Hear ye, Hear ye: LSR goes well for once!!

Friday, 21st February 2014 – 11.9km Distance (5:25/km)

This was just a handy distance run to tick off the box but to leave me in decent fettle for tomorrow’s LSR. Not a lot else to report really.

Saturday, 22nd February 2014 – 33.2km LSR incl 5km @ MP (5:12/km)

I had arranged earlier in the week to meet with Anto down in Clane for an LSR this morning. Anto was the one who nominated 8am though! So, up at 7am to have a bit of brekkie (Tea & scone and bowl of granola) and on the road by 7:35am. Unfortunately I was listening a little too enthusiastically to Phantom FM and missed the Lucan turn off! Not a great start but after a delay of no more than 5 mins I was back on track.

It was probably 8:20am by the time we started our run and the first 4 miles were long a nice quiet country lane to the back of Donadea forest. 300m later and we were now on what will be the Staplestown 50k course in May. During the first of our two 6mile loops of the course things were ticking along nicely. We crested the only hill on the course easily enough and by the time we reached the left hand turn for the final 2 miles of the loop it was time for me to go MP pace. Anto perhaps wisely stayed at his own pace (approx. 5:10/km) as he was beginning to find things a bit tougher.

I have usually been running MP at the lower end of the range (3:36/km) but today I managed to clock a pretty decent first km of 4:27 and so I decided to keep around this pace for the remainder which worked out at 4:24/4:25/4:28/4:24 and I only really pushed the effort on the last one when I faced into the breeze. I am hoping to step up the MP range over the next 2 months to this level so that whatever MP I decide on for the day will feel somewhat easier and more natural.

After the MP segment was done I retraced my steps for about 400m until Anto caught up and we went about finishing off the second loop together. By now Anto was suffering and the average pace dropped about 30secs/km. I stayed with him for another 7km before pushing on over the remaining distance. I found myself back at sub 5:10 wothout a hige amount of effort but as I was getting closer to the finish I was getting more tired by the km. Thankfully kept it solid all the way though and finished in 33.2km in 2:52 with an av pace of 5:12/km. Probably the first LSR I’ve been happy with this year and hopefully a good indicator for the next 60 days!

Sunday, 23rd February 2014 – 7.4km Distance (5:40/km)

Waited til the evening time before I went out for a short recovery run. This felt pretty rough and I was putting it down to the LSR yesterday. However, later the same night I started getting some symptoms of flu including aching limbs and joints and general fatigue so I think this may have led to the tough run more than anything.

I had intended on getting this week back on target with a sneaky double session or two but in the end I still failed to break 100km from 8 runs! This I will definitely fix for next week.

Week 7 Summary:

RTW: 8 from 7 days

DTW: 95.8km

DTY: 734.7km

Raheny 2 mile race...again!

Monday, 17th February 2014 – 7.4km Distance (4:27/km)

It was later than expected by the time I got out for this and as a result I just simply wanted to get a bit of quality into the legs. Ended up going faster than expected in some sections so just happy to let the legs do what they wished at around MP pace. Even though I started with lots of energy wouldn’t fancy throwing 42.2km of this together anytime soon!

Tuesday, 18th February 2014 – 

AM: 6.5km Distance (5:15/km)

Got out before work for this run and what a lovely morning for a run it was! Just went around on auto pilot on this as it was just a leg loosener after last nights faster paces.

PM: 11.9km Distance (5:00/km)

Intended on doing a relaxed Distance run tonight but ended up running a bit too fast in parts and having to hold myself back.

Wednesday, 19th February 2014 – 5.6km 2 Mile Raheny Race (3:56/km)

Circumstances meant I just got a mile warm-up before starting this race with no cool-down. Finished in 12:52 which was 5 seconds quicker than last time out but was hoping for something closer to 12:30. I guess the past couple of weeks training have been a little disjointed but hopefully things are back on course now.

Regarding the race itself I started out a bit handier than normal and found it a positive experience passing people for the first half of the race and then only being re-passed by one person in the final 500m.

Thursday, 20th February 2014 – 11.9km 2x15mins @ MP + 1k @ MP (4:21/km)

Went out with a MP paced Tempo run in the plan but instead I ended up going too fast and it was more like HM pace in the end. Felt reasonable on these but need to stick to planned paces in future.

Week 7 Summary (so far):

RTW: 5 from 4 days

DTW: 43.3km

DTY: 682.2km

Playing catch up...in every sense!

Monday, 10th February 2014 – 11.9km Distance (4:58/km)

Very average Distance run this evening. Not a lot else to report.

Tuesday, 11th February 2014 – 6.5km Distance (5:26/km)

Got up early for this before work with the intention to loosen the legs in advance of a fast session tonight. However when night came I struggled for motivation and reneged on my quality run. Tut, tut!

Wednesday, 12th February 2014 – Rest Day

This was a forced rest day due to the fact that I had to go to Stockholm this morning on a 7:20am flight and only option for return was via Stansted where our 8:20pm flight was delayed until after 10:30pm due to crappy weather. After 12:30am when I finally got home. Even failed to catch the Arsenal v ManU match which was probably fortunate enough really!

Thursday, 13th February 2014 – 11.9km Distance (5:27/km)

With Saturday on the horizon I decided to forego my tempo session to save the legs and just did a Distance run instead.

Friday, 14th February 2014 – 7.4km Distance (5:30/km)

Just did close to the bare minimum this afternoon to keep me ticking over for tomorrow.

Saturday, 15th February 2014 – 35.3km Donadea 50k (5:13/km)

I arrived for this with 50 mins to spare and after chatting to several people (Philip / Anto / Colm / Dominic / Olwyn / Joe / Orna / Alan / Niall and a few others) we made our way to the start line. I’d not really devoted a huge amount of thought to this race but it was my intention to finish it for sure - There would be no marathon safe haven this year! I decided to join with Olwyn, Joe and Colm for the first few 5km laps. The plan for these was loosely stated as 8:15/mile which worked out at just under 5:10/km.

Just after the start.

Olwyn was pretty good at keeping the pace and was quick to announce if we were going too fast (as tended to be the case). At the end of the 4th lap I was beginning to feel the effects of the muddy conditions and was intending to ease off the group but I had drifted no further than 20m back when I noticed myself catching the up again and so by 2km later I was back with them again! At the end of this 5th lap however I stopped for a few moments not only to get some drink and nutrition into me, but also to allow a little bigger gap to develop as I knew I would struggle if I kept at that pace all the way.

(Photos courtesy of Peter Mooney, L-R)
'Cousin' Joe, Olwyn, Colm, myself and Joe D.

Usain Dunne!

The 6th lap was done solo and by the time I got to the last corner I decided to take off my runners and unclog all the dirt and pebbles that had built up in them. This turned out to be quite a lot! Only 300m later I met Philip at the finish area and he was done for the day having completed his 7 planned laps. I was chatting to him for over 2 minutes and this was indicative of my attitude to the race – I wasn't that bothered with it at all and never really zoned in to the event itself. I remember saying as much to Philip and so as I went around once more I started thinking and reassessing things before calling it a day after 7 laps (35km). 

Running solo towards the end.

I realised I had only really done 2 x 30km+ runs this year and in reality was nowhere near the shape to be doing a 50km race. I had assumed I’d just make it around in some way but really failed to give the distance the due respect. So, no surprise then that I was fading fast. The group I was running with earlier had all done plenty of long runs at this stage as Colm is training for Conn Ultra and Joe & Olwyn had been doing 18mile+ runs since early December. This slowly managed to sink in with me and it actually helped me make up my mind about Barcelona in that it would be foolish to push myself at this stage. Instead of trying to ‘jog to a PB’ and still run within myself I will now ease back further to 3:30 or so which would represent a decent training run. I’ll probably aim for a 1:50/1:40 negative split which would set me up nicely with 6 weeks to go to Dusseldorf.

Sunday, 16th February 2014 – Rest Day

Took a rest day for various reasons.

Week 6 Summary:

RTW: 5 from 7 days

DTW: 73.0km

DTY: 638.9km

Another week of decent mileage with a slight easing of intensity

Monday, 3rd February 2014 – Rest Day

Energy levels were at an all-time low this evening and my second rest day in a row was called!

Tuesday, 4th February 2014 – 11.0km Distance (5:19/km)

Busy after work this evening so decided to run this morning before work. Nice crisp, calm morning out there which made for a very pleasant run. One thing I noticed though was my left thigh was a bit tender and could only assume it was DOMS fallout from Saturday’s Long Run, and more specifically the quick downhill running for almost 5km. Hopefully it will be fine for tomorrow’s 3 mile race in Raheny where I will be hoping to go sub 20 for sure but would like to get close to breaking 19:30. I did 20:14 on this route a month ago so will be good to see if I have improved since then. I’d better!!

Wednesday, 5th February 2014 – 17.2km MLR (5:05/km)

I left it late when making my way over to do the Raheny 3 mile race and then managed to hit every possible red light along the way, so when I arrived in the village it was already 7:58pm. Disappointedly I made the executive decision to detour away from the race and go for a coastal run instead.

Then, when I was getting ready my 310XT decided to go on the blink which meant that I had no watch either – tonight was turning out to be far from a great success! I noted the time on the car radio before I headed off along the coastal path. Initially I turned north and was with the breeze for the first 3.6km. As ever, it was only when I turned to come back south that I realised just how strong this breeze really was! My pace felt like it was hovering about 5:10/km throughout the tough 8.8km southbound. Thankfully, when I turned around again, just past the wind monument, the running felt much easier. The final 5km home passed much quicker and the pace picked up for its duration.

When I returned to the car I checked the time again and worked out I was approximately 87mins running, which works out at about 5:05/km. Quite happy with this given the wind was trying to slow me down for much of it. Still would have liked to have done the 3 miler though…!

Thursday, 6th February 2014 – 11.9km Distance (5:20?/km)

My Garmin is still on the blink so had to run this ‘naked’ again! After a gentle first km I upped the effort to what felt like about 5:20/km pace. Kept this steady for the rest of the run while throwing in 5 sets of 100m strides towards the end. Lucky with the weather that it was a nice night. Just starting to feel a little niggle at the bottom of my back on either side - time to start doing a few planks again!

Friday, 7th February 2014 – 36.4km Distance & LSR (5:20?/km)

AM: 6.5km Distance (5:15/km)

Managed to get out early for this run for my second morning run of the week!! Again, very lucky with the weather and even though I took it easy it felt slightly quicker than last night. Threw in 7 strides this time and overall I’d estimate a pace of about 5:15/km.

PM1: 18.0km Distance (5:25/km)

Stopped off in the PP after work and went for a long run. Started from the Castleknock roundabout and made my way in a counter-clockwise direction along the south of the Park before crossing Chesterfield and over along the North Road to complete a large lap. When I returned to the Castleknock roundabout I ran down Chesterfield Avenue before taking a right and repeating the South side of the park, but in the opposite direction.

This run started off in lovely Spring weather but towards the end it was getting pretty cold and windy with showers not far away. I had intended doing more but an hour into it I was feeling the old Kayanos being heavy compared to the new Mizunos so I decided I’d take a spin home, change clothes and shoes and go out for my local 11.9km loop…

PM2: 11.9km Distance (5:20/km)

I was back on the streets within an hour and ran my local loop. Wasn’t sure if I’d manage the whole thing but the Mizunos just felt so much better that I was through 5km in no time and continued on for the full route. Felt quite tired towards the final 5km and definitely very hungry but managed to get round in one piece!

So, 36.4km in total for the day and over 48km in 24hrs so that sets me up nicely for the 50km next weekend. Unfortunately the Garmin is still on the blink so I am only stabbing wild guesses at those paces but through some nominal calculations I reckon they shouldn’t be too far off. Rest up now for the evening!

Saturday, 8th February 2014 – 7.4km Distance (5:15/km)

Only managed to get out at 8:30pm this evening after a day of watching sport on TV! Good result in the rugby but the sooner the soccer is forgotten the better – just lucky it’s only 3 points and that City merely drew! The run itself was a fairly relaxed leg loosener after yesterday. Felt a bit tired but that's to be expected.

Sunday, 9th February 2014 – 21.5km MLR (4:53/km)

Met up with Philip and his club mate Peter for this run down in Sallins/Naas. Thankfully he had a spare Garmin which I got the loan of for the next week or two until my own watch gets sorted/fixed. This will be a relief for faster sessions. Anyways, today's plan was two loops both of approximately 10 miles each but I wasn't sure how long I'd last with them after Friday's miles. The first loop turned out being a few km longer and a little faster than I wished for so by the time we returned to our starting point we had covered 21.5km at 4:53/km pace. Both pace and distance were enough for me so I finished up and let the lads off for their second route. 

So, a good week considering I took last Monday as a rest day and I still managed 105km which was more than satisfactory. I eased off on the intensity this week and next week I'll probably just do a MTP run on Mon or Tues and take it easy for the rest of the week with the 50k on Saturday. No intention of racing this but simply getting around 50km demands respect so hence the planned 5:15/km max intended pace. This should have me home in just over 4hrs 20mins which I'd be happy with.

Week 5 Summary:

RTW: 7 from 7 days

DTW: 105.4km

DTY: 565.9km

Turning the focus to LSRs

Thursday, 30th January 2014 – 17.3km with 7 x 1km Intervals (4:08/km)

Wrecked tired when I got home this evening so I went to bed for an hour. A little better when I woke up I then went off to Clontarf once more to do an interval session which consisted of 7 x 1km @ 10k pace. A gradual buildup during the warm-up and before I knew it I was finished my first km in 4:07. The second split however was 3:59 and considering 4:15 was my target pace I was both happy and a little disappointed at this pace.

The plan said 2 mins of a recovery in between but I opted to go for 350m which I roughly calculated as approximately 2 minutes. Eerily it worked out so close to 2 mins for each recover that I probably would have been no more accurate had I the time actually on display.

The third km passed in 4:07 again so I was a bit closer to my target now. I was slightly benefiting from the wind so was happy to be up a few seconds. The fourth was just before my turnaround point on the coastal path and the last bit had me into the breeze which slowed me down to 4:13. The remaining three splits were on the way home and were completed in 4:06, 4:12 and 4:12. Even though the final two were into a slight breeze (mainly a cross wind) I was plainly getting tired at the same time. Overall very happy with the session as I felt controlled throughout it all and at an average pace of 4:08/km I’m glad it was well inside target.

Friday, 31st January 2014 – 6.5km Distance (5:29/km)

I was kinda rushed for this run so just had enough time for a bare minimum 6.5km run. Kept things nice and easy as have the LSR tomorrow.

Saturday, 1st February 2014 – 33.0km LSR with 4.7km @ MTP (5:17/km)

Met up with a few others (Olwyn & Joe, Niall, Paul and Mike) for this group long run. We began near Dun Laoghaire before making our way through Dalkey, up Killiney Hill (with us passing Bono’s house) and out to Shakill. Here we turned inland for the mountains and all the way up to Kiltiernan where we stopped for a mini drinks break. Up til this point we had been dealing with uphill inclines and strong wind but thankfully most of this was over at this stage. We added on about 5km by doing a loop down through Stepaside and past Belarmine before returning back to the shop for a final refill.

The general plan for the remaining 10km home was to take it at MTP pace. I had already done 10.7km of MTP during last Tuesday’s run so wasn’t too bothered about how much I fitted in this afternoon but went with it from the start regardless. I kept it going for the easy, downhill and downwind 4.7km until we got back to Shankill and had to stop to make a decision regarding directions. At this stage I just trotted back to the finish with Mike who was taking things a bit slower. In hindsight it was a good idea to limit the fast stuff because I was beginning to get new blisters on my ankles from the shoes and also the thrashing my legs took on that section led to sore thighs for me over the next couple of days. All in all a great bit of training (the av pace of 5:17/km is worth so much more considering the relentless wind and the hilly nature of the route).

Sunday, 2nd February 2014 – Rest Day

After the LSR yesterday and with real life taking priority I decided to make the prudent decision to take a rest day. Knackered all day so had no choice really!

So, a week of 89km - a little short of my intended 100km but not enough to be too worried about. Will try and get North of 100km per week once more. Will probably have to start doing doubles for this. Been struggling with energy levels recently so will drop a session next week to try and rectify the situation.

Week 4 Summary:

RTW: 6 from 7 days

DTW: 88.9 km

DTY: 460.5km