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Running away

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Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    Surprised to see I'm still on Page 1 despite a bit of an absence. I'm going to try to get this going again. I've put in a decent 5-6 weeks building back up. I'm really enjoying the consistency & feeling the fitness return. Fit for what I don't actually know😂 I can really feel it in my easy runs where my HR is right back to where it should be. I've done a speed session each of the past 3 weeks, all based on effort, for example this week was 5 * 2' @ 10k effort + 5 * 2' @ 5k effort (off 90seconds, with 3 mins between sets). I'm always a bit unsure of running by effort at the best of times but with the focus on the marathon for so long I'm really at a loss now. I haven't raced a 5k since May 2019 or a 10k since March 2020 so it's hard to remember what that effort is supposed to feel like. Also for 2 mins reps should it feel like the start of a 5k or the end of 5k - there's a big difference? I know I am most likely totally over thinking this 🤔

    So the plan is to give parkrun a lash on Saturday. I've no idea what to expect but if nothing else I might refresh my memory of 5k effort. Putting it out there that I'd at least like a new parkrun pb which stands @ 23:32 since May 2018.

    Thanks for reading. I'll start weekly updates next week ☺️



  • Registered Users Posts: 1,761 ✭✭✭ReeReeG


    I'd say that parkrun pb is in danger anyway! Enjoy 😊



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    Wouldnt be too surprised given the lack of activity on Boards these days although there does seem to have been an uptick lately. Great to see.

    Great to see the fitness is coming back. It generally does. I think often a lot of people lose faith due to lack of patience...I've seen enough the past week looking at race results to see that the fitness is always lurking in there (some of my mates pulled very surprising results out of the hat). It just needs time to come out. You've been training away solidly though so it was never in doubt.

    Don't get too hung up about the running on effort. Knowing and feeling it will come back to you in time - just needs a bit of practice. Its especially hard for marathon folks to readjust. The approach I take on days where I'm not necessarily feeling it is I try to run hard enough that I'll be in reasonable enough shape at the end of the rep but glad for the recovery. So for example, 5*2min at 5k effort - the first couple of reps im probably not breathing very heavily until the second minute and by the end im happy to get the recovery....For the third and fourth its getting harder and the heavy breathing starts sooner (probably within 30s). For the last, I dont particularly even want to do the rep and sometimes 1min and 50s of that rep could be a hard effort). 10k effort is different. There i'd probably focus more on staying controlled but fast . To be honest, 10k effort for a 5x2mins session Id find handy enough. (not meant to make you feel bad by the way - just 10mins of 10k effort is a light enough session).

    Also an easy reference for me if it was a 5x2min session is the first couple would feel like the start of a 5k. The next couple like the middle. and the last like the end. But thats just my basic enough approach.

    Good luck with parkrun - hope you get to wear some new runners 😀



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    It should be a given considering all the miles consistently clocked since last time i did it and even more miles since last time I did it with intent. I seem to suffer from a serious case of doubting myself though which is rather tiresome even for me never mind anyone reading my log 😳



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    I think from reading that that I judged them about right. Now to see whether the 5k effort pace for 2' reps can be translated to actual 5k pace, if nothing else it will be interesting and it's a nice feeling to be a tiny bit excited about an event of some sort and at the same time there isn't pressure of a target race, possibly the best of both worlds 🤗 Not sure about runners, the route tends to flood in spots and on my last count there are no less than 6 rickety bridges/boardwalks to negotiate which are quite slippery 😫



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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 10,557 ✭✭✭✭Murph_D


    Are you talking about Knocknacarra? Definitely not fast! Any alternatives?



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    No, did that one once and wouldn't be in a rush back to it. Claremorris is closer & it's very flat although there are a couple of sharpish turns and bridges/boardwalk sections that you invariable slow for.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    Week 1 of ???

    Monday: 5ish miles @ 9:31 (easy pace, avg hr 136bpm)

    Tues: 6ish miles with 4 * 100m strides, avg pace 9:25, avg hr 146bpm (*interesting this was 10bpm higher than previous night - combination of being slightly longer and the strides?)

    Wed: 5 * 2 @ 10 effort (7:39, 7:28, 7:25, 7:22, 7:42), 5 * 2' @ 5k effort (7:10, 7:10, 7:17, 7:09, 7:09)

    Thurs: Rest

    Friday: Just yoga

    Saturday: 2.5m warm-up + Parkrun in 23:06 (7:26min/m avg pace, avg hr 167bpm).

    Enjoyed this, well not so much the running part but it was nice to do parkrun again. Ran alongside another runner from 600m - 3.2km until he dropped back and I was on my own til the end. Felt tough at the time but in hindsight pretty sure if I had some other runners around me I could have found a bit more to run closer to my 5k pb or at least under 23mins. Your man that dropped back at 3.2k was breathing hard the whole time and I was conscious my breathing was fine but I didn't really try to pull away, bit of a cop out on my part. But good to run hard and a reminder of what 5ks feel like - last 5k race was May 2019, 2.5 years ago now, mental that 😱 Splits were fairly even & fairly mediocre @ 4:34, 4:38, 4:38, 4:41, 4:34

    Sunday: 6.3m easy @ 9:26min/m, avg HR 144 bpm.

    30 odd miles for the week



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    Week 2 of ???

    Monday: 5.1m easy @ 9:38, avg HR 138bpm

    Tues: 5m very easy @ 10:09, avg HR 133bpm

    Wed: Rest

    Thurs: Session 10' @ 7:52, 2 * 5' @ 7:31, 7:29, 5 * 1' @ 7:00, 6:46, 6:55, 6:54, 6:41

    Friday: 8m @ 9:15, avg HR 143bpm

    Sat: Rest post jab

    Sun: 9.3m @ 9:07, avg HR 142bpm

    About 36 miles for the week.

    Felt a bit low in mojo this week certainly at the start of the week, my Mon/Tues runs would normally be 6-7 miles but cut these both short. In my defence there was very heavy fog on Monday so I was trying to stay off the roads for safety and the path by the river was very spooky in the pitch dark with just the sound of the river so I got a bit freaked and couldn't go down a 2nd time. Mojo picked up a bit on Thurs/Friday but Friday pm everything went pear shaped when I learned that one of my kids is a very close contact (sitting beside a boy in school on Thursday who tested +ive on Thursday evening) so I've been doing antigen tests every day and watching him like a hawk, I'm a bag of nerves at the moment as was hoping to see my 81year old immunosuppressed mother for Christmas. So fed up of this situation we are all in. It's hard to get excited about Christmas when we're in limbo, with 3 kids in primary school, it feels like we are a ticking time bomb (not one for being a bit dramatic am I 😂).



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    Feel like they really should have shut the schools last week.

    How were you after the booster? I got mine yesterday and I'm knocked for six. Been in bed all day, high temp, general awfulness.



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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    I was ok thankfully P, just the sore/dead arm feeling. Sorry to hear you've been down with it, hope you're feeling better today.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    95% again today. Just one rough day so I'll happily take that on the chin...



  • Registered Users Posts: 631 ✭✭✭Cleanman


    I did parkrun that Saturday in Claremorris and, if you did Claremorris too, you're leaving out of your report that there was a really heavy shower during the run which generally made it a bit miserable to run in! So we can be pretty sure that you'll revise that time down soon!!



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    Do you do it regularly? It is a nice flat one though right. I can't remember the rain though I know it certainly wasn't a particularly pleasant morning, it was a bit blowy too. I'll give it a bash again in a few weeks time. I'm doing nice little sessions at the moment with 10k & 5k efforts mixed in so hopefully a few weeks of those will make a difference.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    Meant to comment that actually. Those are nice sessions E. They'll have you primed nicely provided you keep some regular 5k racing on the go too.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`



    Glad to hear it was just the day.

    Yeah, lovely sessions coming my way at the moment, I'm really enjoying them. I'll give parkrun another go in January.



  • Registered Users Posts: 631 ✭✭✭Cleanman


    Hi, yes I try to do it whenever I'm in Claremorris to visit my folks. It's a lovely course - no big hills so it has my vote all day long ;-)

    Ah we got absolutely lashed on that morning!! Or maybe all I remember is the pain of 5k running and I've completely dramatised it in my head! 5k running is as much about practise as it is fitness IMO so those sessions will really bring you on. Keep up the good work 😎



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    Dec 20 - 26th

    Week 3 of ????

    Monday: 7m vey easy @ 10:20min/m, avg hr 130

    Tuesday: Session, 2 * (5', 4', 3', 2', 1') off 90 seconds rec, 3 mins between sets.

    Really enjoyed this but ran the 2nd set waaaaaay too fast - was supposed to be 5/4/3 reps @ 10k effort and 2'/1' reps @ 5k effort. The 2nd set was more like 5k for the longer reps & 3k for the shorter reps - I blame the shoes 😉 First time to wear the new NB Fuelcell TC (an early Xmas present). Loved them.

    Set 1

    5' @ 7:43

    4' @ 7:37

    3' @ 7:33

    2' @ 7:14

    1' @ 7:05

    Set 2

    5' @ 7:18

    4' @ 7:20

    3' @ 7:13

    2' @ 6:55

    1' @ 6:54

    Wed: 6.6m easy @ 9:33min/m, avg hr 137

    Thurs: The day we got the dreaded +ive text from my 9 year olds PCR test. he was a close contact in school the previous Thurs and had done umpteen negative antigen tests but for peace of mind before spending Christmas with my 81 year old immunosuppressed mother I dragged him for a PCR and got the shock of my life when it came back +ive 2 days later.

    4.5m easy @ 9:44min/m, avg hr 135bmp

    Fri: Nothing - road trip to get the rest of us PCR tested and coming to terms with isolation.

    Sat: Nothing except a food, drink, board games & movies! Very lucky & grateful to have our immediate family together.

    Sun: 5m easy + strides

    32 miles aprox for Christmas week.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    I know all about the shock of an unexpected +ve test. My daughter had one in similar circumstances a few months back. Even worse for ye being so close to Xmas.

    Here's the thing about these lovely shoes...you probably need to recalibrate. You didn't run too fast. That could very well be your 5k effort now!



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    The shock and the rollercoaster of trying to figure out what happens next is the worst bit. Not to mention all the conflicting information, even the contract tracer who rang us on Christmas day didn't seem to be too sure of herself, the advice seems to be ever changing 🤔 but we weren't the worst effected, it just feels a bit surreal, like that very first lockdown when were all on a 2km limit 🤷‍♀️

    Interesting about the shoes. I haven't worn them since but will have to keep an eye on that so.



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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    Week Dec 27th - Jan 2nd

    Monday - "Easy" (actual was steady) Monday 7.55m @ 9:06min/m, avg HR 145bpm

    *RHR jumped 5 beats this morning.

    Tues - One from the archive as i had no session planned for this week, 20mins Tempo, 5' recovery, 6 * 1min on/off

    20mins @ 7:59min/m

    6 * 1' @ 6:49, 6:56, 6:38, 6:50, 6:45, 6:35

    Felt ghastly during this, had to walk most of the 1' recoveries. Did the same session (very similar paces) much more comfortably on 18/11 without having to walk recoveries. RHR still elevated

    Wed - 7.5m easy @ 9:41min/m, avg HR 139bpm

    Had the most awful tummy cramps during towards the end of this, just about made it home with major butt clenching 😳

    Thursday - didn't leave the house all day, barely left the couch, felt totally flat all day, not unwell per se, just flat mentally and physically.

    Friday - 5m "easy" (very debatable) @ 9:37min/m, avg HR 145bpm 😱😱

    Last day of the year and 20miles to hit 2000m for the year, no chance, just about managed the 5m

    Saturday & Sunday - NOTHING

    30 odd miles for the week, nothing to write home about but ticked off a few miles in a bad week, to finish out the year. Time to reset my easy pace heading into the new year I think. It's been creeping up and while I have kept an eye on HR, this past week it's definitely been on the high side and I was ignoring it. RHR is still elevated as I write this on January 4th so I need to allow for that to settle again. Tapped my most recent parkrun time into a JD VDOT calculator so have an idea of paces to work for a bit until I trust myself again and until my RHR settles.

    Thanks for reading and HNY everyone.



  • Registered Users Posts: 1,761 ✭✭✭ReeReeG


    I wish a bad week for me still had 30 miles 😅 Fair play, sounds like you had a bit of a dose. The couple days rest could only be good in that instance.

    You had great consistency last year, well done. I'd say you'll have that HR coming down in no time when you get back into the swing of things. Best of luck with whatever is planned for 2022!



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    Exact same thing happened me E - was wondering what the hell was going on. I think I had a mini dose plus the stress of the xmas and maybe one or two nights of "fun" all adding up. I've come round again a few days later. My easy HR was 10 BMP up on normal last week.

    Don't overthink it. A week of normality should hopefully see you come good.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    2021

    I feel I need to write something about 2021 before I can begin to think about 2022.

    It was a funny year, sparse on tangible results - 1 TT, 1 race, 1 parkrun 🙃

    I started coaching in late 2020 so 2021 was my first full year of coaching and started with a continuation of the build phase which began at the end of 2020 and culminated in a 10m TT in March (1:16:56 @ 7:41min/m, a 10min PB roughly). I also scored an even less official 10k PB (2mins 39seconds) during this 😆

    This TT is probably my best performance ever, gutted it was a TT, however i believe it paved the way for the sub 4 marathon which came about later in the year (3:51 in October, down from 4:25). Anytime the uncertainty set in I found myself looking back on it and knowing sub 4 was possible. Finished the year with a parkrun in December, 23:06, a parkrun pb, 5k pb still stands at 22:42.

    2022

    I'm like a child in a sweet shop. I jump between being excited about trying to break 22 mins for 5k to trying to get another big marathon pb like a child going between Skittles and Smarties! And then there is the reliable sensible HM distance (Dairy Milk) sitting there looking a bit boring but tempting none the less 🤷‍♀️ @Swashbuckler don't even bother mentioning 10k to me 😂

    For now I will continue to build. Coach has me doing 1 session (mix of HM, 10k & 5k efforts, usually around 25' of work), 1 easy + strides, 2 easy runs, and 1 vanilla long run at the moment. Long runs suffered over the Christmas/New Year so need to get back on those and I'm not overly excited at that prospect but routine will help I know. If I could settle on goal/plan for the next few months then the mojo will follow too but for now habit & routine 🤞



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    P I'm glad it's not just me. I feel like my fitness has fallen off a cliff in just a week. It's a horrible feeling. I think getting the diet and hydration back on track will help massively. And yes perhaps some kind of mini dose lurking.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,509 ✭✭✭Laineyfrecks


    I think it's about wiping the slate clean for 2022. Start by building back to the consistency and drive you had for 2021. You know you can do it once you put your mind to it & although it feels like the fitness is gone realistically it couldn't be gone that quickly (that's what I'll be telling myself next week!!) I wouldn't be worrying too much about not having all your goals layed out, when you know exactly what you want to target you can make that decision & get a plan in motion, for now absolutely nothing wrong with habit & routine.



  • Registered Users Posts: 1,314 ✭✭✭Bluesquare


    You didn’t just get the booster by any chance ? As in a week or so ago . Sometimes vaccinations can affect inflammation abs energy symptoms up to a month later - can send hormones in a spiral . Happened to be after second one in June - and to a lesser degree now after booster - everything is just hurting more .



  • Registered Users Posts: 1,314 ✭✭✭Bluesquare


    You are very consistent and steady - keep with that and the drive will return . I always need a race even if I don’t have a goal time in mind to get me out the door. Maybe just sign up for a local tenk



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    Yeah I got the booster just before Christmas alright, just under 3 weeks ago now. Still not 100% and RHR is still elevated but I'm not over thinking it too much. Kids are only back to school today, it will probably take a week of routine for everything to fall back into place. My kids' sports have all been cancelled for the foreseeable future. I'm really gutted for them. They were mostly outdoors, it makes no sense that they can go to school indoors and can't do sports outdoors. They need the outlet, especially the oldest one - it's hard enough to cope with a moody tween without taking away his sports 😒 It means I'll be able to do parkrun which is a treat. For now I'll just do it as part of a longer run but I might aim to give it another proper go by the end of the month if sports aren't back on (tho I genuinely hope they are 🤞).



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  • Registered Users Posts: 1,314 ✭✭✭Bluesquare


    Oh my - the moody teen we have one here as well . Just started first year . He only plays soccer and trains once a week so we drag him out for 2*4ks to supplement fitness . We find it makes him less moody and relieves a bit of stress - he loves it after but hates starting . They deffo need an outlet . It will be good to get routine back for sure . Good to get a park run in - it’s like a little treat to yourself - better if you can have a coffee and a chat after as well !



  • Registered Users Posts: 2,831 ✭✭✭Annie get your Run


    Really enjoyed reading that year in review, well done again those fantastic achievements on the 10 mile TT and that epic marathon result.

    Would the kids do parkrun with you? Give them something to focus on while their sports are cancelled - the whole school thing is mental but to then cancel outdoor sports seems off the charts altogether. I know we are all heartily sick of this damn virus!! Best of luck with the 2022 targets.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`



    I really should drag them along shouldn't I although I feel the youngest is still too young to be running 5k - he's 6!The oldest (12) has done it but not for a few years now, wouldn't be a bad idea. A girl from his class there does it in 20mins so I could see him getting quite competitive and I'm not sure I could handle him getting competitive about another sport, he does so much already 😅

    Thank you AGYR! It was a good year and I'm very grateful to have had the opportunity to be consistent for a few years now. I hope it lasts. You've had a good year too, with a variety of stuff, cross fit, cycling & running coming back to the fore now too! It's great to see it and I hope you get to build on it in 2022. You've inspired me with the variety, I've recently taken up yoga again, not sure I mentioned that in my log but I did 6 * 1-1 sessions and now I've joined a small group class (only 6 per class), I love it, I really look forward to the class every week (despite it the 5:30am alarm) and do a bit every day myself.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    Week Jan 3rd - 9th

    Monday: 6.8m @ 10:32min/m, avg HR 138bpm

    Tuesday: 6.25m @ 9:47, avg Hr 138bpm - starting to feel a bit more 'normal' again today, signs of RHR returning to normal.

    Wed: Session 2 * (5', 4', 3', 2', 1') off 90secs recovery, 3mins between sets

    5' @ 7:41, 7:23

    4' @ 7:37, 7:26

    3' @ 7:32, 7:21,

    2' @ 7:17, 7:27

    1' @ 6:57, 7:07

    Thurs: Off

    Friday: 7m easy with strides

    Sat: 12.3miles LR, ended up including parkrun here, small bit of tempo 24:55 for parkrun.

    Sun: Off

    40 ish miles for the week and definitely signs of returning to normal by the end of the week.

    Happy enough with this week. I've decided to stick with shorter stuff for a while, go after a 5/10k PB. No specific race goals but I'm going to take it a few weeks at a time and see what I'm enjoying/not enjoying and keep an eye out for races or include some parkrun efforts in the absence of races.



  • Registered Users Posts: 1,761 ✭✭✭ReeReeG


    Craughwell 10k (and 10 mile) are back this year, March 20th. Might be further out than you were planning though.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    Good to know V. thanks for the heads up. I was only thinking about this recently and wondering would it come back. Kinvara is back on March 5th too so it's good to see these key events (in the West) back on the calendar. I will do one or other for sure.



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  • Registered Users Posts: 2,831 ✭✭✭Annie get your Run


    Oops I had a drafted a reply to this and forgot to hit post comment! Glad to hear you're enjoying the yoga, it really is beneficial in so many ways, stretching, strength, breathing, head space! Hopefully the kids sport will be back soon but enjoy parkrun in the meantime.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`



    Just realised i never acknowledged this. My yoga is curtailed a bit these days. I still go along to a class once a week but I have a shoulder injury which is preventing/limiting my ability to do what seems like a lot of the class. It's a nice small class though, max 6 but usually only 4, so the teacher is very attentive and modifies things for me or gives me something else to do. My hamstrings are still as tight as ever but I see a lot of improvement especially in the area of balance & core strength. I look forward to that hour in the week. It takes so much concentration it is probably the only hour of the week that my mind switches off from everything else. It is also the night of the week that I sleep the best and sleep has really suffered in the past few months.

    Running wise, I'm still ticking over. I've had a sore shoulder since last October which has been getting progressively worse and now i have near constant pain which extends down the outside of my arm to the tips of my fingers. I eventually went to my GP over the Christmas. Blood tests ruled out rheumatoid arthritis which was the initial concern (family history). I did an MRI 2 weeks ago which showed up a significant tear, all the tendons around the joint inflamed and nerve impingement. I've been referred on to an orthopaedic surgeon who specialises in shoulders. In the meantime I'm still running as it is no more painful to run than to do anything else, I'm not pushing it and not doing very long runs, they are capped at about 1:45. I'm just hoping to keep my fitness and sanity for another while. Struggling with social anxiety also, the return to work is not going well for me, since restrictions lifted I'm having mild panic attacks at the thought of going anywhere busy including work - thankfully no pressure on me (yet).

    I don't feel it's worth logging at the moment. Every week is a repeat of the previous. I still check in and love following the logs - I won't name anyone because I will forget one no doubt. Fair play to everyone who continues to share their journey with running (and some life stuff thrown in) week after week. It takes time and commitment. It can seem thankless but there is always someone learning from your log or feeling uplifted or less alone by something they read 😊



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    And no mention of a massive HM pb............or no sign of a race report..........



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 10,557 ✭✭✭✭Murph_D


    Sorry to hear this, Elaine. Sounds tough to deal with. Congrats on the PB - which I notice matches your maximum running time. Is that a coincidence? 😁

    Hopefully your orthopaedic guy can sort it out. Hang in there!



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,509 ✭✭✭Laineyfrecks


    Hope you get it sorted soon Elaine & fair play to be still out running.

    Well done on your PB 🤗



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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    Yes my bad...I skipped commenting on the other stuff. Hope the shoulder gets sorted. As for the social anxiety, you're not alone there. I'd say that's all too common. One of the side effects of essentially being locked away for two years. Don't hesitate to get counselling to help with it. No shame in that whatsoever. Counselling really helped me in the past.



  • Registered Users Posts: 187 ✭✭dixierip


    I happened upon this log a couple of months ago and have read from start to finish. Really interesting seeing your progress to date and learned alot from it. Just saying as the logs help and inform many of trying to figure out this running malarchy.



  • Registered Users Posts: 2,831 ✭✭✭Annie get your Run


    Best of luck with the recovery Elaine. interestingly a former colleague just had shoulder surgery, similar issue to yourself. Sounds like a success albeit she's still in recovery.

    I love that you're still going to yoga & the teacher is adjusting for your injury - I do miss that kind of support from a great yoga teacher.

    Congratulations on the PB and + 1 to SBs musings on the social anxiety, it's very strange getting back to 'normal ', plenty of online counselling available too. Keep us up to speed on the shoulder & a race report would be great!



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    A happy coincidence D ☺️


    Well there seems to be an appetite for a bit of a report. My limited history with the half has mostly revolved around the watch and getting under milestone times.

    Oct 2016 - 2:09:25 (goal sub 2:10)

    June 2018 - 1:56 (goal sub 2:00, this race was deferred from March so the extra months got me a good bit under the goal)

    Sept 2018 - 1:52 (no goal, part of marathon build up ahead of DCM)

    Sept 2019 - 1:48:42 (goal sub 1:50, it took not 1 but 1 pacers to get me this time, huge effort on the day)

    This time was a bit different. Not feeling the best of late the decision was made not to target this race as a big race effort but the entry was there none the less and it's an event I enjoy going along too so a hard effort was what was on the cards. I won't lie though I did realise that even with a hard effort there was a possibility of walking away with a PB. It's been 2.5 years since the last race and I am (very fortunately) still making decent gains just with consistency month in, month out. I had no goal but I figured anywhere between 1:47 & 1:51 was a likely outcome but I was determined not to be driven by the watch.

    The day dawned a beautiful bright clear sunny day. I couldn't believe it. The first time i signed up for this event in 2018 it was cancelled due to snow and was rescheduled for the June Bank Holiday week and that was the only and last time i saw sun & blue skies in Kinvara. The years since have been wet & wild. I didn't have too much time after parking up and spent a few minutes chatting to a group I knew and in the end didn't get a warm up but as I wasn't racing per se I knew I could just ease into it and my first 1-2miles would be a warm up. I started just behind the 1:50 pace group as I figured that is where I'd be about right and we were off. This race starts at the bottom of a hill so it was nice to scale that first hill and get going properly. The first 2 miles were crowded and fairly quickly found myself dying to move past the pace group which I did and that set the theme for the rest really. I have never run past so many people in my life, I was just moving along, closing gaps and moving past again. Not intentionally, I felt I was running at a fairly consistent effort and I was breathing very comfortably (I became more and more aware of this as I came alongside individuals who were not breathing comfortably) but I had obviously started too far back and/or a lot of people had started too far forward. I wasn't looking at the watch very often but I did glance down at about 10m and I remember thinking was running about 1:46-1:47 pace, very happy thought indeed. It got a bit harder at about 11m, the hills seemed to keep coming but I wasn't afraid to back off on them, it was nice not to have the pressure of the watch and a big goal hanging over me, I definitely appreciated it in the latter couple of miles. And during these last 2 miles the odd person passed me back so I definitely slowed a bit although I continued to pass people right up to the finish line. Round the last bend there is only 50m to go and I saw 1:45 on the clock in front of me, I couldn't quite believe it but I put a spurt on to cross it in 1:45:39 and a PB of 3:03. I momentarily berated myself for not targeting the event more specifically and racing it as in hindsight sub 1:45 was there for the taking but I put that out of my head quick enough. I had a super, enjoyable run, a big pb, a big confidence booster and I've laid the foundations for the next one.

    March 2022 - 1:45:39 (no goal, a hard effort)

    So that's it. Hopefully I will get the shoulder sorted in the Summer and maybe target a half around Sept/Oct time. There definitely won't be a marathon this year. Maybe some 5-10ks as well at some stage but a HM seems the most obvious big target if/when things come good 🤞

    Thanks for reading and thanks for all the lovely supportive comments above, this is some community 😊



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    Thank you so much😊 It's lovely to know that someone has benefitted from my log as I have benefitted from so many others over the years.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    Great run and nice to see a race report on this log again. Funny thing about targeting these races is you'll often come out with a different result once you start putting pressure on yourself. Nice to run a no pressure PB!

    Seems like Charleville would be a really good option for you considering the timing....You will probably struggle to find a faster half that time of year.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    It definitely opened my eyes to a different way of doing things. I've always been a slave to the watch and kind of proud of running even splits but that comes as part of being a slave to the watch and a slave to the goal. It was nice to run off effort and without the pressure, and something I will try to incorporate. Yes I have Charleville in mind and another one closer to home in October as well if that doesn't work out, nice to have a couple of options.



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    A month gone by... in fairness there hasn't been much running to write about 😕

    I ended up doing an unplanned 10 mile road race on Sunday March 20th @ 7:57min/m (Chip time 1:19:55 - a race PB but 3 mins slower than a TT on the same date last year).

    The following day my better half got the dreaded + on an antigen test after a couple of days of a sore throat. And 3 days later I went for a PCR (antigens were negative but I had all the symptoms) which came back + the following evening. And that really is that. We both had mostly head cold type symptoms though I had a heaviness in my chest which he didn't have. I felt like there was a weight sitting on it especially doing any kind of exertion e.g. walking up the stairs🙄

    April

    Recovered reasonably well after about 7-10days in time for April's arrival. I got in a couple of "easy" (felt anything but easy) 5ks followed by a fabulous 4 days in London, no running but walked the legs of ourselves doing all the sights. I realised on Saturday morning that the hotel was right beside a parkrun so was sorry I didn't have a pair of runners in the bag but so be it, next time.

    April 11-17th

    Monday: 5m @ 9:47

    Tuesday: 5m @ 9:51

    These both felt awful and HR confirmed effort was way to high for "easy" runs, dropped 3 VO2 Max pts on the Garmin fwiw. I assume (hope) this is just a temporary drop in fitness after 3 weeks with little-no running and not any lingering effects from Covid. This is the longest lay off I've had since I started running and my first experience of Covid so I don't really know what to expect but I will continue with a gentle return to normal running levels over the next couple of weeks and hope that things come good again. There are no races in the pipeline at the moment so that's good, I have time, it's just a horrible feeling that is all 😏



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,307 ✭✭✭ariana`


    And another month on...

    I didn't think covid hit me hard at the time, symptom wise, but the recovery has been slow enough. 6-7 weeks on now and my HR has returned to normal tg but some days i still feel awful fatigue, really really heavy & uncooperative legs, the only thing i can relate it to is the feeling during marathon training of running on really tired legs, like the day after a 20 miler or at the end of a really big couple of weeks. Mileage is well down but I am still running reasonably regularly. I got to 10 miles yesterday, my longest run in 2 months and it felt like a huge achievement. I feel things are on the way back up now.

    In other news I'm going into hospital next week to get my shoulder sorted. I'm nervous about it, it will be my first general anaesthetic but, after 6-7 months of living with it, I am also very relieved to have an 'end' in sight, fingers and toes crossed 🤞

    I have a loose plan of doing some Summer races for fun (5, 8 or 10k) and then targeting an Autumn HM as a goal race but right now it's hard to think too much beyond this week. Hope to re-introduce some strides & tempo pace again soon.

    Post edited by ariana` on


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    All the best for the operation. General anaesthetic seems scarier than it is. In all honestly its like dropping off to a nice peaceful sleep. You'll be fine.

    I like the way you put fun in italics. I'll never convince some of ye that the shorter stuff is infact easier than the marathon 😅.

    Looks like me and you have similar goals - although probably a December half marathon for me.



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