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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

Finnt wrote: »

Hi OP, are you running the easy tins by time or Hr?

Alright Finnt, its gonna be mostly be time and just what feels easy pacewise on the day. I will use HR on the longer runs aswell I think.

Edit* Should have said in my post that the long run was a little over 2hrs, its more habit than anything that I mentioned the distance.

yaboya1

overpronator wrote: »

Good stuff, get yourself to Walkinstown in good shape and the way that course is a negative split is on. The first half could end plenty of people if they aren't patient Id say. As for the drinking PB, positive split that bad boy all the way!

A negative split would be a first for me, so I'm hoping I can do that at least.
Good luck with your training during the winter. I may end up joining you at whatever Spring Marathon you end up in, as I'm undecided myself atm.

overpronator

I better update this before I forget everything about this weeks runs, I can tell already that this log is going to be fairly boring up until Christmas as its gonna be mostly easy running

Monday 7.5 miles 8.00 min/mile
A handy 60 minutes to get the week going, threw in 6 strides towards the end of the run.

Tueday 6.29 miles 8.00 min/mile
Easy 50 mins, cant remember much of his one, somehow it worked out at exactly the same pace as the previous nights run, spooky!

Wednesday 8.6 miles 8.42/mile
A bit longer distance wise than I had intended but it was all easy so no problem really. I had arranged to meet a mate for a few miles of this and seeing as my better half was doing a tempo on a very windy evening we said we would jump in ahead of her and break the wind, chivalry isn't dead around these parts! The first couple of miles were her warmup, around 10 min pace and then 5 miles around 8.45, I tacked a couple on by myself at the end to finish off and threw in a couple of short pickups. An enjoyable one.

Thursday 2x 15 mins Tempo, 10 mins easy in between
I did a 2 mile warmup and straight into the first tempo section, pace was 6.32 which I was happy with as it took in that hill from Chapelizod to the back of Ballyfermot from the marathon course, it came right at the end of the 15 mins so I was glad to see the easy 10 mins beep on the watch. Pace for the 10 mins was 8.15. I had to stop at traffic lights for a portion of this easy section but strava didn't stop the clock on it so Garmin connect has 8.15 pace for this but Strava gave 9 mins pace, something to note for those using Strava alot.
The second tempo section pace was 6.29, probably too fast but I went down that hill this time so it likely evens out. I enjoyed this one, always nice to run a bit quicker than easy. Total for the session was 10 miles.

Friday 5.1 miles 8.53/mile
A recovery run at dusk in the Phoenix park, I had the place to myself it seemed as I didn't see a single runner. There must be a big race soon enough....;). I was a bit tired on this and was glad to have put the long run off until Saturday

Saturday 14.7 miles 8.25 pace
A shade over 2 hrs for the long run of the week. I really enjoyed this one and kept an eye on the HR to make sure I wasn't picking the effort up unnecessarily. Uneventful.

So there you go, 52 or so miles for the week and about as interesting to read about as watching paint dry. Base building continues next week, don't miss it!!

RedRunner

Still a lot more exciting than my log!

overpronator

RedRunner wrote: »

Still a lot more exciting than my log!

Not so sure about that, there's a tonne of suspense in yours R! Thankfully it looks like you might be over the hump though? What's the plan for the next little while?

RedRunner

overpronator wrote: »

Not so sure about that, there's a tonne of suspense in yours R! Thankfully it looks like you might be over the hump though? What's the plan for the next little while?

Easy easy easy is the plan. See the physio on Wednesday re weights program so will take his advice re easing back into it. All things going well build back up to decent base aim for Bohermeen half as first goal race and a Spring or summer marathon.

overpronator

Tuesday 8.4 miles 8.11 pace
Easy run with a few strides towards the end, about 70 mins.

Wednesday 11.5 miles 8.08 pace
I changed the usual route of my MLR and headed from Kilmainham up through Phibbsboro onto the Ballymun road as far as DCU and back into town along Collins' Avenue. It was nice to run somewhere different and the legs felt nice and fresh on this one, 93 mins.

30 minute Tempo 6.31 pace
I did a couple of miles w/u and straight into the tempo section. I was comfortable until that hill in Chapelizod which took a good bite out of me as the HR shot up. This came around 15 mins in and it took a good few mins to recover from it. Once I got going again I finished it out well and on pace but looking at the cadence readout from my garmin I never got the turnover going properly after that section, not sure really what the relevance is but an interesting detail to keep in mind. I covered 4.6 miles for the 30 mins and a 9 miles session overall. Looking over my plan afterwards I realised that I was only down to do 25 mins so I'm glad this ended up being manageable.

Friday 8 miles 8.36 pace
Met a mate and headed into a pitch black Phoenix park where we ran the outside lap along military hill, upper glen and north road. The pace was really easy which suited me grand to chalk this one off, just about 70 mins.

Saturday Long Run 15.9 miles 8.11 pace
This was one of those "lovely" Dublin days where whichever way you faced you had a gale blowing in your face. I just stuck on the HR screen on the watch and tried to keep things easy. This proved tough enough in places with the wind and hills in the park but overall it was all fairly sedate. I ended up doing 2hrs 10 mins which was a bit longer than intended but with just HR showing on the watch I didn't cop on until I got home.

Sunday 5 miles 8.17
This was one of those nice floaty runs which we get every so often, a nice easy 40 minutes with a few short strides.

So that was 58 miles (just under 8 hrs) for the week and all is good. I have to say I was very close to tacking on 2 extra miles to tonights run to hit the 60 but I decided to stay patient, no need to overstretch myself at this stage! (Will definitely regret it tomorrow though!)

Ive upped the mileage for 3 weeks in a row now so Ill take a step back next week and leave out the midweek tempo. I might do a Parkrun on Saturday but will see how the legs are as the week progresses.

overpronator

I took a step back last week and dropped the midweek tempo. The week was mostly easy running, 5 days, with one extra rest day taken on Friday.

Tuesday 8.6 miles 8.13 pace
Easy 70 mins, headed up through Stoneybatter and out the Navan Road as far as Ashtown and then back into town along Blackhorse Avenue. The legs felt a little on the heavy and on niggly side for this one, I knew I should have just gone out for a few easy miles Monday!

Wednesday 6.3 miles 7.49 pace
This was my first ever run before work, something I never thought I would do. The upside being that I got into the Phoenix park midweek. The first mile was sluggish as my body hated me but once I started up the Khyber I woke up, there's something about running uphill always does wonders for my legs, probably the change in form. I threw in 8 strides in the third and fourth miles and kept the pace steady all the way home after that with the miles being in the 7.20-7.30 range. A much better run than the one 12 hours previously.

Thursday 11 miles 8.18 pace
This was to be the longer run of the week and it was a massive slog. I had been at a gig the night before and had a few pints and a late night so 90 minutes was the last thing I wanted to do once I got home from work. Got it done but was very tired after.

Saturday 10.2 miles 7.22 pace
I had planned on a parkrun Saturday morning but forgot to set my alarm and didn't wake up until after 9, so being seriously unimpressed with myself I headed for the park. The first 2 miles felt sluggish so I decided to up the effort to see if I could shake that feeling off. I ran from the islandbridge gate up to the castleknock gate at the top of the park into the monsoon and howling gale. I honestly think this was the worst 40 minutes of rain I've ever ran in, so much so there were loads of runners hiding under trees in the park something I've never before, very enjoyable though. The miles from Islandbridge up to the top were 7.50, 7.11, 6.57 and heading back down with the wind at my back and the gradient in my favour 6.58, 6.39, 6.44, 6.50. I kept it going for 7 miles and jogged the final one home to make it 10. The effort felt very controlled, probably a shade faster than MP effort but with the conditions its hard to really say.

Sunday 7.5 miles 8.02 pace
60 minutes last night to see out the week, the legs felt really good on this one and it was a lovely calm, almost frosty evening, great running conditions.

That was just over 43 miles (5hrs 46 mins) and I feel well rested so back to it now hopefully for another 3 good weeks.

overpronator

Monday 8.7 miles 8.09 pace
This was a miserable windy trek up the Navan Road to Ashtown, a horrible evening. The legs felt good and I was consciously keeping a lid on the pace. 70 minutes.

Wednesday 12 miles 8.00 min pace
This weeks MLR was 90 mins and involved dodging plenty of floods early on along the Chapelizod road. I headed up into Palmerston village, over the M50 and the N4 for a little lap of part of the liffey valley carpark and back home. I added in a couple of miles just a wee bit faster towards the end to avoid another one paced plod.

Thursday 8.1 miles 8.42 min pace
I used the HR strap on this one to keep me disciplined and just kept it really easy as I had a tempo and long run planned for the next couple of days. Felt fairly tired when this one was finished, despite the handy pace. 70 mins again.

Friday 30 mins tempo 6.30 pace (4.6 miles)
I wasn't relishing this one as I started and felt very sluggish for the first mile, I even considered binning the run and trying again the next day. Luckily I felt alot better as I settled into it and by the end I was holding the pace comfortably which was a nice considering how it started. I also dealt well with Chapelizod Hill too which is unusual! 9.5 miles in total for the session with warmup and cool down. I might drop the pace a bit on this and do 6 miles at hopeful HMP (6.40ish) next week with one eye on Waterford.

Saturday 16.33 miles 8.18 pace
The idea of doing the tempo on Friday was to do the LR on tired legs so for this I stuck the watch on the HR screen and headed for the Phoenix Park not concerned by pace. It was a stunning crisp morning in the park and the miles ticked by really quickly, 2hrs 15 mins in total for this run and I felt strong with no after effects from the tempo.

Sunday 5.81 miles 9.55 pace
I had company on this recovery run back in Drogheda which was good for keeping the pace down. We hit some of the trails and the footing was shocking with all the rain and floods down there lately. By the time the run was finished I was destroyed with mud but had great fun, a nice way to round off the week.

So that was just over 60 miles for the week (8hrs 22 mins), which is high mileage for me. I feel good at the minute and not too tired but I reckon I will know by the middle of next week if this higher mileage is gonna bite me. One thing I neglected last week were strides so I need to do better there.

I also need to decide on a Marathon plan soon enough so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated..........

yaboya1

What marathon plan did you follow before?
Were you happy with it?
Are you specifically looking for something different?

And most importantly.... How do you keep getting into London? :pac:
Four rejections for me so far

overpronator

What marathon plan did you follow before?
The closest I came to following a plan was London last year but in reality it was a mish mash of P&D 12,55 with only the speed session towards the end being done to the letter. I was following Menos graduates plan for DCM13 but got injured down to my own stupidity. Id like to follow a plan properly and do things right this time, hence the base building

Were you happy with it?
I was as I managed to PB in both despite fairly haphazard but consistent training

Are you specifically looking for something different?
I enjoyed the aspects I completed of both P&D and Meno's plan and would have no problems going back to either but I'm always curious about what's out there. The BAA plans for example carry speedwork almost weekly at 10k pace plus more MP running than P&D but I don't know of anyone who has followed them. The Daniels plans seem light on proper long runs for me who is on the slower end but I need to properly look over them

And most importantly.... How do you keep getting into London? :pac:
Four rejections for me so far
If I told you that I'd have to kill you

yaboya1

overpronator wrote: »

Are you specifically looking for something different?
I enjoyed the aspects I completed of both P&D and Meno's plan and would have no problems going back to either but I'm always curious about what's out there. The BAA plans for example carry speedwork almost weekly at 10k pace plus more MP running than P&D but I don't know of anyone who has followed them. The Daniels plans seem light on proper long runs for me who is on the slower end but I need to properly look over them

I think AMK, Gavlor & belcarra all followed the BAA plan for their Spring Marathons this year, so maybe ask them what they thought. I'm sure there's a few more who've followed it too, but I can't think of any off hand.

I think if you pb'd off a haphazard version of the 12/55 plan, following the 18/70 plan would make you a certainty to run a significant pb again, especially considering the base building you've been doing.

overpronator

yaboya1 wrote: »

I think AMK, Gavlor & belcarra all followed the BAA plan for their Spring Marathons this year, so maybe ask them what they thought. I'm sure there's a few more who've followed it too, but I can't think of any off hand.

I think if you pb'd off a haphazard version of the 12/55 plan, following the 18/70 plan would make you a certainty to run a significant pb again, especially considering the base building you've been doing.

Now that you mention it I do remember Gavlor (i think) talking about those plans and getting grief for calling MP runs tempos

Ill have a read back over their logs.
What you said about P&D did cross my mind too, its just that the plan structure is so similar to my structure right now I'm afraid Id die of boredom, but in saying that I'm leaning towards it right now as its so tried and tested. Whether I can hit 70 mile weeks and recover off the back of it is another concern, but I would have said that about 60MPW 5 weeks ago I suppose!
Have you decided how you will approach your Spring marathon yet?

yaboya1

overpronator wrote: »

Have you decided how you will approach your Spring marathon yet?

I'm going to go back doing the HADD stuff for a while, now that I've got a HRM sorted. If I manage to get my steady runs up to my HRMarathon with plenty of time to spare, I might throw something together for the remaining weeks. Nothing set in stone yet though.

overpronator

Tuesday 9.5 miles 7.53 pace
This was a bit of a steadier run with 8 strides thrown into the middle section on what is becoming my weekly trek up to Ashtown and back down again. I felt strong on this one and with no midweek MLR on the plan this week this was my longest midweek run, 75 mins.

Wednesday 7.5 miles 8.20 pace
Easy 60 minutes and a good soaking.

Thursday Lazy cop out :mad:
Had a long annoying day Thursday and was exhausted when I got home so I binned the 70 min run. Its the first planned run I've missed in this little phase and was annoyed with myself after, I should just have done 40 mins.

Friday 6 mile tempo
Splits for this were
6.31
6.36
6.30
6.26
6.28
6.28
As usual I felt sluggish on the first mile but had settled in well by the end. I lost a few secs in the second mile as usual due to that hill in Chapelizod but nothing major. The last mile was into the wind but I felt like I was cruising so hopefully that's a small sign that I'm starting to get a wee bit stronger. These runs probably feel closer to 10 mile pace than HMP to be honest so for Waterford ill go out slower. 2 miles for warmup and cool down brought it to a 10 mile session.

Saturday 16.4 miles 8.14 pace
I was expecting to be tired on this one after the previous nights session so again I used the HRM to control the effort as much as possible. The legs felt a bit heavy but otherwise fairly ok, glad to get this one squared away. 2hrs 15 mins.

Sunday 7.5 miles 8.30 pace
A handy one to round the week off, I had a few strides planned but a small bit of calf tightness made me stop after 1, didn't want to risk anything after 2 tough runs on the previous 2 days.

51 miles for the week, not great as I missed a run but alright with a solid session and long run bagged.

I cant wait for Waterford now, it really seems like ages since the Dublin half.

yaboya1

Good luck tomorrow.

overpronator wrote: »

I cant wait for Waterford now, it really seems like ages since the Dublin half.

It really seems like ages since your last training update :P

Tom Joad

Best of luck in Waterford OP.

overpronator

1.24.52 by the watch in Waterford this morning, where the hell did that come from! Absolutely made up.

yaboya1

overpronator wrote: »

1.24.52 by the watch in Waterford this morning, where the hell did that come from! Absolutely made up.

Great running.
1:26:xx was gold right? What did you have at that wedding?? :pac:

Netwerk Errer

overpronator wrote: »

1.24.52 by the watch in Waterford this morning, where the hell did that come from! Absolutely made up.

Got to love when you surprise yourself like that, one of the best feelings in running:). Well done op!

overpronator

Cheers lads! Yeah 1.26 was gold alright and I was settling for 1.27 after 5 miles! I somehow managed to run a sub 40 last 10k with the fast final mile to just about scrape under 1.25, I'll do a report tomorrow but to say I'm delighted and surprised is putting it lightly. Yaboya the wedding was two solid days on it and I only felt human again on Wednesday, must be something in the black stuff!

Bulmers74

Well done lad - great run. Was that you upstairs sitting down beside meno?

overpronator

Bulmers74 wrote: »

Well done lad - great run. Was that you upstairs sitting down beside meno?

Cheers man, It was me alright wearing the Waterford AC hat! Where were you, would have been great to say a hello?

Bulmers74

overpronator wrote: »

Cheers man, It was me alright wearing the Waterford AC hat! Where were you, would have been great to say a hello?

Was standing the other side of him talking to tRR. Will know ya for next time!

Tom Joad

Absolutely fantastic time - rounds off nicely a brilliant year for you and richly deserved.

overpronator

Tom Joad wrote: »

Absolutely fantastic time - rounds off nicely a brilliant year for you and richly deserved.

Cheers mate, same goes for yourself!

overpronator

Tom Joad wrote: »

Absolutely fantastic time - rounds off nicely a brilliant year for you and richly deserved.

Cheers mate, same goes for yourself!

career move

That's a brilliant time. Well done

Runchick

Holy moly OP you're flying! Fab result, well done

outforarun

Savage time. You must be thrilled and busy re-writing 2015 goals after this. Can't wait to read your race report. Sub 40 last 10K is very impressive.