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Off the Fence....and looking to go sub 3 hrs

FBOT01

New Year with new challenges ahead…..going to try this log thing out and share my experiences in the hope that the boys and girls of the “boards.ie” community might be able to help me on the road to a sub 3hr Marathon. Yep I said it and it is now out there. No more sitting on the fence..... sub 3hrs is the next big goal!

A little bit of background to put my goal and the challenge ahead in context.....

I’m a 44 yr old 5’ 6 “ late starter with no history or background in running. After hitting 40 and been given a choice between Statins or exercise I choose running. I kicked off my running “career” in January 2011 at the Raheny 5 with the Connemara Half in April 2011 as the target goal. After graduating to the DCM in October 2011 I caught the running bug and have been ticking along enjoying almost every step since.

Marathon History
DCM 2011 03:42:12 (‘FIRST’ training programme)
DCM 2012 03:28:12 ( ‘FIRST’ programme again with extra running days and 10 week pilates course)
DCM 2013 03:13:16 (P&D 18wk /55m – no pilates and it showed in the last 2 miles)

PB’s
5K - 18:19 Parkrun St Anne’s – Oct 2013
5m - 34:20 Raheny 5 – Jan 2013 (only 5 miles I have run is Raheny 5 and until this year I would have been coming off a Nov/Dec break and a heavy Christmas)
10k - 39:05 Docklands – Jun 2013
10m – 1:04:36 Frank Duffy – Aug 2013
½ marathon - 1:28:56 Kildare - May 2013
Marathon - 3:13:16 DCM – Oct 2013

Total Mileage for 2013 was 1,900 miles.

Diary for 2014 starts with Raheny 5 at end of Jan and will be followed by Ballycotton 10 in March and Connemara Marathon in April. Original plan was to work towards a crack at 3hrs in Berlin but didn't manage to get a slot in the lottery so I guess I will have to try it on home soil in DCM 2014 all going well.

I am currently on week 7 of the 18 week P&D 55 to 70 mile program and all is going OK at the moment touch wood........did my first +60 week 2 weeks ago and still motoring.

Last week runs were as follows:
Mon – 7m @ 8:02 avg pace
Tues – 12.39m @ 8:19 avg pace
Wed – 5.87m @ 8:34 avg pace (Recovery)
Thurs – 10m @ 8:09 avg pace
Fri – 5.22m @ 9:02 avg pace (Recovery)
Sat – 12.28m @ 7:58 avg pace followed by St Annes Parkrun 5k @ 6:20 avg pace
Sun - Rest

Week = 55.9m
MTD = 95.8m
YTD = 95.8M

Look forward to getting your views, thoughts and advices over the coming weeks, months, years............and for all they might be worth sharing mine!

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FBOT01

Murph_D wrote: »

Have you not been listening to me? :rolleyes:

I have of course but Anna told me not to bother with anything you say

FBOT01

18/02/2016 Thursday (contd) Sneaky extra

60 mins Pilates class in the evening to make up for the yoga class missed on Tuesday.

19/02/2016 Friday 10m @ 07:36 avg pace (LT w/4 @ HMP)

Another bitch of an LT Run. Used same route as last week but with the wind back to it normal direction the first two LT miles on the way out to Sutton were OK. As usual I couldn't feel the wind when it was with me but when I turned for home :eek::eek:

Ignored the watch and just focused on form and effort. Struggled to keep the shoulders down and almost crushed the crisp on a couple of occasion before checking myself and getting back on track. Effort level felt higher on the 2nd 2 LT miles even thought they were 20secs/mile slower. Had the beginnings of a stitch in my right side during mile 4 and right shoulder pain I often get during faster sessions was there during this mile as well.

Splits for LT miles were : 06:12/06:13/06:31/06:32

FBOT01

20/02/2016 Saturday 4m @ 08:06 avg pace (GA)/parkrun St Anne's (20:18)/1.6m CD

Plan had 7 miles GA so headed up to St Anne's to do 4 miles on the trails/grass before finishing out with parkrun. Had planned to run parkrun with Ferris at end of his long run but missed him at the start among the 390+ others lined up. Started off at about 21min pace. Met up with a very comfortable looking KennyG during the 2nd km. Held the pace pretty steady until last km then had a good blow out down the Ave to finish. Met up with Ferris and Belcarra for another lap of the course as a cool down before adjourning for coffee, cake, chat and a bit of token sorting.

tang1

FBOT01 wrote: »

then had a good blow out down the Ave to finish.

Jaysis M, don't be saying stuff like that when your missus posts on Boards to!!!

Mrs Mc

tang1 wrote: »

Jaysis M, don't be saying stuff like that when your missus posts on Boards to!!!

Ahh I think that nothing gets missed after following these posts for a while now !!!:D

FBOT01

21/02/2016 Sunday 17m @ 07:45 avg pace (Long Run)

Very windy out there today. Plan was to head straight out from Howth Golf Club after a couple of hours of Cross Training. This would give me a decent downhill start and also mean the I would have to finish on the hill irrespective of what route I took. Forgot the watch so turned strava app on the phone and put it in the sbelt with my emergency tener. Would get no feedback on route but would have the details for reference later.

Made a couple attempts to talk myself into delaying this due to the windy conditions and the real potential for rain. But decided that the reality was I might as well get on with it at least I was going to be running in daylight. Headed down through Sutton and Baldoyle and on up Grange Road to Northern Cross mainly uphill and into the wind. Turned onto the Malahide Road and hit the wind head on.......had to take a small detour across the road to avoid KennyG's colony of Jack Russell's just after Clarehall. Then it was on down the Malahide Road to Fairview before turning onto the Howth Road to finally get the wind behind me. Back up through Raheny and onwards to Howth via the seafront. No watch meant no easy distance reference but reckoned in my head I was at least a mile short so did a lap of Offington before heading back up the hill. Checked the phone as I approached the golf club to see the distant click to 17 about 2 yards before the entrance. Sometime sh!t just works

Happy with the effort level today. On the section into the wind I must have been running with my shoulder up as my right shoulder and my neck felt quite stiff over the last couple of miles. It stretched down into the middle of my right side of my back and felt like I got kidney punched for a while. Settled down pretty much straight away when I stopped running. No issue just one to watch. I also need to focus on doing some of the back stretches from BG's book this week and I felt a couple of twinges through the lower back into the right leg on a couple of occasions today as well.

After a quick shower in the GC, I headed off to a 6 years old's birthday party and devoured my fair share of food and drink to refuel and rehydrate. Finished off the evening by hand feeding a two week old chick and bottle feeding a couple of week old lambs. Spring is in the air

annapr

FBOT01 wrote: »

I have of course but Anna told me not to bother with anything you say

:pac: just catching up here... No Idea what you're talking about!!!

...quite the collection of wildlife you encountered today... From jack Russells to lambs to 6 year olds

FBOT01

23/02/2016 Monday Rest w/60mins Pilates Class

T -7.......these 12 week programs don't half fly through!!

It was kettle bell week in "Pilates" this week. As this is also a peak mileage week I was conscious of not shredding the legs on a rest day so took it nice and controlled

24/02/2016 Tuesday 7m @ 08:32 avg pace (AM Recovery)/3.9m @ 09:02 (PM Recovery) plus 90mins yoga class

First double day of the schedule. Had reason to be in Newbridge early doors so brought the running gear and got the first of these done on the Curragh mid-morning before returning to the big smoke. Glorious morning and great location for recovery run on grass. Did the second one in the evening over to yoga. Hip focus to the yoga class which is an area that I can do with all the focused stretching I can get.

Since d-day is getting closer I had a quick look at tickets for the Redsocks game in Fenway in April but looks like I may have left it too late for the good seats. Might need to find another option to pass the time on the Saturday night.

annapr

FBOT01 wrote: »

23/02/2016 Monday Rest w/60mins Pilates Class

T -7.......these 12 week programs don't half fly through!!

It was kettle bell week in "Pilates" this week. As this is also a peak mileage week I was conscious of not shredding the legs on a rest day so took it nice and controlled

24/02/2016 Tuesday 7m @ 08:32 avg pace (AM Recovery)/3.9m @ 09:02 (PM Recovery) plus 90mins yoga class

First double day of the schedule. Had reason to be in Newbridge early doors so brought the running gear and got the first of these done on the Curragh mid-morning before returning to the big smoke. Glorious morning and great location for recovery run on grass. Did the second one in the evening over to yoga. Hip focus to the yoga class which is an area that I can do with all the focused stretching I can get.

Since d-day is getting closer I had a quick look at tickets for the Redsocks game in Fenway in April but looks like I may have left it too late for the good seats. Might need to find another option to pass the time on the Saturday night.

You can rest... While Mrs Mc and I party!

Mrs Mc

annapr wrote: »

You can rest... While Mrs Mc and I party!

Like the sound of that love this spectator stuff

FBOT01

24/02/2015 Wednesday 10.4m @ 07:42 avg pace (VO2 Max w/5x1200 @ 5k pace RI150)

Loads of soft excuses to delay this one but as Duanington would say no valid reason not to get it done. So manned up and hit the road at 10pm.

Fabulous full moon lighting up a very calm Dublin Bay as I headed out the seafront. Started the faster stuff after the causeway heading out towards Sutton and back. No wind which is always a bonus especially after having a curry for dinner

First rep was a bit of a struggle but got into it after that. Had the watch set up so didn't look at it at all. The effort level felt right and as the reps went on the desire for air became greater which I think is the way its supposed to go. Legs felt fooked after the third one but kept doing what I asked them to do so mustn't have been that bad. Had to pull up just at the end of the 5th as there was a dog and owner on opposite sides of the path and wasn't sure if there was a tripwire between them. The dog (a decent size Husky) also looked up as I approached and had that I am coming to get you look. He did indeed come to get me but happily only to blag a tickle under the chin rather than a snack before bedtime.

Split were as follows: 04:46/04:23/04:20/04:24/04:25 so other than the first one they were all low 5:50s pace-wise. Happy with that.

tang1

Nice going M, nice session that.

Bungy Girl

FBOT01 wrote: »

Had to pull up just at the end of the 5th as there was a dog and owner on opposite sides of the path and wasn't sure if there was a tripwire between them. The dog (a decent size Husky) also looked up as I approached and had that I am coming to get you look. He did indeed come to get me but happily only to blag a tickle under the chin rather than a snack before bedtime.

Did the owner feed you the 'he's only a puppy line'

? My next campaign, after Save the Trails of course

, will be to get those leads banned, or at the very least have the owners submit to a basic IQ test before being allowed to buy one.

Very nice session btw.

FBOT01

Bungy Girl wrote: »

Did the owner feed you the 'he's only a puppy line' ? My next campaign, after Save the Trails of course , will be to get those leads banned, or at the very least have the owners submit to a basic IQ test before being allowed to buy one.

Very nice session btw.

Cheers, G.

There was actually no lead between them which made me a little more consciuos of the bit where he was eyeing me up. Interestingly enough the owner never called him or made any attempt to stop him approaching me. Luckily I am dog friendly so it didn't bother me

FBOT01

25/02/2016 Thursday 10m @ 08:07 avg pace (GA)

Under time pressure so swapped planned 15 MLR and 10m GA around to squeeze in what I could. My youngest joined me for the first mile before I head out to do the Sutton, Baldoyle, Raheny loop while she stick closer to home.

26/02/2016 Friday 15.3m @07:42 avg pace (MLR w/hill of Howth)

The evenings are definitely getting longer. Didn't leave the house until after 5 and still got to the summit and almost back to Sutton Cross before darkness fell.

Ran on feel as has become the norm now for these runs just checking the watch every 4m to help match in effort with actual pace as part of the learning process. Effort was easy enough but form felt sloppy. Had a slight niggle in the right shoulder from the off so worked hard to keep the shoulders relaxed and this keep the niggle at bay. Lower back felt the downhill more than usual tonight and right hammer was also a bit niggly. Nothing that had any real impact just things to watch.

All except one mile were below 8min pace with the last 5 averaging 07:30 or thereabouts so I suppose that counts as a progression run

22min pacing duty in St Anne's tomorrow and then 18m w/12 @ MP on Sunday. Anyone around the PP on Sunday morning that would like to join me give me a shout.

Murph_D

Nice, hopefully all those Howth runs will stand to us. Have a 20 miler myself on Sun - planning an earlyish start, around 8; if the timing is right might hook up with you for your warmup or cooldown.

FBOT01

Murph_D wrote: »

Nice, hopefully all those Howth runs will stand to us. Have a 20 miler myself on Sun - planning an earlyish start, around 8; if the timing is right might hook up with you for your warmup or cooldown.

Cheers, D. Sounds like the makings of a plan. Will give you a shout tomorrow.

Ferris B

Murph_D wrote: »

Nice, hopefully all those Howth runs will stand to us. Have a 20 miler myself on Sun - planning an earlyish start, around 8; if the timing is right might hook up with you for your warmup or cooldown.

i might join the party for 15m if it suits...

yaboya1

Ferris B wrote: »

i might join the party for 15m if it suits...

Starting to get a bit crowded now

FBOT01

27/02/2016 Saturday St Anne's parkrun (21:57) plus 1.6m wu

22min pacing done and dusted at St Anne's parkrun pacing. Skipped the cool down in favour of coffee, scone and chat.

FBOT01

yaboya1 wrote: »

Starting to get a bit crowded now

Plenty of seats upstairs

Firedance

FBOT01 wrote: »

[ Skipped the cool down in favour of coffee, scone and chat.

Absolutely shocking carry on, what sort of example is that to the rest of us!

FBOT01

Firedance wrote: »

Absolutely shocking carry on, what sort of example is that to the rest of us!

Added the extra mile on today when it mattered. Probably didn't need it yesterday as I was only jogging

FBOT01

28/02/2015 Sunday 19m @ 07:20 avg pace (LR w/12 @ MP)

Headed to PP this morning for this one. Had the company of Murph, Ferris and Yaboya for the first 5 before we split and I kicked into the MP miles with Yaboya. Plenty of ups and downs along the route including twice down the Kyber to make sure the quads where well worked.....go on B or C you know you want to:)

Finished off with a couple of cool down miles to bring the week over the 70 mark.

Having company for this turned a potential slogfest into a really good session. The perfect running conditions added to a very positive morning's work, topped off by coffee and cake....all is good in the world

MP miles avg pace was pretty spot on target at 06:45/06:46.

Firedance

I want to too, but I won't

Super run M, company or no, you're really working those hills .

tang1

FBOT01 wrote: »

28/02/2015 Sunday 19m @ 07:20 avg pace (LR w/12 @ MP)

Headed to PP this morning for this one. Had the company of Murph, Ferris and Yaboya for the first 5 before we split and I kicked into the MP miles with Yaboya. Plenty of ups and downs along the route including twice down the Kyber to make sure the quads where well worked.....go on B or C you know you want to:)

Finished off with a couple of cool down miles to bring the week over the 70 mark.

Having company for this turned a potential slogfest into a really good session. The perfect running conditions added to a very positive morning's work, topped off by coffee and cake....all is good in the world

MP miles avg pace was pretty spot on target at 06:45/06:46.

No no I'll be the bigger man AGAIN and say thanks for making my run look ****e you show off!!! Joking aside as I said on P's log impressive run to have in the bag M, not that I expected anything else really.

FBOT01

29/02/2016 Monday Rest w/60min Pilates

Nice gentle start to the second of the buffer weeks that I had planned into the marathon cycle. This one is to facilitate Ballycotton 10 on Sunday.

01/032016 Tuesday 7.5m @ 07:55 avg pace (GA - Easy)

Lunchtime trot around one of the local loops. Last two were with the wind which is always a nice way to finish. Time pressure resulted in planned 9m dropping to 7.5m

Sports massage and 90mins Yoga Class this evening so should be bouncing like a spring lamb tomorrow.

Kennyg71

Best luck Sunday, don't forget your clipboard. Or watch:)

Firedance

Good luck in Ballycotton M!! have a super race and.......... A GREAT TIME

tang1

Best of luck Sunday M, don't be letting yaboya1 be getting revenge now for Raheny!!