Wednesday 28th February
Today: 8km
Week:25km
Month: 340km
Year:710km
Well it is the last day of Feb and only 10 days til the big event! I am feeling a mixture of excitment and fear! My strategy until last night was to just focus on my training and not really think about race day. Last night I started to think about goal times, race plan, gu's splits etc. I am going to stay at my sister's the night before so it will not take as long to get to the mountains and I am going to pick my stuff up on Friday and then spend the rest of the day with my mum relaxing. I have worked out my race day shorts, undies and sock routine and need to get some more gu and dried pinneapple for race day. I feel really prepared....I can visualise the whole course and have been rehersing in my mind how I want to feel at different spots. I actually really enjoy visualising running the race well.... I don't know if it helps or not but I like it :-) I figure if I think about it going well and to plan it will help me feel relaxed and confident on race day.
Todays run was a bit of a grind. I felt tired and had heavy legs. We ran for 8kms average pace about 5:50/km..... this felt ridiculously hard today! Great company though and a great way to start the day.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Monday 26th Feb
Today: 6km
Week: 6km
Month: 329km
Year:691km
I had an hour on the program today but All Hail King Taper.... so I did 6kms nice and relaxed. When I left the gym tonight it was raining and I had the urge to run again. We have had hardly any rain and it feels so fantastic to be out in the rain....dinner won out :-)
Tuesday 27th Feb
Today: 11km
Week: 17km
Month: 340km
Year: 702km
Arrived nice and early and did about 3km warm up....took a while to warm this morning. We had laps of the lake this morning and I had 1 lap with an active break and then two laps. Sean instructed to put in a good effort on the first lap as there would be enough recovry for a good second lap. So we took off and I felt really good and managed to maintian the pace for the whole lap. I finished in 6:09 (1 km split was 4:13) which I could not believe. My best time around the lake has been 6:35. Bernie and I then kept jogging until the second rep. I started the second rep with Ray and he encouraged me to run with him, but after 400ms he was slowly leaving me in his dust :-) As I passes Sean for the first lap he was telling me to reel Ray and Dean and Sheena in.... I was able to keep them at a consistant distance :-) Second Rep was 13:05. I felt great running this morning and in a much better frame of mind! I talked to Sean and he instructed me to not race the 10kms on Saturday and to aim for 50mins. I think I will be feeling to excited and toey to do what I am told so I might run my run before the race and then I can focus on just hosting the run and cheering Ray :-) We had another Celebrity appearance this morning ;-)
Today: 6km
Week: 6km
Month: 329km
Year:691km
I had an hour on the program today but All Hail King Taper.... so I did 6kms nice and relaxed. When I left the gym tonight it was raining and I had the urge to run again. We have had hardly any rain and it feels so fantastic to be out in the rain....dinner won out :-)
Tuesday 27th Feb
Today: 11km
Week: 17km
Month: 340km
Year: 702km
Arrived nice and early and did about 3km warm up....took a while to warm this morning. We had laps of the lake this morning and I had 1 lap with an active break and then two laps. Sean instructed to put in a good effort on the first lap as there would be enough recovry for a good second lap. So we took off and I felt really good and managed to maintian the pace for the whole lap. I finished in 6:09 (1 km split was 4:13) which I could not believe. My best time around the lake has been 6:35. Bernie and I then kept jogging until the second rep. I started the second rep with Ray and he encouraged me to run with him, but after 400ms he was slowly leaving me in his dust :-) As I passes Sean for the first lap he was telling me to reel Ray and Dean and Sheena in.... I was able to keep them at a consistant distance :-) Second Rep was 13:05. I felt great running this morning and in a much better frame of mind! I talked to Sean and he instructed me to not race the 10kms on Saturday and to aim for 50mins. I think I will be feeling to excited and toey to do what I am told so I might run my run before the race and then I can focus on just hosting the run and cheering Ray :-) We had another Celebrity appearance this morning ;-)
Sunday, February 25, 2007
update.....
Friday 23rd Feb
Today: 6km
Week: 49km
Month: 282km
Year: 650km
I ran this afternoon after a really late night..... we saw Damien rice at the Enmore theatre. He was Brilliant!!! it was a fantastic concert and they all were amazing musicians. The girls had such beautiful voices and one of the girls was playing the Cello, which just sounded unbelievable with the Guitar and Piano! I just ache to be able to play that well!!! The run was a lot less ordinary.... 6km around home. I had a crappy day and spent the whole run feeling like a hippopttomus in disguise! Lets just say slightly fragile! Average pace 5:20/km
Saturday 24th Feb
Today: 12km
Week: 61km
Month: 300km
Year: 662km
CR 5km today. I had grand and ambitious plans of making an attack on 22mins today. It never ceases to amaze me the impact your mental state can have on how you run. Now I will not bore you with the details.... lets just say I was obsessing about some bosy issues and my head was from being in PB form! I lined up with Professor, Tess, Johnny Dark and someone else. I was freaking aout a bit at this stage "what are you doing these guys are heaps faster than you!!!!". So we started and I was feeling pretty good and went through the first 2km in 4:21, 4:23. I then ran past Gnome taking phots and all I could think about was "GREAT photos of you looking fat for all teh CR world to see". It was at this point my head was all over the place and I had to work really hard to just keep running let alone run at my best. NUTS... yes I know! I have been working really hard to deal with body stuff but it does rear its ugly head from time to time. Ironically I had emailed a great article to friends written by Lisa Corriden and Buster talking about the pressure of running and body image for females and prevelance of eating disorders within our sport. So like a neourotic female I spent the next 3km being particularly negative. Poor professor had no idea and was doing his best to encourage me to run faster.... all I wanted to do was cry. Now it is actually hard to run and fight off tears.... so my breathing was a little all over the place. So I just put a stupid smile on my face and thought lets just get this finished. SO I finished in 22:37.... I am happy with my time, but annoyed at myself for letting such negative crap get in the way. I proceeded to have a good whinge to Bernie and Ray on the way back and felt much better in time for breakfast. I decided to post the details because I am sure I am not the only female who suffers with body image and self esteem stuff. Just to reassure you all I know I am not fat blah blah.... just negative thoughts thats all! The even funnier thing was that the photos are not that bad!!! Typical :-) Finished the day with my mum, sister and little neice- they are so good for the soul! I can never have too much of them.... always make me feel so good!!!!
5km: 4:21, 4:23, 4:30, 4:38, 4:39
Sunday 25th Feb
Today: 23km
Week: 84km
Month: 323km
Year:685km
Today felt like the last day of school! It was our last long run and we were all feeling tired and a bit over it. We decided to do a shorter version of the 10 bridge strider run. We strted at the civilised time of 7am and headed off from Brett Park, through Drummoyne, over the ? Figtree Bridge, through Hunters Hill, through the Reserve at Lane Cove, up a nasty hill, into the bush at Lane Cove, then down and up River Rd, through Woolstencraft and North Sydney, onto the Harbour Bridge where we bumped into Rags. Then we ran past Observatory hill where I had flashbacks to the marathon and nice memories of Rays marriage proposal! We ran through the city and over the bridge at Darling Harbour. We stopped here for a few minutes to cheer on the Dragon Boat races! I was slightly slow and about 10 mins later announced very wisely that the races were obviously for the Chinese New Year..... that had already been discussed about 15mins earlier!! I am pretty sharp :-). We then continued over Anzac bridge and back along Victoria rd. I was so hungry by the time we got back to the finsih and was soooo happy for my soy hot choc and fruit toast from Bowen Island. Today we were all a bit tired and there was no concern given to stoping to sniff the roses so to speak! I love that run!!! I love when your in Woolstencraft you can see both the Anzac and Harbour Brdge in the distance and it spins you out that you will cross both of them!
So that about it for the long stuff! Two weeks to go and the plan for the week is to do some faster sessions at training and then eat and sleep well and run relaxed for the rest of the time. Sounds very nice!
I am getting Big Kev Excited!!!!!!!!
Today: 6km
Week: 49km
Month: 282km
Year: 650km
I ran this afternoon after a really late night..... we saw Damien rice at the Enmore theatre. He was Brilliant!!! it was a fantastic concert and they all were amazing musicians. The girls had such beautiful voices and one of the girls was playing the Cello, which just sounded unbelievable with the Guitar and Piano! I just ache to be able to play that well!!! The run was a lot less ordinary.... 6km around home. I had a crappy day and spent the whole run feeling like a hippopttomus in disguise! Lets just say slightly fragile! Average pace 5:20/km
Saturday 24th Feb
Today: 12km
Week: 61km
Month: 300km
Year: 662km
CR 5km today. I had grand and ambitious plans of making an attack on 22mins today. It never ceases to amaze me the impact your mental state can have on how you run. Now I will not bore you with the details.... lets just say I was obsessing about some bosy issues and my head was from being in PB form! I lined up with Professor, Tess, Johnny Dark and someone else. I was freaking aout a bit at this stage "what are you doing these guys are heaps faster than you!!!!". So we started and I was feeling pretty good and went through the first 2km in 4:21, 4:23. I then ran past Gnome taking phots and all I could think about was "GREAT photos of you looking fat for all teh CR world to see". It was at this point my head was all over the place and I had to work really hard to just keep running let alone run at my best. NUTS... yes I know! I have been working really hard to deal with body stuff but it does rear its ugly head from time to time. Ironically I had emailed a great article to friends written by Lisa Corriden and Buster talking about the pressure of running and body image for females and prevelance of eating disorders within our sport. So like a neourotic female I spent the next 3km being particularly negative. Poor professor had no idea and was doing his best to encourage me to run faster.... all I wanted to do was cry. Now it is actually hard to run and fight off tears.... so my breathing was a little all over the place. So I just put a stupid smile on my face and thought lets just get this finished. SO I finished in 22:37.... I am happy with my time, but annoyed at myself for letting such negative crap get in the way. I proceeded to have a good whinge to Bernie and Ray on the way back and felt much better in time for breakfast. I decided to post the details because I am sure I am not the only female who suffers with body image and self esteem stuff. Just to reassure you all I know I am not fat blah blah.... just negative thoughts thats all! The even funnier thing was that the photos are not that bad!!! Typical :-) Finished the day with my mum, sister and little neice- they are so good for the soul! I can never have too much of them.... always make me feel so good!!!!
5km: 4:21, 4:23, 4:30, 4:38, 4:39
Sunday 25th Feb
Today: 23km
Week: 84km
Month: 323km
Year:685km
Today felt like the last day of school! It was our last long run and we were all feeling tired and a bit over it. We decided to do a shorter version of the 10 bridge strider run. We strted at the civilised time of 7am and headed off from Brett Park, through Drummoyne, over the ? Figtree Bridge, through Hunters Hill, through the Reserve at Lane Cove, up a nasty hill, into the bush at Lane Cove, then down and up River Rd, through Woolstencraft and North Sydney, onto the Harbour Bridge where we bumped into Rags. Then we ran past Observatory hill where I had flashbacks to the marathon and nice memories of Rays marriage proposal! We ran through the city and over the bridge at Darling Harbour. We stopped here for a few minutes to cheer on the Dragon Boat races! I was slightly slow and about 10 mins later announced very wisely that the races were obviously for the Chinese New Year..... that had already been discussed about 15mins earlier!! I am pretty sharp :-). We then continued over Anzac bridge and back along Victoria rd. I was so hungry by the time we got back to the finsih and was soooo happy for my soy hot choc and fruit toast from Bowen Island. Today we were all a bit tired and there was no concern given to stoping to sniff the roses so to speak! I love that run!!! I love when your in Woolstencraft you can see both the Anzac and Harbour Brdge in the distance and it spins you out that you will cross both of them!
So that about it for the long stuff! Two weeks to go and the plan for the week is to do some faster sessions at training and then eat and sleep well and run relaxed for the rest of the time. Sounds very nice!
I am getting Big Kev Excited!!!!!!!!
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Today's session brought to you by the number 3...
Today: 10km
Week: 43km
Month: 276km
Year: 644km
We had hills this morning...700m hill loop with a 2min active recovery. I like this session.... you get to work really hard but the recovery makes it feel bearable. Sean had instructed that he wanted us to try and do each rep a little quicker than the one before. We started and I made sure I did not go too quick on the first rep and did 3:10. Billy Idol was back this morning and I heard him say to Sean "I will just stand and watch the first few to see how they are done"....??? hmmm just run and follow the fast guys! My second rep was a little quicker at 3:04. My best times on WW is 2:55, but I only managed one of them and then the rest of my reps were much slower and I think I stopped at 5 instead of doing the 7. so my aim today was to be consistant and do the 7 and try to get under 3mins. Well it was just like the movie ground hog day! I felt like I was stuck in the same rep for the next 5!!! It did not matter how hard I did or di not try as I crossed the line sean would call out 3 mins! 3 mins on the nose each time.... talk about consistant :-) I was getting irritated and trying desparately to get in under 3 mins. On the last one Sean was laughing as he was counting down the secs. the only way I was going to crack it was to do a base ball styl slide across the line. Hahaha with 6ft so close I figured that was not the smartest thing to do so had to put up with another 3 mins! The great thing was that I managed to do the 7, 5 of those were 3mins.... average pace for each rep was 4:20/km. So I am really happy with the session.... just need to find a second here or there!!!
I am feeling good and looking forward to the 5km challenge on Saturday. I have decided to try and get under 22mins. December I ran 22:13 and I am feeling good at the moment so I am hoping I can do it! I love the 5k challenge... it is relaxed nand a great way to check how you are going from month to month. Plus the breakfast is always nice!!!
Off to See Damien Rice tonight at the enmore.... I can't wait! I have been listening to his cd's non-stop in the care!
Wild Wally- 3:10, 3:04, 3:00, 3:00, 3:00, 3:00, 3:00
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
A morning with the queen...
Today: 16km
Week: 33km
Month: 266km
Year: 634km
We had a great run this morning!!! We met at 5:15am at Centenial Park and ran through the park, down Oxford st ( where we found Ray and Wayne some nice new speedos for Marti Gra weekend) and then through the city to the international terminal and had a sticky beak at the QEII. It was a spectacular morning with the sun rising and the Opera house and Bridge as a back drop. We then made out way back to the park where we finished off with our strides. We covered 16km in 90mins, average pace 5:32/km. I felt initially tired this morning but after the first few kms felt great.... also helped when the sun was up- makes it feel more normal to be running! Wednesday's are such an early get up.... when the alarm goes off at 4:30am I always wonder why I am doing this! But what a great way to start the day.... I am sitting at my desk eating my musile feeling on top of the world, watching the rest of the office drag themselves in :-)
Week: 33km
Month: 266km
Year: 634km
We had a great run this morning!!! We met at 5:15am at Centenial Park and ran through the park, down Oxford st ( where we found Ray and Wayne some nice new speedos for Marti Gra weekend) and then through the city to the international terminal and had a sticky beak at the QEII. It was a spectacular morning with the sun rising and the Opera house and Bridge as a back drop. We then made out way back to the park where we finished off with our strides. We covered 16km in 90mins, average pace 5:32/km. I felt initially tired this morning but after the first few kms felt great.... also helped when the sun was up- makes it feel more normal to be running! Wednesday's are such an early get up.... when the alarm goes off at 4:30am I always wonder why I am doing this! But what a great way to start the day.... I am sitting at my desk eating my musile feeling on top of the world, watching the rest of the office drag themselves in :-)
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
"If you can smile like that your legs are feeling heavy...."
Today 12km
Week: 17km
Month: 250km
Year:618km
We had long reps this morning and I had 3 x 1200m reps on the program. Ray and I arrived a little early, just as the sun was getting up and did a good warm up (4km at 5:30/km pace..... a little quicker than planned). Then instead of listening to Sean I was too busy talking to Linda and completely missed what he was instructing us. So we took off and I thought I was doing a 1km rep followed by two 1200m reps. when I got to the 500m mark Sean said to me I was running well and I should do 2km.... crap- too fast, time to slow down a little! So I did my fist rep in 8:48 which is the fastest time I have run a 2km rep. Then Sean said to me that I was running well and felt I could manage the longer reps and said I should do a second 2km rep and finish with a 1400m rep. So on one hand I was excited he felt I was running well enough to stick with the faster group.... but completely intimidated and unsettled about running with the faster runners. In my second 2km rep I was a little more conservative ( insert pooped ) and finished with 9:09. Apart form being out of your comfort zone, the problem with being "promoted" is that you then get hardly any recovery (when you are last) ..... so I had 45 secs to jog about 150ms from the finish spot to the 1400m start. I am a little dissapointed to say that I put minimal effort in my last rep. I had already decided that with such a short recovery I would run like crap.... so I did. I decided to just keep it under 5 min pace.... finished 6:40 (4:47/km average). When I finished I said to Sean I was dissapointed with the effort I put into my last lap..... he said that I had worked really hard in the first two and to be happy with my times and not worry. Then he said "Yes... when you smile like that your legs are feeling heavy".... in other words the legs are so pooped your not working aerobically. So I am really happy with my fisrt two reps but annoyed that I slacked off in the final one! Mental note do not let Sean see you smiling and looking at the birds while running a speed session!
2km- 8:48 (4:25, 4:23)
2km- 9:09 (4:35, 4:34)
1.4km- 6:40 (1:50 (400m)4:50 1km)- crap!!
Week: 17km
Month: 250km
Year:618km
We had long reps this morning and I had 3 x 1200m reps on the program. Ray and I arrived a little early, just as the sun was getting up and did a good warm up (4km at 5:30/km pace..... a little quicker than planned). Then instead of listening to Sean I was too busy talking to Linda and completely missed what he was instructing us. So we took off and I thought I was doing a 1km rep followed by two 1200m reps. when I got to the 500m mark Sean said to me I was running well and I should do 2km.... crap- too fast, time to slow down a little! So I did my fist rep in 8:48 which is the fastest time I have run a 2km rep. Then Sean said to me that I was running well and felt I could manage the longer reps and said I should do a second 2km rep and finish with a 1400m rep. So on one hand I was excited he felt I was running well enough to stick with the faster group.... but completely intimidated and unsettled about running with the faster runners. In my second 2km rep I was a little more conservative ( insert pooped ) and finished with 9:09. Apart form being out of your comfort zone, the problem with being "promoted" is that you then get hardly any recovery (when you are last) ..... so I had 45 secs to jog about 150ms from the finish spot to the 1400m start. I am a little dissapointed to say that I put minimal effort in my last rep. I had already decided that with such a short recovery I would run like crap.... so I did. I decided to just keep it under 5 min pace.... finished 6:40 (4:47/km average). When I finished I said to Sean I was dissapointed with the effort I put into my last lap..... he said that I had worked really hard in the first two and to be happy with my times and not worry. Then he said "Yes... when you smile like that your legs are feeling heavy".... in other words the legs are so pooped your not working aerobically. So I am really happy with my fisrt two reps but annoyed that I slacked off in the final one! Mental note do not let Sean see you smiling and looking at the birds while running a speed session!
2km- 8:48 (4:25, 4:23)
2km- 9:09 (4:35, 4:34)
1.4km- 6:40 (1:50 (400m)4:50 1km)- crap!!
Monday, February 19, 2007
Recovery run....
Today: 5.5km
Week: 5.5km
Month: 238km
Year: 606km
Ray and I ran with Bernie this morning for a nice easy 5km (average pace 5:45/km). We ran a loop through Scarborough Park in Ramsgate which is always really pretty. There is a nice track that runs through trees and is really soft underfoot..... I always feel like a Hobbit- I fantasise that I am elf like....but definately a Hobbit :-)
A picture of the two principal violinist from the concert.
Some info on the concerto.... if any one else is interested????
http://cnx.org/content/m13404/latest/
Week: 5.5km
Month: 238km
Year: 606km
Ray and I ran with Bernie this morning for a nice easy 5km (average pace 5:45/km). We ran a loop through Scarborough Park in Ramsgate which is always really pretty. There is a nice track that runs through trees and is really soft underfoot..... I always feel like a Hobbit- I fantasise that I am elf like....but definately a Hobbit :-)
A picture of the two principal violinist from the concert.
Some info on the concerto.... if any one else is interested????
http://cnx.org/content/m13404/latest/
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Stage three of Operation Fairy Floss....
Friday 16th
Today: 6km
Week:45km
Month:197km
Year:565km
Had a nice sleep in this morning and ran this afterrnoon. It was a bit humid..... but fekt great after a busy day at work! 6 km- 32 mins (5:20/km average pace). Then I spent the night with my mum, sister and spectacular ittle neice.... who has some mighty impressive dance moves for a 15month old!!!!
Saturday 17th Feb
Today: 12km
Week:57km
Month: 209km
Year: 577km
Met the girls (and ray) at the bay and did 12km around the bay. We did the dog loop (woof) and then threw the extra bit along Balmain shores and up the hill.... never miss a chance to throw in a hill!! Finished with a yummy breakfast and attempted my best impression of a tuppawares sales girls ;-)
12km- 68mins ( 5:40/km average pace). We thne went to the athletics in the evening.... I have a crush on Craig Mottram :-)
Sunday 18th Feb
Today: 23km
Week:80km
Month:232km
Year:600km
The final stage of operation fairy floss is all about the icing! Today I had 30km on the program but but decided to do the 10km at SMC for some speedy stuff. I did a 4km warm up with Ray and he then ran with me to do a 10sec pb crossing the lin in 47:30. I was initially dissapointed (typical) but then was convinced by others wiser than me that a 10sec pb is pretty good and to take it! So take it I will. It felt harder than it should have today, I felt really hot and tired. But my breathing was a heap better woo hoo! There was this annoying guy who just could not cope with being passed by a girl... so he would speed up for 30ms and then slow again. He did this for the last 2km and I have to admit it was really distrcting! Just run buddy or piss off! Ray was great to run with and just maintained a good pace and let me run with out too much talk. Haha when he tried to get me to go faster in the final km I almost bit his head off " what do you think I am doing relaxing??" Poor ray!!! Then we ran out onto the course to find Bernie and Tim doing the 25km. We finaly found them and Bernie was running really well despite the sun!! She slowly picked up the pace and put on a really good surge in the last 2km! So finished with 22km and decided that that was enough.... the extra kms were just going to make me tired and not add any benefit!(thanks Bernie).
10km- 47:22 ( 4:43, 4:34, 4:45, 4:44, 4:49, 4:41, 4:52, 4:38, 4:52, 4:28, 1o secs) Average pace: 4:42/km
So overall a successfull day in Camp Fairy Floss! With 20 days to go we are done with distance.... all in the bank! No point in trying to fit any extra in now..... whats not done we can not make up. We have run lots of 30km plus runs with two trips to the track.... one of those the full course. So no stone is left unturned.... a bit daunting as there are no excuses now! It is such a good feeling to aproach a big race like 6ft knowing we are both prepared and injury free :-) Touch wood!!
So the next 3 weeks are all about eating well, sleeping well and doing some faster stuff to be toeing the start line knowing we have done as much as we can do! Bring it on!!!!!
Finished the day with a spectacular concert at The Opera House listeing to the Sydney Chamber Orchestra play Beethoven's Violin Concerto in D. It is my all time favourite peice of music!!! My nana used to play this peice and she gave me a tape of it when I was little and I used to play it over and over going to bed. I feel like I know each note in the 42 min concerto and I had to fight back tears through out the performance. They were amazing and inspiring!!! I was either closing my eyes and being transported away by the music or absolutely awe struck by their skills and abilty to make their instruments sing. The lead Celloist was amazing.... he was in another world and it was hard to see where he finished and the instrument began. Ray surprised me with these tickets on Friday and I am so thankful to have heard them play.... still getting emotional thinking about it! I feel close to my nana when I play my violin and when I listen to that music.... she was definately there today!!!
Today: 6km
Week:45km
Month:197km
Year:565km
Had a nice sleep in this morning and ran this afterrnoon. It was a bit humid..... but fekt great after a busy day at work! 6 km- 32 mins (5:20/km average pace). Then I spent the night with my mum, sister and spectacular ittle neice.... who has some mighty impressive dance moves for a 15month old!!!!
Saturday 17th Feb
Today: 12km
Week:57km
Month: 209km
Year: 577km
Met the girls (and ray) at the bay and did 12km around the bay. We did the dog loop (woof) and then threw the extra bit along Balmain shores and up the hill.... never miss a chance to throw in a hill!! Finished with a yummy breakfast and attempted my best impression of a tuppawares sales girls ;-)
12km- 68mins ( 5:40/km average pace). We thne went to the athletics in the evening.... I have a crush on Craig Mottram :-)
Sunday 18th Feb
Today: 23km
Week:80km
Month:232km
Year:600km
The final stage of operation fairy floss is all about the icing! Today I had 30km on the program but but decided to do the 10km at SMC for some speedy stuff. I did a 4km warm up with Ray and he then ran with me to do a 10sec pb crossing the lin in 47:30. I was initially dissapointed (typical) but then was convinced by others wiser than me that a 10sec pb is pretty good and to take it! So take it I will. It felt harder than it should have today, I felt really hot and tired. But my breathing was a heap better woo hoo! There was this annoying guy who just could not cope with being passed by a girl... so he would speed up for 30ms and then slow again. He did this for the last 2km and I have to admit it was really distrcting! Just run buddy or piss off! Ray was great to run with and just maintained a good pace and let me run with out too much talk. Haha when he tried to get me to go faster in the final km I almost bit his head off " what do you think I am doing relaxing??" Poor ray!!! Then we ran out onto the course to find Bernie and Tim doing the 25km. We finaly found them and Bernie was running really well despite the sun!! She slowly picked up the pace and put on a really good surge in the last 2km! So finished with 22km and decided that that was enough.... the extra kms were just going to make me tired and not add any benefit!(thanks Bernie).
10km- 47:22 ( 4:43, 4:34, 4:45, 4:44, 4:49, 4:41, 4:52, 4:38, 4:52, 4:28, 1o secs) Average pace: 4:42/km
So overall a successfull day in Camp Fairy Floss! With 20 days to go we are done with distance.... all in the bank! No point in trying to fit any extra in now..... whats not done we can not make up. We have run lots of 30km plus runs with two trips to the track.... one of those the full course. So no stone is left unturned.... a bit daunting as there are no excuses now! It is such a good feeling to aproach a big race like 6ft knowing we are both prepared and injury free :-) Touch wood!!
So the next 3 weeks are all about eating well, sleeping well and doing some faster stuff to be toeing the start line knowing we have done as much as we can do! Bring it on!!!!!
Finished the day with a spectacular concert at The Opera House listeing to the Sydney Chamber Orchestra play Beethoven's Violin Concerto in D. It is my all time favourite peice of music!!! My nana used to play this peice and she gave me a tape of it when I was little and I used to play it over and over going to bed. I feel like I know each note in the 42 min concerto and I had to fight back tears through out the performance. They were amazing and inspiring!!! I was either closing my eyes and being transported away by the music or absolutely awe struck by their skills and abilty to make their instruments sing. The lead Celloist was amazing.... he was in another world and it was hard to see where he finished and the instrument began. Ray surprised me with these tickets on Friday and I am so thankful to have heard them play.... still getting emotional thinking about it! I feel close to my nana when I play my violin and when I listen to that music.... she was definately there today!!!
Thursday, February 15, 2007
The many moods of Katie.....
Today: 10km
Week: 39km
Month: 191km
Year:559km
How many moods do you think you can fit into a day before 8am??? Well this morning I managed
* Disbelief that the alarm had gone off
* Annoyance that I forgot to hang out running stuff from yesterday... therefore fav hat still wet
* Irritable at the sunday drivers out on a thursday morning
* Beligerant and bithchy in the car for trivial reasons
* Guilt for being a cow
* Fear of Big Bertha
* Contentment from running
* Joy from Deanne and Bernie making me laugh
* Pleasure from not collapsing on the hills
* Quiet enjoyment from lapping some people on the hills
* Joy from a 13 sec pb on big bertha
* Finished feeling content and happy and over my childish moods :-) Gotta love hormoanes!
More moods than a baskin Robins ice cream shop.... mmmmm ice cream!
Definately worth getting up at 5am!!!
Seriously.... 10 laps Big Bertha (430m hill- up & down) 21:29.... 13 secs pb! I felt really comfortable and ran consistant laps. Not as hard on the uphill this week which was nice. I ran an extra two laps with Frank.... he is such a ledgend!!!
Dinner with the girls tonight.... can't wait!
Week: 39km
Month: 191km
Year:559km
How many moods do you think you can fit into a day before 8am??? Well this morning I managed
* Disbelief that the alarm had gone off
* Annoyance that I forgot to hang out running stuff from yesterday... therefore fav hat still wet
* Irritable at the sunday drivers out on a thursday morning
* Beligerant and bithchy in the car for trivial reasons
* Guilt for being a cow
* Fear of Big Bertha
* Contentment from running
* Joy from Deanne and Bernie making me laugh
* Pleasure from not collapsing on the hills
* Quiet enjoyment from lapping some people on the hills
* Joy from a 13 sec pb on big bertha
* Finished feeling content and happy and over my childish moods :-) Gotta love hormoanes!
More moods than a baskin Robins ice cream shop.... mmmmm ice cream!
Definately worth getting up at 5am!!!
Seriously.... 10 laps Big Bertha (430m hill- up & down) 21:29.... 13 secs pb! I felt really comfortable and ran consistant laps. Not as hard on the uphill this week which was nice. I ran an extra two laps with Frank.... he is such a ledgend!!!
Dinner with the girls tonight.... can't wait!
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
A Wicked Web we weave....
Today: 11km
Week: 29km
Month: 181km
Year: 549km
We had such a lovely run this morning! We met at the park and it was still dark, with the sun just starting to rise. We ran outside the park initially because of the dark and then headed into run on the grass. We had a short run today which was bliss..... I was no in the mood for a really long one like last week! I felt a bit tired this morning and enjoyed the nice slow pace. I think Ray has missed his calling.... he has **Kapow** reflexes and acrobatic moves which were demonstrated as he ran straight into a huge spiderweb with Deanne telling him there were two big spiders in there. As rough and tough as he looks he is petrified of spiders!!! We were all as supportive as usual and stood around laughing.... after checking there were no spiders in his hair :-) I think I will laugh every time I think about it!
Hills tommorow and then I will have a couple of easy days before SMC on sunday. I am gaing to do the 10km race as part of my 30km run. He he so it will be a long warm up and cool down.... I checked with Sean yesterday and he thought it was a great idea ( can't say I am that enthusiastic!)
11km-62mins 5:40/km
**Happy Hallmark day!**
Week: 29km
Month: 181km
Year: 549km
We had such a lovely run this morning! We met at the park and it was still dark, with the sun just starting to rise. We ran outside the park initially because of the dark and then headed into run on the grass. We had a short run today which was bliss..... I was no in the mood for a really long one like last week! I felt a bit tired this morning and enjoyed the nice slow pace. I think Ray has missed his calling.... he has **Kapow** reflexes and acrobatic moves which were demonstrated as he ran straight into a huge spiderweb with Deanne telling him there were two big spiders in there. As rough and tough as he looks he is petrified of spiders!!! We were all as supportive as usual and stood around laughing.... after checking there were no spiders in his hair :-) I think I will laugh every time I think about it!
Hills tommorow and then I will have a couple of easy days before SMC on sunday. I am gaing to do the 10km race as part of my 30km run. He he so it will be a long warm up and cool down.... I checked with Sean yesterday and he thought it was a great idea ( can't say I am that enthusiastic!)
11km-62mins 5:40/km
**Happy Hallmark day!**
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
What goes up must come down.....
Friday 9th Feb 2007
Today: 6km
Week: 52km
Month: 128km
Year: 490km
Easy 6km run today... nothing exciting :-) Covered the distance in 33:30
saturday 10th Feb
Today: 12km
Week: 64km
Month: 134km
Year: 502km
Met Deanne, Bernie, Wayne and ran at Sydney park for a few hills. We did some loops around the park and then finished the 10km running on a spectacular cricket field.... so nice and green and soft. 10km - 58mins
Then I met my sister and Mum and little Alex at Centenial Park and took Bec for a run. It was like running in a steam room- very humid. Overall we did 5km ran 3km and waled to warm up and cool down.
Sunday 11th Feb
Today: 18km
Week: 82km
Month: 152km
Year: 520km
Today we headed to the Equaliser, the Striders internal Cross country race. It was pouring with rain onn the way.... so heavy that I almost had to stop the car. Once we arrived it cleared.... thankfully we did not have to stand around in the rain. This runn works off the theory of what goes down must come up again! The first 3kms are down hill and then it works its way back up, then flattens out for a bit, back down again before working its way back up the final steep 3kms to the finish. I loved this run! It was off raod and through some spectacular scenary. The rain had caused a few parts of the run to be under water and was a little hairy crossing at a few points. Sean had instructed me to not "race" the run but to put in a solid effort....mainly because we had such a long run the week before and in his words "you have to get to the start line in one peice!"- wise words. I find these instructions a little hard to work out sometimes so decided to just run feeling relaxed and if I was getting too tired to back off a little bit. I felt great the whole run. I loved the hills and bush and felt great on the down hill! On the second last km I walked a bit of the hill and used it to practice moving from walking to running. With 2.5km to go I spied Ray up ahead and tried really hard to reel him in....I am going to get him a running shirt with a target on :-) I think I finished 10th female and was really happy with my time. I was aiming at running under 85mins feeling relaxed and I finished in 79:05. I finished feeling I could have gone a bit quicker which was a great feeling. I am feeling a bit over hills though ;-)
Monday: 12th Feb
Today: 6km
Week: 6km
Month: 158km
Year:526km
Easy 6km run tonight. I really wanted to get caught in the rain... but it stopped just long enough for me to run Dóh! With the drought I really miss the runs in the heavy rain... always feels so nice :-) 6km 33mins
Tuesday 13th Feb 2007
Today: 12km
Week: 18km
Month: 170km
Year: 538km
We had a 4 lap of the lake time trial today. I have done two of these sessions, both times hovered around 27 mins. Today did 26:31. I did a good 3km warm up and strides/ drills and then into the laps. This one is tough mentally because it is hard and hurts and you can see Sean standing there at the finish almost all the way around. I headed out and felt great.... I caught Ray and Dean and tried to stick with them. they were obviously taking the first lap easy as they pulled away in the next 3 laps. I maintained 4:39/km pace (average) and it felt great. It was hard work but not 100%.... I am never too sure if time trials are meant to be a hard effort or 100% effort like racing. I am erring on the side of caution.... I would be a tad cranky if I got an injury 26 days out from the race. The first split was 6:30, then 13:10, 19:50, 26:30 (6:30, 6:40, 6:40, 6:40). The laps are about 1.4km. Pretty happy with that.... I need to traul back and look but about 20 secs faster than my best. I loved chasing Ray today.... really kept me going!It was a pleasure to watch Bernie Fly home for a strong finish!!!
Edit: I just looked at the equaliser results! 79:06 Finished 8th female and 6th in catregory.....BIG KEV EXCITED!!! (Lots of usual suspects not running.... but who cares!!)
Today: 6km
Week: 52km
Month: 128km
Year: 490km
Easy 6km run today... nothing exciting :-) Covered the distance in 33:30
saturday 10th Feb
Today: 12km
Week: 64km
Month: 134km
Year: 502km
Met Deanne, Bernie, Wayne and ran at Sydney park for a few hills. We did some loops around the park and then finished the 10km running on a spectacular cricket field.... so nice and green and soft. 10km - 58mins
Then I met my sister and Mum and little Alex at Centenial Park and took Bec for a run. It was like running in a steam room- very humid. Overall we did 5km ran 3km and waled to warm up and cool down.
Sunday 11th Feb
Today: 18km
Week: 82km
Month: 152km
Year: 520km
Today we headed to the Equaliser, the Striders internal Cross country race. It was pouring with rain onn the way.... so heavy that I almost had to stop the car. Once we arrived it cleared.... thankfully we did not have to stand around in the rain. This runn works off the theory of what goes down must come up again! The first 3kms are down hill and then it works its way back up, then flattens out for a bit, back down again before working its way back up the final steep 3kms to the finish. I loved this run! It was off raod and through some spectacular scenary. The rain had caused a few parts of the run to be under water and was a little hairy crossing at a few points. Sean had instructed me to not "race" the run but to put in a solid effort....mainly because we had such a long run the week before and in his words "you have to get to the start line in one peice!"- wise words. I find these instructions a little hard to work out sometimes so decided to just run feeling relaxed and if I was getting too tired to back off a little bit. I felt great the whole run. I loved the hills and bush and felt great on the down hill! On the second last km I walked a bit of the hill and used it to practice moving from walking to running. With 2.5km to go I spied Ray up ahead and tried really hard to reel him in....I am going to get him a running shirt with a target on :-) I think I finished 10th female and was really happy with my time. I was aiming at running under 85mins feeling relaxed and I finished in 79:05. I finished feeling I could have gone a bit quicker which was a great feeling. I am feeling a bit over hills though ;-)
Monday: 12th Feb
Today: 6km
Week: 6km
Month: 158km
Year:526km
Easy 6km run tonight. I really wanted to get caught in the rain... but it stopped just long enough for me to run Dóh! With the drought I really miss the runs in the heavy rain... always feels so nice :-) 6km 33mins
Tuesday 13th Feb 2007
Today: 12km
Week: 18km
Month: 170km
Year: 538km
We had a 4 lap of the lake time trial today. I have done two of these sessions, both times hovered around 27 mins. Today did 26:31. I did a good 3km warm up and strides/ drills and then into the laps. This one is tough mentally because it is hard and hurts and you can see Sean standing there at the finish almost all the way around. I headed out and felt great.... I caught Ray and Dean and tried to stick with them. they were obviously taking the first lap easy as they pulled away in the next 3 laps. I maintained 4:39/km pace (average) and it felt great. It was hard work but not 100%.... I am never too sure if time trials are meant to be a hard effort or 100% effort like racing. I am erring on the side of caution.... I would be a tad cranky if I got an injury 26 days out from the race. The first split was 6:30, then 13:10, 19:50, 26:30 (6:30, 6:40, 6:40, 6:40). The laps are about 1.4km. Pretty happy with that.... I need to traul back and look but about 20 secs faster than my best. I loved chasing Ray today.... really kept me going!It was a pleasure to watch Bernie Fly home for a strong finish!!!
Edit: I just looked at the equaliser results! 79:06 Finished 8th female and 6th in catregory.....BIG KEV EXCITED!!! (Lots of usual suspects not running.... but who cares!!)
Friday, February 09, 2007
Someone order hills????
Wednesday 7th Feb
Today: 21km
Week:36km
Month:112km
Year:474km
Met at the park for our mid week long run. For something different we decided to run down to Rushcutters Bay, Double Bay and then onto the city to surf course. Just for fun we ran up heartbreak hill ;-) and down to Bondi. Now just to make sure we are getting enough hills in, we ran back up Bondi rd and through Queens park and back to the car. We covered the 21km in 2hrs. We picked the pace up in the second half and finished the last few kms at 5min pace. It was a great run this morining and it was a nice surprise to find that Heart break hill was not such a heartbreak! Haha anything after Pluvi seems a walk in the park ;-)
Finished with spectacular massage this afternoon to loosen the legs up. I was surprised after the weekend what good shape they were in.... no major sore bits to complain of! Bliss!!!
Thursday 8th Feb
Today: 10km
Week:46km
Month:122km
Year:484km
Today was Wild Walter.... which is aproximately 400m hill session at the park. We have to attack the up hill, and then run hard along a flat section with a final 150m down hill finish. Sean was giving us about 45sec active recocvery before we launched straight into the next rep. I had to do 10 and I had miss counted so I was sooo happy to realise we had already done 8 ( I thought it was number 7). We had run the first 4 reps around the wrong tree so they were a bit short... so we then went around the correct way which added about 5 secs on the times- dóh!!!
I really enjoyed this session. It was tough but over quickly! I was pretty happy as my times stayed pretty constant.
1:49, 1:47, 1:46, 1:45, 1:50, 1:50, 1:48, 1:48, 1:48, 1:46
Today: 21km
Week:36km
Month:112km
Year:474km
Met at the park for our mid week long run. For something different we decided to run down to Rushcutters Bay, Double Bay and then onto the city to surf course. Just for fun we ran up heartbreak hill ;-) and down to Bondi. Now just to make sure we are getting enough hills in, we ran back up Bondi rd and through Queens park and back to the car. We covered the 21km in 2hrs. We picked the pace up in the second half and finished the last few kms at 5min pace. It was a great run this morining and it was a nice surprise to find that Heart break hill was not such a heartbreak! Haha anything after Pluvi seems a walk in the park ;-)
Finished with spectacular massage this afternoon to loosen the legs up. I was surprised after the weekend what good shape they were in.... no major sore bits to complain of! Bliss!!!
Thursday 8th Feb
Today: 10km
Week:46km
Month:122km
Year:484km
Today was Wild Walter.... which is aproximately 400m hill session at the park. We have to attack the up hill, and then run hard along a flat section with a final 150m down hill finish. Sean was giving us about 45sec active recocvery before we launched straight into the next rep. I had to do 10 and I had miss counted so I was sooo happy to realise we had already done 8 ( I thought it was number 7). We had run the first 4 reps around the wrong tree so they were a bit short... so we then went around the correct way which added about 5 secs on the times- dóh!!!
I really enjoyed this session. It was tough but over quickly! I was pretty happy as my times stayed pretty constant.
1:49, 1:47, 1:46, 1:45, 1:50, 1:50, 1:48, 1:48, 1:48, 1:46
Monday, February 05, 2007
The full monty.... "ultra style"
Sunday 4th Feb 2007
Today: 45km
Week:92km
Month:76km
Year:438km
Today we decided to swap next weeks long run for today so that we can do the striders equaliser on Sunday. So we headed to The track for our full monty version. We decided to do the whole 45kms so I could get a clear idea of the track and what to expect. We were lead out by our fearless team leader Wayne, who reassured us we were doing it "ultra style". This turned out to be fun, relaxed, with lots of breaks and LOTS of food. The plan was to cover the distance and get a good idea of how to run the race on the day. I am so thankful for the experience! Apart from being a brilliant way to spend my day.... with two of my favourite people BUT I feel so relaxed and confident about the race. I am firm in my belief this will be one of the toughest and challenging runs I will do and am ready for the test. .... what ever happens on the day happens! I think the trick will be to run smart! Which is why experiencing that final 19km after Mini Mini and Pluvi was worth its weight in gold!!! I am going to tatoo in my brain that I must reach the top of Pluvi with enough left to run a half marathon distance. I also learnt that despite what I have been told, that final 19kms is just as tough- I can imagine it must claim quite a few scalps along that stretch. When I sit and think about where we ran and what we saw.... I just get stuck on how long it is!! That sounds a stupid comment, but it really is a long way! When we popped out at the last little bit Wayne said to me...."you can hear the crowd from here" I got butterflies and thought Bring it on!!!! I felt really happy how I pulled up, tired but no sore bits to report!! The day was made even more exciting when we got to the end and Deanne and Ray were no where to be seen!! Needless to say I wnet into meltdown mode thinking they were injured on the track or lost or kidnapped by aliens ( ok I was very tired!!). So we lay around on the steps at the front of Caves house waiting for them to appear! I can only imagine what we looked like and how bad we must have smelt!!! Just as I was taking my panic up a notch and getting ready to force wayne to run and find them they appeared! They got a little navigationally challenged found new parts of the track and covered 30km instead of the orginal 15km!! Ray was grinning from ear to ear.... I think he enjoyed himself ;-)
Monday 5th Feb
Today: 5km
Week: 5km
Month: 81km
Year: 443km
Easy 30 mins today. I ran at the gym so I could stop if I felt too sore. Surprisingly I felt only a little sore in my calfs and quads from the hills. The rest of me feels pretty good :-) I covered the 5km in 5:43/km pace and then finished with a pillates class. I left feeling nice and relaxed and stretched!
Tuesday 6th Feb
Today: 10km
Week: 15km
Month:91km
Year: 453km
We had speed work today and we had pre warned Sean to not expect "any record breaking times". I arrived a little earlier than usual to do a longer warm up given the beating I have given the legs it only seemed fair ;-)
By the end of the strides I was actually feeling really good, but not looking forward to two 2km reps and 1 1km rep. Once we got going I tucked in behind a couple of the girls I usually run with and tried to jut keep them a little in front of me. I went through the first km in 4:33 only 5 secs worse than the last time we did this session. The second lap was 4:30.... 9:03 for the rep. My best 2km rep so far was 8:55 so I was pretty happy! The second rep I took off with the girls again and kept with them. The first lap was 4:33 again and the second was 4:36. Then for the stinger... the final 1km rep. My legs were now feeling tired from the weekend but what the hell how bad could it be. Pretty bad :-) I managed to stick with them for almost 800ms and was running at 4min/km pace then I struggled and had to really bully myself to keep it up. I finished with 4:17 which I was very happy with after the little loss of plot at the willow tree :-) It is really good mentally to do these session.... makes your mind know that you can do it even when yuor feeling tired! I think I will need that on race day!!
9:03 (2km), 9:06 (2km), 4:17 (1km)
Today: 45km
Week:92km
Month:76km
Year:438km
Today we decided to swap next weeks long run for today so that we can do the striders equaliser on Sunday. So we headed to The track for our full monty version. We decided to do the whole 45kms so I could get a clear idea of the track and what to expect. We were lead out by our fearless team leader Wayne, who reassured us we were doing it "ultra style". This turned out to be fun, relaxed, with lots of breaks and LOTS of food. The plan was to cover the distance and get a good idea of how to run the race on the day. I am so thankful for the experience! Apart from being a brilliant way to spend my day.... with two of my favourite people BUT I feel so relaxed and confident about the race. I am firm in my belief this will be one of the toughest and challenging runs I will do and am ready for the test. .... what ever happens on the day happens! I think the trick will be to run smart! Which is why experiencing that final 19km after Mini Mini and Pluvi was worth its weight in gold!!! I am going to tatoo in my brain that I must reach the top of Pluvi with enough left to run a half marathon distance. I also learnt that despite what I have been told, that final 19kms is just as tough- I can imagine it must claim quite a few scalps along that stretch. When I sit and think about where we ran and what we saw.... I just get stuck on how long it is!! That sounds a stupid comment, but it really is a long way! When we popped out at the last little bit Wayne said to me...."you can hear the crowd from here" I got butterflies and thought Bring it on!!!! I felt really happy how I pulled up, tired but no sore bits to report!! The day was made even more exciting when we got to the end and Deanne and Ray were no where to be seen!! Needless to say I wnet into meltdown mode thinking they were injured on the track or lost or kidnapped by aliens ( ok I was very tired!!). So we lay around on the steps at the front of Caves house waiting for them to appear! I can only imagine what we looked like and how bad we must have smelt!!! Just as I was taking my panic up a notch and getting ready to force wayne to run and find them they appeared! They got a little navigationally challenged found new parts of the track and covered 30km instead of the orginal 15km!! Ray was grinning from ear to ear.... I think he enjoyed himself ;-)
Monday 5th Feb
Today: 5km
Week: 5km
Month: 81km
Year: 443km
Easy 30 mins today. I ran at the gym so I could stop if I felt too sore. Surprisingly I felt only a little sore in my calfs and quads from the hills. The rest of me feels pretty good :-) I covered the 5km in 5:43/km pace and then finished with a pillates class. I left feeling nice and relaxed and stretched!
Tuesday 6th Feb
Today: 10km
Week: 15km
Month:91km
Year: 453km
We had speed work today and we had pre warned Sean to not expect "any record breaking times". I arrived a little earlier than usual to do a longer warm up given the beating I have given the legs it only seemed fair ;-)
By the end of the strides I was actually feeling really good, but not looking forward to two 2km reps and 1 1km rep. Once we got going I tucked in behind a couple of the girls I usually run with and tried to jut keep them a little in front of me. I went through the first km in 4:33 only 5 secs worse than the last time we did this session. The second lap was 4:30.... 9:03 for the rep. My best 2km rep so far was 8:55 so I was pretty happy! The second rep I took off with the girls again and kept with them. The first lap was 4:33 again and the second was 4:36. Then for the stinger... the final 1km rep. My legs were now feeling tired from the weekend but what the hell how bad could it be. Pretty bad :-) I managed to stick with them for almost 800ms and was running at 4min/km pace then I struggled and had to really bully myself to keep it up. I finished with 4:17 which I was very happy with after the little loss of plot at the willow tree :-) It is really good mentally to do these session.... makes your mind know that you can do it even when yuor feeling tired! I think I will need that on race day!!
9:03 (2km), 9:06 (2km), 4:17 (1km)
Saturday, February 03, 2007
All hail Queen Helen...the monkey is dead!!
Today: 14km
Week: 47km
Month: 31km
Year: 393km
It was Lane Cove 10km Striders this morning and my only goal today was to improve on my 48:14 PB. Helen had agreed to run with me as she is still recovering from nasty shin splints. Firstly I want to say a huge thanks to her!! It is so nice to have someone give up there own race to help you acheive your own goal. I felt nervous at the start because not only was I putting pressure on myself but Sean had said to me on thursday after training that a PB was in order. The aim was to not thrash the first 5kms too hard and then do a negative split. There were heaps there this morning and the start felt a little like a city to surf start :-) I had told Helen my goal was to do 4:45/km and anything better would be a bonus. We ran the first km in 4:45 and I was stoked! I got into a comfy pace and just sat behind Helen who kept a close eye that I did not slip behind. Scribbly felt fine and I got a good laugh from one of the girls near by who said "wow the turn around already!!" hehe I just kept going. I love the down hills so made sure I made up for lost time from the ups. We got to the 2nd hill and I really struggled on the up. It felt like harder work than it should have!! My hamstrings actually felt a bit tired.... not sure why? Anyhoo we turned around and I again made up for pathetic up with a faster down. How good would it be if you were good at the ups and downs!! I was pleased to see the 5km split was 23:51. Helen kept encouraging me to just maintina my pace. When we got to the 7km mark she said we had a pb in the bag if I just kept it constant. I was finding any little incline hard today and I sounded like I was having an asthma attack. Haha once I reassured Helen would not drop dead she said " I know how much you want this, try to pick it up". I was so happy to get to the 9km mark and know it was just 2.5 laps of Mckay to go! I can do this!!! Now I got excited.... I tried to pick someone up front and reel her in. I was so happy to see the finish and crossed the line in 47:30. Woo Hoo!!! The monkey is dead! I was ecstatic.... it is a nice feeling to run a good race! Average pace 4:44/km. It is very exciting to be able to run a faster 10km with all the km's we are running at the moment.... very noice! Hmmm still no heaving.... maby Homebush :-)
splits: 4:45, 4:28, 4:51 (scribbly), 4:38, 5:07 (hill), 4:41, 4:36, 4:38, 4:50 ( started my usual I am tired crap), 4:30, 22secs.
Week: 47km
Month: 31km
Year: 393km
It was Lane Cove 10km Striders this morning and my only goal today was to improve on my 48:14 PB. Helen had agreed to run with me as she is still recovering from nasty shin splints. Firstly I want to say a huge thanks to her!! It is so nice to have someone give up there own race to help you acheive your own goal. I felt nervous at the start because not only was I putting pressure on myself but Sean had said to me on thursday after training that a PB was in order. The aim was to not thrash the first 5kms too hard and then do a negative split. There were heaps there this morning and the start felt a little like a city to surf start :-) I had told Helen my goal was to do 4:45/km and anything better would be a bonus. We ran the first km in 4:45 and I was stoked! I got into a comfy pace and just sat behind Helen who kept a close eye that I did not slip behind. Scribbly felt fine and I got a good laugh from one of the girls near by who said "wow the turn around already!!" hehe I just kept going. I love the down hills so made sure I made up for lost time from the ups. We got to the 2nd hill and I really struggled on the up. It felt like harder work than it should have!! My hamstrings actually felt a bit tired.... not sure why? Anyhoo we turned around and I again made up for pathetic up with a faster down. How good would it be if you were good at the ups and downs!! I was pleased to see the 5km split was 23:51. Helen kept encouraging me to just maintina my pace. When we got to the 7km mark she said we had a pb in the bag if I just kept it constant. I was finding any little incline hard today and I sounded like I was having an asthma attack. Haha once I reassured Helen would not drop dead she said " I know how much you want this, try to pick it up". I was so happy to get to the 9km mark and know it was just 2.5 laps of Mckay to go! I can do this!!! Now I got excited.... I tried to pick someone up front and reel her in. I was so happy to see the finish and crossed the line in 47:30. Woo Hoo!!! The monkey is dead! I was ecstatic.... it is a nice feeling to run a good race! Average pace 4:44/km. It is very exciting to be able to run a faster 10km with all the km's we are running at the moment.... very noice! Hmmm still no heaving.... maby Homebush :-)
splits: 4:45, 4:28, 4:51 (scribbly), 4:38, 5:07 (hill), 4:41, 4:36, 4:38, 4:50 ( started my usual I am tired crap), 4:30, 22secs.
Friday, February 02, 2007
Friday on my mind....
Today: 7km
Week: 33km
Month: 17km
Year: 379km
Finally the end of the week!!! We have been a bit too social these last 3 weeks and we are really looking forward to an early bed tonight! I ran with Ray and Bernie and Wayne this morning around the water. It was raining which was spectacular! It is a delicacy to run in the rain and I love the feeling and smells. I ran along with Bernie chatting away. We ran really slowly and tried to keep at 6 min pace. We averaged 5:45/km. It was sucha great way to start off the weekend.... still the rest of today to go though. I am feeling almost back to 100% which is awesome.... the foggies have almost gone!!! Too long a story and the poeple who need to know already do. Suffice to say I am sparking again :-) Operation FF is progressing well!
Tommorow is Lane Cove 10km and it is where I set my 10km PB 2 years ago! I managed to scrape 1 second off it at Smithfield last month in the heat. I am aiming to get the monkey off my back and run a good 10km. It is quite ridiculous that I run 22:15 for 5km and passed through the 10km mark of the half in 48:20!! I seem to be stuck at 48mins. I had a similar experience trying to get under 50mins. I think I had myself convinced it was too hard and I ran 50:05 soooo many times! Amazing the mental side to running. So as advised by Dean I am telling myself in the morning that I am a brilliant 10km runner and this is my distance. Hmmmm.... we will see!
Week: 33km
Month: 17km
Year: 379km
Finally the end of the week!!! We have been a bit too social these last 3 weeks and we are really looking forward to an early bed tonight! I ran with Ray and Bernie and Wayne this morning around the water. It was raining which was spectacular! It is a delicacy to run in the rain and I love the feeling and smells. I ran along with Bernie chatting away. We ran really slowly and tried to keep at 6 min pace. We averaged 5:45/km. It was sucha great way to start off the weekend.... still the rest of today to go though. I am feeling almost back to 100% which is awesome.... the foggies have almost gone!!! Too long a story and the poeple who need to know already do. Suffice to say I am sparking again :-) Operation FF is progressing well!
Tommorow is Lane Cove 10km and it is where I set my 10km PB 2 years ago! I managed to scrape 1 second off it at Smithfield last month in the heat. I am aiming to get the monkey off my back and run a good 10km. It is quite ridiculous that I run 22:15 for 5km and passed through the 10km mark of the half in 48:20!! I seem to be stuck at 48mins. I had a similar experience trying to get under 50mins. I think I had myself convinced it was too hard and I ran 50:05 soooo many times! Amazing the mental side to running. So as advised by Dean I am telling myself in the morning that I am a brilliant 10km runner and this is my distance. Hmmmm.... we will see!
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Cruising....
Wednesday 31st Jan
Rest Day!!!! After months of consistant training I opted for some sleep and rest today! No running , no gym, no pillates and no yoga! We have had a huge week socially.... starting with the Rogere waters concert Thursday last week, Rays party and last night the Eric Clapton concert. So when the alarm went off at 5am.... ray and I both just rolled over for some much needed zzzzzzz's
Total for January 362km
Thursday 1st Feb 2007
Today: 10km
Week: 26km
Month: 10km
Year: 372km
Wow.... who can believe the first month is over with for 2007!! So time to re start the month km counter.... That just flew by :-) This month has been great running wise. I am feeling really fit and things are clicking at the moment. I have no niggles or injuries and have been working really hard and consistantly towards 6 ft. I am really excited about this run, but also quite daunted. This is a run to treat with respect and not take lightly!! I have been running for 4 years and have done 15 half marathons, two sub 4hr marathons and lots of 10kms and other races and I still wonder if I am still a bit green to do this run. Don't get me wrong, I know I am doing the right training and will toe the line prepared and ready to go BUT still can be a bit daunting! Also very exciting to be doing it with such a great friend :-)
Today we had speed work around the lake. We had 2 laps and then easy recovery. Sean gave us a good talking to about taking today easy if we were racing on Saturday! No need to say it twice!! Dean and I sat at a really comfiratable pace and chatted around both laps. I decided to make sure I could talk the whole way around to make sure I did not push too hard. I ran at about 4:45 pace and felt really confortable. It was nice to take it easy.... but then you feel like you have not done enough! So crazy I know!! So hopefully I will turn up on Saturday busting for a good run. Helen is running with me and she has promised there will be no slacking off! So I am quite excited about it!!
2 Laps- 13:45 (6:55,6:50)
Rest Day!!!! After months of consistant training I opted for some sleep and rest today! No running , no gym, no pillates and no yoga! We have had a huge week socially.... starting with the Rogere waters concert Thursday last week, Rays party and last night the Eric Clapton concert. So when the alarm went off at 5am.... ray and I both just rolled over for some much needed zzzzzzz's
Total for January 362km
Thursday 1st Feb 2007
Today: 10km
Week: 26km
Month: 10km
Year: 372km
Wow.... who can believe the first month is over with for 2007!! So time to re start the month km counter.... That just flew by :-) This month has been great running wise. I am feeling really fit and things are clicking at the moment. I have no niggles or injuries and have been working really hard and consistantly towards 6 ft. I am really excited about this run, but also quite daunted. This is a run to treat with respect and not take lightly!! I have been running for 4 years and have done 15 half marathons, two sub 4hr marathons and lots of 10kms and other races and I still wonder if I am still a bit green to do this run. Don't get me wrong, I know I am doing the right training and will toe the line prepared and ready to go BUT still can be a bit daunting! Also very exciting to be doing it with such a great friend :-)
Today we had speed work around the lake. We had 2 laps and then easy recovery. Sean gave us a good talking to about taking today easy if we were racing on Saturday! No need to say it twice!! Dean and I sat at a really comfiratable pace and chatted around both laps. I decided to make sure I could talk the whole way around to make sure I did not push too hard. I ran at about 4:45 pace and felt really confortable. It was nice to take it easy.... but then you feel like you have not done enough! So crazy I know!! So hopefully I will turn up on Saturday busting for a good run. Helen is running with me and she has promised there will be no slacking off! So I am quite excited about it!!
2 Laps- 13:45 (6:55,6:50)
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