtime to hopefully nip any issue in the bud.

HR readings were off (again) in the first half mile but once I moved the watch to the inside of my wrist it started reading more accurately.

Distance: 6.23 miles @ 8:52, avg. hr: 133

Short run across to the physio and back to work afterwards.

Distance: 1.01 miles @ 9:22, avg. hr: 121

Wednesday: I decided early on Tuesday to cut the 10 miles back to 8 after reading back on the original Meno post for this week. It's meant to be a step-back week, but my planned mileage was above the upper threshold of that, and also with the race on Saturday, I didn't want to be going into it too fatigued.

I was feeling a bit tired and under the weather before this one, was trying to convince myself that I was coming down with a dose. Took a route out to Clontarf with the breeze at my back and then headed inland through Killester and Beaumont to get some protection on the route home. After the run, I don't think I can claim to be coming down with a dose any more, faster than usual without any elevated HR and an improved Garmin VO2 Max to boot. Felt much better after than before and followed the run up with a Thai Green Curry to make sure any remnanats of a dose were well and truly gone.

Distance: 8.27 miles @ 8:46, avg. hr: 130

Thursday: Rest

Friday: A few easy miles around the area with a few strides thrown in.

Distance: 3.20 miles @ 8:53, avg. hr: 129

Saturday: FD 10 Not a good day at the races, even though I managed to hold on and grab a 90 second PB. Miles 1 & 2 were okay, although as usual I started too far back and was a bit slower than I'd intended. By the end of the third mile I was already starting to struggle and looking back at the HR, it was elevated even at this early stage. After that, I just tried to keep going, dropping the pace to keep the effort levels manageable. Ended up running the second half at my target MP.

I'm not going to panic and adjust paces just yet, as I'd found that pace very manageable during MP sessions, but I'll keep a close eye on progress over the next few weeks and will rethink things if I'm struggling.

PB: 1:14:41 - previous 1:16:10

Distance: 11.2 miles in total

Sunday: Nice, easy recovery run. Legs were grand although glutes started to tire during the last mile.

Distance: 5.10 miles @ 9:19, avg. hr: 127

Weekly totals
Running: 35.04 miles
Cycling: 31.1 miles

YTD totals
Running: 982 miles
Cycling: 1012 miles

mister paul

Plan: DCM Training - Meno Week 10 (45-55 miles)
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 6.2 miles easy
Wednesday: In the Meno plan, this is 4, 3, 2, 1 mile @ MP w/ 0.5 mile jog recovery (13-14 miles in total), but with the proviso that if you've raced FD10, he recommends skipping the session (and I presume keeping the run easy). My plan, all going well is to cut the 4 mile @ MP out of the run.
Thursday: 5 miles recovery
Friday: Rest
Saturday: St Anne's Parkrun - pacing 27
Sunday: 18 miles lsr w/ 2 * 3 mile @ MP

Actual:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Easy miles around what's becoming the usual Tuesday loop. Left glute started to tighten up in the last couple of miles, so booked into the physio for Wednesday afternoon.

Distance: 6.50 miles @ 8:42, avg. hr: 128

Wednesday: Painful physio visit. Not recommended to run after much needling of glutes. Spent the evening drinking lots of water.

Thursday: Normal service resumed. 10 miles easy out to Ashtown along the canal and then into the PP for a bit along the trails before heading homeward along Chesterfield.

Distance: 10.43 miles @ 9:05, avg. hr: 128

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Pacing 27 minutes at St Anne's Parkrun. Oops, clocked 27:05. Run measured long on GPS for once, nearly 120 metres. Knew it was off in the last k, so upped the pace a bit, just not quite enough. (5:14, 5:20, 5:23, 5:23, 5:09, 0:34 for 0.08mi)

Passed 1,000 miles running for the year during my warmup. Forgot until later in the day. Last year was the first time I'd hit 1,000 miles and that was on Nov 14th.

Distance: 4.32 miles in total, including warmup

Sunday: Mostly enjoyable long run around the PP. The lower mileage week probably helped. Was wearing the new (50 miles) Saucony Omni for their first long run. I think I'll need to re-lace them with the heel lock as there was a bit too much foot movement in the shoe, which made the second block of MP miles a bit uncomfortable, but still manageable.

Took gels for the first time. High 5 Aqua gels, berry flavour. Took one at 7 miles. Nearly forgot to take the second, but remembered just before I started the second block of MP miles and just about got it on board before starting it. No negative reactions to them thankfully. I have a couple of Maurten gels to try out for this weekend.

Laps|Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
1|09:30.7|1|46|0|09:31|123|138|179
2|09:05.1|1|3|3|09:05|129|135|183
3|09:24.4|1|13|0|09:24|129|135|181
4|09:36.1|1|46|7|09:36|132|137|179
5|09:21.1|1|0|26|09:21|130|135|177
6|09:06.8|1|26|85|09:07|127|134|177
7|09:24.6|1|49|59|09:25|123|132|176
8|09:20.0|1|43|56|09:20|129|135|176
9|09:27.4|1|39|16|09:27|131|137|177
10|07:46.5|1|43|7|07:47|146|151|184
11|07:44.0|1|23|10|07:44|149|152|186
12|07:40.4|1|7|3|07:40|149|153|187
13|09:22.0|1|3|36|09:22|137|150|180
14|07:44.6|1|39|69|07:45|145|159|183
15|07:37.5|1|33|7|07:38|157|161|185
16|07:40.8|1|10|46|07:41|154|158|185
17|09:17.8|1|16|23|09:18|146|158|181
18|09:00.8|1|3|49|09:01|138|143|181
19|01:37.8|0.19|0|16|08:34|140|144|178
Summary|02:39:48|18.19|446|518|08:47|137|161|181

Distance: 18.19 in total

Weekly totals
Running: 39.5 miles
Cycling: 46.6 miles

YTD totals
Running: 1,022 miles
Cycling: 1,059 miles

mister paul

Plan: DCM Training - Meno Week 11 (45-55 miles)
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 6.2 miles easy
Wednesday: 12-14 miles w/ 4 x 2 miles @ HMP (2m wu/cd, 12-14 miles in total as recovery is either 2 mins rest or 0.5 miles jog)
Thursday: 5 miles recovery
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Parkrun
Sunday: 20 miles (10 easy, 10 steady)

Actual:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Standard Tuesday loop. Nothing to report. Hip was tight earlier in the day, but did lots of rolling of lower back, glutes and hips with a variety of devices including foam roller and sliotar and that really seemed to help.

Distance: 6.42 miles @ 9:08, avg. hr: 127

Wednesday: I decided to go with the active recoveries instead of standing around for 2 minutes. My target for the HMP blocks was 7:10 - 7:20 per mile. Hit the lower end of the target on all four reps. Felt very strong on the third rep but struggled a bit for the first half of the final rep, which was uphill and into a strong enough breeze. Managed to find something to push on for the final mile, which coincidentally was back downhill with the wind at my back

Laps|Step Type|Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
1|Warm Up|09:08.4|1|56|3|09:08|127|135|175
2|Warm Up|08:43.9|1|16|26|08:44|127|137|180
3|Warm Up|01:16.9|0.14|0|7|09:02|128|130|181
4|Run|07:13.0|1|33|3|07:13|149|155|187
5|Run|07:06.4|1|46|0|07:06|158|163|189
6|Recover|04:30.4|0.5|3|20|09:01|140|162|177
7|Run|07:10.9|1|59|16|07:11|153|162|188
8|Run|07:10.3|1|16|72|07:10|150|157|187
9|Recover|04:38.4|0.5|0|0|09:17|139|156|180
10|Run|07:11.8|1|0|46|07:12|149|153|185
11|Run|07:06.8|1|26|59|07:07|153|158|185
12|Recover|04:21.5|0.5|0|52|08:43|137|159|176
13|Run|07:19.4|1|75|3|07:19|157|164|182
14|Run|07:00.4|1|3|33|07:00|159|164|185
15|Recover|04:36.9|0.5|10|10|09:14|145|162|179
16|Cool Down|08:47.9|1|10|30|08:48|140|144|180
17|Cool Down|03:10.7|0.38|0|36|08:27|137|140|177
Summary|Workout|01:46:34|13.52|354|413|07:53|145|164|182

Distance: 13.51 miles in total

Thursday: Easy recovery run. Based this off HR, which was low throughout but pace was probably a bit fast for a recovery run. Still, all felt good.

Distance: 5.01 miles @ 9:16, avg. hr: 121

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Cycled over to Poolbeg Parkrun and added a couple of miles afterwards to bring it to 5 for the morning and then cycled back home again. Had a few glasses of wine on Friday night and felt it with raised HR.

Distance: 5.01 miles @ 9:19, avg. hr: 131

Sunday: Long 20 mile run with the first 10 easy and the second 10 steady.

The target for the steady miles was 8:02 to 8:17 although I'd initially intended targeting the lower half of that, with a target in my head of sub-8:10 for the steady miles. Going into the run I wasn't at all confident of being able to hit and maintain that pace at all. I'd set this up on the watch as a workout with pace bands set for the steady miles, but decided to just run without using the workout at all. I didn't want the watch constantly scolding me if I wasn't hitting pace or decided to ease off or cut the steady miles short.

During the first few miles I didn't feel I'd be able to maintain the pace, but in the end the run went really well and I'd no trouble hitting and maintaining the steady pace. I did start to tire during the last 2-3 miles and the glutes and hips started to complain a bit, but the feeling that I had the strength to push through and finish strongly was a big confidence boost.

Laps|Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
1|09:25.4|1|69|0|09:25|123|134|177
2|09:23.0|1|10|0|09:23|129|134|177
3|09:39.7|1|16|0|09:40|129|135|174
4|09:52.6|1|10|0|09:53|127|133|174
5|09:31.8|1|52|7|09:32|131|138|178
6|09:12.9|1|16|10|09:13|131|136|179
7|09:03.3|1|7|23|09:03|127|132|181
8|09:12.4|1|43|26|09:12|124|131|178
9|09:06.8|1|7|56|09:07|127|132|180
10|08:48.3|1|7|79|08:48|127|134|178
11|08:04.6|1|3|52|08:05|136|142|183
12|08:06.4|1|3|7|08:06|136|141|183
13|08:02.5|1|82|7|08:03|145|153|185
14|08:04.4|1|46|23|08:04|146|153|183
15|08:00.1|1|49|0|08:00|150|153|184
16|08:03.3|1|26|3|08:03|150|154|184
17|07:59.0|1|0|49|07:59|148|151|184
18|08:04.0|1|3|26|08:04|149|155|185
19|08:02.2|1|10|20|08:02|151|153|185
20|07:59.9|1|7|43|08:00|152|156|185
21|02:03.1|0.26|0|23|07:57|150|152|185
Summary|02:55:46|20.26|472|446|08:40|136|156|181

Distance: 20.25 miles in total

Really happy with how the week went with two tough runs that have helped build my confidence. First time running over 50 miles in one week, another milestone of many in this training block.

Weekly totals
Running: 50.2 miles
Cycling: 27.8 miles

YTD totals
Running: 1072 miles
Cycling: 1086 miles

mister paul

Bit late again with the update...

Plan: DCM Training - Meno Week 12 (45-55 miles)
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 6.2 miles easy
Wednesday: 14 miles w/ 10 @ MP
Thursday: 5 miles recovery
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 6.2 miles easy, including Parkrun
Sunday: 18 miles (4x[2mi easy, 2mi @ MP], 2mi CD)

Actual:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Easy miles with A for the first 3.

Distance: 5.26 miles @ 9:16, avg. hr: 124

Wednesday: 14 miles with 10 @ MP. I'd worked out a route earlier in the day, but based on the wind, I decided to head inland instead of out along the coast. Out through Tolka Valley Park to Ashtown and onto the canal to Castleknock before turning for home through the PP. I knew that the first few MP miles would be the toughest in many ways, being a combination of uphill and into the wind, but I managed to get through them okay. Once I got to Castleknock College I knew that it was mostly downhill from there on in.

Target for the MP miles was 7:40-7:50

Laps|Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
1|08:50.0|1|66|62|08:50|125|137|179
2|08:59.6|1|23|16|09:00|128|138|173
3|07:40.2|1|36|13|07:40|145|151|183
4|07:43.8|1|72|13|07:44|152|158|184
5|07:38.7|1|16|0|07:39|150|155|184
6|07:38.4|1|46|23|07:38|152|156|184
7|07:39.3|1|13|7|07:39|149|153|184
8|07:38.8|1|10|7|07:39|149|152|184
9|07:40.3|1|43|30|07:40|149|157|184
10|07:38.1|1|3|62|07:38|147|155|181
11|07:34.2|1|0|23|07:34|148|152|182
12|07:36.1|1|0|56|07:36|147|153|182
13|08:40.3|1|23|20|08:40|139|144|175
14|08:52.2|1|10|23|08:52|136|142|173
15|04:32.2|0.51|0|46|08:52|135|139|175
Summary|01:56:22|14.51|358|397|08:01|143|158|180

Distance: 14.51 miles in total

Thursday: Lunchtime recovery. All felt good.

Distance: 5.01 miles @ 9:16, avg. hr: 124

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Decided to bring the long run forward to Saturday morning so that I could properly enjoy the 5-in-a-row later in the evening. Planned a last minute route out to Bushy Park so that I could finish off with Parkrun. Out at 7:10. First half of the run went really well, but the route started to get hazier the further I got onto the southside and I eventually took a wrong turn. Went probably half a mile in the wrong direction, so had to re-calibrate on the phone while running. Despite running a mile @ steady instead of easy, I was a few minutes late for the start of PR, resulting in an official time of 30:57, which included over a mile @ MP.

Target for the MP miles was once again 7:40-7:50. Managed to hit the lower end on all but one mile. That crossed the railway at Ashtown and the crossing was closed, so I had to use the pedestrian bridge.

Laps|Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg Pace|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
1|09:39.6|1|59|0|09:40|130|141|172
2|09:14.5|1|7|0|09:14|130|141|176
3|07:42.9|1|20|0|07:43|145|152|186
4|07:58.3|1|46|13|07:58|152|160|185
5|09:06.4|1|46|13|09:06|142|159|182
6|08:50.4|1|26|49|08:50|136|142|181
7|07:38.6|1|20|59|07:39|143|149|183
8|07:39.7|1|0|102|07:40|140|145|183
9|08:57.4|1|0|23|08:57|133|147|179
10|09:10.5|1|7|3|09:11|129|137|176
11|07:38.7|1|66|23|07:39|144|153|184
12|07:38.0|1|43|7|07:38|150|154|185
13|08:56.3|1|16|20|08:56|135|151|178
14|08:19.0|1|33|0|08:19|138|146|181
15|07:33.7|1|26|30|07:34|145|154|182
16|07:32.3|1|16|20|07:32|152|157|185
17|08:47.8|1|23|20|08:48|144|155|179
18|09:02.1|1|13|23|09:02|139|142|178
19|02:28.2|0.31|13|0|07:58|147|151|174
Summary|02:33:54|18.31|479|400|08:24|140|160|180

Distance: 18.31 miles in total

Sunday: Recovery run with A on the trails at Farnham Estate. Not great running surface, not helped by torrential rain.

Distance: 4.14 miles @ 9:51, avg. hr: 116

Weekly totals
Running: 47.2 miles
Cycling: 22.6 miles

YTD totals
Running: 1119 miles
Cycling: 1109 miles

Murph_D

Nice going P. HR for MP miles looks nice and steady and a good 30+ below your max. Good sign!

crockmac

mister paul wrote: »

That crossed the railway at Ashtown and the crossing was closed, so I had to use the pedestrian bridge.

Been caught at that bridge many times myself :mad:.

HR is great on the MP miles. Looks like you're in great shape. Are you running in the half on Saturday|?

mister paul

Murph_D wrote: »

Nice going P. HR for MP miles looks nice and steady and a good 30+ below your max. Good sign!

Cheers D. Not really sure what a good HR target for MP is, as everyone will be slightly different in that respect, but happy enough with where I'm at presently.

crockmac wrote: »

Been caught at that bridge many times myself :mad:.

HR is great on the MP miles. Looks like you're in great shape. Are you running in the half on Saturday|?

Thanks C. Racing on Saturday. Fingers crossed that the conditions are better than FD10. I'll keep an eye out for you and will most likely trail in your wake again.

OOnegative

Best of luck Saturday P, run well!!

Kellygirl

Good luck tomorrow Paul.

Singer

Happy race weekend! Should be a PB unless something goes wrong.

mister paul

Plan: DCM Training - Meno Week 13 (30-40 miles)
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: 5 miles easy
Wednesday: 8-10 miles easy
Thursday: Rest
Friday: 3 miles easy + strides
Saturday: KBC Dublin Half Marathon
Sunday: 4 miles recovery

Actual:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Early morning easy paced miles with A

Distance: 5.05 miles @ 9:13, avg. hr: 116

Wednesday: Easy miles. Felt a bit bloated and I'd a lot of phlegm, but hopefully nothing to worry about before the weekend.

Distance: 10.25 miles @ 8:56, avg. hr: 128

Thursday: Rest

Friday: A few very easy miles around Drumcondra and Glasnevin with a few strides thrown in along Griffith Avenue.

Distance: 3.26 miles @ 8:49, avg. hr: 132

Saturday: KBC Dublin Half Marathon - PB 1:36:38

Not a walk in the park. (Race report to follow...time permitting)

Distance: 15.1 miles in total

Sunday: Up early to make breakfast and support our local sports team and then across city with A for brunch. Back home and a quick cycle down to support the Griffith Mile, a great event. Back home after and fairly quick turnaround and out again for a recovery run. Was definitely still processing brunch at that stage and suffered a bit as a result and had to stop at least once to gather my thoughts, so to speak.

There were also a few stops to adjust the laces on a new pair of Saucony OMNI. It seems that I've turned into Imelda Marcos of late.

New runners were fine once I'd sorted out the laces and thankfully brunch stayed where it was meant to. So a success overall.

Distance: 5.15 miles @ 9:46. Avg. hr: 122

Weekly totals
Running: 38.8 miles
Cycling: 19.7 miles

YTD totals
Running: 1,158 miles
Cycling: 1,129 miles

skyblue46

Great racing in the half P. It was a cracking PB and very well deserved.

mister paul

KBC Dublin Half Marathon

Pre-Race

Got up nice and early and had some toast with butter and honey, a Berocca and a Dioralyte, before murph_d and anna_pr collected me from home about 8:10. Headed down to the park and got parked up in the VC. Said hi to a few others before jogging down to the start area. Finished off my warm-up with a few strides before lining up between the 1:30 and 1:40 pacers.

Miles 1-3 - 6:59, 7:02, 7:02

For once I seemed to be in the right place, as there wasn't much in the way of slower traffic to contend with. I'd mapped out the route on Garmin and used their new PacePro feature to work out per-mile paces and tried to stick in or around those [*]. That meant that the first 3 miles were relatively quick. I note that I'd the start line in the wrong place, but only by ~100 metres, so mile 3 should have been slower and 4 a bit faster in reality. I also noticed that by the end of mile 1, the mile markers were well off where Garmin was beeping. By the end of mile 3, there was a 20-25 second discrepency and that just got bigger as the race progressed.

At this stage, it felt like the effort levels were a little elevated, but not so much that I was worried. The water at the end of mile 3 was much appreciated and I held on to the bottle until the third (or possibly final) water station.

Miles 4-6 - 7:15, 7:11, 7:10

Mile 4 is where I'd really started to struggle in the FD10, but I was definitely feeling stronger this time around. Mile 4 started with a nice downhill at the Magazine Fort, before heading back up past the Wellington monument and across by the zoo. I dropped the pace as intended in mile 4 and tried to keep consistent. Onto the North Road and I could feel the heat of the sun on the back of my neck as the temperatures rose. Tried to keep cool by pouring water from the bottle onto my neck with limited effect.

Miles 7-9 - 7:11, 7:24, 6:58

Mile 7 brought us onto Chesterfield along the path before turning back and onto the road to Ordinance Road. Although the effort levels were still fairly high, I thought that turning back down Chesterfield would provide some relief. But with the strength of the wind and its direction, there was no rest at all. Thankfully it was a short enough distance before we turned right and then out of the park through White's Gate. The shade along here was much appreciated, the hill less so. The course was a bit tight here with a fair few runners slowing right down and at times it was difficult to maintain target pace as a result.

One of the good things about running in the PP a fair bit is that I knew what to expect here and knew that I could recover back down into the park along Tower Road. I possibly pushed on a bit too much, but felt that with the wind on Chesterfield and the big discrepency between Garmin and on course distances, I might need the extra seconds banked.

Miles 10-12 - 7:29, 7:30, 7:28

Back onto Ordinance and the push along Tower Road started to feel like a last hurrah, as the pace started to slow. Chesterfield became a long slow slog, even with encouragement from Huzzah! and ReeReeG (I think). I was trying to find other runners to shelter behind, but I just couldn't find any protection from the wind. A brief dry-retch along Chesterfield and I knew it was all about hanging on as best I could. The turn onto Acres provided some respite from the wind, but by now there was a procession of runners overtaking me. Down past St. Mary's before hitting the final drag of the morning.

Endgame - 7:54, 2:06 (0.31 miles @ 6:51)

Onto the Upper Glen Road and it's all I can do to try to keep the pace below 8 minute miles. There's another Cru runner struggling up the hill just ahead of me and as I get close, he starts walking. A few of those around try to encourage him, as do I (not sure how I could still talk), but to no avail. Finally turn onto Furze Road and try to push myself one last time. The pace improves and in the final 150 a runner in blue passes on my left. I empty the tank and just manage to retake the place (and another) just before the line. Cue 20-30 seconds of dry-retching before I manage to gather my toughts and collect my medal, t-shirt and goody bag.

Overall, like in FD10, there are good and bad things to be taken from the race. Once again, I didn't manage to hit my A goal, but at the end of the day, it's a 3 minute PB. In hitting the PB, I ran the first 10 miles 2-3 minutes faster than FD10.

Although training in general has been going very well, but I'm definitely starting to wonder if 3:30 is an achievable goal for DCM'19.

One more thing, skyblue46, how many of you are there? I must have seen you at 3-4 points on the course! Many thanks to you and all the other supporters that could make it out.

Laps|Time|Distance|Elev Gain|Elev Loss|Avg HR|Max HR|Avg Run Cadence
1|06:59.3|1|7|16|143|155|184
2|07:01.7|1|0|98|153|156|185
3|07:01.9|1|56|30|159|165|185
4|07:15.9|1|62|56|161|165|184
5|07:10.5|1|33|3|164|169|185
6|07:09.7|1|46|0|166|168|185
7|07:10.9|1|26|13|166|170|185
8|07:23.7|1|52|16|167|169|184
9|06:58.3|1|16|82|166|170|184
10|07:28.7|1|36|13|168|172|185
11|07:29.6|1|3|33|168|172|184
12|07:28.4|1|0|72|166|171|184
13|07:53.9|1|82|0|170|176|183
14|02:05.9|0.31|10|0|175|177|185
Summary|01:36:38|13.31|436|433|163|177|185

* It looks like I "successfully" set the Garmin PacePro strategy up for a positive split instead of negative, so that won't have helped energy levels in the latter miles...

The Black Oil

Read this on the bus home. Fair play. You've a good template for anyone looking to tackle the meno plan in the future.

crockmac

Well done on the PB P. It was a tough day out there. I spent most of it waiting for you to glide past, and rightly so, there were only 14 seconds between us

For what it's worth, I think you're well on track to crack 3:30 in DCM. Saturday was tough, but it was hot, windy, hilly and in the middle of the busiest weeks of Marathon training.

Huzzah!

That was us at mile 10, alright. You've a big PMP session coming up, afair? It might tell you more about whether 3:30 is achievable or not.

Any day you PB is a good day. It was warm and breezy enough, so well done.

OOnegative

Well done P, any day you PB is a good one. FWIW I ran a high 1.34 half before my marathon debut of 3.24 in 2016. 3.30 is still within range don’t dismiss it.

Kellygirl

A 3min PB is great. Congrats.

Out of interest, do you have Pace pro on your watch or did you just create a pace band to use? I’m wondering how well it would work on a watch and would it cause issues for things like a slight route difference such as the start line being 100m out or the way in DCM it’s hard to follow the race line especially at the start?

mister paul

Huzzah! wrote: »

You've a big PMP session coming up, afair

Depending on how I'm feeling this week, I can do 14 miles w/ 10@MP. So I'll probably try to get that done tomorrow evening, all going well. Pushing it to Thursday isn't an option, as I'm heading to a tech talk after work and getting up at 6 isn't something I'd be a fan of.

Even if I don't manage the MP session this week, there are a couple of even meatier sessions and long runs to go in the next couple of weeks that'll be good indicators.