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Shades Marathon Training
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Shades, yes I've got a couple of other WAY events planned this year too and although there are no marathons involved, I hope to get a different parkrun in each time. When I can combine a WAY weekend with a marathon though it's ideal as in a way I'm saving money as I'd need a hotel for both, so combining means I don't need two separate journeys/hotels - that's what I'm telling myself, anyway
I had a bit of a first yesterday. Having recently moved house I went to register with a new GP yesterday. Whilst filling out the registration form there was a series of questions about alcohol consumption and I was able to tick "zero" for all of them, and then for good measure I wrote "Alcohol Free" at the bottom.
Edited to add, thankfully they didn't ask me about my coffee consumption....!
Good news on declaring you are AF in writing, now on NHS file
I've got a couple of copies of RW for you, if you come and find me tomorrow. But if you don't want them right now, more clutter while you're still settling in, then they can stay in the boot of my car. I've got 2 copies I haven't yet read, what do I do all day. I have deliberately kept the latest copy still in its cellophane wrapping as it has the shoe review and that means I start making a wish list
Forecast looks good for tomorrow, wall to wall sunshine, a little cooler than I'd like but that's OK the sun should compensate for that. I picked up an injury 2 years ago when I ran this race so am not planning to run so hard this time.
That's 46.3-miles for the week so far, so if I do a small warmup and/or cool down tomorrow, I should get to 60 for the week....regardless, it's significantly better than the measly 3 I did last week!
Not sure what the running plan is for the next couple of weeks. We're travelling to Dover on the Thursday PM for the 8am ferry on Friday AM, so all being well I'll do some kind of running Mon-Thursday. Next Friday I won't run and I'm staying with friends on the outskirts of Amsterdam on Friday night before travelling up to the North of Holland on Saturday so I may not run on Saturday either....I'll just see how it goes. After that, I'll just do what I feel I can from Sunday onwards, up to Rotterdam the week after.
Glad you enjoyed your sesh, Big G.
And as for me... New parkrun PB! Went to Osterley today, which is a beautiful NT property on the edge of west London. I did a 10K there a few years ago and had a wretched time because it was muggy (it was my birthday, so middle of June) but I laid that to rest today. New time is 25:39, so 14 seconds faster than Northala in November. I knew in the first mile that I was in with a shot. Sometimes I do a great first mile and then the lactic gets me, but today my splits were pretty good: 7:50 (OK, that one was a little fast), 8:00 and 8:02 with a 7:52 pace 0.1.
Ended up having coffee with an octogenarian named Alan who pushes his wife around the course each week in a wheelchair (she has Parkinsons). He started running in his 60s and ran a 3:38 marathon at the age of 64 - he's 84 now. I'd love to have his energy when I get to his age. (He did the parkrun today in 41:42 which is incredible considering he was pushing his wife).
Looks like you won't be needing your green card quite yet. My insurance company emailed me to tell me if I needed one to ask.
Cal - well done your parkrun PB, good timing, all coming together for your marathon in Vienna.
There are some amazing vet runners out there and they are very inspirational. In Big G's club they have a lady that started running in her 60's and went on to break world records, she still holds a couple of those records and I went with her to Gosport in 1997 when she broke the world record for 75+ with a time of 4:21. She retired from running a few years later but as far as I know is still going strong, last time I saw her she was marshalling at DD a couple of years ago.
I see a local runner (Shades, he’s Pete Monaghan - probably you know who I mean) who got 90%+ at parkrun recently. I’m mentioning him as he breezed past me like I was standing still on a run the other week.
Pete Monaghan has been winning races around here for the last 20+ years, he's V50 now and still winning. He still seems to prefer the shorter stuff.
I doubt the stats have altered much since 1998 especially for vets times.
@Big_G gratz on the mileage - really inspiring mate.
In other news, the sun is out and the weather is glorious. If I want to do my long run today I'll have to run in the middle of the night - which means I'll probably be so pissed off about it that i won't run at all. I think i'd better just go for a short run nowv and then try to get my long run done mid-week instead.
When I look at my training vs Shades' plan, it's clear to me i'm massively undertrained. I am definitely going to plod my way around Paris. Normally this would get me down and maybe cause me to give up. However, knowing I have another race in the calendar for later in the year is making me feel ok about it. Sharing that in case anyone else finds themselves in a similar situation.
The last couple of weeks have reminded me why i can never follow a training plan, join a club or run consistently. My running has zero priority or importance to my wife. That makes things hard.
You're right MP would have been the sensible option...
As it was I decided on the line to go for it,my Achilles was sore but gave it a really long warm up and it felt ok,it's a nice course,mainly downhill out then up back but no major hills,mainly rolling small lumps except 1 decent hill at the end.
Went out at 1:25 pace until half knowing i'd have the hills back and seeing if I could get 1:26,As it was I faded more up the hills than I expected and finished in 1:26:41,still a 15sec pb but thought I'd be a bit closer to 1:26 but can't complain after a week of all inclusive holiday.
It was my first time at Osterley parkrun (I'm trying to do all the parkruns in London). It's a quick course but there are flatter ones like Victoria Dock. It was more about how I felt on the day. Same with Northala Fields, where I did my first sub-25. There was a little incline at the end of that one, but it didn't matter on the day.
This time you have done quite a few long runs, you've done less in prep for other races.
Cal - definitely taper fever
Ian - that's a great PB especially after the all inclusive holiday!
Tavy 13 for me (& Big G) today. Lovely weather and we all went on the track ready for the start and then were informed that the start was delayed by an hour as there was a road accident on the course and they were having to cut the injured out of the vehicle(s). So I went back to my car, had a coffee and a small piece of cake as I was getting hungry. Felt a bit deflated as I was ready to go at the planned start time. But thankfully one hour later we set off, cool but brilliantly sunny, low humidity and a sharp breeze in places especially at 10 miles when we were up on Dartmoor, stunning views. I deliberately didn't run this race so hard as I did 2 years ago, I'd calculated after my last hilly half at 2:29, this one was hillier but better weather and reasonable training since that race that I should target a finish time of 2:26. So was very happy to finish in 2:24 and even happier to pick up the win for my age group, there were several of my age group entered but they must have DNS'd as I was the only one to finish! There are advantages to getting older...
Big G - hope you had a good run. There weren't any Trotters at the presentation but JW won her age group and Paul S won or placed in his age group.
I drove back over Dartmoor as it was such a lovely day, and 11 miles of the DD route, the hills still there, waiting for us
Well done Ian on another PB.. and well done Cal too on your parkrun PB the other day. Great stuff.
Glad that house move's all over and done with Big G!
Hi Khani! Fab to see you again, I love reading your posts
Well still no significant running from me. I took three weeks completely off but it doesn't seem to have made any difference. Went out for a 5k bumble round the forest yesterday which was manageable but then couldn't walk afterwards
Ended up finally seeing my GP Friday, actually went to get him to sign my medical certificate confirming my ability to run (Ha!) as I am going to enter La Rochelle for November in the hope that I recover by then. It's the first time I've actually seen him since I've been injured - I've spoken to him where he agreed there's not much you can do for PF but rest - but he hasn't actually looked at my foot. Anyway, he was concerned that it's going on a bit now (6 months) and wanted to rule out a stress fracture.. thankfully this isn't the case.. and he confirmed the self (Shades)-diagnosis of PF. He thinks it might be an idea to try an infiltration (that's his word, I'm guessing it's the same word in english?). He has had this himself and reckoned that it works and is worth giving it a go. It involves injecting cortisone directly into the tendon. I'm up for it so we've made an appt for him to do that Tuesday morning. In a non sadistic kind of way I can't wait.
Nothing else running related to say but a funny thing did happen to me last night.. warning as going wildly off subject again..
I woke up in the night to a kind of clicking noise in our bedroom. I thought it might be the dog as he sleeps by the side of my bed but he was still there so it wasn't him. I put the light on, sat up and there was only a bloody BARN OWL walking across my bedroom floor! I couldn't believe what I was seeing.. then all hell broke loose.. the cat, who must have heard something came in and made an immediate leap for the bird, I rugby tackled the cat while the owl swooped up and started flying round the bedroom. Unbelieveable. OH eventually managed to chuck a towel over the owl and gallop off with it to release it out of a window. Took us all a while to calm down after that!
There you go, that's my news. No Shades, my school cook duties have come to an end as the cook is back, but only part time so I am replacing her for some of her duties but not the menu planning part thank God. Sorry I didn't reply to you sooner (I meant to), very rude of me but I've been wallowing round in self pity as I can't run. As always, I have been lurking though to keep up with you all!
Shades - well done on an age group prize (even if you were the only finisher - you finished and the others didn't!) And it's a great result to come in under target.
MF, good look with the injection. Great story about the owl! Your story reminds me of one time when one very briefly came and stopped on my window sill (outside, I hasten to add!). Claire and I both saw it and as we stood there open mouthed, it was off as quickly as it had came, and we were both left there looking at each other as if to say "Did you just see that!!??!". We also have a blasted bat in the bedroom once - nightmare!
Shades, well done on the prize! Thats great running.
Cal, enjoy the taper
Khani, really sorry your wife doesn't appreciate that running is important to you. I can imagine it may make things difficult to get the training in
As for me, as Shades mentioned, I also did Tavy 13 this morning. I was also a bit deflated at the delayed start as I'd had my food/drink/loo stop, plus I'd done a warmup and was a bit sweaty on the start line. It was literally seconds before the race started and then we were told it was being put back. Nothing the organisers could do about it (the police asked them to put to back) and they handled it all as best as they could but yes, it was frustrating. I hope those involved in the accident are okay - it did look nasty as us runners went past it.
After a second small warm up, I still wasn't really sure what to expect. I'd done 1:43:04 in 2017 and 1:45:25 in 2016 and at the start I was telling people I'd have been happy with a sub-1:45, but I really wasn't sure what was going to happen - I really thought I may not get that. I ended up getting up the first hill (which starts after just 0.5 miles) feeling quite good so pushed on during the first flatter/downhill bit knowing that I'd more than likely have to walk at the hill that goes up to 8-miles (which I did). After that, it's mainly downhill or flat back to the finish and again I was feeling surprisingly good, and finished in a watch time of 1:41:59 so course best for me of just over a minute. I honestly wasn't expecting that before the start, but I knew I was on for it as I knew I'd got to the top of the last hill quicker than when I did it in 2017.
Not sure what to make of that really! I honestly don't feel that I'm running especially well, but a minute off on that course is not to be sneezed at, although today's conditions were good. Regardless, I'll take it a course best
It is a great race - as I was pushing on during a few of the faster sections, it reminded me how much I really love the distance as I feel I can go for it much more than I can with a marathon. I still think it's my favourite distance.
Hill 1 (1.2 miles):
2016: 11:00
2017: 10:31 (quickest time)
2019: 10:56
Hill 2( (0.8 miles):
2016: 7:46
2017: 7:46 (joint quickest time)
2019: 8:14
So quite a bit slower on the uphills (approximately a minute slower over those two hills) but yet I was a minute quicker overall at the finish. Odd!
Amazing to have the barn owl come into your bedroom, do you think it was looking for a new home. Hard to get back to sleep after an incident like that.
It's never dull in your house!
Hope you're happy with the working arrangements now, so less time on your feet should help the PF.
Cal - thanks.
Big G - that's a great course best, especially at the end of a high mileage week and although conditions were good today that headwind at 10+ miles was quite challenging.
I think we were lucky that the police allowed the race to go ahead. Looked like a nasty accident, I'm sure we were only allowed to run past as there was a pavement so 600 runners weren't trampling over any forensic accident data.
It is a lovely race and a permanent entry on my race diary, great value too at £9 entry fee.
Great to see so many children in the shorter races too.
Interesting stats on your hill pacing, but maybe not forcing the uphill pace left you stronger on the rest of the course.
Shades-Well done on the trophy,I'd love one day to win something for running but not to be yet.
Big G-I was about to suggest the same as shades,taking the hills easier would mean you have more energy for the downs and flats.
Cal, congrats on the new parkrun pb!!! Pretty epic stuff from Alan too especially at his age, one of the reasons why parkrun is such a great thing, such an inclusive thing.
Karni - I'm fairly lucky that my oh knows how important it is, and she does allow me to do a fair amount but boy does she moan and go on and on about it!!!! Unfortuntly injury has stopped me in my tracks
Well done Ian, hope your recovery well can't believe manchester is just 2 weeks away, I keep on seeing adverts and getting excited about running then remember I'm not.
Shades congratulations on the age group win, thanks for confirming the DD hills are still there
MF I'm considering the inject again myself, it's not necessary a cure but it provides pain relief which will allow you to move naturally which could in turn see the injury go away.
As for running, it's still not happening for me, i'm still in court so no chance of going to the docs anytime soon to start the injection.
@mamafox lovely to see you!!!!
48 mile week for me thanks to the big run at the beginning. Psychological doing the big run at the START of the week feels amazing to me. Stretching my hip area and lower back has kept me backache free. Really happy with how things are going overall. Bodes well for building up mileage over summer.
im putting on loads of weight though - eating is out of control. Must try harder.
I arrived early and the shirt fit, so started on a good footing, we were looked after well by the race organisers, we had a room in a building in Pall Mall, posh loos, loads of cakes, muffins, sandwiches for 30 ultra runners to tuck into.
There were me and another 2.15 pacer in our wave and we spoke about talking to each other and sticking to either side of the road. It didnt last long before he was about 30 seconds ahead and at mile 12 he has more than 2 mins ahead. I stuck to my guns and ran an even race finished in 2.14.36 and received loads of hugs, high 5s and words of thanks at the end. It was hard as the GPS round London isnt great so had to reply on splits and the mile makers. My heart missed a beat as I was tiring around mile 11 and the marker was out as I found myself 30 seconds behind pace, thankfully I got to mile 12 and was okay.
Would defo recommend the event for anyone looking to have a run round london, not PB material thou. As for pacing a fantastic experience and hopefully not my last.
Big G - great result! Maybe you finished stronger because you didn't go as hard on the hills?
Khani, well done on the weekly mileage.
Rest day for me today although the weather is very inviting. I'll have to go for a walk.
Khanivore - so good that you've got your optimism back for your marathon.
Now STEP AWAY from all that food, we've been through this before, you shouldn't be putting on any weight and if you over do it you'll feel really lardy come marathon day and the run will be that much harder. Focus on eating healthily as part of your training and you can certainly eat enough so you shouldn't be hungry but avoid 'rewarding' yourself as you've been for a run
I still remember the time your wife went away and you ate all the cupcakes
Robert - that is great pacing, you're really good at that. Fabulous photo. Glad they looked after you so well.
Cal - enjoy the taper
5 miles for me this morning, lovely morning but chilly. Legs are fine so hope I've escaped injury this time, little tightness in my hip flexors but not unexpected after all those hills.
Ian, my only hope of prizes is if I happen to be part of a team for a team prize. I've won one prize at a 5-miler, where I was the third person in the third-placed team! That's my claim to fame!
Khani, after yesterday's Half I went to a 6-year old's birthday party....and there was a lot of homemade cake, pizza, pies, etc (the grandparents are very good cooks!). I ate quite a lot (ahem!) which meant I only had a bowl of cornflakes in the evening!
Shades, I'm still not really sure which is tougher out of Tavy and Humdinger! I think more of Humdinger is runnable - there is only one really steep hill - but it seems more undulating overall than Tavy and I think there's a bit more ascent in total. But yet I went a couple of minutes quicker at Humdinger, so I'm still not really not sure which is tougher! They're both great races, but overall I think I prefer Tavy as I think the course is better, I like the athletics track start/finish and I like the fact that it's very affordable.
I did a 3-mile recovery run this morning. Legs felt a tad heavy but okay generally, so there doesn't appear to be any major adverse effects from yesterday's effort. I'm toying with the idea of going to Trotters tonight but I've ran 7-days in a row now, so I'll decide a bit later. I'm 50/50 at the moment.