Just 1 more trying to go sub 4

Race Report - Cork City Marathon

Where to start!
In the build up to the race I picked up a couple of niggly injuries - stuff that ordinarily I probably wouldn't be too bothered about, but which really got into my head and affected my confidence quite badly. I became obsessive over everything being perfect, to the point that I actually hurt my hip (over) stretching the night before the race! It sort of clicked and felt very painful/weak. I had a shower and stretched it again and it seemed to "click" back into place albeit with some remaining pain. This kept me awake for most of the night and I was sick to my stomach with nerves that I had blown the race without even getting to the start line. Lesson 1 learned: relax more.

At 5:30 am I just couldn't lie in the bed anymore, wondering if my hip was going to be a major disaster or minor niggle so I got out of bed, stretched it and went for a little jog up and down the street. Sore - but not too bad I thought. In for porridge and a banana and some last minute preparations, before leaving for Cork at 6:50. We reached the City at about 8 and passing the tunnel gave me serious butterflies. Then in through Tivoli and there were people setting up water stations and closing the race route and it really began to feel real - ramping up the nerves!
"This is going to be great, stay positive" but all the while, in the back of my mind I was worrying about my hip and couldn't shake that sick feeling.
We got to the starting area and I was stiff with nerves. I went for a bit of a warm up jog again and some more stretching. Hip seemed to ease out a bit and I was going to head over to Quills to find some boardsies - but I was just too nervous and felt like keeping myself to myself. Shortly before the start I bumped into a buddy of mine from work and he told me he was heading out with the 4 hour pacers also, so we said we'd head off together and see how things went. We lined up about 20 yards from the pacing group and kept a steady pace behind the balloons without too much difficulty. We chatted away the first few miles and felt very comfortable - soaking up the atmosphere and enjoying the initial few miles around the city. Without even thinking about it we had 5 miles done and we remarked how great it had felt. Not too long afterwards however, my hip gave me my first jolt back to reality and my morale took a serious bashing. "F*ck!" 20 miles left and my worst nightmare is becoming reality. Fair play to my buddy - he kept me going at this stage trying to keep me staying positive and not to worry too much. We had slipped back from the pace group a bit and he wanted to reel them in so that we could try and hang on to their coat tails and let them do the worrying about pace. We used the hill down into the tunnel and clawed them back to within a 20 yard gap and then eased off slightly as we rose back out towards Mahon point. So far, things were going just about okay but I was all the time thinking about the dull ache in my hip. I also felt I was working a bit too hard to maintain my planned pace and have felt far better doing longer runs at a quicker pace in training. I put it down to the heat and plodded on. 2nd gel was taken just after Blackrock castle and we passed the half way point at bang on 2 hrs. With this came the dreadful realisation that I had definitely worked way too hard to be just treading water at this stage. I should have been flying at half way and gritting my teeth in anticipation of the next half, but in reality I was struggling with pain and the heat and can't say I was looking forward to the next 13 miles at all. The balloons at this point were getting further and further away but I was beginning to care less. Down onto the railway track and I felt a bit better. It was shaded and cool and I knew my sister and mother were hanging around the Victoria road so I perked up a bit and got to that point in reasonable shape. My buddy at this stage was starting to struggle - stopping to stretch a couple of times. I took the opportunity to stretch my hip also and it did seem to free up a bit, however the trade off was that rhythm was completely out the window.
Lesson 2: Don't bloody stop!

After getting some great encouragement from my family, and some more shortly after from Mrs DocJewel (thanks!) - we headed off down to the South City Link road and things really started to hurt, I walked through a water station and took another gel. Again - getting going after stopping was a struggle and we walked up the ramp towards turners cross to try and get our breath back. The pace was now gone to pot and we were entering the most difficult part of the race. Not good!
Lesson 3: Don't bloody stop!
The next few miles I can't really comment on - other than the fact that I felt awful and had to run/walk at various stages. What does stick out, is the incredible support I got along the route and I have never been so happy in all my life to see a sponge as I was at the lough - my most vivid memory from this hellish section of the course! I poured it straight down the back of my neck and my head and threw away my cap which was more of a hindrance than anything at this point. The model farm road is a complete blur other than I stopped a few times to let my buddy catch up. He was really going through hell now and we both agreed that this marathon craic is stupid!
We walk/ran another bit and the 4:15 pacers suddenly went by us. "I'm going to try and stay with them" I muttered, but my buddy had no intention of it. I tried my best to stay with them - but after half a mile of uphill running I was dead on my feet again. The demons were well and truly in my head now and all I thought about was getting to the finish line in 1 piece. The next mile between the model farm road and the straight road was my worst of the day - walking and shuffling at a stupidly slow pace. The hilly section of the course had really taken it's toll on my hip and it took me 15 minutes to complete this mile! :eek:
And so we turned onto the straight road - a portion of the race that I wasn't exactly looking forward to but I did seem to get a bit of a mental boost, knowing that we were finally heading back in the right direction towards the finish. My buddy at this point was cramping quite badly and I did feel guilty about leaving him but I had to keep going or I never would have started again. I pushed on/walked, pushed on/walked but refused to let myself stop. Down past the Mardyke where the atmosphere was incredible and over the bridge to some welcome shade under the trees. I was getting excited about finishing but my legs just wouldn't cooperate with what my mind was telling them to do. At this point - I saw a familiar face (a friend of my sisters) and she was just stopping to a bare walk from her shuffle. I ran past and screamed at the poor woman and she didn't know who I was. I waited for her, told her who I was and told her not to stop and walk. She got an amazing second wind and I couldn't keep up with her! She was then trying to get me going but I couldn't and told her to make the best of her own race. I felt so guilty - I could see Patrick's bridge in the distance and the noise was fantastic but I could do nothing except walk for about 200 meters. This break allowed me just enough energy to make 1 final push for the finish and this was the last stretch - no more stopping, no more bad thoughts. I got up to some sort of reasonable pace and headed for the finish. The finishing line is a complete blur and to be honest I don't remember a whole lot about it other than hearing my sister screaming my name. I got over the line and had a bit of a stagger before collecting my medal. At this point there was no elation - just relief that it was over. I have never felt anything like the pain and suffering as I did yesterday but at the same time, it was definitely worth it. Going through a run like that teaches you a lot about yourself. The sense of achievement didn't wash over me until we were half-way home in the car yesterday as I laid back and dozed with a feeling of satisfaction.
I found my family and threw myself down on a side street to drink some water. I was a little bit out of it, and after a few mins I gathered my thoughts and remember the Woodford! It was great to meet ye all - even if I wasn't exactly great company, so I can only apologise for being a bit off. Some great performances from you folks, I was really delighted for ye. Also - I still don't believe Blockic actually ran a race - he looked far too fresh.

Thanks again for all your help and advice over the past few months.

Oh and 1 final thing. My sisters friend who finished ahead of me got her PB (her 31st marathon) and rang my sister yesterday evening to thank me. So I felt really pleased for that and it made me feel a bit better about my own race. All in all - a very tough day, but so rewarding in a funny kind of way.
The pints of guinness to end it all weren't half bad either .

Thanks lads! At the moment I'm just gonna think about the half marathon in August and worry about P&D another time I think. It seems to me that opinions are a bit mixed on it, so I'd maybe think about taking some more advice on it.
In the short term, with a view towards August 18th - I'm going to go back to running 5 days a week - with a track session 1 of those 5 a priority.

At present, my legs are still very sore but I went to the park with the young lad this evening and had a walk around for about 10-15 minutes - followed by a lovely stretch. All I want to do now is run and get that dirty feeling of running in Cork out of my system. The initial satisfaction of finishing the race has now all but gone and the stark realisation that I got nowhere near my goal and managed to bloody injure myself before-hand is what remains. This is no bad thing though - I've found out before that a set back like this makes the good days feel so much better when they do come. I'll have a cut off another marathon again in the not too distant future and hopefully complete it on my terms.

2 slow miles on Sunday in the heat. That felt okay so I decided to go out again last night.

5 miles yesterday evening at an average of 8:20mpm which included 1 mile at 7mpm to see how it felt. Judging by how that felt, the verdict is I should stick to another few days of easy running. Gonna use the exercise bike again this evening and go back running easy tomorrow. Stupid marathon is after knocking the crap out of me!

Day | Miles | pace | comments
Sun | 10 | 8:30 | hip sore after 8.5
Mon | bike/weights |25 mins | sweaty
Tue | 7.25 | ? | no watch
Wed | 4 | 9:00 | Easy run
Thu | 7.25 | 9:15 - 07:45 - 08:30 | HM pace
Sat | 11 | 09:00 | LSR
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So Wednesday's easy run went by the wayside after I came home from work, had dinner, brought the young lad for a spin and then I sat down...and couldn't get back up. Being back in work after 2 weeks off is not easy!

So last night I had to make amends and did basically the same run as Tuesday night - this time with the watch. So it went like:
1.5 mile warm up @ 9:15mpm
4 miles @ 07:47mpm
1.75 miles @ 8:30 to finish up

Tuesday's run definitely felt harder but maybe it just seemed that way. I must say it feels good to try and run a bit faster again though. During marathon training (on HHN2 at least) everything seemed very one paced. I might throw in a few track sessions over the coming weeks also to vary things up a bit.
Still not sure as to what pace I should be aiming for in Clonmel in 6 weeks time, I think a couple of races between this and then may give me a better indication.

This week:
Day | Miles | pace | comments
Mon | 3 |09:24 | Easy run
Tue| 7.25 | 5 of 7.25 @ 07:35 | Tempo run
Wed| 3 | 9:12| Easy run
Thu | 6 | 08:00 | HMP Run
Sun | 14 | 09:30 | LSR


Wednesday 24th:

I had intended to do 4 miles easy but I felt knackered and chopped a mile off at the end and took a shortcut home. Hopefully will feel the benefit for tonight's run at "HMP".
HMP might not end up being 8 minute miles no matter how much I want it to be, because I really don't know if I'll be able to sustain it for 13 miles in a race. I'll see how the 6 go tonight anyway and take it from there.

Day | Miles | pace | comments
Mon | 3 |09:24 | Easy run
Tue| 7.25 | 5 of 7.25 @ 07:35 | Tempo run
Wed| 3 | 9:12| Easy run
Thu | 6 | 08:00 07:40 | HMP Run
Sun | 14 | 09:30 | LSR


Charleville in September Druss, PB City!

Last nights run went well, and I really enjoyed it. I'm thinking of aiming for about 08:10 mpm per mile in the half, and if there's anything left with 2 miles to go I'll empty the tank on the downhill section. Still a few weeks left to decide but @ 7:40 pace last night I struggled at times. I need to keep doing that sort of LT/HMP run if I want to improve my times though I reckon. LSR of 14 miles tomorrow, it will be my longest run since Cork. I'm actually looking forward to it, but after 10 miles in I may be singing a different tune. A wheezy, moany tune.

Day | Miles | pace | comments
Mon | 3 |09:24 | Easy run
Tue| 7.25 | 5 of 7.25 @ 07:35 | Tempo run
Wed| 3 | 9:12| Easy run
Thu | 6 | 08:00 07:40 | HMP Run
Sun | 14 13.5 | 09:30 10:10 | LSR


Sunday's LSR was done with my sister - and I took her up a few nasty hills early in the run which seemed to knock the stuffing out of her for later on in the run. She really struggled and the pace went right down to an average of 10:10 for the run but not to worry. It's the longest run she's done in a year so it will set her up well for the Clonmel half. She'll be on chocolate biscuit cake duty for the post race refreshments too, so I couldn't piss off and leave her out on the road for fear she'd back out. Ye can thank me on the day of the race

Back to this week - I did 2.5 miles easy, late last night. Tonight I was back in tempo run mode and I was dreading it all day. :eek:
Went out for a 1.5 mile warmup @ 9:15 pace and had a stretch before taking off on my quicker miles. They were faster than last weeks and ended up averaging 7:25 for the 5 miles. Quite happy with that - the times seem to be getting marginally better the more of them I do. It's tough but I do feel they are rewarding when you can see an improvement, however slight it may be.

Splits for the 5 miles:
7:58, 7:31, 7:09, 7:09, 7:12

.75 @ 9:30 to cool down.

This weeks plan:
Day | Miles | pace | comments
Mon | 2.5 |09:30 | Easy run
Tue| 7.25 | 5 of 7.25 @ 07:25 | Tempo run
Wed| 3/4 | 9:30| Easy run
Thu | 6 | 8:00 | HMP Run
Sun | 13 LSR | 09:00 | LSR

ncmc wrote: »

That's a really good tempo run, where you taking a breather between them or did you just do 5 straight? You must be very confident for Clonmel after that.

Wise to keep your sister onside, we need to keep our chocolate cake connection sweet!

No breather last night - just did the 5 miles straight. I took a breather last week after 4 miles and gave out to myself afterwards for doing so. Some easy miles tonight and I'm enjoying the bump up in training for this half. Doing 5 days a week instead of the 4 that were on HH's novice 2 plan for the marathon, and I think I'm getting more out of it.

More importantly, the chocolate biscuit cake is defo on the menu for Clonmel - so no worries there.

To be fair they are flat / downhill miles with only the last mile climbing a bit so I'm trying to get it down to 7mins per mile for that stretch.

For Clonmel - I still don't know what time I'm aiming for really, but hoping to go sub 1:48 anyway which would be a pb. I'd like to have a crack at 1:45 in Charleville then the month after if all goes to plan.

How's your training going? Your log is very quiet!

Not sorry at all - sher everyone has their ups and downs!

Having built up that marathon fitness you will regain it much quicker. Any time I get a bit pissed off with the running I think of the times I was injured and couldn't run, I nearly went cracked because I couldn't go out on the road! That normally shakes me into action. I took a couple of weeks off after Cork and felt all the better for it.
If I was you I'd use Clonmel as a yardstick for some other race - maybe even something shorter. It sounds like you've all but given up on running a time in Clonmel, so maybe pick a different goal race and you will have plenty of time to give it a good crack and follow a definitive plan. Trying a new plan with fresh ideas might refresh things?

I went out for 4.5 easy miles this evening, nothing too eventful. Hip is a bit sore again.
4.5 miles @ 9:15 pace