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GE - good to hear from you. Hope setting a target marathon will help you focus. I am assuming you live down in the South-West somewhere? Yes, you're right, I was considering Dartmoor Vale marathon, mainly because it falls in half-term and is in a nice area - thought I might tempt Mrs GD to make a short break out of it, but it's a bit far for us to go for a few days. Pretty much set on Autumn Shakespeare now. I would have preferred Mablethorpe, but the date's not very suitable for me. However I will be heading down to Cornwall in August for our summer break. In fact, I have just discovered that since I booked the holiday, a new parkrun has started less than a mile away from where we are staying
I am focusing on endurance until the holiday and then picking up P&D 18Wk
GFA entries still not open...
Rodeoflip, an impressive array of races and persistence. So happy you nailed the last time out. Now you can just savor the victory (while pretending your feet aren't f*&ked
). Battle wounds!
GM, you're getting some decent miles in these days and doing them fast! Looking good.
Hope all you VLMers get your stuff in on time.
GE, welcome back.
Bikeit, nice fast easy running. Cool weather is beautiful (although it seems like not too long ago I was freezing my arse off...how quickly the perspective shifts).
MsE, steady as she goes. Nice job listening to the internal barometer.
So I've officially run all over Siena. Kind of mentally taxing as there were not too many nice long stretches so I basically threaded my way all over town. Lots and lots of hills, so probably gained some power during this cutback week. Arrived in Florence today and walked all over. Love the Duomo...it's so damn big! Tomorrow will get a LR in along the river.
Then next 2 weeks are going to be hell on earth meeting big work deadlines. Then I can downshift and get back to the marathon training.
VTr - sounds like you're having a wonderful time in Italy! Hopefully you'll have recharged the batteries ready for the onslaught at work.
16 miles today - 8 miles out @ 8:39 m/m and 8 miles back @ 7:49 m/m. Total for the week 62.1.
Guess what? GFA entries still not open...
Rodeoflip well done on the GFA. Amazing dedication and recovery to race so many marathons.
VTr- Sounds amazing! Keep enjoying it.
Gul - I thought I was doing well by getting up at 5:40 this morning and going down to the track. You must have been out the door around 4am!!! That's a big week. Are you marathon training already?
11 miles for me today which was not planned but met up with a running buddy who is doing the Island Games half marathon. We did 5 miles hard up those hills. It's been 2 years since I ran that course and it was a reminder of how tough that section is. Anyway we ran hard and fast and then jogged 6 miles back to her house and I didn't like the downhill bits, well my knee didn't anyway. Now for some yoga followed by book & beach time.
Hi all - I was up late today also, Gerard - 6:20 - overslept by 20 mins. Out the door at 7:10 after big mug of tea & small mug of coffee - 20 unstressed miles on & off road with couple of buddies
Shame Mable date inconvenient, Gul - although saying that, I may not be there either, as that weekend, I've realised, is the one provisionally pencilled in for a weekend away with my son.
Welcome back to GE - keep that lard at bay !!
I also had a lardy week in Paris on a business trip. Was so shocked on the scales last night that I got up early and did a 5 mile fat burner before the parkrun. Didn't seem to hurt my time. Conditions were perfect and ran 18:06. Junior was 15 seconds back in a new PB time, now only 10 secs off the ladies course record. We had a nice dust up and it took me nearly 2 miles to catch her.
Crikey OO, the lard doesn't seem to slow you down. Excellent time by you both.
Birch - Sounds like a lovely 20 miler with your buddies.
Last bit of carbing is about to begin and then I'm off up to Wasdale for a nap in the youth hostel. Up at 1am to get fed, watered and gimped up before a 3:30am swim start. Shame the weather is looking poor - rain and wind and 11degrees is not what I had pictured when I imagined gadding about on the mountainsides in glorious technicolor sunshine in the middle of June. im looking forward to it all the same.
I'll see you on the other side!
Afternoon all. Rodeo - that's impressive dedication to the cause!
No bling this time but I won the ladies race at the Summer League on Wednesday night, first time I've won an individual league race even though I've won the series before. It was hilly and very hard work after the previous Friday's 10 mile race. It was just over 6 miles and only 2 seconds per mile faster. Then today I ran the new parkrun near my house. That's a stupidly hilly affair and those two races plus some weight training and my first half decent mileage week for months meant my legs were foosed. I was first lady again, but the pace was one second faster than the 10 miler and 1 second slower than the 6 miler!
Another parkrun fail today. Scored 20.06 and actually ran OK. Warm conditions were a factor again but I know I'm 19.xx runner for 5k and on another course I would have delivered. The Woking course is costing me a good 15 to 20 seconds due to the uneven ground, multiple tight turns on the 3 lap course and the back-markers whom we lap just after the first circuit.
So after analysing the stats on Strava including the course layout and speed loss on the corners, I've decided to try a different event in a couple of weeks.
Still, first top 10 finish, 3rd in age category and a decent tempo session.
GD
Slokey-goodluck with the 3:30 start,bit early that !
Speedy-good racing.
G-dawg-patience and you will break 20 very soon .
00-still outrunning junior long may it continue.
Good luck Slokey - that's an early start...but then it is Wasdale X
Nice lard smouldering there OO and a smoking 5k. Great running from OO junior too - that record is hers for the taking.
That's an impressive palmares over such a short time Speedy - no wonder your legs are having a bit of a grouse.
G-Dawg, 20:06 is frustratingly close to 19:xx - you'll definitely find those precious 7+ seconds soon.
A long week in London with no running Tues to Fri has also left me on the weighty side of things. 1lb over 11 stone is the heaviest I've been for 15 months. So 7.5 sodden miles this morning felt sluggish. I am, however, continuing to build nicely and am completely free of any hip/groin pain.
Good luck Slokey
When I moved into the Dark Side, nobody mentioned about the stupid early starts.
The main thing GD is how you are feeling. Did the 20:06 feel comfortable?
Welcome to the lardy club Fishy.
You are coming back nicely Speedy, hope the bigger miles come easy.
GD - I can relate to your frustration re a tough 5k course. I did a series of them last year here and there were 7 turns and one was a 270 degree turn! I started with a 19:5x and eventually got down to 19:0x & never ran one after that and those couple of seconds annoyed me but keep plugging away and you will get there. You are very close! Good idea to try a different one and maybe comeback and smash that one with renewed confidence?
SJ - Good luck!
Speedy - Sounds like you are gong well. A hilly park run sounds like fun, not!
Fishy - Good news re the lack of niggle's. 1lb over 11st?! I haven't weighed that for a good ten years! What's your ideal race weight?
My cousin lives in Radda in Chianti so I can testify for the lack of flat runs, but a beautiful place to be.
Just off for a lazy dozen: 8 miles out to watch the start of the women's tour and then 4 back: I basically live at the top of the Thames Valley so take a gentle winding route down and then steep up back home.
Chin up G-Dawg - sub-20 is yours for the taking.
Well done Speedy - another top spot even though you're not in top form at the mo.
Some more interval work for me during the week followed by volunteering at the Guildford parkrun yesterday (in which the course record was smashed - 15:16 by Phil Wicks) albeit with a 10 mile bike ride to and from the parkrun.
All of this was supposed to stand me in good stead for a nice flat 10K over in Richmond this morning - good conditions and a mixture of road / pavement and tow path. Was aiming to go sub-40 and I went through halfway in about 19:45 but the next few kms were quite tough and by the time I got the finish I could see the clock ticking away from 39:5x into 40:0x territory and I crossed the line at 40:07.
However, that was gun time and I'd started a bit further back and the official results show a chip time of 40:00. Is it OK to assume that in fact the time was 39:59.95 and it's just been rounded up?!
Arse. Lost my reply. Well done racers. Busy week for me with 18 on tired legs to bring up 55M. That's the edited version!
Well done all your racers, lardy ones included.
Third day of no running here and both Achilles are looking terrible now, so I may just get back out there tomorrow. Only a few more weeks of kid-free time before term ends and then running will be exceptionally difficult to fit in. Not running makes things worse every single flipping time so let's see what they do tomorrow!
That's not good news MsE. I know ALL about the not running making everything worse scenario. Healing vibes.
Lorenzo - they always round up, never down.
My first proper long run since February (18 miles) brings up 60.5 for the first week of Chester Marathon training. I haven't gone over 50 since February either, so a bit of a shock to the system!
Take it easy MsE you cant mess with achilles.
Humble 12 miler here...
MsE - take it easy with those achilles tendons. I seem to remember from by-gone posts, that you have a lot of experience dealing with them - but all the same...
GM - for most of 2014 I was 10:04 to 10:07 (I'm 5ft 10) & my family kept telling me I was too thin. But out running or on the bike, I felt great and ran my fastest marathon for 5 years. Then I got badly hurt in the hip/groin area, couldn't run or bike & promptly put on over half a stone - which I can't seem to shift.
PMJ - nice route and tour viewing there
Jools and Speedy - great weekly totals. A friend of mine is running Chester, in the hope of a fast time on the flat, well organised course.
2 hours hilly biking for me this morning with great views and fast descents!
MsE - Very frustrating, hope you're going to be ok.
Fishy - You're a proper lightweight!
Lorenzo - Well run in your 10k. 40:00 I could live with, just about, but can you imagine a 3:00:00 marathon?!
I rounded off my week with a 6 mile run on the trails and cliff paths this evening. Was hoping for a 50 mile week but work this morning put paid to that, but I'm reasonably happy enough with 42 with some quality and hills in the mix.
GM - excellent hill work - hope the knee is OK.
Birch - nice 20 miler. A weekend away with your son sounds more important than Mable!
OO - clocking up some very fast parkruns between you.
SJ - 3:30am! Even I am impressed. Well it is the longest day after all.
Speedy - well done on the winning league race and good mileage as you build up for Chester.
GD - another good parkrun - just need an easier course to bag the sub 20.
Fishy - good to hear there's no pain.
Lorenzo - excellent effort - not a sub 40 though
MsE - hope the achilles ease up soon.
10.5 steady miles with 10x100m strides to start the week.
Speedy – Congrats on your Summer League victory. Great 18 miler and weekly mileage
G-Dawg – You might run faster on a different Parkrun course but your hilly, tight cornered one is a better training session. Think of the accelerations after the corners as sprint reps.
Lorenzo – Nice 40 minute 10k
Joolska – You should always type your replies in Word then copy and paste so it won’t get lost. Good 18 miler.
MsE – I hope your injury improves
Solid runs also by Gul, GM, OO, PMJ and Fishy.
The marathon I was supposed to run on Saturday was cancelled but this meant I was able to run hard at the half marathon on Wednesday. I finished in 1:22:15 which is 90 seconds slower than my PB. However I’m still pleased as it was only 10 days after a 4 hour+ mountain marathon so I wasn’t fully recovered.
I head off on holidays tomorrow and have booked a 10k race that is running in the town I’m staying in. It will be my first race outside UK or Ireland and should be fun. There were over 3000 people in the race last year with 6 going under 30 minutes so it’s very competitive. It will be interesting to see how I perform after the 4 days of heavy drinking and eating I have planned.
The race doesn’t start to 9 pm so I’m going to have to stay off the drink for a day! Or maybe I’ll try racing drunk.
The race - http://www.10ksantapola.com/
Swim was cut to half distance due to water temp but was a bit long I think - 35mins and top 15 placing
Bike - 7:40 including 2 pretty epic crashes (I've got the pattern from someone else's chain ring embedded in my shoulder from crash one and a rather large patch of road rash and cuts in various places from crash 2 when skidding off at 20mph just after Wrynose and into a wall. Worked my way into top 10 but then faded a bit from Whinlatter to Calder Fell and came in in 23rd.
Run - 9hrs plus (last 10miles took me 4.5hrs) . Horrible - quads were shot to pieces so really struggled on any kind of incline (ha!) plus terrain was far too technical for me (ropes! / actual Rock climbing!!) - never done anything like that before - thick cloud, high winds, lashing rain and seemingly endless boulder fields at the top of Scafell. Anyone who thinks that's fun is mental. Terrifying. Nearly fell off the mountain several times. Did I mention that I don't like heights? Well I don't.
Great day though - will stay with me for the rest of my life.
I won't be entering next year!