Running in the time of COVID part 4

Another good solid weeks running but the weekend was a bit tougher than I expected. The stats are good for me. 31 miles. 5 mls Monday (8.35 pace), 5 mls Tuesday with 3 x 1 miles (7.13, 7.12, 7.11) and 5 miles on Wednesday (8.09) The legs felt good on the Wednesday run. Thursday I pushed on a bit for 6 miles on the Cooleen run but the pace was slower and I was dragging a bit at the end. Friday was a day for cutting the grass and Saturday was given over to painting the walk in wardrobes. That meant the 10 mile run was due for Sunday and from the first mile the whole thing was a real effort. The pace was consistent enough (8.30). I ran the route from my house , down the park (3 laps), the railway run and to Corbett Court and back taking Bakers road on the way home. I was totally out of puff at this point and glad to have it done. It was humid and I should have pre hydrated more. The legs were heavy too. Nevertheless it was job done and sometimes that's ok.

31 miles for the week, (Monday 5 miles, Tuesday 5 miles, Wednesday 5 miles, Thursday 6 miles, Sunday 10 miles.

Running in the time of COVID part 3

The week before last was certainly a good running week. I was taking advantage of the staying at home, no driving into work and resting all day to log  a good running week. The mileage was not particularly high 28 miles but I felt great and really tuned into running. By Sunday morning I wasn't feeling too well, got a throat infection and blisters appearing on the tongue which made eating difficult. I was also feeling pretty crappy. Now while I am 100% positive it wasn't COVID I gave the running a break until I started to feel better and simply went for 3 mile walks instead. The little one was complaining of a sore throat the week previously as was the wife. Therefore it was a matter of time before I picked it up.

It was a nasty bugger too. I was able enough to get the walking in but I was zapped after that so running was out of the question. It disrupted the sleep too and the sore throat was  uncomfortable at times. The mouth blisters were the worst though. Thankfully it had cleared up by Friday allowing me to run a easy 4 miler on Saturday with no ill effects at all.

As a result I ran 5 miles easy pace (8.20) on Monday. I ran a tempo effort on Tuesday, my first in over a year, 3 miles at 7.38 average pace the last mile being the fastest at 7.32 with a mile warmup and cooldown, 5 miles at recovery effort on Wednesday (920 pace). On Thursday I ran a faster run on the Cooleens route covering 5 miles at 7.57 average pace with the last two miles at 7.42 pace. Friday no running and a planned long run over the weekend.The long run was a bit of a effort. The legs were tired and heavy but I was never in any fear of quitting either. I did 10.5 miles at a average pace of 8.25. I was happy with the run.

I think going forward (all going well) I might stick with the 30 -35 miles for a few weeks yet. I'm certainly not that comfortable to run much more than 11 miles on the long run as it is. Anyway all those 2km out and back would drive you twisty.

A good running week - 30.5 miles. The staying at home and not driving in is most definitely paying off. Hopefully there will be races worth entering in the Autumn.

Monday 5 miles Tuesday 5mls with 3 mile tempo at 7.38 average, Wednesday 5 miles, Thursday 5 miles at 7.57 pace, Saturday 10.5 miles at 8.25 pace.

Running in the time of COVID Part 2

Week 3 of the lockdown.

The government have placed restrictions on social mobility. That extends to exercising no more than 2k distance from your home. Before the social restrictions were put in place I was running well - sticking to a schedule of  22 miles and 24 miles in the first two weeks. This meant running 5 miles on a Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and 7/8 miles on a Saturday. I have adjusted my running since, running early in the morning at around 7 am, running 2k loops near my house.

I don't see anyone in the morning and ran 6 miles Monday, Wednesday and Thursday this week all at 7 am..
I leave the running shoes outside the house and basically stay in the house the rest of the day doing the remote teaching thing catching up on a bit of reading and music. It probably sounds boring but we don't mind it all.The running saves me from boredom.

One item of concern is the slight nagging pain in the left ankle, I iced it a lot last week and it did the trick. I can't decide is it tendinitis or ligament strain. The other concern is the strain in my right knee and quad so I am foam rolling that. Hopefully it will sort itself out once I am sensible about it.

The long run went well today. I ran 10 miles today(8.22 pace with last 4 at 8.15 pace) again observing all the social precautions, up early avoiding people, maintaining social distance and observing the 2k radius. I'm not observing the keep it brief rule but (and this is selfish) I  know I am doing no harm. I have seen on Strava runners and cyclists who are really taking the piss including a number of coaches, business leaders and elite runners who should know better. We will see how it goes.

In terms of races (and this is only speculation) I am torn between a few options in Autumn assuming the world hasn't gone into collapse completely.

Stay well, stay safe and stay exercising.