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2012 4 Races for 4 PBs

outforarun

Been lurking since the start of the year. I really enjoy following the training logs here, they’re a great source of information and motivation. So it’s time to try give something back.

I started running proper this year and entered my first ever races. I ran four races in total:

Cork City Marathon 2010 (3:51)
I more or less followed Hal Higdon’s Intermediate I plan for this my first ever race. I was aiming for a 3:45 but for a whole variety of reasons I came up short by 6 mins: I skipped just a few sessions too many during training, I ran my long runs too fast, I didn’t run any long runs on the road, I started the marathon too fast, the weather on the day didn’t help, I never really recovered from the wind and rain around the estuary.
The last 6 miles were not a lot of fun. All the same I was delighted to finish and happy to have at got home under 4 hours. And less than 24 hours later I was planning what would be my next race. I’d got the bug.

Frank Duffy 10 Mile (1:17)
Since the marathon I’d bought a Garmin and cobbled together a training plan for the summer. I was aiming for 7:45/m pace to finish with a 1:17. I was pleased with my final time but not pleased with how I ran. Hared off far too fast over the first two miles (7:13, 7:13), slowed down but not enough over the next few miles and then hit the hills; or rather the hills hit me, hard, an 8:35 on mile 9. Managed to recover with a final mile of 7:41, but for the second race in a row I did not enjoy the closing section and finished uncomfortably.

Dublin Half Marathon (1:40)
My most enjoyable race to date. I learned two things: one, do not start too fast and two you can achieve a lot with just 4 weeks training. I was aiming again for 7:45/m for a 1:41 finish. For the first 7 miles I really concentrated on holding back, I’d let the Chesterfield descents gain a few seconds but without increasing my effort. I didn’t worry about an 8:05 on mile 8, and I felt really good at the 10 mile point (such a change from 4 weeks ago). I was overtaking loads of people going up Military Hill. I managed to finish with a 6:59 mile 13 and a big smile on my face. Brilliant. It is so so much more enjoyable and effective to pace cautiously at the start and then be able to up the pace near the end. Buzzed for days after this one.

BHAA Cork to Cobh 15 Mile (1:56)
Started to have crazy ideas of trying for a 8:00/m Cork Marathon in 2011. Thought to myself well first let’s see how I manage at 7:5X/m over the 15 miles from Cork to Cobh. Managed fine. Didn’t pace myself as steadily as I would have liked, too many 7:3Xs and 7:4Xs, felt tired alright on the ascent around mile 12, but never doubted that I’d manage a 7:5X average pace. In the end I managed a 7:48 average. In terms of atmosphere this was easily my favourite of all 4 races and the weather was just perfect.

And so for 2011, the plan now is to avoid injury and try start all four races again in 2011. And PB all four. And based on how I felt at Cork to Cobh I cannot resist now trying for an 8:00/m, sub 3:30 marathon in Cork in June. If I succeed it’ll be a massive 20+ minutes off my 2010 time. If the worse happens and I really blow-up in the 2011 version hopefully I’ll still manage to PB. I plan on really following Higdon’s Intermediate II.

I haven't run since Cobh, that's 3 weeks to the day. I wanted to rest-up my right-knee which was not too happy with the summer's work. Feels ok again and hopefully it'll hold up when I get back on the road tomorrow. 8 miles planned at 8:3X pace. Plan for the next 12 weeks is to try get 4 runs in every week, 2 short (3-5 miles) steady runs, 1 medium to long (8-15 miles) and one speed session.

Good luck to all running DCM tomorrow.

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squiredanaher

Keep the faith . Your training is excellent.

Applegirl26

outforarun wrote: »

Hiya Applegirl.

Nope not vegetarian, but it's about 4 years now that I've been eating meat/fish maximum 2 days a week (sustainability and health reasons primarily, but I also really like cooking plant based. The fish and meat I do buy I try source organic, free-range and local).

The Raw Carrot hummus is a River Cottage recipe:

300g peeled, trimmed and cut into 5mm slices
2 tablespoons of tahini
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive or rapeseed oil (I use rapeseed)
1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1 grated clove of garlic
A 'good squeeze of lemon juice'
Sea salt and black pepper

Simple to make.

Blitz the carrot in a food processor, you'll probably need to scrap down the sides of the processor a few times. I find I need to gradually add around 100 to 150ml of water while doing this, and I would recommend you do same as it gives a nice lightness to the hummus.

Add the tahini, oil, cumin seeds, garlic, lemon, salt and pepper. And blitz again.

And you're done. Eat straight away or store in a fridge, I find it lasts 3 to 5 days.

Enjoy.

Thanks so much for taking the time to write that out for me. Great running. I really enjoy your log.

outforarun

Royal Oak Loop TT (7:28)

No PB this morning. Came home in 7:28, five seconds slower than last time out. Some consolation that I finish sub 7:30 again. I'm not hugely disappointed as this is a 14 day goal and I have another shot next Sunday. I wonder how much knowing that this was a 'trial' attempt influenced my effort.

I stalled a bit before leaving the house, nothing new there. Cool out, no sunshine. Two warm-up recce laps. There's a light headwind blowing along St Johns, nothing like on my first attempt a few weeks back, but still a potential nuisance.

Happy to get started at the Royal Oak on lap three. Dash past two cops in the first 200m. Try to quickly find a pace I feel I can maintain for the next 7 and a bit minutes. I already feel the legs working on little drag up to The Patriot. Turn for the 100m dash down SCR and swing onto St Johns. This stretch is where the foundation is laid for a good TT. I stick to the tarmac. I don't look at the Garmin. The headwind becomes more noticeable as St Johns continues. I try to concentrate on keeping a good stride. I don't feel noticeably more or less tired than last time out.

Onto Military Road head-down. Am I pushing enough? I take a a good racing line here, I don't remember any cars on this lap. The mile marker is on the short descent just before turning to tackle the Kilmainham Lane ascent. Am I ahead or behind 7:23, I don't know. Am I moving at 7:1X, I wouldn't bet on it.
Thigh burn as the hill starts to crest. The final 150-200ms to navigate. I up the pace but don't really get to sprint speed. Pass the manhole finishing line run for a few more seconds and hit the lap button. The split on the watch suggests a sub 7:30 but no PB and certainly no sub 7:20.

Strava confirms this later. A 7:28 second best time for the loop.

I think I need to start glancing at the Garmin at key points on the loop next time out. I think I'm starting to run on hope a little. If I know I'm behind pace then I'm more likely to surge and push, if I don't see that I'm behind pace I can opt to pretend/hope that I am and hold steady.

Another 40 mile week.
Pass 800 miles for the year.
Will post food later.

outforarun

Very Easy 6+ Miles

Beautiful warm and hazy sunshine on Saturday. Set the watch to alert if running faster than 9:15 pace. I wanted a very easy run. After a lap and a bit I realise that for some reason 9:15 is just too hard to target. I ignore the alerts and just run and what feels like very easy effort. Tip around in a weather induced good mood, soaking in the vitamin D.

Total 6.50M @ 8:48

Gentle core and upper body session. This involves 3 sets of press-ups, chair-dips, plank, bicycle crunches. Volume is low to start with as I'm novice here but plan is to build it up slowly.

Saturday Food

breakfast - oat milk porridge with honey
lunch - 2 gram flour pancakes, with turmeric, cumin, onion and kale
dinner - mixed pasta with aubergine, garlic and tomato passata, small piece of bread to mop
snacks - almonds, dark chocolate, mandarins, cheese and crackers
alcohol - none

outforarun

Easy 5 Miles

Finished up work later than scheduled yesterday. Spent 20 mins on some light stretching and strength work. This typically involves: resistance band hammer curls, resistance band leg lifts (?) (the one where you sit on the table with band around ankle and you lift and straighten your leg), single leg balance board where for balance board read small cushion on bigger cushion, two different hammer stretches and some squats.

Head out around 8:30. Anticlockwise this evening so more over shoulder glances required. Roads are quiet again this evening. Cops finishing up a road block on lap 1. Don't look at the Garmin at all and easy pace is again faster than it feels. I need to reset the 'too-fast' alert on the watch and run a proper recovery paced run.

Total 5.19M @ 8:17

Friday Food

breakfast - oat milk porridge with raspberries
lunch - salad of lettuce, emmental, cherry tomatos, almonds, dressing of green pesto and olive oil, small piece of bread to mop
dinner - wholewheat pasta with paste of anchovies, garlic, red chilli flakes and a little passata, small piece of bread to mop
snacks - almonds, cheese and crackers, some dark chocolate
alcohol - none

outforarun

Double Fartlek Ladder

Wasn't hugely enthusiastic ahead of this one. But stepping outside and discovering it was a warm bright evening made this more appetizing. I under-estimated how tricky this session was last time out, tonight I think I was better prepared and maybe over-estimated how tricky it was.

Knowing I'd be travelling at speed this evening I told myself not to take this too seriously, if I needed to slow down or take large diversions then so be it. Instead it was mostly quiet this evening and it was easy to keep my distance. Really the only pinch point on this loop is by the traffic lights when turning right onto St Johns. Tonight it was empty on all 6 laps.

Start the first 60 second interval at the same point as last week so I can compare efforts. Legs feeling light tonight. I try to not hare off too fast and aimed to keep effort relatively even across the fast sections. The hardest part of the Fartlek is the second ascent of the ladder which culminates in a full Kilmainham Lane 3:00 climb. Once this is done the back of the session is broken and the final 2:00 and 1:00 sections are mentally easy to navigate.

Overall this felt easier than two weeks ago, but I wasn't sure if this was because I was running slower or if I was running 'better'.

Checking splits afterwards (as recorded in watch history), all but the first fast section this evening were quicker than last time out. Encouraging.

Complete a light upper body / core session later in the evening.

Thursday Food

breakfast - scrambled eggs with a dash of tabasco and some dried majoram
lunch - salad of emmental, lettuce, cherry tomatos, cashews, dressing of green pesto and olive oil, small piece of bread (to mop)
dinner - veg risotto (kale, courgette and pea) with ginger, turmeric and parmesan
snacks - cashew nuts, crackers and cheese
alcohol - none

Tonight's Splits

290m @ 3:30 (-5m)
540m @ 3:41 (+5m)
850m @ 3:32 (-4m)
550m @ 3:40 (+7m)
270m @ 3:39 (0m)
570m @ 3:32 (-8m)
790m @ 3:47 (+10m)
540m @ 3:41 (+1m)
280m @ 3:38 (+3m)

Date | Distance in 17 mins | Pace | Distance in 33 mins | Pace
09 Apr 20 | 4.48K | 3:41 [5:55] | 7.73K | 4:16 [6:51]
23 Apr 20 | 4.61K | 3:37 [5:49] | 7.84K | 4:12 [6:45]

outforarun

8 Mile Gentle Progression

Another mentally draining day at work. No let up at the moment, but I know that that's a good complaint to have. Finish up late and get out later than normal.

Opted for another gentle progression run this evening, it's my go-to run when I want something more interesting than a vanilla easy run, but don't want to bust a gut. Six laps on the menu, each lap a little faster than the previous working toward a 6:5X final lap.

The streets are quieter at this time. They definitely had become busier over the last week or so, but tonight it was like two weeks ago. It was nice as well to run through the dusk. The paces were easy enough to dial in, I'd start the lap a little too quick, ease off going down St Johns and then let Military Road and Kilmainham Lane ascents ensure I stayed on target.

The legs felt good tonight, no tiredness, no numbness. They felt fluid and stronger on the closing laps. Two police on the beat this evening.

1.26M @ 7:48
1.28M @ 7:35
1.28M @ 7:25
1.27M @ 7:15
1.27M @ 7:04
1.27M @ 6:51

Total 8.11M @ 7:18

Wednesday Food

breakfast - oat milk porridge with honey
lunch - salad of mozzarella, garlic, red sweet pepper, cherry tomatos, dried majoram, olive oil dressing
dinner - wholewheat pasta with courgette, cherry tomatos, garlic, passata and smoked paprika, small piece of seeded bread, just to mop.
snacks - dried mango, cheese and crackers
alcohol - none

outforarun

Easy 6+ Miles

Ok back into 'race' mode. Target is a sub 7:20 Royal Oak Loop before midnight on 3 May. I'll have two shots at it, one next Sunday and one Sunday week.

So with a TT on the horizon my diet comes under scrutiny again and I'll be logging it here to keep me honest. Yoga has fallen by the way-side, I may give it one more try, maybe choose a beginner course. Upper body work has just about survived as has stretching and strength work for the legs - but I definitely need to up my game on these. Sleep is still a weak link.

I started the week with an easy 5 anti-clockwise laps of the block. Enjoy the warmth of the evening sun heading out St Johns. Legs were really not up for this though. They felt wooden throughout and my left foot and lower left leg felt numb with a hint of pins and needles. I reckon it's the sedentary working day to blame. Police check-point on laps 4 and 5. Tonight for the first time I forgot my utility bill, so I fully expected the police to flag me down, they didn't.

Total 6.45M @ 8:26

Monday Food

breakfast - soya milk porridge with honey
lunch - gram-flour pancake with onion, spinach and kale
dinner - reheated sweet potato curry from Sunday, with steamed basmati rice
snacks - banana, blueberry soya yoghurt with granola and milled linseed
alcohol - 2 glasses of red

Tuesday Food

breakfast - oat milk porridge with a little honey and a little agave syrup
lunch - salad of mozzarella, garlic, red sweet pepper, green olives, garlic and seaweed flakes, olive oil dressing
dinner - Tuesday night so frozen pizza night, vegan with added cherry tomatos and cajun spicing
snacks - cashew nuts, apricot soya yoghurt with milled linseed
alcohol - Tuesday night pints, 2 Original Guinness Extra Stout

outforarun

Short Fartlek 'The Moneghetti'

One from Strava

This was something different. I wasn't running a TT Sunday morning but still wanted to work the legs at speed. The session looked easy on paper (something I'm becoming very wary of) and looked like fun.

2x90s + 4x60s + 4x30s + 4x15s (equal time recovery after each fast bit)

The idea is that you run the 90s at 5K pace and then shift up a gear for each subsequent set. I ran a lap and a bit of warm-up and started the session at my 'start-session-road-sign' near the start of St Johns.

The road profile with its hills and dips influences how fast these can be tackled. I ran the 90s at what felt like optimistic 5K pace. I then tried to run the 60s at 3K pace, or the pace I would try hold for most of my TT lap, the 30s I tried to run at 'surge' pace from my TTs, and the 15 seconds I just ran shy of on my toes sprint.

To be fair this session only involves 10 minutes of fast running, and it is as easy as it looks on paper, and it is as much fun as it looks on paper. Definitely one I will repeat when I want to inject speed into the legs, but not kill myself. Now, doing two sets of these with say 10 mins easy running between sets, that would be serious session.

90 @ 5:41 min/mile
90 @ 5:45
60 @ 5:47
60 @ 5:26
60 @ 5:27
60 @ 5:25
30 @ 5:54
30 @ 5:30
30 @ 6:03
30 @ 5:14
15 @ 5:10
15 @ 5:25
15 @ 5:18
15 @ 5:18

90s at average 5:43 [3:33min/km]
60s at average 5:31 [3:25min/km]
30s at average 5:40 [3:31min/km] must be the profile
15s at average 5:17 [3:17min/km]

Total 6.42M @ 7:35

outforarun

Easy 5 Miles

I started the weekend with an easy 5 miles. Ran anti-clockwise and it didn't bother me too much. I spotted that there is an anti-clockwise segment of my loop out there. I'm sitting in 3rd, first place involves a 6:45 pace lap, so I reckon soon I'll need to put this to rights, run just enough to go top and so have the crown in both directions.

Mounted cops patrolling my loop on Saturday. No hammer complaints. Plus my easy pace averaged at 8:00 min/mile. Far quicker than the effort suggested, it absolutely felt easy (I wasn't watching the Garmin throughout).

Total 5.20M @ 8:00

outforarun

6+ Easy Miles

Wasn't hugely in the mood for this one. Of late when the sun is out it's warm and summery, when cloudy and windy there is still a chill in the air. Running top on yesterday evening. I reluctantly turn right when I leave home and set out on an anticlockwise run. Keep the pace nice and easy and ignore the Garmin. Once I get going I enjoy the run, even the St Johns drag is ok this evening. Thoughts on this run turn to my recent lack of longer runs. I don't think it will be difficult to re-introduce these to my running, but I will need to phase the miles back in gradually, 12M, then 14M then 16M. I'm really looking forward to taking a run to the sea.

Finish feeling comfortable and happy I got out. Easy pace is getting faster I average 8:18 pace this evening, it felt much slower.

Total 6.47M @ 8:18

outforarun

8 Miles @ 2:54 Marathon Pace

Thursday evening's plan was to run a steady 8 miles targeting 2:59 marathon pace. I was looking forward to an honest effort run without having to push to HM pace or faster. Another pleasant warm spring evening. Just a t-shirt on top I choose the Asterias for this one.

Hardest lap is probably the first one, trying to find 6:50/6:51 pace off the bat. I'd done some stretching and core exercises earlier in the day but the legs still needed around a mile to loosen out. No feedback from the left hammer though.

Once I hit target pace my momentum took me beyond it and I started to settle in 6:4X pace. I only checked the Garmin as the splits sounded. Some flashed up at 6:3X pace and here I did try apply the brakes. Really please though to find 6:4X so manageable. I wasn't struggling or willing the miles to pass. The Military Road and Kilmainham Lane ascents didn't cause any problems.

Six laps fly in. I do a little out and back in a 7th lap to bring up 8 miles. I pass a couple of walkers in the last 50m before I come to a dead stop outside home.
I stay on the opposite side of the road waiting for them to pass. They're saying something to me, is this going to be my first negative runner comment, nope, instead the girl is joking pointing at the road and suggesting I've just hit the invisible 2k barrier. I've been lucky over the last 2 weeks and I've avoided any altercations with other road users. Touchwood this continues.

The Asterias felt flat on this one, inducing some numbness in my left leg. They are coming up on 500 miles. Time to order some new runners.

M01 6:49
M02 6:37
M03 6:42
M04 6:40
M05 6:31
M06 6:41
M07 6:46
M08 6:39

Total 8.27 @ 6:40

outforarun

8 Miles Gentle Progression

I turned off auto-lap Tuesday evening and instead took manual laps of the loop. The idea was a gentle progression run, with lap one run at 7:4X pace, lap 2 at 7:3X pace etc. I would finish with a 6:5X lap.

Legs felt good from the start. Hammer feeling better. It was easy to find pace and I barely noticed the increase from lap to lap. At the start of lap 5 I was running 6:5X pace and it felt very easy, I needed to apply the brakes around the loop. At the start of the final loop I repeated the pattern, this time with 6:4X pace feeling easy before applying the brakes again.

1.28M @ 7:42
1.29M @ 7:32
1.29M @ 7:28
1.28M @ 7:13
1.29M @ 7:00
1.28M @ 6:49

Total 8.26M @ 7:14

outforarun

Easy 6+ Miles (anti-clockwise!!)

Concerned about a persistent tightness in my left hammer I opted on Monday evening to run anti-clockwise instead of clockwise. A whole new world.

The positives? In the evening you get more sunlight on your face, running up St Johns. That's about it I think. I don't like the long drag along St Johns, I prefer the sharper but shorter clockwise climbs. Plus it is so much more easy to navigate traffic while running clockwise, especially along St Johns, where Monday I couldn't relax on the road and where I had to look over my shoulder everytime I left the footpath. My idea is to run the easy runs anti-clockwise, and anything else will be clockwise.

Legs felt ok Monday evening and hammer didn't protest too much. Easy pace logged a little faster on the Garmin than how it felt in the legs.

So this week I'm not targeting a Sunday TT. It's too much pressure week in week out. But I will (touchwood) target TTs on the following two Sunday's, goal is to go sub 7:20 now and I'm giving myself 2 shots at it. The foodlog helped last week, so I'll start a 2 week one from next Monday.

First lockdown is over. Three week extension is underway. I think if one day the weather is really bad I may put on the Dynafit's and treat myself to some XC miles my the Fort.

Total 6.46M @ 8:10

outforarun

Royal Oak Segment TT

Conditions looked promising outside. I stepped onto the balcony to grab my Asterias (in other news, scotindublin has unearthed evidence that the Asterias have been discontinued!). It felt fresh and a very very gentle breeze and a hint of drizzle, perfect. I did stall a bit before heading out, genuine pre 'race' trepidation. Just a light t-shirt on top.

Once I start my warm-up laps I feel better and anxious to get the TT underway. Say morning to some dog-walking neighbours but otherwise the loop is pretty much deserted. Eventually the starting line (man-hole cover) arrives and I hit lap on the Garmin.

The opening section is about keeping a cool head and establishing an aggressive but not overly aggressive pace. Legs feel responsive. Don't panic and remember that from the Royal Oak to the Patriot is a net climb.

I swing right onto the cycle lane and extend my stride as I descend the 100m or so down SCR. A slight slight headwind here but it has no influence on effort levels.

Turn onto St Johns. Keep my stride steady and keep the pace constant, occasionally injecting a little surge for 10m or so. A convoy of Civil Defence vehicles passes me and this offers a welcome distraction, I forget about my discomfort for 150m or so. As with previous TTs I don't look at the Garmin and I judge everything on effort. My strategy is to try hold my starting effort until when Kilmainham Lane starts to flatten and only then try to shift a gear, to dip under 7:30 over the final 100m.

The road starts to flatten as I near HSQ. The legs do feel strong and I definitely feel lighter than on previous attempts. The hard part awaits though.

I swing right onto Military Road. Head down, stay honest, don't look to the horizon, just take it one stride at a time. I cut a good racing line at the summit and enjoy the sort sharp descent to Bow Lane.

Final effort as I tackle the ascent of Kilmainham Lane. I can feel thigh burn as I reach the steepest part of the climb, but I'm still feeling optimistic, form just feels better than on previous attempts.

The road starts to flatten, now or never, I up the pace, imagining it's a race day with spectators shouting encouragement. Legs and lungs working hard, I push past the man-hole and as always I keep the sprint going for a few metres more before hitting the lap button.

I see 7:27 on the Garmin. Fist pump.

When I get home I confirm that the 2.04K [1.26M] segment was covered in 7:23 @ 3:37 pace [5:45 min/mile].

Really pleased with this. I do think the last 6 days of additional focus on diet helped, as did the conditions on the morning.

This segment has given me good focus for these first two weeks of lockdown. I don't think I'll try again next week, but I probably will on the subsequent 2 Sundays.

outforarun

Easy 7 Miles

Best weather of the year to date, though not entirely welcome. Out mid-morning for another easy 7 miler. Did 20 minutes of stretching and strength work on the legs before heading out. I could feel tightness again in the left hammer. Thinking about this as I completed yet another 5 clockwise laps of my Royal Oak loop, the penny dropped that maybe the left leg doesn't like the constant camber it has had to deal with over the last two week. Cumulative clockwise camber. I think I'll need to start mixing up the direction of my loops and maybe run more on the pavement when it's free than sticking to the road. Quite a few out this morning, walking running and cycling but all respecting the rules.

I was convinced I was running no faster than 8:2X pace so it was a happy surprise to see a 7:4X average pace for the run.

Bit anxious now about tomorrow's TT. However it goes I don't think I'll do another one next Sunday.

Total 7.03M @ 7:48

breakfast - alpro coconut with granola and agave syrup
lunch - none, breakfast was late and I wasn't hungry
dinner - veg curry (kale, broccoli, pea and tomato) with steamed basmati rice, very small piece of seeded bread (to mop)
dessert - a repeat of breakfast
snacks - pear, cashews, 50g of dark chocolate
alcohol - none

outforarun

Very Easy 5 Miles

Wasn't in the mood yesterday evening. Just before headin out I realise I haven't drunk a lot of water today, feeling a bit dehydrated. Set off at a very easy pace and after one lap I decide I'll only run 4 laps tonight to hit 5 miles.
First day of the year where it felt a little humid, wore a jacket and I'm sweating quite a bit. Some tightness in my left hamstring, have I been spending too much time sitting in front of desktop?

Total 5.10M @ 9:01

My third gentle upper body session (press-ups, chair dips, plank, bicycle crunches)

Breakfast – rice milk porridge with dried apricots and agave syrup
Lunch – baked beans on veggie burger (no bun)
Dinner – wholemeal pasta with a strong paste of, linseed oil, garlic, peperoncino, anchovies and just a tablespoon of passata. One very small piece of multiseed bread (just to mop)
Snacks – dried mango, cashew nuts, 50g dark chocolate
Alcohol – 2 glasses of red.

outforarun

Fartlek Double Ladder

Thursday's run looked easy on paper; 2 minutes fast here, 1 minute fast there, a couple of 3 minutes, easy. Another dry and mild evening after another sunny Spring day, I don’t remember it raining since the lockdown. I run a lap of warm-up and continue on my warm-up until the start of St Johns and then I hit lap on the Garmin to get the session under way.

Format is 1 minute on, 1 minute recovery, 2min on, 2min recovery, 3 and 3, 2 and 2, 1 and 1, 2 and 2, 3 and 3, 2 and 2, 1 on.

The first minute is downhill and not too tasking. For some reason I keep equating 1 minute with 100m, 2 minutes with 200m and keep underestimating the next fast bit. I don’t really check pace on the Garmin at any point this evening, although I do check the remaining time, the goal is to treat this as I would any other interval session and try keep even effort across the intervals. The fact that the loop is mostly hilly means there is no value in obsessing about pace. So after around 300m fast, then around 600m fast then around 800m fast I realise that this is not easy. I’m already thinking ahead anticipating the hard parts trying to guess where they will fall on the loop. The second 3min section starts a little before and ends a little after Kilmainham Lane so I get to tackle the entire climb at interval effort. I’ve never run a pyramid/ladder session before but I quickly realise that coming down the ladder is easier than going up the ladder. Once I get over the second 3 minute stint it is easier to mentally tackle the remainder of the session.

Half way through I realise that this effort risks compromising Sunday’s TT. But I’m committed and I want to complete the session; easy running until Sunday morning. Enjoyed that, one I’ll repeat again over the next few weeks.

290m @ 3:26 (-5m)
530m @ 3:47 (+6m)
840m @ 3:36 (-9m)
540m @ 3:42 (+8m)
270m @ 3:46 (+1m)
560m @ 3:34 (-2m)
780m @ 3:51 (+8m)
530m @ 3:47 (+3m)
270m @ 3:46 (+2m)

Total fast running 17 minutes: 4610m @ 3:41 min/km (net 12m climb)
Total with recovery 33 minutes: 7730m @ 4:16 min/km
Total for evening 12.77K @ 4:39

Leg stretching and strength session.

Breakfast – Alpro almond with granola and agave syrup
Lunch – salad of lettuce, garlic, cherry tomatos, red pesto, green olives
Dinner – aubergine, spinach and red chilli risotto
Snacks – dried mango
Alcohol – none

outforarun

Applegirl26 wrote: »

Would you mind sharing your recipe for the homemade hummus? Thanks I've yet to find a store bought one that hits the spot. I'm guessing you're vegetarian too?

Hiya Applegirl.

Nope not vegetarian, but it's about 4 years now that I've been eating meat/fish maximum 2 days a week (sustainability and health reasons primarily, but I also really like cooking plant based. The fish and meat I do buy I try source organic, free-range and local).

The Raw Carrot hummus is a River Cottage recipe:

300g peeled, trimmed and cut into 5mm slices
2 tablespoons of tahini
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive or rapeseed oil (I use rapeseed)
1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1 grated clove of garlic
A 'good squeeze of lemon juice'
Sea salt and black pepper

Simple to make.

Blitz the carrot in a food processor, you'll probably need to scrap down the sides of the processor a few times. I find I need to gradually add around 100 to 150ml of water while doing this, and I would recommend you do same as it gives a nice lightness to the hummus.

Add the tahini, oil, cumin seeds, garlic, lemon, salt and pepper. And blitz again.

And you're done. Eat straight away or store in a fridge, I find it lasts 3 to 5 days.

Enjoy.

Applegirl26

Would you mind sharing your recipe for the homemade hummus? Thanks

I've yet to find a store bought one that hits the spot. I'm guessing you're vegetarian too?

outforarun

Easy 7 Miles

Out later than planned Wednesday evening. Target was to hit 7 miles while keeping the pace comfortable.

Another run completed almost exclusively in the middle of the road. There is something strangely comforting about the familiarity of the loop at this point. I’m noticing ground markings that I hadn’t noticed before, noticing permanent pieces of litter in inaccessible spots, same cars gathering dust, seeing the same people out following the same routine. Again the legs felt fine last night, pace was very comfortable and the laps passed quickly.

Total 7.01M @ 8:05

Wednesday’s non running activity – a light core session.

Breakfast – rice milk porridge with dried apricots and agave syrup
Lunch – salad of lettuce, garlic, red pesto, cheddar, cherry tomatos
Dinner – 4-egg veggie omelette (spinach, pea, asparagus, chilli flakes and a good dash of tabasco), shop-bought veg spring rolls (baked)
Snacks – alpro coconut with granola, pear, cashew nuts
Alcohol – none

outforarun

Steady 6+ Miles

Tuesday night pints (a long long standing tradition) has become Tuesday night virtual pints. I got stuck late at work yesterday, got out on the road after 20:00. Ran a little faster than intended so as not to be late for our appointment. Decided to keep each lap a little under 10 mins. Dialed in the pace pretty quickly and then ended up running too quickly.

Legs felt better than I expected. Enjoyed this. Ran through two different police checks, one on lap 1, one on lap 5.

Total 6.43M @ 7:17

Day 1 of Yoga completed, but I think I'll repeat each day before moving onto the next. A short stretching / strengthening session.

breakfast - rice milk porridge with dried apricots and agave syrup
lunch - salad of lettuce, garlic, cherry tomatos, cheddar, homemade hummus, olive oil.
dinner - frozen pizza (vegan) pimped with cherry tomatos and cajun seasoning (staple post Tuesday night pints meal)
snacks - mandarins
alcohol - 2 x Guinness West Indies Porter

outforarun

Ok, the last two or three weeks I've been eating and drinking too much. I want to have a proper shot at a sub 7:30 for my Royal Oak loop, to that end I am giving extra attention to diet and sleep over these next 6 days.

I want to try hit at least 7 hours sleep a night (I average around 5, night owl by nature) and I'm going to document my diet here, I've done that before and it's a good incentive to stay healthier.

Also tonight I did a gentle core/upper body workout. Very very gentle. I plan on doing this every second night, the other days I'll concentrate on stretches and strength work for legs.

And ..... yoga! Going to give the 30 days with Adriene a spin. Strange Days

breakfast - rice milk porridge with banana and agave syrup
lunch - salad of, grated carrot, garlic, cherry tomatos, cheddar, homemade hummus, hardboiled egg, olive oil
dinner - homemade red thai veg curry (aubergine, pea, onion) with steamed basmati rice, mini shop bought veg spring rolls (baked),
snacks - banana and mandarins
alcohol - none

outforarun

March Review

The month began in good company under early Spring sunshine on a Sunday morning, chatting at the back of the 8:30 Donore train. The month ended under a grey sky running solo laps around the block, staying in the middle of the road to avoid the handful of other people who had ventured outside.

I think back to those mid February leisurely lunchtime runs with colleagues in Milan. There wasn't a single hint of what was to come, I just remember thinking how lucky they are here that they can already run in warm weather, no wind and no rain.

March was another good mileage month, my third consecutive 200+ mile run. I've never started a year so prolifically.

Some good sessions in there, a 10x600 session on the Donore track, dragged around by the pelaton, a solo running of the Big Willie, hill repeats on the Khyber, solo hill repeats on St Laurence Road.

No long runs this month, the furthest I ran was HM distance on a gentle progression run, mile 1 in 8:5X, mile 2 in 8:4X, mile 3 in 8:3X and so on finishing at 6:5X pace; a fun way to make a HM pass quickly.

I switched to solo running on March 13. With town shutting down, the park started to fill up. It was easier to avoid people outside the park than inside. My last run in the park was Friday evening 27 March, passing 1000K in the middle of the Acres.

I was happy when they introduced the 2K rule, the concentration of people in the park wasn't helping anyone. I still can run in the park but I think I'll avoid it all the same, unless the weather is horrendous. Instead I've retreated to one of the very first loops I used run when I first laced up before logging here. A simple clockwise 1.29M lap of the block.

This is within a 500m radius of home so could survive further restrictions. I'm accepting it as a challenge to run the same route over and over and try to carve it up in interesting ways.

Strava segments have given me a focus; a 7:37 lap two Sunday's ago (when I should have been racing Dunboyne), a 7:31 lap yesterday, this week is all about breaking 7:30. Also keeping my runs to an hour or less so dropping temporarily from 50 to 40 miles a week.

I carry a utility bill with me on my runs. Have passed unhindered through police road-blocks. Unexpected restrictions in an unprecedented moment.

I expect I'll become even more familiar with this loop in April (sub 7:15?)

Month | Monthly Miles | Daily mileage for month | Weekly Mileage for month | Daily mileage for year | Weekly mileage for year | Predicted yearly mileage
January | 203.31 | 6.56 | 45.91 | 6.56 | 45.91 | 2400
February | 226.40 | 7.81 | 54.65 | 7.16 | 50.13 | 2621
March | 222.74 | 7.19 | 50.30 | 7.17 | 50.19 | 2624
April | | | | | |
May | | | | | |
June | | | | | |
July | | | | | |
August | | | | | |
September | | | | | |
October | | | | | |
November | | | | | |
December | | | | | |

outforarun

Segment TT in 7:31 (New PB)

It's crazy how much seven and a half odd minutes can dominate your mood during the week. I wasn't hugely looking forward to this one. I feel I've had an undisciplined week, eating and drinking more than I should and I expected the worst from this morning's TT. I make sure I get out earlyish to get a clean run at the lap and avoid crossing paths with walkers etc.

Two warm-up laps where I'm getting ready mentally for the fast lap, anticipating how I'll be feeling at each point around the loop. Just want to get it done now. Onto lap 3 and as I approach the Royal Oak I hit the lap button on the Garmin and get it underway.

The light drag from the Royal Oak to the Patriot, gives me an opportunity to see how the legs feel, first impressions are encouraging, they feel light enough and there is a little spring in my step. I consciously decide to hold back ever so slightly along here, I'll need something in the bank for later. Turn right onto the SCR and extend my stride on this short downhill. Swing right onto St Johns and tackle the first headwind of the morning. Not as strong as last week and as the road gently curves right the wind dies down.

Legs working, lungs working but feeling better than last week. I turn right again and up Military Road and here the headwind is at its strongest. Head down, the TT is won or lost on this section I think, feels like what I imagine the 3rd lap of mile race might feel like. I try find a good racing line as I crest the hill. Still haven't noticed a car on the loop.

A brief respite on the short drop down to Bow Bridge before turning right for the final ascent up Kilmanham Lane. When I feel I'm flagging I push but I don't detect any huge increases in speed, I really cannot tell if I'm up or down on last week's time. Legs hurting as I grind out the last 50m and I'm done.

Hit lap on the Garmin. Around 6 or 7 seconds faster than last week, both runs I started some metres before and finished some metres after the Royal Oak, so I won't know if I've improved on the segment or not until I get home.

Two relaxed laps of cool-down, already thinking ahead to next Sunday.

Back home and Strava confirms a new PB for the loop, 7:37 last week, 7:31 this week. Next week I have to try go sub 7:30.

First full week of this lockdown completed, over 40 miles of this clockwise loop. I have ideas around how I'll carve it up next week. If they decide to tighten the restrictions and reduce the 2K to 1K, or even 500m, the loop is still within bounds. Hopefully it won't come to that.

Total 6.34M @ 8:07

outforarun

overpronator wrote: »

Pace is a pointless metric on any tempo route that takes in a few climbs up Kilmanham lane! Great session.

Thanks. I can be guilty of focusing too much on pace at times. Shouldn't dismiss the effort involved in this one. Tempo on hills will surely stand to me, so should be more positive than negative about this.

overpronator

Pace is a pointless metric on any tempo route that takes in a few climbs up Kilmanham lane! Great session.

outforarun

Easy 6+ Miles

Stick with a work issue Friday evening and make progress with it before I log off, happy that I'm not carrying it forward to Monday morning. Into the runners and out of the house. Another 5 laps of the block. I'm not bored of it yet, the most tedious runs are the slower ones. The faster runs I don't care where I'm running, focus is all on managing the discomfort. Haven't seen the police since Monday evening. But once again 99% of people are respecting the 2m rule. I run 90% on the road, enjoying the tarmac on St Johns.

Finish 5 laps. Shower, and then put Milan scarf on before heading to SuperValu.

Total 6.41M @ 8:13

Easy 6+ Miles

A repeat of yesterday's run. Five laps. Take splits of each lap, purely out of curiosity. Happy that each one is marginally faster than the previous one.

1.27M in 11:25
1.27M in 10:44
1.28M in 10:37
1.28M in 10:23
1.28M in 10:16

Cops were back today. Two mounted police on a beat.

Thinking about tomorrow's second Segment TT. Happy to feel a bit anxious ahead of it. I promised myself I'd eat healthier etc this week, but I didn't follow through with that promise. At least I've a target to chase tomorrow that should keep me honest.

Total 6.41M @ 8:20 (felt slower)

outforarun

Tempo 4 Miles

Very busy at work these days. Medical Instruments in high demand. I find myself sitting at the desk more than I would if I was at the office, and so come evening time I notice that the legs aren't as happy to get out for a run as the mind is.

The plan for Thursday night was a 4M tempo. Over the first 200m or so I thought about changing it to something more palatable, but I resisted the temptation to do this. Quick return home to pick up my forgotten utility bill then back on the road (having also switched from the Glycerines into the Asterias). I run 2 miles of warm-up and then start the tempo section at a road-sign close to the start of St Johns Road.

I check pace on this first descent and see I'm travelling at 3:57 [6:21] so smack bang in the middle of tempo range. Then the next time I check as I ascend Military Road I see 4:03 [6:31] showing. Didn't spot that drop in speed and I reluctantly push up the hill. Resolve not to check again until I've completed the first tempo lap. When I check it shows 4:00 [6:26] but it's moving in the right direction and I'm starting my second descent down St Johns, soon it's back in range.

This is feeling tougher than it should. I have a funny feeling that this is one of those loops like the IDA park in Athlone, and the business park in Little Island, on which GPS underestimates your effort. Maybe the 8 miles run at exactly 3:00 marathon pace 2 days earlier are still in the legs. Have I put on that many lockdown kilos? The battery is dead on the scales and for some reason I haven't carried a replacement battery upstairs yet.

Navigate a second ascent of Military Road and Kilmainham Lane. These feel like intervals within the tempo. As I finish the second tempo lap I glance at the watch, 3:59 [6:24]. Recover down St Johns and then onto the ascents for the third and final time. I don't look at the watch as I climb, I try keep the pace honest when the road levels out a bit after the Royal Oak. Finish lap three and now I have a few hundreds yards of downhill before I hit the 4 mile mark. Done. Garmin says 4.01M @ 6:24. That was tough, not any easy tempo loop as there is very little flat road. Good work-out though.

A little part of me thinks I may have dodged a bullet by missing Dunboyne, 37:XX seems a lofty goal again. Another more logical part of me thinks that's a bit unfair given the context of this tempo and the days leading up to it.

Total 8.02 @ 7:25

outforarun

Easy 6 Miles

A little bit of me is considering just running this loop for the rest of the lockdown. I'm kind of curious to see how may different ways I can carve it up. I won't run it anticlockwise though, the advantage of clockwise running is that I can see all approaching traffic (on road and on pavement) along St.John's Road, this helps me take evasive action where needed and makes running in the middle of the road safe.

I start the week with a vanilla 5 laps. Everything felt grey this evening, grey skies, no traffic so the grey of the road was never hidden, even the light felt grey. I could easily get used to these empty roads. Legs feel good. On laps 3, 4 and 5 a Garda checkpoint has been set up on St.John's. I'm never addressed by the cops but all the same I'm happy I have my utility bill with me.

Total 6.41M @ 8:28

Steady 8 Miles

As I'm currently keeping my runs to 60mins or less, if I want to run 8 miles I need to travel at at least 7:30 pace. Set out on this one aiming for 7:20 pace for a solid run. The first couple of miles are run too fast, closer to 7:00 than to 7:20. I'm enjoying the run though and I just go with it and ignore the watch. I can tell the pace is increasing as the run progresses. The legs feel stronger the further I go. I complete 6 laps and add on a little out and back to bring up the 8 miles. All done in 55:26 and at a healthy 6:53 pace.

It's been a while since I ran a steady run like this and I've missed them. Need to do more of these.

Total 8.05M @ 6:53

I'm thinking of doing a short tempo and two more easy runs before Sunday's second segment TT.

Also I've decided that while the current lockdown is in progress I'm going to drop my weekly target to 40 miles. Otherwise I'll be running 7 days a week or reducing the amount of easy miles I run. Dropping to 40 takes some pressure off for this period. Hopefully come May I'll crank it back up to 50, and try rise it to 55 from June.