Let the madness continue

Into the last hard week for Connemara, legs were pretty stiff and sore heading out, a definite sign that Sunday was a good race. Didnt really ease out much until the last mile but it was only general stiffness nothing more serious.

Absolute pleasure to be out running today though first real spring day, reminded me of what this is really about getting out and enjoying yourself. Have to keep reminding myself of that from time to time

Distance 5 miles
Pace : 8:40
Weather: mild and sunny
Totals
Week: 5
Month : 106.35
Year : 376.58

Another easy 6 miler today, legs were a lot better than yesterday but still a bit stiff and sore. Last long run tomorrow so we will see where things are after that.


Distance 6 miles
Pace : 8:42
Weather: sunny and breezy
Totals
Week: 17
Month : 118.35
Year : 388.58

Easy 4 miles today. Felt ok apart from a slight niggle in the right hip, haven't felt that in a while. Probably nothign to worry about though.

Uneventful run apart from that.

Distance 4 miles
Pace : 8:45
Weather: damp
Totals
Week: 4
Month : 141.1
Year : 411.33

Catch up time.

Wasn't feelin great since Wednesday, hip was giving me a bit of grief, so for a change I took som eof my own advice and took 3 days off totally. It's hardly going to make any difference at this stage.

Yesterday was entered in a local 5K for one of the schools so decided to do a few miles before and after to bring it up to a last bit of a long run. Was determined not to race the 5K hard though and managed to keep myself in check pretty well, just one slightly mad moment when someone passed me with half a mile to go and I had to figh tthe urge to take off after him.

Felt good and really enjoyed it. Full min off my best time for the distance so did manage to keep myself under control.

Warm Up
Distance 3.88 miles
Pace : 8:38
Race
Distance 3.1 miles
Pace : 7:14
Cool Down
Distance 2.54 miles
Pace : 8:31

Overall
Distance 9.52 miles
Pace : 8:06
Weather: Sunny/breezy
Totals

Week: 18.58
Month : 9.52
Year : 425.91

Catch up time again

Wednesday.

Went totally against my own advice on this one but went out at 7:45's for the first 3 miles, I was just feeling good and to be honest I didn't feel the pace. Had a little chat with myself then and jogged back in nice and easy.

No harm done I'm sure but was pretty daft all the same.

Distance 4.88 miles
Pace : 8:06
Weather: mild/damp
Totals

Week: 7.88
Month : 17.40
Year : 433.79

Been spending all week trying to work out my pacing strategy and Im still changing my mind every hour. Think I have finally settled on it though.
Current plan is 8:20s for the first half which will allow me to run the second half in 8:40's bringing me home in 3:45 near as makes no difference. Can ease off on the hills and pick it up if Im feeling ok on the flat. If I'm feeling half descent I might come in a little under it. But then time isn't what Im running for tomorrow, it's about completing it. My last 10 milers though puts me under 3:30 for a marathon but no way do I come near that in Conn.
My biggest worry is that small little hill is sitting right where I blew up in Dublin.
This is driving me nuts!!!!!

OK confusing rambling rant over......

OK firstly this is long and rambling. If you want the abridged version its one post up

Build up
Training for Connemara wasn’t as good as it should have been. 2 X 20,1 X 19 and 1X 18 with a number of missed Medium runs as well. Prerace I didn’t have a clue as to how I was going to perform but the priority was to put a marathon in my legs and to hopefully run the whole way, not collapse in a heap like in Dublin. The week before was a mix of nerves, fear and rarely confidence in myself.

Pre Race
Arrived at the cathedral and onto the bus, relieved that the weather was nowhere near as hot as last year and the day actually looked pretty near perfect. Slight bit of a breeze stirring the trees but it didn’t seem to be anything major. Bus journey out was pretty uneventful and we passed the Ultra runners just beyond Peacocks as they headed out on their days exertions.
Got out to the start line with around an hour to go to the start and met with a few people for a chat. Got a good talking to by one who wasn’t running but was helping out on the day. Asked me about my plan and told me to run even slower on the first half and not to sprint down the hill coming into Leenane. Told me to count the people passing me and count them off again when I passed them later in the race. Of course I wouldn’t do that, not out loud anyway J.
The first of the ultra runners went through the start area a few minutes before we were and it was amazing to see just how fast they were going.

First 10 miles
I was determined this time not to get caught up in a mad dash at the start so deliberately took it very easy for the first mile, lots of people seemed to be going past me but I wasn’t going to let it get to me. I had m y own race to run and it was going to be a long day. 8:22 first mile so bang on. By now things had settled down and there was very little swapping of place. Got chatting to another runner at this stage who was doing his 5th Connemara Marathon in and the next couple of miles slipped past nice and handy. First water station had nice 500ml bottles so decided to carry it for a mile instead of my usual gulp it down and throw it away. Kept moving at a nice pace miles varying between 8:20 and 8:30 but with the words from the start echoing in my ears I wasn’t going to co chasing time to get to an 8:20 average, this was all about finishing. First gel at mile 5 and the next water station at mile 6. Up to this point there had been no real hills but once we turned right after mile 6 we were onto the first of the days climbs. Not overly steep but overall the next 2 miles were mostly uphill with a few little downs as well. Decided to go for around 8:30s and just sit in. Definitely felt as if I could have run them faster but I also knew what was ahead and I heard too many stories of your day being ruined before it started. I was passed by a number of people here but having a look at their faces I could see that a lot were struggling already. Next couple of miles were nice and undulating with some great views down onto Killary below us and the knowledge that we would soon be running downhill. Hit the 10 mile mark and took another gel. Was definitely feeling pretty good at this stage and was running well within myself.


Miles 10 – 20
From mile 10 to the half way point is mostly downhill/flat and is probably the easiest stretch of the course. On the downhills I just let myself freewheel trying to maintain a reasonable pace but conscious of not using up too much reserves or of thrashing my quads too early either. Unsurprisingly these were the quickest miles of the day for me and we hit the half way point in 1:50 feeling pretty good. Ran on through Leenane to a nice cheer from the locals, probably the first set of support we had seen since the start. Round the corner and the first real test of the day 1.3 miles of the steepest part of the entire course. Head down and just drop off the pace a little but not too much, found myself moving away from the group I had come into Leenane with and moving past a few people at this stage. Nice lift from the U2 heads around half way up. Overall I didn’t find this climb too bad and went up at around 8:50 average pace, very happy with that and was feeling grand after a couple of hundred meters once we got over the top. Had planned on taking another gel at 14 but delayed it until I reached the top of the hill and took it there. One thing I had started to notice was some pain starting around my right glute and a little on the right knee as well. Decided to take the 2 neurofen at the next water stop as a precaution and it really didn’t get any worse after that. Was there for the rest of the day but just noticeable. Around this tiem got chatting to one of the ultra runners who was looking remarkably fresh for someone who had a marathon and a bit under his belt already, put down a nice mile or two. By now we were running into the slight breeze from this morning except out here is was a little stronger and the mist was coming down noticeably. Better than the heat from last year I suppose. Around mile 17 I started to come into the back of the half marathon field and it started to get harder to identify who was running half and who was running the full. It really did help though because I was moving through the half field very quickly (well it seemed that way) and its always better to be passing people than having them pass you. By mile 20 my average pace had gone out to 8:30 but I was feeling pretty good, well as good as you can feel at that stage.

Last 6.2
The last 10K in Connemara broke down into 3 sections in my head once I passed the 20 mile marker. Get to the bottom of the hill, get to the top of the hill, get to the finish line. I tried not to let myself get ahead of each stage at any time, it’s hard though with that damned hill looking you in the face. I took the hill coming up to Maam reasonably easily with no huge effort, something which gave me a bit of confidence for what was to come. The half field was getting thicker at this stage and I was still cutting through it at a good pace. Turned the corner in Maam and there in front was the hill a straight road leading up to the bottom of it and then you can just see bodies crawling their way slowly up along the winding road. Time for a last gel shake out the arms and shoulders, last bottle of water from the aid station and push on. The first quarter was OK, I let the pace drop back to around the 9 min mile again but I could feel the burn really setting in now. Around me it looked like a scene from a low budget disaster movie with people shuffling slowly along, their eyes fixed in the distance and looks of pain in their faces. I was determined though that no matter what happened I wasn’t stopping and I wasn’t going to walk. The further up I went the more my legs were screaming at me and I felt the start of a cramp in my right hamstring, the same one that let me down in Dublin. I manage to stretch it out by increasing my stride length for 4 or 5 strides and it subsided. Close call. I was finding that now I was having to weave around traffic a lot and while I was gaining confidence from passing people this was making it even harder. At one stage about ¾ the way up my legs tried to just stop and I think I startled a few people by shouting at myself to keep going, thankfully they obeyed this time. Eventually the hill started to level out and I managed to get my pace up a bit again. Average pace on the hill was just under 10 min miles. Not brilliant but at least I ran it all and even better it was behind me now. Once I got over the hill I started to open up the legs slowly to see what was left in them if anything and surprisingly I got a good response. I wasn’t exactly flying home but I was certainly moving. As with last year the finish line seemed to take an eternity to arrive and the trees never seemed to be getting any closer. Around this stage I saw Ronanmac at the side of the road cheering us on, much appreciated, managed to grunt out a half incoherent greeting. I really must introduce myself properly one of these days. I Wont say I had a sprint finish but I did manage to get my last mile in just over 8 mins so that was something. Crossed the finish line with not a whole lot left in the tank but a very happy camper. Positive split of 6 mins.


Aftermath
The purpose of this marathon was to put to bed the mistakes of Dublin as much as possible and certainly that was done regarding pacing and strategy. I wasn’t passed by a single marathon runner over the second half of the race that I remember. There may have been one or two that sneaked by but certainly not the waves that went by in Dublin. Anyone who came through the half way around me I don’t recall seeing again.
Could I have gone faster? I don’t think so, any faster over the first half and I would certainly have been in trouble coming home, as it was the hill was a serious struggle. Given the relatively poor training being only 3 mins off my Dublin time over a way more difficult course is something I am delighted with.
So is Dublin put to bed? Well not fully, it cant be until I go back but its certainly well on the way.



Time 3:46:36


Distance 26.2 miles
Pace : 8:35
Weather: dull, breezy
Totals

Week: 37.08
Month : 46.60
Year : 462.99

Saturday a nice handy 5 miler just to get the legs movign again. Bit faster than Wednesday. No real niggles or anything to report thankfully. Very enjoyable run.

Must try and put a nice week together now maybe build up to a bit of a longish one at the weekend.

Distance 5.05 miles
Pace : 8:31
Weather: sunny
Totals

Week: 8.08
Month : 54.67
Year : 471.06

Figured it was time to try and see if there was any pit of pace left in my legs this morning. My lungs just wouldn't cooperate though, been caught up with a cold for the last few days and just couldn't get my breathing right. Had been hoping to go around 8 min miles but it just wasn't happening. On a good point legs were fine.

Fantastic morning for a run though.


Distance 5 miles
Pace : 8:11
Weather: sunny
Totals

Week: 5
Month : 59.67
Year : 476.06

Concerned2 wrote: »

God I dont know how you get back into training so quickly after a marathon , if I ever manage 1 I'll be in a wheelchair for a month afterwards

Difference between racing one flat out and running it conservatively. After Dublin last year I couldn't walk up stairs comfortably for about 2 weeks.