Dream big, work hard, achieve your goals - My DCM '19 Journey

Laineyfrecks

Better late than never i suppose

Decided to start my own running log to help me on my journey to my very 1st marathon!

I am a mammy to 4 children & recently a beautiful grandson plus i work full time ,so kinda always busy haha
I have always been quite a fit person. Have tried many sports including football & Kickboxing but decided my true love is indeed running! I have ran on & off more or less for years but only short distances & never racing. I decided last year that i was going to concentrate on my running & maybe push myself to achieve certain goals after a milestone birthday (currently making me 40 and 14 months:D ) So Jan 2019 was the beginning of my Journey, i started entering races & getting some nice medals & PB's too Then i decided i needed a proper challenge to test me so what better than the DCM!! I was gutted to learn it was sold out but then i was extremely lucky to get a spot!

My PB's to date are
5k - 21.29 - Tallaght Athletics 5k race
10k - 47.07 - South Dublin 10k a couple of weeks ago

I joined the Novice DCM thread on here & decided(with the guidance of the mentors)to follow the boards plan, which has been invaluable to me...quote" if you think you're going slow enough go slower"..unquote This was the toughest piece of advice for me & took a while to actually sink in & understand it! Some days are easier than others but i think i have slowed down a good bit. With the help of my mentors my paces for now based on my current fitness are

PMP 9m/m
Easy/Lsr 10 - 10.20
Recovery 10.30ish

DCM wk 5 -Todays easy run went really well, was gonna leave it till after work but after seeing that rain glad i didn't!! Started off at a nice comfortable pace & ran roughly at 10.02 m/m for 6 miles. Did a few stretches after as i find i have been neglecting these recently, being honest i have never been the best at stretching so need to get on top of that too!

Any advice will be gladly taken on board, i may not always agree with it but i will listen

skyblue46

Welcome to the logs. All the best with your DCM training. I think you're going to nail it!

Treviso

Great to see that you've started a training log, I will follow with interest.

Your DCM training so far has been very diligent with most runs at the right pace. Best of luck with the log

Mr. Guappa

Best of luck with the log! Nice job with the training to date

Kellygirl

Best of luck with the log and the training. It’s amazing being part of the novices group and makes DCM really special.

Laineyfrecks

skyblue46 wrote: »

Welcome to the logs. All the best with your DCM training. I think you're going to nail it!

Thats the dream

All i can say is that i feel fully committed & focused & once i take on board all the good advice i don't see why its not achievable!!

Laineyfrecks

Treviso wrote: »

Great to see that you've started a training log, I will follow with interest.

Your DCM training so far has been very diligent with most runs at the right pace. Best of luck with the log

Thanks a mill, i have started following your log too so best of luck with that & of course the marathon:)

Laineyfrecks

Mr. Guappa wrote: »

Best of luck with the log! Nice job with the training to date

Thanks a mill & thanks for all the advice so far, i'm sure i still have lots & lots to learn but as i say i am fully committed to doing this marathon to the best of my ability so any advice will be taken on board

Laineyfrecks

Kellygirl wrote: »

Best of luck with the log and the training. It’s amazing being part of the novices group and makes DCM really special.

Thanks a mill & best of luck to you too!! Yes as i train alone 99% of the time its brilliant to have this group to chat to & get advice

Bananaleaf

Welcome! Looking forward to the logs and the emojis You seem to be really enjoying the journey so far!

Laineyfrecks

Bananaleaf wrote: »

Welcome! Looking forward to the logs and the emojis You seem to be really enjoying the journey so far!

Sure you've gotta love an aul emoji or 2

I've never ever had a structured plan & was a bit hesitant but yes so far i am enjoying the structure & knowing what my goals for each week are! In saying that with life being life some days just don't go to plan exactly but i always push myself & make it happen & usually i feel sooooo much better after

ariana`

You have fantastic PBs for an on/off runner, you're going to be an exciting one to watch!

Best of luck with the log and DCM, you're in the best of hands with the team of mentors this year.

Laineyfrecks wrote: »

Sure you've gotta love an aul emoji or 2

I've never ever had a structured plan & was a bit hesitant but yes so far i am enjoying the structure & knowing what my goals for each week are! In saying that with life being life some days just don't go to plan exactly but i always push myself & make it happen & usually i feel sooooo much better after

Great attitude

Laineyfrecks

ariana` wrote: »

You have fantastic PBs for an on/off runner, you're going to be an exciting one to watch!

Best of luck with the log and DCM, you're in the best of hands with the team of mentors this year.



Great attitude

Thanks a mill, completing my very 1st marathon is a dream for me I honestly believed only "real runners" complete them but here i am haha!

Yes the advice & experience will be invaluable over the coming months

Laineyfrecks

Wednesday - 1m w/u 5m pmp 1m c/d

Mile 1 - 9.38
Mile 2 - 8.30
Mile 3 - 9.27
Mile 4 - 8.56
Mile 5 - 9.02
Mile 6 - 8.55
Mile 7 - 9.43

Started off with my 1m w/u which could be a bit slower then i seemed to struggle a bit trying to get a consistent time for the next 2 miles! One was too fast & the other too slow which did frustrate me!! I was trying to calculate the time on watch so i could try to even out the rest(my Garmin watch is pretty basic) I continued on at a steadier pace & was happy enough with it once i settled down. I think i have the instinct now to run my slow runs without too much looking at my watch but need to focus when doing my pmp:)

Note to myself only to wear running vests in this weather!! I had a running tshirt on & my god i felt clamy & horrible straight away:(

Treviso

Your Garmin (even the basic models) should have a setting to display the average pace for the mile/lap - so you know what minute mile pace you're doing.

I remember getting my first garmin and it was set to Pace by default - not sure why that is the case. Change it to Lap Pace instead.

Time to get out the manual!

Laineyfrecks

Treviso wrote: »

Your Garmin (even the basic models) should have a setting to display the average pace for the mile/lap - so you know what minute mile pace you're doing.

I remember getting my first garmin and it was set to Pace by default - not sure why that is the case. Change it to Lap Pace instead.

Time to get out the manual!

Cheers will root it out

Laineyfrecks

Thursday 1/08 - 3m recovery run

Mile 1 - 10.46
Mile 2 - 10.15
Mile 3 - 10.00

Started out really well - concious to keep the pace quite slow. Was happy when i seen the time! It did feel extremely slow but as it was so hot i actually enjoyed it. Mile 2 also felt really comfortable but did realise i had picked the pace up slowly. Mile 3 i ended up chatting to a retired member of staff who still comes in & does his lunch runs & he even slowed down his pace to run with me :O but i did feel him pick up the pace slowly & i really didn't want to say it to him so i kept with him then he went off his way!
He gave me lots of encouragement which was lovely as he has ran quite a few Marathons himself !
All in all it was actually a really nice recovery run despite it being so hot

Baby75

Good luck with the Journey to DCM19 you are in great hands with the mentors and probably make life long friends as well

looking forward to following you along the way

Laineyfrecks

Baby75 wrote: »

Good luck with the Journey to DCM19 you are in great hands with the mentors and probably make life long friends as well

looking forward to following you along the way

Thanks a mill, enjoying the journey so far

Bluesquare

Welcome to the wonderful world of logging . You have great pbs - looking forward to reading about your marathon training and first marathon !

Laineyfrecks

Bluesquare wrote: »

Welcome to the wonderful world of logging . You have great pbs - looking forward to reading about your marathon training and first marathon !

Thank you It's mad to think i didn't have a PB till i started racing in Jan, they are very addictive:O

Laineyfrecks

Friday 2/08 - 3m recovery run(optional on plan)

Mile 1 - 9.31
Mile 2 - 11.15
Mile 3 - 10.19

Ok so mile 1 was too fast, it seems to take me a mile or 2 to settle but it will be worked on! Mile 2 i consciously slowed down which really felt slow but with the extremely hot sun beating down it was very enjoyable. Mile 3 was a really nice pace & as i came up through thhe college on the home stretch "All you need is Love" blasted from my headphones which made me smile, i'm sure anyone that passes me thinks i'm nuts, either singing along to the songs or just smiling

Anyways i decided to run today as i think its important to get that extra little run in if i feel the week has gone well! I will defo keep 1 full rest day & maybe some weeks i will still need the 2 but for now i shall try to build the milage

gypsylee

Good luck on your marathon journey. Looking forward to reading about your progress. DCM 19 will be a great event for you.

Laineyfrecks

gypsylee wrote: »

Good luck on your marathon journey. Looking forward to reading about your progress. DCM 19 will be a great event for you.

Thank you Really looking forward to the journey myself!

Laineyfrecks

Saturday 3rd Aug - 16mile LSR

Mile 1- 10.04
Mile 2 - 10.09
Mile 3 - 10.00
Mile 4 - 9.58
Mile 5 - 10.16
Mile 6 - 9.58
Mile 7 - 10.26
Mile 8 - 9.55
Mile 9 - 10.07
Mile 10 - 9.54
Mile 11 - 10.08
Mile 12 - 9.36
Mile 13 - 9.55
Mile 14 - 10.07
Mile 15 - 10.02
Mile 16 - 8.45

Had my usual breakfast of porridge followed by a banana & to be honest was dreading the thoughts of going out running for such a long time. I put a zero tab in my water & took 2 gels & off i went!!
Mile 1 - so far this has been my quick mile & i have really been trying to get it spot on so imagine my delight when my watch read 10.04:D i was delighted & proceded to do a little happy dance then continued on my way! The next few miles seemed to continue on really well, everything felt good so i was happy enough!
Mile 6 i took my 1st gel, all went fine with that washed it down with water & continued on my way passing a good few runners & giving the little runners salute as we passed each other, although there is one runner who always gives me a thumbs up & it makes me smile!!
Mile 7 to 9 was good i had to just keep chatting in my head & reminding myself that once i got to Lucan i was turning around & on the home stretch (even tho its the same distance back to my house i always feel more positive knowing i am on route towards my house)
Mile 10 i took my 2nd gel & all felt good up till mile 12! Then i faced the dredded mountain,well it turns out that this section of my run home is actually a drag & not a mountain as i previously thought haha so my legs were tired goi g up this drag but i did my usual giant, kinda stride like steps to get me up whilst singing The greatest by Sia..woo oh oh i got stamina...really wishing i had more at this stage!! Once i got past this i actually settled back in & felt really good for the rest of the run!!

Got home & did some stretches then headed into town for a well deserved meal & some drinks(although i was shattered by 12 haha felt like Cinderella needing to get home!!)

Sunday 4th Aug - 3mile recovery

Mile 1 - 10.35
Mile 2 - 10.25
Mile 3 - 10.14

Thankfully no sore head today so the recovery run went well, slowed down as much as possible:D

Looking forward to head into week 6 of my training;)

Laineyfrecks

Week 6 - Mon 5 August 3mile recovery

Mile 1 - 10.10
Mile 2 - 10.19
Mile 3 - 10.30

Wasn't going to do this run today as i was just going to rest but after visiting my friend Sandra i felt i needed it to clear the head a bit, nice consistent slow pace too!

So i have decided to raise money for the Irish Kidney Association which is the charity my very good friend Sandra choose. Sandra has an extremely rare illness called Von Hippel Lindav which basically creates cancerous tumors that attack firstly the kidneys then the brain. Sandra lost her mam & 2 sisters to this horrible illness & tonight she informed us that the cancer which had been dormant in her body up till the start of this year has now spread to a lot more organs in her body! She had a kidney removed a couple of months ago & now it looks like the other one is only 50% functioning but with tumours in other organs what happens next is unknown. She wrote a piece for me to share with my fundraising because like me she wants as much money as possible raised!!

Once i got home, although i was tired & emotional, i needed to run! This Marathon means so much to me now more than ever so in crossing that line i want to make her proud!!

Bananaleaf

Oh wow, so sorry to hear this E. I am sure that the support of great friends such as yourself will be very important to her. Make sure to share the link so we can donate. Well done on getting out for the run even though it must have been hard.

eabha19

Well done Laineyfrecks on all your training - you're flying it. Really sorry to hear abut what your friend is going through. I've been wondering about running for charity too as I am telling myself this is my one and only marathon, it seems like maybe I should make it worthwhile.

P.S. I'm the same with trying to run at PMP, it's hard to find that not too slow, not too fast pace.

Huzzah!

I'm sorry to hear about your friend. It's very generous of you to commit to raising money for the cause. Please do share the link to your fundraising here when it's available. I'm sure there are many here who would like to donate.

Laineyfrecks

Thanks a mill for the kind comments, was quite an emotional evening & i think i just wanted to explain as its part of my DCM journey! Onwards & upwards focus on the rest of my training

Laineyfrecks

https://m.gofund.me/the-irish-kidney-association

That is the link above for my donation page! No pressure at all for anyone to sponsor me. Thanks a mill