Well I have had a really great two week recovery! I have spent the time resting, sleeping in and doing lots of relaxed easy runs. It has been so nice to just run for the love of it and not worry about time, hills, reps, splits etc! The legs have felt really good and thankfully no niggles or injuries to report ( touch wood!). I did not bother to blog because it would have been pretty boring reading " another easy run...". I am going back to training next week and am really looking forward to getting stuck back into it and aim for the Central Coast half and ultimately 6ft track in March. I have spent a fair bit of time in the gym on the fitball and really working hard to get really strong in the core and butt/legs. I am hoping that will help me with all those long hard hills come march :-)
Past 7 days: 61km
Month: 263km
Year: 2448km
Saturday 30th September
Today: 12km
Week: 45km
Month: 263km
Year: 2448km
This morning was the CR 5km challenge. The legs were feeling really good and I was not sure if I should try to race it or just have a relaxed run. I am wanting to run the 10km next week so opted to run with the 28min group. As we lined up I notice Ellie was also running 28min group. Now seeing I train twice a week with Ellie I was pretty sure that she could do under 26mins. I asked her what she wanted to do and under 26mins was the goal. so I decided to run with her and encourage her to get in under the time. Now I am not a good pacer and so I kept a close eye on our pace, which was pretty even. We hovered around the 5:05 pace and I kept encouring Ellie that if she could try and maintain what she was doing she would easily come in under 26mins. I probably drove her crazy but she was running like a champ and did not have a lot of breath to tell me to shut up! I was so impressed she really dug in and worked really hard.... with no complaints! Far more graceful than me!! We got to 2km to go and I told her this was just 7 laps of Mckay oal which she has done a heap of times! She picked it up and crossed the line in 25:39! It was so much fun to run with her and share the PB!!! I have no doubt Miss Ellie will improve a heap in the next few months.... it is amazing what happens when you know you can do it!!
Splits: 5:05, 5:00, 5:07, 4:59, 5:10, 16sec (72m) Average 5:03/km
Well done Ellie!!! Then we got to cheer the faster guys home..... which included Ray flying home for a 20:30!!! Thats about a 1min 30sec pb!! He ran so well and is improving evry week!! It is so much fun watching him run and improve! I am so proud of him!!! But I will let him describe his run :-) A huge thanks to Blue Dog for pacing him.... after a 4hour training run the day before- the effort is soooo appreciated!!!
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Friday, September 22, 2006
Recovery....
Week: 8km
Month: 202km
Year: 2387km
I pulled up really well after the marathon. A few sore muscles but no injuries or sore bits!! I have had time to reflect on my effort on Sunday and am feeling really proud of myself. My net time was 3:56 and I came 24th in my age category. I feel 100% satisfied with my effort on the day and have learnt HEAPS for the next one.
Monday I had the day off and seeing I had the tooth pulled in the morning I just slept and rested most of the day. The body really appreciated the rest and I am sure has helped with my recovery.
Tuesday I went for a really slow 3km run. The legs felt really good and I kept to 6min pace and kept the heart rate really slow. I then spent ages stretching. Wednesday, I went for a nice easy walk and some stretching at the gym. Last night I went for another really relaxed 5km run. Again I kept to 6min pace and just enjoyed turning the legs over. I finished with a walk and some stretching. Overall the legs feel good. I will now just be guided by how I am feeling and just do all my runs nice and relaxed.
My goals for the next 6 months:
· Striders 10km in November- sub 48mins
· Central Coast Half Marathon- 1hr45mins
· 6ft Track Marathon
Month: 202km
Year: 2387km
I pulled up really well after the marathon. A few sore muscles but no injuries or sore bits!! I have had time to reflect on my effort on Sunday and am feeling really proud of myself. My net time was 3:56 and I came 24th in my age category. I feel 100% satisfied with my effort on the day and have learnt HEAPS for the next one.
Monday I had the day off and seeing I had the tooth pulled in the morning I just slept and rested most of the day. The body really appreciated the rest and I am sure has helped with my recovery.
Tuesday I went for a really slow 3km run. The legs felt really good and I kept to 6min pace and kept the heart rate really slow. I then spent ages stretching. Wednesday, I went for a nice easy walk and some stretching at the gym. Last night I went for another really relaxed 5km run. Again I kept to 6min pace and just enjoyed turning the legs over. I finished with a walk and some stretching. Overall the legs feel good. I will now just be guided by how I am feeling and just do all my runs nice and relaxed.
My goals for the next 6 months:
· Striders 10km in November- sub 48mins
· Central Coast Half Marathon- 1hr45mins
· 6ft Track Marathon
Monday, September 18, 2006
A marathon effort and a little less wisdom....
Today: 42.2km
Week: 73km
Month:194km
Year: 2379km
I am sitting her pondering my efforts yesterday and mourning the loss of my wisdom tooth..... which I opted to have removed today thinking I would already feel sore so whats a little more pain. The tooth was a whopper and at one point I was wishing I was back running the marathon. I asked to take it home with me, so for all you gruesome types I will put a photo of it on my blog :-)
Where to start..... What a day! This was my second marathon and first attempt at the Sydney course. My Sydney experience could not have been more different to my Canberra debut.... but is just as memorable!
I have trained really hard for this run and can not blame being under prepared or injured. I was well tapered, well fueled, confident and ready to go. I arrived at the start early to cheer the half marathoners off and met up with Helen who was feeling really nervous. This took my mind off beong nervous and we chatted with other striders and Cr's before lining up at the start. Now my goal was to aim for 3:45, which would be a 3 min PB on a tougher course, but I felt ready for the challenge. I lined up behind the 3:45 pacer and we were off.
Now the next 10 km is where I made my mistake and broke the most important rule of marathon running.......... Do NOT start too fast!!! I am not sure how I managed to make this mistake as I was so conscious of it for Canberra. It was not until I reached the 10km marker that I realised I had not only made up the 20secs lost at the start but was now a minute ahead of my splits for 3:45. I don't remember even looking at my watch I just got a little caught up in the excitment and I felt really good..... so I did not notice that I was hovering around 5:10 pace with a few 4:55km's thrown in!!! At this point I thought to myself " I am going too fast" but I just kept running. I was feeling fantastic and loved running through the domain and centenial park. It was great to see lots of Cr's and strisders out on the course.
I got to the half way point and I was still 2mins in front of my schedule but I suddenly became aware that I was feeling really hot and there was not a hope in hell I would be able to maintain 5:09 pace the rest of the way. I ripped off my pace bands and decided I needed to change my goal from 3:45 to firstly finishing, secondly not walking and finally try and come in under 4hrs. I remeber just looking at the average pace on my garmin telling me 5:11/km and thinking "how did I let that happen?". The sun felt really hot by the 21km mark and there was not a lot of shade and I panicked because 21 km is a long bloody way to run in the hot when you have just dug yourself a nice big hole to try and crawl out off! For the next 5km or so I became really preoccupied with how I was going to maange to do this.....I could either try to maintain the faster pace and potentially walk the last 10kms or back off- so I slowed down and made sure I drank heaps of water at each drink stop.
Once I was heading out onto the western distributer I relaxed and just focused on my form and watched all the other runners coming the other direction. It is great to get to see the faster runners. At about the 30km mark people were suddenly stopping and walking. I remember Cindy (seans wife) telling me that Emma Murray had said to her before the Mountain champs that when she feels bad she just tells her self to just keep going. That became my mantra.... just keep going. Dont stop!!! People were walking up the hills so, I was aiming to catch and pass people and use that as motivation to not walk up the hills. At 36kms I decided to have some Jelly beans for a bit of a sugar hit but after 5 mins of trying to convince myself to swallow them I had to spit them out. Haha there was not a chance in hell my stomach was going to let me swallow them!
Deanne and Bernie met me at 37kms and I was so relieved to see them. I can not really explain how I was feeling.... I was just so overwhelmed to see them I was fighting off tears. We ran along and they chatted away and reassured me that I would finish. Just before the hills at the 41 km mark I had to have a short walk break because I started to cry for no reason and I needed to get myself under control.
I had been worried about those hills at 41km up to observatory hill but I could not have cared less at that point. I did not really notice them to much all I could think of was we were so close. At the top of observatory hill I was desperately asking Bernie how long a marathon is I had forgotten and could not work out if it was 41 or 42kms long. Damm 42km was the answer but I was reassured that we just had to get down the corkscrew and Ray and my family were waiting on the Cahill expressway. Once I popped out onto the Cahill I could hear my sister screaming. It was such a surreal feeling.... I felt like I was going to laugh and cry at the same time. Suddenly Ray was next to me and was ready to run the last 800ms with me but I strated to really cry and told him to go away. Thankfully he is understanding.... but just the sight of him was too overwhelming at that point. Ray and Bec need a special mention here. No one could ask for two people to love and support me more than they do. They put up with all my crap and still think I am great..... haha yes they are as crazy as me :-) Seriously without these important people in my life..... well it goes with out saying!!
Now the CR cheersquad deserves a special mention!!!! All I can remember is a sea of yellow and blue and a lot of chanting my name. Now if I had been thinking clearly I would have acknowledged all my lovely CR/Strider running friends but I felt like a stunned rabit. I think I muttered "oh my god" and Bernie said to me just focus on the road. I felt quite embarrassed that evryone was witnessing me looking like a complete wreck boo hooing as I ran along! Haha I still managed to hurl some abuse at an official that was trying to tell Bernie and Deanne that they were not on the right side of the cones and that they would not finish if they did not move..... I think I yelled "They ran the half, can't you see their bibs, stop yelling?". The final chute was amazing!! So many people all yelling and cheering! I saw Ewan from training in the crowd he gave me a big cheer and I almost cried again. I gave Amanda a smile and crossed the finish line and the I think the clock said 3:56:?? I did not turn my watch off straight away so I am not sure. To be honest I did not give a shit about the time, I was just so relieved to have finished!! Deanne and Bernie were there again and got me some water. I could not thank them enough!!!! I was really not thinking clearly the last 5km and I think I would have lost it with out them. It is an amazing feeling to know that there are such wonderful people who are there ready to give you support and lift your spirits even when you are covered in sweat, cry for no rational reason and have gu and chewed up jelly bean stuck to you! Deanne, Bernie, Bec, Kerry, Ali, Alison, Helen, Kulinda, Amnanda, Karin, Mark, Ewan and all my running friends (Striders and CR's..... you know who you are)- thankyou!!
That last 10km was hard work just to keep going. I did not feel woozy or sick, I just felt sooooo tired and emotional. All I wanted to do was cry for no reason. It was like I was watching myself but not really in control.
Finishing Canberra and more than achieving the goal I had set myself was an amazing feeling but today felt just as special. Yes I completely mucked the marathon up and would have preferred to not run it that way BUT I can not explain the sense of achievment I felt yesterday. I certainly earned my finishers t-shirt thats for sure!!! I could have easily given up and stoped and walked to the finish but I was determined to see it through. I kept telling myself this is what its all about.
Will I do another one...... for sure!!! Would I run Sydney again..... definaltely!!! Would I do it differently..... without a doubt!!! That was one tough course and I would love to do battle with it again some day. Oh yes and I will remeber the first and most imoportant rule- do not go out too fast!!!
Splits: 5:36, 5:03, 4:55, 529, 4:56, 5:07, 5:18, 5:16, 5: 35, 5:09, 5:17, 5:12, 5:11, 5:09, 5:09, 5:08, 5:17, 5:09, 5:23, 5:14, 5:14, 5:34, 5:36, 6:05, 5:40, 5:27, 6:19, 5:25, 5:56, 5:20, 6:04, 5:49, 6:01, 5:58, 5:26, 6:06, 5:47, 6:17, 5:51: 6:13, 6:43, 5:53, 3:34 (5:27 pace)
5km-26:01
10km- 52:28
15km- 1:18:23
20km- 1:44:36
25km- 2:12:46
30km- 2:41:15
35km-3:10: 35
40km- 3:40: 51
42km-3:53:27
Finish- 3:57 ( take off about 20sec for the start)
Week: 73km
Month:194km
Year: 2379km
I am sitting her pondering my efforts yesterday and mourning the loss of my wisdom tooth..... which I opted to have removed today thinking I would already feel sore so whats a little more pain. The tooth was a whopper and at one point I was wishing I was back running the marathon. I asked to take it home with me, so for all you gruesome types I will put a photo of it on my blog :-)
Where to start..... What a day! This was my second marathon and first attempt at the Sydney course. My Sydney experience could not have been more different to my Canberra debut.... but is just as memorable!
I have trained really hard for this run and can not blame being under prepared or injured. I was well tapered, well fueled, confident and ready to go. I arrived at the start early to cheer the half marathoners off and met up with Helen who was feeling really nervous. This took my mind off beong nervous and we chatted with other striders and Cr's before lining up at the start. Now my goal was to aim for 3:45, which would be a 3 min PB on a tougher course, but I felt ready for the challenge. I lined up behind the 3:45 pacer and we were off.
Now the next 10 km is where I made my mistake and broke the most important rule of marathon running.......... Do NOT start too fast!!! I am not sure how I managed to make this mistake as I was so conscious of it for Canberra. It was not until I reached the 10km marker that I realised I had not only made up the 20secs lost at the start but was now a minute ahead of my splits for 3:45. I don't remember even looking at my watch I just got a little caught up in the excitment and I felt really good..... so I did not notice that I was hovering around 5:10 pace with a few 4:55km's thrown in!!! At this point I thought to myself " I am going too fast" but I just kept running. I was feeling fantastic and loved running through the domain and centenial park. It was great to see lots of Cr's and strisders out on the course.
I got to the half way point and I was still 2mins in front of my schedule but I suddenly became aware that I was feeling really hot and there was not a hope in hell I would be able to maintain 5:09 pace the rest of the way. I ripped off my pace bands and decided I needed to change my goal from 3:45 to firstly finishing, secondly not walking and finally try and come in under 4hrs. I remeber just looking at the average pace on my garmin telling me 5:11/km and thinking "how did I let that happen?". The sun felt really hot by the 21km mark and there was not a lot of shade and I panicked because 21 km is a long bloody way to run in the hot when you have just dug yourself a nice big hole to try and crawl out off! For the next 5km or so I became really preoccupied with how I was going to maange to do this.....I could either try to maintain the faster pace and potentially walk the last 10kms or back off- so I slowed down and made sure I drank heaps of water at each drink stop.
Once I was heading out onto the western distributer I relaxed and just focused on my form and watched all the other runners coming the other direction. It is great to get to see the faster runners. At about the 30km mark people were suddenly stopping and walking. I remember Cindy (seans wife) telling me that Emma Murray had said to her before the Mountain champs that when she feels bad she just tells her self to just keep going. That became my mantra.... just keep going. Dont stop!!! People were walking up the hills so, I was aiming to catch and pass people and use that as motivation to not walk up the hills. At 36kms I decided to have some Jelly beans for a bit of a sugar hit but after 5 mins of trying to convince myself to swallow them I had to spit them out. Haha there was not a chance in hell my stomach was going to let me swallow them!
Deanne and Bernie met me at 37kms and I was so relieved to see them. I can not really explain how I was feeling.... I was just so overwhelmed to see them I was fighting off tears. We ran along and they chatted away and reassured me that I would finish. Just before the hills at the 41 km mark I had to have a short walk break because I started to cry for no reason and I needed to get myself under control.
I had been worried about those hills at 41km up to observatory hill but I could not have cared less at that point. I did not really notice them to much all I could think of was we were so close. At the top of observatory hill I was desperately asking Bernie how long a marathon is I had forgotten and could not work out if it was 41 or 42kms long. Damm 42km was the answer but I was reassured that we just had to get down the corkscrew and Ray and my family were waiting on the Cahill expressway. Once I popped out onto the Cahill I could hear my sister screaming. It was such a surreal feeling.... I felt like I was going to laugh and cry at the same time. Suddenly Ray was next to me and was ready to run the last 800ms with me but I strated to really cry and told him to go away. Thankfully he is understanding.... but just the sight of him was too overwhelming at that point. Ray and Bec need a special mention here. No one could ask for two people to love and support me more than they do. They put up with all my crap and still think I am great..... haha yes they are as crazy as me :-) Seriously without these important people in my life..... well it goes with out saying!!
Now the CR cheersquad deserves a special mention!!!! All I can remember is a sea of yellow and blue and a lot of chanting my name. Now if I had been thinking clearly I would have acknowledged all my lovely CR/Strider running friends but I felt like a stunned rabit. I think I muttered "oh my god" and Bernie said to me just focus on the road. I felt quite embarrassed that evryone was witnessing me looking like a complete wreck boo hooing as I ran along! Haha I still managed to hurl some abuse at an official that was trying to tell Bernie and Deanne that they were not on the right side of the cones and that they would not finish if they did not move..... I think I yelled "They ran the half, can't you see their bibs, stop yelling?". The final chute was amazing!! So many people all yelling and cheering! I saw Ewan from training in the crowd he gave me a big cheer and I almost cried again. I gave Amanda a smile and crossed the finish line and the I think the clock said 3:56:?? I did not turn my watch off straight away so I am not sure. To be honest I did not give a shit about the time, I was just so relieved to have finished!! Deanne and Bernie were there again and got me some water. I could not thank them enough!!!! I was really not thinking clearly the last 5km and I think I would have lost it with out them. It is an amazing feeling to know that there are such wonderful people who are there ready to give you support and lift your spirits even when you are covered in sweat, cry for no rational reason and have gu and chewed up jelly bean stuck to you! Deanne, Bernie, Bec, Kerry, Ali, Alison, Helen, Kulinda, Amnanda, Karin, Mark, Ewan and all my running friends (Striders and CR's..... you know who you are)- thankyou!!
That last 10km was hard work just to keep going. I did not feel woozy or sick, I just felt sooooo tired and emotional. All I wanted to do was cry for no reason. It was like I was watching myself but not really in control.
Finishing Canberra and more than achieving the goal I had set myself was an amazing feeling but today felt just as special. Yes I completely mucked the marathon up and would have preferred to not run it that way BUT I can not explain the sense of achievment I felt yesterday. I certainly earned my finishers t-shirt thats for sure!!! I could have easily given up and stoped and walked to the finish but I was determined to see it through. I kept telling myself this is what its all about.
Will I do another one...... for sure!!! Would I run Sydney again..... definaltely!!! Would I do it differently..... without a doubt!!! That was one tough course and I would love to do battle with it again some day. Oh yes and I will remeber the first and most imoportant rule- do not go out too fast!!!
Splits: 5:36, 5:03, 4:55, 529, 4:56, 5:07, 5:18, 5:16, 5: 35, 5:09, 5:17, 5:12, 5:11, 5:09, 5:09, 5:08, 5:17, 5:09, 5:23, 5:14, 5:14, 5:34, 5:36, 6:05, 5:40, 5:27, 6:19, 5:25, 5:56, 5:20, 6:04, 5:49, 6:01, 5:58, 5:26, 6:06, 5:47, 6:17, 5:51: 6:13, 6:43, 5:53, 3:34 (5:27 pace)
5km-26:01
10km- 52:28
15km- 1:18:23
20km- 1:44:36
25km- 2:12:46
30km- 2:41:15
35km-3:10: 35
40km- 3:40: 51
42km-3:53:27
Finish- 3:57 ( take off about 20sec for the start)
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Update!!
Sorry I have been very slack with blogging... too busy running, eating and working :-)
Friday 8th September 2006
Today: 6km
Week: 46km
Month: 87km
Year: 2272km
Easy 6km run…. Legs are feeling great! Am getting quite excited! Average pace5:15/km. Nothing exciting to report.
Saturday 9th September
Today: 10km
Week: 56km
Month: 97km
Year: 2282km
Ray and I met Deanne at Homebush and did some secret training J Both Ray and Deanne have not run the Homebush striders course…. So we did some undercover work!! It was pretty early and rainy so there were no walkers or runners out…. We had the whole place to ourselves…. Except the frogs J We cruised around easily at 5:30/km pace.
Sunday 10th September 2006
Today: 9km
Week: 65km
Month: 106km
Year: 2291km
Ray and I met Deanne, Kerry for an hours run around the park. It was freezing cold and I got Ray to zip me into his coat to keep warm. We warmed up pretty quickly once we got out of the wind tunnel! About half way through the run the rain bucketed down and Ray was beaming! He was loving running along in the park with the rain and the birds going crazy! Feels good to be alive!
Monday 11th September 2006
Today: 6km
Week: 6km
Month: 112km
Year: 2297km
Today was a really relaxed 6km run from home. It was nice and dry when I started an then the rain started to fall and got really heavy. It was a fantastic feeling!!! I had a crappy stressful day and the the feeling of running in the rain was just what I needed!
Tuesday 12th September
Today: 9km
Week: 15km
Month: 121km
Year: 2306km
Final track session before the marathon and we had instruction from Sean to take it easy. Helen and I did a 1800m rep and 600m rep and just kept it really relaxed and comfortable. The 5 ½ laps were a lot more fun chatting and laughing than putting in a 100% We then just did a nice long easy cool down run. I am feeling really good and I can feel the huge difference the less km make! I am getting excited now about Sunday and starting to feel confident about my goal. I will have my usual cheer squad to cheer me home and Deanne is going to run the hill with me... what a hero!!
Friday 8th September 2006
Today: 6km
Week: 46km
Month: 87km
Year: 2272km
Easy 6km run…. Legs are feeling great! Am getting quite excited! Average pace5:15/km. Nothing exciting to report.
Saturday 9th September
Today: 10km
Week: 56km
Month: 97km
Year: 2282km
Ray and I met Deanne at Homebush and did some secret training J Both Ray and Deanne have not run the Homebush striders course…. So we did some undercover work!! It was pretty early and rainy so there were no walkers or runners out…. We had the whole place to ourselves…. Except the frogs J We cruised around easily at 5:30/km pace.
Sunday 10th September 2006
Today: 9km
Week: 65km
Month: 106km
Year: 2291km
Ray and I met Deanne, Kerry for an hours run around the park. It was freezing cold and I got Ray to zip me into his coat to keep warm. We warmed up pretty quickly once we got out of the wind tunnel! About half way through the run the rain bucketed down and Ray was beaming! He was loving running along in the park with the rain and the birds going crazy! Feels good to be alive!
Monday 11th September 2006
Today: 6km
Week: 6km
Month: 112km
Year: 2297km
Today was a really relaxed 6km run from home. It was nice and dry when I started an then the rain started to fall and got really heavy. It was a fantastic feeling!!! I had a crappy stressful day and the the feeling of running in the rain was just what I needed!
Tuesday 12th September
Today: 9km
Week: 15km
Month: 121km
Year: 2306km
Final track session before the marathon and we had instruction from Sean to take it easy. Helen and I did a 1800m rep and 600m rep and just kept it really relaxed and comfortable. The 5 ½ laps were a lot more fun chatting and laughing than putting in a 100% We then just did a nice long easy cool down run. I am feeling really good and I can feel the huge difference the less km make! I am getting excited now about Sunday and starting to feel confident about my goal. I will have my usual cheer squad to cheer me home and Deanne is going to run the hill with me... what a hero!!
Thursday, September 07, 2006
Wind up my tail.....
Wednesday 6th September
Today: 8km
Week: 29km
Month: 70km
Year: 2255km
It was so nice this morning to have only 45mins on the program instead of an 1hr 45mins! We got some extra doona time which was nice. We plodded around the park taking it really nice and easy. Again a really pleasant run with the girls and Ray who was able to join us this morning :-) Today is our 12 years together anniversary and 6 years since my beautiful Nan died. I regulalry think about my nan and pa.... they played such a huge part in mine and my sisters life. There are certain people who have a profound impact on your life and they have really shaped who I am and what I hold as important. I miss them dearly but get a nice warm feeling because I am sure that they are still watching my sister and I and I often run for them.
Thursday 7th September
Today: 11km
Week: 40km
Month: 81km
Year: 2266km
This morning when the alarm went off there was thunder, lightening and buckets of rain! But the clincher was the wind!!! Now the crazy Kittykat that I am.... I tend to get even more scatty with the wind. Ray often tells me the wind gets up my tail. Needless to say I got reaquainted with the doona and pillow and blissflully slept through it! Ray and I went out this afternoon and had a good session. We did a 3km warm up including drills and strides (heheh Ray is as uncoirdinated with the drills as he is dancing!). We then did 4 laps around the football field. We surged down the long side and floated around the shorter end. So we did 8 surges and 8 floats. On one of the long surges we were running straight into a really strong head wind..... it gave me the shits! It almost blew me over at one point!! I averaged 4:20/km pace for this part of the run.... given the wind I was really pleased!! Then we ran home which was just over 5km. We ran a really good pace on the way home sitting at just over 5min pace for most of the way. The legs felt great tonight..... I could have run all night! So that is the end of any of the quicker stuff. For the next 9 days I will be taking it easy and eating. So evry one say a little prayer that the wind stays away on race day :-)
Today: 8km
Week: 29km
Month: 70km
Year: 2255km
It was so nice this morning to have only 45mins on the program instead of an 1hr 45mins! We got some extra doona time which was nice. We plodded around the park taking it really nice and easy. Again a really pleasant run with the girls and Ray who was able to join us this morning :-) Today is our 12 years together anniversary and 6 years since my beautiful Nan died. I regulalry think about my nan and pa.... they played such a huge part in mine and my sisters life. There are certain people who have a profound impact on your life and they have really shaped who I am and what I hold as important. I miss them dearly but get a nice warm feeling because I am sure that they are still watching my sister and I and I often run for them.
Thursday 7th September
Today: 11km
Week: 40km
Month: 81km
Year: 2266km
This morning when the alarm went off there was thunder, lightening and buckets of rain! But the clincher was the wind!!! Now the crazy Kittykat that I am.... I tend to get even more scatty with the wind. Ray often tells me the wind gets up my tail. Needless to say I got reaquainted with the doona and pillow and blissflully slept through it! Ray and I went out this afternoon and had a good session. We did a 3km warm up including drills and strides (heheh Ray is as uncoirdinated with the drills as he is dancing!). We then did 4 laps around the football field. We surged down the long side and floated around the shorter end. So we did 8 surges and 8 floats. On one of the long surges we were running straight into a really strong head wind..... it gave me the shits! It almost blew me over at one point!! I averaged 4:20/km pace for this part of the run.... given the wind I was really pleased!! Then we ran home which was just over 5km. We ran a really good pace on the way home sitting at just over 5min pace for most of the way. The legs felt great tonight..... I could have run all night! So that is the end of any of the quicker stuff. For the next 9 days I will be taking it easy and eating. So evry one say a little prayer that the wind stays away on race day :-)
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
update
Sunday 3rd September
Today: 19km
Week: 81km
Month: 41km
Year: 2226km
We met at Centenial Park this morning at the blissfull time of 7am :-) We had a great run this morning! We all were feeling tired from yesterdays efforts so we kept a really slow pace and chatted- it was so nice to to just be out in the sun and enjoy running. We ran into the city and practiced our finish down Maquarie st, then through the gardens and back through Kings cross and fisished around the park. We got lots of cheers from all the partiers around the cross.... always an experience. Average pace 5:45/km
Monday 4th September
Today: 11km
Week: 11km
Month: 52km
Year: 2237km
Headed out this evening for a nice 11km run around home. It was lighter this eveinng and I just cruised along to my i-pod. I put some sappy love songs on so I would keep to a nice recovery pace. I felt really good today... the nose is cleared up almost completely- Thankgoodness!! The legs felt good with the shorter run yesterday!!
Average pace: 5:24/km
Tuesday 5th September
Today: 10km
Week: 21km
Month: 62km
Year: 2247km
I had a great session this morning. We had 3x 1200m reps on the program but after our first rep Sean told Deanne, Bernie and myself we had to do the 1600m reps with an active recovery. I was chasing Deanne and was really excited as she was not too far in front. I could really feel the difference having a shorter run on sunday.... more oomph in the legs. The final rep I was a few secs slower because I started to daydream in the second loop and then when Sean called out mysplits I thougt "shit where did the extra 7 secs come from?". So I had to dig deep to make up the time. I was also really excited that my average pace for the reps were 4:14/km pace.
Splits: 5:20 (1200m), 7:11 (1600m) and 7:13 (1600m)
Today: 19km
Week: 81km
Month: 41km
Year: 2226km
We met at Centenial Park this morning at the blissfull time of 7am :-) We had a great run this morning! We all were feeling tired from yesterdays efforts so we kept a really slow pace and chatted- it was so nice to to just be out in the sun and enjoy running. We ran into the city and practiced our finish down Maquarie st, then through the gardens and back through Kings cross and fisished around the park. We got lots of cheers from all the partiers around the cross.... always an experience. Average pace 5:45/km
Monday 4th September
Today: 11km
Week: 11km
Month: 52km
Year: 2237km
Headed out this evening for a nice 11km run around home. It was lighter this eveinng and I just cruised along to my i-pod. I put some sappy love songs on so I would keep to a nice recovery pace. I felt really good today... the nose is cleared up almost completely- Thankgoodness!! The legs felt good with the shorter run yesterday!!
Average pace: 5:24/km
Tuesday 5th September
Today: 10km
Week: 21km
Month: 62km
Year: 2247km
I had a great session this morning. We had 3x 1200m reps on the program but after our first rep Sean told Deanne, Bernie and myself we had to do the 1600m reps with an active recovery. I was chasing Deanne and was really excited as she was not too far in front. I could really feel the difference having a shorter run on sunday.... more oomph in the legs. The final rep I was a few secs slower because I started to daydream in the second loop and then when Sean called out mysplits I thougt "shit where did the extra 7 secs come from?". So I had to dig deep to make up the time. I was also really excited that my average pace for the reps were 4:14/km pace.
Splits: 5:20 (1200m), 7:11 (1600m) and 7:13 (1600m)
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Striders 10km North Head
Today: 15km
Week: 62km
Month: 22km
Year: 2207km
Over the last month I have felt like my training has all been coming together and my times in training and racing have been coming down. My goals so far this year have been a sub 4hr marathon- 3:48 tick, a 4km pb- done, 5km pb- done, a sub 70 city to surf- 68:54 tick, half marathon pb- tick. Today I had grand plans of smashing my 10km pb of 48:43. For some reason I really struggle on the 10km distance. I think I can run the distance quicker, but it always eludes me. today was no exception. I managed a 8 second Pb which I am happy about but it was not what I was aiming for and it was a tough day at the office! Now I could use my cold and marathon training as an excuse but I have run really strongly all week..... so it was just not my best day. As the wise Don Juan has said to me before "thats running!".
We did a 3km warm up and I knew it was not going to happen. The legs and body just felt tired. It was really exciting geeing Ray up for his first 10km race and trying to guess his time. We took off and did the first km a bit too fast..... now my initial plan had been to go as hard as I could and see what happend, but I knew from the warm up that would make it a hard day. So I backed off a bit and just tried to keep good form. At the 5km mark I was feeling really tired and worked really hard to try and hang on the Bernie. She tried to urge me to stick with her but I felt like I had lead legs. Each time I tried to pick up the pace my breathing and heart rate when through the roof and my legs did not seem to go any quicker :-) The 50min pacer was running at 4:30 pace for at least the first 7km (they finsihed in 47:30) and I found this unsettling.... I had to keep checking that I was not running that slowly. Mentally my head was fine. I just told myself this was a crap run but not the end of the world. I just concentrated on maintaining my pace and not slowing too much. I picked up the pace for the final 1km and was pretty happy to finish. It was a spectacular course with great views. It was a great course to run a fast time so I can't wait to have another crack at it!!
It was soooo great to see Ray running in the other direction and he looked really comfortable. He gave me a wink and a clap as he flew by. All I kept thinking was I cant wait to finish and see what time he did!! Bernie and Deanne had great runs bithe smashing there pb's.... so two out of three is not too shabby :-) Now a highlight was cheering Kerry who finished really strongly taking another huge chunk off her last time..... she has had about 12months off with a ruptured achilles and is running so well and improving all the time!! Ohhh and my other highlight was being past by the strider who was cruising along......juggling as he went!!! I am not kidding.... juggling and looking like he was just taking it easy ( I think he finished 45mins).
We finished off sitting on the beach having yummy fruit toast and coffee, soaking up the sun and paddling in the water! Very nice!!
In the theme of being positive..... the good things from the run were-
* seeing Ray do a great debut 10km
* running at a spectular part of Sydney with great friends
* not quitting when you feel like crap and want to sit down on the curb
* Mentally dealing with feeling bad but just working hard anyway
* being past by a juggler for the first time :-)
10km- 48:35 Average Pace 4:50/ km :-(
Week: 62km
Month: 22km
Year: 2207km
Over the last month I have felt like my training has all been coming together and my times in training and racing have been coming down. My goals so far this year have been a sub 4hr marathon- 3:48 tick, a 4km pb- done, 5km pb- done, a sub 70 city to surf- 68:54 tick, half marathon pb- tick. Today I had grand plans of smashing my 10km pb of 48:43. For some reason I really struggle on the 10km distance. I think I can run the distance quicker, but it always eludes me. today was no exception. I managed a 8 second Pb which I am happy about but it was not what I was aiming for and it was a tough day at the office! Now I could use my cold and marathon training as an excuse but I have run really strongly all week..... so it was just not my best day. As the wise Don Juan has said to me before "thats running!".
We did a 3km warm up and I knew it was not going to happen. The legs and body just felt tired. It was really exciting geeing Ray up for his first 10km race and trying to guess his time. We took off and did the first km a bit too fast..... now my initial plan had been to go as hard as I could and see what happend, but I knew from the warm up that would make it a hard day. So I backed off a bit and just tried to keep good form. At the 5km mark I was feeling really tired and worked really hard to try and hang on the Bernie. She tried to urge me to stick with her but I felt like I had lead legs. Each time I tried to pick up the pace my breathing and heart rate when through the roof and my legs did not seem to go any quicker :-) The 50min pacer was running at 4:30 pace for at least the first 7km (they finsihed in 47:30) and I found this unsettling.... I had to keep checking that I was not running that slowly. Mentally my head was fine. I just told myself this was a crap run but not the end of the world. I just concentrated on maintaining my pace and not slowing too much. I picked up the pace for the final 1km and was pretty happy to finish. It was a spectacular course with great views. It was a great course to run a fast time so I can't wait to have another crack at it!!
It was soooo great to see Ray running in the other direction and he looked really comfortable. He gave me a wink and a clap as he flew by. All I kept thinking was I cant wait to finish and see what time he did!! Bernie and Deanne had great runs bithe smashing there pb's.... so two out of three is not too shabby :-) Now a highlight was cheering Kerry who finished really strongly taking another huge chunk off her last time..... she has had about 12months off with a ruptured achilles and is running so well and improving all the time!! Ohhh and my other highlight was being past by the strider who was cruising along......juggling as he went!!! I am not kidding.... juggling and looking like he was just taking it easy ( I think he finished 45mins).
We finished off sitting on the beach having yummy fruit toast and coffee, soaking up the sun and paddling in the water! Very nice!!
In the theme of being positive..... the good things from the run were-
* seeing Ray do a great debut 10km
* running at a spectular part of Sydney with great friends
* not quitting when you feel like crap and want to sit down on the curb
* Mentally dealing with feeling bad but just working hard anyway
* being past by a juggler for the first time :-)
10km- 48:35 Average Pace 4:50/ km :-(
Friday, September 01, 2006
Update
I have been a slack tart with the blog this week..... thought I should puul my finger out :-)
Monday 28th August
Rest day!! Woo hoo! Celebrated with a well earened massage from Tiger..... always hits the spot!!
Tuesday 29th August
Today: 11km
Week: 11km
Month: 336km
Year: 2156km
Today was 1km reps and I felt full of energy.... even Sean noticed commenting I was in for a good session. I had 5 1km reps with an active recovery. I had decided I wanted to keep them all under 4:30/km and aim to get quicker each rep. Once we got going the legs felt fantastic and the pace felt really good! I really enjoyed the session this morning.... although the legs were pooped at the end! It was great to see Kerry and Ellie running so strongly.... getting promoted to the longer reps!
1km reps: 4:29, 4:25, 4:24, 4:23, 4:20
Wednesday 39th August
Today: 19km
Week: 30km
Month: 355km
Year: 2175km
Yeah... the last of the wed long runs :-) We had instructions to take it easy today, which was good because the legs felt heavy from yesterdays efforts! I met Bernie and Deanne and we plodded around the park. I covered 19km in 1hr45mins, average pace 5:38/km.
Thursday 31st August
Today: 10km
Week: 40km
Month 365km
Year: 2185km
Today was Wild Wally- about a 700m hill loop that we have to atack the up and down and then have a 2 min active recovery. I was determined that I would go under 3 mins today.... even if it killed me :-) Sean started us half way up the hill this week.... which was great to break the hill in two bits. I really tried to work hard on both the up hill and down hill today.... I really noticed I was able to really hammer the downhills which I am usually a bit too scared to do. By the 4th rep I was pooped and had no idea if I could crack the 3min barrier. Deanne Myself and one of the yonger girls had been working hard together. I said to them I wanted to get under 3 mins so we needed to work really hard. We took off at top speed up the hill... I was trying to get a few seconds in the bag. I flew down the downhill section and then my legs let me know how tired they were feeling as I tried to pick it up in the final up hill section. I could hear Sean counting it down and dug in and lunged for the line.... 2:58 Woo Hoo!!! Deanne and I were ecstatic..... such a good feeling when it all starts to click!!
splits: 3:15, 3:10, 3:06, 3:03, 2:58 (** still smiling**)
Friday 1st September
Today: 7km
Week: 47km
Month: 7km
Year: 2192km
The first day of spring is here and 17days til the marathon :-) We met at 5:45am at the bay and did a really slow lap, just turning the legs over. It was a spectacular morning and the rowers were all out on the water. Deanne, Bernie and myself are all really excited about the striders run tommorow. The plan is to go out hard and try and hold on :-) We are all feeling great at the moment and I am wanting to have a final hard/fast run before the big one. So once saturday is over I am going to try and make sure all my runs are at an easier effort and just focus on the mental stuff. I am really excited about this marathon..... especially since I found out that spud will be doing the 3:45 paceing duties!!! I can't wait :-) Touch wood.... evrything is looking good :-)
Monday 28th August
Rest day!! Woo hoo! Celebrated with a well earened massage from Tiger..... always hits the spot!!
Tuesday 29th August
Today: 11km
Week: 11km
Month: 336km
Year: 2156km
Today was 1km reps and I felt full of energy.... even Sean noticed commenting I was in for a good session. I had 5 1km reps with an active recovery. I had decided I wanted to keep them all under 4:30/km and aim to get quicker each rep. Once we got going the legs felt fantastic and the pace felt really good! I really enjoyed the session this morning.... although the legs were pooped at the end! It was great to see Kerry and Ellie running so strongly.... getting promoted to the longer reps!
1km reps: 4:29, 4:25, 4:24, 4:23, 4:20
Wednesday 39th August
Today: 19km
Week: 30km
Month: 355km
Year: 2175km
Yeah... the last of the wed long runs :-) We had instructions to take it easy today, which was good because the legs felt heavy from yesterdays efforts! I met Bernie and Deanne and we plodded around the park. I covered 19km in 1hr45mins, average pace 5:38/km.
Thursday 31st August
Today: 10km
Week: 40km
Month 365km
Year: 2185km
Today was Wild Wally- about a 700m hill loop that we have to atack the up and down and then have a 2 min active recovery. I was determined that I would go under 3 mins today.... even if it killed me :-) Sean started us half way up the hill this week.... which was great to break the hill in two bits. I really tried to work hard on both the up hill and down hill today.... I really noticed I was able to really hammer the downhills which I am usually a bit too scared to do. By the 4th rep I was pooped and had no idea if I could crack the 3min barrier. Deanne Myself and one of the yonger girls had been working hard together. I said to them I wanted to get under 3 mins so we needed to work really hard. We took off at top speed up the hill... I was trying to get a few seconds in the bag. I flew down the downhill section and then my legs let me know how tired they were feeling as I tried to pick it up in the final up hill section. I could hear Sean counting it down and dug in and lunged for the line.... 2:58 Woo Hoo!!! Deanne and I were ecstatic..... such a good feeling when it all starts to click!!
splits: 3:15, 3:10, 3:06, 3:03, 2:58 (** still smiling**)
Friday 1st September
Today: 7km
Week: 47km
Month: 7km
Year: 2192km
The first day of spring is here and 17days til the marathon :-) We met at 5:45am at the bay and did a really slow lap, just turning the legs over. It was a spectacular morning and the rowers were all out on the water. Deanne, Bernie and myself are all really excited about the striders run tommorow. The plan is to go out hard and try and hold on :-) We are all feeling great at the moment and I am wanting to have a final hard/fast run before the big one. So once saturday is over I am going to try and make sure all my runs are at an easier effort and just focus on the mental stuff. I am really excited about this marathon..... especially since I found out that spud will be doing the 3:45 paceing duties!!! I can't wait :-) Touch wood.... evrything is looking good :-)
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