Last of the Summer Wine

Mr. Guappa

Best of luck with this Berlin block D. As E mentions, your consistency over multiple years is very impressive.

I hear you on the weariness. Trying to find a balance there myself at the moment and not burn the candle from both ends.

Do you have any build-up races planned?

AuldManKing

Catching up here - some great updates Denis - you're a bit of an inspiration!

Annie get your Run

Oooh Berlin and London! Brilliant.

Thanks again for the company on Saturday which turned into a progression run for me despite that heat! I'm impressed that I could run and rant, fitness must be returning 😄. G and I were discussing logging here, it definitely helps with accountability and the support, advise and wisdom is great!

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120766629#Comment_120766629

Cheers, E. You're right - I don't suffer from the heat as much as some people but it's no joke at the moment! A bit of warmer weather conditioning abroad always helped in other years, but there's not much difference this year.

Yep, ran Berlin in 2014 in 3:36, my third marathon (and first Boston qualifier time). It was a good performance on a warm day.

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120767008#Comment_120767008

Thanks, A. No build up races planned at the moment. I want to try and stick to the schedule as much as possible. Having said that, I'll be at St. Coca's this Fri but don't think my 5k shape will have improved much since Bob H so don't have high expectations there. Haven't signed up for anything else (yet).

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120774991#Comment_120774991

You outdid me in the rant stakes but how could I stand a chance really? 😁

Murph_D

Project Berlin: W1

As mentioned above, St. Coca's 5k will get slightly in the way of the plan this week - it will replace an 'on/off' session of short reps so won't go to waste. Apart from that, the plan is to stick to the plan as much as possible over the next three months. And drink more water and less beer.

Mon Jun 26

48 mins easy with 6 x 30s strides. Diagonals on one of the Marino GAA pitches. 30 seconds is a long stride! Another humid evening.

Tue Jun 27

2M WU/ 2 @ 8:10, 1 E / 2 @ 7:40, 1 E / 2 @ 7:10 / 2 CD

M joined for this, and I was certainly glad of the company especially in the second half. Took a wrong turn in the depths of Marino and added a bit to the WU for my trouble (I've lived in the vicinity for 27 years and still have to concentrate going around the 'big green' with its eight intersections). Joined M at Vernon Ave and a nice handy start with the 8:10 miles, with wind behind us as well. The steady middle rep felt fine until we turned at St Fintan's School in Sutton, the headwind making the pace harder to judge. Very glad of the final easy mile before the 7:10 miles both into the breeze - probably not a big breeze in the scheme of things but enough to make its presence felt. Felt OK for the first half but then started to struggle towards the end, a few of old reliable dry heaves. These can be headed off with deeper breathing but when I get into that deficit they seem almost impossible to avoid completely. Nevertheless I was able to pick it up a little towards the end as I saw the average pace not too far off the goal - only to get another attack with only seconds to go. Had to take a few moments before continuing. As M said, there really was no need to push it that much towards the end as the effort had been solid all through and the effort into the wind had been right. I know this instinctively myself and yet sometimes the compulsion to hit the numbers can be overwhelming. Shoulda backed off - if you're on the ground you're not doing the session, even if you're only delaying the cooldown part.

But not a bad start to the week and a timely reminder that there are plenty of tasty sessions to come.

• WTD: 28 kms (17 mi)
• MTD: 234 (145)
• YTD: 1,742 (1,082)

Murph_D

Week 1/13 cont.

Ugh. 5k racing is not my strong point, as we will discover below.

Wed 28 Jun

32 mins recovery, mostly in Fairview Park.

Thu 29 Jun  

38 mins easy and a few strides along the seafront, conscious of tomorrow night’s race.

Fri 30 Jun

St. Coca’s 5k (20:57)

A shocker of a race, probably the worst 5k I’ve ever run. Started out OK with splits of 4:07, 4:01 for the first two kms, but collapsed to 4:19, 4:17, 4:13. The drag in the third km had me losing touch with everyone around me, then some of the usual dry retching in km 4 and by the final km I had just lost heart. The heaves relate to not breathing better at this particular race pace, but to solve that I would need to be doing some actual 5k based training so none of it is a surprise - although I should at least have been a bit closer to the 20:17 I managed at Bob H last month. 

Of course C, who'd driven us down, emerged with a PB, despite being not long back after a bout of injury. Good for him, and maybe I do need to find a way to develop more mental toughness. Congested start made it difficult to stay in touch with the @scotindublin sub-20 bus, but I doubt if I'd have held on for long. Worth it for the Boardsie Group Hug afterwards.😀 Good to see the familiar faces, and good that most of them were happy ones. S and I will have our day yet. 

Total for the evening with WU/CD: 10.2 kms (52 mins)

June total: 256 kms (159 mi). (Lowest month yet, with a bit of illness and holidays)

Sat 1 Jul 

32 mins recovery around Drumcondra. 

Sun 2 Jul

LR: 105 mins

Enjoyable run with Elaine in the Phoenix Park. Plenty of chat and I must say for someone who put in such a great effort the other night she recovers quickly. Sightings of Craig and Alan and a few others along the way, lots and lots of runners enjoying the park. No time for cake afterwards unfortunately with a visit to Croker on the cards. At least that made for a good end to a tough week!

• This week: 75 kms (46 mi) 466 mins
• This month: 25 (15)
• This year: 1,788 (1,111)

Murph_D

Project Berlin: Week 2/13

Well this seemed like a long week, although mostly easy stuff going on. Mileage has been up and down a bit in recent weeks but I don’t think there’s been any crazy ramping up compared to the usual historic mileage. Nevertheless, a slight glute/hip niggle lately which hasn’t affected how I feel when running (until now). Will start next week with a rest day.

Mon 3 Jul

62 mins easy. The mrs was headed for the M50 so I took a lift and jumped out at Ballymun for a tour of the NS taking in the lovely sights of Santry, Coolock, Artane and Killester. Lovely night for it.

Tue 4 Jul

73 mins easy out to St. Anne’s and back. Lap of the northern perimeter to stretch it out. Surprisingly did not bump into any clubmates that I recognised anyway.

Wed 5 Jul

55 mins easy on a loop out to RIngsend. Passing the church there always reminds me of the funeral of a former client, a terrific gent who sadly died almost immediately after retiring. That won’t be me.

Thu 6 Jul  

44 mins along Griffith Ave and a loop through Glasnevin/Drumcondra.

Fri 7 Jul

110 mins including 90 @ steady

Headed up the airport road to Swords for this. All by heartrate and I was looking forward to coming back from the gradually climbing outward half, but it’s more up and down than that and I had the headwind on the homeward leg to make it more difficult. Didn’t enjoy this - tired legs, low evening sun annoying me.  

Sat 8 Jul 

An easy jog around St. Anne’s parkrun. No. 204 in the bag. 

Sun 9 Jul

LR: 2 hrs 20 mins

I almost always get out early for the Sunday run but today was an exception - another evening-time trot out to Dun Laoghaire. Weather was glorious and all the swimming spots were doing good business. Felt a bit jealous as I sweated past. Glute/hip thing got a bit sore on the way home. But this was a real marathon week, despite no Tuesday session. 

• This week: 94kms (59 mi) 520 mins
• This month: 119 (74)
• This year: 1,883 (1,170)

Murph_D

Project Berlin

Week 3/13

Unusual for me to start week 3 with a niggle, and a little bit of anxiety about what to do. My compadres quickly convinced me to talk to a physio and get the ‘elbow in the arse’ treatment, so I booked a Weds appointment at Pearse Street Physio via their very efficient online system.

Mon 10 Jul

No running, time for a rest day. Foam rolled for the first time in a good while.

Tue 11 Jul

45 mins recovery around the local park and vicinity. No trouble from glute. 

Wed 12 Jul

45 mins easy. Physio visit, and diagnosis of a slightly inflamed gluteus medius and a bit of tightness in the ITB. Was gently scolded for my lack of stretching and S&C. Given some foam rolling lessons and a programme of exercises will follow via email. Looking forward to that (but still waiting). The good news is nothing too debilitating and should be manageable. Did an easy 45 mins later around the local roads.

• This week: 15kms (9 mi)
• This month: 134 (83)
• This year: 1,890 (1,179)

Laineyfrecks

Great to hear it's nothing too serious D, only started getting myself back the habit of doing some S & C too!

Annie get your Run

What happened to the online yoga? 😉 glad it's not serious and great that they are giving you a programme too, best of luck with it 🤞

Murph_D

Week 3 cont.

Thu 13 Jul 

No running. An extra day to rest the glute.

Fri 14 Jul

121 mins inc 90 at sub-T

With the potential for niggle trouble, I was prepared to pare back the 90 min steady run if necessary, as I set off from D3 to Islandbridge and the Phoenix Park. However things felt pretty good all the way around. The weather was wet and blustery and there was hardly a soul along the Liffey or in the Park (except for @Bungy Girl as our paths crossed at the top of the Furry Glen). No gyp from the glute so I stuck to the original plan. HR monitor was unreliable (cheap batteries are a false economy) so just tried to feel the proper effort, not sure how accurate this was but it was good to get the job done.

Sat 15 Jul 

42 mins inc Poppintree parkrun @ steady

Taking the parkrun count up to 205. It was bucketing down when I left the house. ‘Ah it will be grand by the time I get to Ballymun’. Needless to say it was still pouring long after I got home and dried off after possibly the wettest parkrun ever. Good craic though. Started fairly easy and dialled up to steady pace (and probably closer to LT for the final km) which was good enough for 21st finisher in a smallish field of hardy runners. Couple more kms to cool down around the park, which is maturing very nicely.  

Sun 23 Jul

LR: 2 hrs 30 mins

With the Fingal 10k happening (and me not running it for a change) I decided to drive out that way and do the LR in the vicinity, taking advantage of the closed roads for some of it. Bumped into DD and AMK on one of my loops through the Swords town centre, then a few other clubmates shortly after. Atmosphere seemed as good as ever and eventually I made my way back around the course in reverse to the 7k point where I paused to shout at a few people (and get a few shouts myself from people I missed). From there it was a short canter along the Ward River to the 8k point and then the 9k point, where I shouted at them all again. Some great results today, conditions didn’t feel as humid as they often do (easy for me to say of course, jogging around at LSR pace). Managed about 26k over the course of the morning, with four or five pauses. Good way to break up a long run!  

• This week: 73kms (45 mi) 404 mins
• This month: 192 (119)
• This year: 1,955 (1,215)

Murph_D

Project Berlin

Week 4/13

Back in Donegal this week, will probably be based here for most of what’s left of the summer. The rolling hills make for good training ground but sometimes you long for a bit of flat. Important thing this week is to keep the volume up while also integrating the stretching routine prescribed by the physio. The latter is something I struggle with, so I’ll have to be extra disciplined.  

Mon 17 Jul

No running. A very long day of house-related tasks before driving to Donegal. 

Tue 18 Jul

30m@4:46, 10m@4:40, 10m@4:34

Drove into Killybegs for the session - same place I did this session last year in the Chicago buildup. It looks easy enough on paper but the two 10-min segments were tricky enough in the conditions on the flattish shore road (which has a couple of drags that always seem to come at the most critical part of any session I do here). 4:40/k is a few secs faster than MP but felt much harder! And the 4:34 segment felt like 5k pace, really tough to hit the numbers. Got close enough to the targets and happy with the effort. Runners are a bit of a novelty in Killybegs. A few yoofs sitting outside the SuperValu waved their arms at me and mouthed the Rocky Theme (or was it Eye of the Tiger? Hard to be sure) as I ran past. Twice. Better than throwing cans at me I suppose! Good session. 

Wed 19 Jul

60 mins recovery. Was visiting some friends up in Falcarragh and jumped out of the car on the way back for a gentle run over the hills. 

Thu 20 Jul

No running. Work deadline and bad weather meant by the time I had an opportunity, I decided to do the full stretching routine instead. Just as well - it took an hour!

Fri 21 Jul

60 mins steady, picking it up for the last 15 or so. The schedule said 60 steady plus 20 at MP+ but after feeling a few twinges in the middle of this I decided to shorten it. It’s the ITB that I was feeling this time.  

Sat 22 Jul

51 mins recovery on the local loop.

Sun 23 Jul

2 hours 40 mins easy LR

After a week of steady rain, it was nice to have a dry window for the long run, heading through Dunkineely and some coastal townlands down to Inver beach and back. A very rolling route with some challenging hills, and a good bit more uphill in the return half. Nice weather though!   

• This week: 82 kms (51 mi) 458 mins
• This month: 274 (170)
• This year: 2,037 (1,266)

Murph_D

Project Berlin

Week 5/13

Trying to bed in the stretching and core work, and generally keep it on the straight and narrow. One part of me says, niggles are a normal part of marathon training so don’t be dwelling on it. Another part reminds me that one of these days, that niggle might just refuse to go away. Not sure which part is winning. 

Mon 17 Jul

46 mins recovery on the Killybegs Shore Road. 

Tue 18 Jul

More recovery: 53 mins on the local roads. Legs as tired as they’ve ever been. I can’t help feeling the marathon training is more draining than normal this year.

Wed 19 Jul

 5 x 2k (1k float rec)

Good about the stretching routine today, getting the full set done during the first half of the Ireland-Canada match. Some sort of win so. A new battery in the HRM in honour of the session. Also experimenting with a nose strip to try to improve my breathing. It immediately felt different but would I be able to breathe though my nose during the hard parts? Is that even something I should be aspiring to? And jays, the rain, pissing down again as I set off from the Killybegs Supervalu. Luckily I’d remembered the vaseline. Despite yesterday’s tiredness the session went very well, and I was able to modulate successfully on the drag up past the school on each rep. Legs felt good, nose felt good. HR seemed to be playing ball too. As good a session as you’d want. Only hiccup was discovering doing the first rep that I’d loaded the wrong workout into the watch, which necessitated a stop for a manual reprogramming. All else good. Even enjoyed the cooling rain.

Splits:

(Target: 4:40 4:40 5:00)

4:42 4:39 5:xx (interrupted)

4:34 4:45 5:03

4:37 4:39 4:59

4:38 4:45 4:59

4:38 4:40 5:00

• This week: 38 kms (23 mi)
• This month: 311 (194)
• This year: 2,075 (1,290)

And then to get out of the shower and hear Sinéad O’C had died. Oh no. A few tears.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0c4v7fp5GC8

I remember it, Dublin in a rainstorm

Sitting in the long grass in summer, keeping warm

I remember it, that restless night

We were so young then, we thought that everything we could possibly do was right

Every move stolen from our very eyes 

I wondered where you went to

Tell me when did the light die?

You will rise, you'll return

The phoenix from the flame

You will learn, you will rise, you'll return

Being what you are

There is no other Troy for you to burn

DeepBlue

Is breathing through the nose particularly important for running? Clearly it's better in the sense that the air intake would be filtered better and probably humidified better through the nasal passages rather than through the mouth but outside of that does it actually matter if the same air is still getting to the lungs?

Naturally race photos tend to look better also when you don't look like you have lockjaw ....🙈

Murph_D

Thu 27 Jul

No running. 

Fri 28 Jul

62 mins easy.

Joined for the weekend in Donegal by a few running friends. We try to get together every year for a couple of days of running related activities. Started out with an easy run around the local roads. 

Sat 29 Jul

18.25 miles @ easy (9:20)

Heavy rain forecast but we got lucky on this long run down St. John’s Point in spectacular if quite windy conditions. 

Sun 30 Jul

60 mins mountain running 

There was a plan to go up the back of Slieve League but opted for a more benign option with more poor weather predicted. As it happened we stayed totally dry yet again, on a scenic jaunt around Glen Head in Glencolmcille before lunch at the Rusty Mackerel. Excellent weekend rounded off with All Ireland victory for the Dubs. 

• This week: 87 kms (54 mi) 500 mins
• This month: 361 (224)
• This year: 2,124 (1,320)

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120910456#Comment_120910456

Well I'm still researching this, but the theory is that air taken in via the nose is better, for a few reasons including the ones you describe. My issue with dry heaves during shorter races seems to be breathing-related so I'm trying out a couple of things to try to improve my technique. But I agree that mouth breathing seems inevitable at certain paces as you get in more oxygen that way. Anyway the jury is still out!

healy1835

What is the pints:miles ratio of these 'running related activities'?

Duanington

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120917218#Comment_120917218

Steve Magness and John Marcus had a discussion on this whole topic not so long ago, Marcus is a major fan whereas Magness seems to feel that it is highly dependent on the individual and the level of that person. Some people have smaller nasal passages, some have bigger, some have good filtration (hairy noses!), others don't....and some end up stressing so much about nose breathing that it ends up being a disaster

Mr. Guappa

I thought I was getting in a fair share of elevation until I saw your past couple of weeks. It's tough going when even the recovery runs have that bit of elevation to them. Nice consistency, as always.

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120917857#Comment_120917857

A fair question! Well there were certainly a few drinks and even a couple of singsongs but the ratio was quite respectable. We do this every year and try to get a good balance between the craic and the running, especially with most of us well into the marathon block by now.

Murph_D

Thanks A. Yes, you yearn for a bit of flat ground after a while up here. Hence driving all the way to Killybegs or Mountcharles for sessions. Can’t avoid the wind though!

Murph_D

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120919352#Comment_120919352

Cheers D. Must look that one up. I’m suspecting you are leaning towards the last of those opinions. 😉

Duanington

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120922925#Comment_120922925

You know me too well !

Murph_D

Another pic from the weekend, Glen Head in Glencolmcille. We definitely don't do enough of this kind of running (well I don't anyway). (Photo credit: @FBOT01)

Murph_D

Project Berlin

Week 6/13

With August rolling in, it means the marathon is next month. Yikes. 

Mon 31 Jul

50 mins recovery. Feeling the weekend miles in the legs.

July total: 369 kms (229 mi) 

Tue 1 Aug

An easy hour or so on the local loop. Feeling slightly more perky.

Wed 2 Aug

15k progressive + W/C

When you’re feeling a bit weary this session looks a bit scary on paper. 4k at steady, 4 at around MP, 4 a bit faster and 3 more just shy of HM pace. Headed to Inver and warmed up on the road they call the Doorin Line towards Mountcharles. It’s lumpy, and I wasn’t looking forward to speeding up. Eventually after three miles I pushed the button, and the first few kms at 4:58/k (8/m) didn’t feel too bad. The thing about this kind of session though is when you’re looking forward to the end of the rep you then realise you’re not getting any recovery, you have to speed up. 😱

The next 4k at 4:48, 4 secs slower than MP, felt a bit harder. By now I was on the coast road towards Mountcharles Pier, a flat 2k stretch I know well and the wind wasn’t too bad. Nearly high tide though, so plenty of traffic as the place gets quite busy with pier jumpers and swimmers. Towards the end of this rep, feeling like it’s really going to be hard to finish things out. And then 4k at 4:40 and by now I’m starting to get into it a bit more. The watch is beeping occasionally to slow down, and on some parts of the road, especially the turnaround points, the pace drops. But I’m on target as the last 3k comes around. This last bit is going to be tricky. I’m passing a good few walkers on the road who give friendly smiles and that helps - a smile on your face makes the hard kms a bit easier. So in the end the final leg goes by in a flash and the numbers are good. All in all a super session. Cool down back towards the pier and treat myself to an ice cold Coke and a piece of lemon cake at the excellent coffee shop there.

Splits:

5:04 4:48 4:54 4:59

4:46 4:46 4:47 4:46

4:39 4:42 4:42 4:40

4:30 4:34 4:32

Another session on Fri, but good to get through that one.

• This week: 41 kms (25 mi)
• This month: 33 (20)
• This year: 2,165 (1,346)

Murph_D

Week 6 cont. 

Thu 3 Aug

53 mins recovery. Did I do my stretching routine? No, I did not. 

Fri 4 Aug

50 mins with 6 x 1min on/off (10k pace).

Dropped off in Killybegs at my go-to interval spot. Wet again today but not too breezy. I found it hard to rein myself in for the ‘on’ bits and was closer to 5k pace on a few of them. But it felt more controlled than it probably looked. A good soaking during this run.

Sat 5 Aug

Today I did the full stretching routine before the drive back to Dublin, where my back got quite sore and I had to get A to take over the driving a bit earlier than usual. Stretched it out a bit on arrival with 45 mins easy running, tracing out the various pathways in Fairview Park. Enjoyed yet another downpour.

Sun 6 Aug

16 miles @ 8:07

Joined by M in the Phoenix Park for 16 sunny and chatty miles taking in most of the Park, the Castleknock DCM leg, and the Liffey path between Chapelizod and Islandbridge. I was happy to find myself feeling strong and comfortable and well able to chat at a pace not far off the slow end of steady. Great way to end the week.   

• This week: 92 kms (57 mi) 504 mins
• This month: 83 (52)
• This year: 2,216 (1,377)

Murph_D

Project Berlin: Week 7/13

Starting to feel things coming together at last. About time - only seven weeks to go! 

Mon 7 Aug

48 mins easy with clubmates on the traditional bank holiday meet-up at Malahide Castle. 

Tue 8 Aug

45 mins easy around Marino, including 6x20secs strides on the big pitch at the Institute. Should have been eight. Oops. 

Wed 9 Aug

5x3k (1k float)

I’ve been trying to meet up with M for most of these tempoish sessions, which meant a 6:30 AM start. Shoe rotation needs some updating, so I decided to break in the marathon shoes, a pair of Next% 2 that’s been sitting in the box since last November. First thing I noticed was the grippy laces - welcome, as I’ve found the laces can come undone on previous pairs. Wore my racing shorts and a singlet too - wanted to feel in the zone for this session, which I remember finding tough last year. Warmed up on the jog out to Clontarf and joined M in the usual spot at the Baths. The pace target was 4:40/km (7:30/mi), which is around my MP, maybe a second or two faster. Took us the first two thirds of the first 3k rep to find the rhythm, but after that it was smooth enough going and we hit the numbers nicely. Pleased that the float (5:04/k, 8:10/m) felt much more manageable than I remember it feeling when doing this kind of session previously. Certainly working harder towards the end of this but felt strong throughout. No trouble with hips or glutes. Maybe the S&C is working. All done by 8:30 AM.

Splits:

4:44 4:35 4:41 5:05

4:40 4:39 4:40 5:01

4:40 4:38 4:38 5:01

4:41 4:35 4:42 5:03

4:39 4:40 4:40 5:00

 

Thu 10 Aug

Rest day.

• This week: 40 kms (25 mi)
• This month: 124 (77)
• This year: 2,257 (1,403)

Laineyfrecks

Nice session there D, glad it went well for you, nice confidence booster👌