Within my first blog of the year I noted the following:
A couple of goals for January are to run 160 training miles, get the long run up to 16 miles and get under 35 Min's in Raheny 5 mile race.
Just a couple of lines towards the end of a blog, some might have noticed, some might not. That is irrelevant. What I was doing was writing them down as a reminder to me of what they were. Wisdom says if you write down/share your goal's you have a better chance of achieving them.
At the end of January it's time to reflect on them now and set new ones.
Training Miles: 183 approx
Long Run 16 Miles: 19th Jan
Raheny 5 Mile: 34:21
The above might not seem earth shattering to some while maybe it does to a few, but the main thing is it was all relevant to me. The miles was about consistency, something I struggle with at times. The long run distance was about building endurance again, starting from a low base. The Raheny 5 Mile goal was a test of speed & to a lesser extent endurance I suppose, maybe a way of gauging progress overall.
In coming up with new goals for February I don't plan to do a race so there will be goal around a race. This will be replaced by a more nutrition focused goal which I think is a big weakness of mine (or certainly could be improved on)
So with that the goals for this month are:
190 Miles
Long Run 20 Miles
Lose 8lbs
The miles is all about consistency again and represents 47.5 miles a week on average. The long run is again about building on endurance and one of the long runs this week will be 20 miles. The 8lbs is a 2lb loss a week. No radical diets or anything planned here. Just eating properly to supplement the training being carried out will hopefully lead to this loss.
So there you have it. They are my running related goals written down. Have you set yours? and recorded them somewhere?
Good Luck with them if you have.
Friday 31 January 2014
Monday 27 January 2014
Raheny 5 Mile Race
This week was to be a bit of a step back after 3 weeks of increased mileage and with the Raheny 5 mile race on Sunday. It's important during blocks of training to give your body a chance to recover a bit before adding to the workload again.
Monday 20th Jan - Strength & Conditioning
Weekly strength & conditioning session with some tough core exercises to finish it off. Paid a visit later on to Mark to get him to check out my calf and work on a bit of tightness which he did and released the pain.
Tuesday 21st Jan - Session
This weeks session was a ladder session with 1,2,3,4 mins with 75 sec jog recovery between each one, then 3 mins recovery before the climb back down 4,3,2,1.
Gary told us to try and run the first couple slightly quicker than 5K pace and then try to hold 5K pace for the rest. Pace splits were (6:28, 6:41, 6:47, 6:44, 6:44, 6:40, 6:28, 5:54).
Again there was a nice group of us working off each other, was conscious that it was a long enough session so needed to be paced right. The 4 mins back to back were tough trying to get the legs going again after the 3 min recovery but finished the session strongly which is always a good sign I suppose.
6.86 miles in total for the day.
Wednesday 22nd Jan - Easy Run
5.79 miles @ 8:46
Met up with Mo for this (Hackett not Farah) and we made our way around Stamullen and Gormanston chewing the fat as we went. Nice to see some of the backways of Stamullen. Legs feeling ok.
Thursday 23rd Jan - Easy Run
5.67 miles @ 8:55
Avg HR: 131
There was talk of a tempo run but with the race on Sunday we opted for an easier run on the night. Just a few loops of the college with the usual gang and we were joined by Helen White who lives local but is a member of Sportsworld. got chatting to her about London as she has done the race previously so that helped pass the time.
Friday 24th/Saturday 25th Jan - Rest
Friday was a planned rest day, the first day with no running or S&C since New year's day and Saturday also became a rest day running wise as I had to play golf so my easy 30 min run became 4 hours of golf which was't ideal with a race the next day I didn't expect it to have any real impact.
Monday 20th Jan - Strength & Conditioning
Weekly strength & conditioning session with some tough core exercises to finish it off. Paid a visit later on to Mark to get him to check out my calf and work on a bit of tightness which he did and released the pain.
Tuesday 21st Jan - Session
This weeks session was a ladder session with 1,2,3,4 mins with 75 sec jog recovery between each one, then 3 mins recovery before the climb back down 4,3,2,1.
Gary told us to try and run the first couple slightly quicker than 5K pace and then try to hold 5K pace for the rest. Pace splits were (6:28, 6:41, 6:47, 6:44, 6:44, 6:40, 6:28, 5:54).
Again there was a nice group of us working off each other, was conscious that it was a long enough session so needed to be paced right. The 4 mins back to back were tough trying to get the legs going again after the 3 min recovery but finished the session strongly which is always a good sign I suppose.
6.86 miles in total for the day.
Wednesday 22nd Jan - Easy Run
5.79 miles @ 8:46
Met up with Mo for this (Hackett not Farah) and we made our way around Stamullen and Gormanston chewing the fat as we went. Nice to see some of the backways of Stamullen. Legs feeling ok.
Thursday 23rd Jan - Easy Run
5.67 miles @ 8:55
Avg HR: 131
There was talk of a tempo run but with the race on Sunday we opted for an easier run on the night. Just a few loops of the college with the usual gang and we were joined by Helen White who lives local but is a member of Sportsworld. got chatting to her about London as she has done the race previously so that helped pass the time.
Friday 24th/Saturday 25th Jan - Rest
Friday was a planned rest day, the first day with no running or S&C since New year's day and Saturday also became a rest day running wise as I had to play golf so my easy 30 min run became 4 hours of golf which was't ideal with a race the next day I didn't expect it to have any real impact.
Sunday 26th Jan - Raheny 5 Mile
Got to Raheny in plenty of time and registered and had a chat with some of the others from the club, warmed up and took a place behind the sub 35 section and before long we were off.
The goal I had set myself at the start of the month was sub 35 (pb 35:49) but as always your not sure how the weather will be so early in the year. It had been windy all day but the rain was holding off.
The first 2 mile's were all about getting off at the right pace and I was prepared to be slightly down on goal pace as I knew the stretch along Howth road was going to be into the wind and coming so early in the race you can't push too much or run the risk of burning yourself out. Kept the pace well contained for the first mile and was into my running as we turned onto Howth Road. First mile passed in 7:01. We were now into a good breeze so I upped the effort a bit to keep the same pace, seeking shelter where I could but struggling to find a big enough group at my pace to tuck in behind. I guess I passed a few people along here and the section seemed to go on for longer than I remembered previously. As we turned off this section I was glad of a bit of relief from the wind but it had definitely taken a bit out of the legs. Shortly afterwards the second mile passed in 6:57. I knew the next couple of miles were where a bit of time could be banked possibly so just put the head down and kept trucking along. I could see the avg pace dropping slightly anytime I checked but not by too much either. Was passing people with more frequency now as we came round by St Anne's park and clocked the 3rd mile at 6:54. At this stage I was feeling pretty much flat to the boards but was hoping I could keep at it for the last 2 miles.
After a brief respite with the downhill onto the coast road I found the section along the coast road hard to pass people with the cones restricting space. I didn't want to settle in and run someone elses pace though so with a couple of glances over the shoulder I passed a few blocks of people outside the cones and soon my thoughts were turning to a tough finish. Turned off the coast road and made our way up the mail hill in the race passing the 4 mile marker. Mile 4 was covered in 6:49.
I knew at this point I should be good for a PB and sub 35 if I could keep it together but I didn't feel like I had another mile in me. Legs were screaming at me as we crested the hill and the rise up All Saints road was into the wind which wasn't helping matters. The pace had dropped a bit coming up the hill but with 1/2 mile to go I was passing people steadily again. Passed the corner of the park and I knew after the long straight there was only 2 corners to go. When I got to the second last corner the legs seemed to respond and I was able for a bit of a sprint finish. Last mile in 6:44.
Chip time was 34:25 which represents an 84 second PB. Very happy with that given the conditions, which weren't ideal but not horrific either.
Got to Raheny in plenty of time and registered and had a chat with some of the others from the club, warmed up and took a place behind the sub 35 section and before long we were off.
The goal I had set myself at the start of the month was sub 35 (pb 35:49) but as always your not sure how the weather will be so early in the year. It had been windy all day but the rain was holding off.
The first 2 mile's were all about getting off at the right pace and I was prepared to be slightly down on goal pace as I knew the stretch along Howth road was going to be into the wind and coming so early in the race you can't push too much or run the risk of burning yourself out. Kept the pace well contained for the first mile and was into my running as we turned onto Howth Road. First mile passed in 7:01. We were now into a good breeze so I upped the effort a bit to keep the same pace, seeking shelter where I could but struggling to find a big enough group at my pace to tuck in behind. I guess I passed a few people along here and the section seemed to go on for longer than I remembered previously. As we turned off this section I was glad of a bit of relief from the wind but it had definitely taken a bit out of the legs. Shortly afterwards the second mile passed in 6:57. I knew the next couple of miles were where a bit of time could be banked possibly so just put the head down and kept trucking along. I could see the avg pace dropping slightly anytime I checked but not by too much either. Was passing people with more frequency now as we came round by St Anne's park and clocked the 3rd mile at 6:54. At this stage I was feeling pretty much flat to the boards but was hoping I could keep at it for the last 2 miles.
After a brief respite with the downhill onto the coast road I found the section along the coast road hard to pass people with the cones restricting space. I didn't want to settle in and run someone elses pace though so with a couple of glances over the shoulder I passed a few blocks of people outside the cones and soon my thoughts were turning to a tough finish. Turned off the coast road and made our way up the mail hill in the race passing the 4 mile marker. Mile 4 was covered in 6:49.
I knew at this point I should be good for a PB and sub 35 if I could keep it together but I didn't feel like I had another mile in me. Legs were screaming at me as we crested the hill and the rise up All Saints road was into the wind which wasn't helping matters. The pace had dropped a bit coming up the hill but with 1/2 mile to go I was passing people steadily again. Passed the corner of the park and I knew after the long straight there was only 2 corners to go. When I got to the second last corner the legs seemed to respond and I was able for a bit of a sprint finish. Last mile in 6:44.
Chip time was 34:25 which represents an 84 second PB. Very happy with that given the conditions, which weren't ideal but not horrific either.
As always a very well organised race which had a record turnout this year. Nice cup of tea and catch up with others in the hall afterwards.
Monday 27th Jan - Long Run
13.65 miles @ 9:08 pace
Avg Hr: 131
With the race yesterday the long run was pushed to today with Gary telling me to do 2 hours and not to worry about the pace. I guess it still counts as last weeks training. Headed out in the rain which was pretty bad at the time but eased off shortly afterwards. Legs weren't feeling too bad but knew they had raced yesterday. Had planned to meet Ken for the 2nd hour which kept me going to be honest. Looped back to his house after around 7 miles and added another hour on to the run. Was great to have the company and the miles passed quickly enough. Was pretty hungry for the last couple of miles so lucky I have plenty of reserves to call on.
Delighted to get this out go the way.
Monday 20 January 2014
Laying the foundations
Following on from last week I just wanted to keep it consistent this week i.e. just run and follow the plan. Monday & Wednesday involved a strength & conditioning class of 30 Min's. In the coming weeks I will be pulling this back to 1 class a week.
Tuesday 14th Jan - Session
This weeks club session was 8x2 Min's with 1 min jog recovery between each one. This was to be done at 5K pace.
Pace for these was (7:02, 7:00, 7:01, 6:59, 6:58, 6:55, 6:49, 6:43).
There was a good group of us working together for these and the pace picked up gradually as we worked our way into the session (as we were told to do). This was a toughie but happy with the outcome. 6 miles in total with w/u & c/d.
Wednesday 15th Jan - Recovery
4.5 miles @ 10 min avg
Recovery run before my class to try and flush out the legs from the day before and in preparation for the next day. While the pace might seem very sedate it's important that you do them at the pace they are intended and for the purpose that is intended.
Thursday 16th Jan - Tempo
The plan was for a 6 mile tempo, keeping within around 15/20 secs of half marathon pace. I had estimated a loop from gate to gate and back in Gormanston to be 1.5 miles, meaning 4 loops so decided to do it there. Turned out this was only 1.25 miles which meant another loop had to be added on.
Splits were (7:34, 7:42, 7:38, 7:40, 7:36, 7:33)
I think the effort was a little quicker as a bit of time was lost each time we had to turnaround so based on that I was happy. Had some company as well which helped pass the miles and keep the effort up. Legs were hurting for the last couple of miles but I guess that's to be expected for this type of run. 7 miles in total for the day.
Friday 17th Jan - Easy Run
6 miles @ 9 min avg
Met up with Ken after doing a mile in advance and did a 5 mile loop of the town.
Saturday 18th Jan - Easy Run
6 miles @ 9:07 min avg
Got out in the rain on Sat morning for another easy run doing my town loop in reverse (how exciting). Legs a bit tired as they seem to be when I switch from running in the evening during the week to morning at the weekend. Finished like a drowned rat but running in the rain doesn't bother me really.
Sunday 19th Jan - Long Run
16 miles @ 8:38 pace
The plan was for 15 miles and I did 3 miles in advance of meeting up with the rest of the Sunday morning crew at 8:30. We headed off towards Bellewstown from Stamullen and the group split just before the road up to the racecourse with Stuey & Chris heading left and myself, Danny & Brian heading right on the road that takes you out to the Duleek - Julianstown road, from here we headed into Julianstown and down by the church and around and up the Mosney Road before heading back to Stamullen. Turned out the second part of the route was just under 13 miles so we rounded it up and I finished with 16 miles.
My right Achilles/calf has been a bit tight for the past few days and was the same during this run. It's more annoying than anything else but will get it looked at anyway. Have had it before and think it's just a tight spot. Apart from that was really happy with this run as it was pretty hilly, especially early on but we kept the pace steady throughout and wasn't in a heap finishing.
Another good week with just over 45 miles and 2 sessions completed. Hoping to race Raheny next Sunday so this week coming will be a bit of a step back week probably with regard to the overall mileage before picking back up again.
Tuesday 14th Jan - Session
This weeks club session was 8x2 Min's with 1 min jog recovery between each one. This was to be done at 5K pace.
Pace for these was (7:02, 7:00, 7:01, 6:59, 6:58, 6:55, 6:49, 6:43).
There was a good group of us working together for these and the pace picked up gradually as we worked our way into the session (as we were told to do). This was a toughie but happy with the outcome. 6 miles in total with w/u & c/d.
Wednesday 15th Jan - Recovery
4.5 miles @ 10 min avg
Recovery run before my class to try and flush out the legs from the day before and in preparation for the next day. While the pace might seem very sedate it's important that you do them at the pace they are intended and for the purpose that is intended.
Thursday 16th Jan - Tempo
The plan was for a 6 mile tempo, keeping within around 15/20 secs of half marathon pace. I had estimated a loop from gate to gate and back in Gormanston to be 1.5 miles, meaning 4 loops so decided to do it there. Turned out this was only 1.25 miles which meant another loop had to be added on.
Splits were (7:34, 7:42, 7:38, 7:40, 7:36, 7:33)
I think the effort was a little quicker as a bit of time was lost each time we had to turnaround so based on that I was happy. Had some company as well which helped pass the miles and keep the effort up. Legs were hurting for the last couple of miles but I guess that's to be expected for this type of run. 7 miles in total for the day.
Friday 17th Jan - Easy Run
6 miles @ 9 min avg
Met up with Ken after doing a mile in advance and did a 5 mile loop of the town.
Saturday 18th Jan - Easy Run
6 miles @ 9:07 min avg
Got out in the rain on Sat morning for another easy run doing my town loop in reverse (how exciting). Legs a bit tired as they seem to be when I switch from running in the evening during the week to morning at the weekend. Finished like a drowned rat but running in the rain doesn't bother me really.
Sunday 19th Jan - Long Run
16 miles @ 8:38 pace
The plan was for 15 miles and I did 3 miles in advance of meeting up with the rest of the Sunday morning crew at 8:30. We headed off towards Bellewstown from Stamullen and the group split just before the road up to the racecourse with Stuey & Chris heading left and myself, Danny & Brian heading right on the road that takes you out to the Duleek - Julianstown road, from here we headed into Julianstown and down by the church and around and up the Mosney Road before heading back to Stamullen. Turned out the second part of the route was just under 13 miles so we rounded it up and I finished with 16 miles.
My right Achilles/calf has been a bit tight for the past few days and was the same during this run. It's more annoying than anything else but will get it looked at anyway. Have had it before and think it's just a tight spot. Apart from that was really happy with this run as it was pretty hilly, especially early on but we kept the pace steady throughout and wasn't in a heap finishing.
Another good week with just over 45 miles and 2 sessions completed. Hoping to race Raheny next Sunday so this week coming will be a bit of a step back week probably with regard to the overall mileage before picking back up again.
Monday 13 January 2014
Back to normality
This was the week that was all about getting back to normality and back into routine.
Monday 6th January - Strength & Conditioning
Back to work today and back to routine. First class in a few weeks and was eased back into it with only having to do 4 sets instead of the normal 5. The body wasn't sure what was happening but got through it in the end.
Tuesday 7th January - Session
Back to speed training with the club tonight and the numbers seem to have trebled from the weeks leading up to Xmas. Good to see so many down.
Session consisted of a 12 min tempo @ 10K pace (7:22) followed by 2 Min's recovery, then into 6x200 w/45 sec recovery (32, 40, 40, 39, 38, 38).
As we weren't using a standard track the distance was approximate and it was changed after the first rep.
After 2 minutes recovery we finished up with 4 minutes @ 5K pace (7:02).
With warm up & cool down just over 5.5 miles for the night. This was a toughie being the first one back after Xmas and the strong wind on one side of the track making it hard to maintain pace.
Great to get back into it though.
Wednesday 8th January - Strength & Conditioning
Another strength & conditioning session lasting 30 minutes or so. A good session with a tough finisher. Finisher was a minute hitting a tyre and a minute of a wall sit for a total of 6 minutes each. The wall sit looks nothing but it takes a lot more effort that just sitting against a wall.
Thursday 9th January - Easy Run
6.34 miles @ 8:52
Was meant to be a tempo run today but I felt I needed a bit more recovery time from the previous 3 days and also I was running around all evening so wasn't really prepared for it anyway. Headed down to Gormanston and did a few miles with the club gang. Legs did feel tired as they often do during an easy run for some reason.
Friday 10th January - Tempo Run
7 miles @ 7:52
7 mile tempo was on the agenda for today and was lucky enough to have Ken for company as we set off for a hilly enough route around Balbriggan. My Garmin was acting up so Ken set the pace with me checking every so often how we were getting on. Legs were feeling it a bit as they should I suppose but finished strong enough I think.
8 miles in total including w/u & c/d
Saturday 11th January - Easy Run
6 miles @ 9:32
This was early on Saturday morning and the legs were a bit creaky from the night before. Also didn't get a chance to have breakfast beforehand or anything to eat much after the run last night which didn't help. Got it done though and hoped it would freshen the legs up for the run the next day.
Sunday 12th January - Long Run
11 miles @ 8:58 + 3 miles @ 7:48
I did a couple of miles before meeting up with the club for the long run. We clocked up another 9 miles at an easy pace, counting down the miles until the pain would hit. Worked the route so we would be starting the tempo part outside the college and would follow the SOS 5K route.
The group was down to myself and Rosemary at this stage and we set off towards Stamullen, the first mile wasn't too bad but we knew we had the rise up through Stamullen into the wind which turned out to be as tough as anticipated. Even when we turned into St Claire's we were still into the wind so no real respite. The pace had dropped a bit as expected but not the effort. As we made our way back towards St Pats we picked back a bit of time on the downhill and I was never happier when we ground to a halt after 3 miles.
I had been dreading the pick up in pace after 11 miles as last weeks 11.5 mile run was the longest I had run since Dublin and also coming at the end of a long week. In the end we got it done though although hard to hit an exact pact with the nature of the conditions yesterday.
So finished the week with 40 miles & a couple of s&c sessions thrown in for good measure. Happy with that and the aim for the moment is to just keep the consistency there as the mileage gradually rises. Another full weeks training this week and then will step back a little bit for the week of the Raheny 5.
Monday 6th January - Strength & Conditioning
Back to work today and back to routine. First class in a few weeks and was eased back into it with only having to do 4 sets instead of the normal 5. The body wasn't sure what was happening but got through it in the end.
Tuesday 7th January - Session
Back to speed training with the club tonight and the numbers seem to have trebled from the weeks leading up to Xmas. Good to see so many down.
Session consisted of a 12 min tempo @ 10K pace (7:22) followed by 2 Min's recovery, then into 6x200 w/45 sec recovery (32, 40, 40, 39, 38, 38).
As we weren't using a standard track the distance was approximate and it was changed after the first rep.
After 2 minutes recovery we finished up with 4 minutes @ 5K pace (7:02).
With warm up & cool down just over 5.5 miles for the night. This was a toughie being the first one back after Xmas and the strong wind on one side of the track making it hard to maintain pace.
Great to get back into it though.
Wednesday 8th January - Strength & Conditioning
Another strength & conditioning session lasting 30 minutes or so. A good session with a tough finisher. Finisher was a minute hitting a tyre and a minute of a wall sit for a total of 6 minutes each. The wall sit looks nothing but it takes a lot more effort that just sitting against a wall.
Thursday 9th January - Easy Run
6.34 miles @ 8:52
Was meant to be a tempo run today but I felt I needed a bit more recovery time from the previous 3 days and also I was running around all evening so wasn't really prepared for it anyway. Headed down to Gormanston and did a few miles with the club gang. Legs did feel tired as they often do during an easy run for some reason.
Friday 10th January - Tempo Run
7 miles @ 7:52
7 mile tempo was on the agenda for today and was lucky enough to have Ken for company as we set off for a hilly enough route around Balbriggan. My Garmin was acting up so Ken set the pace with me checking every so often how we were getting on. Legs were feeling it a bit as they should I suppose but finished strong enough I think.
8 miles in total including w/u & c/d
Saturday 11th January - Easy Run
6 miles @ 9:32
This was early on Saturday morning and the legs were a bit creaky from the night before. Also didn't get a chance to have breakfast beforehand or anything to eat much after the run last night which didn't help. Got it done though and hoped it would freshen the legs up for the run the next day.
Sunday 12th January - Long Run
11 miles @ 8:58 + 3 miles @ 7:48
I did a couple of miles before meeting up with the club for the long run. We clocked up another 9 miles at an easy pace, counting down the miles until the pain would hit. Worked the route so we would be starting the tempo part outside the college and would follow the SOS 5K route.
The group was down to myself and Rosemary at this stage and we set off towards Stamullen, the first mile wasn't too bad but we knew we had the rise up through Stamullen into the wind which turned out to be as tough as anticipated. Even when we turned into St Claire's we were still into the wind so no real respite. The pace had dropped a bit as expected but not the effort. As we made our way back towards St Pats we picked back a bit of time on the downhill and I was never happier when we ground to a halt after 3 miles.
I had been dreading the pick up in pace after 11 miles as last weeks 11.5 mile run was the longest I had run since Dublin and also coming at the end of a long week. In the end we got it done though although hard to hit an exact pact with the nature of the conditions yesterday.
So finished the week with 40 miles & a couple of s&c sessions thrown in for good measure. Happy with that and the aim for the moment is to just keep the consistency there as the mileage gradually rises. Another full weeks training this week and then will step back a little bit for the week of the Raheny 5.
Monday 6 January 2014
Happy New Year
It's a New Year and a New start, or in some cases a continuation on from where you already were. For me it's a case of switching back onto a disciplined routine after the festive season and shedding any excesses along with a bit more hopefully.
Here's what I've been up to since my last post:
Monday 23rd December
5.02 miles @ 9:17
Just an easy loop around Balbriggan from what I can remember. Legs probably a bit tired from the race the day before.
Wednesday 25th December
5.04 miles @ 8:38
Headed out after Mass on Xmas morning for a bit of fresh air before the 2 dinners and all that goes with that (We cook dinner for my dad & brother and then head down to the In-Laws for dinner in the evening down there). Was wondering was I mad running on Xmas morning but came across someone else doing the exact same thing within a few minutes. I did seem to get a few strange looks from cars but it was a really lovely morning for a run and I really enjoyed it.
Thursday 26th December
Tinryland 4 mile Xmas Handicap
I had spotted this the week before Xmas and being quite close to the In laws once permission was secured I decided to give it a go. Woke up with a sore toe that was difficult to bend but headed off anyway noticing a bit of frost on some of the back roads. Got there in plenty of time and signed up giving myself an overly optimistic time of 28 Min's.
Did a bit of a warm up and noticed the footing was difficult in some spots on the approach to the finish but the race seemed to be going ahead anyway. I changed from my racers into my training shoes as these have more grip at the moment and hung around as various different groups started off. Before long I set off with 3 others in the same time bracket.
4 miles in 29:33 (7:06, 7:27, 7:51, 7:07)
First mile was pretty much on pace till I cam to a ice patch on a downhill which threw me completely and I nearly went into a ditch. Lost touch a bit with the other 3 here and they gradually pulled away. Small hill in mile 2 and then a good rise in mile 3 combined with excesses from the day before were causing me to slow. Picked it up a bit for the last mile but it was a struggle.
Glad to do the race as it is not something you would do in a session by yourself on St Stephen's day.
This turned out to be my last run of the year as the sore toe made itself known later on and turned into a limp. A couple of days rest combined with a wedding on NYE put paid to any further running.
Thursday 2nd January
7 miles @ 8:57
Just the usual Thursday evening club run around Gormanston College. Everything feeling a bit sluggish between not running and excesses of Drink & Chocolate.
Friday 3rd January
9 Miles @ 8:30 - 9
Normally I'm not free to run on Friday evening but I was this week so I headed down from home to meet the Balbriggan Roadrunners and did their loop with them and the continued on home again. Around 9 miles in total and pace is an estimate as I didn't have the Garmin with me.
Lovely to meet and run with some new faces.
Saturday 4th January
Malahide Parkrun in 21:23
First visit for a while to Malahide to give the legs a good blowout. Rosemary, Eamonn & Brian were also there from Star of the Sea so we had a good catch up before the race.
Ran this completely by feel without checking my pace once. It was a little bit congested for the first mile or so but opened out after that. As we headed out onto the bigger loop I just tried to pick people off in front and passed a few along the way. Didn't have a whole lot left to give at the end but hadn't gone full tilt at it either. Was happy enough with the time for the time of year and given the course.
Sunday 5th January
11.62 miles @ 8:33
There are hills and then there are hills. Met up with the club gang for this one and the decision was taken to head for the hilly route. Started in Stamullen and headed out by Ballestran, towards Mullaghteelin before a bit of respite heading towards Clinstown and climbing again towards Greenanstown and then climbing again towards Herbestown. This one seemed to go on forever and the legs were full of lactic reaching the top.
We got a bit of respite as we headed towards Naul before tackling Snowtown hill being re-assured when we reached the top of this that it was mostly down hill from there. Running with faster runners the pace picked up gradually towards the end.
Really enjoyed this route and the challenge it provides. Hills are good right?
So that it where I'm at right now. I noticed on Facebook during the week that there was 100 days to the London Marathon. That is the main goal for the early part of the year. A couple of goals for January are to run 160 training miles, get the long run up to 16 miles and get under 35 Min's in Raheny 5 mile race.
Hopefully I can give them all a good go.
Here's what I've been up to since my last post:
Monday 23rd December
5.02 miles @ 9:17
Just an easy loop around Balbriggan from what I can remember. Legs probably a bit tired from the race the day before.
Wednesday 25th December
5.04 miles @ 8:38
Headed out after Mass on Xmas morning for a bit of fresh air before the 2 dinners and all that goes with that (We cook dinner for my dad & brother and then head down to the In-Laws for dinner in the evening down there). Was wondering was I mad running on Xmas morning but came across someone else doing the exact same thing within a few minutes. I did seem to get a few strange looks from cars but it was a really lovely morning for a run and I really enjoyed it.
Thursday 26th December
Tinryland 4 mile Xmas Handicap
I had spotted this the week before Xmas and being quite close to the In laws once permission was secured I decided to give it a go. Woke up with a sore toe that was difficult to bend but headed off anyway noticing a bit of frost on some of the back roads. Got there in plenty of time and signed up giving myself an overly optimistic time of 28 Min's.
Did a bit of a warm up and noticed the footing was difficult in some spots on the approach to the finish but the race seemed to be going ahead anyway. I changed from my racers into my training shoes as these have more grip at the moment and hung around as various different groups started off. Before long I set off with 3 others in the same time bracket.
4 miles in 29:33 (7:06, 7:27, 7:51, 7:07)
First mile was pretty much on pace till I cam to a ice patch on a downhill which threw me completely and I nearly went into a ditch. Lost touch a bit with the other 3 here and they gradually pulled away. Small hill in mile 2 and then a good rise in mile 3 combined with excesses from the day before were causing me to slow. Picked it up a bit for the last mile but it was a struggle.
Glad to do the race as it is not something you would do in a session by yourself on St Stephen's day.
This turned out to be my last run of the year as the sore toe made itself known later on and turned into a limp. A couple of days rest combined with a wedding on NYE put paid to any further running.
Thursday 2nd January
7 miles @ 8:57
Just the usual Thursday evening club run around Gormanston College. Everything feeling a bit sluggish between not running and excesses of Drink & Chocolate.
Friday 3rd January
9 Miles @ 8:30 - 9
Normally I'm not free to run on Friday evening but I was this week so I headed down from home to meet the Balbriggan Roadrunners and did their loop with them and the continued on home again. Around 9 miles in total and pace is an estimate as I didn't have the Garmin with me.
Lovely to meet and run with some new faces.
Saturday 4th January
Malahide Parkrun in 21:23
First visit for a while to Malahide to give the legs a good blowout. Rosemary, Eamonn & Brian were also there from Star of the Sea so we had a good catch up before the race.
Ran this completely by feel without checking my pace once. It was a little bit congested for the first mile or so but opened out after that. As we headed out onto the bigger loop I just tried to pick people off in front and passed a few along the way. Didn't have a whole lot left to give at the end but hadn't gone full tilt at it either. Was happy enough with the time for the time of year and given the course.
Sunday 5th January
11.62 miles @ 8:33
There are hills and then there are hills. Met up with the club gang for this one and the decision was taken to head for the hilly route. Started in Stamullen and headed out by Ballestran, towards Mullaghteelin before a bit of respite heading towards Clinstown and climbing again towards Greenanstown and then climbing again towards Herbestown. This one seemed to go on forever and the legs were full of lactic reaching the top.
We got a bit of respite as we headed towards Naul before tackling Snowtown hill being re-assured when we reached the top of this that it was mostly down hill from there. Running with faster runners the pace picked up gradually towards the end.
Really enjoyed this route and the challenge it provides. Hills are good right?
So that it where I'm at right now. I noticed on Facebook during the week that there was 100 days to the London Marathon. That is the main goal for the early part of the year. A couple of goals for January are to run 160 training miles, get the long run up to 16 miles and get under 35 Min's in Raheny 5 mile race.
Hopefully I can give them all a good go.
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