Berlin Q or Bust: Road to sub 2:45

Gonna target a couple of shorter races in Nov/Dec but not sure yet....new arrival due Dec 16th so race choice may be a little more opportunistic than usual gonna start doing a bit more than easy running next week....but here was the week just past.

Mon: 10k: 50:34 @5:03/km Loop of the Curragh Plains.

Tue: AM 7k: 35:31 @5:05/km
PM 7k: 34:56 @4:58/km In and out of work.

Wed: 10k: 45:36 @4:34/km Planned to do a hill session but had to take a trip into Naas, so just ran 10k steady-ish...finished with 4:08 & 4:01 km's. Felt great.

Thu: 10k: 49:27 @4:57/km Naas again.

Fri: 10k 52ish no watch. Loop of the Curragh Plains.

Sat: 16k: 1:21:25 @5:05/km Up at 6am for this,heavy mist, 17°C, no wind....mad weather. Really enjoyed this one, looking forward to getting back out on some longer runs in the next few weeks.

Sun: 10.5k: 52:47 @5:02/km 6am again, mad weather out there altogether. Hope it sorts itself out for DCM, that would NOT be ideal weather at all....

Weekly Total: 80.5km

Body feels great, ready to build up to some shorter races and hopefully be in good nick to start training block for Rotterdam in January.

Mon: 10k Easy: 49:48 @4:59/km
Got out early enough about 10am in front of the storm. Weird conditions to be running in, Curragh Plains blustery at the best of times but this was a bit mad!

Tue: 10.6k Easy: 50:05 @4:43/km off again today so got out for a late afternoon jaunt. Mad damage around the town considering we weren't in one of the more affected regions. This run felt very easy, legs are really bouncing at the moment. 3 weeks of easy running has certainly recharged the batteries.

Wed: 5 Mile Tempo
First session since Berlin and the instructions were 'Don't bust your balls, run at about 85% of 5mile race pace and put in an honest effort'. I'm hoping to break 30mins in the New Year so I wanted to put a good effort in, I was also conscious of the fact that it was my first session since Berlin. Was in Naas so I said I'd park up at Smyths Toy shop and run about 2.5k to the Parkrun course at the Racecourse. Of course I get to the Racecourse and I've come from the wrong direction and gates are locked. Made a pretty ropey attempt to scale a fence (barbed wire and paranoia about my ACL getting injured again put a stop to it). Pride injured but knee still intact, I set off back in the direction I came from, then out the Blessington road, about turn and back into the town.

Splits:
Km1: 4:04
Km2: 4:09
Km3: 4:12 (Up hill & into wind)
Km4: 3:52 (back down)
Km5: 4:01
Km6: 4:03
Km7: 4:00
Km8: 3:55
&the bit @3:34

5m: 32:27

Delighted with that. Back on the horse & feeling sprightly enough. Broke my balls to run a similar time in a tempo not so long ago, so the progression is there for me to see.....

Hadn't wore the racers since Berlin. Don't know if it was just the 3 weeks of easy running, but they didn't feel great during the run. Must check the mileage on them....

Thu: 10k w/pooch: 55ish no watch. The dog is getting fierce unpredictable when she gets out for a run. She's either pulling me along or I'm just short of carrying her

Fri: Session: 16x400m w/60secs rec

First interval session since Berlin. Wasn't in the most chipper of moods before it, lack of sleep and generally high stress levels to thank. But I got the chance to do it this morning so out I went to the track in Newbridge. Didn't really have any specific time in mind. I'd completed this session the week before the Tullamore Half @80 secs, with all of the reps being on the button. I said I'd aim for 80secs and see where I was after a couple, and gauge effort levels.

Splits:
83, 81, 78, 79, 79, 79, 82, 80, 80, 80, 80, 80, 79, 78, 78, 74

Pretty happy with the session. Thought I was gonna spew after no.8 (late enough breakfast meant a bowl of porridge was sloshing around in there), but felt my way into the session and the last few reps felt a lot smoother than the start.

Dad got out of Hospital today so my days should return to their normal timings which will hopefully let me get a race in the next couple of weeks. Thinking of doing the EOI Half on the Curragh Plains as a session. Maybe 5k @4:50, 5k @4:40, 5k @4:30 & 6k @ whatever! That's in a couple of weeks so will look for a 5k or 10k next weekend.

ThebitterLemon wrote: »

Have you run on the plains much, last time I ran there I'd to constantly watch my step, not great for tempo running imo

TbL

Yeah at least once or twice a week, mostly easy runs but would regularly do tempos and sessions on them too. There's a great (and challenging) 1km little loop that I would use for a session. It can be a bit ropey underfoot at times depending on the amount of rain alright, but I'm just looking for a good hard effort in the Half. If I have to back off I will. Never knew that the EOI guys ran a race on the plains, so it's great to take part in a race over a route I'd run every week! (Plus my wife will be about 2 weeks away from her due date so I'll just about get away with it )

Fri: 10k Easy: 50ish No watch

Sat: 10.6k Easy: 53:20 @ 5:03/km

Sun: 13k Steady: 59:46 @ 4:30/km

Got out late in the afternoon, was bouncing off the road for this. Did a progression run of sorts, last 5k around 21 mins, pace felt comfortable.

Weekly Total: 100km for the Week

Mon: Long Run: 15 miles: 2:07:03 @5:13/km

Moved Long Run to Monday as wanted to run the EOI route with a mate who's ran it before Saturday's Half Marathon. Did 3 laps of the 5 mile loop ....flipping hell, it's a tough loop, complete with step ladder over fence .I run over most of the route every week, but it'll be a tough stretch if the weather isn't great this week. Ran 2 loops easy and final loop a bit steadier. Conditions were cold,damp and very mucky. Gonna be a tough effort on Saturday morning which is exactly what I want.

Lap 1: 43:39
Lap 2: 43:27
Lap 3: 38:14

Will start off at 4:30/min km's for the first lap on Saturday morning and see how they're feeling and take it from there. Hoping to do a 5k and 10k over the next 2/3 weeks but that is very much in the lap of the Gods as regards when our impending arrival arrives and how everyone is doing before and after

Tue: Rest!! Tired after yesterday, had a few things in work to take care of and then the game later on.

Easy week this week. While i didn't race the Half last Sat, the run definitely took a bit out of me, and after a up and down period in general, the plan was to just ease off this week, no sessions, run on feel mostly with a longish run at the wk/end.

Mon: Very Easy 12.1k: 1:03:56 @5:18/km

Obviously I wasn't too scarred from Saturday's HM, so i returned to the plains and ambled around in the mud. Very enjoyable, but things got dark quickly. Gonna get a head torch off santa I think as I've lost the one from the race series half last year....

Tue: Very Easy 13.3k: 1:08:11 @5:08/km

Up in town for a conference, so got up early to the Phoenix Park for this one. Always a treat to run in the PP.....

Wed: Off. Couple of things cropped up in work which led to me having to take a rain check on the run. Not too bothered as was feeling a bit on the tired side.

Thu: Easy 14k: 1:09:36 @4:58/km

Back to the plains for this one. Legs feeling nice and fresh after the day off, made my way over and up Braveheart Hill as part of this one. Have been using my old Ghost 10's on the plains, but they really aren't up to much as I found out in the Half. Ordered a pair of Brooks Caldera so looking forward to running in a decent pair of trail runners.

Fri: Easy 5m: 38:24 @4:46/km

Not a lot of time to get a run in, so did something a little quicker.

Sat: Easy 10.6k: 51:23 @4:48/km

In the sleet and snow. I love running in cold weather and this run was no different.

Sun: Long Run: 24k: 1:55:31 @4:49/km

Ran this with, shock horror, my phone and headphones as my wife is 38wks pregnant so I need to be contactable from here on in. It was nice to zone out and listen to some podcasts but I could take it or leave it. I don't think I'll be tempted to take them with me once our newest arrival comes along run was uneventful enough. Hopefully going to do something a bit more exciting with my long run next weekend. 6x1mile session mid week is on the cards as well.

Weekly Total: 82k (6 days)

Passed 2000 miles for the year during the week. Didn't have any target in terms of mileage this year but after missing most of Mar and Apr I would have taken that total by the end of November.

Thu: 12k Easy: 59:58 @5:00/km

Fri: 20k Easy: 1:44:57 @5:15/km

Had a date with the RPSI Santa Train on Saturday, so had 10 miles planned with my mate who's coming back from injury....turned into 20k, wasn't too bothered as I knew the chances of me getting out the next day were slim.

Sat: Santa Train

Sun: 16k: 1:16:38 @4:47/km

Original plan was to do a progressive 26k Long Run but was pretty wrecked from previous day's adventures and also had the two mouth ulcers from hell. So scaled it back and called it a day after 10 miles. Felt fine but didn't want to push things.

Weekly Total: 84k

Mon: 13k Easy: 1:06:37 @5:07/km

Tue: 16k Easy: 1:19:39 @4:58/km

Wed: 12k Easy: 1:00:04 @5:00/km

Thu: 12k Easy: 1:02:13 @5:11/km

Fri: 8k Steady: 37:31 @4:40/km

Really boring week here. Session on Wednesday got nixed, business @ home and work made getting out difficult so I'm pretty happy that I made it out the 5 days