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The Middle Ground
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I have done a race report on the 3.15, you'll need 10 minutes to get through it!!
https://forums.runnersworld.co.uk/discussion/168846/sub-3h15#latest
Hope we are all doing well, now that the weather appears to have returned to March rather than nearly May!
I seemed to come down with some sort of 24 hour bug on Tuesday night, so couldn't run Wednesday and even though I felt much better yesterday it was clearly still in my system as I got about 2 miles into a run last night and knew it was a struggle and a bad idea so jogged home and called it a day at 3 miles.
Will try again tonight.
Did an 8k yesterday at 4.55m/km pace, started easy at 5.10m/k (8.20mm) and negative split it on purpose with the final km being 4.30m/k (7.15mm).
Today was a 7k tempo run which came out 4.40m/k (7.30mm) with a bit at 10k pace (6.40mm) in the middle. Legs feeling good considering it's been a fairly big couple of weeks for me.
5 miles for me this evening which felt sooo much better than last night. Comfortable 8:30 pace.
We were watching by the BBC camera crew not far past the 24 mile mark, decided to leave when I’d concluded from the tracker that my brother stopped at half way (pre planned with a club mate as he not long ago had pneumonia). Then saw him as soon as we left walking past us with his clubmate. His clubmate he’d been running with was looking for his wife at the time who had also stopped and then recognising the club vest some 5 minutes later, saw her under Blackfriars tunnel (assumed it was her) so had a weird conversation explaining how I knew who she might be but was grateful once she knew her husband wasn’t far down the road. It just shows that central London isn’t so big in some ways!
We then carried on walking and had more or less stopped watching by that point and then just happened to see you fly past DT! Apologies if your turning around affected your form as you did look to be taken by surprise! It was certainly hot just standing around so full respect to everyone who took part and even more so with such consistent splits! It was clear from the tracker after the first 5k that you had a sensible pacing strategy and aim (going by what you are most likely capable of on a cooler day re sub 3).
We have finally moved house this week so for me it’s project start again! A bit like resetting a clock, there is so much to be doing! Lots of weight to lose and just some general consistency. I’ve been motivated to start training proper again for a while but saw no point with this and other non running related matters taking precedence. I may not reach my previous form of 4-5 years ago but from the outside looking in so to speak (e.g. when some worry about missing one training run / or are checking their watch at every turn to see overall pacing) will just enjoy getting back out in the grander scheme of things and enjoying what gains there are to be made!
Did another 5 miles today at 8:40 average, with the middle 3 being closer to 8:20 pace. Felt all very easy and bouncy, so fingers crossed I am recovered and this week can be a bit more productive!
DT - great...will book mark your race report for later.
Andrew - well done on the 5 milers.
90 miles of the bike this week. Took Friday off to do a 60+ miler (5th an final long ride) but the weather was so bad it turned into 45 miles (but with 3-4 whopping climbs). Saturday was parkrun 100 for me (I started in 2008, so not exactly an achievement) ... 21:31. Sunday was available for a run, so did 10.3 miles at 9:08/mi. So still sort of hanging in there despite only totaling 150 miles in the last 5 months.
And sad to see that one of my boyhood inspirations, Bruce Tulloh, has passed away.
Hello, WJH. Just think though, you'll have the pleasure of watching things improve really quickly without actually working too hard!
Well done on making the 100, Dr Dan. I did my first parkrun nearly 5 years ago now and am only on 27. I believe that at current rate there are people not yet born that are likely to make 100 before me.
Well done on the parkrun, Alehouse. I appreciate it's a slow down from last year, but great that you are back able to do it.
Well done on the temp, JGav.
Andrew, I think it is a bit easier to remember more in the London marathon as you are not working classically flat out, have gigantic mile markers for every mile and also a lot of landmarks to keep you alert.
Just under 8 miles yesterday as a course recce for the local 10k in 2 weeks. Legs felt pretty good, however the recce became a pointless exercise as later yesterday my mate announced he was having a 40th party the night before.
I am trying to get into a local 10k for Wednesday night, just fancy putting a marker down for the summer.
Did another 5 miler last night, and it felt very good. Had to rein myself in a bit to keep the pace at an easy level and to not get too carried away. Finished at an 8:18 average.
Rest tonight and then a tempo run planned for Thursday.
Hi JGav,
Average since New Year has been 19 per week.
That level is still nothing compared to a lot of runners, but compares favourably to my average of 17.5 for the same period last year for example.
I also think the fact I have managed to put in some consistent sessions each week, rather than simply easy mileage, such as tempo sessions (2x3mile; 4x3.5mile and 2x4mile in the run up to my recent 10k pb) and have extended my long run to consistently 7 or 8 miles, has helped to give me a decent boost in the level of my fitness.
As a result, average pace on easy runs has fallen markedly over that period, from around 9mm to about 8.20/8.30mm.
Bizarrely, there are some advocates who for tri/duathletes say you should do all your quality workouts on the bike and just do easy running. Les injury risk.
Just signed up to St Neots Half Marathon which is in November, race sold out in about 5 hours!!!
No running for me since Tuesday's long effort, plan to get out for a little one this evening and hopefully a 9 miler tomorrow AM.
Just an easy paced 5 miles this afternoon/evening in the sunshine- kept it easy at around 8:40m/m pace.
First cricket match of the season tomorrow!
managed a couple of runs to keep ticking over, including a 4 at 160 bpm midweek which came out at 6.34mm so I seem to still be working!
my next race now is leg 18 of Welsh castles on June 10th. I've also entered Wilmslow half on 24th June.
Outside running I was made a Partner at work as of 01st May which is good.
Some running to report: gentle 2.5 and 3.5ks on Monday and Weds, then 5 miles in 30 mins on the anti-gravitational treadmill on Thursday, after which Achilles wasn't happy. Not too bad this morning for parkrun number 94 when I ran the same course as last week and finished nearly three minutes faster! Don't think I'll knock another 164 seconds off any day soon! In fact will go to another course next week as need to focus on the training rather than chasing times...not that I did!
Not gone to Milan, PRF?
My planned 9 became a 7 but ran it at tempo. 4.36m/km which is 7.22mm I think.
Well done on the parkrun progress. 5 miles in 30 minutes??? That would be a huge pb for me.
Well done jgav, it wasn't that far back that I did that sort of distance at roughly that pace on a training run and it was a 'break through' run. I remember vividly certain runs like that where it suddenly becomes apparent I've made a leap.
Going to have 1 more light week before I pick up a 10k schedule until early July following which I'll start Mara training for Yorkshire half ( I still need to have a chat with my wife about this!!). I need to resolve this sub 3 issue.
re Wilmslow, are you coming up on the day or staying over? It can drizzle until around 10 a.m.
JGav: get in a race/parkrun to see where you are at!
4.5 mile recovery run for me today, to wrap up the week on 20 miles. Was pretty warm out today! Glad I have two rest days now in the heat that’s forecast!
Well done on the weeks mileage, Andrew. I popped in an easy 5 yesterday whilst visiting family in Dorset to hit 23 for week. Not sure how this week will unfold as lots of other things going on include a full day at the cricket in Worcester Friday. I'll end up drinking at that as frankly it's the only way I'll get through the day!
If I could spare the £60+k I would have a couple! Mo has one apparently.
Drinking all day: is that because Worcs are playing so badly? At cricket these days I only drink during two sessions! Either first and last or second and third! Been at Old Trafford the last three days for the afternoon session and was very good and didn't drink. That's what driving does for you!
Just under half an hour this morning was a struggle, but I guess a lot of runs are going to be like that for a good while.
Nope, it's simpler than that. I don't like cricket. I can just about take a 20/20 but that's it. Work have taken some tickets to it with a lunch of some sort. My job is to take a guest and entertain them all day. I guess it beats sitting in the office all day.
Well done and yes it's going to be a struggle but you've done it before.
I had 40 minutes to kill before spin so popped on treadmill and did 4 x 1k off 2 minutes following a 15 minute warm up. First 2 were 3.44 so I guess 5k pace but it all seemed a little too civil so third rep I hit a few more buttons for 3.40 and 4th rep some more again for 3.34.
Planning a general easy running week with a few more miles than last.
Then it's the start of tri season, so Blenheim sprint tri on 2nd June, Windsor Olympic on 17th June, Hever Castle Half Ironman on 8th July. May do the London tri on 5th August too but the most of July and August is a write off with weddings and stag dos (brother and a close friend).
11.3k in 59 minutes at lunch, easy pace but the heat turned it into a tempo like effort. Went out round the Serpentine and Green Park, beautiful.
So, I managed to get around the Tour De Yorkshire sportive on Sunday! It was very very hilly (barely a flat part in the whole 80 miles) and there were 4 particularly hard climbs. The first (Hartwith Bank) came a 26 miles ... 1.5km with some 20% gradients ... I swear I thought my heart was going to come out of my rib cage. It caused carnage, with many folk giving in and walking. You had to be very careful about trailing someone who might stop as, once dismounted, it was too steep to remount. The 2nd climb was Greenhow Hill at 46 miles. I'd done this once in training and knew it was very tough, so took advantage of a feed station beforehand to eat and top up on drinks (having skipped the first one) ... this hill is nearly 4km in length with 3 ramps of 18%, 16% and 15% in the first half. That first half was grim beyond words! Once recovered, I raced hard after that on a long very gradual decent. Then came a hard section which included Snowden Bank ... not one of the "nasty 4" but I struggled nonetheless as the the fatigue was setting in. I was dreading climb number 3 ... the mighty Chevin Bank coming out of Otley - it's a famous local climb and I have only managed to actually get up this one without stopping for the first time last year. I'd climbed it 3 times in training but had never faced it after 63 miles of hilly cycling (in fact I'd never even done more than 63 miles of cycling before). I ate my remaining food and a gel on the flat section at the top of Snowden Bank, and then enjoyed the fast decent into Otley. Chevin Bank is a little over a mile long but most of that is basically a single relentless ramp that goes in an arrow-straight line. You feel like you're getting nowhere - it's mental torture and you daren't look up. Carnage again, especially as this was the first nasty climb for the middle distance riders. I had a very quick stop at the final feed station to get more water, before heading towards the nasty Black Hill Road. This is a hill that I only managed to get up foir the first time this year (twice) ... previous attempts ended in me turning back. It's 1.5km but it hits 19% on a sharp left bend ... I have never had that level of lactic acid burn in my legs ... literally whelped out in pain! Once over that it was done! I spent the final 8-9 miles back into Leeds trying to avoid cramp ... even my arms were in pain... but I mustered the legs for a great sprint finish on the Headrow.
Final time, including the two feed station stops, was 5:55. The Brownlee brothers did the sportive too, finishing in 4:07, and they must have overtaken me enroute.
Despite the physical effort to get around, I wasn't too bad the next day (did a lot of gardening) and then was back commuting yesterday and today with legs that feel remarkably strong. So different to running!!!
Now I have just under 5 weeks to get ready for the Leeds ITU triathlon. The cycling training is done ... just top that up with commuting. But need to get running and swimming ASAP!!!