Run run run run run run run....

Thursday 07/08 - 35min Track Tempo

10.1m in 1:06:29 @ 6:35 min/mile (146bpm)

Tempo: 6 miles in 35:44 @ 5:57 min/mile avg

I was informed I'd be moving up to 35 min this week but my fears were calmed a little when the coach told me to start at 6 min/mile pace and work it down if I could. To be honest the 30 min @ 5:40-5:45 min/mile pace I did last week was probably a little too hard and knocked a little too much out of me. As I said it felt like a race (I ran 28:xx for 5 miles) and I don't want to risk burning myself out in training but on the other hard I do want to train hard, it's just finding that balance.

Anyway off we went in a group of 4, kept the pace nice and steady at 6 min/miles for the first while, felt pretty comfortable. Pace increased slightly after 2 miles down to 5:55 region and still feeling strong and in control. The 5th mile was the last for most in the group as they were doing 30 mins so we worked it down to 5:50. I was out on my own now and still feeling good so I put the foot on the pedal for the last mile hitting a 5:40 and just about 6 miles in total. Left this session feeling much better than last weeks tempo in terms of confidence. Last week, even though I ran faster, all I was thinking was how am I going to hold that pace for 10 miles (race) in 3 weeks, funny how the mind works!

Mile Splits: 6:02, 6:01, 5:56, 5:55, 5:50, 5:40

Sunday 10/08 - Long run

15.2 miles in 1:50:48 @ 7:19 min/mile

Lovely sunny morning in Cork despite the barrage of rain overnight. There was still a fair breeze down the marina and the legs were a bit drained from yesterday but this felt pretty comfortable overall. I was told by my coach yesterday to keep the long run pace around 7:30 min/mile so I started at that and just let the pace gradually increase as I settled into the run, felt good at the end so I threw in a quick 6:36 mile to finish.

Weekly total: 80.8 miles

Happy to be up at this milage at this stage and didn't feel it took too much out of me as I've been gradually ramping it up. I'll be starting to replace the Tuesday track session with a long run from now in shifting the focus to endurance and will start a marathon specific plan in September.

Wednesday 13/08 - 50 min recovery

6.8 miles in 52:18 @ 7:43 min/mile

Up nice and early at for a 7am jog, the legs felt pretty tired from last night so into recovery mode. Around 3 miles in I started feeling darting pains in the left calf, wasn't an unfamiliar pain and I knew it was a minor strain, most likely a result of the abuse it received the evening before. I finished out the run pretty concerned and sure enough the calf bothered me throughout the day in work. I thankfully came to the smart conclusion that I shouldn't run again after work so I arranged a massage with a club member....and holy jesus! The pain!! He tore me to shreds, said my calves were like blocks of concrete but gave them a good once over. I left his house a broken man, almost in tears but somehow I had to believe all that pain was worth it. I put the legs up for the evening and iced the calf every few hours, hopeful this would be sorted soon. I said a little prayer to superman and off to sleep.

Thursday 14/08 - 35min Recovery + 10m track session (14.8 miles)

AM: 4.5 miles in 35 mins @ 7:43 min/mile

Mr.masseuse advised me to get a light jog in early morning to help recovery from the torture massage, gets the blood flowing and transports away the waste. The legs felt just ok when I got up, of course I felt the effects of the massage but no real worrying pain. I headed down to the mardyke, a sense of trepidation filled the air as I approached the pitch. I set foot on the dewy grass and jogged off...no pain...that's good I think. Continued on the grass for 20 mins and then a change of scenery onto the track for 15, it wasn't 100% but overall I didn't feel anything worryingly painful. Good enough for me, into the car and off to work.

PM: 10.2m in 1:09:10 @ 6:45 min/mile

Well I knew there was a track tempo this evening but I wasn't so sure I'd be doing it flat out, the calf wasn't 100%, I still felt hints of a niggle when walking around in work so I knew I had to be careful. I set off on a 2 mile warmup around the pitches and felt perfect, cruising along at 7:30 min/mile pace and no worries. I didn't join a group for the tempo as I wanted to just do it at my own pace and my coach recommended taking it easy too. I started off around 6:30 min/mile pace and eased into the workout, feeling fine for the first mile. I picked up the pace and was hovering around 6:05 pace, which happens to be MP pace if I do decide to go for a sub 2:40 marathon. This felt comfortable so I decided to stick at this pace and avoid the risk up aggravating the calf. The MP miles felt quite comfortable, I never felt I was working too hard, breathing was good but still a lot of work to be done if I'm to run that pace for a marathon. I did start feel the calf complaining a bit in the last 10 mins and I knew if I pushed the pace any further I'd pay the price so I just eased up and saw the session out then headed for a light cool-down on the grass. Very relieved overall to get through this one without any major upsets. More ice tonight, some recovery running tomorrow and I should be in good shape for the Saturday session. This was quite the essay today, thanks for reading!

Splits:
Mile 1: 6:20
Mile 2: 6:11
Mile 3: 6:06
Mile 4: 6:05
Mile 5: 6:06
Mile 6: 6:16

Sunday 17/08 - Long Run

18.8 miles in 2:10:14 @ 6:55 min/mile (133bpm)

Down early to the Marina and met up with a couple of clubmates which always makes the long run that little bit easier, in fact a lot easier. Plan was to just stay on my feet for 2 hours today. I tipped along chatting away and pace was very comfortably in the 7 min/mile zone, the miles just flew by. As we were doing 5 mile loops, we met up with some more club mates after 10 miles and the pace gradually increased. I felt good and was still able to chat comfortably so I went with it, pace got down to the 6:30's at times and still felt good. Some dodgy calculating at the end meant I did 10 minutes extra but energy-wise I felt excellent today despite the fact I headed out on just a cup of coffee, a very good sign I think. Felt a slight pain in the ankle afterwards so as a precautionary measure I'm icing that as we speak, now time for couch + sports.

Weekly Milage: 81.4

Another good week ticked off with 3 good sessions and an injury scare throw in too. I'll be easing back the milage next week with the Frank Duffy race coming up but I'm exactly where I want to be right now (apart from lying on the couch).

Yep, bang in the middle of 56 and 57 would be ideal, sure we'll see how it goes

Thursday 21/08 - 45 min Easy

6.1 miles in 45:34 @ 7:31 min/mile (119 bpm)

Easy jog this evening as the rest of the club did a tempo, nothing noteworthy to report. Feeling in good shape for Saturday, niggles cleared up and feeling fresh but mind is very restless, come onnnnn!!

I can't believe I have a Cork smell already, anyway...

Saturday 23/08 - Frank Duffy 10 mile

So off I headed up to capital city on Friday evening, hadn't run a step since Thursday evening and was feeling well rested come Saturday morning. A perfect morning for the race, blue skies, sun was beaming yet temperature felt ideal. I was staying in a friends just outside the park so after my ritual coffee, off I set at 9:30am and started jogging up Chesterfield avenue. I felt really light on my feet and full of energy, could have been the fact I was wearing racers but I just felt very good and confident I'd run a good race today, honestly I think the little rest played a big part in attitude.

The target was most definitely a PB, a generous chunk too I was hoping. The existing PB of 58:46 was ran down in Mallow in March earlier this year. I knew I'd come on a lot since then and having unofficially broken that PB during my last half marathon I knew if I ran to my ability that a PB was a formality, it was just a matter of how much. In terms of a time, a great result would be 56:30 but anywhere between that and 57 I'd be happy with. 5:40 pace was the target and based on my recent training I felt pretty confident of being able to hold that. I really don't like to go out with a target pace in mind, it sort of suggests that once I'm hitting that pace I stay there and hold on to it without pushing anymore. I decided to allow myself to run more by feel today, to allow times where the pace would be slower and if I felt good I'd push on without running to a self imposed limit, seemed like a fair deal.

I got up to the start line having run a nice 2 mile warmup and feeling nice and relaxed. I met a few Donore lads at the start line for a chat and suddenly it was almost time to go. I was a good bit back, too far probably for what I was targeting but I saw no point panicking and trying to get up further, starting conservatively and working my way up the field has always worked well for me.

Miles 1-2

Off went the hooter and it was a good 10 seconds before I would pass the start line. I didn't hang around just patiently made my way through the droves of runners, as usual there was a good lot of folk who shouldn't have be starting up so far but fully expect it in the big races. I finally started getting a bit of room about half a mile in and was still so far back but continuing to pass a lot of people. Surprised to see a 5:38 pop up for the first mile, was feeling nice and relaxed and felt I could keep this effort going. We turned onto Lords walk and the field starting to settle as the initial excitement plateaued, now it felt more like the start of the race. I just focussed on feeling relaxed and keeping the effort consistent, hit the second mile a little slower but still in control.

Splits: 5:38, 5:43

Miles 3-4

We made our way around the back of the zoo and onto the North road which I knew would be a difficult patch. There was a guy just on my shoulder who then fell into step with me and I thought great we can work together up to the next group ahead. Effort was certainly harder now with the combination of a slight headwind and a gradual drag but I was feeling ok. I found myself out on my own again as the guy fell off the pace and I started closing in on a group of 5/6 ahead of me including a Donore runner who was leading the pack, that was my target. I hit mile 3 in a reasonable 5:44 and though I was off my target pace, I didn't panic. I had a lot of miles left to run, I knew I had the training done and I had the ability to run quicker miles in the middle section so It was a case of ensuring steady effort and not stupidly chasing a pace when conditions weren't optimal. I made my way up past the group ahead who were all slowing and to the Donore runner, who I didn't even know at the time. He acknowledged me and then we ran alongside the last mile of the North road working together, starting to find it difficult but knowing that there were better miles to come. Too much watch checking here!

Splits: 5:44, 5:47

Miles 5-6

Coming off the North road I felt pretty good, I felt I'd summited a mental mountain and it was time to descend. Myself and the Donore runner turned back onto Chesterfield and headed up towards the Castleknock gate. I felt good and gradually starting pulling away from him and reeled in a few others ahead of me. After that it was an empty field bar a few specks in the distance so I just relaxed the shoulders and prepared for a long journey down the entire length of Chesterfield. Now I really started enjoying myself and just letting the legs do the work. The sun was beaming and I felt like I could run forever, terrific feeling. There was an official 5 mile mat and I had a quick glance to see 28:32 for the first 5 miles, good stuff and still on track. I knew the last 1.5 miles were going to be tough so I was going to make this next section count. At that point I knew I was running in the 5:30's though I didn't need to check. I was in a great place so I made the decision to turn the garmin screen off. I didn't want any pace or time targets to upset the rhythm I had and constantly checking it wasn't going to do me any good. I knew what I had to do and at this point so I just focussed on the road ahead and I ran what I felt was the right pace.

Splits: 5:37, 5:32

Miles 7-8

Onto mile 7 and though I wasn't watching my time or pace, I had seen the mile splits flash up and knew I was going well, confidence was high and I was still passing people. There were 2 Donore singlets ahead of me, out in force they were and made for pretty good targets. I passed one just before turning onto Wellington road and I started reeling the other in slowly. We were always descending on this section so pace was still nippy and I finally caught up with my clubmate just after exiting the park at the Chapelizod gate. He tagged on for a bit but I was maintaining the same effort and gradually pulled away. I was pretty delighted to pass my sisters apartment here to see her standing on the footpath alongside my mother for a big cheer. No doubt I sped up and tried my best to look effortless for those 10 seconds and I think it worked, they bought it. Hit mile 8 soon after and I knew what was coming ahead though I was still feeling quite good.

Splits: 5:33, 5:35

Miles 9-10

Mile 9 and 10 were funny ones. I felt like I was flying still on the 9th mile, but apparently I wasn't. The first half of it was along Chapelizod road and then we re-entered the park (apparently DublinRunner gave me a shout here but I was too rude focussed to acknowledge, so thanks!). Then came the climbs which in fairness I was ready for and knew was was ahead of me. I immediately felt the pace drop but I didn't feel it was by too much, I shortened the stride a bit but was closing in quickly on a group ahead so felt in control. We hit the 9 mile mark up near the first section of the upper glen road and I saw a 5:57 pop up. It was a little surprising because I didn't think I had slowed that much but again no panic, I didn't know what time I was on for or what that actually meant to my end result so I just concentrated on the runners ahead of me who seemed to be really struggling badly with the hill. The 2nd and 3rd placed female runners (Scottish I think) were just ahead of me and I reeled them in quite quickly and started to feel surprisingly ok with the hill. I felt very strong after the initial climb and through the next drag I took another 3 lads before turning onto the Furze road for the finish. Now I was feeling a bit of burn but there was one more guy to take care of in a yellow top. I didn't feel I had much of a sprint in my until I heard a shout from a club member who was watching, something like "Push it all the way" and I just though he's right I'm not done yet, gotta push this all the way to the end. I found a gear and I put everything I had into that last section taking the guy ahead of me. I had no idea of my time until that point but then I saw the finishing clock just under 57 minutes. I gave it my all to duck under the 57 but realised quickly it wasn't happening. I crossed as the clock hit 57:07 and I think I actually muttered the words "f**k it" as I crossed though I had no right to be disappointed with that time. Then as I gathered myself I was extremely pleased to look at my watch to see it reading 56:58 - I hadn't crossed the line until 10 seconds after the gun went, I did get under 57!! My official chip time was 56:57, even better, get in there! I was really pleased with that last mile which was a tough climb but I had the strength to push through it despite knowing I had slowed considerably on mile 9.

Splits: 5:57, 5:40

Summary: 10 miles in 56:57 @ 5:40 min/mile (167bpm)

Position: 47/4226

Post race thoughts: I'm really thrilled with that race, not just the PB but the strategy, the attitude and the belief I had in my abilities. The race was fantastic, a real mixed bag of emotions, times where I had to dig deep, to be patient and times when I felt on top of the world and nothing could go wrong. I once again took the tactic of "do the passing, don't be passed" and it seems to work well for me. I really have had a fantastic summer of training and racing and have never been enjoying my running so much. This felt like the cherry on top of that great summer and I can't wait to take on the next challenge which of course is the impending marathon training and then the actual marathon itself. No complaints about the actual race itself, excellent organisation, well marshalled, super atmosphere and what a bargain at 20 quid.

It dawned on me today that the pace I ran for that 10 mile was actually the same pace I ran for the Cheetah 4 mile race back in May. I think that sort of progress is a huge reflection on my coach and clubmates because I really wouldn't be making these sort of improvements without them. I know it's said a lot but I really have to agree that surrounding yourself and consistently training with better runners is a sure way to improve dramatically.

It's getting late so lets finish with my now standard finish sprint photo..

tang1 wrote: »

I'm no where near your league but i take it you finished ahead of 1333 in yesterdays race, he regularly runs sub 2.45 in marathons. If your beating him at ten miles no reason why you should not beat him at marathon distance.

Thanks tang, good to know That was the finish straight with meters to go and I don't remember being passed so yeah I would have beaten him but only by seconds obviously but still a nice little confidence booster!

Wednesday 27/08 - 40min Recovery + 45 min Easy

AM: 5.1 miles in 39:46 @ 7:50 min/mile (122bpm)

Little recovery run after the long run last night, can't really remember it so it must have been exhilarating.

PM: 6.2 miles in 45:42 @ 7:21 min/mile (127bpm)

Thought I was doomed to the treadmill for this one as I looked out at the windy rain horror show during the day. But just before I headed into the gym I took a look around and the wind had died down, the rain had pretty much subsided and I said no, I don't need to do this and off I headed into the park. I felt pretty tired for this one to be honest and a strange lack of energy during the middle section, a feeling I hadn't got in a long long time during a run. I put this down to bad diet, didn't eat my usual meals that day and I guess it was a good reminder to stick what I was doing, glad to get it done.

Thursday 28/08 - Track 6m @ MP

10.7 miles in 1:12:52 @ 6:47 min/mile

Session: 6 miles in 36:18 @ 6:04 min/mile (156bpm)

(tip: extracted the above split out of my Strava activity using www.veloviewer.com - the holy grail for the hardcore stats nerd)

Down to the track on another windy, rainy evening. Though the rain had stopped, the wind was out in force and I knew it would make the session that little bit tougher. After the 2 mile warmup I jumped in with a group for 5 for a tempo. The coach told me to do a marathon paced session and run 6 min/mile pace for 35 minutes. Just as I headed off around the track he added 'that'll get you a 2:36 marathon'. He wasn't smiling but it put a little smile on my face that he thinks I'm capable of running that. That said I'd give my left arm right now for just a 2:39:59. Session went fine, started off slowly but eased into a 6 min/mile pace and held it steady throughout though the headwind was a bit of a pain in the eyeball. One by one the group dwindled down until I was left on my own to run out the last mile. I have to say while that pace is nowhere near easy, it is feeling more and more comfortable the more I run at it. I really like the look of that average HR for those 6 miles, it seems to be bang in the zone of marathon running, comfortably hard. Overall extremely happy with this session, good confidence boost.

Mile Splits: 6:13, 6:01, 5:58, 5:57, 5:57, 6:01

Monday 01/09 - 10 miles very easy

10.2 miles in 1:18:24 @ 7:43 min/mile

Hello September my old friend! Well it's official, I'm here to stay in langer land. It's not so bad, really! My 6 month contract is up but I was so bloody good that I'll be starting full time in 2 weeks. That leaves me 2 weeks to do nothing, I mean train. This also means I am switching singlets from Donore to Leevale, they're working out the transfer fee at the moment, looks like it could be a 2 figure sum but I didn't see anything in the paper yet. On to today, the achilles made it through 2+ hours of a LSR yesterday but was still nagging me so today the plan was to just go very easy on it. I headed out to the farm in the afternoon for monotonous laps around the grass pitches where I got to think about all sorts of things. I bumped into some club mates around 6 miles in so I did the last 4 with them, pace was slower but wasn't worried, this was in essence a recovery. To the gym for some core and stretching after.

Tuesday 02/09 - Medium Long

15.1 miles in 1:48:43 @ 7:12 min/mile

Ran down to meet up with the club, 4 miles done by the time I met them and off we headed to Ballincollig on this smashing sunny evening, a rebellious remnant of the terrific summer we've had. The pace was nice and steady around 7 min/mile as a group of 4 or 5 of us formed and the miles just flew as we chatted away. The achilles actually felt good today, up until about 11 or 12 miles that is when I felt a niggling ache in it, nothing alarming but I just wish it would go annoy someone else at this stage. Probably good we didn't take a hilly route today as it would have aggravated it even more no doubt. Got back to the Mardyke at 14 miles and tackled the mile hill back up home, dipping with sweat when I finally got in the door! I then proceeded to make an absolute FOOL of a fruit smoothie. There's nothing like that moment after a 15 mile run when the cold sweet sugary liquid smacks the back of your throat, quenching that insatiable thirst, thus rendering it satiated. Em anyway, good run.

Wednesday 03/09 - 10 miles very easy

10.0 miles in 1:17:00 @ 7:41 min/mile

Somehow I ended up in Portugal for this one. Oh wait no I remember now, I booked it ages ago. I knew I had this 2 week break coming up and I was damned if I was sitting around Cork for all of it so I just got impulsive and booked it all in about 10 minutes. Herself has just started a new job and couldn't get any holidays so off I set on my own, which suits me just fine. A few guys in the club had been over here (near Monte Gordo) and recommended it since there's a nice track and some good trails. Uh oh, that previous sentence smacks of chronic obsession, my holiday destination was chosen based on running routes and access to a track...what have I become. I got here around 4pm and was a bit too eager setting off for a 5pm run - big mistake in 25 degree heat. Hadn't a clue where I was going, set off at around 7:30 pace which I thought was taking it easy. Heart rate was skyrocketing and the pace gradually got slower and slower as the sun sapped me off my energy and I was really struggling by the last 2 miles. It was a bit of a warning sign that I need to back off the paces a little bit here, got a tempo session on the track tomorrow which I am a little anxious about in terms of achilles holding up and managing the heat.

Thursday 04/09 - Track session: 6 miles @ MP

10 miles in 1:08:09 @ 6:49 min/mile

Session: 6 miles in 36:46 @ 6:06 min/mile (153 bpm)

Ah sure what was I worried about this was a great session, felt on a real high after it. A more sensible approach in terms of timing, headed out at 6:30pm for a 2 mile warmup though it was by no means cool yet, my phone told me it was 27degrees though it didn't feel that hot really. I kept it very slow for the warmup knowing I needed to conserve as much energy as possible for the 6 MP miles. I headed into the stadium which is a great venue though feels a little run down. It has held a few european meets as far as I know and a lot of athletic and other sports teams come over to train here, only 5 quid for a day pass too including access to the gym.

There was nobody else on the track at 7pm and conditions looked good, it already felt a little cooler and half of the track was shaded though there was a fairly strong headwind on the shaded section. I threw a dioralyte down the hatch and off I set on a warmup lap before jumping into the first of 6 miles, not knowing what to expect really. Based on yesterdays slogfest I would have said no way would I be able to hold MP for 6 miles but what do I know! First mile felt surprisingly comfortable, HR was stable, breathing good, body felt strong though my headband was in overdrive soaking up buckets of sweat. Came through in 6:08 and wondered had I gone out too quick and could I hold this for 5 more. 2nd mile was a little uncomfortable, I started to feel the humidity and I slowed a bit for some reason but after that I really settled down and knocked out 4 x steady 6-6:10 min/miles and feeling relatively comfortable given the conditions. Delighted to finish the 6 miles feeling strong and jogged a few more laps to cool down. The achilles held up very well today, I was feeling really good on the last mile and contemplated a fast finish but I thought for what gain really. The point of this session is to run at MP and not wreck my achilles and that was achieved so I walked away pretty happy, and thirsty.

Splits: 6:08, 6:13, 6:08, 6:06, 6:08, 6:00

On a side note, I normally do all my running on empty and in a state of having consumed minimal carbs all day, it's kind of a formality now, I do it because I get results but something Stazza posted recently resonated with me, and that was to just start thinking more about each individual session, what the purpose of it is and to tailor your fuelling around that. Today I figured I'm going to be running at my MP, it's very hot and humid out there and I could possibly do with some extra (and quick) energy so I got a banana into me 20 mins before the session, something I normally never do. I took on more water too of course but I ran the session better than expected, was that banana the difference? I don't know, it definitely didn't hinder and my guess is it probably did give me that little kick I needed in tough conditions. This wasn't a session for teaching my body to burn fat efficiently so going empty was possibly not doing me any benefit in the past and something I need to start thinking about for future sessions where I'm running around or below threshold pace. That concludes todays side note.

Sunday 07/08 - 2:30 Long Run

20.1 miles in 2:30:05 @ 7:28 min/mile

After a really good weeks training in Portugal and the achilles now behaving itself, I was eager to wrap it up with a nice incident-free long run. The plan was 2:30 on my feet, wasn't too concerned about milage or pace but 7:30 min/mile was the goal if I could manage it. The only way I thought I'd achieve that is by getting up at ridiculous o'clock before the sun would let rip.

7am and the alarm went off, so so sleepy. I forced myself up, had my now routine banana and dioralyte before lying down for a second to rest my eyes. I awoke again at 7:25am and got my act together, finally out on the road just after 7:30am but my body was screaming for some sweet caffeine which was nowhere to be found. The air was heavy and moist and the temperature was ok at 22 degrees, I can work with that I think. I set off on a 6.3 mile loop, I figured I'll do 3 loops and see how I'm fixed. The first 2 miles were shocking, legs were spent, found it tough to breath and the pace was pedestrian at 7:55 and 7:48 for the first 2 miles, actually couldn't push any faster and I thought no way am I doing this for 2 and a half hours. As usual my head was being over dramatic and things got better. I settled in and started knocking out 7:30 miles and held it steady. The 6 mile loop broke up the monotony with a mix of city streets and local trails in amongst the pine forests. I found it harder doing the long run on my own this week, time goes so much slower compared to when I have company. I had dropped water at the start of the loop so took on a bit each time as the day got warmer, much needed. During the last loop I alternated between moments of feeling really strong and in control to moments where my legs were screaming but the pace was still good down in the 7:20's. There was evident fatigue in my legs from yesterday and the weeks training, to be expected and it's just a case of getting through it and I was glad to be finishing strong. I think had I have headed out even a half an hour later I would have been in trouble as by 10am the sun was beaming down. I got back to the start at 19 miles, the clock was at 2:23 so I threw in another mile and we're done.

I got back to the hotel and the breakfast buffet was just closing so I made a dash for the orange juice machine and those 20 miles were completely worth it just for that moment of downing an ice cold juice, pure bliss. I got back to the room and watched a bit of Discovery's hit show 'River monsters' before nodding off. When I woke up it was just after 12pm, I felt hungover, my head was thumping and I wasn't sure if my run was a dream, then I noticed I was still wearing very smelly and damp running shorts, phew! Got up, showered and headed off to a local cafe and finally got my coffee fix along with pancakes and then watched the hurling final which was the greatest game of hurling I've ever seen. That was my day. By Conor, age 31.

Weekly total: 83.9 miles

And finally: I got a nice bit of news yesterday in that I have a medal on its way to me for the Dublin 10 mile championship (Frank Duffy). I had no idea but Donore came 3rd in the male seniors team event and I was a placer. First and only medal for Donore on my last race for them, pretty fitting! It's also my first medal that's not a participation medal so this one is going on the mantlepiece but I don't have a mantlepiece one so it's going on the gas boiler.

Monday 08/09 - 10.9 miles mixed

AM: 5.2 miles in 41:26 @ 7:54 min/mile

Light jog around the trails before the sun got me, legs didn't feel so bad after the weekends battering.

PM: 5.7 miles in 39:17 @ 6:55 min/mile

Out at 7pm for the 2nd run of the day. Headed for the trails again which were nice and shaded. Felt pretty good so I let the legs dictate the pace which was down around 6:45-50 min/mile and feeling nice and comfortable. Good run, except for the part when I ended up on a trail made completely out of sand.

Tuesday 09/09 - 15m Medium Long Run

15.1 miles in 1:52:25 @ 7:28 min/mile

Well last day in Portugal but just enough time to squeeze in a 15 miler before heading for the airport. I dropped off a bottle of water outside the hotel and headed off just after 7:45am. Beautiful morning, the sun was out but not too warm yet. I pretty much zoned out for this and just got it done, pace was pretty comfortable but legs got tired at the end. I did essentially 2 loops and grabbed some water at halfway when it was getting it a bit hot. Happy to get it done early, horsed a breakfast and headed for the airport. Training in Portugal survived!

Wednesday 10/09 - VO2max test (10.6 miles)

I've been wanting to get this done for a while, I'm a man fond of stats and numbers and I figured no better time than when I'm on my holidays. The test is more useful when you have something to compare it to so I'll head back in 6 months time to get retested but on whole the results were really good, got some great advice and it was an extremely encouraging exercise in terms of confidence.

I'll soon be receiving a detailed 10-page report complete with ideal training paces and more but in summary, the V02max result was 65.8. Based on my blood lactate levels from the treadmill test, it was concluded that my optimal pace for a marathon right now is around 15.5 km/hr which is around 6:13 pace or a 2:43 marathon, I'd take that. Of course I'm not going to go out and just shoot for an exact 2:43 right now, I'll try run the best time I possibly can on the day and I still have 7 weeks of training but it's good to hear that's what I'm physiologically capable of right now. I was absolutely f***d after the test which in essence was a session so I headed on a 4 mile cool-down afterward.

viperlogic wrote: »

You get the test done in UCC by Trevor or ??

Yep Trevor in UCC, he's a triathlete himself and really well informed, highly recommended.