I rechecked the length of my running routes on Monday using a more sophisticated online tool than I had used previously www.gmap-pedometer.com . Interestingly it suggested that the distance from my house to the Racecourse which I thought was 1km was actually 1.2km. Also the circumference of the park is, according to a sign in the park 2.9km however the actual distance of the my route is 3km so in theory I should add 500m to each run of that park. However to allow for measurement inaccuracies I have just added 200m to each one, it has obviously meant that I have a truer reflection of my pace which is encouraging as I’m quicker than I thought!
On Monday evening I ran 11.2km pretty quickly in 51:20 which went well and I could probably have gone a bit faster but I had arranged to run 12.5km the next day with a colleague and I didn’t want to be too tired. The next day I did indeed run around Willen Lake in Milton Keynes with a colleague and although the pace was a little slower than I would have run on my own, we finished in 1:00:55, it was nice to have someone to chat to whilst running and nice to run in some different surroundings.
I’m looking forward to intervals at the gym tonight!
Wednesday, 13 April 2011
Monday, 11 April 2011
11/04/2011
We had a splendid weekend in London and managed to get a little running in too, I awoke early on Saturday morning and as we were near Green Park and I just happened to have my running kit with me I thought an early morning jaunt was in order. In the end I ran through Green Park to Buck House and then twice around St James’s Park before running through Green Park again and then on to Hyde Park where I ran along the Serpentine over the bridge and then back along the other side of Green Park before turning for home. It turned out to be about 9km which was a lovely way to spend a hour on a sunny Saturday morning in London. I didn’t run particularly fast and I had to stop a few times to consult the map but it felt great and set me up for a splendid breakfast and an excellent weekend all round!
Friday, 8 April 2011
08/04/2011
Last night I went out with the intention of doing three laps of the Racecourse Park followed by two laps of Abington Park, a total of 16km, however by the time I had run the first lap of Abington Park I was tired and my legs hurt. I haven’t had a day off since the 20 miles on Sunday and I thought that discretion would be the better part of valour and I called it a day after 13.5km. I came in at 1:07:46 which is fine as I wasn’t going for a particularly quick time and having to cross the roads always slows me up a bit. I’m having a day off today, although I did do 40 press-ups this morning, off to London tonight and there’s a possibility of a little jaunt around Green Park and Hyde Park tomorrow morning which would be fun! Other than that a weekend of relaxation beckons which is definitely a good idea, then I can hit it hard next week.
Thursday, 7 April 2011
07/04/2011
Yesterday I looked at the marathon training plan which has sat in my bag for the last three months, I had planned to follow it religiously but I never actually started using it. My plan was to run about 50km per week and to do progressively longer runs once a week. This I have done but I thought it might be an idea to see how many 20 mile runs the plan suggested, there was only one in the plan and it was to be done in the 11th week of training (out of 14). I’m now only in the 9th week, so I’ve done it two weeks early. I’m not sure whether that’s a good or bad thing. I’ll have to make sure that I get a couple more longish runs in including at least one half-marathon aiming for 1h50. That shouldn’t be a problem and I know that I do enough speed work over the week with every 10km now being under 50 minutes and the intervals at the gym. All in all the training has gone well, I hope I’ve done enough. As I’ve said before the fact that I can run 20.5 miles must mean that my training has been effective as the furthest I had run before that was 15 miles and I had only ever done that twice.
Last night I thought a little 10km was in order so off I went with slightly protesting legs and I must admit that the first 2.5km lap was hard and I was worried it was slow. It wasn’t and I felt better after each lap, after a sprint finish I came home in 46:56 which was very pleasing and today no real aches. I think that tonight, if I get home in time, perhaps a 14km might be in order or possibly an 11km. The problem is that I’m rubbish at slowing down on the shorter distances, the training programme had plenty of ‘easy 6 mile’ run’s in it but if it’s 10km then I’m not going to be happy if it takes more than 50 minutes and actually now I’m annoyed if it’s over 47!
Last night I thought a little 10km was in order so off I went with slightly protesting legs and I must admit that the first 2.5km lap was hard and I was worried it was slow. It wasn’t and I felt better after each lap, after a sprint finish I came home in 46:56 which was very pleasing and today no real aches. I think that tonight, if I get home in time, perhaps a 14km might be in order or possibly an 11km. The problem is that I’m rubbish at slowing down on the shorter distances, the training programme had plenty of ‘easy 6 mile’ run’s in it but if it’s 10km then I’m not going to be happy if it takes more than 50 minutes and actually now I’m annoyed if it’s over 47!
Wednesday, 6 April 2011
06/04/2011
I went for my planned 5km recovery run on Monday night which was fine but the next day I wondered whether I should not have had a day off instead. My thighs were aching more on Tuesday morning than they had been on Monday and my left calf also felt tight and sore. So with slight trepidation I went to the gym last night with a view to just having a little jog on the treadmill and then powerplate, however once I was on the treadmill and I had started my warm up I felt good so I did my normal 6km of intervals and then 1km of running progressively quicker. I followed this up with weights and then powerplate and today other than a little soreness in the knees and the left calf being a little tight I’m fine.
The 33km run on Sunday showed that I’m capable of running a marathon and that’s really important to me, to know that I can run the distance before I start. How much of that is in my head I’m not sure but there’s definitely something to be said for winning the mental battle with the race before it’s begun. Up until now I’ve done it by going out and running the distance in training, that was fine for 10k and half-marathon but clearly running a training marathon is not a good idea. However I know that I’m going to be ok, I think I’ll take some jelly beans or something to eat along the way to try and ward off the onset of ‘The Wall’. Having said that I’m convinced that a great part of ‘The Wall’ is mental. I was worried that I might hit it at 20 miles but I didn’t I was fine so now I’m confident that as long as I eat peanut butter toast for breakfast I’ll be fine!
The 33km run on Sunday showed that I’m capable of running a marathon and that’s really important to me, to know that I can run the distance before I start. How much of that is in my head I’m not sure but there’s definitely something to be said for winning the mental battle with the race before it’s begun. Up until now I’ve done it by going out and running the distance in training, that was fine for 10k and half-marathon but clearly running a training marathon is not a good idea. However I know that I’m going to be ok, I think I’ll take some jelly beans or something to eat along the way to try and ward off the onset of ‘The Wall’. Having said that I’m convinced that a great part of ‘The Wall’ is mental. I was worried that I might hit it at 20 miles but I didn’t I was fine so now I’m confident that as long as I eat peanut butter toast for breakfast I’ll be fine!
Monday, 4 April 2011
04/04/11
I’m aching a wee bit today as I did manage 33km or 20.5 miles yesterday afternoon! It took me 3:03:20 which is bang on for a sub four hour marathon, so naturally I’m really pleased. I was pretty tired at the end but I’m sure I could have pushed on for the final five and a half miles in an actual race. Needless to say that is the longest run I’ve ever done and coincidentally is almost exactly the distance from my house to work. Today my thighs hurt and so does my left knee but I’m really not in too bad a shape considering the strain I put my body through yesterday.
In a bid to prepare spent most of Saturday eating and had two rounds of toast with peanut butter for breakfast on Sunday morning. That all seemed to work so I think Sarah’s amazing mushroom risotto will be providing the necessary calories the day before the marathon.
I was planning to send the emails to everyone asking them for money yesterday but by the time I had got back from running, showered etc and then made a huge pot of curry it was too late and I was too tired. I’ll try and do it at some point this week, after all it is now only 34 days until ‘M’ day!
I think a recovery run is in order tonight and then definitely the gym tomorrow with a double powerplate session.
In a bid to prepare spent most of Saturday eating and had two rounds of toast with peanut butter for breakfast on Sunday morning. That all seemed to work so I think Sarah’s amazing mushroom risotto will be providing the necessary calories the day before the marathon.
I was planning to send the emails to everyone asking them for money yesterday but by the time I had got back from running, showered etc and then made a huge pot of curry it was too late and I was too tired. I’ll try and do it at some point this week, after all it is now only 34 days until ‘M’ day!
I think a recovery run is in order tonight and then definitely the gym tomorrow with a double powerplate session.
Friday, 1 April 2011
01/04/2011
It’s a mark of how far I’ve come that last night I was slightly disappointed that I ran 10km in 47:08! I think I’d have gone a bit faster if there hadn’t been any wind. I’ve found out that the Woburn Abbey 10k, scene of my PB, has been moved to June from October so I think I’ll target that as an opportunity to beat 44:41. I felt good after the run and although I do ache a bit today I’m getting used to it now.
I have now been training for two months and last months stats look like this:
Training sessions: 22
Total Km run: 236
Abington Park Km: 104.5
Racecourse Km: 77.8
Gym Km: 38.7
Races: Knowle Park 10km (47:05)
Calories burnt: 18772
Longest run: 25.2 km
Overall I upped the mileage quite a lot last month in comparison to the one before, (147km in Feb) and I feel good.
I’m having a complete day off today, not even the weights and press ups in the morning, tomorrow I think a gentle 11km and then wait and see how far I can run on Sunday. I’m hoping to increase from last week’s 25.2km to 33 which is only another three laps of the park, easy! I’m going to give carb loading a try on Saturday night, a few baked potatoes and some roast chicken is the way forward I think.
I have now been training for two months and last months stats look like this:
Training sessions: 22
Total Km run: 236
Abington Park Km: 104.5
Racecourse Km: 77.8
Gym Km: 38.7
Races: Knowle Park 10km (47:05)
Calories burnt: 18772
Longest run: 25.2 km
Overall I upped the mileage quite a lot last month in comparison to the one before, (147km in Feb) and I feel good.
I’m having a complete day off today, not even the weights and press ups in the morning, tomorrow I think a gentle 11km and then wait and see how far I can run on Sunday. I’m hoping to increase from last week’s 25.2km to 33 which is only another three laps of the park, easy! I’m going to give carb loading a try on Saturday night, a few baked potatoes and some roast chicken is the way forward I think.
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