If I didn’t log it, it didn’t happen

MiniMonstera

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122787794#Comment_122787794

Super report, well done on sub 4!

Olwyn is fab. I also ran with her and Fozzie for the half this year and their pacing was remarkable, definitely got me over the line - 17 seconds under the 1.50.

Reading your report, I don't think I'd have managed that 4.00 pace group for long. I can only do o much accidental bumping and elbow touching before it gets stressful - how people do it for an entire marathon is crazy to me - the risk of missing water stops alone would put me off. When I overtook the 4.10 pacers I couldn't get away fast enough - just wanted space.

Congrats again!

passinginterest

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122790032#Comment_122790032

Thanks a million. I read both your half and marathon reports just after I posted mine and realised we must have been pretty close together for both.

I was happy I wasn’t in the group from the start too. It was definitely claustrophobic at times. Just as I joined someone dropped a belt or something and stopped dead to try pick it up. Nearly caused an actual fight because a few people were lucky not to fall.

It was great to just have them in the distance for the first 30k and then once I did join it meant i could stop looking at my watch and just try and relax to the end. It definitely helped me in the half to not be constantly checking pace (especially because I felt it was impossibly fast early on but I just put my trust in them!). Must be a very stressful job for them and they do it so well.

passinginterest

A little check in on where things are and plans for this year. Took the full month of November off as my knee still wasn’t right. Ran just once a week in December. So fitness and weight started going in the wrong direction.

Knee was still a bit niggly but managed to get back to more regular training in January. Having a Raheny 5 mile entry gave me a push to get back. Got out consistently, three days a week in January and started to rebuild a bit.

Target setting for Raheny was tricky. I reckoned I was in shape for at least sub 42 after a 24.39 parkrun, mid 10 mile run, the week before. That was the C target I suppose. B target was to better my Corkagh 5 mile from last year (41.16). A goal was sub 40 but really didn’t know if I’d have the endurance for it.

In the end, it went better than expected. Awful weather cleared as we started and it was decent conditions. Definitely started a bit faster than intended and was worried going through first mile in 7.54. Was pulling back pace for second half of first mile and settled into a steady pace then. Consecutive 7.58 miles followed and I was still feeling ok. Mile 4 had a fairly big descent to the seafront and I clocked 7.56. I knew that downhill meant a climb in the last mile but I was pleasantly surprised to be able to hold pace and even push on a little. 7.44 for the last mile and 39.28 overall. Lovely start to the year.

Unfortunately, picked up a bug after Raheny an it really disrupted the last few weeks. Just over 83 miles for January was grand if not spectacular. Only managed 13.5 miles each of the next two weeks. Not ideal with Tony McGowan half coming up in Leitrim.

Headed to Leitrim with no expectation, had only managed a couple of 10 milers in Jan so it was going to be longest run since DCM. Ran most of it with club mates and got pulled a good bit ahead of 2hr pace. Paid for it from 10 miles when my endurance just ran out. Still came in at 1.59 even so happy enough. Bohermeen in 3 weeks, Tallaght 5k in 4 weeks and Dublin Half in 6 weeks so aim is 1.55 bohermeen and 1.50 dublin. 23 something for the 5k.

That should give me a good base for next stage of the year. Terenure 5 mile in May is a target for me. Will prob aim for marathon race series up to the half then. Overall goals for year:

5k: A - 21.30, B 22.36

5m: A - 36.00, B 37.26

10k: A - 45.30, B 47.06

10m: A - 1.16, B 1.18.44

Half: A - 1.42, B 1.44.32

B goals are based on 60% age grade. My all time PBs are mostly around that level. But I was 11 years younger for them. So the goal this year is same age grade level and then next year aim for the actual PBs!

passinginterest

Had a couple of solid enough weeks after Leitrim. Only 75 miles total for February after the couple of weeks struggling with sickness.
16.69 miles the week after Leitrim. Didn’t run until the Thursday because I was fairly wrecked. Attempted a 24 minute tempo that was made very difficult by a gale force wind. Got in a 10 mile long run that weekend but again found it tough.

The following week was much better. 26 miles with a 10x400s session the the Tuesday and the same long run on the weekend but far more comfortable.

This week ended just under 30 miles including Bohermeen half. A good hills session on Tuesday and 3x1 miles (5k pace) off 90 seconds on Thursday. Found the 5k pace hard to find but was happy to get something like that done for the first time in ages.

Not tapered at all for Bohermeen. Won’t get into the farce around the start. Don’t think it massively hurt me anyway. Target was to run 8.45 per mile and see how far I’d get. Made it to just past 11 miles and hit the wall. Had to take a couple of short walk breaks to get to the end but I know I’m still lacking the mileage overall so no real surprise I’m struggling once it goes past 10.

Average pace for the first half was 8.43/mile so was fairly good with the pacing. Looking back now mile 10 and 11 probably killed me. 8.39 mile 10 was my joint fastest and 8.44 in mile 11. It’s not the hilliest course, but looking back I can see mile 11 is the most climbing on the whole route. I should have eased back instead of trying to hold the pace. Heart rate went into the red and couldn’t recover from it. Last two miles were a bit of a slog (9.25, 9.39) with the walk breaks thrown in. Came home in 1.55.54. Goal had been about a minute faster. 3 minutes off Leitrim in 3 weeks so can’t really complain.

I haven’t had a particularly focussed block of training. I reckon I’m probably in best shape for something like a 10k. Endurance not really there for much longer and haven’t really got the speed work for the shorter distances. Tallaght 5k next and it will be a good test. Aim is sub 23.30. Should be very doable but did find it hard to hit the pace on the mile reps last week. Won’t be really tapered either as Dublin City half is just around the corner.

Had been hoping to be sub 1.50 for Dublin half but think that might be a bit too much now. Something like 1.52 or 1.53 might be more realistic.

Terenure 5 mile is still the main goal for the first half of the year and if I can build on this run of half’s and add some more specific 5 mile training I think I’ll be in a good place. Sub 36 is the A goal. A race PB would be B goal (38.21). C goal would be better than Raheny (39.28) but I think I’d have to have an injury or a few weeks off between now and then to not improve on Raheny.

Second half of the year, I’ll target the race series 10k (46ish) and half (mid to low 1.40s). Would like to give Rathfarnham 5k a good spin too. Always looks like a good fast race and the date hasn’t suited with marathon training in previous years.

passinginterest

23.02 for the Tallaght 5k. Have to be pleased with that. Wasn’t sure about the looped course when I saw the map but it worked very well and it’s definitely fast.

The race marked my year anniversary as an official member of the club too. I’ve gained some great training parters and don’t think I’d have had a hope of making the sub 4 marathon last year if I had attempted to train solo again. The atmosphere around and after the race, the work of all the volunteers, etc. really represented the best of the club.

Would like to have made a bit more progress on the 5k over the year, but still went form 24.47 down to 23.02 in that time. With no marathon this year the focus is really going to be on improving that now.

Got the pacing about right. 7.25 for the first two miles and managed to pick it up then. Maybe could have started to pick it up a bit sooner but would have really risked blowing up. Using age grading, it’s my 4th best 5k ever and it’s a top 10 outright.

Disrupted week this week with work travel and a wedding so not ideal with Dublin half around the corner. Debate is whether to go out and just enjoy it, or to go out hard, maybe try stick to 1.50 pacers, and see how far I can get before blowing up again! Second half of the route is probably the faster half of the wind is not bad on the coast so might gamble on going for 1.50. I’m getting more comfortable with trying to go hard and suffering a bit, especially at this point of the year, where I haven’t built back up the long runs very much.

Learning how to feel the blow up coming and how to deal with it if/when it happens is potentially usefully when really chasing times in future. From Leitrim to Bohermeen, I think I’ve learned that 30 seconds walking is better than getting to keep slogging when I’ve hit the limit. The other side of it being that I saw and felt it coming in Leitrim, I felt I was pushing hard from early on and the writing was on the wall, but it caught me a bit by surprise in Bohermeen and in the space of about 400 meters I went from feeling pretty good to walking. I might try keeping an eye on the heart rate in Dublin and try slow a bit earlier if it’s redlining.

passinginterest

I’ll start with the positives. Just over the 100 miles for March. First 100 mile month last year wasn’t until June. I’m well ahead in terms of my paces too with the Tallaght 5k time being 1min 40 better than last year. On the Dublin half, overall race experience was excellent. Into town early and got on street parking in a great spot just off Lombard St. Bag drop etc. was very handy. Orange wave was packed. I was right at the back and joined the portaloo queue about 8.10. Got out, after nearly puking with the lovely smell at 8.28.

Decided to go for conservative enough start and see if I could pick up pace with the favourable profile in the second half. I thought 1.52 was in range, 1.50 if the day was perfect. In hindsight, had a wedding the weekend before and a lot of people were sick after, I wasn’t too bad but resting heart rate was notably up mid week and my notoriously dodgy tummy was acting up.

Anyway, as usual, I ignored this things and went with the original plan. First mile was grand, I didn’t mind the congestion and building into it fairly slowly. Clocked in at 8.41and picked up on the fairy flat second mile to 8.32. Eased off on the long drag of mile three and four, clocking 9.03 and 8.55. The 1.50 was realistically already off the cards at that stage and I was trying to keep an eye on heart rate a bit and I was already working harder than I hoped (over 170 seems to be point of no return at the moment).

Once the more favourable part of the course kicked in I did start to push on again. Great buzz going through the mile where most of the Tallaght AC volunteers were posted. Mile 5 was 8.30 followed by 8.24 and 8.21. Tried to gather myself on miles 8 & 9 with the drop onto the coast road, I knew I was getting dangerously close to the red line. They came in at 8.32 and 8.33. Tried to tuck in and just follow some bodies in mile 10 but I was starting to blow up and dropped off to an 8.51 pace.

It was a mental game now of trying to work out if I could keep jogging and ease off the pace enough to recover or if I was going to have to stop for a walk. Got to 10.7 miles or so (by Garmin) and I was cooked. Decided to walk and take in the view for a bit. I’m miles away from PBs or even my best from last year so decided to just try and recover and take as long as I walk as I felt like. Walked for over 2 minutes and got moving again. The mile clocked in at 10.29. I was still struggling though and took another similar length break at 11.6 miles.

This time it was enough to properly recover and I managed to get back up to a decent trot until the end. 10.11 for mile 12 and 8.48 for mile 13. Not much of a kick for the last bit with 8.06 average pace. The finish stretch was great, although I did nearly trip on the first blue carpet as I wasn’t doing a great job picking up my feet!

Crossed the line in 1.57.13. Three half marathons in 9 weeks wasn’t a great idea. Especially with the best part of 8 weeks off following DCM and no training runs over 10 miles. Learned a lot in terms of where my fitness is and when it’s better to stop and recover rather than keep slogging. Probably could have gotten in under 1.55 if I’d had it in me to really suffer on Sunday, but it would have been pointless. I’m trying to build fitness and wanted to at least be able to take some enjoyment out of the day.

Main focus now is Terenure 5 miles. I really want to see 36.xx on the clock and I think it’s very doable. Looking at some BHAA 5ks, maybe Naas 5 miles too. Irish runner 5 mile, and then DCM race series 10k, 10 mile and half. I still think I can get into the low 1.40s by the September half. But main focus now is 5k-10k and getting some speed into the legs.