My Last Run

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  • Good Parkrun extra, Cal.
    Hope things improve, JT, and the bastard buses give you a wider berth in future.
    I'm still sidelined with cold/chest/sinus and going slightly stir crazy. Cheered my Dad on to another Parkrun PB yesterday and volunteered at Junior Parkrun this morning, high-fiving my daughter to her 2nd finish. Ipswich Half Marathon next Sunday, but a trial jog across the park told me I will have to rest for a day or two more before I can do any prep for that.

    I have officially entered the Manchester Marathon 2019. No way back.
    I run, therefore I am.
  • Exciting, Will! I am almost sad I'm not doing Manchester next year, it's a great race.
  • Sorry to hear that Maidenhead was such an all round bad day for you Cal, there's always next time I guess. 

    Had a largely rough week not feeling too good mentally hence I only did a couple of very short runs, but it seems to be behind me now and I went out yesterday after a quiet day at work I went for a long run an ended up with seventeen miles  including a remarkable final mile which was by far the quickest despite being the only uphill section! Only three miles short of the magic twenty for marathon training which puts me way ahead of where I need to be so the pressure is off for now!
  • Thanks for your kind welcome and advice guys.

    My 10k and HM times were just recorded on my Garmin on a standard run around the park. Was good to do my first timed event this weekend (Great Tees 10k) and grab a new PR of 41.20. The race wasn’t too hard at all so I am encouraged to look into entering half marathons now. I know training plans don’t suggest it but would it be so bad to try start banking a proper half marathon once a month?
  • Sorry to hear you are a bit down JT.  I hope there wasn't anything nasty in the bin you were helping the kid to retrieve his keys from.  Next time sprint after the bus to the next stop (if it is not too far away) and then have a good yell at the driver!

    Nice parkrunning and long running Cal - please be careful to not overdo it - you are running well at the moment. 

    Well done on entering Manchester Will.  Cal can give you plenty of tips for that one.  I wouldn't rush back to running if you are still feeling a bit under the weather. 

    Nice long run from you too Matt. 

    That's a great 10k time boothgm.  Well done.  I think a HM once a month might be too much.  They do take some recovering from if you run all-out and that will potentially impact upon training you would otherwise do.  You might be too tired to work hard in the harder sessions.

    Not such a good running weekend for me - the taper tantrums are all too present.  A sluggish 6 mile recovery with some strides on Saturday - the strides were done well at least as nice even efforts.  Then yesterday 10 miles on not enough food and drink and in too much heat and sun.  Felt awful the whole way round and couldn't manage more than a few seconds faster than recovery pace.  I hadn't intended to do much faster anyway but it certainly shouldn't have felt that hard.  I think I went into this one a bit too relaxed: after having done a 10k race and a 16 miler last weekend with no big problems, I thought the 10 would be easy.  Wrong!  Rest day today, just a couple of runs to do until race day - including the dress rehearsal on Wednesday.

    Weather forecast looks too warm for Sunday at the moment. :/
  • You should be fine, Hazelnut. Having said that, one of the issues I had with the P&D schedule(s) is that there is way too much running in the last week. I know I do best off very little running in the days before. I think I did two 4 milers before Manchester, plus some strides on the Saturday.
    No run today, though I did drag myself to hot pilates at 6.30am. It wasn't that I had a hard time getting out of bed, it's that I had that cursed long run insomnia so although I went to sleep early, I woke up at 2am and stayed away.
    I've just had a little mid-morning sleep but I feel like crap now. Good job I don't have a job right now.
  • Insomnia's a pain, Cal. I do find those herbal pills quite good when I have a phase of it.

    Good to hear you're getting some nice miles in Matt. Hope it continues to go well.

    That is one quick 10K, Boothgm! Good effort.

    Hazelnut, I hope the rest of the taper is not too unbearable for you. If a week off with the cold I've had me champing at the bit to get out. I managed it yesterday with 4 gentle miles, just to test my chest and lungs. It was not bad and I got round with hardly a cough. Lung capacity not quite back to full, but it was good to stretch the legs out and my chest actually felt better afterwards - I think I cleared some crap out. I'll be a bit more adventurous tonight, with a bit of pacing practice and then one more run before the Ipswich Half on Sunday. 

    Happy running, all!
    I run, therefore I am.
  • I'm glad you're feeling a bit better, Will - I'm sure you'll be fine for the weekend.

    I wasn't sure whether to run today - I've been tired and I have acquired a sore toe. I've never had any issues with toes or nails before but then I've always run in Frees and this is the first year I've experimented with other shoes. There were a couple of steep downhills on Sunday which might have caused my toe to push against the toe box. Anyway, long story short, I taped it up and went out for a very slow 4 miler (I wore the Frees rather than the Epics). When I say slow, my first mile was 11:16 and my fastest was 10:46, which is not even my easy pace these days. I guess I'm still tired, so I'll probably only do one more short run this week before my 5K/half marathon double this weekend.
  • Cal I'm cutting down the last week a bit.  Today a recovery run of 6 miles.  Tomorrow is dress-rehearsal day which is the last run with any significant length or pace - warm up - 2 miles @ MP and cool-down.  After that I will do one short recovery trot with a few strides and that's it.     Bad luck on the sore toe.  Have you also had a feel around inside the shoe for debris or a hard seam? 

    Will the herbal pills sound interesting as I'm struggling a bit as well (work-life-related..). Will look into it post-mara.  Good to hear you are feeling better. 

    MLR: as above 6 miles recovery in 58:29 taking in the local fields and woods.  Beautiful morning for it, though warming up quite fast (high temp of 28 forecasted today again).  Scent of the day:  freshly cut timber.  The ground is fortunately still quite dry so the forestry equipment hadn't churned up one of my running paths too much.  Several dog walkers to say good morning to.
  • Me again? 

    Dress rehearsal run went well - 3 miles warm up including a some drills and a couple of strides, then 2 miles at MP (goal pace is 8 min/mile) and another 2 miles cool down.   Legs felt fresh and ready to go and I had to remind myself not to speed up on the short distance.

    Travel tomorrow and just one short leg loosener in Berlin on Friday / Saturday to look forward to.
  • Freshly cut timber - nice. Reminds me of my beloved Scotland.  The herbal pills are made of valerian, passiflora and hops and do the job without making you feel fuggy in the morning. Sainsbury and Boots do them and I'm sure you can get them out there Hazelnut. Best of luck for Sunday! I'm sure all your mega hard work will pay off.

    Well, I attempted a progression run in three blocks of gradually increasing pace last night. I can't get the hang of these though. I'm not sure if it's my watch lagging a bit or just me being crap at judging pace, but it turned into medium - slow- quick- quick-quick- knackered. Did me some good, I think, once I'd recovered. Resting tonight and then just a little stretch out over a few miles before Ipswich.
    I run, therefore I am.
  • I feel excited for you, Hazelnut - you're going to kill it! Bon Voyage!
    Are you Scottish, Will?
    I rather like progression runs but my progressions tend to vary in jumps rather than being smooth progressions. Still, I don't much care as long as each mile is quicker than the one before.
    Had my own mini-rehearsal today - 5 miles with miles 3 and 4 at what I hoped would be HMP. Mile 3 was slower than I wanted, but it is a bit uphill, but mile 4 was fine (slightly quicker than HMP but it's slightly downhill).
    It's a lot fresher out - actually wore tights today rather than my long shorts. I'll stick to shorts for the weekend though.
  • Good luck for your races this weekend Cal and Will!

    5 miles along the river Spree in Berlin with OH this evening dodging the pub goers.   Just a gentle leg stretcher. 
  • Thanks and good luck to you, Hazelnut! (Rest day today).

  • Thanks, Hazelnut :) Good luck to you and Cal. Enjoy it!
    2.5 mile stretch out with a few strides tonight. Looking forward to heading to Ipswich, where I spent my footballing days. Up the Tractor Boys!
    I run, therefore I am.
  • The Pirate Run is done. It was a fairly small field, but a nice race with a pirate theme (well...duh) that not many people seemed to be taking too seriously. A lot like me were doing the half or full marathon tomorrow and some had already done the 10K in Kew Gardens this morning. With a late start (12:30pm) it was already rather warm, and I knew a PB was unlikely as it was all on grass with a few gradients, some hairpin turns and quite a bit of wind. I decided to give it my best shot anyway and did a blinder of a first mile (7:51, which is too quick in retrospect) and promptly blew up. Came in at 25:26 so slower than a few parkruns I've done, but my fastest chip-timed 5K. I don't run a lot of 5Ks, though (since parkrun is free). I was 1st in my age group and 8th lady so it's a good result. Sparkly medal and a T-shirt, too.
    Now to rest up for tomorrow.
    Good luck for tomorrow, Will...and you, Hazlenut.
  • And part 2, the half marathon. It definitely felt tough today, but mostly because I was pushing. I realised after 4 miles that I wasn't going to be able to keep up 1:55 pace, as it was starting to get warm, so I decided to throttle back a bit and aim for a PB. That proved to be the right call as, although I slowed down quite a bit, I didn't blow up like I did at Maidenhead. I managed to hold it together just long enough to scrape under 1:57 (my PB was 1:57.01) with a new PB of 1:56:47. I felt happy with that, and the medal is epic.
    I think I might just need a nap this afternoon.
  • Well done on both races Cal.  Hope you have  been enjoying your nap.

    Hope your race went well Will.

    JT- everything ok? 

    A new PB for me as well today 3:26:54, so I also achieved my sub 3:30 goal.  Legs and feet (and the rest) very tired so it will be an early night for me too.  Conditions were pretty good, just a bit warm in the sun.  Organisation very good, no queues at the water stations.  Congestion on the first 10k pretty bad but improved after that.  Ah and the beer afterwards tasted great! No alcohol - that would have wiped me out instantly.
  • My body absolutely refused to let me sleep. Bastard. So I've been for a short walk.
    Anyway, absolutely amazing effort, Hazelnut - you smashed it! And so amazing to be part of a WR race. Out of interest, was it cups or bottles there?
  • That's an amazing marathon effort, Hazelnut - congratulations! 
    Superb PB for you too, Cal. Nice one!

    I had a bit of a tactical mare in Ipswich, but thoroughly enjoyed the event. Really good support and organisation. I planned to head off quickly, with the hope that I could then maintain a good pace, rather than have to speed up from a slow start. I find it hard to push on once I'm in my stride.
    So, I did a quick first half - about 57 mine  - but then hit the 2 mile hill at mile 7 feeling absolutely knackered. I struggled from there on in and felt like I wouldn't finish at some points. At mile 11 I had to have a couple of walking bits, but managed to finish okay back at the stadium, where my wife and kids were cheering me on. It was hot and I still had a bit of a chest thing going on, but hey ho. I will defo start easier next time! 2hrs 5mins, disappointing but a nice birthday experience .
    I run, therefore I am.
  • I think the warm Autumn is catching us all off-guard, Will. Mile 11 is almost always my toughest mile, too - I guess that's when glycogen stores get depleted. I am glad you had a good birthday, anyway.
  • Yeah, Cal, I hate the heat. In my last Half my final 3 miles were my quickest, but yesterday my legs pretty much buckled. Lots learnt. I should maybe have checked the course to identify that huge 2 mile hill in the middle of the run! Achey tonight so swapped recovery run for soothing bath.

    Now, the question is how little/much to do between now and Sunday's Bristol Half? Booking them both seemed like a good challenge at the time. Daft sod!
    I run, therefore I am.
  • Cal JonesCal Jones ✭✭✭
    edited September 2018
    I've done back to back halves three times and on two of those I set a PB in one then beat it the following weekend. I don't think I did anything between the two - or maybe just a 4 mile run.

    And I did my minimum 4 miles today. Sluggish pace. Achilles is grumpy and I'm tired.
  • Happy belated birthday Will.  Well done on your half.  I would probably do a couple of shorter runs.  A gentle recovery and a second run with a few strides thrown in.  No longer speed work. 

    Cal: Berlin had (plastic) cups rather than bottles.  The water stations were in general very well organized - there was always a cup available - either handed to you or grab it yourself from the table.   The din from thousands of people trampling over the discarded cups was impressive.  I'm not a fan of cups but I dealt with them well this time - always walking the few strides to take a drink.   

    They also trialled reusable cups - a large number were handed at the expo.  Lightweight squishy ones which you can hold in your hand, stuff in a pocket or in my case attach to your gel belt - there was a small carabiner provided.  There were then several water stations along the route with a row of taps which you were supposed to jog through and hold the cup under.   I took a cup but missed several of the stations due to the sheer mass of people blocking my view of the road ahead.  I did use it twice and didn't feel I lost much time but I had the feeling the amount of water coming out of the taps could have been higher.   The cups were recollected at around one mile from the finish - big containers to simply dump them in.  I can imagine that quite a few people took them home.  

    No MLR for me yet.  Leg soreness is bearable - I can still do stairs today.  I was expecting worse after a 10 hour train journey home yesterday.  Will go for a gentle walk later to collect my bike from the station later.  I'm planning to go for a first gentle jog on Thursday.  The P & D plan I have been following also has a 3 week post marathon recovery plan - will more or less stick to that meaning very low mileage this and next week. 
  • Link to the promotional video for the reusable cups so you can see them...

  • Shades posted about these on her thread - she got one to use in an ultra. Not a bad idea. Thanks for the heads-up, though. I'm wondering what they'll use in Vienna.
  • I felt I had to get out tonight before I totally seized up. A very gentle 3 miles which eventually felt okay. Even managed a few short strides towards the end. Tested out my new Garmin (birthday pressie). It works and is very swish. 
    I run, therefore I am.
  • Which Garmin did you get Will?  My TomTom froze during the marathon at just over 2 miles grrrr!  The stopwatch did keep running though which was the most important feature for checking splits.

    Might therefore start looking around for a new watch myself soon.

    4 miles gentle recovery today.  Left calf still a bit sore (DOMS) but otherwise felt ok. 
  • It's a forerunner 35, Hazelnut. I'd been happy with my Tom Tom, but then the pause/stop button kept getting stuck which wasn't good for accuracy. The Garmin seems to work very well. Still trying to figure out all the settings and can't work out yet how to get it to link with Strava, but I'm no technician. It locks on to GPS very quickly and seems to adjust to your pace very quickly, which the Tom Tom didn't. It's fairly mid-price range and so seems a good buy.

    Think I'll have one more stretch out before Sunday and then am planning more of a negative split type tactic, rather than hare off, crash and BURN :)
    I run, therefore I am.
  • That's a great time Hazelnut, I sympathise with the Garmin issues though as the same thing happened to me just a mile into Frankfurt last year! I fancy heading over to Europe for a marathon this year but I think I've left it too late!

    Yesterday was possibly my best run of 2018 so far, 20 miles on a completely new route along an old railway line surrounded by the sounds of nature, gently paced and progressive with each five mile section being quicker than the previous plus a final mile which was by far the fastest mile of the day. I feel marathon ready but the race isn't until December so I'll get some more 20 milers in the tank before then. No stiffness today which is a great plus, no run today though and no run tomorrow as my wife has a milestone birthday!
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