A life in the day..

It seems like the gaps between my updates are getting longer. It's not intentional, I just don't plan updates so when I'm busy this gets the heave ho. Anyway, training continues on. I had planned to do a 5 mile race next Wednesday but it turns out that it's now closed to entries so I feel like a bit of an idiot for not entering. I'll try to find a 10k race over the next couple of weeks instead.

Sunday 19th June - 5.9 miles in 48:47 to make 32.2 miles for the week

Monday 20th June - 3.3 miles in 29:07
Tuesday 21st June - 6.9 miles in 54:06 incl. 5*4mins with the first 4 @6:30 pace and the last @ 6:00 pace
Wednesday 22nd June - 6.8 in 59:13
Thursday 23rd June - 7.9 in 74:22. Met up with one of the other Dad's for this who showed me his regular (pretty hilly) route around the town. I was surprised at how fast he went but I think that he might have been showing off a little as when I looked him up on Strava later I saw he had 4 segment PB's for the run . Nice to run with someone even if the narrowness of the path meant that I was running behind him most of the time
Friday 24th June - 3.1 in 28:03. Proper recovery run after the hills of yesterday.
Saturday 25th June - 5 miles in 43:07
Sunday 26th June - 13 miles in 1:46:37 - actually a touch further as I forgot to switch the GPS on. I did this out and back on the promenade which is nice but exposed and is hard work running back into which is always a stiff breeze (at least so far).
46.4 miles for the week

Further update(s) to follow!

Monday 11th July - 5 @ 8:24
Tuesday 12th July - 8.5 incl. 3 * 2 miles @ 6:31, 6:59 and 7:03 pace. 1st was with the wind, last was into it. The second rep was just poor!
Wednesday 13th July - 3.5 @ 8:53
Thursday 14th July - 11.6 @ 8:12. Turned up to a local running group organised by a company that organises races locally. They had all done a race series covering 52 miles in 6 days the previous week so were taking it short and easy which wasn't what I was looking for. Friendly bunch though and I'll be along again. I tacked on a few miles at the end incl. what felt like but couldn't really be, a minor bonk.
Friday 15th July - 3.4 @ 8:45
Saturday 16th July - 2.8 @ 8:36. Life got in the way here as I had intended to do a few more
Sunday 17th July 17 @ 8:00. Hot day with the last 7 @ 7:40 pace as I got the finger out and worked hard to bring the average pace down to 8mm.

52.2 miles for the week which is in or about as much as I've ever run in a week.

Singer wrote: »

Nice - what are you training for?

More training

I jest a little but the first half of this year has been about building my capacity to train. When I looked back at the last few years I realised that I had gotten into a pattern of training reasonably hard to get back to the level I was at previously, getting injured, training hard to get back to the level I was at previously, getting injured.....

I'm pretty sure that I've never actually run 1,000 miles in a calendar year before which was a surprising insight so this year has been about building consistency and the ability to train at a higher level.

Not having a race to focus on has also given me the opportunity to learn a bit more about what I need. The biggest insight here is that I actually need to do some form of speedwork at least once a fortnight or my stride starts getting very messy very quickly.

That said, I have got DCM in mind which is one of the reasons I've been upping the longer runs over the past few weeks. If come the 8th of August I feel that I can handle the 12 week P&D 55-70 plan with a few minor modifications I'll give it a whirl. The moment it starts feeling like I'm pushing myself towards injury I'll pull back though so I don't give myself more than a 50/50 chance of making it there.

Monday 25th July - 3.4 @ 8:34
Tuesday 26th July - 4.7 @ 8:21
Wednesday 27th July - 5.2 incl. 6 * 3 mins @ 10k pace. The goal here was to a relatively light session and see if I felt like chasing after sub-40 at a 10k race I'm doing on Sunday. The wind was at my back on the way out and I didn't kill myself to get 3:55, 3:57 and 3:59. The way back was much harder work with the first one being into a strong wind as well as undulating for 4:09 then 3:57 and 3:57. I could certainly have done a couple more but I don't know about 13 of them without a break. I think that I'll probably take along my HRM and use it to make me honest in my effort and see where I end up. I suspect a P.B. but sub 40 might require a perfect race. We'll see.

I'm looking for physio recommendations (here or PM whichever your prefer) ideally not too far from Bray, someone who is very hands on and good at mobilising the spinal area.

Paris was great but the bed wasn't and my spine/neck has locked up quite a bit. The physio I normally use is on holiday and I'm in Bray from Wednesday. I'll probably but not definitely have access to a car.


If anyone fancies letting me join them for a run while I'm over let me know. I'll be following a P&D plan which is as follows:

Wed: 11 MLR
Thu: 5 recovery
Fri: 11 MLR
Sat: 5 recovery
Sun: 15 w 8 @ m-pace (no idea where I'll do this)
Mon: Off though I'll probably do a short recovery run
Tue: 9 GA + 10 strides.

Very rough paces for flat routes (I'm considerably slower on hills) are
9 - 9:30 for recovery runs
8 - 8:30 for MLR/GA
7 - 7:15 m-pace

If I was overdue an update the last time I'm not sure how you would describe it now . I haven't had any injuries but I noticed that for various (mostly valid) reasons I wasn't getting in the midweek back to back MLR's that P&D prescribes. I also wasn't generally happy about the direction that my training was going in. In particular my attempts at marathon pace and tempo's were pretty hopeless.

After grappling with the problem for a few days I decided that the best way for me to approach it was to work from the bottom up so I tore up my P&D schedule and started making it up by myself. I don't necessarily recommend this approach - I'm running a serious risk of just blowing up in Dublin but I'm happy to take it because I wouldn't have been happy to run 3:20'ish which is what I think that I was heading for.

So I've inserted a session once a week which started at quarter miles and gets progressively longer. In an ideal world I'll get a MLR including a few marathon pace miles in as well as a long run. I had planned alternating a long run with back to backs at the weekend but my first effort reminded me that they don't work for me so back to the long runs again.

15 - 21 August

I took Monday off because that's what P&D said - in retrospect I should have continued running every day. Tuesday was my first mix up with the schedule. I was still in Bray at that stage and convinced myself that I had to do 9 miles with strides so I did about 8.5 with a couple of strides (should have done more) but in reality this should have been the first of my back to back MLR's. Wednesday - 12@7:58. Thursday - 2.7 tortoise like. Friday was my first attempt at tempo - didn't work out at all averaging about 7:10 for the tempo miles - 8.7 @ 7:36. Saturday was 3 recovery and Sunday was 17 @ 8:13 along the old railway path. 52.3 miles for that week and I was happy enough even if the tempo hadn't worked out and I had made a mistake on the back to back MLR's.

22nd - 28th August

Monday I took off again as per the schedule. On Tuesday I was back in Bray to bring the boys back to Liverpool and took the time to go on the cliff walk again - I remember thinking as I ran along that this was good for the soul. It's just such a beautiful place to run - 9@8:27. Wednesday and Thursday had to be written off for family reasons - can't remember exactly why - Thursday might have been the day we brought the boys to Alton Towers. Friday - 12.4@8:17. Saturday 3.38 recovery. Sunday was supposed to include some marathon pace miles but after a reasonable start I just never got into a groove and drifted well off the pace - 17@7:50 was the end result.
42.4 miles for the week and I was starting to get worried about my ability to hit marathon and tempo paces.

29th August - 4th September

Monday - 2.2 recovery - tentative steps towards a change as I decide to aim to run every day again. Tuesday - 11.5 hilly miles where I got lost at least twice exploring the local area. One path ended in a field with barbed wire preventing people from climbing over the gate - fortunately there was enough space to go underneath it. Wednesday off - can't remember why. Thursday 13.8 @ 8:50 - more exploring as I found the wirral circular path and found myself running past the Typhoo factory and an industrial bakery from which there were some pretty enticing smells wafting over. Friday off again. Saturday 6.2 easy and Sunday saw my first 20 of the year @ 8:48 pace. It brought me exactly to a preserved railway station which I took a few minutes to look around. They've left the booking office more or less as it was 60 years ago when it shut to passengers.
53.8 miles for the week - time for a new plan.

5th to 11th September

Monday off. Tuesday - First session. I really didn't know how this one was going to go. I thought about 24*quarter mile - 90s recovery. Ended up with 19 as my legs let me know that they had had enough. Went off way too fast for the first one ending up at 76 seconds. Settled down a bit afterwards - there was a strong wind blowing which meant that I was cruising the ones with the wind and working a bit harder into the wind. No prizes for guessing which ones were which! 76, 85, 86, 87, 91, 85, 94, 85, 91, 86, 95, 83, 91, 87, 85, 94, 91, 84, 101. I was happy with the session overall averaging about 88.5 seconds a quarter. Wednesday - 2.3 recovery, Thursday was supposed to be a few miles at marathon pace but the legs weren't ready so I just ran steady instead - 10.3 @ 8:08. Friday 4.6 easy. Saturday and Sunday was an attempt at back to back 2 hour runs as I think that they're excellent for developing endurance - not for me though as I struggled badly on the 2nd one. 14 @ 8:12 and 13 @ 9:19.
55.8 miles for the week with one good session.

12 - 18 September

I needed one easyish week between now and the taper and with a half marathon already entered for the end of the week I decided to make it this week and do a mini-taper.

Monday - 2.3 easy. Tuesday - 8 * half miles aiming for 3:00 per interval. I found myself a relatively sheltered spot for this one down by a working trainline. Happy with these as they came in at: 2:55 (took off too quickly again but settled down earlier), 2:51, 2:59, 2:59, 3:02, 2:58, 3:02, 3:03 for an average of 2:59. The legs were getting tired but I think that I could have done another 2 if I had needed to. Wednesday - 3.2 recovery, Thursday 13.9 @ 8:30. Friday 4.2 easy. Saturday off. Sunday - race.

English half marathon

I had entered this race a few weeks previously when I realised that I was struggling with marathon pace with a view to doing the 10@marathon pace in the P&D schedule. Although I had abandoned the schedule it seemed like a good plan to stick with. I had 1:35 in mind as a time that I would be happy with with 1:32/33 as something I'd get on a good day.

Conditions were near perfect. The course was reasonably flat with a profile that saw us climb 200ft over the first 7 or 8 miles. I arrived in plenty of time which was helpful as I hadn't a clue where to go. My plan to go to the car park specified in the race instructions had to be abandoned as the roads were cordoned off but after a little meandering I saw another car park on a side street so tucked in behind them. I got changed and joined a couple of others with the intention of tacking on to them to find my way to the start (never been in Warrington before) only to find that they too were relying on google maps. After a couple of false starts we found our way and the setup was perfect so I dumped my bag, did a short warm up and was able to hop in near the front of the race. I had decided to run the race to heart rate and was relieved to discover that the good scrub I had given my HRM strap the night before had gotten rid of the outlandish readings I had been seeing. The effects of the mini-taper kicked in as the first slightly downhill mile came in 6:52 (132). Miles of 7:10 (146) and 7:30 (147) followed as I finished the 3 steady miles (target of 145 HR) and moved into the marathon pace section. I had targeted 155 as a heart rate that was reasonable for marathon pace but when I went towards it I felt like I would have had to work a little harder than I wanted to so let it stay a little lower. Miles 4 - 8 came in at: 6:59 (154), 7:17 (151), 6:50 (151), 7:02 (152) & 6:45 (151) with the 8th mile being net downhill. I kept myself occupied by counting the number of people I passed (about 60 in total) and was amused by a guy playing Rocky music who seemed to decide to race me, surging as I went past him a couple of times. Garmin says that mile 9 included 111 ft. of downhill and it showed as that came in at 6:26 (150). At this stage I realised that I was working a little harder than I should be for marathon pace and considered upping the pace to finish sub 1:30 but sense prevailed although my HRM had had enough and reverted to outlandish readings again. Miles 10 (6:45) & 11 (6:53) ticked by before we went through the Warrington Wolves stadium which confused the garmin which recorded miles 12 and 13 as 7:03 and 7:14 respectively. I crossed the line with a chip time of 1:30:56 and a big smile. I ran a few miles to warm down and headed home.

On reflection I learned a few things from the race. 155 HR is too ambitious for me right now for a marathon. I'll probably head out at 150 maximum for the first half at least and I'll plan to ease into that effort level. Condition permitting 3:10 seems a possibility. I have to work on strengthening my hips. They were what did for me the last time I ran a marathon 5 and a half years ago and although they held up for the half I don't think that I would have been able to do a full marathon without them impacting my ability to run.

48.3 miles for the week and the priceless knowledge that if all goes well a decent PB (currently 3:24 from DCM 2010) is on the cards.

Struggling a bit I'm afraid.

Last week was going well until I possibly pushed too hard trying to get 3*2 miles on Wednesday and 15 on Friday. I was fine for the first half but my right hip started to get a bit uncomfortable and it was a bit of a struggle to get to the end. I didn't think an awful lot of it but when it hadn't gone by the time I woke up the next morning I was beginning to get concerned. I took Saturday off, then Sunday off. On Monday I tried 3 but could feel it most of the time.

A trip to the physio on Monday evening hesitantly diagnosed piriformis problems with instructions to come back if necessary. I did all the stretches (I clearly had a pretty tight piriforms but not quite the excruciating pain that others report when using a cricket ball on it) and then ran an easy 5 on Tuesday but it was clear that a tight piriformis wasn't the source of the discomfort that I have so I went back again on Wednesday.

I'm now told that it's likely to be bursitis trochanterica but to be honest I'm having some doubts. I could have been a bit more committed to some of the exercises beforehand but all of what I have been given to combat it is stuff that I had already been doing to a greater or lesser extent. Also, apparently it's basically inflammation of bursa or little sacs of synovial fluid and anti-inflammatories should help. The area doesn't feel in the slightest bit inflamed and anti-inflammatories have about as much impact as smarties would. OTOH, my right hip/leg is much less co-ordinated than my left but it's something that I've been working on all year long and I think that it's better than it has been for a long time.

It's a bit of a battle to get to the start line now. As soon as I can get the discomfort to go I'll start running again and hopefully build it up to double figures. I'll only run Dublin if I can start free of discomfort. 26.2 miles is a long way to go on a dodgy hip!

Singer wrote: »

Hey, how are things? Are you planning a test run this week?

I did a short jog to and from the gym today. I was also on the treadmill with the physio this morning and I was on and off the treadmill for short bursts while I was at the gym. Probably about 25 mins in total.

The key seems to be to get my glutes working. Whatever caused it I'm not sure but they've totally switched off and I need to do a couple of exercises and stretches to get them functioning. At the moment I'm only getting about 5 mins before they stop kicking in. The next 10 days is about trying to extend that period of time. I probably need to spend a couple of days in the gym first before I start heading outdoors again.

Did some long arm pull ups in the gym today - think I'm going to have DOMS!

5/5/10/12mins today plus the realisation that if I up the elevation on the treadmill it'll help with glute recruitment. Also, belly breathing helps!

The silver lining to the cloud of this injury is that I haven't been overly bothered by the chest cold that I picked up while I was back in Bray last weekend for my parents 40th wedding anniversary. I'm guessing that I picked it on the plane and it has hit my wife badly but (possibly because of my dramatically reduced training load) my body has handled it pretty well so far. It should be well gone by Sunday week and I'm taking the boat over next week so no airplane filtration systems to endure! Still thinking about a hazmat suit though!

chickey2 wrote: »

Have you made any decisions yet, or will you wait?

It'll be Saturday night/Sunday morning before I make a final decision. I did a 30 min test run this morning. The hip held up fine even if it's not where it should be but my heart rate was about 20 bpm higher than it should have been - I'm clearly still fighting an infection. I'll probably pick up my number tomorrow but I wouldn't rate my chance of running any higher than 20%.

On a sad note I just heard that the headmaster of my school died this evening. 95 years old and he was still doling out the sweets from the tuck shop this morning apparently. I remember him breaking his leg at the age of 80 and seeing him 6 months later walking around as fit as ever. I hope that I can live as long, full and healthy a life as he.

tang1 wrote: »

Any running lately?

Thanks for asking tang.

A couple of test runs mostly for my own sanity but the cold is still there unfortunately. I could moan but my wife also has it and has suffered an awful lot more.

I'm tempted to just get out and ignore it but so far sense has prevailed!