What's next.

MisterJinx

God almighty but work can just be crazy sometimes. I'm absolutely pull in all directions at the moment and it's quite hard to keep the head above water. Running is keeping me sane (more than usual) as it's something I can keep in control of and try and tick the box off each day and to have a focus for the mind that isn't work… It's working for me anyway and long may that continue as I'd crack up and just not leave the desk if I didn't have my run to do or kids to ferry to training and it forces me out and I always feel better after it.

I'm just into week 4 now of the Ben Parks HM training plan. Ramped up from 59K to 64K to 74K in the last 3 weeks. Mid week sessions have been a little spicy but no injuries thankfully and the body has been able to handle 800m repeats at 5K pace and 1k reps at 10k pace without me going completely off the rails and going far too fast which is the usual issue I have. I'm still probably going slightly on the faster side of the pace bands (5k pace intervals at 3.50 k/m or slightly faster, 10k pace intervals at 4k/m or slightly faster and HM really trying to be consistent around the 4.15 k/m pace).

It is amazing how I ran a HM 5/6 weeks ago at 4.18 pace and then you do a 3k HM interval at 4.15 in the middle of a long run and you are bunched, I suppose it's just the tired legs and all that but hopefully this works. I am trying to make sure I do the hard sessions hard and easy easy and the paces are correct for where I am at. Today is a rest day and really looked forward to it as I had to back end the 2 sessions last week into the end of the week so I was quite tired heading out on Sunday and really didn't fancy it but got it done which is all that matters and happy that I did, another box ticked off.

Week 1 59K Session 6x3k at 5k pace, LR 18k

Week 2 64K Session 6x1k at 10k pace, LR 8k easy 3k HM 8k easy

Week 3 74K Session 5x1k at 10k pace 3x400 at 5k pace, LR 5kEasy 3KHM 5KEasy 3KHM 5KEasy

Recovery week this week, back down to 58K with a 3x8 HM session and 18K long run all easy.

Also wound up bookending the Clontarf HM with the Saint Coca's 5K and then the Docklands 5K as I liked those races when I've done them before. I need to remember the HM is the A race so I'll see closer to the time how I approach them (that is a lot of racing for me!)

MisterJinx

Week 7 of the plan. Things I'm learning.

Right now running 6 days a week is difficult.

• This is due to work mostly but also I've been tired as well from the load and on Monday's when there is a rest day planned I've wanted to take it, but Monday is one of the days I can definitely run, if I take the rest day I am under pressure for the rest of the week.
• I've been trying to make it up with a bit of Saturday running, it's not ideal and doesn't really fit as I normally do the supermarket shop at that time!
• I had been able to get a shortish run in on Wednesdays before the gym, that hasn't worked out the last couple of weeks. I'd like to keep the gym in place as it's good for me but it does mean that run is inconsistent.

I need to consider all of this for the next marathon build and maybe I can't up the mileage from last year which was the intention…..

I've enjoyed the sessions on the plan.

• Good range of paces from 5k up and different time/distance each week in the speedier sessions. I've enjoyed that and with the exception of the 1 minute repeats last week I've kept them all in range and not gone out too hard
• The HM intervals in the middle of the long runs have been harder than expected. I though they would be fairly straightforward but I struggled with the 6K on Sunday at pace (could have been the heat) but generally I've needed a walk rest after the interval (1 or 1.5 minutes) then then back to easy. I though it would be easier and it's not like I'm going a lot faster than my last race effort (less than 10 secs/k than Bohermeen)
• I hope it feels easier on the day, I expect it will as training is usually harder than race day (that is what I'm telling myself anyway)

I missed about 4 runs over the last 3 weeks. Not ideal and reasons are above so I'm not hitting the mileage on the plan. Slightly worrying but there is not a lot I can do except prioritise the sessions. I'm about ~10k short each week

Week 4 - 50K - took the rest day on Monday and didn't catch up in the end and only a short run at the weekend, busy bank holiday added to limited availability

Week 5 - 67K - both sessions and 22k vanilla long run (5 days running only)

Week 6 - 69K - good session on Tuesday with 15 min HM followed by 8x1m 5K (but a bit fast but not fast enough to cause an injury or strain anything thankfully). Tried to catch up some mileage on the sat but after 3 laps of the pitches at GAA training I was done mentally and physically.

This week is supposed to be 80K but I'm not going to hit it as I've a bike ride on Sunday, will do the long run on Saturday instead. Will see if I can do a short run before the gym or skip the gym, not sure yet.

Oh I bought some new gear!! Got a couple of pairs of the Asics 2:1 5in shorts (with cycling short type boxer under them) for €25 a pop. They are not the ventilate version I have already, the material is solid, but I do like these as it stops the leg chafing.

Needed to refresh a couple of the running singlets as the grey UA ones just haven't lasted so got a couple of new ones, hope they are the same model, some product names can be similar but not the same. I've found the UA ones great, super soft and don't cause any rubbing. Threw a pair of regular shorts in the basket to see how they go if I use the anti-chafe cream on shorter runs.

Saw a 25% off voucher for 365 rider and wound up buying the Saucony ride 17, I'm going to return them as it was just an impulse buy with the discount!! I like softer shoes and the reviews of these don't match what I want, will try them on but expect to return.

Thinking of getting the NB 1080's v13 or Rebel v4 for a comfort ride and then either the Speed or Triumph 21 for daily in the marathon block. I'll see how the budget is. I've a voucher for the run hub so going to try and get over there at the weekend

MisterJinx

Week 7

Spicy enough week. Session was 5min @10k with 2 minutes rest and 4 x 2 mins at 5k pace. After the first rep it all came together and hit the paces no issue.

It was a high mileage week so I kept getting the runs in. Saturday was the long run with stuff. 5K on off for 25K, so 2x5K at HM pace. At this stage I'd been running 12 days straight which is probably beyond me at this stage. Got out to the PP in 5K, then there is a loop around the visitors centre of just over 5K so started at the Cabra gate and went for it. First HM 5K went fine, hit the paces, 3rd 5K was easy, when I went for the second 5K at HM pace I knew the legs just didn't have it, I could feel the fatigue. I didn't stop though, ground out a 5K at 4.27 m/k, not the pace I was looking for but I was kind of happy with myself for toughing it out as it would have been much easier to call it a day. There was a slog home with a stop for an ice cream and a half litre of Lucozade sport!

75K for the week in total which is better than I expected although still a little shy of the planned 80k (with a 70k cycle thrown in for good measure).

Week 8

I was very happy for the rest day on Monday of week 8 and a step back week. I decided I would take the rest and just ease off as I could feel the energy levels were low. 4 runs, 58K and an S&C session for the week. Very manageable. Only session was 4x 1 mile at HM pace which was comfortable enough at 4.10 m/k as it was after the rest day so felt refreshed for it.

This week and next week are peak weeks, >80K each, that is marathon mileage for me. Will be good to get them over with. Session done already this week and 2 runs completed. I just need to figure out the weekend as there is, again, a good bit on.

We'll see how this all pans out however I do feel my form is improving. On the session this evening I didn't have to concentrate on the form as much, I seemed to be naturally running a bit taller. I've also found that when trying to get up to higher paces I'm not relying on a very fast turnover to do it, "I feel" I'm using more of my stride and mechanics overall to get there. I'm sure if I had a video it'd still very much look like plodding however it does feel better and more engaged with a better arm swing and hips more forward. Even though the S&C is only once a week perhaps it's making a bit of a difference.

MisterJinx

Week 9

This was the first of the peak weeks. Speed session was 5mins HM, 2mins 10K and 1min 5K x4 on the Tuesday. This went pretty well, paces were probably at the top end however again with the loop I was doing I had the downhill for the 10K and 5K portion so to have the effort right I felt I need to be 5to 10 sec's per km faster than I could actually manage in reality. Some of the session have been complicated like this one so instead of just using the lap button I programmed in the session on my watch. It's really handy when it buzzes you to change which is great but I did also put in the pace zones and that got annoying really quickly as it was going off all the time either as I'm starting, loosing gps, speeding up into the next pace bracket and overshooting a bit…lots of buzzing

The long run was 24K as 8K Easy 8K HM and 8K Easy. Went to the PP for this and did a big loop from the Ashtown gate, up to Castleknock gate, down chesterfield and around by the Zoo and up the north road to finish back at the Ashtown gate. I was really happy to have hit the pace, especially coming up the north road which I thought could really kill me off but I held up really well and walked away with a bit of confidence.

In total 84K on the plan and 84K completed so was also really happy to have ticked all the boxes for the week.

Week 10 was a different story! 13K very easy on the Monday and the session was supposed to be Tuesday but I was lone parenting, had a sh1t tone of work on my plate and by 7pm even the thoughts of a run coupled with the jobs to do still had me on edge. My 11 year told told me it was fine to skip the run so I did, she was right. I'd a work evening the following day, no run, and a hangover after going to Fat Boy Slim on Friday (it was sh1te) and decided I wasn't going to flog a dead horse.

I got my session in on Thursday, 6x 800m at 10k and 200m at 5k. I did this at the 15 acres in the PP. The wind was fierce strong, the head was a little sore after the previous evening but the sun was out and it didn't go too bad. The long run was 16K easy, 8k HM and 2K easy. I ran clockwise into the park, around by the zoo and up to Castleknock train station and then from there I had a nice straight 8k along the canal and finishing me off just about the 2k from home. The gradient and bit of a breeze were with me so I did decided to make sure the effort was there and get the pace to 4.10 instead of 4.15. I cruised along, obviously the fresh legs helping me as much as the favourable route. I got the nicest (indirect) complement along the way, I was passing out these two ladies out for their run and I just heard in the background "he just breezed along - yeah yeah totally breezed by" - nice to think someone thinks you're breezing along :-) It's taken 8 years to get to this point.

So not a good week volume wise, 60k out of 87K on the plan. Life happens. Also my knee was sore this morning, just below the knee cap. I was going to run today and make up a bit of volume but decided rest was the best thing to do, getting sensible in my old age. I'll hammer the IT bands with the massage gun this evening and hopefully that will do the trick.

2 more week now, I've booked Saint Coca's but I'm not sure I'm going to be able to make it as I might not have transport to get out there and also it's the week before the HM and it wouldn't be a good idea, I think, to race it considering the Clontarf half is the A race. If I do get to go I'm going to put the watch on HR and get to 175bmp/~85% effort and hold it there. I'm going to do the Docklands 5K the week after the HM so I can race that, although I'm sure the legs will be a little cooked (assuming the HM goes ok that is!)

MisterJinx

Weeks 11 and 12 were a bit of a mess, to be honest. My knees were sore, so I had to start running every other day, and work was incredibly hectic. My mileage dropped quickly as life took over. Then I realized I had miscalculated my dates and ended up creating a 3-week taper instead of the planned 2-week taper. I had accidentally used the date for Saint Coca’s instead of the half marathon when making my plan. What a stupid mistake.

On top of that, I came down with an allergy on Monday evening after cutting the grass at home. I woke up the next morning completely stuffed up and spent the week trying different meds. By the time I got to Saint Coca’s, my mileage was down to about 30K for the 2 weeks of tapering, having missed out on 20K from the peak week.

Race Report: Saint Coca’s 5K

I decided to stick with my plan of not treating it as an all-out race but instead getting into that high threshold, low VO2 max heart rate zone and holding it there. After a 12-hour day sitting in the home office, I got up at 6:30, threw on my gear, and headed out the door.

I managed a reasonable warm-up with some easy running, strides, and about a minute and a half of tempo work to shake off the initial stiffness. I really like this race. You start by heading over the motorway, through some roundabouts, and then onto country roads for most of the route. I met @murph_D at the start line, we wished each other good luck, and then we were off.

I set my watch to monitor my heart rate, managing the start for the first few hundred meters before steadily getting up to the high 160s. At the 3K mark, I was feeling strong, so I pushed slightly into the low 170s, and it felt great to be passing people instead of being passed.

Around the 4K mark, I started to feel the effort and had to dig in a bit. My heart rate probably peaked at around 175 as I climbed the hill towards the finish line. It was only when I could see and hear the finish gantry that I realized where I was, so I went for a sprint finish, seeing 19 minutes on the clock.

I finished in 19:15, which is a 31-second pb! It was an excellent result, especially knowing that I had more in the tank because I hadn’t gone all out. Maybe managing my effort well, even without hitting the really high heart rates, gave me a better performance than going all out the entire race. Something to think about for the future.

MisterJinx

Clontarf Half Marathon

This is now the 3rd week of taper! I was still only running every other day and had to skip the speed sessions because work was insane. This project is wrapping up, but it's taken a lot out of me. Sometimes, even when I had time to run, I just didn't have the energy.

I was still feeling the head cold and allergies from the previous week, which hadn’t fully cleared. After Saint Coca’s, I was feeling confident, but that started to fade as the week went on. I didn't get much running done during the week and felt like I was falling off my peak.

On race day, it was very windy, and the crowds were insane. I moved up through the crowd to get closer to the front, but the 1:30 pacer balloons disappeared around the corner early on, and I never saw them again.

For the first 6 or 7 ks, the wind was at my back, and I was flying along. Looking back, I realise I was probably going too fast. I was running at about 4:10-4:11 / k, with my heart rate in the high 160s. My thinking was to bank some time while the wind was behind me, knowing it would be tough on the way back. When we turned around at Sutton after about 10K, I realized just how strong the wind was!

I was struggling with my cold, which hadn’t gone away. I couldn't breathe through my nose, so I had trouble eating my energy sweets and had to swallow them whole. I was also getting thirsty and had to stop and walk to drink water at the roundabout on bull island. The wind was brutal as we headed back onto the promenade, and by about 13-14K, my energy levels dipped. I knew a sub-1:30 finish was out of reach, and my motivation just left me. It became a real struggle from about 16K onward, with the wind making it even harder. I'm not sure if it was physical, mental or both, perhaps just seeing the pace tick down got to me.

People were passing me, and I knew it wasn't my day. I walked through another water station just to get a drink, and the last few k's were a real struggle. My Strava graph shows a serious bonk around 13-15K, where the wheels just fell off, although my HR was down rather than up. Finishing time was 1.32 high and I certainly didn't feel great about it afterwards however it is my 3rd fastest HM and I did a 10K pb out on the course but it's not what I wanted.

Reflecting on it, the wind was tough, but my faster start might not have helped. I had hoped to have some energy reserves to fight through the wind and get a PB, but it just didn’t happen.

Next week, I have the Grant Thornton 5K on Thursday. I'll probably do one or two runs in between, but my legs are feeling quite heavy with lactic acid. I thought after Saint Coca’s that I could take more time off my 5K, so we'll see how it goes. Then I have the Fingal 10K on Sunday. That makes four races in three weeks, which is the most I’ve ever done. I normally don’t race much and won’t race again until the Dublin Half in September, when I'll be well into marathon training. We'll see if I have anything more to give in these next two races.

MisterJinx

The end of the racing block :-)

Wow 4 races in such a short time, I've never done that before and I have to say I found it enjoyable. I wouldn't do it all the time though as my general consistency was out the door and I would rest up before the races so the mileage was down quite a bit and I was tired however it was good to experience it.

GT 5K - Another PB :-)

The details are getting hazy now but this was a good one. As I put on my Strava, this is the race, exactly 8 years ago that I did my couch to 5K after not doing very much exercise and smoking for 20 years. I do like this race and I think it's this race that has all my previous 5K PB's. I did think there was something in this for me based on Saint Coca's so I went in feeling good and confident enough of running a good race.

Cycled down from work and got the bag dropped off and all that and the did a bit of a warm up. I think I'm getting better at these and did some strides and a couple of minutes tempo and some dynamic stretches. Lined up just behind the 20 minute pacers, rather than pushing up past them, and then headed off. Again I went with the HR on the watch. Had to push through a busy first 500 meters (maybe should have pushed up a little ahead of the 20 pacers) and then just got myself into a nice rhythm. Ticked through the first few km's and at 3k I was going to switch the watch but decided I was ok with what i was doing. I knew from the turn around that I had put a reasonable gap to the 20 minute pacers so I just kept moving along. At 4k I had to bite down and keep it moving and then I was staring at the gantry for the last 500 meters. I had heard an 18 from the announcer when I was within earshot so I gave it everything and crossed the line. Checking Strava it gave me 18.52 which is just amazing. I was delivered, when I checked the race results the next day it only had 19.02. I don't know why that happened, I obviously understand it on a half due to the longer distances but I've never seen that on such a short distance. I "claimed" the 18.52 when I updated my strava - probably cheating in some way as I always use the chip time but I've already done it so maybe just this once I'll go with the watch and take the slap on the wrist…:-)

Fingal 10K Another Another PB :-)

I was conscious that this was the 4th race, I'd been chatting to someone during the week and they did highlight that a bit of caution might be needed for this one and I thought they were right so I decided not to "race it". Lined up with MrsJinx a good bit behind the 50 minute pacers and I was happy to go off at an easier pace and see how the legs felt. It's a really crowded start and MrsJinx was happy to have a big lad there to get her through the crowds at the start however after about 400 meters she waved me on so off I went. This was just before the turn onto the motorway so I was able to get into the middle of the road and just work my way through the crowd.

Passed the 50 minute pacers fairly quickly and then we headed onto the country roads. It was a couple of K's before I saw the next set of baloons and I was actually just moving really nicely. However I was a bit confused and it took me a couple of minutes to realise they were 45 minute pacers and that I had slowed a little and I had to work my way around them which was harder to do on the tighter roads. All the same I was still moving well, I had all the screens available and clocked that my first 5k was 21.3x which was slow enough but I was feeling good. Pass a couple of club mates along the way and again just kept moving along, HR was low 16x's. Comfortably hard but not into the red line area at all.

The last 2/3k were an amazing feeling, I was looking at the pace and I was very comfortably on 4m/k pace. I was passing people all the time and my breathing was good while I could hear those around me starting to struggle. I've not experience that before and it did give me a mental lift. I was a little held up in the woods but not much and no one's fault as I had started so much further back and I did my best to just get around when I could using the bits of verge and grass.

Crossed the line in 41.27, another pb. It' looks like I did the second 5K in 20.07 which is just incredible :-) by the looks of it I lost about 30 seconds on the first km but I wasn't chasing a time so I'm happy to know there is more there and really delighted to see that there was a sub 4m/k and several 4m/k mixed in there over the race.

MisterJinx

Overall, very happy with this block of training although I didn't get the A goal which was the HM but the other results have given me a lot of confidence. Looking back my keys learnings are

1. I probably need to be around 50 miles / 80k per week to see these results, which is a lot of running
2. I can't do 6 days per week, for the marathon I will do 5 days and an S&C session
3. The variety of pace work in the plan probably did me very good, although some sessions were quite complicated
4. I'm now not afraid to be running for a prolonged period of time at sub 4m/k. I think I had a mental barrier here that 3.xx pace was just too fast and I would blow up. I'm not afraid of that anymore, I think :-)
5. Running to HR was a good way to just listen to the body and run a controlled race. However I think I am probably leaving time on the table. For races in the past I have run with HR in the 180's, I can go there, it's just very uncomfortable, I didn't want to for these, but if I want to get the most out of the race then I need to practice this.
6. Looking forward now to the marathon and for that distance probably a bit of confidence that the few blocks back to back have probably brought me on a bit.
7. Next year I think I'd re-evaluate doing HM block HM block Mara block. I think the 2 HM's block back to back might have been slightly too much (could have been life workload too) but I think a 5k 10k block in between might better, we'll see on this one.

crisco10

Thats a pretty hectic period of racing, but PBs falling like skittles speaks well to your form!

I totally hear you you on Point 4 btw; I still have that mental barrier.. 3:xx is fast. 4:xx is not.

MisterJinx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122412090#Comment_122412090

It was hectic but it worked out and no injuries afterwards which was the aim by the end of it all. I think the form is good, certainly managing myself better and finishing strong which is a turn up for the books

I think 3.xx will always be fast !!