Taper week 1

8^th October

Bailed out on my usual 4 mile recovery jog. Time for a bit of rest and reflection.It must be taper time as the motivation slips a bit.

9^th October

Ran with Mallow Ac but avoided the speed session. Did 6/7 miles with Patrick Buckley and did 3 more myself to give me 10 miles at a easy pace. No Hr information.

10 miles in 1hr.28mins (8.48 pace)

10^th October

Ran up in Mayfield,Cork City for this effort. Every mile and every step was a tedious affair. Didn’t enjoy it one bit. First week of the taper is always a pain but won’t be doing much speedwork this week. The idea is to keep the volume up at a decent level. No doubt about it the taper is a pain. The mind is telling me to rest up and stop running- all the training is done but too severe a cut back could be foolhardy yet not cutting back enough means my body doesn’t get a rest. At the moment the bones feel tired.

11 miles, 8.35 pace, HR 138, 1hr 34mins 35 seconds

 

11^th October

Ran up in Charleville for this one. First mile saw the heavy legs feeling ease somewhat and lo and behold by mile 2 I was feeling more like myself. Having done 11 miles yesterday I didn’t need to do more than 9 miles today but it was important to make it count. Mile 1/2/3 passed in 8.19,7.45,7.47. I was enjoying it too. Miles 4/5/6 passed in 7.43/7.32/7.22. There was no doubt that the legs were very strong too and the speed was increasing yet the effort felt very easy – that floating feeling. Mile 7 passed in 7.23 and by mile 8 I was sprinting all out yet feeling relaxed. That mile passed in a savage 7.04. The last mile finished in 7.17. The whole workout was completed in 1hr08min15seconds for a average pace of 7.35. HR was 152. Again very satisfying.

12^th October/13^th October

Hectic old day on Friday. Suffice to say I was happy to sit on my rear that evening my discomfort worsened by the 6-1 trashing the national soccer received at the hands of Germany. The following morning had planned to do a easy paced 15 mile run but when I had woken up my resting heart rate was very high, nearly 60 beats a minute. Normally it’s under 50 beats these days. I was still feeling very tired and to be honest mentally couldn’t face heading out the door. I was grateful to see the heavy showers too, it meant no painting the back fence either. Cancelled the planned run and was happier for doing so. Won’t be able to do it Sunday either meeting some friends in Cork for a few beers Saturday night. Nothing major just 2 or 3. The last time i had a beer was on the first Friday in September and that was only one!!! Will do the run (hopefully) on Monday. Wisdom has taught me at this stage not to force the body during taperingbut at the same time to try to keep the legs fresh. Neverthless I don’t want to be feeling this lethargic all the time.

I had planned at the end of taper week 1 to do around 45 to 50 miles. Instead I have managed 3 days,running a total of 30 miles. I do need to do that slow run of 17 miles on Monday marking as it does 2 weeks exactly to the Dublin marathon

Weekly mileage 30 miles

Monday 15^th October

I knew I had to do a long run this evening. It was 2 weeks to the Dublin marathon and I knew the legs would start getting sluggish if i didn’t get the last long slow run completed. Unfortunately it had to be done after work up in Cork city which meant I wouldn’t get home to Charleville until 9pm. Anyway the rain was bucketing down when I started and rather than face a last uphill mile I did a few laps of the estate to get the first mile up on my legs. Anyway whatever it was I couldn’t get the legs to go much faster than 9 minute pace. Maybe because I was mentally tuned into a long slow run or maybe it was late in the evening or my legs were just lazy but i was a bit worried. I ran from Mayfield-Mallow rd-Commons rd-Blackpool-Sundays Well-Mardyke-Lee fields and back home up through Montenotte. The whole thing came to 17 and a bit miles and took around 2.33.35. Very slow. Legs felt fine throughout and the average HR was 141.

Total miles 17 miles – 2hr33mins35mins -9.09 pace -141 HR.

Progress Report

Anyway here's my progress report on my training since June. Taper information is not included.

17 weeks training. Total mileage 849.66 (not including taper.)

Average weekly mileage 49.98 miles.

Highest mileage month.-September 235 miles.

Highest weekly mileage: 62.5 miles, 60 miles

Longest runs 21 mile, 21 mile, 22 mile, 20 mile.

Longest run at marathon pace 20 miles with 15 miles at MP.

 Number of other marathon pace training runs 13 miles with 7 miles at MP, 15.5 miles with 8 at MP,21 miles at 12 MP.

PB’s – Cork/Cobh 15 mile race (1.55.35) Charleville half marathon (1.35.50), Donoughmore  7 mile (49.51) 10K Liscarroll (41.42), Ballycotton 5 mile (34.15), Dromcollogher 4 mile race (27.36).

Other races. Clonmel half marathon (1.45.16), Blarney half marathon (1.37.46), Ovens 5k (22.xx).

Injuries. Sore right foot. Slight groin strain (all ok now). 2 more taper weeks left. Will do more specific marathon running this week but I won't be doing a huge amount of mileage

Last full week of training and Cork/Cobh race

3^rd October

Didn’t think I’d even get to run this one. Very tired all morning. As usual my head was doing – Will I run? Won’t I run? Will I do ten miles? Will I do 7 miles? Anyway got up to my mums in Mayfield for this one. Seeing my little niece Charlotte put me in good form and on went the trainers, shorts, garmin and strap. The route in Cork is a mixture of ups and down with a fair old pull from Leitrem st to Montenotte and from Iona Green to Boherboy road. Anyway I licked this one good and proper. Decided to run at a marathon pace and had plenty left when I finished. Miles 7, 8 and 9 were very satisfying. Mile 1-7.54, Mile 2- 7.57, Mile 3 -8.01, Mile 4-7.59, Mile 5 -7.37, Mile 6-7.35, Mile 7-7.51, Mile 8 -7.52, Mile 9 -7.48, Mile 10-7.16. Mile10.2 -1.40.50.

10.2 miles -1.19.35, 7.48 pace, 147 HR

 

 

4^th October

Surprised at how fresh I felt for this one when I got up at 6.30 am. Did 2 miles warm in 16.53 and then settled down for a 8 mile tempo run at a planned 7.15 pace. As it still going to be dark till 7.20 am, I wore the reflective top and decided what route to take. Did 3 laps of the town park, always good for pace, up and down the railway road, a couple of miles out the Cork rd and back home via Newline. In all I covered 8.25 miles in 60 minutes which was great. Felt very fresh and was happy to see the heart rate drop from 155 bpm to 120 in less than  a minute. A excellent workout with the temp portion matching my efforts in the Charleville half marathon over the first hour. I could have covered another couple of miles but felt it was wiser not to. Anyway getting into work on time would have been tricky.

The splits for the 8.25 mile temp were as follows. 7.22,7.19,7.10,7.15,7.22,7.26,7.02,7.13, (58.12) and 0.25 in 1.50.

The average pace works out as 7.17 so I am not quite at the pace I had hoped. Nevertheless I am delighted. Up to a few months ago I could have never ran 8 miles in less than 59 minutes now i feel confident I can do it when needed. I attempted the same workout last month and was 8 seconds quicker this time. Hr is down by 2 beats as well. Pfitzinger calls for 11 miles with 7 tempo. I am happy to say I have improved on it.

5^th October –rest day Friday

6^th October – Had a days painting ahead of me so managed to a easy 5 mile recovery run. Have the Cork/Cobh 15 mile race to-morrow. Don’t intend to race this one but hope to do 5 mile warm up neforehand and run the 15 miles at MP pace. After that it’s taper city...

7^th October

Was up at the ungodly hour at 6.20 am to get ready for the Cork/Cobh race. Collected Tony Murphy at the roundabout in mallow and got the car parked at 7.45 am. I reckon Tony reckoned I must have lost the plot getting there so early for a race that started at 9.30 am and the start line only a 8 minute jog away. Headed up to the Montenotte hotel bumped into a number of fellow mallow runners (Coleman,Pa and Denis). Met my mate Don Golden at 8.30 and off we went for a 5 mile warm up at 10 minute pace. Race started at 9.30 and off we went. I didn’t want to race this one. Rather I wanted to treat this a mini-marathon run in terms of running at marathon pace, taking gels, wearing my marathon gear etc etc. As for the run itself very little to say really. Felt really comfortable all the way with the last two miles very strong. (Ok I raced those!!!) and finished in 1.55.35 which I think is 2 or 3 minutes faster than last year yet with a lot less effort. I ran most of the course with Tony and Neil Holland before pushing ahead a bit at mile 9 or ten. Tony will be running his first marathon in Dublin and I am sure will do very well. One guy at mile 6 called my name. I think his name was James. I didn’t know him but he said he was a follower of the blog which is nice to hear. Was briefly chatting to a lad running on behalf of the Mayfield suicide awareness project. Well done there to all concerned. At mile 12 some girl wearing earphones gave out to me for “running on top of her and giving her a fright”. I explained that she shouldn’t be wearing earphones which lead to her saying something else which I didn’t quite catch. Anyway from mile 7.5 mile onwards only one runner overtook me. When I crossed the line I was very happy with what was essentially a marathon pace training run. Had I raced it I don’t think a 1.50 wasn’t beyond me but recovery might have proved problematic. I have to say I really enjoyed this one. Tony was a minute or so behind me and Neil a minute after that. Don ran a comfortable 2.09, again at marathon pace. A lot of the lads from mallow ran cracking times – Barry, Paudie, Denis, Aidan, Dermot, Noel. They are all going to do great times in their respective races. As for my race I am hopeful.

Splits were as follows. 8.29,7.50,7.46,7.50,7.38,7.47,7.40,7.45,7.38,7.41,7.35,7.42,7.22,7.28,7.19. Total garmin time 1.55.55. Hr 153.

Mileage for the week – 60 miles

Monday 4.16, Tuesday 10.5 miles,Wednesday 10.2 miles, Thursday 10.25 miles, Saturday 5 miles, Sunday 5 mile warm up with 15 mile race. 60 miles

 

The most influential man in my life.....

1^st October

Into October, only a week of training left. No going back now. It’s all about one more good week keeping it nice and steady and pushing my body into a more comfortable place. The 3 week taper is all about the mind, the body won’t be able to improve any further. Did 4 miles at 10 minute pace. HR was 129 which is a record low for this training cycle. A couple of people I have chatting to have noted or read the blog. One of the Mallow guys said since I have my goal out there I have no choice or alternative but to get under 3.30. I never thought of it that way to be honest. The blog is intended as a motivation tool and a ongoing progess report. It certainly wasn’t designed as a ego trip.  I guess my balls are on the chopping block now.... it has to be a sub 3.29.

 By the way congrats to fellow clubmate Ray Kelly on getting 3.28.01 in Berlin. Great going....

2^nd October

Had to forego the club training session this evening. My domestic and work arrangements would have meant too busy a evening when I got in from work. That household stuff – making dinners, changing bins, emptying dishwashers, making lunches etc etc really eats into my time getting home after a 75 minute car journey. My wife is on a busy schedule at the moment so it’s down to me. Don’t know how I would manage marathon training with rearing young kids.

  I also realised the most influential man in my life is the guy who turns the stop/go sign in Rathduff. Catch him at the wrong time and he could add a extra half hour onto your day getting home. Anyway onto the workout.... left the house at 6.50 am. Decided to do a 10.5 mile run. While the heart rate was low the legs still felt heavy so had to take it easy for the first mile. That said I got a shock when it timed the first  mile at 9.32. I certainly felt faster. Thankfully the splits improved but I didn’t want to force it too much either. Was looking to have each mile faster than the previous which was how it turned out. The last few miles were around 7.57 and 7.55. I suppose I could call the workout a progression run but It wasn’t entirely planned that way, it was just the way it turned out. I certainly could have ran for another 4 miles.

On the way to work from Charleville to Cork City I counted at least 15 people out running. It’s definitely a sign of  a running boom and I suspect a sign of the recession. People have a lot of time to kill these days. I have nothing but admiration for the ordinary joggers out there. After all I’m one of them.

10.5 miles – 1.27.16-8.20 pace. Low heart rate 139.

Fast Saturdays, Slow Sundays

29^th September

Getting closer to the taper.Ran 6 miles this morning. Hoping to do it at a snappy enough pace. Mile 1-7.41, Mile 2 – 7.17, Mile 3 -7.21, Mile 4-7.16, Mile 5 -7.08, Mile 6 -7.11. Accepting that the first mile was always going to be slow I was happy enough with the pace over the other 5 miles. Mile 3 dropped by a few seconds but had more to do with a parked car that I had to run around. By mile 6 I could have done another 2-3 miles but had run out of road. Long slow run to-morrow. Sometimes I am rearing and really forward to doing these long runs but not this time. Hopefully my 2 hour kip on the couch will restore my appetite for the road. Going up to Cork City on Saturday for shopping really takes it out of me. Hopefully I won’t be doing that for another while!!!! Anyway this will be my longest run of the training schedule. The objective is to simply stay on the feet for as long as possible. Nothing more than that really. Next Sunday week is the Cork-Cobh 15 mile race. Will be using it a MP run. At the mo’ re-reading Thomas Bubendorfers blog from 2006 when he cracked sub 3.30 in Dublin following Pfitzingers schedule. I of course binned the plan last June but the blog is interesting reading.I do like to re-read it foolish as it is to compare times...

6 miles , 43.55, Hr 159, 7.19 pace

 

30^th September

The day of the LSR. Perhaps my least favourite workout of any marathon programme. I usually run as slow a pace as possible trying to stay on my feet as long as possible. I had hoped to do 23 miles but after doing the usual Mallow- Doneraile-Buttevant-Doneraile-Mallow route which comes to around 20.8 miles I did a extra 1.2 mile loop around Mallow town . At that stage I had run 22 miles in 3 hours 18 minutes but having to do another mile would have served little purpose given the slow pace I was doing. The left knee and groin was getting crankier too so it was wiser to stop. I was running at such a slow pace the rest of the Mallow group had long since gone home but conversation was beyond me anyway. For most of the run I sstayed down the back while  the group ran at various paces. The legs were not responding today so I adopted the right pacing strategy. This was my third 20 plus run in 5 weeks with another possible 20 miler coming up next week so slow was the way too go. My general mood was a bit tired, running 60 plus miles in a week was obviously taking it’s toll. As I say I didn’t particularly enjoy and was glad to get it over with. Maybe it was the rain that did for me. Anyway onward and upward. I have another 60 miles to do next week. The HR was 142 so happy with that and the weekly 62.5 miles. That's a record as is my monthly total of 234 miles.

On a different note glad to see a old friend of mine – Timmy O’Connor call into the house for a chat. He cycled all the way from Meelin to our house stayed for a couple of hours before cycling back again. Some man for the bike....

Monday 4 miles at 10minute pace, Tuesday 10 miles in 1hr28minutes, Wednesday 10.5 miles in 1hr25minutes, Thursday 10 miles with 5X2minute sprints in 1hr.17minutes, Friday rest, Saturday 6 miles at 7.19 pace, Sunday 22 miles at 9 minute pace. Total mileage 62.5 miles

The long week.....2 weeks to taper

24^th September

Still mulling over yesterdays race. Anyway had plenty of time in the car on the way home- another 100 minute car journey. Anyway jogged for 40 mintes or 4 miles but HR was really high – in fact to crazy levels.

4 miles in 40 minutes. HR 144!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

25^th September

It was still dark at 6.52 am when I headed out, a sure sign of the winter nights that are coming. That and the bucketing of rain. Funnily enough I didn’t mind heading out in it and to be fair the worst of the rain had dispersed within 15 minutes. Decided to do a 9 minute pace ten mile run, if only to give the legs a chance to recover and my heart rate had to come down. It was a pace that suited me perfectly but I didn’t have the desire to increase it either, a sure sign to take it handy. Ran a pretty odd route with lots of out and back’s – Love Lane, Smiths Rd, a couple of laps of the town park, up and down the railway road, back to my house and out past the Turrets and back home again. Definitely a route not designed for speed. I felt very relaxed all the way through. The whole took around 1.28.25 (8.50 pace). The heart rate was 140 average so hopefully i can keep it to that for most of the week.. I was worried I was cutting things fine in allowing time for some small core work, shower, shirt and tie and brekkie followed by the ever familiar commute to Cork City.I made it with plenty to spare for my 11.05 class. I like the early morning running , always feel I’m getting one up on the rest of the world.

10 miles – 1hr28mins25seconds/8.50 pace/Hr 140

26^th September

The pattern of my garmin not behaving itself on a Wednesday continued. Had to rely on the stopwatch for this one. Moreover work ran very late and the prospect of futher delays proved less than appealing so I opted for Charleville over Mayfield. Reckon I did at least ten miles (maybe 10.5 miles) in around 1.25.xx. Took it very slow for the first half mile as i running with a slower jogger so the time should be 2 minutes quicker. Anyway felt very comfortable.

10.5 miles -1hr25minsXXseconds.

27^th September

Did 8.47 miles in 1.05 or so (possibly faster) and 5 X 2 minute sprints with walking breaks. In total ran 10 miles in 1hr.16minutes.33seconds.

HR 150

Anyway a picture of me crossing the mat during the Charleville half marathon. My relief is obvious...

Charleville half marathon report

Sunday 23th September

The morning of the half marathon in Charleville was ideal. No long driving or getting up early for this one. Up at 8.30 and down at the start line for 9.40. Did a two mile warm up with Don and his club mate John Morrissey. I was laughing when a steward who looked the worse for wear and munching on a brekkie roll asked what time it was starting on. When we told him he said "Jesus I better get down there so!!!".Priceless.

 It was obvious there was going to be a big crowd today. North Cork AC had laid  on a excellent race the year before and it was obvious the same standard was being reached today. Chatted to a few locals and Mallow club members and introduced myself to one of the pacers and fellow blogger – Grellan McGrath.

Mile 1 is slightly downhill and is fast. Tried to hold myself back but hit it in 7.08- 7 seconds too fast. Went slower for the second mile 7.26 and fell in for a few miles with John and Tim Joe Buckley. We were hitting around 7.15 average pace which was perfect. Mile3/4/5 all passed in 7.11, 7.13 and 7.19. The road to Killmallock is a long and straight but pretty monontous so I was glad to turn into the historical town and under the Norman fortifications. The locals were sparse enough in attendance but were very supportive. Turned right at the church and hit the half way timing mats only a few seconds off target. Mile 6 and 7 passed in 7.11 and 7.01. I knew the next 3 miles were downhill and very fast so I made sure to try to stick to my pace as much as possible. I wrote my splits on my hand and it was great to be able to focus on these these. Mile 8 and mile 9 went in 7.03 and 7.13 which meant I was a few seconds over target. When I hit the timing mats in mile ten in 1.12.25 I was in a strong position to finish in my target time of 1.35. Normally the legs start to fade badly at this stage but when I hit that awful bridge at mile 11 in 7.20 I was confident. I was hoping to power home for the last 2.1 miles but a almighty f*** cramp grabbed hold of my left leg and I was in serious discomfort. The pace started to drop badly and I was struggling badly. I was even beginning to wonder if i would even finish. The tightening around the back of the leg intensified and I was glad for the momentary chat with a Galtee runner to take my mind off things. Aoife Carroll’s shouts of well done was helping as well. Hit mile 12 in 7.30 and I was seriously unhappy. My wife Aoiffe Lowe was standing at the top of Baker’s Road and it was clear she could see I was in trouble. Turning in the finish at St Josephs I did manage to smile and pose for a John Holland photo shot. Hit mile 13 in 7.35 and went under the clock for a garmin time of 1.35.55. The clock time was 1.36.30 or so.

My time was a PB just not the PB I was looking forward for but a PB is a PB. No point in getting away from the fact that I was disappointed with the cramping at mile 11 onwards and the falling pace for the last two miles.it cost me probably 40 odd seconds. When I crossed the line I headed over to the green lay down and lifted the legs onto the tree stump. The heart rate dropped and the legs came back to life. My buddy Don took 5 minutes off his PB (1.42) and is well scheduled to get under 4 hours for Dublin. As for me , well I think the sub 3.30 will be a tight one. I will be sticking to the pacers for that one. As a workout it was a excellent one and as a race it was a good one. This half marathon will be around for a long time to come.

It was great to be able to walk home and enjoy the great feed put on my wife. Nice to see Don, Annette and the kids call in as well. No chance of watching the all Ireland in peace though- have to head to a kiddies birthday party at 4!!!!

2 mile warm up, 13.2 mile half marathon (1.35.55/7.17 pace), 1 mile cooldown walk home.

A sore foot and seasonal musings

Monday 17^th September

4 miles in 38 minutes. Around 9.26 pace. HR 131. Felt a bit stiff before I started but better now. Will take it easy on the speedwork.

Tuesday 18^th September

10.5 miles in 1.26.45. Ran at a medium pace. No club training for next few weeks so made up for it with morning medium long run. Happy enough with the way it went but I wonder if the PF is back these days. Right foot slightly uncomfortable after standing right on top a piece of lose brickwork on the side of the road. Really felt it and landed on the side of the ankle. Ouch!!! Got home no bother but felt the throbbing all day and night

Wednesday 19^th

Right foot still feeling sore. Pain is under the foot on the right side of the arch. I assume the pain is only just bruising caused by my rock stepping incident. Did the whole R.I.C.E thing and took two v strong paracetamol. Hopefully will be a lot better Thursday morning. Fingers crossed it’s only bruising and not PF or even worse a stress fracture. Had to miss out on my proposed 11 mile run up in Mayfield. I had hoped to do 50 miles this week as a cutback week so it now looks like the cutback will be more pronounced. The rest isn’t a bad thing as next two weeks will see a increase to 60 miles plus. Well at least that’s the plan.....

Thursday 20^th September

Went out running at 6.50 am with some amount of trepidation. But after the first uphill mile It was obvious  the foot was going to be ok. Did ten miles in total in 1hr18mins32seconds/7.51 pace. Ran the last 3 miles in around 7.37, 7.28, 7.23. Even though it’s a cutback week I was hoping to get 50 miles up on the legs but may to settle for less this week

Friday 21^st September

A surprisingly tough day in work followed by a 100 minute commute home (yes a 100 minutes!!!) for the 4^th day running had me finished when I came in the door. Not a chance of getting out the door for a run until the throbbing headache went away by which time it was time to do the weekly shopping. By 8.00pm it was time to forget about making up lost mileage and settle down to a bar of Wispa and a bag of Tayto’s and a episode of “Breaking Bad”. Roll on bedtime...

Saturday 22^nd September

Went out for a run at around 9.15 am. Their was a definite chill in the air and while it was a nice sunny morning it is obvious Autumn/Winter temperatures are creeping in. September is usually the most beautiful month of the year to be running on country roads and today was no different. Lovely brown, golden leaves on the trees and on the  ground with the smell of cut grass everywhere. Anyway snapping out of my Wordsworth moment I found it hard for the first 2 miles to get into the run. The legs were defo a bit heavy so I made sure to keep it easy. All the time I was trying not to think about the local half marathon being held to-morrow but was finding it difficult. “What pace will I do?”, “At mile 10 what state will I be in?”, “What’s a good time?/What’s a bad time” etc etc. My fighting words of last week are becoming more cautious by the day.

6 miles at 8.15 pace. 49mins 30 seconds. Hr 144.