no exercise yesterday. had my sisters kids come visit so was busy there. probably would've taken it off anyway.tpoday was a 12 mile bike ride (just beyond Moycullen & back) - 1:05:10. (excluding the 4km up & down). got to the 6km point in 16 mins flat. turned at 32 something...
I'm riding on an apollo transfer hybrid, so will need to invest in a half decent road bike over the summer for longer rides as I was just going nowhere today when I could've been cruising. If I had tyres that wer'nt so thick etc. still though great workout for the quads... I figures that it's not actually me (i,e I'm not that unfit to be going what I feel is so slow on the flats. Average pace just feels so slow & laboured. I'm delighted to push it on the bike but when you feel like you're on a treadmill on the flat it's very demotivating, although it is arguably better training, but I feel it just takes all the fun out of it really.
Still I'm getting a decent workout & no impact on my legs so I'm reasonably happy,. Also cycling fatigue (post cycle) is a different type of fatigue that running tiredness, which has been interesting... Am getting faster in the hills too & then distance is becoming even more irrelevant too... the km's were ticking by & I didn't notice too much, so that's good.
I love cycling as you can scream & shout all you want on the open roads & no one will hear you, I took this opportunity to do so on several occasions today (due to wind & what I felt was a desperately slow (fast running) pace for such a high power output (in my opinion anyway - havn't got a power metre or anything) on a lot of the slight inclines on the road!
we'll see about a cycle after work 2moro but certainly 1km repeats are on for the track on sunday.
walked to shop today & ran a bit on the way, felt fairly ok & ran a bit after the cycle & felt even better so should be all good for sundays run...
all in all happy days.
Friday, 25 March 2016
Wednesday, 23 March 2016
Avoiding traffic
17km bike ride, The 8 mile loop took me 36:40 . (I don't bother timing how far the 2km up & down took me due to traffic etc) a nice cycle overall just 4km shy of Moycullen & back to salthill. Can easily see myself going to Oughterard & beyond soon...
didn't go to college today so went with the "long" cycle instead. plenty of hills for fun but what goes up has got to fall so some nice rolling downhill stretches also. just, as ever with me on the bike I feel I go so slow on the flat road... do I need to simply work harder, drop more weight, or use the gears more efficiently or get a proper road bike (currently have a hybrid). I reckon I just need to get tougher...
anyway, the 1st sign of shin splits are back. on my right lower leg below & around the soleus so that's disappointing although not terribly surprising I suppose. It's all structural discomfort (my calves are fine so it is definitely the muscle tearing off the bone again).
Just wish I wasn't so damn prone to it. It simply means more cycling, say 20 (if even this...) miles a week running & the rest spent on the bike. Ultimately this will take me longer (i.e to run 1 mile on the bike you've to cycle 4) to get my fitness up but maybe it'll calm down if I react now. so no run 2moro.
Instead I'll try to run on fri but I'll certainly be on the track on sunday for the reps & re asses from here... if this keeps happening to me I'll need to consider just cycling full time & forget about running altogether, I could still go out once a week etc but could never do it too seriously...
anyway nows not the time for speculation so I'm gonna wait to see how the body behaves itself & do what feels right.
as cycling is non impact it didn't aggrevate my legs at all today so that's good... I just hope you can do 60+ miles on achy shins...
I'll always run once a week if the worst comes to the worst as you're aerobic fitness on the bike will transfer over to road running nicely, I just can never get my hopes up too much with running in general as I get disappointed with injuries all the time & for me it takes all the good out of it. I am however terribly impatient & I'm aware that that's my main problem really.
great to have such fine weather these days, can't remember when it last rained, it must've been at least 3 weeks ago, how marvellous!
I'll cycle to college 2moro & then realistically I should avoid running till sunday (& then only run again the following sunday on race day) so for fri I'll cycle to moycullen (good friday - college is closed) & back just an extra 8km - it'll be grand...
didn't go to college today so went with the "long" cycle instead. plenty of hills for fun but what goes up has got to fall so some nice rolling downhill stretches also. just, as ever with me on the bike I feel I go so slow on the flat road... do I need to simply work harder, drop more weight, or use the gears more efficiently or get a proper road bike (currently have a hybrid). I reckon I just need to get tougher...
anyway, the 1st sign of shin splits are back. on my right lower leg below & around the soleus so that's disappointing although not terribly surprising I suppose. It's all structural discomfort (my calves are fine so it is definitely the muscle tearing off the bone again).
Just wish I wasn't so damn prone to it. It simply means more cycling, say 20 (if even this...) miles a week running & the rest spent on the bike. Ultimately this will take me longer (i.e to run 1 mile on the bike you've to cycle 4) to get my fitness up but maybe it'll calm down if I react now. so no run 2moro.
Instead I'll try to run on fri but I'll certainly be on the track on sunday for the reps & re asses from here... if this keeps happening to me I'll need to consider just cycling full time & forget about running altogether, I could still go out once a week etc but could never do it too seriously...
anyway nows not the time for speculation so I'm gonna wait to see how the body behaves itself & do what feels right.
as cycling is non impact it didn't aggrevate my legs at all today so that's good... I just hope you can do 60+ miles on achy shins...
I'll always run once a week if the worst comes to the worst as you're aerobic fitness on the bike will transfer over to road running nicely, I just can never get my hopes up too much with running in general as I get disappointed with injuries all the time & for me it takes all the good out of it. I am however terribly impatient & I'm aware that that's my main problem really.
great to have such fine weather these days, can't remember when it last rained, it must've been at least 3 weeks ago, how marvellous!
I'll cycle to college 2moro & then realistically I should avoid running till sunday (& then only run again the following sunday on race day) so for fri I'll cycle to moycullen (good friday - college is closed) & back just an extra 8km - it'll be grand...
Tuesday, 22 March 2016
Left on the road
10km in 44:06. (A pb for this route I believe!) Usual route, late in the evening though... lovely night for it, no rain & quite cool. 1st mile in 7:04 though, felt awful quick (& was expecting a 6:40 or so) but it clearly wasn't! checkpoint 2, 11:51 so still slow so far, 3rd checkpoint 16:30 - that's better & was feeling great too, next time checks at usual places 20:45,25:03 & 30:28 so was on for a good time, from here then I decided to go from 85% effort to about 70% effort (i.e I eased up), this was scheduled to be a recovery run after all so I acknowledged that & consciously slowed slightly.
You see this is where being a member of an athletic club (or rather just running with other people) becomes invaluable as I wouldn't have slowed up tonight at all if I had company. Of course there are drawbacks to running with people (e.g. somedays you need the recovery run & you end up going too fast because of them etc (well I would anyway!)).
Anyway I felt like I was cheating tonight though by not going all out, but then again maybe I just have great discipline & honestly believe that that's the case. If I needed to have broken 42 for a harder session tonight then I would've done so. It was a conscious controlled calculated session, so that's good. It wasnt like I had planned to go full gas & then was too reticent to push it. I'm not that sort of a runner anymore, if I need to keep working till I get sick on a training run (race hard - train harder) I'm willing to do that this year.
Clearly you should only ever be going 100% in races & maybe 95% (absolute max) during training generally, but I believe, especially for the shorter distances (i.e 1km repeats on the track etc) that some of the training session will be tougher than the race. you train for a race pace & then you repeat the same thing in a race & then search for a bit more... I need to revise what I've just said & as I get more experienced at this I can rephrase this one! anyway...
(Could've broken 42 tonight if I went all out but am conscious of cycling to college in less than 12 hours time so decided not to go overboard. having said that I tried to push then for sub 44 & would've certainly got it only I eased up too much on purpose & then missed it, oh well... )
still a good run & am finally showing some decent form now. plenty of cycling to come to continue to build up aerobic base & some faster shorter runs on the track etc on the way as I build up for a 5km race which I've planned for next sunday.
Should certainly be sub 20. would be very disappointed if I didn't get that. It'd be my 1st 5km race having broke 20 mins although I've ran 19:53 at the 5km mark in an 8km race before...
I'm losing the weight slowly, 76kg now & this is my 3rd day in a row having eaten nothing but good food, I've totally cut out the crap & taking more water. it's working, I am of course putting on muscle (which obviously weighs more than fat) so I reckon I could get down to 72kg's but that'd be a stretch perhaps, would love to get to 70kg's though.. we'll see...
felt immaculate tonight except for my calves but that's good, running on ball of foot, running more often & using bike too so they're bound to protest I guess! as long as I've no shin splints & knee trouble etc, I'lm gonna be in flying form in 2016. I feel so blessed to be able to run.
I may be a misanthrope but I'm immensely grateful for the opportunity to possess this human body which allows me to run. I am grateful to be alive & have managed to find a few activities that keep me happy in which I manage to derive a great deal of pleasure from (the other 3 being mathematics, literature & metal) which is why I'm still here & havn't dumped myself off a cliff or blown my head off.
I'm at the cusp of taking cycling more "seriously" this year & am looking forward to exploring this form of physical exercise in gory detail. I've watched the tour de France every year since 2011 when Cadel Evans won it (when the tour is on I don't leave the house & immerse myself in it, (except to run of course)), if I lived in the real world (because lets face it going to college isn't the real world...) I'd book the 3 weeks off from work every July & watch it. Itv 4 now cover the Vuelta too but it's never the same...
these are prosperous times on the running front for me, so hope to keep it going this way.
You see this is where being a member of an athletic club (or rather just running with other people) becomes invaluable as I wouldn't have slowed up tonight at all if I had company. Of course there are drawbacks to running with people (e.g. somedays you need the recovery run & you end up going too fast because of them etc (well I would anyway!)).
Anyway I felt like I was cheating tonight though by not going all out, but then again maybe I just have great discipline & honestly believe that that's the case. If I needed to have broken 42 for a harder session tonight then I would've done so. It was a conscious controlled calculated session, so that's good. It wasnt like I had planned to go full gas & then was too reticent to push it. I'm not that sort of a runner anymore, if I need to keep working till I get sick on a training run (race hard - train harder) I'm willing to do that this year.
Clearly you should only ever be going 100% in races & maybe 95% (absolute max) during training generally, but I believe, especially for the shorter distances (i.e 1km repeats on the track etc) that some of the training session will be tougher than the race. you train for a race pace & then you repeat the same thing in a race & then search for a bit more... I need to revise what I've just said & as I get more experienced at this I can rephrase this one! anyway...
(Could've broken 42 tonight if I went all out but am conscious of cycling to college in less than 12 hours time so decided not to go overboard. having said that I tried to push then for sub 44 & would've certainly got it only I eased up too much on purpose & then missed it, oh well... )
still a good run & am finally showing some decent form now. plenty of cycling to come to continue to build up aerobic base & some faster shorter runs on the track etc on the way as I build up for a 5km race which I've planned for next sunday.
Should certainly be sub 20. would be very disappointed if I didn't get that. It'd be my 1st 5km race having broke 20 mins although I've ran 19:53 at the 5km mark in an 8km race before...
I'm losing the weight slowly, 76kg now & this is my 3rd day in a row having eaten nothing but good food, I've totally cut out the crap & taking more water. it's working, I am of course putting on muscle (which obviously weighs more than fat) so I reckon I could get down to 72kg's but that'd be a stretch perhaps, would love to get to 70kg's though.. we'll see...
felt immaculate tonight except for my calves but that's good, running on ball of foot, running more often & using bike too so they're bound to protest I guess! as long as I've no shin splints & knee trouble etc, I'lm gonna be in flying form in 2016. I feel so blessed to be able to run.
I may be a misanthrope but I'm immensely grateful for the opportunity to possess this human body which allows me to run. I am grateful to be alive & have managed to find a few activities that keep me happy in which I manage to derive a great deal of pleasure from (the other 3 being mathematics, literature & metal) which is why I'm still here & havn't dumped myself off a cliff or blown my head off.
I'm at the cusp of taking cycling more "seriously" this year & am looking forward to exploring this form of physical exercise in gory detail. I've watched the tour de France every year since 2011 when Cadel Evans won it (when the tour is on I don't leave the house & immerse myself in it, (except to run of course)), if I lived in the real world (because lets face it going to college isn't the real world...) I'd book the 3 weeks off from work every July & watch it. Itv 4 now cover the Vuelta too but it's never the same...
these are prosperous times on the running front for me, so hope to keep it going this way.
Monday, 21 March 2016
Hill time
12km bike ride - 37 mins. Decided to go for a short cycle to blow out the cobwebs from yesterday. decided to go on a new route I hadnt done before, I knew it was hilly but I hadn't anticipated the gradient, I was lucky my chain didn't snap on the lowest gear! anyways good fun & hope to build up endurance on the bike this summer too maybe go out to moycullen (that's easy) then oughterard etc & eventually maam cross then build up for a day trip to clifden or something... it'll all be fine so long as I don't get a flat tyre! haha..
10km planned for 2moro, hope to rip it up!
10km planned for 2moro, hope to rip it up!
Sunday, 20 March 2016
Craughwell 10 mile road race - 1:11:45. Not bad at all considering the complete lack of training (this week I only managed an embarrasing 22 miles (but good for a final year STEM college student, right?) including the race of course! & about 30 km on the bike (if even that!)).
Went off with what I thought was a conservative pace. Then I checked the 1st mile split - 6:02 (holy shit!) although it was mostly downhill, regardless I knew I was going too fast but kept going anyway, I slowed slightly at mile 2 & then the inevitable bonk (& it was a proper bonk, not a bad patch which is what I was hoping for...) happened at mile 4 (26:30) (mile 3 - 19:32 (not a new 5km pb, remember 5km is 3.1 miles (but not far off 5km pb territory!))) where I had to let off the last of the decent runners like of Paul Fallon etc, the involuntary reduced pace seemed to last for about the next 3 miles...Jesus! normally you get a bad patch in a race & you get your second wind., but I wasn't so privileged this afternoon.
Through miles 5 & 6 33:45 & 41:02 respectively. I got to mile 8 (56:20) & then I started to feel a bit better. I was talking to a few guys from Clare river harriers along towards the end too, which was nice, but I hate doing that in races in general because I believe that in races you should be going full gas, 100% effort, all the time - talk/socialise at the start & end (especially the end!) absolutely, but you should be suffering so much (because after all, it is a race!) that you simply can't talk - but I gave in because they're sound lads & I had basically thrown in the towel at that point (although not completely). It's either that or I'm getting soft or wise (probably the latter).
If I was training 40 miles a week with additional cycling (a very possible situation within the next 9-15 months) imaging how good I could be. The hour mark for the 10 miler is no joke but I reckon I'm gonna do it in the next few years.
My 1:11 time today is on par to last year when I did a 10 mile road race in June on 30 miles/week training. So I'm already making improvements - that's promising. I'm also embracing suffering a lot more now - that's also conducive to faster (or what I'd call "improver") times later this year.
At the start of the race, for the 1st time ever I didn't go off like a lunatic & just relished the rare opportunity to be surrounded by the presence of other runners whom I've gotten to know over the years on the Galway road running scene. I looked to my left & right & just felt at home. Even that in itself was reason enough to show up today. As I have been doing all of my training solo these past 6 months or so I suppose it makes you appreciate these things that little bit more. I will probably join Harriers eventually but I'm putting it off, for now. I want to see how good I can get on my own before I need other people, but by the end of the year if I'm not in read & white singlet I'll be quite surprised really!
I really felt like I belonged in the race today amongst the top 1/5th of the field, everybody knows you to see & there's mutual respect for everyone, given by everyone else. I love that. Unspoken admiration. Perhaps a little bit backward/primitive but I enjoy that distance... make the whole thing that bit more elusive (it's like they say, never meet your heroes as you'll more than likely be disappointed for them not living up to your (rather skewed (generally)) expectations of what they ought to be like (according to you)) for me + I enjoy being the vampire/phantom & the fact that I'm not affiliated with any club any more which gives me even more anonimity which is wonderful. I'm going to enjoy running for myself this year.
2016 is going to be my selfish year. When I finish formally studying physics in college (for the time being) I'm going to be devoting my time to studying mathematics full time (just for me!) along with training harder than I ever have before & am going to educate myself about classical literature etc to the best of my ability, & frankly, I can't fucking wait.
Weather was lovely today no wind or rain & cool 10 degrees. Beautiful conditions for running.
When I can find photos (of some of the top guys & then myself) of the race I'll post them. Bidwell won the race today so that's good keeping it in the county, of course this being the olympic year there was no sign of any serious thread from Raheny today (although I'll have to double check who that guy was who came second), anyway, today was a good day, smiles all round.
I am to shift the specifics of my training now to 5 km racing until june so it's time for some pain! 1km repeats every week from now on! but I'll still be building my aerobic base all the time with a 6-10 mile run on sundays to keep my honest. & plenty of cycling (paying huge dividens already - I wish someone had told me sooner!).
But yeah, overall I'm happy but there is so much more latent potential that I havn't tapped into yet, so my goals are to dig & to see how much I can extract from the reservoir over the coming years. I believe pretty much everybody is the same too, we've all got much more to give than we're already giving at any one activity but that's as a direct consequence of modern day living. life has become very complicated in recent years particularly with the turn of the century & we're all more stressed than ever. I must remember that running is a hobby & should (we all should) be able to forgive myself for putting in sub par performances when other (often much more important) areas of our lives are draining energy...
Went off with what I thought was a conservative pace. Then I checked the 1st mile split - 6:02 (holy shit!) although it was mostly downhill, regardless I knew I was going too fast but kept going anyway, I slowed slightly at mile 2 & then the inevitable bonk (& it was a proper bonk, not a bad patch which is what I was hoping for...) happened at mile 4 (26:30) (mile 3 - 19:32 (not a new 5km pb, remember 5km is 3.1 miles (but not far off 5km pb territory!))) where I had to let off the last of the decent runners like of Paul Fallon etc, the involuntary reduced pace seemed to last for about the next 3 miles...Jesus! normally you get a bad patch in a race & you get your second wind., but I wasn't so privileged this afternoon.
Through miles 5 & 6 33:45 & 41:02 respectively. I got to mile 8 (56:20) & then I started to feel a bit better. I was talking to a few guys from Clare river harriers along towards the end too, which was nice, but I hate doing that in races in general because I believe that in races you should be going full gas, 100% effort, all the time - talk/socialise at the start & end (especially the end!) absolutely, but you should be suffering so much (because after all, it is a race!) that you simply can't talk - but I gave in because they're sound lads & I had basically thrown in the towel at that point (although not completely). It's either that or I'm getting soft or wise (probably the latter).
If I was training 40 miles a week with additional cycling (a very possible situation within the next 9-15 months) imaging how good I could be. The hour mark for the 10 miler is no joke but I reckon I'm gonna do it in the next few years.
My 1:11 time today is on par to last year when I did a 10 mile road race in June on 30 miles/week training. So I'm already making improvements - that's promising. I'm also embracing suffering a lot more now - that's also conducive to faster (or what I'd call "improver") times later this year.
At the start of the race, for the 1st time ever I didn't go off like a lunatic & just relished the rare opportunity to be surrounded by the presence of other runners whom I've gotten to know over the years on the Galway road running scene. I looked to my left & right & just felt at home. Even that in itself was reason enough to show up today. As I have been doing all of my training solo these past 6 months or so I suppose it makes you appreciate these things that little bit more. I will probably join Harriers eventually but I'm putting it off, for now. I want to see how good I can get on my own before I need other people, but by the end of the year if I'm not in read & white singlet I'll be quite surprised really!
I really felt like I belonged in the race today amongst the top 1/5th of the field, everybody knows you to see & there's mutual respect for everyone, given by everyone else. I love that. Unspoken admiration. Perhaps a little bit backward/primitive but I enjoy that distance... make the whole thing that bit more elusive (it's like they say, never meet your heroes as you'll more than likely be disappointed for them not living up to your (rather skewed (generally)) expectations of what they ought to be like (according to you)) for me + I enjoy being the vampire/phantom & the fact that I'm not affiliated with any club any more which gives me even more anonimity which is wonderful. I'm going to enjoy running for myself this year.
2016 is going to be my selfish year. When I finish formally studying physics in college (for the time being) I'm going to be devoting my time to studying mathematics full time (just for me!) along with training harder than I ever have before & am going to educate myself about classical literature etc to the best of my ability, & frankly, I can't fucking wait.
Weather was lovely today no wind or rain & cool 10 degrees. Beautiful conditions for running.
When I can find photos (of some of the top guys & then myself) of the race I'll post them. Bidwell won the race today so that's good keeping it in the county, of course this being the olympic year there was no sign of any serious thread from Raheny today (although I'll have to double check who that guy was who came second), anyway, today was a good day, smiles all round.
I am to shift the specifics of my training now to 5 km racing until june so it's time for some pain! 1km repeats every week from now on! but I'll still be building my aerobic base all the time with a 6-10 mile run on sundays to keep my honest. & plenty of cycling (paying huge dividens already - I wish someone had told me sooner!).
But yeah, overall I'm happy but there is so much more latent potential that I havn't tapped into yet, so my goals are to dig & to see how much I can extract from the reservoir over the coming years. I believe pretty much everybody is the same too, we've all got much more to give than we're already giving at any one activity but that's as a direct consequence of modern day living. life has become very complicated in recent years particularly with the turn of the century & we're all more stressed than ever. I must remember that running is a hobby & should (we all should) be able to forgive myself for putting in sub par performances when other (often much more important) areas of our lives are draining energy...
Friday, 18 March 2016
Sunday Cruise
10km in 44:55. Went rather well today, just felt really good all throughout. I was holding back taking it easy & not really trying at all.
had just cycled in & out of college (to drop in an assignment) prior to the run (& got pulled by the gardai & got a warning (he was on a motorbike - I saw him but kept going as there was nothing coming...) for breaking a red light. Idiots, all of us...) so was well warmed up.
I knew I was going to be on form today when I woke up as I felt genuinely refreshed after yesterday (as opposed to hungover - that's called getting your priorities right!) as I took the national holiday as an opportunity to catch up on some reading & leisurely study on Russian literature & watching a lecture given by Irwin Weil on dostoyevsky (just brilliant) etc... also no cycling so a total rest day (didn't leave the house)
My chest on this run was just so free I was going hard (controlled) down dr mannix road on the final km & I could talk easily, so it's clear I'm once again training at the moment at nowhere near my potenial so that's good. patience until June then, But the take home point here is that the cycling helps immensely. But I am 21 so damn right training is going well & am finding it easy...
went through my usual 3rd check point (1st & 2nd - 7:05 & 11:52 respectively) in 16:34 & that felt desperately slow so I'm definitely doing something right. I did feel really tired though earlier in the week, I must've recovered from whatever that was all about.
looking forward to Sunday now.I should break 1:15 comfortably, lets see what happens. I'll certainly do this is I'm feeling anyway like what I did this evening. havn't felt that composed & controlled on a run in many weeks.
It's nights like these when I realise why I love the sport & keep coming back for more. I'm just ever so grateful to have my health to be able to do this. it's a gift we all have, I just wish more people would take it up. It'd solve a lot of the worlds problems if everybody ran everyday like they do in Kenya etc... an ordinary life filled with modest things . keep it simple. happy days.
had just cycled in & out of college (to drop in an assignment) prior to the run (& got pulled by the gardai & got a warning (he was on a motorbike - I saw him but kept going as there was nothing coming...) for breaking a red light. Idiots, all of us...) so was well warmed up.
I knew I was going to be on form today when I woke up as I felt genuinely refreshed after yesterday (as opposed to hungover - that's called getting your priorities right!) as I took the national holiday as an opportunity to catch up on some reading & leisurely study on Russian literature & watching a lecture given by Irwin Weil on dostoyevsky (just brilliant) etc... also no cycling so a total rest day (didn't leave the house)
My chest on this run was just so free I was going hard (controlled) down dr mannix road on the final km & I could talk easily, so it's clear I'm once again training at the moment at nowhere near my potenial so that's good. patience until June then, But the take home point here is that the cycling helps immensely. But I am 21 so damn right training is going well & am finding it easy...
went through my usual 3rd check point (1st & 2nd - 7:05 & 11:52 respectively) in 16:34 & that felt desperately slow so I'm definitely doing something right. I did feel really tired though earlier in the week, I must've recovered from whatever that was all about.
looking forward to Sunday now.I should break 1:15 comfortably, lets see what happens. I'll certainly do this is I'm feeling anyway like what I did this evening. havn't felt that composed & controlled on a run in many weeks.
It's nights like these when I realise why I love the sport & keep coming back for more. I'm just ever so grateful to have my health to be able to do this. it's a gift we all have, I just wish more people would take it up. It'd solve a lot of the worlds problems if everybody ran everyday like they do in Kenya etc... an ordinary life filled with modest things . keep it simple. happy days.
Wednesday, 16 March 2016
Cold Walk
10km - <= 50 mins had to walk a bit, cramps. (this run happened on tuesday (last night), I'm writing this on wednesday(today))
Had planned to run this Sunday gone but it didn't happen. It was either 10 miles or nothing so I just didn't bother tease myself with anything less so I sulked in protest instead & didn't go out at all.
Had been cycling all week to & from college so that's 50km in the legs, & have been cycling everyday this week too,
weather has been great in march so far,it's been so mild... so even though it's been 6 days since my last run I barely noticed the difference (so cycling does work!).
Got off bike & more or less straight into it... going fine through mile 1 in 6:55 then...bang. stitch developed rapidly in 3 places so had to slow it right down, so took the opportunity to work on running form (what else can one do in this scenario...) hoping that it'd subside if I slowed down for a minute or 2. no such luck had it for 10 mins at least & was in agony. it just wasn't letting up at all.
after 22 mins I walked a part of it the next 5 mins would've been the toughest part of the course so it was a subconscious to stop I suppose. then I only resumed running because it was half 9 at night & it was getting cold. which turned out to be fine & enjoyed about 18 mins of decent running even being able to go as hard as I liked so I derived something out of the session. Not a disaster so...
10km this fri, lets hope it goes a bit better than tonights efforts. I won't go mad though as I'll need to save myself for the race on sunday. I'm also working early saturday morning so there's always something...
Had planned to run this Sunday gone but it didn't happen. It was either 10 miles or nothing so I just didn't bother tease myself with anything less so I sulked in protest instead & didn't go out at all.
Had been cycling all week to & from college so that's 50km in the legs, & have been cycling everyday this week too,
weather has been great in march so far,it's been so mild... so even though it's been 6 days since my last run I barely noticed the difference (so cycling does work!).
Got off bike & more or less straight into it... going fine through mile 1 in 6:55 then...bang. stitch developed rapidly in 3 places so had to slow it right down, so took the opportunity to work on running form (what else can one do in this scenario...) hoping that it'd subside if I slowed down for a minute or 2. no such luck had it for 10 mins at least & was in agony. it just wasn't letting up at all.
after 22 mins I walked a part of it the next 5 mins would've been the toughest part of the course so it was a subconscious to stop I suppose. then I only resumed running because it was half 9 at night & it was getting cold. which turned out to be fine & enjoyed about 18 mins of decent running even being able to go as hard as I liked so I derived something out of the session. Not a disaster so...
10km this fri, lets hope it goes a bit better than tonights efforts. I won't go mad though as I'll need to save myself for the race on sunday. I'm also working early saturday morning so there's always something...
Wednesday, 9 March 2016
Business
8 miler in 1:00:44. Tough one tonight, felt the distance too. had just got off the bike from college & went straight into it so was tired from the offset, legs felt very heavy & I felt restricted & that didn't go away for the rest of the run. Went through some awful patches too (it's quite the undulating route). My chest was fine but my legs were feeling it so that's good.
I've always been one to psychoanalyse everything but this must be said. Tonight (for whatever reason) was one of the most unusual runs I've ever had. it was an immensely strange hours work. I won't bore you with why this may be so but the process tonight felt deeply odd (from a mental point of view). I don't know why but I just thought that I should mention that.
Good work for craughwell & after a 10 hour day in college whilst commuting via bike. well done (if I may say so myself, although self praise is no praise)
weather was kind too, lovely & mild & only slight (welcome) intermittent drizzle.
I've always been one to psychoanalyse everything but this must be said. Tonight (for whatever reason) was one of the most unusual runs I've ever had. it was an immensely strange hours work. I won't bore you with why this may be so but the process tonight felt deeply odd (from a mental point of view). I don't know why but I just thought that I should mention that.
Good work for craughwell & after a 10 hour day in college whilst commuting via bike. well done (if I may say so myself, although self praise is no praise)
weather was kind too, lovely & mild & only slight (welcome) intermittent drizzle.
Sunday, 6 March 2016
unexpected
10km in 44:19. A big improvement on this route, the fastest I'd ran this before was in 46:55 so that's a good indication that I'm doing something right even if I'm now 81kgs. I was 74kgs last summer when I was running my good times etc...).
Was raining too so that didn't help but I took my time navigating (8:30pm at night so was dark) the paths & concentrated on good running form throughout the run, I must say the experience I've gathered from over the years is really starting paying dividens,
I'd be much better with more regular training & with other people too so that's very inspiring. A good nights work. Sprinted home too (with ease & power) as I knew I was on for a good time.
No real good preparation either, went to bed at half 5 last night & slept in till 3 today so it shouldn't have done me any favours but it unusually did. Alhough for the 2.5kms it was slow enough (missed 1st mile split because of traffic & rain) then it got better as I was tackling the hills beyond the prom on the way out to barna, it was here when I knew it was going to be a good run, I was motoring up the inclines.
It seems to be the sign of being on good form when you've the pep in your step battling the slopes, so much so that you don't even think about them you just floor it, shorten your stride & before you know it you've returned to level land, it's amazing when it comes right. Indeed I almost always try & increase my speed when going uphill... easier said them flippin done though!
Anyway I reached the mini roundabout in 12 flat & the other marker where I normally hit 17 on this route was 16:49 so I knew I was good. 20:57 at the turn up ballymoneen road & 25 along western distributor road so I was going well, 38 mins into dr mannix road so it was obvious that it was going to be "fast".
On this route once you're past the roundabout the rest of it is flat (if you ignore the slight incline on kingston road - a tough section of ~4 mins of hard work) which is nice & makes up for the initial 20-25 mins where the slopes are not in your favour.
Overall though it's a nice route & am beginning to like it more than I used to, I also remeasured it on google maps & it's actually bang on 10km, not further like I previously thought. Nice one. Have an 8 miler planned for wednesday along with cycling to college this week (lets see what happens!).
Oh dear - forgive me on my violation of my brevity mission on here. Some day...
Was raining too so that didn't help but I took my time navigating (8:30pm at night so was dark) the paths & concentrated on good running form throughout the run, I must say the experience I've gathered from over the years is really starting paying dividens,
I'd be much better with more regular training & with other people too so that's very inspiring. A good nights work. Sprinted home too (with ease & power) as I knew I was on for a good time.
No real good preparation either, went to bed at half 5 last night & slept in till 3 today so it shouldn't have done me any favours but it unusually did. Alhough for the 2.5kms it was slow enough (missed 1st mile split because of traffic & rain) then it got better as I was tackling the hills beyond the prom on the way out to barna, it was here when I knew it was going to be a good run, I was motoring up the inclines.
It seems to be the sign of being on good form when you've the pep in your step battling the slopes, so much so that you don't even think about them you just floor it, shorten your stride & before you know it you've returned to level land, it's amazing when it comes right. Indeed I almost always try & increase my speed when going uphill... easier said them flippin done though!
Anyway I reached the mini roundabout in 12 flat & the other marker where I normally hit 17 on this route was 16:49 so I knew I was good. 20:57 at the turn up ballymoneen road & 25 along western distributor road so I was going well, 38 mins into dr mannix road so it was obvious that it was going to be "fast".
On this route once you're past the roundabout the rest of it is flat (if you ignore the slight incline on kingston road - a tough section of ~4 mins of hard work) which is nice & makes up for the initial 20-25 mins where the slopes are not in your favour.
Overall though it's a nice route & am beginning to like it more than I used to, I also remeasured it on google maps & it's actually bang on 10km, not further like I previously thought. Nice one. Have an 8 miler planned for wednesday along with cycling to college this week (lets see what happens!).
Oh dear - forgive me on my violation of my brevity mission on here. Some day...
Friday, 4 March 2016
Keeping the discipline
6.7km 29:40.could've done 29:10 probably &I played a bit too on the run changed pace a few times (which I normally just don't do) & just enjoyed it. Maintained good running form & relaxed a good bit. I'm aware of the good things to come this summer on the running/ fitness front so just keeping myself in touch/ there or there abouts so that I've at least something to build on once college is done (for good!).
Not a good week at all on the exercise front. Didn't cycle into college even though I could've on 2 days, the other 3 (in fairness to me) were wet... regardless this was my fifth day on the trot without a workout of any description, so I decided to put a stop to that madness!
Good run too, I recovered well, suffered about 2 miles in as a result of going at my normal pace, had that pain in the chest you get when you're heart hasn't worked that hard in a while so it protests to the sudden shock to the system . Blew out some cobwebs so... had to reduce my pace right doen to 8 minute/mile pace for about 2 mins until I could push on again at my regular pace (hovers around 7 min/mile pace... )
Admittedly what got me out tonight was craughwell in 2 weeks. 10km on sunday then try & squeeze in exercise of some description during the week then a 8 miler next sunday.
always got to keep it on track, losing fitness is a no no. it's just so damn hard to get back (at least that's how it used to be for me), maybe I'm different now as I'm older & more experienced, regardless I don't want to find out that hard way, fear remains a great motivator!
Not a good week at all on the exercise front. Didn't cycle into college even though I could've on 2 days, the other 3 (in fairness to me) were wet... regardless this was my fifth day on the trot without a workout of any description, so I decided to put a stop to that madness!
Good run too, I recovered well, suffered about 2 miles in as a result of going at my normal pace, had that pain in the chest you get when you're heart hasn't worked that hard in a while so it protests to the sudden shock to the system . Blew out some cobwebs so... had to reduce my pace right doen to 8 minute/mile pace for about 2 mins until I could push on again at my regular pace (hovers around 7 min/mile pace... )
Admittedly what got me out tonight was craughwell in 2 weeks. 10km on sunday then try & squeeze in exercise of some description during the week then a 8 miler next sunday.
always got to keep it on track, losing fitness is a no no. it's just so damn hard to get back (at least that's how it used to be for me), maybe I'm different now as I'm older & more experienced, regardless I don't want to find out that hard way, fear remains a great motivator!
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