7km today and 29km for the week so far, 27 runs/31 days this month
I went to the gym at lunchtime for 40 minutes today, 20 minutes of free weights and the 20 minutes of core work & push ups. Even though I have only just returned back to the gym I can already notice that my weight circuit is already becoming easier and I have no after the effect feelings the following day. The core work is different as that is easier to make harder with only small changes. The weights I don't want to fall into the normal trap of increasing weights, just reps. Mid afternoon the weather in Melbourne turned very bad, windy, dark and loads of rain... would I run!
For the remainder of the afternoon it kept raining off & on, but when on it was very hard. 5 o'clock came and it was time for me to finish up at work, I decided I would run after a friend reminded me that the run would probably loosen up the legs after the Sunday run. But I wasn't in the mood to get all wet and cold and I didn't have enough change of clothes with me if I did end up getting wet. So I decided to run in the gym on the tready if I could get one, which I did. 6.5km running and a final 500m at a very slow cool down pace. The first km was at 4:50 pace, then 4:40 pace for the 2nd, then 3 & 4 I was sitting on 4:30 pace, the 5th km 4:15 and for the final km I was sitting on 3:30-45. The best aspect of treadmill running during winter is the sweat! Gotta love it.
July's Stats
July's KMs - 293 (missed 4 days of running), last year: 290km
YTD - 1786 (down from last year, 1955km same time)
INJURIES - none
EXCUSES - whilst running a few kms, I have missed many LR
RACES COMPLETED - AV Sandown Relays & State XC Champs
RACES THIS MONTH - AV XC @ Ballarat
GOALS - No real goals for Aug, try and keep the kms up in the high 200s or low 300s. Hopefully I can get some fresh legs for the first Sun in Sep and try for my 3rd time under 90 min for the HM.
I noted that I only raced twice this month which is probably about right even though I didn't race that well in either, I didn't freshen totally for either but... This month I only have the one race so I'll try and manage a few longer runs on the weekends and then try and get the legs right for the Vic HM at Burnely. I weighed myself on Sunday wearing a pair of jeans & no shoes, 78kg.
Monday, 31 July 2006
Sunday, 30 July 2006
Sun 30 Jul 06, a long run at Brimbank
22km today and for the week so far, 26 runs/30 days this month
Well this was an unexpected run. Yesterday at soccer Connor was asked if he was available to play a game with the U9s, which was to be his first game of the real stuff. So off to Sunshine, game started at 12pm and both myself and his mum were present to watch his first game.
This is a picture of Connor (turns 8 in mid Oct), playing his first competitive game of soccer for Hoppers Crossing U9 (No. 3) team, he played 30 of the 40 minutes as a defender, he had loads of fun and enjoyed the game and also a win (6-0).
After the game the boys went home with Julie and I made my way out to Brimbank Park to run along the Maribyrnong river. My run started in the car park near the visitors centre, the first few k's I sat on 4:50ish pace and enjoyed the sun and little wind as i was protected from the trees along the river. Even though I thought it was cool at the start of my run I ended up feeling quite comfy in my CR singlet and shorts and even ended up topless for the last 6km or so, but this was more as a result of nipple rash....
The first 10km of my run was completed in 47:30, I then continued on and ran a km past Cannings Reserve before turning around for the return journey. All up I ran 22km with an average pace of 4:48.
Well this was an unexpected run. Yesterday at soccer Connor was asked if he was available to play a game with the U9s, which was to be his first game of the real stuff. So off to Sunshine, game started at 12pm and both myself and his mum were present to watch his first game.
This is a picture of Connor (turns 8 in mid Oct), playing his first competitive game of soccer for Hoppers Crossing U9 (No. 3) team, he played 30 of the 40 minutes as a defender, he had loads of fun and enjoyed the game and also a win (6-0).
After the game the boys went home with Julie and I made my way out to Brimbank Park to run along the Maribyrnong river. My run started in the car park near the visitors centre, the first few k's I sat on 4:50ish pace and enjoyed the sun and little wind as i was protected from the trees along the river. Even though I thought it was cool at the start of my run I ended up feeling quite comfy in my CR singlet and shorts and even ended up topless for the last 6km or so, but this was more as a result of nipple rash....
The first 10km of my run was completed in 47:30, I then continued on and ran a km past Cannings Reserve before turning around for the return journey. All up I ran 22km with an average pace of 4:48.
Saturday, 29 July 2006
Sat 29 Jul 06, a local run
10.1km today and 77km for the week so far, 25 runs/29 days this month
With no chance of running at the Club's Pack Run today and not being able to do a long run tomorrow, I got up at 6am and was out the door within 15 minutes. On order, I slow & easy run from home. The course is one I have pre-measured, no need for a watch as i had no intention of running fast and I dressed in a long sleeve T so I wouldn't. Cap, LS T, nike tights and shorts over the top with my Kayanos.
This morning my right calf was quite tender, yesterday whilst walking in the pool after my swim I got a massive cramp which took quite awhile to relax and obviously the way it felt this morning was as a result. By the end of the run it felt better, but stretching afterwards I could still slightly feel it, but its nothing to worry about.
Well an active week, 77km, 2 gym sessions & a pool session.
This morning I picked up Connor (7) & Declan (5) to take them to a Fun Day with the Hoppers Soccer Club (jumping castles, face painting etc), whilst waiting for them to finish their breaky I got a shot of me & Kaelan (4 months). Now we are off to to MV to watch the horses and to see if the boys can teach me how to win a trifecta....
With no chance of running at the Club's Pack Run today and not being able to do a long run tomorrow, I got up at 6am and was out the door within 15 minutes. On order, I slow & easy run from home. The course is one I have pre-measured, no need for a watch as i had no intention of running fast and I dressed in a long sleeve T so I wouldn't. Cap, LS T, nike tights and shorts over the top with my Kayanos.
This morning my right calf was quite tender, yesterday whilst walking in the pool after my swim I got a massive cramp which took quite awhile to relax and obviously the way it felt this morning was as a result. By the end of the run it felt better, but stretching afterwards I could still slightly feel it, but its nothing to worry about.
Well an active week, 77km, 2 gym sessions & a pool session.
This morning I picked up Connor (7) & Declan (5) to take them to a Fun Day with the Hoppers Soccer Club (jumping castles, face painting etc), whilst waiting for them to finish their breaky I got a shot of me & Kaelan (4 months). Now we are off to to MV to watch the horses and to see if the boys can teach me how to win a trifecta....
Friday, 28 July 2006
Fri 28 Jul 06, Princes Park & a swim
13km today and 67km for the week so far, 24 runs/28 days this month
I parked on the Tan at 6:40ish dressed in cap, dri fit T with Skins top underneath and shorts I ran up past the Shrine and then doubled back and ran into the city upto Niketown in Bourke St where I met up with Clarkey, PJ & Jarrod, just before 7am.
This mornings suggestion was to run up Swanston and go around Princes Park and then return, which sounded great. A beautiful clear morning with a few cool patches, but the sun was out and there was no wind, so all was good! A nice even paced run, with a bit of a pick up when going around Princes Park, I didn't push to much as I have had a fairly big week, more in quality than kms and of course re-introducing the gym & core work back into my program.
This afternoon I am going to the local aquatic centre for a swim. The plan is 20 laps (1km), hopefully I'll make it and it won't take too long. This evening my aths club are having their AGM, I have nominated for a position (Secretary) after an approximate six month absence from the Committee, I am looking forward to be formally involved again! Again I will be on the Little A's & Senior Club Committee, I now think my personal circumstances have stabalised and will be able to help move Western A's forward.
Added note:Well I survived the swim and managed to slowly swim the 1km, but I reminded myself that I am not very 'swim fit' and I swam more breaststroke than freestyle, esp in the latter laps as it is sooooo much easier. But I must admit without Dave T & Clare being there I wouldn't have done it, like most things, it is easier to do with others.
The AGM last night seen my nomination sucessful and I have returned back to the Western A's Committee as the Secretary.
I parked on the Tan at 6:40ish dressed in cap, dri fit T with Skins top underneath and shorts I ran up past the Shrine and then doubled back and ran into the city upto Niketown in Bourke St where I met up with Clarkey, PJ & Jarrod, just before 7am.
This mornings suggestion was to run up Swanston and go around Princes Park and then return, which sounded great. A beautiful clear morning with a few cool patches, but the sun was out and there was no wind, so all was good! A nice even paced run, with a bit of a pick up when going around Princes Park, I didn't push to much as I have had a fairly big week, more in quality than kms and of course re-introducing the gym & core work back into my program.
This afternoon I am going to the local aquatic centre for a swim. The plan is 20 laps (1km), hopefully I'll make it and it won't take too long. This evening my aths club are having their AGM, I have nominated for a position (Secretary) after an approximate six month absence from the Committee, I am looking forward to be formally involved again! Again I will be on the Little A's & Senior Club Committee, I now think my personal circumstances have stabalised and will be able to help move Western A's forward.
Added note:Well I survived the swim and managed to slowly swim the 1km, but I reminded myself that I am not very 'swim fit' and I swam more breaststroke than freestyle, esp in the latter laps as it is sooooo much easier. But I must admit without Dave T & Clare being there I wouldn't have done it, like most things, it is easier to do with others.
The AGM last night seen my nomination sucessful and I have returned back to the Western A's Committee as the Secretary.
Thursday, 27 July 2006
Thu 27 Jul 06, speed session
9km today and 54km for the week so far, 23 runs/27 days this month
I arrived at the track just after 5pm to the waiting Daves, off we went for our 3 laps of the Complex, with Dave T continuing on for a further 3 laps so he could get a few k's in on the grass. Myself & Dave S did 5-10 minutes of stretching and then I did 3x50m strides with my trainers and then a further 3 with my spikes.
The plan tonight was 10x200m with a slow jog for recovery, pace 35 sec.
Splits (recovery):
33.79 (1.20) - a little too fast
34.62 (1.18)
35.10 (1.20)
34.79 (1.25)
34.00 (2.12) - walked the recovery
33.80 (1.30) - too fast, we chased a group
35.01 (1.29)
34.50 (1.25)
34.20 (1.30)
32.38 (walked 300m)
There were 3 of us tonight, Rorie (14) joined us from the start of the 2nd rep, so we were spread over 2 lanes, each lap running either on the inside, middle or outside and swapping each rep, the outside lane was always a tad harder. The final 3 reps I knew that Dave & Rorie were still going hard and were crossing the line just before me each time. After the final rep we walked the 300 back to our gear and got dressed into warmer clothes and finished with 4 slow laps for our cool down.
I arrived at the track just after 5pm to the waiting Daves, off we went for our 3 laps of the Complex, with Dave T continuing on for a further 3 laps so he could get a few k's in on the grass. Myself & Dave S did 5-10 minutes of stretching and then I did 3x50m strides with my trainers and then a further 3 with my spikes.
The plan tonight was 10x200m with a slow jog for recovery, pace 35 sec.
Splits (recovery):
33.79 (1.20) - a little too fast
34.62 (1.18)
35.10 (1.20)
34.79 (1.25)
34.00 (2.12) - walked the recovery
33.80 (1.30) - too fast, we chased a group
35.01 (1.29)
34.50 (1.25)
34.20 (1.30)
32.38 (walked 300m)
There were 3 of us tonight, Rorie (14) joined us from the start of the 2nd rep, so we were spread over 2 lanes, each lap running either on the inside, middle or outside and swapping each rep, the outside lane was always a tad harder. The final 3 reps I knew that Dave & Rorie were still going hard and were crossing the line just before me each time. After the final rep we walked the 300 back to our gear and got dressed into warmer clothes and finished with 4 slow laps for our cool down.
Wednesday, 26 July 2006
Wed 26 Jul 06, gym & Yarra run
12.3km today and 45km for the week so far, 22 runs/26 days this month
In the gym during my lunch break, just over 35 minutes, again starting with free weights for just over 15 minutes, 3 sets of selected exercises first set reps of 12, then 10 and for the final set 8. Then finishing off with 20 minutes of core & punching bag work. The abs are a little sore especially the obliques.
Tonight's run started from work, Victoria Barracks in St Kilda Rd, Burkie's instructions were approx 60 min and sit around the 5 min area. With Garmin on, singlet & shorts I took off towards the Yarra along St Kilda Rd, over the Princess Bridge and down along the Yarra upto Mac Robertson bridge, crossed the freeway & river and made my way back to St Kilda Rd and back to the barracks. Generally sitting on 5 min pace, I ran 12.3km in 58:55. Not a bad night, a lot of runners on the roads, the Nylex clock was saying the air temp was 13 degrees, so a nice pleasant evening for this time of the year.
In the gym during my lunch break, just over 35 minutes, again starting with free weights for just over 15 minutes, 3 sets of selected exercises first set reps of 12, then 10 and for the final set 8. Then finishing off with 20 minutes of core & punching bag work. The abs are a little sore especially the obliques.
Tonight's run started from work, Victoria Barracks in St Kilda Rd, Burkie's instructions were approx 60 min and sit around the 5 min area. With Garmin on, singlet & shorts I took off towards the Yarra along St Kilda Rd, over the Princess Bridge and down along the Yarra upto Mac Robertson bridge, crossed the freeway & river and made my way back to St Kilda Rd and back to the barracks. Generally sitting on 5 min pace, I ran 12.3km in 58:55. Not a bad night, a lot of runners on the roads, the Nylex clock was saying the air temp was 13 degrees, so a nice pleasant evening for this time of the year.
Tuesday, 25 July 2006
Tue 25 Jul 06, speed session
10km today and 32km for the week so far, 21 runs/25 days this month
After Saturday's race I mentioned to Dave that we would look for a different session for tonight as the 1k reps were becoming slightly stale, at the same time mentioning that would be no more favours for Dave as he kicked my butt at Jells :-) . This meaning no more skipping reps or getting all of the inside running. Whilst we were cooling down I noticed Mona and suggested that we do the Mona session, so I said I would find the session on the net and then discuss with Burkie.
This afternoon I found the session on a website, cleared it with Burkie and confirmed our 5km training pace, should be approx 88 sec per 400m. The Mona session could easily be done anywhere, trail, road, the Tan or track, we were doing it on the track.
The plan:
* 2 x 90 sec @ 5k pace with 90 sec float recovery
* 4 x 60 sec @ 5k pace with 60 sec float recovery
* 4 x 30 sec @ 5k pace with 30 sec float recovery
* 4 x 15 sec @ 5k pace with 15 sec float recovery
We started with the normal warm up, there were 3 of us tonight, both Daves & myself, Dave T is slowly returning from a shin problem and we are hoping his bike work and now some light running on the grassed areas will see him return soon. Some stretching and chatting and then into the session.
We did the session, worked up a good sweat, both of us were slightly surprised, we thought it would be harder, don't get me wrong, it was a good workout, we just thought we would struggle more. The early reps (90 & 60 sec efforts) we were able to guage our lap times around 85 sec area, so a little quicker than expected. 85 sec per lap equates to an 18 min run, which neither of us are capable of, my PB is 18:45.
We finished off with 3 laps of the grassed area on the inside of the track immediately after our last 15 sec effort.
Chatted with Burkie afterwards, he thought our floats were a good pace and I asked about my arm action, which was fine. Peter suggested a casual run tmw, no faster than 5 min pace and upto one hour, no more. So the Yarra & the Tan for me, sometime after work.
After Saturday's race I mentioned to Dave that we would look for a different session for tonight as the 1k reps were becoming slightly stale, at the same time mentioning that would be no more favours for Dave as he kicked my butt at Jells :-) . This meaning no more skipping reps or getting all of the inside running. Whilst we were cooling down I noticed Mona and suggested that we do the Mona session, so I said I would find the session on the net and then discuss with Burkie.
This afternoon I found the session on a website, cleared it with Burkie and confirmed our 5km training pace, should be approx 88 sec per 400m. The Mona session could easily be done anywhere, trail, road, the Tan or track, we were doing it on the track.
The plan:
* 2 x 90 sec @ 5k pace with 90 sec float recovery
* 4 x 60 sec @ 5k pace with 60 sec float recovery
* 4 x 30 sec @ 5k pace with 30 sec float recovery
* 4 x 15 sec @ 5k pace with 15 sec float recovery
We started with the normal warm up, there were 3 of us tonight, both Daves & myself, Dave T is slowly returning from a shin problem and we are hoping his bike work and now some light running on the grassed areas will see him return soon. Some stretching and chatting and then into the session.
We did the session, worked up a good sweat, both of us were slightly surprised, we thought it would be harder, don't get me wrong, it was a good workout, we just thought we would struggle more. The early reps (90 & 60 sec efforts) we were able to guage our lap times around 85 sec area, so a little quicker than expected. 85 sec per lap equates to an 18 min run, which neither of us are capable of, my PB is 18:45.
We finished off with 3 laps of the grassed area on the inside of the track immediately after our last 15 sec effort.
Chatted with Burkie afterwards, he thought our floats were a good pace and I asked about my arm action, which was fine. Peter suggested a casual run tmw, no faster than 5 min pace and upto one hour, no more. So the Yarra & the Tan for me, sometime after work.
Monday, 24 July 2006
Mon 24 Jul 06, gym & a run from home
13km today and 22km for the week so far, 20 runs/24 days this month
Started my physical day in the gym at lunch, 15 minutes of light weights with very little rest, reps of 12 and of varying types, predominantly back, chest & arm. Then for 20 minutes I did core work which was broken up with 2 min work on a punching bag to break the core work up every 5 minutes which allowed the sweat to keep flowing.
My run tonight was from home, singlet, shorts & red flashing light attached to my arm with Garmin. The run was 12.6km in 56:30, I started hanging around 4:50ish pace, after 15 min or so I picked the pace up and sat in 4:40 area and the final 4-5 km the pace was a touch faster, generally 4:15-20 area. A pleasant run with nice conditions and a good sweat.
Started my physical day in the gym at lunch, 15 minutes of light weights with very little rest, reps of 12 and of varying types, predominantly back, chest & arm. Then for 20 minutes I did core work which was broken up with 2 min work on a punching bag to break the core work up every 5 minutes which allowed the sweat to keep flowing.
My run tonight was from home, singlet, shorts & red flashing light attached to my arm with Garmin. The run was 12.6km in 56:30, I started hanging around 4:50ish pace, after 15 min or so I picked the pace up and sat in 4:40 area and the final 4-5 km the pace was a touch faster, generally 4:15-20 area. A pleasant run with nice conditions and a good sweat.
Sunday, 23 July 2006
Sun 23 Jul 06, a recovery run
9km today and for the week so far, 19 runs/23 days this month
My legs felt a little heavy today, as per normal after a race, but not to bad, just a little tight & heavy in the quads. This morning I meet up with a friend for a 60 minute run, a deal has been struck...she runs 60 minutes with me today and I will do 20 laps (in one hit) of the local pool within the next 7 days.
A slow & easy run at the You Yangs on one of the horse trails that isn't too hilly. A very pleasant morning, nice weather, and was more than comfortable running in a tech T and shorts. We sat around 6:15-30 pace, chatting. Well the deal has been set and I will have to swim this week, or else....
Which obviously is a great idea as I am very aware of the benefits of swimming, I just tend to dodge the cross training. But I am going to re-introduce some lunchtime cardio & weights and the plan is at least once a week, but preferably twice.
The results for this weekend's race are already on the AV web site, which is very impressive, both the teams
and the individual. The Western A' men in Div 4 managed to finish 3rd which was very surprising and the women in Div 2 finished 8th. The men's state title was one by Collis Birmingham for his first title and I suspect he is a name that the general public will get to know very well in years to come. I managed to finish 243rd out of 346 in the men's race. Next race is another Cross COuntry race, 8km at the Ballarat Uni in a fortnight.
My legs felt a little heavy today, as per normal after a race, but not to bad, just a little tight & heavy in the quads. This morning I meet up with a friend for a 60 minute run, a deal has been struck...she runs 60 minutes with me today and I will do 20 laps (in one hit) of the local pool within the next 7 days.
A slow & easy run at the You Yangs on one of the horse trails that isn't too hilly. A very pleasant morning, nice weather, and was more than comfortable running in a tech T and shorts. We sat around 6:15-30 pace, chatting. Well the deal has been set and I will have to swim this week, or else....
Which obviously is a great idea as I am very aware of the benefits of swimming, I just tend to dodge the cross training. But I am going to re-introduce some lunchtime cardio & weights and the plan is at least once a week, but preferably twice.
The results for this weekend's race are already on the AV web site, which is very impressive, both the teams
and the individual. The Western A' men in Div 4 managed to finish 3rd which was very surprising and the women in Div 2 finished 8th. The men's state title was one by Collis Birmingham for his first title and I suspect he is a name that the general public will get to know very well in years to come. I managed to finish 243rd out of 346 in the men's race. Next race is another Cross COuntry race, 8km at the Ballarat Uni in a fortnight.
Saturday, 22 July 2006
Sat 22 Jul 06, AV State XC Champs
17km today and 74km for the week so far, 18 runs/22 days this month
A cold and windy morning filled with Little A's XC & then soccer but the afternoon at Wheelers Hill (Jells Park) was a pleasant winters day, with little wind and a top temp of 15 degrees. The men's race was to start at 2:45pm, but I arrived early to support our U20 men & the open women. The majority of the men's team warmed up together and ran an easy lap of the 3k course, just to familarise ourselves, then some stretching and a few strides and lots of chatting with guys & girls from other clubs who I have got to know very well throughout the past few years.
On the start line I started with the Western A' bunch and nearby were Clarkey (invite runner) & TB (Richmond), the gun went and I waved goodbye to Tony. Myself & Clarkey were near each other for the first 3k but he steadily moved away, with the formula of lots of long runs helping to build both of these guys into quite strong runners at the moment (meaning ahead of me). I appeared to be running near the usual faces so I was fairly happy with my pacing but after a few hints from the coach in the final 5k or so, I realised I hadn't been concentrating on my arm action or using the down hill to my advantage.
Splits:
12.36
13.23
13.35
13.54 (this includes the added 150m final straight)
The course didn't suit me, but then what course does, but overall I was fairly happy with the run, I approached the race in a positive manner and didn't have any head games (why why why sort of thing). I will probably start to run better when I manage a few consistent weeks, so hopefully Ballarat will start to show some benefit of the past 2-3 weeks.
This picture was taken with my phone at soccer on Saturday morning. Kaelan is four months old now.
A cold and windy morning filled with Little A's XC & then soccer but the afternoon at Wheelers Hill (Jells Park) was a pleasant winters day, with little wind and a top temp of 15 degrees. The men's race was to start at 2:45pm, but I arrived early to support our U20 men & the open women. The majority of the men's team warmed up together and ran an easy lap of the 3k course, just to familarise ourselves, then some stretching and a few strides and lots of chatting with guys & girls from other clubs who I have got to know very well throughout the past few years.
On the start line I started with the Western A' bunch and nearby were Clarkey (invite runner) & TB (Richmond), the gun went and I waved goodbye to Tony. Myself & Clarkey were near each other for the first 3k but he steadily moved away, with the formula of lots of long runs helping to build both of these guys into quite strong runners at the moment (meaning ahead of me). I appeared to be running near the usual faces so I was fairly happy with my pacing but after a few hints from the coach in the final 5k or so, I realised I hadn't been concentrating on my arm action or using the down hill to my advantage.
Splits:
12.36
13.23
13.35
13.54 (this includes the added 150m final straight)
The course didn't suit me, but then what course does, but overall I was fairly happy with the run, I approached the race in a positive manner and didn't have any head games (why why why sort of thing). I will probably start to run better when I manage a few consistent weeks, so hopefully Ballarat will start to show some benefit of the past 2-3 weeks.
This picture was taken with my phone at soccer on Saturday morning. Kaelan is four months old now.
Thursday, 20 July 2006
Thu 20 Jul 06, short & sharp, but bloody cold!
7km today and 57km for the week so far, 17 runs/20 days this month
A beautiful day, blue skys and no wind, but cold cold cold! Arrived nice and early at the track and quickly got into my warm up of 3 laps of the Complex, stretching and 5x60m strides.
A change tonight from Burkie, he thought it was time we had a change and so 6 x 300m at 54-55 sec with 90 sec recovery. Tonight I was wearing adidas T, shorts & skins with my flats, I thought I would be warm enough, but in hindsight I needed my GLOVES!
Tonight I forgot my watch, luckily Dave had his, so we were ok. The reps were fastish but not killers and of course a good ploy by Burkie shortening the distance & recovery but slightly increasing the pace.
Splits (all recoveries were 90-91 sec):
54.2
53.8
54.1
54.1
54.1
53.7
I was so impressed in the consistency, but to be honest, I do prefer the longer reps. But Burkie did mention that it is time for the recoveries to be dramatically reduced because he thinks I am starting to cruise the sessions, poor Dave, he rolled his eyes.
No running tomorrow, I would have enjoyed a small swim (very small) and to sit in a spa and relax a bit tonight, but I couldn't afford the trip to the very expensive aquatic centre, maybe tmw.
A beautiful day, blue skys and no wind, but cold cold cold! Arrived nice and early at the track and quickly got into my warm up of 3 laps of the Complex, stretching and 5x60m strides.
A change tonight from Burkie, he thought it was time we had a change and so 6 x 300m at 54-55 sec with 90 sec recovery. Tonight I was wearing adidas T, shorts & skins with my flats, I thought I would be warm enough, but in hindsight I needed my GLOVES!
Tonight I forgot my watch, luckily Dave had his, so we were ok. The reps were fastish but not killers and of course a good ploy by Burkie shortening the distance & recovery but slightly increasing the pace.
Splits (all recoveries were 90-91 sec):
54.2
53.8
54.1
54.1
54.1
53.7
I was so impressed in the consistency, but to be honest, I do prefer the longer reps. But Burkie did mention that it is time for the recoveries to be dramatically reduced because he thinks I am starting to cruise the sessions, poor Dave, he rolled his eyes.
No running tomorrow, I would have enjoyed a small swim (very small) and to sit in a spa and relax a bit tonight, but I couldn't afford the trip to the very expensive aquatic centre, maybe tmw.
Wednesday, 19 July 2006
Wed 19 Jul 06, city run
11km today and 50km for the week so far, 16 runs/19 days this month
Plan: 60 minute easy paced run around the Tan & along the Yarra River after work and before it is dark. Clothes:singlet, tech T over the top, shorts & Kayano shoes.
I started my run on the Tan near Government Drive, ran anticlockwise on the Tan, once at the bottom of Anderson St, I crossed the road at the Morrell Bridge and ran along the Yarra. The first 15 minutes I was aware of the cool air on my legs and especially at the casual pace. Near a boatshed on the river I spotted my track training partner, Dave had just finished a kayak session with some guys from the VIS, a quick hello and chat. I quickly noticed within a minute or so I was feeling the cold, so a goodbye and back off and running. Over MacRobertson bridge and then made my way back along the river towards Southbank on the city side.
Once back near Olympic Park I decided I had done enough so I back tracked to Morrell Bridge and over to the Tan and ran back to my car, where I spotted Rupert from Knox AC/RW forum. Stretched a little, towelled down, change of clothes, track pants on and then off home. All up I was running for 52-54 min (no watch tonight), and easily ran 11k or more.
Plan: 60 minute easy paced run around the Tan & along the Yarra River after work and before it is dark. Clothes:singlet, tech T over the top, shorts & Kayano shoes.
I started my run on the Tan near Government Drive, ran anticlockwise on the Tan, once at the bottom of Anderson St, I crossed the road at the Morrell Bridge and ran along the Yarra. The first 15 minutes I was aware of the cool air on my legs and especially at the casual pace. Near a boatshed on the river I spotted my track training partner, Dave had just finished a kayak session with some guys from the VIS, a quick hello and chat. I quickly noticed within a minute or so I was feeling the cold, so a goodbye and back off and running. Over MacRobertson bridge and then made my way back along the river towards Southbank on the city side.
Once back near Olympic Park I decided I had done enough so I back tracked to Morrell Bridge and over to the Tan and ran back to my car, where I spotted Rupert from Knox AC/RW forum. Stretched a little, towelled down, change of clothes, track pants on and then off home. All up I was running for 52-54 min (no watch tonight), and easily ran 11k or more.
Tuesday, 18 July 2006
Tue 18 Jul 06, 5 x 1k reps
10km today and 39km for the week so far, 15 runs/18 days this month
Some company for my speed session tonight with Dave S, we warmed up by completing 3 laps of the VU Complex and then stretched. On order tonight was 5k worth of quality and the choice was ours on how we would do this, but the orders were floating recoveries and pace was to be slightly faster than 10k pace. So we decided 5 x 1k @ 3:50-55 with a 200m float.
Dave was unsure how he would go so I he remained on the inside and I ran on lane 1/2. Remember tonight, relax, enjoy, do not do too fast, keep those recoveries brief and use the arms and relax the shoulders.
Splits (recovery):
3:53 (1:27)
3:50 (1:32)
3:55 (1:35)
3:52 (1:36)
3:58
I found tonight's session very easy and enjoyed chatting to Dave (I did most of the talking), the last rep was a touch too slow, I wanted to ensure that we finished together and I didn't want to speed up for the last rep. The recoveries were too long, but again, I wanted company tonight. A four lap cool down and a little bit of stretching, as per normal it cooled down quickly and getting home seemed more important.
Some good news, we (Burkie & I) have managed to convince 2 of the first year XC guys that they are more than capable of running 12km of XC, which is excellent, at least one or both of them will finish in front of me and I didn't want my time being used in Div 4. So at the moment Western A' men have 7, I just need 2 more and I just might be able to pull that off!
Some company for my speed session tonight with Dave S, we warmed up by completing 3 laps of the VU Complex and then stretched. On order tonight was 5k worth of quality and the choice was ours on how we would do this, but the orders were floating recoveries and pace was to be slightly faster than 10k pace. So we decided 5 x 1k @ 3:50-55 with a 200m float.
Dave was unsure how he would go so I he remained on the inside and I ran on lane 1/2. Remember tonight, relax, enjoy, do not do too fast, keep those recoveries brief and use the arms and relax the shoulders.
Splits (recovery):
3:53 (1:27)
3:50 (1:32)
3:55 (1:35)
3:52 (1:36)
3:58
I found tonight's session very easy and enjoyed chatting to Dave (I did most of the talking), the last rep was a touch too slow, I wanted to ensure that we finished together and I didn't want to speed up for the last rep. The recoveries were too long, but again, I wanted company tonight. A four lap cool down and a little bit of stretching, as per normal it cooled down quickly and getting home seemed more important.
Some good news, we (Burkie & I) have managed to convince 2 of the first year XC guys that they are more than capable of running 12km of XC, which is excellent, at least one or both of them will finish in front of me and I didn't want my time being used in Div 4. So at the moment Western A' men have 7, I just need 2 more and I just might be able to pull that off!
Monday, 17 July 2006
Mon 17 Jul 06, Albert Park Lake + a bit
8.5km today and 29km for the week so far, 14 runs/17 days this month
I decided this morning I would run at lunch and enjoy running again in the daylight hours, 8k or so, either a few laps of the Tan, Albert Park or the river was the plan. Today's forecast was 15 degrees, sounded nice and mild so i brought a singlet and shorts only.....wrong.
I left the office at 12:15pm, not sure what the temp was but it was cool & windy, but a singlet was it! I left the barracks and made my way towards Albert Park, not a place Inormally go when windy, but I was in a good mood and I thought I may as well enjoy a casual jog around the lake, I hadn't been there for awhile.
Hoping to sit around 4:45 pace today, I used the lap function once I got to the markers. Known splits; 4.42, 4.40, 4.35, 4.25 & 4.21, a bit fast so I slowed down to probably 4:40ish pace and made my back to the Barracks, finishing with a lap of the exterior to get the distance upto 8.5 for the day.
Stretched and enjoyed a couple of poached eggs of rye with vegemite followed by some diced peaches (140g snack pack), yum.
I had a chat with Burkie this morning and we briefly spoke regarding the weeks work prior to the State XC Champs at Jells Park (12km), easy 8-10 today with stretching, tue - 1k reps, probably only 5/6 @ 10k pace, Wed easy 60 minutes, Thu - a handful of 400s, rest on Friday. Last year I ran 49:23 on what may have been a slightly short course at , but it was still a good run and I actually out raced a few people who I have only beaten that day, every other time they have beaten me, so I was very satified. This year I am running slightly better than last year but not as satisfied, if that makes sense. Maybe I am aiming to high and my expectations far outweigh my ability, but I think that I was running so well prior to my operation that I am waiting for that form to return.
This is a profile of the Jells Park course, minus the last 100 metres or so, the race is a 4 lap 3k course and some believe it will be slightly easier than the Bundoora course of previous years, but if the wet remains the course could become very 'boggy'. I am hoping to have a very controlled start so I can try and work and attack the hills in the final 2 laps.
I decided this morning I would run at lunch and enjoy running again in the daylight hours, 8k or so, either a few laps of the Tan, Albert Park or the river was the plan. Today's forecast was 15 degrees, sounded nice and mild so i brought a singlet and shorts only.....wrong.
I left the office at 12:15pm, not sure what the temp was but it was cool & windy, but a singlet was it! I left the barracks and made my way towards Albert Park, not a place Inormally go when windy, but I was in a good mood and I thought I may as well enjoy a casual jog around the lake, I hadn't been there for awhile.
Hoping to sit around 4:45 pace today, I used the lap function once I got to the markers. Known splits; 4.42, 4.40, 4.35, 4.25 & 4.21, a bit fast so I slowed down to probably 4:40ish pace and made my back to the Barracks, finishing with a lap of the exterior to get the distance upto 8.5 for the day.
Stretched and enjoyed a couple of poached eggs of rye with vegemite followed by some diced peaches (140g snack pack), yum.
I had a chat with Burkie this morning and we briefly spoke regarding the weeks work prior to the State XC Champs at Jells Park (12km), easy 8-10 today with stretching, tue - 1k reps, probably only 5/6 @ 10k pace, Wed easy 60 minutes, Thu - a handful of 400s, rest on Friday. Last year I ran 49:23 on what may have been a slightly short course at , but it was still a good run and I actually out raced a few people who I have only beaten that day, every other time they have beaten me, so I was very satified. This year I am running slightly better than last year but not as satisfied, if that makes sense. Maybe I am aiming to high and my expectations far outweigh my ability, but I think that I was running so well prior to my operation that I am waiting for that form to return.
This is a profile of the Jells Park course, minus the last 100 metres or so, the race is a 4 lap 3k course and some believe it will be slightly easier than the Bundoora course of previous years, but if the wet remains the course could become very 'boggy'. I am hoping to have a very controlled start so I can try and work and attack the hills in the final 2 laps.Sunday, 16 July 2006
Sun 16 Jul 06, Club 'pack' run, Woodlands Park
20.5km today and for the week so far, 13 runs/16 days this month
Due to weather and availability we moved our Sat Club run from Sat to Sun, which fitted in with me excellently. I dropped my boys at home in the morning and then enjoyed a lateish (after 10) breaky at a Cafe for the first time in a few months.
I made my way out to the Woodlands Historic Park earlier than the rest of the runners so I could get 8-10k in prior.
The weather was ok, well for this time of the year, so I ran in a singlet, tights & shorts. So as soon as I arrived I got ready and was off asap. With my Garmin today I wanted to make sure I sat between 4:50 & 5:00, and no slower than 5:10 up the hills. At times I was slightly faster than this and arrived back at the BBQ area at 2ish in mid 42 minutes, running 8.9km. I chucked a jacket on and just slowly jogged around whilst waiting for everyone else to get ready, probably 5 minutes.
I was asked if my plan was similar to one of the 16 year old distance girls and help her sit just below 5 min pace, which was my plan, so off with Bec for 50-60 minutes. We started a tad faster than she should have back within 5-7 min we were comfortably on pace and chatting for the entire time. A couple of the fast guys sat with us for about 3km but then moved on.
Running just over 11.5km on the second run easily put me over 20km for the day, which was all done at a very comfortable cruising pace. Plan for the week is nothing too hard, a few km's but not too much as it would be nice if some of the hills at Jells seem a little easy, but probably not.
Due to weather and availability we moved our Sat Club run from Sat to Sun, which fitted in with me excellently. I dropped my boys at home in the morning and then enjoyed a lateish (after 10) breaky at a Cafe for the first time in a few months.
I made my way out to the Woodlands Historic Park earlier than the rest of the runners so I could get 8-10k in prior.
The weather was ok, well for this time of the year, so I ran in a singlet, tights & shorts. So as soon as I arrived I got ready and was off asap. With my Garmin today I wanted to make sure I sat between 4:50 & 5:00, and no slower than 5:10 up the hills. At times I was slightly faster than this and arrived back at the BBQ area at 2ish in mid 42 minutes, running 8.9km. I chucked a jacket on and just slowly jogged around whilst waiting for everyone else to get ready, probably 5 minutes.
I was asked if my plan was similar to one of the 16 year old distance girls and help her sit just below 5 min pace, which was my plan, so off with Bec for 50-60 minutes. We started a tad faster than she should have back within 5-7 min we were comfortably on pace and chatting for the entire time. A couple of the fast guys sat with us for about 3km but then moved on.
Running just over 11.5km on the second run easily put me over 20km for the day, which was all done at a very comfortable cruising pace. Plan for the week is nothing too hard, a few km's but not too much as it would be nice if some of the hills at Jells seem a little easy, but probably not.
Friday, 14 July 2006
Fri 14 Jul 06, around the G & the Tan after work
8km today and 52km for the week so far, 12 runs/14 days this month
I was hoping to run in the morning I forgot to set my alarm, so waking up at 7:05am was too late for a morning run, so I took my running gear to work to run either at lunch or after. I ended up running after work in the city before going back to home.
This afternoon's run is one I used to do quite a bit a few years ago, from Victoria Barracks down St Kilda Rd over the Yarra and then along the river until the Tennis Centre, around the G, over to Goschs Paddock, up Anderson St and finish on the Tan where I parked my car. Stretched, towelled myself dry and then went home, quick shower and then picked up 2 of my boys who are staying for 2 nights.
Plan for tomorrow's Club 'pack' run is at Gellibrand, there is a hill which is a few hundred metres which I can run up and then run down on an angle and then jog the flat (making a triangle) and then back up again and do this 8-10 times. This will allow the boys to run around but always be able to see me and I still get a few kms in, but the weather isn't looking the best for the w/e and I won't be subjecting them to an afternoon of watching dad in the rain. I'll get my Sunday run in after I drop them at home early for their mum's birthday breakfast.
I was hoping to run in the morning I forgot to set my alarm, so waking up at 7:05am was too late for a morning run, so I took my running gear to work to run either at lunch or after. I ended up running after work in the city before going back to home.
This afternoon's run is one I used to do quite a bit a few years ago, from Victoria Barracks down St Kilda Rd over the Yarra and then along the river until the Tennis Centre, around the G, over to Goschs Paddock, up Anderson St and finish on the Tan where I parked my car. Stretched, towelled myself dry and then went home, quick shower and then picked up 2 of my boys who are staying for 2 nights.
Plan for tomorrow's Club 'pack' run is at Gellibrand, there is a hill which is a few hundred metres which I can run up and then run down on an angle and then jog the flat (making a triangle) and then back up again and do this 8-10 times. This will allow the boys to run around but always be able to see me and I still get a few kms in, but the weather isn't looking the best for the w/e and I won't be subjecting them to an afternoon of watching dad in the rain. I'll get my Sunday run in after I drop them at home early for their mum's birthday breakfast.
Thursday, 13 July 2006
Thu 13 Jul 06, 6 x 400m was the plan
5km today and 43.5km for the week so far, 11 runs/13 days this month
I arrived at the track just after 5.30pm, again to train by myself. I dropped my bag straight away and started my 5 laps to warm up in lane 8, a few strides and some stretching got me ready for a nice quick session.
I had chatted with Burkie on the phone yesterday arvo so I already knew the planned session, 6 x 400 @ 75 but reduce the 2 minute recovery by 15 sec each fortnight, but today I started my reps too quick.
Splits: (recovery were 1:45)
71.5
71.3
72.5
76.1
81.2
All over 'red rover', I was so untidy on the 5th rep I called it quits. Finished off with a lap of walking and 2 laps of jogging & some stretching. Burkie laughed.
I arrived at the track just after 5.30pm, again to train by myself. I dropped my bag straight away and started my 5 laps to warm up in lane 8, a few strides and some stretching got me ready for a nice quick session.
I had chatted with Burkie on the phone yesterday arvo so I already knew the planned session, 6 x 400 @ 75 but reduce the 2 minute recovery by 15 sec each fortnight, but today I started my reps too quick.
Splits: (recovery were 1:45)
71.5
71.3
72.5
76.1
81.2
All over 'red rover', I was so untidy on the 5th rep I called it quits. Finished off with a lap of walking and 2 laps of jogging & some stretching. Burkie laughed.
Wednesday, 12 July 2006
Wed 12 Jul 06, the Tan & an easy evening run
17.5km today so far and 38.5km for the week so far, 10 runs/12 days this month
Lunchtime run with the Melbourne Midday Milers , a race around the Tan in a handicap format, using known Tan times and other short and recent races. I wasn't to worried what handicap I would be given as I knew I would be handicapped slightly harder as I don't race Corporate Cup and this policy is used to stop 'ring in' times. The last time I raced the Tan was Oct 05, 14:42 which is my PB. I was hoping to get close but needed to take in account I have already had 2 days of good training which may slow me up a bit, but I was hoping.
I was about the 5-8th runner off out of 22 runners, starting from the 'Pillars', I was hoping to hit the 1k mark in 3:45 and then sub 4 min for the harder 2nd km and at the 2k mark I was still going well. The final 500m or so I was starting to become very untidy and losing form but I knew a PB was very close so I tried to fight on, hitting the line in 14:29, a 13 second PB. Very happy.
Splits: 3:42 3:59 3:46 3:01
Some added comments re this afternoon's race, I started about 15 sec behind my uncle, Gary, some readers may know him and will be interested to read he ran a SB (season's) of 14:18. This was an advantage to me, as he has a very controlled start and I like to be a bit more aggressive. I caught Gary at the 800m ish mark and move slightly ahead, he came up near me again at the top of Anderson and we stayed very close until past the 2.5k mark, where Gary just pulled slightly ahead of me. Which was great for me as I worked harder in the 3rd km trying to stay near Gary. The final km of the race there was no doubting Gary had me, but I was working hard to try and keep him close! As I said the handicapper helped me out, putting Gary in front of me, he is the King of negative splits in Western A's.
In hindsight, running the Tan regularly will help get this time down further and of course pushing a lot harder after the crest of Anderson St, which will in turn reduce that 2nd km (the key to running the Tan faster). I hope by the AV Tan Relays in mid Sep I can run a low 14 min lap.
A planned evening run along the Yarra, summary later tonight.
I left work after 5pm and ran from work, on the Tan, crossed the road to the river and then finally the 'shitty' Garmin decided to finally find the satellites after more than 1k or so. I reset and started again so I had some idea of the remainder of the trip. For the first few kms I sat between 4:50-5 min pace and was happy doing that, but by the time I got to MacRobertson Bridge I was comfortably sitting on 4:40 pace. A strange thing happened on the run home on the city side, near Chapel St I was running at 4:40-5ish pace and I pulled up alongside some rowers (who are famous on the Yarra, for those interstate) and I started to pick up the pace and the rower stayed with me, after a while I could hear the coach on the other side of the river telling the rower to stay with him, at first I didn't think anything of it, as I thought they were talking about another rower, but after a few k's I realised I was running 4:20ish pace and this was not the plan so I slowed very quickly to 5 min pace and the rower yelled, "hey don't slow down" & the coach yelled out if I had another 5 min in me, I called back and apologised as I was going way faster than I was suppose to be and needed to slow down. Well I thought it was strange! All up I ran back into the city and back onto the Tan, adding on the known 1km that the Garmin didn't register I ran over 11.5km averaging 4:39 pace, which was not the plan at all..... oh well, 4:55 average would have been better.
Lunchtime run with the Melbourne Midday Milers , a race around the Tan in a handicap format, using known Tan times and other short and recent races. I wasn't to worried what handicap I would be given as I knew I would be handicapped slightly harder as I don't race Corporate Cup and this policy is used to stop 'ring in' times. The last time I raced the Tan was Oct 05, 14:42 which is my PB. I was hoping to get close but needed to take in account I have already had 2 days of good training which may slow me up a bit, but I was hoping.
I was about the 5-8th runner off out of 22 runners, starting from the 'Pillars', I was hoping to hit the 1k mark in 3:45 and then sub 4 min for the harder 2nd km and at the 2k mark I was still going well. The final 500m or so I was starting to become very untidy and losing form but I knew a PB was very close so I tried to fight on, hitting the line in 14:29, a 13 second PB. Very happy.
Splits: 3:42 3:59 3:46 3:01
Some added comments re this afternoon's race, I started about 15 sec behind my uncle, Gary, some readers may know him and will be interested to read he ran a SB (season's) of 14:18. This was an advantage to me, as he has a very controlled start and I like to be a bit more aggressive. I caught Gary at the 800m ish mark and move slightly ahead, he came up near me again at the top of Anderson and we stayed very close until past the 2.5k mark, where Gary just pulled slightly ahead of me. Which was great for me as I worked harder in the 3rd km trying to stay near Gary. The final km of the race there was no doubting Gary had me, but I was working hard to try and keep him close! As I said the handicapper helped me out, putting Gary in front of me, he is the King of negative splits in Western A's.
In hindsight, running the Tan regularly will help get this time down further and of course pushing a lot harder after the crest of Anderson St, which will in turn reduce that 2nd km (the key to running the Tan faster). I hope by the AV Tan Relays in mid Sep I can run a low 14 min lap.
A planned evening run along the Yarra, summary later tonight.
I left work after 5pm and ran from work, on the Tan, crossed the road to the river and then finally the 'shitty' Garmin decided to finally find the satellites after more than 1k or so. I reset and started again so I had some idea of the remainder of the trip. For the first few kms I sat between 4:50-5 min pace and was happy doing that, but by the time I got to MacRobertson Bridge I was comfortably sitting on 4:40 pace. A strange thing happened on the run home on the city side, near Chapel St I was running at 4:40-5ish pace and I pulled up alongside some rowers (who are famous on the Yarra, for those interstate) and I started to pick up the pace and the rower stayed with me, after a while I could hear the coach on the other side of the river telling the rower to stay with him, at first I didn't think anything of it, as I thought they were talking about another rower, but after a few k's I realised I was running 4:20ish pace and this was not the plan so I slowed very quickly to 5 min pace and the rower yelled, "hey don't slow down" & the coach yelled out if I had another 5 min in me, I called back and apologised as I was going way faster than I was suppose to be and needed to slow down. Well I thought it was strange! All up I ran back into the city and back onto the Tan, adding on the known 1km that the Garmin didn't register I ran over 11.5km averaging 4:39 pace, which was not the plan at all..... oh well, 4:55 average would have been better.
Tuesday, 11 July 2006
Tue 11 Jul 06, track session 'planned' 6x1000m
6.6km today & 21km for the week so far, 8 runs/11 days this month
What a day, very busy at work and left late, arrived at the track at 5:40pm, it was cold, dark, raining and windy! All things I dislike to run in, but I was there and it needed to be done, positivity....
I started off with 5 laps in lane 8 with the final lap concentrating on drills & plymetric style stretches, a little bit of stretching and then into a session of 6x1k by myself. Normally tonight would have been 8 reps but I decided to reduce after Monday's session and it was yuk weather...
After 3 solid reps I decided I would reduce slightly so I could keep some freshness in the legs for the Melbourne Midday Milers Tan Handicap , so I reduce the reps to 800s and slightly increased the pace.
Splits (recovery):
3:49 (1:10 floating 200m)
3:49 (1:12 floating 200m)
3:50 (1:10 floating 200m)
3:01 (1 min standing)
3:00 (58 sec standing)
2:58 (2 lap cool down)
A solid session, but really I probably should have stuck at the 1k reps, but..... I didn't, oh well.
What a day, very busy at work and left late, arrived at the track at 5:40pm, it was cold, dark, raining and windy! All things I dislike to run in, but I was there and it needed to be done, positivity....
I started off with 5 laps in lane 8 with the final lap concentrating on drills & plymetric style stretches, a little bit of stretching and then into a session of 6x1k by myself. Normally tonight would have been 8 reps but I decided to reduce after Monday's session and it was yuk weather...
After 3 solid reps I decided I would reduce slightly so I could keep some freshness in the legs for the Melbourne Midday Milers Tan Handicap , so I reduce the reps to 800s and slightly increased the pace.
Splits (recovery):
3:49 (1:10 floating 200m)
3:49 (1:12 floating 200m)
3:50 (1:10 floating 200m)
3:01 (1 min standing)
3:00 (58 sec standing)
2:58 (2 lap cool down)
A solid session, but really I probably should have stuck at the 1k reps, but..... I didn't, oh well.
Monday, 10 July 2006
Mon 10 Jul 06, a feel good run
14km today and for the week so far, 7 runs/10 days this month
What a shocking day here in Melbourne, wind, wind & more wind!!! From my desk I overlook the Tan, I can see the Government Dve intersection and a 100 metres or so of the track from there. Every time I looked outside thinking about my evening run all I could think about was, I hate running in the wind and for the past few weeks most of my runs have been a mental struggle so I knew tonight was going to be hard, but I also knew I wanted to get at least 60 minutes in.
5pm is nearing and in my head I am thinking why....but I get changed. Weatherzone says it is still 13 degrees but everyone is telling me it is very cold outside, I decide T & shorts and I'm off to the gym at work and see if I can get on a tready.... OMG...I haven't been on one of these things for many months, but what a great decision.
The treadys at work have a 20 minute limit, but I'll chance it and hope I can remain on it. I start at 12kph (5 min pace) and decide I will increase the pace each 500m by .1 kph and every 1km I would increase the incline by .1, a great session, get slightly faster and slightly harder with some incline. I upped the pace every 500m until 5km and then every 1km until the 50 min mark where I just kicked it up to 17kph and for the final 5 min 17.5kph. At the 60 min mark I was on 13.3km and was hot & sweaty, which was great for the mind, I hadn't been so drenched in sweat for many months, strangely, enjoyable! I finished off with 1km of slow jogging and then some stretching. All up an enjoyable run, finally.
What a shocking day here in Melbourne, wind, wind & more wind!!! From my desk I overlook the Tan, I can see the Government Dve intersection and a 100 metres or so of the track from there. Every time I looked outside thinking about my evening run all I could think about was, I hate running in the wind and for the past few weeks most of my runs have been a mental struggle so I knew tonight was going to be hard, but I also knew I wanted to get at least 60 minutes in.
5pm is nearing and in my head I am thinking why....but I get changed. Weatherzone says it is still 13 degrees but everyone is telling me it is very cold outside, I decide T & shorts and I'm off to the gym at work and see if I can get on a tready.... OMG...I haven't been on one of these things for many months, but what a great decision.
The treadys at work have a 20 minute limit, but I'll chance it and hope I can remain on it. I start at 12kph (5 min pace) and decide I will increase the pace each 500m by .1 kph and every 1km I would increase the incline by .1, a great session, get slightly faster and slightly harder with some incline. I upped the pace every 500m until 5km and then every 1km until the 50 min mark where I just kicked it up to 17kph and for the final 5 min 17.5kph. At the 60 min mark I was on 13.3km and was hot & sweaty, which was great for the mind, I hadn't been so drenched in sweat for many months, strangely, enjoyable! I finished off with 1km of slow jogging and then some stretching. All up an enjoyable run, finally.
Saturday, 8 July 2006
Sat 08 Jul 06, AV Sandown Relays
11km today and 60km for the week so far, 6 runs/8 days this month
Raced on the Sandown race circuit in the Men's Div 6 team for Western A's, running the final leg for our team. The team finished in 5th position out of 14 teams, which was fairly satisfying. It was a coolish day which was affected a little by the wind, but not too badly, especially compared to last year.
My experience was very ordinary, a very lonely run, the entire run I never ran alongside anyone for more than 2 steps, either passing runners or being past by the fast Div 1 & 2 guys. This made the race quite boring which I actually find most relays to be, I much prefer the straight up races or running the first leg of the relay, but as I was not the fastest I didn't get this option. My time was 10 seconds faster than last year, but last year's conditions were much worse so this really wasn't a PB, maybe by time, but that is all.
The only positive from the day was seeing the comaradrie in the Western A' men's teams, with all 9 of us being very aware of how each team are going throughout the race and then having non present runners ringing or texting for race updates. The next AV event is in 2 weeks, at Jells Park, the State XC Champs, hopefully we will be able to field 2 teams again, but again work commitments takes away one of our Div 4 runners and one of our U20s will race in his age group with the hope of National XC selection. But we hope we can get 9 guys together again.
With a party looming tonight I suspect that my long run may be reduce to a recovery day on the couch!!!
Edit: The AV ladders have been produced after Round 6,
Men Div 4: Doncaster 76, Sandringham 62, Western A's 54, Wendouree 51, so we actually moved up one position due to Wendouree finishing behind us, 14 teams
Men Div 6:Sandringham 62, Coburg 54, 6th Western A's 27 (moved up 1 spot), 19 teams
Wmn Div 2:we are in 9th/15 teams
Wmn Div 3:equal 14th & the third team in 15th/24 teams
Raced on the Sandown race circuit in the Men's Div 6 team for Western A's, running the final leg for our team. The team finished in 5th position out of 14 teams, which was fairly satisfying. It was a coolish day which was affected a little by the wind, but not too badly, especially compared to last year.
My experience was very ordinary, a very lonely run, the entire run I never ran alongside anyone for more than 2 steps, either passing runners or being past by the fast Div 1 & 2 guys. This made the race quite boring which I actually find most relays to be, I much prefer the straight up races or running the first leg of the relay, but as I was not the fastest I didn't get this option. My time was 10 seconds faster than last year, but last year's conditions were much worse so this really wasn't a PB, maybe by time, but that is all.
The only positive from the day was seeing the comaradrie in the Western A' men's teams, with all 9 of us being very aware of how each team are going throughout the race and then having non present runners ringing or texting for race updates. The next AV event is in 2 weeks, at Jells Park, the State XC Champs, hopefully we will be able to field 2 teams again, but again work commitments takes away one of our Div 4 runners and one of our U20s will race in his age group with the hope of National XC selection. But we hope we can get 9 guys together again.
With a party looming tonight I suspect that my long run may be reduce to a recovery day on the couch!!!
Edit: The AV ladders have been produced after Round 6,
Men Div 4: Doncaster 76, Sandringham 62, Western A's 54, Wendouree 51, so we actually moved up one position due to Wendouree finishing behind us, 14 teams
Men Div 6:Sandringham 62, Coburg 54, 6th Western A's 27 (moved up 1 spot), 19 teams
Wmn Div 2:we are in 9th/15 teams
Wmn Div 3:equal 14th & the third team in 15th/24 teams
Thursday, 6 July 2006
Thu 06 Jul 06, track session 4 x 400m
7km today and 49km for the week so far, 5 runs/6 days this month
Personally a good week, but my running has been fairly ordinary and a bit of a struggle to get out there and do it. I arrived at the track prior to 5pm and chatted and waited for Dave before we did our 3 laps of the Complex, then stretched. No Burkie tonight so I decided we would copy the session that I did prior to Coliban and as well I suggested a light session of bends & straights to a new girl, who is 'getting' the feel for the Club and I didn't think it was appropriate that she tru and do a session of 400s with the younger girls when she is only just returning to running.
So the plan for myself & Dave was 4 x 400 @ 72/73 with a 2 min recovery. Whilst today was a nice winters day, I wrongly thought I could do my session in shorts, half way through the session I was wanting my tights, oh well. Taking turns on the running on the inside rail our splits were:
Splits:
73.8
72.8
73.7
73.4
All of the recoveries were between 1:58 & 2 min, walking recovery. There was a wind which we could feel around the 220-300m area which made it just that little harder than we would have preferred.
Finished the session with 4 laps in lane 8, chatting and organising cars for Saturday's race.
Personally a good week, but my running has been fairly ordinary and a bit of a struggle to get out there and do it. I arrived at the track prior to 5pm and chatted and waited for Dave before we did our 3 laps of the Complex, then stretched. No Burkie tonight so I decided we would copy the session that I did prior to Coliban and as well I suggested a light session of bends & straights to a new girl, who is 'getting' the feel for the Club and I didn't think it was appropriate that she tru and do a session of 400s with the younger girls when she is only just returning to running.
So the plan for myself & Dave was 4 x 400 @ 72/73 with a 2 min recovery. Whilst today was a nice winters day, I wrongly thought I could do my session in shorts, half way through the session I was wanting my tights, oh well. Taking turns on the running on the inside rail our splits were:
Splits:
73.8
72.8
73.7
73.4
All of the recoveries were between 1:58 & 2 min, walking recovery. There was a wind which we could feel around the 220-300m area which made it just that little harder than we would have preferred.
Finished the session with 4 laps in lane 8, chatting and organising cars for Saturday's race.
Wednesday, 5 July 2006
Wed 05 Jul 06, a local run only
8km today and 42km for the week so far, 4 runs/5 days this month
Ran from home tonight after work and only ran for one reason, because I knew I needed to 'tick it off' in my diary and no other reason. All arvo I had been trying to work out why I should, my intent was to go home and not do, but I 'just' decided to put on the shorts, shoes & top and then get out the door. 36 minutes of no real purpose, just a run that needed to be done.
Looking forward to this weekend, Western A's, my aths club, have filled all of our open men & womens teams, which will help consolidate our positions. Currently the men are sitting 4th in Div 4 and 8th in Div 6 (my team). In Div 4, unless Wendouree or Sandy lose some talent filling their Over 40 teams we can only expect to finish 4th, which is quite good for our first season in the Division. The Div 6 team will be hoping to be able to finish in the top 3 and move up one or 2 spots on the ladder, if we were to have a strong finish in the final 5 rounds, there could be the slightest hope of a top 3 season finish, but a lot of luck will be required to fill both teams each round, esp the Half Marathon.
This is the victorious Western A's Div 6 team from Coliban, left to right, Bradley, Mitch, Rorie, Stu & Chris. This weekend Mitch has been promoted to Div 4 to fill a vacancy and Chris is working and we have been able to convince Dave S to re-register, which he always was going to, but competitive surfing and other comps have kept him very busy.
Ran from home tonight after work and only ran for one reason, because I knew I needed to 'tick it off' in my diary and no other reason. All arvo I had been trying to work out why I should, my intent was to go home and not do, but I 'just' decided to put on the shorts, shoes & top and then get out the door. 36 minutes of no real purpose, just a run that needed to be done.
Looking forward to this weekend, Western A's, my aths club, have filled all of our open men & womens teams, which will help consolidate our positions. Currently the men are sitting 4th in Div 4 and 8th in Div 6 (my team). In Div 4, unless Wendouree or Sandy lose some talent filling their Over 40 teams we can only expect to finish 4th, which is quite good for our first season in the Division. The Div 6 team will be hoping to be able to finish in the top 3 and move up one or 2 spots on the ladder, if we were to have a strong finish in the final 5 rounds, there could be the slightest hope of a top 3 season finish, but a lot of luck will be required to fill both teams each round, esp the Half Marathon.
This is the victorious Western A's Div 6 team from Coliban, left to right, Bradley, Mitch, Rorie, Stu & Chris. This weekend Mitch has been promoted to Div 4 to fill a vacancy and Chris is working and we have been able to convince Dave S to re-register, which he always was going to, but competitive surfing and other comps have kept him very busy.
Tuesday, 4 July 2006
Tue 04 Jul 06, track session 8 x 800
11.4km today and 34km for the week so far, 3 runs/4 days this month
An ordinary 'mind' day today! (enough personal stuff) Let's just say I needed this run tonight and thankfully it went fairly good. I arrived at the track and Dave S arrived the same time, so first and most importantly I got his rego form from him, right we have two full men's teams for the AV Sandown Relays, excellent!
Off we went for our warm up, 3 laps of the Complex and then into the chatting and stretching with those around us. A quick check with Burkie, "wind it back at bit tonight Stu and do at least 6k's of rep work". Both Dave & Rorie will do slightly less but as a group we decide reps of 800s tonight, a little shorter than previous weeks but still with the long break should mean we will easily achieve. Plan 8x800 @ 3 min, Dave 6/7 reps & Rorie (14) 4 maybe, depending how he feels after a few days of not being well.
Lots of chatting in the early parts, warm night compared to previous weeks and only a light breeze. We share the inside running, with either Dave or Rorie sitting behind. Rorie did the first 2 then a break and then the next 2, Dave did great and did 7 and I got my 8, with a twist. For my last rep I did it in 2 seperate laps, joining in with Luke on his last rep, he was doing laps of 72s, so a nice couple of quick ones to finish the night off.
Splits (all recovery were < 2 min):
2:59
2:56
2:57
3:00
3:00
3:01
3:00
73
72
The last 400 rep hurt, Luke took off with 200 to go and I tried to go with him and really hurt in the final 50m and for the next few minutes, I reckon a nice tap to the stomach would have been messy. Finished off with 5 lap cool down and then some stretching and lots of chatting with some of the guys about upcoming races.
An ordinary 'mind' day today! (enough personal stuff) Let's just say I needed this run tonight and thankfully it went fairly good. I arrived at the track and Dave S arrived the same time, so first and most importantly I got his rego form from him, right we have two full men's teams for the AV Sandown Relays, excellent!
Off we went for our warm up, 3 laps of the Complex and then into the chatting and stretching with those around us. A quick check with Burkie, "wind it back at bit tonight Stu and do at least 6k's of rep work". Both Dave & Rorie will do slightly less but as a group we decide reps of 800s tonight, a little shorter than previous weeks but still with the long break should mean we will easily achieve. Plan 8x800 @ 3 min, Dave 6/7 reps & Rorie (14) 4 maybe, depending how he feels after a few days of not being well.
Lots of chatting in the early parts, warm night compared to previous weeks and only a light breeze. We share the inside running, with either Dave or Rorie sitting behind. Rorie did the first 2 then a break and then the next 2, Dave did great and did 7 and I got my 8, with a twist. For my last rep I did it in 2 seperate laps, joining in with Luke on his last rep, he was doing laps of 72s, so a nice couple of quick ones to finish the night off.
Splits (all recovery were < 2 min):
2:59
2:56
2:57
3:00
3:00
3:01
3:00
73
72
The last 400 rep hurt, Luke took off with 200 to go and I tried to go with him and really hurt in the final 50m and for the next few minutes, I reckon a nice tap to the stomach would have been messy. Finished off with 5 lap cool down and then some stretching and lots of chatting with some of the guys about upcoming races.
Monday, 3 July 2006
Mon 03 Jul 06, a local evening run
12km today and 23km for the week so far, 2 runs/3 days this month
Not leaving work until 5:30pm meant a late run back at home. Having used my Garmin a few times from home I knew of a 12.1km course from home so off I went, with the aim of finishing in one hour, so I could shower, eat, drop the boys clothes back at their place and make it on time at a Committee meeting for Little A's.
Tonight I wore tights, shorts, cap & a T with flashing lights on both of my arms. Fairly cool but not too cold, finished the run in 58:30. Walked for 5 min to cool down, stretched on a towel inside and then did all I needed to do, even managed to get a piece of fish, potato in jacket and some spinach into me.
Not leaving work until 5:30pm meant a late run back at home. Having used my Garmin a few times from home I knew of a 12.1km course from home so off I went, with the aim of finishing in one hour, so I could shower, eat, drop the boys clothes back at their place and make it on time at a Committee meeting for Little A's.
Tonight I wore tights, shorts, cap & a T with flashing lights on both of my arms. Fairly cool but not too cold, finished the run in 58:30. Walked for 5 min to cool down, stretched on a towel inside and then did all I needed to do, even managed to get a piece of fish, potato in jacket and some spinach into me.
Sunday, 2 July 2006
Sun 02 Jul 06, a track session, no long run this week
11km today and for the week so far, 1 run/2 days this month
With visiting children until Monday morning, I didn't think I was going to get a session in but a trip down to the track allowed me to get some form of a session in.
Sunday morning, light drizzle and probably about 10 degrees, I picked the keys up from Burkie and he suggested a fartlek style session, just mix it up, not too much structure, even though he knows I love structure, but I was replacing my long run (LR) with a track session.
I started off with a km or so slow running around the complex in light drizzle, very few stretches and then onto the track. I started in lane 1 and moved out a lane each lap for 6, starting at 100 sec per lap and keeping that same time per lap no matter what lane, so slowly getting faster. The I did some criss cross work and then back onto the track and did the 100 sec thing again, but this time in lanes 1, 3, 5 & 7. Then 4x400m at 80 sec, then 4x200 at 35sec in lanes 2, 3, 4 & 5, finishing off with 4 slow laps.
The home base of Western Athletics & the Werribee Little Athletics Centre.
With visiting children until Monday morning, I didn't think I was going to get a session in but a trip down to the track allowed me to get some form of a session in.
Sunday morning, light drizzle and probably about 10 degrees, I picked the keys up from Burkie and he suggested a fartlek style session, just mix it up, not too much structure, even though he knows I love structure, but I was replacing my long run (LR) with a track session.
I started off with a km or so slow running around the complex in light drizzle, very few stretches and then onto the track. I started in lane 1 and moved out a lane each lap for 6, starting at 100 sec per lap and keeping that same time per lap no matter what lane, so slowly getting faster. The I did some criss cross work and then back onto the track and did the 100 sec thing again, but this time in lanes 1, 3, 5 & 7. Then 4x400m at 80 sec, then 4x200 at 35sec in lanes 2, 3, 4 & 5, finishing off with 4 slow laps.
The home base of Western Athletics & the Werribee Little Athletics Centre.
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