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LS21 -- you're goading me with fond Lakes memories. I used the actual cycle path on the A66 between Keswick and Braithwaite whenever I wanted to do some speed, nice smooth flat tarmac. Good work on the shop too!
wtgy -- welcome back! Still using the salt tablets? You are definitely the most impressively salt-encrusted runner I have ever met
PP -- I tend to go for a bit of reduced-carb diet in the earlier part of the taper, partly as a nod to the new fat-loading fad but partly to avoid laying down too much ballast. Before switching to serious carb loading for the last couple of days of course (mainly 2 days out).
Nice speed TT.
I've been trying to sandwich my marathon training miles into the narrow gap between recovering from one race and tapering for the next (where 'taper' this time is defined as having just one day off so I am not completely embarrassingly slow). So I had Mon off; Tues 7M fast hills + 10M slow; Weds 6M + 6M slow; today 11M with 10 sets of plyometric shenanigans and some 0.5M efforts which could be described only as "steady" at best, with a 6M+ return planned. Then tomorrow off to freshen up before my 18M night relay stage on Sat. I think the weekend races are speed training enough anyway really, so I'm not too worried about not having done any useful speed during the week.
And good luck on Saturday!
CW - Yeah good luck Sunday. All this talk of Lakeland running, I reckon me and thee should travel up for a North vs South smack-down next year with LS21 and wtgy.
TT - I just thought, are you in Aldershot on Sunday or is that off the agenda now? (I'll be there Saturday and Sunday; our women's section continues to thrive and we're putting out a senior and a vets team.)
Anyone else up for the Southern relays?
LS21 I was rather hoping to have some in the kirkstile inn not far from your new place before then! Are you now a member at Keswick? I'll take my trainers the next time and see if I can accompany you on a few runs. Tent weather has about passed up there now hasn't it, we were t'other end of whinlatter pass from you at braithwaite.
Charlie hello, typing this whilst salt encrusted from lunchtime jog, with 2 tubes of electrolyte tablets sat on my desk - so thats a resounding yes. I was the same after I'd done a long sportive a few months back. I'm currently substituting crisps for olives instead!
PP - thats light! Can you remember when you was injured and with full beard at red lion what sort of weight would you have got upto?
love the lakes - and sure PP / CW / LEE
http://www.slmm.org.uk
I've heard of the Brampton-Carlisle 10m LS21. Nice 400s!
PP - yep. Leg 1 for my sins. Will be good to get whooped and hopefully dragged around to something under 20mins
I had considered going down to watch on Saturday but I've now got a house to view at the same time, so that's out.
TT - Cool, see you Sunday. Last leg, oldies race, so you'll have a target!
wtgy - I'm even less inclined to weigh myself when I know I won't like the answer, but as a guess I reckon I managed to get the wrong side of 13 stone at that point. About 8 months and a huge amount of cycling/x-training later I was back down to 11 stone even before I'd started running again after the hip op.
Two-man navigation marathon sounds ideal. CW's Garmin gizmo will tell us where we're going and probably make the tea as well.
And good call re PP's epic beard! I remember doing VLM in 2011 and some vagrant type hanging over the fence shouting 'Come on Lee'. At the time I thought 'who the f*ck was that?'. Then about a mile later I was proper belly laughing cos I realised it was PP!! A quality moment!!
I looked like Guy Garvey from Elbow!
PP - I know exactly what you mean on not checking!
SLMM is a cracking weekend well it was when I did it it was around wastwater that year
LS21 - just about my favourite beer that - fetched a couple of their minikegs back home. They serve it at the botanist in leeds, couldn't believe it when the lass serving us said they had it on! Been some good runners from keswick! Do you spit on the floor in disgust when a borrowdale runner runs past?
Northern vagrants tend to be a little less encouraging dont they!
LS21: 20M on a Monday is good going!
Oxford half (in 3.5 weeks time) is the immediate target. I'm on a comeback trail so I don't have a definite target, but I am thinking 1:21ish. Then the plan is Wokingham and Reading HM in the spring. What I really want to do is to get fit enough to beat my HM PB of 78:25, which is five years old now.
My GFA expired so I entered in the ballot for next year's VLM, but I'm quite neutral as to the outcome: on the one hand London is great fun, but long runs are also quite a slog and the chance to do HM-focused training would also be quite nice, as I think I am better at that distance.
i.e. if I get in on the ballot I run London, otherwise no spring marathon.
Anyone else get soaked while running yesterday? A cold, wet, miserable 14M MLR for me. The rain was so bad that after 30 minutes my "waterproof" jacket was sodden and was just a weight around my shoulders! I made the decision early on to not look at the Garmin and just run. I was grumpy enough without worrying about how fast I was going. Came out about 15s/mi slower than normal MLR pace so not too bad in the end anyway.
ES - yep, 14 mile run in the rain yesterday too. Didn't wear a GPS either. Then again, I've never owned one.
Pisc - there's zip all chance of getting into VLM by ballot these days. Why not check out a European alternative. Pretty much every city has a marathon these days, and most of them are quicker/cheaper to get to than London.
Having just typed that, I did a quick tot up of races I've done overseas. Comes to 43. (18 marathons, 20 ultras & 5 other).
Also just added up that last months ultra was my 99th ultra or marathon. Will make Abo, if I do it, my 100th. There's a thought.
ES.. I agree with Dan, from personal experience Barca in mid March is a nice course and very well organised. Enormous beers available after too.
LS21.. good training in the bank there & good stuff from Charlie too.
Thought I would do a steady fitness test run on the shin last night to see if Sunday's half-mara was a thumbs up. Not a chance - ended up with a sore shin and limping slightly. The soreness is on the front of the left shin so I suppose a SF is a possibility. Anyhow this was after 5-6 days of no running, ice packs 2-3 times a day, ibuprofen gel, anti-inflammatories, stretching etc and it is just as bad as before. Looks like a bit of time on the bench then as running is out of the question.
As I won't be able to do my last couple of scheduled long runs it looks like the York Marathon will have to be binned as well. This after a decent mileage build up after getting my previous glute/hammy nerve problems sorted out. Also at my lightest and fittest in years which makes it all the more frustrating. I could be heard uttering 'damn and blast' under my breath last night.
Roll on spring!
Fortunately cycling is ok so with the day off I got 50.5m in today to stay sane and keep obesity at bay. Out for a consoling beer later.
Wardi - That's a bummer, hard luck. Hard you considered seeing someone about it before definitely aborting the marathon?
Wardi - Really hard luck. Looked like you were making nice progress recently. All the best getting to the bottom of it, and keep up the cycling.
Dan - Impressive numbers. You should treat yourself to a special commemorative t-shirt!
ES - I got caught in biblical rain on my easy run on Monday. Great fun actually, but glad I didn't have any target paces in mind.
I decided to give the Boston Boosts one last blast before Berlin this evening. A controlled tempo run, 9.5M incl. 6M @ 5:37/m. I'd headed out intending to hit 5:4x pace, settle at what came out, and hope it might feel something like MP. As it was, first mile was 5:40, then I experienced the ratchet effect I get when taking mile splits, where I don't really want to get any slower. As ever, I couldn't imagine running another 20 at the same pace, but on the other hand it was definitely easier than HM pace, and from memory felt no harder than the same run I did last year @ more than 10 secs/mile slower. So yeah, that'll do.
Wardi - thats a shame, i'm always impressed by the volume of miles you run too esp as a "mature" runner, so to get injured now is bad luck.
WTG - still some bike and swim although not as much recently. No IM as I have a self imposed 3 hr limit for long runs during VLM build up (although 2h45min is enough for my longest runs) and for long rides during 1/2 IM build up. I fancy having a go at IMWales one day though, but I'd never get enough miles in through the summer.
Cheers all. Ryan.. can't get to see Doc or Physio for a few days. Marathon is 3 weeks away and I've only got two 20m+ runs in the bank. I was on a tight schedule due to the previous nerve problem and I knew any setbacks would scupper the marathon. It is going to take at least 2 weeks to see any improvement judging by lack of progress in the last week. Ho hum.
Nice tempo run PP, I will be eyeing the Berlin tracker with great interest on the day!
TR.. 'mature' is a flattering description, whatever happened to 'coffin dodger' ??
LS21 -- I know your "lay-by" road exactly, I had my eye on it before our holiday in case it was the perfect spot to let my 17-yo try her first drive! The advantage of the bike path was not just its smoothness but the chance to humiliate myself in front of passing motorists when doing those plyometric hops and frog-jumps...
Wardi -- oh no, so sorry to hear that. Bit late now but I take magnesium citrate supplement to try and keep bone formation going nicely.
PP -- no GPS allowed in that kind of mountain marathon! I can use a compass too -- they called me (predictably) Checkpoint Charlie on school DofE expeditions -- but it's all a bit slow and unreliable (for me) by comparison with following a wiggly Garmin track... and hey, nice tempo.
Feet up on the sofa and having some extra carbs now so I don't disgrace myself too badly in that 18M relay stage. My legs were pretty kaput today having done 3 significant doubles consecutively (and I got wet last night for sure, was also ignoring the Garmin up my not-waterproof sleeve which is just as well as it was 9min/M).
PP: you're still flying, look forward to seeing how you get on.
Dan: I wouldn't want to go abroad, both I travel quite a bit for work already and with small children at home, I can get a pass for London but would not get the nod for a weekend jolly overseas ( particularly given existing work travel).
Good morning
wardi chin up, nice weather up here and good to be cycling in the autumn, I also wouldn't be chucking in the towel just yet and would be trying to get in to see someone sharpish. Marathon could still be a possible as a complete rather than a compete. Been able to complete a marathon in autumn, and not actually doing it flat out, means recovery should be quicker and winter training set up nicely.
TR I havent swam for ages, and by the looks of things won't make it swimming outdoors this year either.
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wardi - sorry to hear about the injury.
cw goodluck on the relay.
PP - I haven't done enough miles recently to wear in my Bostons so it's Adios for me again.
DanA - It is indeed Berlin for me.
Lunchtime 5 for me today with 4 @ MP. Trying to keep things quick and relaxed so my body isn't too shocked on the day. Taper madness is in full effect, switching between confidence and not running at all every few seconds... taking heart from the fact that todays run was the most efficient (beats per mile wise) that I've done for a good long while. Physio tomorrow to get the last minute kinks sorted out and then a full focus on not putting on any more weight ...
Last hard effort before the taper begins tonight. Managed 18 mi with the last 10 @m/p which I was pleased with on tired legs. Now time to start winding down. Is it just me that feels a bit sad when the hard sessions are over? I actually really enjoy the training and making gains in speed and fitness. Now it's mainly eating, resting and trying not to go completely mental! I'll be like a caged animal after a while if I'm not careful.
Got another soaking today at lunchtime! At least it was a lot warmer.
Mids relays for me today. B&W have fallen on hard times and I am promoted to the A team, although the good news is I should be their slowest runner...!
Good luck today Jools. I was intending to be there myself but I have been struck down by a terrible lurgy. Another marathon bites the dust.
Better week for me, few swims, bikes and runs with 12m today, defo feell a bit unfit at the mo though. Got a 1/2 mara next sunday as a fitness test, first donning of a number since vlm so its bound to be a bit of a struggle.
Wardi, I'm so sorry to hear that. Really hope it's not a stress fracture. You could always follow my example and bore yourself silly on the cross trainer...
CC2, a real shame. Hope you're able to salvage something from the autumn.
Jools, hope relays today went well.
PP, you are FLYING. Bring on Berlin. Looking forward to the post-race beer.
Muss, hope you're keeping your head above water with the taper fever...
I've quite enjoyed the taper this time, mainly as it has meant a huge cut back in the XT volume (thank god) - and though the runs have still been sharpish, it's nice that I don't have to dread every single one (the downside of limited running meant all were hard sessions).
Easy XT the day after Bristol HM, then did a blood lactate test on Tues, which was incredibly encouraging and gave me a nice boost (wouldn't have done it had I not been able to get it cheap but good to have the data) - ended up trying a different protocol, running 3 minute intervals (with 30" rests for lactate levels to be taken) increasing by 0.3km/h each time from 16.3km/h (5:55/m) to 19.9 (4:51/m) - so a good workout. Rest day on Wed, shortish session on Thu (12m incl 3m slightly over MP, 1m easy, 2m threshold @ 5:09s) and penultimate XT yesterday (hooray!). Today was a 5k sharpener by myself in Viccy Park - around 15:55, working pretty hard by the end but nice to add more volume significantly quicker than MP - a shame I didn't get to do top end speed work this summer with injury as I have no idea what I could realistically run for a 5k if I trained properly - still never done one.
Tomorrow will prob be 9 or 10 easy and then we're in cotton wool and carb deplete time... Feeling remarkably relaxed about things - I'm really pleased with how the 50m/week plan has worked again, but convinced that there's plenty more to come in the future if I can slowly build up my strength and mileage and do some XC for the first time ever over the winter. So it will be nice if I have a good race, and barring a disaster I'm confident of knocking a chunk off my London time, but bigger picture/longer term is the more important. Obviously I'll be twitchy this week, but it's nice to be looking forward to it a bit more!
Hope all's well with everyone.
Sounds like you're getting back to things well, TR. The relays happen twice a year: area and then Nationals in the March/April and the same thing in September/October.
All seems to be very encouraging, Lev.
Nice day out at the relays on leg 2. First mile very sluggish (6.20), although I probably didn't do the best warm up, but the racing instinct then kicked in and I started to pick off the runners ahead, leading to 5.52 for mile 2 and 6m/m for the final 0.7 mile. Course best of 16.23 by my watch. Much more fun than last week's efforts! And our team manager was pretty pleased that his scratch A team, formed from B team runners such as myself and A team runners who were carrying injuries, pulled a silver medal out of the bag.