May 2007 Running Statistics

May Km's: 272 (last year 213)

Year to Date: 1375 (last year 1181)

Injuries: Hurt my toe, probably broke it, not really sure but 4 weeks later it still has a sore spot. Not really a concern, wasn't muscular or tendon related, but it did hurt running down hills.

Excuses: kms down due to toe and freshening for Sandown

Races & events: 15km at La Trobe & 10km @ Sandown

Upcoming races: AV Winter Round 4, 10 mile XC in Geelong

Goals for Jun: consolidate & build for a HM in Sep

General thoughts: Await blood test results and hopefully enjoy a solid month of training, with only one race it should be in the low 300s.

Weight & measurements: Tomorrow I will weigh myself and take some measurements, waist, chest, thigh, biceps & calves and post here, not expecting any changes, except in the unwanted direction.

Thu 31 May 07, morning fartlek & a short track session

On the Tan at 6:40am with Clare for a fartlek session along the Yarra, lots of change of pace and finishing off with a couple of hills and then some stretching. Cool, dark and a little wet.

A game of indoor football, we got flogged, high scoring 9-5, we had 1 reserve so I probably played 30 minutes out of 40.

This afternoon the wind & pouring rain hit Melbourne just after 3pm and all I could think about was skipping my session, but a phone call to my training partner, Adam, and it was confirmed we would be training. Adam suggested a TT style session, not flat out, but a solid session.

A 2k warm up and then a couple of strides and then over to the 3k marker, we decided we would aim for 11:30. The first 2k saw us hitting the mark each lap with little problem. Adam crossed 11:20 and I was 5 sec or so behind. We finished off with three laps in lane 8 on the track. As it was cold, I dressed and went home with minimal stretching.

Wed 30 May 07, the Tan & S2F session

A shocking night sleep..woke very early so I thought I may as well miss the traffic and go for an easy run. The coldest morning in Melbourne for the year, about 8 degrees. I ran a lap of the Tan, very easy pace, 18:20. Off for a shower and at my desk just after 7am.

Donated blood at lunchtime today, first time in a while, naughty Stu.

Tonight I ran slowly to Fed Square, not feeling 100%, a headache and just not right, but once I got into my run with the 10k group I was fine. Tonight we ran the 10k course and my small group ran it in 48:30 tonight, a little faster than our normal group pace, but all were comfy. After the group stretching session with the speed group (43) I jogged back to my car.

Tue 29 May 07, a shit run

I had my Dr appt this arvo, had some blood tests & an ECG, results Thursday. Throughout the afternoon I decided I wouldn't do a track session and I was going to sit around home and catch up with things.

Just after 6pm I got an attack of the guilts and decided to go for a run around the streets from home, just over 10k in 45 minutes. Cold & wet, the shower afterwards was the only good aspect of the trip.

Mon 28 May 07, a lap of the Tan and Little Aths coaching

An easy lap of the Tan at lunch and some stretching, my quads felt a little heavy but feel much better for the stroll, no time, no pressure, just a run. Run around with the kids tonight as well and then enjoyed the stretching session afterwards.

Thanks for all of the comments and best wishes, no I haven't been to the doc yet, but I am planning too! Not sure about another 10km, to be honest there are not many that fit my time frame, AV racing will always take priority and to be honesst not many of the 10k races have much appeal. Yes the upcoming race in Launceston looks good, but anyone who has seen my bank balance knows any race will need to be local. And to be honest Melbourne have some good Half Marathons and lots of other good races of strange distances, but not many 10's. Will just wait & see.


Below are a couple of pictures I found of C & D in action with their cross country racing, cute....




The starting line of the U6, 7 & 8's 1km race at Wyndham, Connor & Declan in the yellow T shirts on the left of the picture.




Connor in full flight, yellow T.

Sun 27 May 07, You Yangs and post race thoughts

This morning a group of Western Aths male runners meet at 8:30 at the front gate at the You Yangs for a hilly long run, but NOT too fast as our legs were trashed after yesterday. At the gate was Thorny (a MMM) who is enjoying his first AV season with Geelong, I tried to recruit him, as he was considering joing a metro club, but he decided to stick with his home town, a BIG loss to us, 32:20 yesterday he ran. He was waiting for Troopy's group but they were late so he started with us. After 4km or so, Troopy's group caught up to us so we said our goodbyes to Thorny after I had a chat with Troopy, a good memory he has, after asking how the Werribee crew went his next question was did I break that sub 40, OMG even Troopy knows about that damn time!! :-)

We cruised the dirt paths and occasionally dodging some runners who were racing a tri race (run, ride & run), every hill was hard work but of course they make you stronger, but a few of the big hills I walked, its training and I raced yesterday so I'm fine with it. It was Adam K's first trip at the YY, so he was a little surprised at some of the paths and hills. All up a good run all up just short of 95 minutes.


A good chat with the guys about yesterday's run and I'm a little more comfortable with my result but still struggling with my 2007 goals. In Jan/Feb I decided my goals would be very close together, 1) beat the bloody train and 2) was to run sub 40 min at Sandown. GTR I decided I wasn't 100% as a result of a back complaint and I decided I would work on Sandown. As I said in yesterday's post, I was very confident and I think that might be the problem. It gives me something to think about and see how and where I go from here.

Sat 26 May 07, Sandown Skins 10km Road Classic

Woke up feeling great, 8am out the door off to Cobbledicks Ford which is one of the tough cross country courses for the Werribee Little Aths Centre, today C & D decided they didn't want to race, but I wanted to get out there and watch the kids that I coach. I also ran as the 'rabbit' for the U6-8 1km race, as per normal pulling off the track at the 750m area and then encouraging the kids as they pass me.


An early lunch, then Cam, Ads & I made the trek to Springvale, in particular the Sandown Racecourse. Today's weather was sunny, slightly windy and an expected temp of 21 degrees. Arriving one hour prior to race time I was able to catch up with a few friends from other Clubs and then over to my Clubmates. 40 minutes before the race a group of Western Aths runners completed a gentle lap of the track, 3.2km and then I did some gentle stretching and a few strides on the grass in front of the grandstand.


The race started in sunshine and the back straight was where the wind was going to affect us most. I started back 10m or so from the start line at the back of the Western Aths guys, even with a big group we get to race pace very quickly, unlike a fun run. The plan was to run 3:55 per km and I was confident of achieving this and I was then hoping to increase the pace on the last lap (at least the final 2.5km), but it didn't work like that :-( .

The start of the race was solid and comfortable, 3:56, 3:56, 3:49, 3:56 was feeling really good, but the second trip up the hill on the back straight went all BAD and I ran 4:17, but the biggest problem was how I was feeling, very ordinary, so quickly. Near the 5k mark I pulled off the racing line and walked a few metres, but luckily (in the big picture) a MMM mate who runs for Sandringham but is injured and was jogging in reverse yelled at me, "Stu you've done the hard work up the hill, start fucking running", I looked at him and nodded in total agreement I got going again. Adw from Melb Uni past me and suggested that sub 40 was still on the cards, a quick look at my watch and I knew I had gone past 5k in 19:55, so it was still possible, but the next km was 4 something and it continued on in the that style. Coming along the front straight past the crowds in the grandstand I knew I was struggling and the thoughts of pulling out did enter my mind, but pride and the knowledge that maybe someone else from my club may have been injured and we only had one emergency runner for team points I thought I better continue on, with one lap to go Adrian J had stopped to stretch his troublesome calf's, he caught up to me and asked if I needed help to get my goal, I replied that it had gone and I needed him to finish with the best possible time for points and then I tried to follow him.

The last time up the back straight hill I just concentrated on this is the last time, made it to the top and tried to pick up the pace, sub 40 was gone but a PB (40:32) was still a slight possibility, whilst I was very tired and the shoulders were up I was going to have a go. Sadly around the 8k area I started to feel funny again and I started to feel light headed and then the vision started to go fuzzy and then no-one was around, I quickly came to a walk and felt very wobbly and I thought I was going to fall over, but as quickly as it happened that it disappeared. Old Miler went back past and spoke to me (checking on my welfare, thanks Tim), I started to shuffle forward and within a 10-20m I felt better and started to run. I past the 9k mark and made the effort to finish off solid but no need for a BIG hard finish because I didn't want to fall over in the straight and there was NO PB today so finishing was the key, crossing 41:07.

:-( Disappointed with today's effort, I know I am fitter and stronger than I have been on any other attempt and to be honest I was very confident today and for the first time ever I would have placed a lot of $$$ on me achieving, but it didn't happen. Yep probably a bit hard on myself, but to be honest I'm over this bloody sub 40 min thing and Sandown was the place to do it. Chatting with others it would appear that many didn't run as well as they expected, but to be honest today was about me and what I wanted.

And before anyone says, but you had a dizzy spell etc, I know that and I will go and see the Doc, but I wanted sub 40 and that was that!




Just after the start, a great sight and for those who have not experienced an AV race, this picture was taken within 50m of the start and I have NO doubt that we are all at race pace, so quickly, probably with in 5 steps I was in race pace..

Team Results are in,
, Western Aths Div 3 finished 9th/14 and Div 6 finished 2nd. :-)

Thu 24 May 07, the Tan

This morning I met up with Clare to take her a light session, warm up and then run 2k at her proposed race pace and then do at least 15 minutes of stretching, which we both needed.

I was intending on going to the track tonight to do 20 minutes of bends & straights, but staying late at work and an ordinary work mood I decided I would just go home and relax.

Wed 23 May 07, a local run

Not a lot to report, I left early today as the computer server was non existant and after four hours I had NOTHING left to do so I came home, put a load of washing on and took off for an easy run.

From home, a 6.2km course in 29:30, very easy, was tempted to go further but I am trialing a very easy week in preparation for Saturday.

Vaccummed and started dinner and then took off to pick up K, C & D from childcare & After School Care, the boys last dinner with me as their mum is returning from her business trip.


My ITB has been fine for the past week or so, but as per most distance runners it could always be better. Reading an article today re ITB and found a great stretch and I don't want to lose it, so mere on my blog is a great spot.

Tue 22 May 07, two laps of the Tan

Not able to do my evening track session, so I had an extended lunch and took off onto the Tan. Cruising pace from the Govt Dve roundabout, past the pillars of wisdom and up to the 1km marker in Anderson St at 4:50ish pace, but from the marker I picked the pace up and did the next km in 3:52 and the next in 3:49, slow back to 4:45ish pace completed a lap and then did the same again. The two kms that I ran at pace were 3:53 & 3:45, I then cruised back to my start point.

Into the barracks, stretched for 5 minutes of basic groups and then showered and back to work.

Mon 21 May 07, basically a rest day

I was suppose to run at lunch but rain and not really interested and a little birdy suggesting a well rested Stu has proven to race well before, so no run. The only running I did do today was a 1km warm up with my squad of Little A's and running through the drills with them, no more.

The three boys are staying with me for the next few days as their mum is off to Canberra for work, so no running for the next 2 days unless I get out at lunch. If I was not racing this week, I might have looked for an avenue to train but with a big race this weekend, I decided an extended quiet week could be good!

Sun 20 May 07, Fed Trail run

A late start to my run this morning, wasn't really in the mood for a run by myself, but most of my friends had already run at 8am so I was by myself. I took off from home and ran 7.5km from home along the Fed Trail and then returned, average pace of 4:45 per km for 15km.

Stretched when I got home, overcast day, little wind and little excitement.

Sat 19 May 07, Woodlands Park

C & D staying for part of the weekend, we started our Saturday morning with a trip to Werribee South for the Little A's XC race along the beach and the surrounding parklands. The U6-8 1km race was first, I am the 'rabbit' for this race, to make sure they stay on the track, I run about 25m ahead, the first 200m or so I have to move along as the little kiddies start very fast. At the 750 mark I step off the track and stand there and encourage all of the kids who I know very well as more than 95% of them have all been a part of my On Track program as U6s throughout the past 3 years. I then stayed and watched the other races and chatted with all of the kids I coach, already a couple are starting to change their habits and using some of my tips, which is a very exciting feeling.

After hot chocolate and some Coles shopping I stopped at the boys house to pick up their bikes so we could go to the Woodlands Park where my Club had a training session. A small lunch and we picked up a friend and off too Woodlands (past the airport). D is not too confident on his bike and is still using his training wheels and not overly confident. My plan (which did happen) was for the boys to ride thier bikes about 1km on a wide bush trail and then onto a dirt road where I would warm up and they could follow if they wanted, so I ran 5 minutes in one direction, then returned with C and grabbed D and we went 3 min in the other direction and then returned, so 16 min w/up at a good pace. My session was hill repeats, I picked my start point near the road and picked my spot up the top, off I went, the first rep was 1min 11sec and then I jogged back and walked at the bottom until 2 min past and then back up the hill. Eight reps, ranging between 1 min 11 sec and the slowest (final) was 1 min 16 sec, a good work out. I then did 2 or 3 reps with Clare and Kylie, their reps were shorter by 150m or so and a little slower, but it was good for them to have someone encouraging them on their final reps. I jogged back to the start point with D on his bike, very happy to have got a solid work out in and finished off with a BBQ of chicken kebabs.

Fri 18 May 07, resting

I was considering a lunchtime run, but it was pouring rain and I was in two minds, so with loads of work and deciding to rest up and the rain, I stayed DRY!

Last night I seen myself on TV, in a commercial for Run to the G on Channel Ten, I'm in the first few seconds on Christie Malthouses left shoulder, wahoo :-)

To answer Tesso's question, I run when I can, I prefer not to run at lunchtime due to time issues only, personally running anytime is good and I have no real preference, except I don't enjoy doing interval work in the early mornings, esp in winter. But saying that, I do prefer to run longer runs (> 75 min) in the mornings.


An extra bit & late addition:

When I first started running I remember reading about the young and upcoming runners here in Australia, there were two young Ethiopian guys who stayed here as refugees after the World Juniors, Sisay & Mizan, tonight sadly I read on CR that Mizan took his life, which is sad that he had decided that he had nowhere to turn.

Mizan Mehari takes own life in Canberra
Mizan came out to Australia in 1996 for the World Junior Champs in Sydney; together with 4 other athletes he stayed in Australia. Mizan and Sisay made Canberra their home, were in and out of clubs, AIS etc and have represented Australia at Olympics and World Champs.

From his IAAF bography he had a pb of 13:20.85 for 5000m and 7:54.97 for 3km.

Mizan took his own life last week on Mt Ainslie. He had been troubled for sometime largely due to the absence of a family base and finances.

Mizan's death notice is in the Canberra Times today, they are trying to raise funds to send his body back to Ethiopia and the local distance running fraternity are likely to organise a memorial service/Run in Mizan's honour.

He was one of the most talented runners we’ve had in Australia but he suffered a series of injuries that curtailed his running. He ran 13:20 for 5km as a 19 year old and finished 12th in the final of the 5000m at the Sydney Olympics (the only Australian male to make a track final). He won the National XC in 97, 98, (ahead of Moneghetti) - as he was born in December 1980 he would have been just under 17 the first time he won.

He was super talented but just kept getting injured. He was still trying to make a comeback. Many of his training sessions are still talked about. Things like 6 laps of Mount Rogers faster than we could do one. Runs up Mount Stromlo 1min faster than anyone else. Coming out and doing the group’s session in the afternoon as an easy run after running really hard in the morning. Destroying everyone including Shaun Creighton and Darren Wilson in training sessions when they were in great shape.

Mizan was 27. His Funeral is on Saturday at O’Rourke Funerals, 113 Crawford St Queanbeyan.

I also read on CR a post by a friend of Mizan which I found very moving and I wanted to post it here:

Thank you for starting this thread as it is worth remembering this dynamic individual we all knew as Mizan.

I consider myself lucky to have been his close friend as he opened my eyes to the strength, stoicism, and conflict of the human spirit.

He had a penetrating smile, and an amazing, positive energy that was contagious. I once scratched my brand new car door and he looked at it saying "oh it's a beautiful design"

But there was also a Mizan that was tortured inside and frustrated with lonliness and isolation.

He told me often in his darkest times he wanted to die but qualified it by saying that God would not let him.

He truly believed God had a plan for him that he would restore him to running full strength

Running was his passion and it was also his outlet and meditation. He loved running on Mt Ainslie and would always say "you have to go at 6 am when the air is fresh, it will make you so powerful, you will just feel it, you will fly"

We can all remember what a fantastic runner he was often having conversations about the Stromlo record and the Mizan record.

Mizan was an iconoclast associating with the bohemian fringe of Canbera's inner city by night and his athletic minded friends by day.

You would see him at the AIS dining hall for lunch and then later at a Civic club dancing all night.

He had boundless energy and he told me he had to dance to release his energy.

I believe Mizan at his core was a dancer and to him running was his favorite dance.

I'd say to him, "Mizan you have to rest so you can train" but he would say "if i don't go out and dance I will just lie in bed and burn."

For those of us that knew him we could testify to his stobborness and i know that this attribute often distanced him from those who tried to help him.

Mizan desperately needed to be loved and sought everywhere to find it. I wish I could have been there more for him or done more for him but I also understand that there was a void in Mizan that could not be filled. There was this profound sense of loss he felt through the separaration from his family and country at a young age. He clung to intense rituals and training sessions as a means of providing some sense of comfort and solace.

The Mizan I will miss dearly and always remember is not an athlete, not a lost young soul, but a man who selflessly leant his passion to those he knew in an attempt to ignite and inspire us.

He told me he once dreamed of a Rosella parrot coming to him and leading him away to a better place.

I hope you are there my friend

Love always,

Brian

The entire thread can be found here. If you choose to read, make sure you read James Harrison's post too (Dr JH) a moving post too. :-(

Thu 17 May 07, fartlek

Up nice and early and arrived in the city just before 6:30am, parked my car, dropped my stuff at work and then a quickish trot to Fawkner Park for a light fartlek session. This morning the effects of yesterday were taking there toll and I was feeling a little drained drained and hungry all day!

By lunch time I had decided I would skip my short interval session tonight and take it easy, will get out tomorrow for a light run at lunchtime.

Wed 16 May 07, gym, indoor football & S2F group

I started the day with just over 30 minutes in the gym, very light weights with loads of reps, upright rowing, bi & triceps, bench press, shoulder raises and then some abs. Once I got to my desk and started clearing my emails I discovered that I had a game of soccer at lunchtime to play and then discovered no reserves, so a great cardio workout, completely drenched in sweat, second week in a row we had a draw, high scoring 6 all.

Tonight I jogged for 15 minutes prior to arriving at Fed Square, as per normal I lead the medium paced 10k group, we ran a course that myself & Rupert estimated would be 10k ish... and according to the guys wearing polar pods we got it fairly right, just short of 10.3km. Tonight it was still 20 degrees even at 7pm, humid all day, definitely not normal Melbourne May temps at the moment.

Tue 15 May 06, track session

With the day off I was able to do my track session with David at 2pm, a warm up around the Uni area and then a bunch of plyometric drills, some strides on the grass infield and then into a 6x800m track session. At the same time as we were doing our session Clare was doing hers so we did a part of our w/ups together.

The plan was 6x800 @ 3min 5sec (3:52 per km pace) with a 1 min recovery, both of us were wondering how we would cope having raced on Sunday. Our splits were really good, the first 5 reps were done in 3:05 and the last was 3:03 with all recoveries 59.XX.

Cool down and then 10 min of stretching, I concentrated on my glutes, hip flexors and ITB.


This evening myself & Clare went and watch David become a new Australian! Well done "Aussie David"...

Mon 14 May 07, a recovery run at lunch

The aftermath from yesterday's race, my toe is red & swollen again, my left ITB is tight and general tired feeling in my quads, especially the left side. But I had decided that a 30 minute was a necessity!

12:30pm, I changed into my running gear and took off across St Kilda Rd and then decided I would turn right and head toward Fawkner Park, cruising at a comfortable pace all I could feel was my quads, they were both saying "HELLO Stu, we raced yesterday, WTF are you doing right now?"... a little tender and quite tired, but of course I knew this run was exactly what I needed to do.

Sticking mainly on the grass I made my way to Fawkner Park and then ran on the grass there, a wave & a hello to Steve, when I had been running for 15 minutes I stopped and did some quad & ITB stretching.

After 31 minutes of running I strolled back into the Barracks and laid down on the grass and stretched for 10 minutes before returning to the office to enjoy my lunch.


This evening I coached the Little A's group which involved rolling my legs over again and demonstrating some stretches, which was great for me.

AV Team Results, Western Aths Men Div 3 finished 2nd :-) and we won Div 6 :-) and sadly we were one runner short of winning or coming 2nd in Div 7 and sadly one of our ladies couldn't finish the race and we missed out on some good points there too, esp as Narelle finished 4th!!!

Sun 13 May 07, AV 15km Road Champs

Rest on Fri & Sat in preparation for today's race at La Trobe Uni, 15km on a 4.9km course with an extra 300m in the start finish chute. The course was listed as undulating and that it was, a few hills to test us out, but the downhills were very handy too. I had a few issues with my left quad, I think over the past two weeks and running with a sore toe on my right foot I think I have over used my left side which seemed to tighten a fair bit on the rises, so I pulled off the course twice to stretch, which seemed to help me continue on.

My splits are all over the place, some with hills, some with down hills and two with breaks included to stretch... :-(

Splits:
4:26 4:34 4:39
4:08 4:16 4:31
4:11 4:43 4:39
4:01 4:21 4:10
3:58 4:05 3:40

(20:47) (22:02) (21:42)

1h 04m 31s

Feel fairly buggered now and having some stomach discomfort, hydration maybe...



I think this pic is around the 12-13km area, I was just starting to attempt to move away from Adam K here and whilst I did pull away his kick was too great for me and he got me in the final 200m.




The course map is above for those who didn't have the pleasure... :-)




This pic is in the final km, Gary is front of me and Adam K is behind, I look buggered here and let me tell you I was!!!

Thu 10 May 07, fartlek & indoor football

In the city nice early, just after 6:30am for a light hilly fartlek session, varying paces and varying hills, finishing with 12 minutes of good stretching (which was needed).

Lunch time a 40 minute game of indoor soccer, 4 all, an enjoyable session with no reserves it turned into a great cardio session, but not so good for my toe... No running for the next couple of days, except as the rabbit for the little kids XC race.

Check this out, some nice racing on You Tube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dgt2eMRuhcs&NR=1

Wed 09 May 07, S2F group

I trotted around the gardens whilst waiting for a friend for 12 minutes and once she arrived we jogged to Fed Square for the S2F training run, she was running with the 5k group and as normal I was leading the medium paced 10k group.

The three 10k leaders decided we would stick to a flat run that was well lit, flat for the GTR runners and for the MDC runners this w/e. So off to the Dockland region, just past the big TV and then back up to the Swan St bridge, my group were just over 53 minutes. Randall (a new Western A' & one of the speed group leaders) took the stretching group tonight, which was great as he had us doing some slightly different stretches which were long and very beneficial. Jogged back to the Tan with Rupert.

Tue 08 May 07, track session

At the track before 5pm, changed and straight into my 3k warm up around the complex, then some dynamic stretching, some drills & then 5 strides before completing some quad static stretching, all up my warm up was 25 minutes.

Adam K, joined me and the plan was 6x1k reps @ 3:50 with 60 sec recovery, but I adjusted this after two reps and Adam continued with the 1k reps.

Splits:
3:50 (1km)
3:51 (1km)
3:02 (800m)
3:04 (800m)
3:05 (800m)
3:03 (800m)

Then I walked 300m with Adam when he finished his last 1k and then we jogged 1km to cool down. I then stay at the track chatting with Burkie about my upcoming weeks whilst watching Clare complete the session I set for her. I then chatted with Burkie about his exam for his Level 4 Coaching exam and then he asked me what direction I was taking Clare, why and how, which was a great exercise for me as her has known Clare for 15 years + and it allowed me to explain my direction with an experienced coach.

I then walked & jogged with Clare for her cool down.

Mon 07 May 07, busy busy busy

Only running today was taking warm ups with my Little A's group (11 tonight). Today was a tad too busy at work, I hardly had anytime to scratch today, some tight deadlines but I had to get to the AV Office at Olympic Park to organise the weekends race.

Straight after work I picked up C & D from school, C is doing some basic XC training and D wanted to be involved so he was employed as my helper...a basic session of a warm up, some dynamic stretching, some drills, some static stretching so I could chat about running form, then some strides on the infield. Then over to the grandstand for some very basic stair work and then onto the track for 5 minutes of 30/30, then a game and finishing off with stretching.

Took the boys home, helped with homework & showers and then quickly home to tidy up and then off to the Werribee Little Aths AGM, for the past two years I have been on the Centre's Exec Group as the On Track Coordinator, this year I have volunteered for that role but also combining it with the Education Role, which will see me run the Centre's General Training and help with warm ups on comp day and try to help with education of officials and generally this position organises visitors (eg elite athletes etc), looking forward to the year.

Sun 06 May 07, You Yangs

A run at the You Yangs this morning with Luke & Adrian J, aiming for 90-100 minutes of easy running, very easy for Luke. We started at the front gate and run upto the Flinders Peak car park and then ran along the dirt road (Rushford), rolling hills, again I found my left quad tiring on the bigger hills. Which I think is a result of favouring the left side due to my toe.

After the Rushford trail we made our way onto the Branding Trail after going down the very steep hill, a lap of the loop then up the hill back to the car park, where I had 1/2 a goo and then we did the East/West Walk in reverse. Going up the stairs and trying to conserve energy and not lifting my legs very high I clipped the top of a stair and CRASHED and fell. A few abrasions on the left knee, hands, elbow and yep you guessed it, I smacked the sore toe into a rock!!! Ohh and my Garmin isn't in great condition, some major scratches and one of the pins popped out of the band. So a little bit of dirt and a little bit of blood and a tad sore on my right foot all over again. So here I was battling up the hills because my quads were tired and now I was struggling going down hills because of my toe. :-(

So the return trip was a tad slower than expected but I managed to make it back with a couple of other small trips in the wrong direction due to looking at wallabies whilst on a skinny goat track and then slipping down a steep part and nearly having another fall. But managed to survive the final 8k with no major probs. All up approx 18km in 1h 45m.

Once home I had a short ice bath, trying to help my legs recover a bit and also to ensure my ankle and knees where fine. Toe, red, swollen, brusied and sore.

Sat 05 May 07, Brisbane Ranges

Started the day at Little A's, C & D arrived and I walked the course with them and a soccer ball and I jogged the 1k course with Kaelan in his pram. I then chatted with a couple of kids I coach and we chatted about their school sports throughout the week and how I thought they should approach today taking into their BIG week and also the big hill that they needed to tackle. The third race was the U6-9 1km course which involves C & D but this also the race I act as the 'rabbit' leading the group out staying about 30-50m ahead showing the course and then pulling off the course at the 750m mark and then remaining there providing encouragement for all runners.


This afternoon a group of 15 or so Western A's meet at the Brisbane Ranges for a group run, various course, distances and paces and a couple of sprinters doing some hill work. I took out a small group who were running 45 min & 70 min, with the intent of keeping the 45 min group with us, but some pacing issues developed... :-(

An enjoyable run for me, some discomfort in the toe and my left quad was a tad more tired than I expected, but I think this may be related to favoritism (opposite leg to my sore toe). 72 minutes and just short of 14.5km for the arvo.

Fri 04 May 07, rest day

A planned rest day which fell nicely with my 'bruised' toe which I believe icing will not help, as it appears to be bruising of the bone, I could be wrong, but I'm not icing anyway.

A busy day at work, I'm working on a conceptual project which relates to my area of expertise but is mentally a hard task as my personality doesn't relate well to future models and planning, very much a 'here and now' sort of person. Myer Briggs: ISTP


This weekend the planned runs are as the 'rabbit' for a couple of Little A's races and then in the arvo a 60-70 min bush run at the Brisbane Ranges and a 90-100 minute run in the You Yangs on Sunday morning.

Thu 03 May 07, a morning coaching session

Well my toe is very sore and I'm not really sure how I will run this morning, I'm limping whilst walking... I'm meeting Clare on the Tan this morning for her session as she has other commitments in the evening and so we agree to meet at 6:30am, which would normally be great for me, an easy session in the morning and then back it up with some 1k reps in the evening at my 10k pace. The toe is swollen and there is some visible bruising.

I arrived at the Barracks about 6:20, upto work and drop my gear off, then trot over to the Tan, ow ow ow. Clare arrives and sees me start running and starts laughing, "I can't run with you if you're going to run like that!", a slight limp but as we warmed up it improved, but running down even the slightest incline placed more pressure than was comfortable.

After a four minute jog we started off with some dynamic stretching, some drills and then some glute strengthen exercises followed by some 1/2 lunges, then we jogged over to the pillars. Today's session was 6x250m with 1 min walking recovery, the first rep was a tad slower than I wanted but the remaining were very good. Happily I was able to runthese reps at Clare's pace with little discomfort.

Afterwards I noticed that my toe was more swollen so i decided to let Burkie know that I would rest tonight. Tonight, after 8pm, my toe is more swollen and a lot redder than this morning.

Wed 02 May 07, S2F session

A game of indoor soccer today which was a 40 minute game with only one reserve so a great workout. A slight accident, smashing my foot into an oppositions foot with a sharp pain to my r.big toe, finished the game off with only a small amount of discomfort.

Whilst waiting for two friends before going to Fed Square tonight I ran around the pathways around the outskirts of the the Botanical Gardens and on the Tan for 12 minutes and then on their arival we jogged to the Attrium. As per normal I took one of the 10k groups tonight, I had eight runners and we ran the Run to the G course tonight. Tonight the fast & medium groups joined for our stretching session which I lead, I have noticed that my lower back is still restricting my flexibility, but it is starting to improve. Jogged back to my car with Rupert (Run Leader of fast 10k), this too has become a norm for the past month. I was aware of my toe whilst running, but not too bad..

Tue 01 May 07, a track session

At the track about 4:40ish, straight into my 3k w/up with Cam which was good for a chat with my oldest, chatting about work & just general stuff. After my warm up I did some dynamic stretching, skipping and then some other work using the fence fo support whilst doing some leg swings. Then onto the track for some sideways stepping, criss cross steps, heel to bum & quick high knees. Then Adam K joined me after his w/up and we did 5x60m strides before starting our session of 600/600/800/800/600/600 at 3:45 per km pace, 90 sec per 400, with a 60 sec walking recovery.

Splits:
2:18
2:14
3:02
3:01
2:16
2:14

Obviously faster than my 10k (way faster - yes), but was a good solid session which I was in control but working, will start to pick up the distance of the repeats in coming weeks. Finished with a 2km cool down and then ran three people through some drills and strides and then stretched whilst watching their session.