Last of the Summer Wine

Murph_D

Week of 30 May

A session, a mini-taper and a race. But no fireworks.

Mon 30 May

67 mins easy with some strides - Howth Road to St. Annes and back via the coast.

Tue 31 May

Hill pyramid - 10/20/23/40/45/40/30/20/10 secs, with warmup and cooldown.

An outing to see a relative’s play meant there was no opportunity to do this until near midnight, which was an interesting experience. A local hill off Griffith Ave - had it to myself of course with hardly any traffic either, so no issue running it on the road. It probably took me longer to set up the watch for this than to do the session itself (no chance of eyeballing the watch in the dark, so I needed the beeps). I really enjoyed this and I think the effort was very honest for all the reps, even the longer ones. Not the most difficult hill but I wasn’t going to drive to Howth at this hour of the night.

May total: 332 kms (206 mi) 

Wed 1 Jun

30 mins recovery in the local park.

Thu 2 Jun

Not much running today either. Brought the lad to a GAA match in Cabinteely and took the opportunity to visit the lovely Cabinteely Park. But it was bucketing rain and I wanted to support the team for the 2nd half so cut this one nice and short - 26 mins. 

Fri 3 Jun

Rest.

Sat 4 Jun

29 mins easy in St. Anne’s park with C, D and M, followed by coffee etc. Interesting to inspect the concert setup in the park. Cut out of the coffee earlier than usual to drive down to Cork.

Sun 5 Jun

Cork Half Marathon: 1:35:16

We were in a nice hotel but as usual I got hardly any sleep the night before. I partly blame myself for this. We went for a lovely dinner with AGYR and partner and then while waiting for the lift in the hotel lobby decided at the last minute to have a nightcap (it was still early, and I'd stuck to the water over the meal). I’m continuing a relatively abstemious lifestyle with no midweek drinking but ordered a pint of Guinness, which arrived a little sloppy. Not the worst I’ve ever downed but not the best either. Thought little of it but it didn’t sit right with me and I felt a bit wired and got hardly any sleep - however lack of sleep is not an unusual pre-race experience for me, so maybe it's unfair to blame the sloppy pint. 😁 On the other hand, writing this report now over a much better Rebel Red in the hotel bar. Life is good. Moral: if you must drink a pint, stick to the local brew.

Anyways.

Early breakfast, a rest, then put on the Sanctuary Runners singlet and said goodbye to the mrs, who was running a relay leg with a SR team. Jogged to the start, bumped into a couple of clubmates, and soon we were off. Started briskly enough on some nice leafy roads around Pairc Ui Chaoimh, then merged in mile 2 with the marathon. The timing of this meant I would be running the second half with 3:30ish marathoners at first, progressing through the field, which promised to be motivational enough, passing plenty of people, while also of course being passed by speedy relay people every so often. Plenty of action!

From the start though I felt a bit flat and found that earlier than usual I had to concentrate hard on digging in and just trying to get the basics done. The first few miles went quite well - I had identified a potential age rival (Grey) who looked like a decent runner and ran close to him out the South Link Road, a dual carriageway with a nice drag. He got away from me a bit on the steep exit into Turner’s Cross, but whenever there was a bit of downhill (and the course has plenty of ups and downs) I would catch up again. Wasn’t sure at first if Grey was a marathon or half marathon runner so stole a glance at his bib on one of my passes, the flash of blue confirming yes, a rival. Nipped and tucked throughout the middle third of the race which kept me honest and the concentration levels high - which was important because the course is a good bit hillier than I remembered from the couple of Cork Marathons I’ve done (I obviously blocked out a few of the hills in the late-stage marathon fog). A couple of pretty testing drags, but it’s a great race with enthusiastic if relatively sparse support in the outer reaches. 7:10 was the pace I was trying to hit and despite the ups and downs and the general grind, the competition with Rival kept me on track for 10 miles, through the worst of the hills.

Have I mentioned the weather? It was drizzly all the way, with a good bit of standing water on parts of the course but nothing too bad and of course the rain was nice and cooling, rendering the water stations less important than usual, although I grabbed water when necessary, cooled the calves (it's a probably useless habit I've developed) and just a little rinse of the mouth really.

Then, that turn onto that long, dead-straight road (Carrigrohane) back towards town and I was beginning to flag. I’ve been finishing races well in recent times but when Grey sidled past here I was unable to repeat the pattern of the previous 7 miles where I’d managed to fend him off and push ahead every time. Fair play to him, finishing well, but my own splits in the final three miles, into the wind and rain on the endless thoroughfare, suggested I’d finally been found out and the jig was up. Grey's lead was growing, but slowly enough that I entertained ideas of being able to dig something heroic out of the bag in the last mile and a half, but 'twas not to be. To be honest I was looking at my watch now, desperate to be finished. I did pass a good few flagging marathoners and half marathoners in the final stages - enough to feel like the performance was not a total bust - and I enjoyed the excitement of the last half mile through the well thronged city centre streets, with plenty of support for the Sanctuary singlet.

Dug out a reasonable finish, passing a few in the last few hundred meters, but ultimately I knew I’d left it behind and there was little solace in crossing in an unofficial time of around 1:35:19 - about 90 secs off PB performance and only a fifth or sixth best time for the distace. Mediocre enough on paper but probably the most difficult HM course I’ve run yet, so not all negative and a reasonably strong run.

Just a pity that I couldn’t close it out after doing all the hard work well, against the odds, in the first 10 miles.

A very pleasant gathering afterwards in Princes St with the Sanctuary people - music, pizza, chats. Met some new people. It's always inspiring to hear what our Direct Provision people are capable of, despite what they have been through. Kudos to all of them.

• Previous PB: 1:33:52 (Fastlane 2021)
• Target: 1:33:51
• Result 1:35:16
• 257th position (of 3,193)
• Category result - 2nd M60 (of 28)
• VDOT: 47.7
• Age Grade: 75.6%
• Verdict: Disappointing, but possibly better than it looks.

This week: 56k (35m) - 308 mins

This month: 37 (23)

This year: 1,472 (915)

 

DeepBlue

Well done. There's plenty that would kill for your "mediocre enough" result. 😄

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119162053#Comment_119162053

Ah yes absolutely and fair enough - it's all relative. There are plenty of people out there today who ran slower times but ran a far better race, no doubt about that! Presume you ran it yourself - how'd you get on?

DeepBlue

Indeed it's all relative. Results we would have given our eye teeth for in the past are now discarded like used face masks as we reach for the next milestone. 😁

Current official result for me says 1.39.07 (possibly gun time?). Garmin says 1.38.19 where I started the watch on the start mat and stopped it on the finish mat. The latter time would be 9 seconds slower than my PB but I'd be pretty happy with that given that Cork is a somewhat hillier course than Charleville. Tough enough ol' day all the same.

Murph_D

Great stuff. Definitely a much slower course than Charleville!

Swashbuckler

DD sent me on an excellent podcast with Lydiards most famous disciple, Nobby. He was asked a question about racing during the base and hill phase. His response was , you can but don't expect to pb...Just remember where you are at with training (and Covid recovery). You can almost bluff a 5k but there's no bluffing a distance that has you running for more than 1hr 30mins.

But I know what you mean. Sometimes results can feel underwhelming ..I think Charleville will forever be a tough comparison given its so fast and flat. I don't expect to beat my Charleville HM pb any time soon.

Well done on a solid run. Not a pb but let's wait for the next two phases before we judge your fitness 😉

Murph_D

Ha, very true re that quote.

It wasn’t so much the non-PB that irks me, more that the last three miles were the poorest. But I suppose that was because the tougher parts of the course had taken a bite out of me.

Still, 2nd M60 is always a decent result — although my Grey rival turned out to be an M65, so 3rd M60+ is a better way of putting it.

Happier today, especially after checking results and seeing that the times a couple of current and former clubmates told me they’d run turned out to have been much closer to my own than claimed. 🙄 I just don’t understand that kind of delusion!

Onwards.

Annie get your Run

Guinness in Cork?! Some pubs in the city don't even serve it 😀. It's a pity the weather was so grey, otherwise that tough stretch along Carrigrohane would have at least offered a gorgeous view of the Lee - although I suspect you wouldn't have noticed it anyway while racing. S often points out that hill up to Turners Cross as being one of the toughest on the marathon route and watching people slog up it yesterday while on the bus back in, I could see why. Great as always to catch up with you and A and the buzz afterwards was truly fantastic. Well done again.

AuldManKing

A good run none the less D - I'm still intrigued by feeling 'Flat' at the start.

Do you think this was done to still being in the Hill Phase as SB points out?

I've had races when I've felt like this - mainly in HM's now that I think of it. While I dont know why it happens (linked to Taper??) - I would say that 13.1 miles is a long way to go if you start off feeling flat at that HMP intensity - it does mess with your head initially and can take a while to snap out of it.

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119168182#Comment_119168182

Thanks A - yes, I do think the flatness is exactly that. I've felt it before during tune up races without any taper. While I took a few easy days before this race, it's no comparison at all with a race for which you've trained specifically and tapered appropriately (definitely not the case here on both fronts.) Add in the stage of marathon prep I'm at and that's another factor. Then there's the covid bout - didn't feel like much symptomatically, but there was no arguing with the elevated HR for several weeks afterwards, which has only been coming back to normal in the past couple of weeks. That's a lot of potential reasons to be flat on the day, without even factoring in the lack of sleep.

I must learn to lower my expectations results-wise while still putting in the race effort - because race efforts have always been an important part of my training (and a big part of why I run in the first place.)

Great stuff yourself in your recent race.

Duanington

Nice one D, onwards and upwards - its a strong run, in the middle of a strong phase, box ticked and more to come. SB has already stated above, you're a good bit away from being at peak racing sharpness and there are a few things to keep in mind here;

1 - the route, not easy

2 - Post COVID, only one real steady tester\workout since then.

3- Hill phase leaving you a little leggy (I can vouch for this, I certainly felt it at the end of some tough weeks of hills) - although, you're not that far into doing hill sessions so I'd be a little reluctant to point at this.

4 - a bit of everything....

Given that you were flagging at the end, I'd be inclined to think you're still a little off where you were pre-COVID, endurance wise but that'll bring you back nicely now.

Onwards !

demfad

Good effort in the race.

If left to my own devices I do my mini tapers by feel, then way over taper them.

Just noticed the mileage fell suddenly and a lot after Tuesday and you didn't get strides in since then.

Think that might have been the cause of some of the flatness.

Natural tendency is to over taper, that's what I do, but have changed recently to really planning and executing the taper well. It is an area where things can go a little wrong.

Anyway, having a run you feel was a little below par on a tough course that was after all quite close to PB is vindication of the aerobic approach you've taken. You are clearly very strong and in a good poistion.

Dubh Geannain

Aw. I was waiting for the big twist where "Grey" turned out to be a 35 yo runner.

Feeling flat while running on a hilly course but still clocking a 1:35. Sounds like you're in pretty good shape to me. Well run.

Murph_D

Week of 6 June

Mostly recovery

Mon 6 Jun

40 mins recovery.

The morning after the race before. Very creaky and hungover few miles around the UCC area (the last time I tried to come in here, on the same bank holiday weekend a few years ago, they wouldn’t let me in). Included a couple of laps of the Mardyke track. Some lovely running spots by the Lee, it has to be said.

Tue 7 Jun

Legs still sore. Took the day off.

Wed 8 Jun

61 mins easy out to St. Anne’s. The concert setup there looks like it’s more about selling beer than letting people have a good view of the stage. Feeling a bit less tired today.

Thu 9 Jun

60 mins with 30 at sub-threshold.

I had designs on a longer session but the HR was telling me that this wasn’t a good idea, so kept it to 30 mins.

Fri 10 Jun

63 mins easy / strides

Out the now standard route, seafront, St Anne’s, Howth Rd - its become the default one hour run. I’d had a stressful morning, interviewing for a job I’m not sure I want, so it was good to get out eventually.

Sat 11 Jun

St. Anne’s again! 47 mins easy - late for rendezvous but eventually found C and D en route. Coffee. 

Sun 12 Jun

LR 2 hours 11 mins

Out to UCD and a lap of the campus, only getting lost a couple of times. Love the trails here, so well laid out through the trees. A UCD parkrun would be nice. Good to see the progress on the new running track also. 

• This week: 71k (44m) - 401 mins
• This month: 108 (67)
• This year: 1,542 (959)

 

Murph_D

Week of 13 June

Mon 13 Jun

62 mins easy with 10 x 20s strides.

St. Anne’s loop after work. 20 seconds can feel quite long. 

Tue 14 Jun

4 x long hills

In Belfast overnight to do some research. Long day. Took the bike on the train - it’s a great way to do travel and Belfast is a good cycling city with segregated bike paths all along the Lagan. Considered leaving the session til I got home but tomorrow would be a tiring day too. Did a quick google and found some suggestions for hills, and on the way up the Ormeau Road I found a perfect hill up to the Belvoir golf club. A steeper grade than Strava suggests, I think. Not as long as the hill that was on the plan but it had to do. Thought I was making up for this with an extra rep but then DD told me how long the Corkscrew really is. Still, got the HRR up to 94%, which probably means I could have gone harder. Definitely felt I could have done another one, and the last one was the quickest. Probably averaged about 1:42 per rep.

Wed 15 Jun

Near sleepless night with noisy street life. Up with the larks for an easy hour around Queens and Ormeau Park. Too early for the Botanic Garden but at least a couple of the park gates were open. Nice park. 

Thu 16 Jun

58 mins easy.

That Strava one year popup reminded me I’d gone through 1,000 miles this day last year. Still about 17 short this year which isn’t bad with the forced two-week break in April. Headed up to Albert College via DCU. Muggy night for it.

• This week: 40k (25m)
• This month: 148 (92)
• This year: 1,582 (983)

Murph_D

Fri 17 Jun

113 mins with 90 @ steady 

Out to the Phoenix Park from the office. No HRM so all by feel today - very humid afternoon and I struggled to hit anything to write home about pace-wise. Just another one checked off - hopefully the effort was right.

Sat 18 Jun

11 mins easy. Volunteering at parkrun and just about squeezed in a couple of kms beforehand. On finish token duty today - haven’t done this role for quite a while and good to reacquaint myself with the line of happy, bonked parkrunners. On fire today in terms of coordinating timer and tokens. Only one minor adjustment required!

Sun 19 Jun

LR 127 mins inc. Sanctuary Run 2022 @ steady

Took part in this friendly event at the National Sports Campus. The place was looking magnificent. Got in an hour of a long run around the cross country course, then the 5.3k event, then a couple of cooldown runs to bring the total up over the two hours and eight hours for the week. 1,000th mile of the year ticked off a few days later than last year.

• This week: 86k (53m) - 485 mins
• This month: 194 (121)
• This year: 1,628 (1,012)

 

Murph_D

Week of 20 June

Last few weeks of the ‘hill transition’ phase, before 12 weeks of sharpening. I have to say this schedule feels quite different to anything I’ve done before - the mileage is about the same as I’ve been doing the past couple of years, but the structure of the week is quite different, with the Friday steady MLR especially feeling quite late in the week, which loads a lot of mileage/time on feet into the Fri-Sun period. But I’m enjoying it - consolidating the time on feet at eight hours a week from here forward will be challenging enough.

Mon 20 Jun

66 mins easy with 10 x 20s strides.

The standard loop out through St. Anne’s loop after work. Mingling with concert crowds near Fairview Park at the end. Did the strides in the middle, mostly on the main Avenue in St. Anne’s, slightly downhill but with the headwind. Definitely spices up the run a lot. 

Tue 21 Jun

Hill Pyramid: 2 x (10/20/30/40/30/21/10 secs) 

Having missed the Howth ‘corkscrew’ sessions the past two weeks due to (i) Cork HM and (ii) travel, I was going to sub one of them in for tonight’s session but DD advised sticking to the plan. Ever the sage, and who am I to argue? Found an ideal hill, up through Charlemont from the Griffith Ave gates - continuous climb that’s more than long enough for the longest rep (40s), unlike the nearby Sion Hill I used a few weeks ago. 20 mins warmup, then off we went. The 10s version is so short it gives you a false sense of hope, then by the end of the 20s you’re beginning to realise what 40 is going to feel like. The hill was busy enough with walkers and kids on bikes and cars emerging from the GAA pitches at the Marino institute. One on one of the longer reps I found myself racing a car up the hill as the driver struggled with his gears. 40s is a bit of a lungbuster but the prospect of coming down the ladder is very motivational, then when you’re going back up again at least you know what to expect. Focused on running hard, but smoothly with form and control. At the end I felt great, and could have done a few more for sure. Very gentle cooldown however - I’m feeling a tiny stiffness at the back of the right ankle that’s hopefully not going to go anywhere.  

• This week: 21k (13m)
• This month: 215 (134)
• This year: 1,649 (1,025)

MrMacPhisto

If you are running 'off peak', the Malahide Road up from Griffith Avenue towards Donnycarney is a nice wee hill. With a bit of caution towards cyclists, I have used the nice tarmac of the road/bike lane, but the pavement is pretty good too. I have used it for 400m reps in the past. That being said it was during Covid times and the traffic was probably significantly lighter. The only traffic you may encounter is the Fire Brigade and Nursing home entrances.

Swashbuckler

Whats the recovery for those hill reps i.e. duration and walk/jog/run fast down the hill?

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119235572#Comment_119235572

Yes, considered that one alright - it's essentially the same hill, just a bit to the East - I thought it would be a bit too busy for the reasons you mention, and it's narrow around the bus stop area. Would definitely use it later or earlier though. Great to have a good selection of hills so close by as I live in Fairview.

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119235704#Comment_119235704

Good point, that should have been mentioned alright - in general the brief (as far as I interpret anyway) is to be as fully recovered as possible so as to be able to concentrate on form/control. Slow jog down is what I favoured, walking the first few steps after the longer reps. The result was what felt like a fairly consistent pace, although it's not obvious from Garmin/Strava which struggles to catch up on the shorter reps.

MisterJinx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119235905#Comment_119235905

Mobhi Road is a good one as well. The path on the opposite side to Na Fianna is good and wide. Options for anything from 100m to nearly 800m if you start at the junction of Botanic road. The length of Griffith Ave would be a nice warm up 😉

Murph_D

True, I used to curse that hill in my DCU days when I often had to face it at the end of MLRs and sessions. Washerwoman’s as well, while we are in the D9 vicinity. But I stress - these and the above are all essentially the same hill, rising up from the Tolka plains towards the Collins Ave plateau. 😉

MisterJinx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119236109#Comment_119236109

I curse it or washerwomans everytime I come home from a long run, I've no other way of getting home!!

True but I think the D9/D11 end of GA is higher than the other end so there might be some additional pain elevation possible if you are so inclined....

Murph_D

Fri 24 Jun

126 mins with 90 @ steady 

The now regular late-afternoon steady run in the Phoenix Park. I’ve struggled to get a proper handle on these runs since the Covid bout, while still managing to get through them at more for less the right effort levels. I don’t usually wear the supershoes for training sessions but made an exception today, to help my confidence as much as anything else. To be honest I couldn’t feel much difference but sure enough the paces were a little bit perkier than of late. Was also wearing a singlet to help with the air flow on another humid day so that might have helped too. Plus I have to keep reminding myself that we are still in basebuilding mode.

I seem to spot AMK every time I enter the Park these days, and sure enough another sighting today on OS Road.

Sat 25 Jun

48 mins inc. 24 steady.

Pacer day at St. Anne’s where I assumed the usual 24 min slot, clocking 23:59 with pretty even splits. Didn’t have much of a group with me, unfortunately. Maybe people are tiring of my motivational banter. 😜 Have to admit I found the gig a bit more challenging than usual with tired legs from yesterday's long session.

I was chatting to a runner who was jogging comfortably along having raced during the week. Thought she looked sort of familiar - turned out she was an Olympic sailor and Irish flag bearer in the Beijing opening ceremony. The people you meet at St. Anne’s! Another couple of miles afterwards with M followed by the usual coffee. The mrs made her return to St Anne’s after a long break and was delighted to get around in one piece.

Sun 26 Jun

LR 117 mins

Not at my best for this after having some friends over for dinner the previous night. Headed along the coast out to Bayside and rather than turn back into the wind I kept running and went over Howth Head instead, treating myself to a sports drink and the Dart home. Didn’t feel too bad in the end but I took things very handy. 56 miles for the week in 8.5 hours.  

• This week: 90k (56m) - 514 mins
• This month: 284 (176)
• This year: 1,718 (1,068)

Murph_D

Week of 27 June

Two more weeks of hills/steady stuff, then it will be into the next phase. Not quite sure what’s in store but the coach has been concocting a schedule that promises to be tasty.

Mon 27 Jun

Rest. After nineteen days without a rest day it felt like it was time.  

Tue 28 Jun

Hill Pyramid: 2 x (10/20/30/40/30/21/10 secs) 

Repeat of last week’s session, on the same hill off Griffith Avenue. Joined by M and D for this one, which made it easier and harder at the same time - easier because you’re not doing it alone, harder because having others around you, especially faster lads, makes you push it a bit more. We took turns to lead out and the session went by in a flash. Took the recoveries even easier than last week, walk/jog down, making sure to be totally recovered, i.e. HR back down in zone 1, before tackling the next. I felt the pressure on my ‘lead outs’ and probably went at it too hard, accused afterwards of Boy Racer behaviour. Enjoyed this, and more tired than usual afterwards. Short cooldown, 58 mins total for the night.

Wed 29 Jun

50 mins recovery around Marino, Donnycarney, Artane, Drumcondra. Right hamstring slightly tender after last night's activities. Should be fine though.

• This week: 16k (10m)
• This month: 300 (186)
• This year: 1,734 (1,078)

Murph_D

Thu 30 Jun

54 mins @ recovery

Met up with a friend for a few easy miles around DIT Grangegorman and the Phoenix Park. Good conversation, good times. June total: 308 km (191 mi)

Fri 1 Jul

121 mins with 90 @ steady 

To the Phoenix Park again. Had had a good day at work and this often carries through to feeling good on the run. Jogged out along the quays - like last week, I didn’t try to start the steady stuff before getting there (too much of a headwreck in the congested streets) and did all of the session within the Park. This makes for a much more pleasant run. Figure of 8 around the North perimeter, Chesterfield, South perimeter, Chesterfield again. Speed 2 felt good during the session. All by HR, and didn’t find myself dropping off the effort levels as much as some weeks. Luas back to city centre from Houston (brought my leap card and mask). Genuinely don't understand how some people give out about not being able to get to the park on public transport. You can see the buses and trams from the gates, and hear the commuter and intercity trains. Dublin Bike station too. And that's just the main gate. 🙄

Delighted to see Laineyfrecks get the kind of 5k result she deserves in Leixlip tonight. Talk about nailing it. Regretting offering to run the first half of the Frank Duffy with her now. 😅

• This week: 47k (29m)
• This month: 23 (14)
• This year: 1,765 (1,097)

Got a tasty looking marathon sharpening schedule today from D - looks interesting with plenty of stuff in there that's outside my comfort zone in terms of the type of schedule I've done before. Looking forward to it, starting that phase the week after next when I'll be in Germany for work, just to make things even more interesting. Must start digging out the German heat maps.

Laineyfrecks

Nice run there yesterday D well done, need to get myself back into the park soon.

Thanks a mill, I'm honestly still buzzing this morning, as it was my last attempt I was just hoping I'd get 19:59! Haha Frank Duffy should be good craic considering we are so simular in our times, bring on some healthy competition 😜

Murph_D

I’m thinking @Laineyfrecks is far too eager to go head to head with me. Setting myself up for a clobbering! I have a long history of being handed my ass by talented female boardsies.

Laineyfrecks

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119280773#Comment_119280773

Not at all @Murph_D 😜 you are in great nick right now so it's fair game😁

Murph_D

Just getting the excuses in early!

Murph_D

Sat 2 Jul

Ardgillan parkrun @ easy/steady

Up the M1 to tick off another Dublin parkrun. Only about a 30-minute drive. The crew was very relaxed getting started, sportingly waiting for all the regulars to arrive, and it was probably about 9:40 by the time the RD counted us down and about 60 runners took off. I knew what to expect from other people’s experiences of this course. It's definitely one of the tougher parkruns in terms of gradient and surface. Spectacular location though. Tipped around in about 26 mins then jogged back a little bit to join the mrs, therefore having to do that killer uphill finish twice. Fine coffee shop in the castle, although a lot of these places are becoming eye-wateringly expensive. All in all a very pleasant experience, and we had a nice chat with the RD and a couple of the locals, who are a very friendly bunch.

Sun 3 Jul

LR 127 mins

Was a bit worried about this morning’s LR as the right leg in the achilles area has been feeling a bit... not sore really but just noticeable. So I made sure to have my leap card with me in case I had to cut the run short. Needn’t have worried - all was good on this trek out to UCD for a circuit of the trails. Rewarded myself with a monster fry up. #breakfastofchampions.

• This week: 76k (47m) - 447 mins
• This month: 52 (32)
• This year: 1,794 (1,115)

Swashbuckler

What shoes do you wear on those long runs? (Both vanilla and the steady ones)

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119284726#Comment_119284726

Usually Nike Zoom Fly or Saucony Speed. Wore the vaporflys on one of the recent steady ones. Speed 2 for both the steady and the vanilla this week. You know me - I don't think about shoes too much, although I have certainly started using more of them in last two years.

AuldManKing

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119285264#Comment_119285264

Swashbuckler will unfollow you for that comment. "I don't think about shoes too much"

Swashbuckler

Firstly I agree completely with what AMK said 🤣

To be honest there was a motivation for asking. If there's a bit of an injury or annoyance I was thinking why not just take that little bit extra by wearing one of the higher grade shoes. Might make zero difference with injuries but sometimes even a little mental edge helps these things become less noticeable .. seems like you already are wearing them though.

Murph_D

Yep, I’ve pretty much used some form of carbon or nylon plated shoe for every session since I bought my original Speeds. I do love the Zoom Fly more than any other shoe and would wear it all the time if I could.

The ‘pre-niggle’ seems fine now - if anything I think doing a hard hill session last week wearing a pair of adidas SL20 might have contributed to the temporary discomfort. The one session not done wearing the above. Or just a coincidence more likely.

Murph_D

Week of 4 July

Final week of the ‘hill transition’ phase. Will be in Donegal for a good bit of it.

Mon 4 Jul

Rest. The weather was dry after the long drive from Dublin so cross-trained with a strimmer instead. Had to be done if we were to get in the front door. 

Tue 5 Jul

30 mins MP, 8 x 20 secs hills  

The first run in a long time that was based on an actual pace, which felt a bit odd. I was at the desk all day and not in great humour starting out after a kind of frustrating day, working on something I thought I’d finished with several weeks ago. Cool but blustery day up here. Warmed up and started the MP on a downhill section of the familiar local loop. Effort levels felt high which I put down to being a bit tight and unrelaxed. Funny though - afterwards the HR data suggested I was not working as hard as I’d thought for as much of the run as I'd thought, which is interesting in light of the conversation about HR training/racing we’ve been having on the Marathon Improvers Thread - sorry to keep bringing this back up, @Lazare. 😁 Completed the 30 mins at an average pace a second or two over target, which wasn’t bad for the terrain. 5 mins cooldown then the hill repeats on one of the many local inclines. No drama there, quite enjoyed them. Not the most isolated of the local roads - neighbours probably thought I was mad.   

Wed 6 Jul

62 mins easy.

Dropped the boys to the cinema in Bundoran, then had to bring the car to the charger in nearby Ballyshannon (charging infrastructure is thin on the ground around here). With some time to kill, it was the perfect opportunity to revisit a route that I ran with @OOnegative a few years back, along the dam and reservoir above the town.

• This week: 23k (14m)
• This month: 75 (47)
• This year: 1,817 (1,129)

Murph_D

Thu 7 Jul

65 mins @ recovery

The Gilbertstown loop. There is no flat ground around here so a true recovery is never really possible unless you walked half of it, which I didn’t. 

Fri 8 Jul

99 mins with 80 @ steady 

Back in Dublin - decided to go easy on myself after the drive and not choose a taxing route for this week’s ‘steady’ session. Headed out the coast, so staying on the flat. I turned a little too early back into the wind (oddly, the leaves were barely rustling on the bushes but the wind seemed stronger - suggesting I wasn’t in great shape for this one. The schedule is for 80 to 90 mins so I cut this one off at the bare minimum. 

Sat 9 Jul

Griffeen parkrun @ HM pace

Time to cross another Dublin parkrun off the list. Headed out to Lucan and parked at the Supervalu and jogged the 700m to the start area. A smallish group and I found myself picking my way steadily through the field during the first half at a comfortable pace. There was one aul lad who didn’t like being passed and got back on my shoulder before I moved on again. I suppose this set a kind of semi competitive mindset and I decided I’d at least try to hold my position through the second lap which kept the effort levels fairly high. THere’s a bit of a drag towards the end and I felt a bit hosed after it and eased up a little, letting a couple of runners past, including my auld rival, who jogged off the course before the finish loudly telling everyone in earshot ‘sure it’s only a training run’. Exactly. 22:26, so around HM pace in the end.

Sun 10 Jul

LR 145 mins

We dropped the lad to the bus to the Gaeltacht from Clare Hall so I took the opportunity to start the LR from there and head out to Malahide and back via Portmarnock and Baldoyle. This felt nice at first with plenty of shade in Kinsealy and the Malahide Demesne, but once on the coastal path the sun was beating down and I had to pick my way around scores of strollers. Left the coast at Howth Road to get some shade over the final miles. Just slow and easy was the order of the day but the heat had me keeping an eye on the HR. All good. Longest run of the year.

 

• This week: 87k (54m) - 490 mins
• This month: 139 (86)
• This year: 1,881 (1,169)

Into the next phase now from Monday, with some big sessions coming up over the summer.

Swashbuckler

Really enjoying the log. Curious what's to come.

Murph_D

Week of 11 July

13-week (4 month) marathon countdown starts this week.

Mon 11 Jul

57 mins easy.

In Kiel for a few days at a conference - it’s not the most beautiful city in Germany but it has plenty of waterfront running routes. Very warm and humid on this one.

Tue 12 Jul

3 x 2 mi progressive (1M easy recovery)

Having reccied the waterfront last night I was out at early well before the day started to heat up. Conditions were quite nice and relatively cool. Two miles easy to warm up then two miles at steady (8:10), which felt handy enough, along the marina and partly through what seemed to be a military residential area near the Kiel Canal (Europe’s busiest, apparently.) Easy mile then alongside the canal (annoyingly without a view of the water) then into two miles of marathon pace (7:40) towards more industrial buildings. The road wasn’t great here and I briefly noted a trail heading uphill to the left through woods, but stayed on the road until it ran out in a carpark and I had to turn, getting some looks from a few curious local factory workers. The ducking and diving had me struggling to maintain the pace but at least I knew the route now as I headed back the way I came. Closed out the MP section and then another easy mile, then two more miles at 7:10, HM pace, which was OK for a while but quite tough towards the end. Cooldown through city centre. Tough session, especially away from home. 12 miles before breakfast. 

Wed 13 Jul

30 mins recovery around the local streets. Tight for time.

Thu 14 Jul

50 mins very easy.

Train to Hamburg for one night before returning - much more interesting city than I was expecting. Toured some city parks, the world famous Reeperbahn (tacky), and the St. Pauli waterfront. Very warm, had a weird moment where I had to walk for a few moments - think more to do with sleep deprivation than anything.

Fri 15 Jul

10 x 1 min on/off

Figured I had just enough time to do this session before heading for the airport, although I was a little hungover after a few nice local beers after dinner the previous night. Google told me the very nearby Aussenalster lake was a popular running route so I headed there, just a few mins from the hotel. After warming up on the western side, I started the 1 min ‘ons’, which were supposed to be at 10k pace. Paces for these were pretty erratic, partly due to the route, some of which was on residential streets, some on lakeside trails. Just got it done, I suppose. Good to be doing fast stuff again, definitely out of practice.

Sat 16 Jul

Fairview parkrun @ easy

Slept like the dead and awoke too late for the vague plan to drive out to Abbotstown parkrun. Down to Fairivew instead, where it turned out to be their 5th anniversary. Offered to volunteer and they suggested I help close down the course afterwards which meant I could run (not that I really wanted to, but I was dressed for both possibilities). Jogged around in 27 mins and then had to wait around a good while before doing my bunting removal and cone-collecting duties. Always a pleasure.

Sun 10 Jul

Fingal 10k 43:39

I had booked this race a good while ago but if I’d twigged I would be travelling this week I might not have - given my traditional difficulties with sleep, which are even worse when away from my own bed. Add the temperatures we were promised this weekend and it looked like my ‘PB’ of 42:03, achieved on a short Aware 10k course in 2019, would be safe. I thought I might have a shot at my ‘real’ PB of 43:19, achieved on a long course at the K Club in 2018 - what is it about 10k and course measurement? So 43 mins was the time I had in mind, 4:18 per km, not that I’d be studying the watch too intently on the flattish course that has a drag at the start, then a long fast section on the N1 before the back roads of Swords with a couple of drags give way finally to what always feels like an endless trek back into town with a nasty little hill in the last km before the downhill finish.

Long story short - I never really committed to this one. Had a good start, I felt, getting into a nice rhythm on the dual carriageway (6:52, 6:44). Lazare said hello and went past after about 3k and he was just in front of me for most of the next three miles. I stayed at a steady enough pace through the back roads (7:11, 7:09, 7:10) without ever feeling like I could inject a bit of extra pace, and people started going by during the second half of the race - not a huge number, and I was going past people too, but it felt like I was losing some ground. At the right turn out of the leafy lanes that tells you you’ll soon be hitting the final 2k, a glance at the average pace on the watch confirmed that 43 mins was slipping away. I churned out a gritty enough mile 6 under the circumstances (7:13) but nowhere near what would have been needed - by then I was past caring really, just wanted it to be over. Managed a bit of a finish (6:15 pace for the 0.22) but I was still passed on the line by two runners, which is always annoying. 

• Previous PB: 43:??
• Target: 42:59
• Result: 43:39
• 307th place (of 1,943)
• 4th M60 (of 30)
• VDOT 46.9
• Age grade: 75.8%
• Verdict: ‘Lacking intensity’

Not the worst day out ever but the feeling afterwards was mostly one of deflation. Wasn’t the only one, but still! I never really put myself on the line - there were plenty of targets I could have tried to pick off but just... didn't bother.

•  This week: 71k (44m) - 394 mins
• This month: 210 (131)
• This year: 1,952 (1,213)

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119349214#Comment_119349214

And of course that was supposed to say 13 weeks (3 months)….

Murph_D

Week of 18 July

Back on the home turf. Donegal awaits again at the end of the week, but that’s not foreign (anymore).

Mon 18 Jul

36 mins easy.

The plan was anticipating I'd be in bits after shredding myself in yesterday’s race. But my lack of perfect application meant this was just a routine recovery run with no added leg heaviness. You can’t paste yourself all over it every time, I know, but surely I could have put more into it. Why not, I wonder?

Tue 19 Jul

90 mins easy

Again, this should feel hard two days after a race. But no. So yeah, we all know what that means.

Wed 20 Jul

59 mins easy around the docklands with a lap of College Park, still recovering after the recent concerts. 

Thu 21 Jul

41 mins recovery around Marino. Another very humid evening where you just check it off.

Fri 22 Jul

2 hours with 90 mins @ steady.

I’m on holidays from today, and started nice and early with this steady 90 mins. One of the last of these runs on the schedue. Headed up the Malahide Road to the Castle and back down - a route I've used before with plenty of bumps and hollows to negotiate. This went pretty well. I have no heart rate monitor this week because I left it in my Hamburg hotel room. (They are sending it back at my expense. Jammy Northern Germans - years ago I lost some Raybans in a Bavarian hotel and they'd posted them back before I’d even arrived home myself. But I digress.) So this run just by feel with an eye on the watch, trying to keep it just under 5 mins/km on average. Job done, feeling good, although these ones always tire you out towards the end and you have to keep concentrating.

• This week: 63k (39m)
• This month: 273 (169)
• This year: 2,014 (1,252)

Swashbuckler

See! A solid run on paper and in reality. Haha. Nice running.

As for Fingak I guess you have to ask yourself, at the start line did you care about it? I think we assume that because we are dedicated to running that we'll always give it socks but that's just not the case. Sometimes we're just meh at the start line and in those scenarios it's very hard to go all out.

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119372782#Comment_119372782

Cheers, P, you're right there I think. I like to prepare myself mentally for a race but this one went by the wayside in many ways as I had other priorities that week.

Murph_D

Week of 18 Jul cont.

Sat 23 Jul

Rest day.

Sun 24 Jul

140 mins LR

Out the Croagh Road, where I reccied a good spot for next Tuesday’s hill session on the way. Discovered a new road across the bogs that will be handy for varying some of the loops around the Donegal base. Feeling great on this LR, taking it nice and easy. Massive downpour over the last 40 minutes did nothing to dampen my spirits. A good week.

• This week: 87k (54m) - 487 mins
• This month: 297 (184)
• This year: 2,039 (1,267)

Murph_D

Week of 25 July

On holidays in Donegal most of this week. Unfortunately the weather hasn’t really followed me (so far). Not that I mind from a running point of view, but just for the general holiday vibe - would be nice to be able to sit outside more. But every cloud…

Mon 25 Jul

Easy hour.

Legs quite tired after yesterday’s LR. Funny how that happens, the long run feeling great but you are reminded the next day of the work you must have put in. Or that’s the way I like to think of it anyway. Should have been 6x30s strides incorporated into this but I forgot. Sorry, Coach!

Did this one in Sligo town and out through Doorly Park (scene of parkrun glory more than five years ago now). Fabulous path along the Garavogue that now links up with another park near Sligo racecourse. Kudos to the Sligo authorities who made sure these improvements happen, because they certainly don’t happen by themselves. 

Tue 26 Jul

Hill session 3 x long hill (with 60-90s recovery in middle, jog down)

The Coach has sprinkled a few Corkscrew sessions throughout this and the previous phase, and somehow I have managed to never be in Dublin on any of the relevant Tuesdays. For those not familiar, the Corkscrew is a hill on the Sutton side of Howth - a long 1km hill with a 5-6% grade. The idea is you run the first half, take a 60s recovery then attack the steeper second half. There’s a local hill here with fairly similar characteristics, except there’s a dip in the middle, so I substituted that 60s standing recovery in the middle of each rep for a 80-90-second walk down to the bottom of the dip. This second half is a significant hill, with a grade of more than 10% in the final quarter - so a bit shorter but steeper than the ‘real’ Corkscrew. As my hill leads up the Croagh Caravan Park, I christened it the ‘Croaghscrew’ and jogged the 5k out through Meenabrock. 

During rep one I realised I’d started at the wrong point, so a bit longer than necessary before the walk recovery. Then up the steep part - which I’ve run scores of times but never at this kind of effort. It felt OK for a while but then just impossible near the end. And yet once completed, with the knowledge of how it feels, the second rep wasn't quite so bad, and before you knew it you were on rep 3 and closing it out strongly in the knowledge that there was only the jog home to come. Tough but fair. 16.21 kms for the morning.

• This week: 27k (17m)
• This month: 324 (201)
• This year: 2,066 (1,284)

Murph_D

Week of 25 Jul cont.

Wed 27 Jul

40 mins recovery around the Killybegs waterfront.

Thu 28 Jul

60 mins easy/recovery back too base after being dropped off on scenic Benroe.

Fri 29 Jul

120 mins with 90 @ sub-T

It’s been a tough enough week weatherwise for running - the threatened rain has not materialised and it’s been pretty humid. But I’ll take it! Conditions were sweaty enough for this week’s 'steady' session. Took myself around the local loop extending it down onto St. John’s Point and up towards Croagh. Again, no HRM so trying to do this by feel. I knew the course and conditions wouldn’t translate the effort into the usual kind of pace but was still a little disappointed to only average something like 5:10/km for the steady miles. But only briefly - it’s all about effort levels and it felt right for today.

Sat 30 Jul

30 mins ‘recovery’. Just a few slow miles above Maghera beach, where the road tracks up over a steep hill. I turned to acknowledge a driver who had slowed down while passing and he asked was I going to run all the way up. Well, not all of it, says I, but he was still impressed. As someone suggested on Strava, you can’t really call a hill run a recovery run, and I agree.

Sun 31 Jul

150 mins LR

Drew up a route on Garmin’s route planner. Then another. On the way down to nearby Dunkineely I changed back to the first one, a long loop which would take me along the coast to Inver and back home through the hills. There are parts of this I’ve never run before and hoped I’d find all the right places to turn (didn’t have my phone-carrying shorts today and would have no maps to fall back on). First half went swimmingly and I was enjoying the warm, sunny conditions, but sure enough I took the wrong road up the hills, which became pretty relentless as a result, maybe doubling the amount of climbing I was expecting. Nevertheless the new route kept things interesting and in that strange internal clock / homing pigeon way, the extended route meant that by the time I found myself on familiar roads I was able to head the shortest way home and hit the required two and half hours pretty much on the button.

Made myself a nutritious fruity/yoghurty/nutty smoothie right away to replace some of the calories, before a more leisurely lunch after my shower. A big week - well over nine hours on the feet. And that closes out July with 245 miles. 

• This week: 97k (60m) - 568 mins
• This month: 374 (245)
• This year: 2,136 (1,327)

Swashbuckler

That was a serious week. You didnt even mention your total elevation for the week. 4300 ft!

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119419252#Comment_119419252

Is that a lot? 😉