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Shades Marathon Training
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Yes, re the books, I have 3 copies of RW for you. Do you want to borrow a couple of other running books that you are unlikely to get a chance to read, although one of them was reprinted a few years ago?
I didn't look at the clothes in Cotswold Outdoor as I had to get to the meeting, but I guessed that as it was at Darts Farm it wouldn't be cheap. They have been sponsors of the Women Can marathon and offered quite a generous discount to the entrants.
Out of curiosity I had already bookmarked to watch or record that Adrian Chiles programme.
Don't think about what Chair said, at least your relay is flat so you shouldn't trash your quads as you could on a hilly course, and it's not as if you are going for a PB on Saturday although you do have a target. Maybe have a bath when you get home from the relays and some gentle stretching, but I think you'll be fine.
Robert - I find the high humidity affects me far more than the heat and it's been particularly humid the last few days as it's certainly not sunny a 5:30 a.m.
Ha ha at the explanation of how you happened to be reading a copy of the Sun.
A busy weekend planned for you with all the birthday celebrations, lots of birthday cake to enjoy
Another ten miles for me today, we're due some rain and I was hoping that it may have arrived by the time I went out for my run but no luck. Humid again but when I turned for home the wind picked up and already it seems a lot fresher.
Shades, yes, I'll borrow those other books. Thanks.
Yes, we'd been friends for a while, and in fact we were both going on dates with other people (nothing ever progressed - not being bigheaded, but it's very easy to get dates these days with the dating apps, but that connection isn't there for whatever reason) but then one day we kind of looked at each other and said "what are we doing? Let's see if there's something there" and that's what happened.
Robert, she's not a runner, but knows running is important to me
Robert, yes every now and again there's a wave of publicity. There was one recently where Zoe Ball came out and said she's been 2 years sober, through which time she also lost a partner to suicide - she said she wasn't sure how she would have got through it if she'd been drinking.
I see that Chiles has kind of stumbled across the term "alcoholic" and doesn't see himself as one. That's fine, as I didn't either! But it does raise the question - what is an "alcoholic"? What is a "normal" drinker? I think that's what he's getting at in his documentary - for him, drinking was just "normal", as it also was for me.
I personally don't like the term alcoholic as I don't think the label is helpful. Also, as far as I'm aware, there's no medical definition of what an alcoholic is. Of course, we all recognise someone sleeping in a shop doorway, or someone who has lost everything to booze, as an "alcoholic" but what about someone like Chiles? Or me? I.E. functioning people, who just happen to drink regularly? Are we all on a scale from somewhere between tea total and alcoholic? If so, do we wake up one day being an alcoholic? Seems unlikely. AA go a (big) step further and imply that some people are genetically predisposed to being an alcoholic, which then of course implies that even if someone has never taken a drink (or a new born baby) they could be an alcoholic. This is one of many reasons that some people don't agree with AA, even though of course they have helped many people. Personally I don't like AA as they talk a lot about a "higher power" and how people need that to get off the booze, whereas I don't believe in that. They also imply that once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic, so someone who is 20 years sober is basically a "dry drunk". Again, I don't like that idea as I'd imagine it'd take a lot of willpower to fight the urge to drink every day for 20 years! Others change their mindset about booze, and no longer miss it. When people say they're "free" from alcohol, that's what they mean I think - it's just no longer in their thoughts.
Sorry, along with running, I can go on and on about this! I'll stop there
That's amusing that you were both going on dates and then realised that what you were looking for was a lot closer to home.
I used to work with a guy that would go on a different date maybe 4 or 5 times a week, he used to keep us amused with his stories.
I agree with what you say re the term 'alcoholic'. With no knowledge at all, I would consider an alcoholic to be someone that can't get through the day or a difficult situation without a drink. We had a factory manager that was nipping out to his car for a swig of vodka, he had to be sacked. Such a shame, a really nice guy but he just wouldn't/couldn't control his drinking during working hours.
I think Zoe Ball coped really well when her boyfriend committed suicide. She really worked hard to make the best of the sad situation and doing that cycle ride for Sport Relief in memory of her boyfriend was courageous.
I did a variation of one of my favourite runs today - Berry Head in Brixham to Paignton along the coast path. I wasn't concerned with pace, and went up and down Brixham Breakwater too, and had a great 9-mile run. A few hills and lots of steps so very similar terrain to the last part of City to Sea, which is the main reason I did today's run. I took my Camelbak as I haven't worn it for a while and will be using it for that race too. Last year I did City to Sea in 5:28 in very bad/muddy conditions so it'll be interesting to see what I manage this year if the conditions remain dry.
Big G-That was actually a brave thing to do,as there's always the chance if it doesn't work out that you lose each other as friends also.
8 miles after work today,prefer running after work as my Achilles is usually fine then as it's had all day to warm up,but after 10 hours it's hard to do much more than 8-10.
One of my clubmates ran in the fastest 5k I've heard of tonight.winner was 13:45!!! and 16:00 got you 44th place.That is a ridiculously stacked field.
I remember the photos from last year's City to Sea, will be nice for you to do it in good conditions. And Jelly as I think she's sweeping and that will be a long day as they allow walkers too.
Glad you've had a good run now before your double at the weekend.
Ian - you do really well with your training mileage, especially as you work such long hours. 8 miles is a good decent run on a work day.
Blimey that is a fast 5k race, good to know that there's plenty of talented runners about. 16 minutes and you wouldn't even make the first page of results!
Short run for me today 5 miles, I am feeling a bit jaded as upped my mileage for the last 2 weeks and not had a rest day for 2 weeks. Rest day tomorrow though. But despite feeling tired I had a great run as cool and fresh, only 11 degrees when I went out!
I went to another yoga class last night with the same instructor. It was a different type of yoga, but I've come to the conclusion that that particular instructor isn't for me, so I'm going to look elsewhere, hopefully for pilates. She's a nice person and is friendly etc, but she does like the chanting! There were about 20 there last night, and 3 chaps - I think most are regulars.
I went for a 3-miler this morning just to stretch the legs as they were feeling a bit heavy, and then there's the relays tonight. The men's captain must have been struggling to make up teams. My Senior team consists of me (42), and two others (aged 39 and 47), who are all roughly the same ability. The fourth in the team is a 24 year old whipper-snipper who won a local Half last year. I feel sorry for him
Good luck with the relays tonight, don't run yourself into the ground.
I've got you down for City to Sea and Loch Ness for September, any more that you may not have mentioned?
I've done 141 miles in the last 13 days. Next week should be 85 miles, then I'll ease off a bit. My 24 hour race is 4 weeks tomorrow.
Obviously City to Sea isn't a PB course anyway, but I will do my best on that one - it'll be interesting to see if I can get under 5hrs, which would mainly be down to the different conditions if it stays dry compared with last year. Not bothered about times for Barnstaple or Jolly Running so I'm not "racing" them for a PB or anything. I hope to do okay at Loch Ness in terms of going for a quicker time than I have been getting recently, although I'll just have to see how I am when I get there. I've quite a few events beforehand which I suppose could be a problem in terms of tiredness so I'll just have to play it by ear; having said that I did well last year in the middle of a batch of events, so we'll see. The main issue is that my summer training hasn't been what I wanted or planned for, so I am not optimistic at all about a PB at Loch Ness - I'll just do my best on the day.
I want to do Barnstaple but will have to be next year as I realise I might not feel up to a marathon the week after my 24 hour race.
I'm sure you'll do well at Loch Ness, that's all you can do is your best on the day.
I'd like to get under 5 hours on Sunday at Plym Trail but I am aware I'm a little tired so we'll see.
I usually run on Thursdays but I decided to bump my run until today as a) sunny and cool is nicer than cloudy and humid and b) I wasn't feeling that awesome. Still not actually - been sneezing a lot and a slight scratchy throat - but I did sleep well last night so I got myself out for an easy 8. Perfect conditions out there - hope it stays like this for Maidenhead.
Shades-That's great mileage,hopefully bode well for your races.
Good luck tomorrow to Big G and Keith,and Sunday to Shades aswell,looks like the weather will be more reasonable than late.
Ian - definitely a 5k race to target for a PB, does it get oversubscribed?
Big G - I've never run Barnstaple but want to as it's local for us, well 65 miles or so away. I've heard that if it's windy it is a challenging course especially the section by the airfield but I believe well organised by North Devon Runners.
I've decided not to do Chorley 6 hour this year, I have a deferred entry but I can't be sure if I'll want to do the long dreaded drive up the M6 on a Friday 2 weeks after my 24 hour. By staying home I'll save £100 or so on petrol and hotel as I've overspent on my budget this year.
Good luck to Keith and Big G for tomorrow.
Hope today goes well, feels quite chilly here this morning. Will be good for your sub 4.
We have heavy rain forecast for tomorrow's race, that will be a novelty after recent hot races.
Rest day for me today, had my best night's sleep for ages, I suspect as it was significantly cooler.
Between you and me, I'm secretly hoping that I was quicker than one or two of the V40 Trotters too. It doesn't matter as it was just a bit of fun and I had a good night catching up with everyone, but if I am quicker than one or two of the "official" V40s that would be good for me - even if only for my own ego
Legs feel fine. As I type this I will be disappointed if I don't go under 4hrs today but, as we know, anything can happen
Big G-Thats a great time and quicker than I went through 3k when I got 18:50 so you are well on for sub 20.I think you should go out at that pace and you'll be able to hold it,or not fade enough to be well under.
A pretty good day's running for me, too, helped by cooler weather (12-13 degrees) and sunshine. I decided to do Brockwell parkrun, seeing as I run around there quite a bit anyway, and as the most straightforward way to get there would be to run, that's what I did. So 3 miles there (it's actually just over 2.5, but I added a bit on inside the park as I don't like fractions), then the parkrun, then three miles back. There were rests in between - about 20 minutes before the parkrun and 10 or 15 after, so it wasn't a continuous effort or anything.
Managed to fit in nearly 17 before the football today,felt really good and if I had more time I could have gone further so happy with that after last weeks struggles.
There is a long tunnel that we go through 4 times and generally everyone is very careful, including the cyclists. There was a cyclist today though who was going through there way too quickly, and he also happened to be playing with his bike computer so no looking where he was going, and he nearly mowed me down which I guess you could say was "sub-optimal". We did exchange a few words, but I was unscathed which is the main thing.
Caught up with Keith at the start too, which was good.
Let tomorrow take care of itself, conditions might not be so good.
Time Temp Wind Rain Humidity
I'm not bothered about the rain was just hoping it wouldn't be so humid though, I would guess we'll be fairly sheltered from the wind except on the bit at the start when we go up that hill. Have just packed some dry shoes and clothes in case I need to change before drive home. Hope I can keep my shoes dry as this is only the 3rd time I've worn them.
Keith - hope you've had a good run today too.
Cal - that's a good parkrun. I put my oven on yesterday without thinking about how it would heat up the kitchen.
Ian - that's marked that rogue bad run from last week as history, a good strong long run from you.
Keith-Good effort with your recent training,sounds like the right idea to drop to half.
Good luck to you all for tomorrow.
Shades-I feel a lot better after the run today,felt strong all the way round and at no point did it feel tough.Looking at last year and I am now running my long runs around 20 secs/mile quicker than then,so hopefully that will compensate for the lesser mileage to a degree.
Ian - 20 seconds a mile quicker for your long run pace, and I know you don't run your long runs too fast, is a significant improvement.
Still dry here at the moment, switched on the computer to check the weather websites hoping for maybe a better forecast, no chance. But not going to wear a jacket, just usual race kit as otherwise I'll be too warm.
Ian - that again shows you're running really well. Another great improvement, along with your 5k time.
Shades - see you down there.
I'm not feeling great. I've had a bad night's sleep and legs are tight. I did go for a short walk last night to hopefully help, and I'm doing some gentle stretches this morning, so I just hope they loosen up when I get into the race.
Strange how for that recent Enigma double I was totally fine at the start of day 2, and also how day 1 felt very easy. I suppose it's the 10-mins quicker time that I did yesterday, but I think it's mainly the nature of the course (Enigma is flat). Plus for Enigma, I can fall into the hotel room very quickly whereas for this it's still a 1hr drive up the road after the race.
I haven't measured that first 1.5 mile section we do, but yesterday I did:
- Down: 49:34 (felt easy)
- Up: 51:59 (this required a fair bit effort).
- Down: 49:34 (yes, exactly the same time as the 1st down, according to Strava, but felt harder)
- Up: 59:43, which tells the story of how I slowed. I somehow don't think that today's will be as good in terms of the times.
Oh well, got to get it done!
A lot of Trotters went out last night (they met at 5pm I think) so there will be a few sore heads this morning, I'd imagine. If it hadn't been for today's race I'd have shown my face (not drank, obviously) but I just needed to relax yesterday afternoon.