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Timber!!

overpronator

As you may have guessed from the title this thread is going to be my training log!

Bad jokes out of the way I have found the training logs on here to be both extremely educational and motivational. Furthermore they brought home to me what required to properly improve and the work people put in to do that, I have great admiration for many posters on here and hopefully with chat and feedback through this thread I can improve bit by bit.

About me, I'm a 30 year old male with a pretty sedentary job. In the past I played GAA at a good, sometimes very good level but succumbed to injury and more accurately apathy and pints in my early to mid twenties. The most exercise I got over a 5 year period consisted of five a side a couple of times a week thinking that was keeping me fit, the usual nonsense.

I started running properly about 18 months ago when I "trained" for the Irish runner 5 miler in the park. That involved going up there once or twice a week for the 3 weeks before the race and tearing around the course as fast as I could:). That progressed to the remaining races in the race series where through the graduates 2012 thread I picked up some basics, got some long runs in and got myself around DCM12 just under the 4 hour mark at 3.54

Last year I got more structured and followed a Hal Higdon type plan for the Limerick marathon. I had a tough day finishing in 3.36 blowing up around 20 miles chasing 3.30. I did the race series again last summer and followed a Hybrid plan of P&D which I supplemented with Meno's midweek long MP sessions in place of VO2 max workouts for the last 5 weeks and got around in a comfortable 3.26.

My current PB's are

5k 19.48
10k 41.00
10 Mile 68.45
Half 1.34.03
Marathon 3.26.51

The goals for this year however ambitious, were (and still are) a sub 40 10k and a sub 1.30 half.
The little matter of the London Marathon 2014 has gotten in the way of specifically focusing on these goals. I hadn't intended on doing a Spring Marathon this year but myself and my GF got offered a spot so I couldn't turn it down really.
I'm currently following the 12 week P&D plan up to 55 miles and have been just doing slow base building for the month before the plan started. I will follow the structure of the plan quite closely but will add more mileage depending on how I feel but will again supplement some of the VO2 max workouts at the end with longer marathon specific efforts as I think it was these sessions from Meno's graduates plan last summer that made the difference for me in DCM 13.

From my PBs its clear that my endurance isn't really where it should be yet so hopefully another marathon cycle with more fast finish long runs, sessions Ive never really gotten to grips with will help with that.
Ill post again later with a summary of what ive been up to for the last 3 or so weeks, hopefully this log will keep me more active on here for feedback as im sporadic enough when it comes to posting but love to lurk!

Comments, feedback and general slagging welcome.

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overpronator

yaboya1 wrote: »

Good stuff this morning.
Well done.

Cheers Yaboya, 66.4x, glad to get this much as I had a tough day, last 2 miles were a killer!

yaboya1

Good stuff this morning.
Well done.

DOCO12

Good luck!

Tom Joad

Best of luck tomorrow OP

yaboya1

overpronator wrote: »

Cheers tang, 65 would be sweet but I think its a bit beyond me yet, Ill give 66 a good go though!

Not sure about that.
We'll find out tomorrow.
Best of luck :cool:

overpronator

tang1 wrote: »

Best of luck tomorrow OP, target time is very doable, i'd even say 65.xx will be ran tomorrow.

Cheers tang, 65 would be sweet but I think its a bit beyond me yet, Ill give 66 a good go though!

tang1

Best of luck tomorrow OP, target time is very doable, i'd even say 65.xx will be ran tomorrow.

Finnt

That's a good session I did the same session on Wednesday, I did 2x2,2x1 I found it hard to keep the pace up on the last two singles. To do the last one the fastest is good going.

overpronator

Monday 10k session
After a couple of 5k paced sessions over the last couple of weeks my haphazard training continued this week with a 10k paced session, 2x2 miles and then 1 mile all at 10k pace. I kept the session "work" at 5 miles as I felt that my last injury was down to overstretching on previous McMillan sessions, i.e stepping up to doing sessions with 6 mile of work without building towards the sessions. I had done 6k of work at a shade quicker than 5k pace last week so I thought 5 miles at 10k pace would be sensible progression. The reps were

2 miles ave pace 6.20
2 miles ave pace 6.19
1 mile ave pace 6.12

Rep 1 was surprisingly comfortable and I was even thinking the 5 mins jog recovery was too much but I realised in the second rep that it was probably correct as the last half mile or so of the that second rep was tough going. Psychologically only having 1 mile as the last rep made it easier to push on and I was happy to get under 10k pace for this. I'm happy with this session as I think I could have done the last rep as a 2 miler if I needed to, it would definitely have been tough, but doable so I think it a decent indicator of 10k shape.

No running Tuesday as I was down in Cork all day and got back late, Wednesday I got out for an easy 6.5 miles, 8.25 pace and thankfully the legs felt good.
Thursday at the last minute I had to head down to Wexford for the day and got back late again so I've basically had an unplanned mini taper for the Frank Duffy 10 miler on Saturday. Im not too annoyed with the poor week so far as the trips were unplanned and completely unavoidable.
Friday I'll do a few miles easy with strides to wake up the legs ahead of Saturday. My PB is 68.4X so it would be nice to go 67 and maybe even 66. Id be happy enough with either but will probably target 66.xx

overpronator

Saturday 16 mile LSR
I got my longest run in a while done on Saturday morning, 16 miles in and around Kilmainham, Ballyfermot and some really enjoyable out and back miles along the grand canal path as far as Grange Castle. The pace was nice and handy, 8.20 and it was good to get this in without much fuss.

Sunday 4 miles recovery
After loads of food and even more wine Saturday night I was glad to get out with the better half for some easy miles this evening. 4 miles at about 10 minute pace to just nudge the weekly mileage up to 51.

overpronator

Monday: 7 miles steady
After last weeks mostly easy running Monday was a steadier run, I started out with one mile easy and the next 6 I gradually progressed down to the last mile in something approaching HM pace, it felt very relaxed and I made sure to never strain, overall average pace 7.36

Tuesday: Session 6x1k, 9.5 mile session.
The week in the lead up to DLR I did 5x1k to dip my toe back into some speed, so to progress from that session I did 6x1k. The legs felt really lethargic in the warmup miles probably due to the long run and steady run on consecutive days and I considered knocking this one on the head right up to he point I started the first rep! It went grand in the end, splits were

3.37 (5.55)
3.44 (6.07)
3.41 (6.02)
3.45 (6.09)
3.40 (6.00)
3.44 (6.07)

I was happy with this session as I was running controlled and I felt I could have done another couple of reps when I was finished, maybe the 2 mins rest between reps is a being generous?

Wednesday 4 miles recovey
Nothing fancy, 4 miles easy to shake off the session and the legs felt tired but not too sore, just short of 9 min pace here.

Thursday 10 miles easy
Into the phoenix park once again for a gentle 10 miles last night. The pace picked up a bit over the second five miles which was as much down to some downhill as anything but I was careful to never let it go beyond easy feeling. I felt surprisingly fresh once this ended, 8.08 pace and just over 80 mins.

Ill take tonight as rest before 14-16 miles LSR on Saturday. The Frank Duffy 10 miler is next week and I don't think I have ever been less fussed about how I go in a race! I think I'll still do a solid 10k session early in the week and train through this but if nothing else it should be good for some speed endurace (been neglecting tempo runs completely) ahead of the Dublin half.

overpronator

outforarun wrote: »

I've been meaning to try this for some time now. Must be great in nice weather. And could be a real tasty challenge in high winds and rain.

Yeah its really nice, you should try it. There are parts in the middle where you'e just completely surrounded by flat open ground for at least half a mile in each direction, pretty cool for the centre of Dublin, lots of deer out there too. Id say its very bleak in bad weather!

overpronator

career move wrote: »

Hey OP

Well done on the sub 40 and on a tough enough course too. Nice one

Cheers CM, hope you're keeping well. Was really delighted to just about squeak in under the 40. I think it pales in comparison to your achievements in the beast though, I just wouldn't be able for much more than running in straight lines:)!!

outforarun

overpronator wrote: »

Alot of this was on grass as I ran right across the seven acres in the phoenix park from the top of the upper glen road to the khyber road at the other side to finish the run. Lovely.

I've been meaning to try this for some time now. Must be great in nice weather. And could be a real tasty challenge in high winds and rain.

career move

Hey OP

Well done on the sub 40 and on a tough enough course too. Nice one

overpronator

Just a quick update to what was a quiet enough week. After the hard effort of 10k on Monday the main goal was to recover this week.

Tuesday
4 mile recovery run, 9.23 pace. The legs didn't feel too bad on this thankfully, there were a few little tight spots but nothing bad. The pace was exactly what the legs gave back to me as I was feeling pretty tired.

Thursday
I took Wednesday as a rest day, Thursday was an easy 10 miler, 8.17 pace. I was still feeling tired but its a long time since I enjoyed a run so much. I kept it really easy and the miles just ticked by. Alot of this was on grass as I ran right across the seven acres in the phoenix park from the top of the upper glen road to the khyber road at the other side to finish the run. Lovely.

Friday
Another easy run, 5 miles 8.15 pace. I threw 7 or 8 good solid strides in here to help wake the legs up and I felt great as this one finished and no complaints from the legs

Sunday
On Sunday I jumped in with the Team Carrie training group down in Dunleer for their long run, 14 miles in spitting rain on the rolling hills of mid Louth. Again the pace was nice and easy, 8.23 and we were running in a group as big as 10 people in places. This was a big novelty for me as I do nearly all my runs alone, I can really see how being in a club would benefit the long runs. 14 miles in total and it was over before I knew it, I had planned on doing 16 this weekend as the long run but I didn't mind missing out on 2 miles in exchange for running in a group with the added bonus of tea and cakes in the clubrooms after. Nice one.

Not a bad week overall with a good race run and just over 40 miles in total.

statss

overpronator wrote: »

Cheers man, you tempted to tick the box down in Blessington yourself?

at a wedding that weekend unfortunately.

overpronator

statss wrote: »

savage racing there buddy! super stuff.

Cheers man, you tempted to tick the box down in Blessington yourself?

statss

savage racing there buddy! super stuff.

Tom Joad

Well done on the Sub 40 and the perfectly executed race

Bulmers74

Well done - congrats on the sub 40. Excellent race plan execution.

overpronator

Cheers man, luckily I had a good day yesterday as it was touch and go really until the 6th mile

outforarun

Brilliant running. Very clever planning as well, checking the 5K splits from the previous year, I would never have thought of doing that. Fair play for sticking with it over the last 5K, it cannot be easy to pick up the pace like you did when you weren't feeling as good as you'd hoped at halfway.

See you in Blessington.

overpronator

So yesterday was the DLR bay 10k out in Dun Laoghire and after an being encouraged and fairly surprised by my run in the Fingal 10k (40.16) it was my first "official" attempt at running sub 40.
I knew the course was certainly one of two halfs, i.e the first half hilly and the second fast so I knew I needed a plan! I had been taking a look at the results from this over the last week and had noticed that there was a 5k split time given. When I checked out the people running in and around 40 mins I noticed that generally the people who ran 20.20 ish for the first 5k were either finishing in 39 low or missing the sub 40. There were more people running about 20.40 kinda territory and then getting in under 40, guessing that these runners knew what they were at that's the plan I set out with, first 5k north of 20.35 and see what I had left for the trip home.
It was a really sunny day in the village and standing in the pen the sun really began to beat down so I was glad when we set off.

It was really hard to hold back from 10k pace over the first mile, I kept the pace easy over the gentle rolling drags on this mile and felt good
Mile 1 6.34
Right at the start of Mile 2 we started climbing a bit with the drag turning into a sharp little hill as we turned off the seafront and onto Seafield avenue, I was glad that id started conservatively as this mile finished
Mile 2 6.38
Mile 3 started with the relief of a decent downhill for the first quarter so I picked up a bit of time here and saw that I was moving at close to 6.15 pace for this section, more climbing for the remainder of the mile and I was starting to feel it now
Mile 3 6.37
I came through 5k exactly on schedule, around 20.41 but to be honest I was hoping that I would feel alot better than I did, I knew that id have to run a big 5K pb on the way back to come in under 40 and felt at this stage that it wasn't on. We reached the top of the final, biggest hill at 3.5 miles and the course started to make its was back down to the sea thankfully. There was a bit of a wind in our faces here which made things tough and I didn't feel like I was recovering too well
Mile 3 6.37
We got a nice sheltered downhill as we turned off the main road towards the sea and the legs started to turn over again, I was trying to push as hard as I could but it was really tough going and the mind was telling me to slow up. I started trying to pick people off and the pace ticked down well under 10k pace here but the legs were getting very heavy, I could spot some DSD vests in the distance, a guy and a girl, I focused on them and made up alot of time here passing the guy towards the end of the mile.
Mile 5 6.06
As we weaved our way through Sandycove and hit the seafront I was really hurting, the course had levelled out but the pace was sitting at 6.10 on the watch so I was making up alot of time. I had a field showing average pace for the entire run up and it read as 6.27 half a mile from home. I knew id be gutted if I didn't give it everything here as sub 40 was on. I upped the pace further and hit for for home, there was a little drag at Teddys Ice cream parlour which BeebBeeb 67 had mentioned over on the race thread as

BeepBeep67 wrote: »

9.2k - Finish back through the start line and a cheeky little climb up past Teddy's Ice Cream Parlor which you probably didn't notice 1st time

This part completely took the wind out of my sails, the legs were like blocks of wood and I though I was done here, I was calling it a certain C word alright as I got over it, but not the one BB67 had used:)
I had passed the DSD girl, (I think she finished 3rd woman) before the bump but she got me again past the drag but as I could see the finish gantry way off in the distance I dropped the hammer again and passed her just just before the end. All eyes were on the clock and it ticked just past 40 as I finished so I knew id scraped under. That last mile was a serious mental effort as much as anything. Every bit of me just wanted to slow up but I'm so glad I pushed on and I'm delighted that I could run that mostly flat final mile at the pace I did.
Mile 6 6.04 (5.17)

I had my usual dry retch/splutter and it took me a minute or so to pull myself together, it was nice to see BB67 and clan at the finish but I don't think I made much sense, it took me a good hour before the delight at hitting 39 hit! I think the plan to go out a tad easier is what did it, plus being able to see what looked like the finish from a long way out! A great event, probably the best organised race I've done so Id recommend it to everyone.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/556856735

RedRunner

Brilliant. Well done. Not exactly a flat course I believe either!

Beef

Great result - well done OP!

DOCO12

overpronator wrote: »

39.52 by the watch in the DLR 10K this morning, delighted!

Sub 40, sweet

congrats and well done!

overpronator

yaboya1 wrote: »

You need to set a new target for Blessington now
Sub 39??
Well done

Thanks, ha ha, if I went and improved that much over the next few weeks I'd be looking for a name change to yaboya2!!

yaboya1

overpronator wrote: »

39.52 by the watch in the DLR 10K this morning, delighted!

You need to set a new target for Blessington now

Sub 39??
Well done

overpronator

39.52 by the watch in the DLR 10K this morning, delighted!