Windy tempo run

I managed to get to the club again again last night and had another good run – not sure what is happening but I am sure I am must be due a bad one soon – I must sound really pessimistic!

I did 7 miles last night with 13 of us heading out initially, although not everyone did that amount and some did even more!  Almost the first half is downhill or at least fairly easy and then it is basically hard and hilly to the finish.  Added to that the wind was howling and in my face most of the way back so it was even more difficult and not as fast as last week but I know I was working hard.

My splits were:

9.23 m/m

8.43 m/m

8.41 m/m

9.12 m/m

8.59 m/m

9.30 m/m

9.20 m/m

This meant an average of 9.07  m/m

I am going to the gym tonight and I am going to run on the treadmill I think as it is so cold and I really need to make it an easy run as I need some recovery from the last few days – plus I have attack and pump to do!

Hurray!

I was expecting a slow and painful Tuesday night since I had a good session on Monday but I was very pleasantly surprised.

I did a spin class first and then straightaway I went out for my run.  I was not sure how my legs would be so had only planned 3 miles which is just good enough as in the triathlon it is only 5km (3.1m) that I will have to run after my swim and bike.  I felt really good though and although I always plan this as an easy recovery run I pushed the pace since I felt good.  I may regret that tonight. 

The splits were:

8.56 m/m

8.19 m/m

8.25 m/m

I was really pleased with this. The first mile was fast for me but I managed that because I was warmed up from spin I think.  The second mile felt quite easy but I had to dig deep to complete the third mile at sub 8.30 m/m pace.

I managed to do Body Attack quite well after this well, although I my legs were tired by the last couple of tracks – I still managed all of the power lunges at the end though!

I am off to the club tonight but I am nervous (still!) as I must be due a plodding night since I have had two good back to back sessions.  I am going to drive round the route that we talked about doing first so I know where I am if I get left behind!

Monday night speed session

Another fairly good session at the club for me again last night – probably because I only managed 12 miles on Sunday. I am sure if I had done 18 my legs would not have handled it so well!

The session was 10 x 2 min which I enjoyed more than I thought I would.  At the moment I seem to be doing fairly short sessions on a Monday and longer ones on a Friday – almost mile repeats – so it is quite well balanced.

My pacing ranged from 6.45 m/m to 8 m/m with most of them being in the 7 m/m range which I am pretty pleased about as this matche last week but it was longer intervals this week and I was not feeling the best.

I will probably have a bad session tonight after a good one last night but I am expecting that and hopefully will get to the club tomorrow night for a tempo run.

Bad day

I went out and did a fartlek session on Friday with Mr Pacepusher and Louise and it was okay but my legs were tired and I was no-where near as fast as Monday.    Saturday I did Body Attack – I usually have a Sat off but Laura was doing attack for the first time since having the baby so I wanted to go with her.  I think I worked a bit hard though considering I was going to be trying to do 18 miles on Sunday for the first time in this build up.

I was cooking for 10 people on Saturday and as usually happens when I do this I hardly eat anything all day and then added to that I had a stressful time getting the meat ready (doesn’t help being vegetarian) and smashed 2 pints of gravy all over the kitchen floor so I was too worn out to eat much dinner either.

I don’t think that helped me this morning.  I woke up feeling exhausted and really weird.  I was going for 18 miles and Louise 16 so I did 2 miles first.  I knew right away something was not right as I felt like I was running as fast as I could but was only doing 11 m/m, which is quite shocking!  When I met up with Louise I was distracted and talking and did manage to speed up to averages of 9 1/2 m/m but I was struggling the whole time.  It is so frustrating being so much slower than I had been in the build up to New York and I do not think I am going to get that back in time for London.

At just over 10 miles I came to a dead stop, just feeling totally lousy and unable to make my legs move any more.  I walked for a bit and Louise came back so I managed to run with her to make it up to 12 1/2 miles but that was as much as I could manage.

Really disapointed as I had really wanted to get up to the 18 mile mark but Louise did almost 16 and that at least brings to same long run mileage so we can struggle on together.  Neither of us are feeling particularly confident and are quite annoyed at being so far behind what we were before New York – running 20 miles at sub 9 m/m pace now seems impossible although we did it in October!

Can’t run without socks!

I had planned an easy run at lunchtime yesterday and then 3 x mile repeats on the track before Body Pump and Body Attack last night.  I got to school and realised I had forgotten my socks!  That put paid to my lunchtime run – it was snowing most of the day in East Kilbride anyway so I was not too upset at that!

By the time I left school, went to Asda and bought socks and then got to the gym it was too late for my second run either – especially since I arrived at the same time as my running partner Louise and stood gabbing.  I had already decided I was going to go on the treadmill anyway as the weather was so vile but still I am now annoyed at myself for not making the time to do it.  Thursday is one of the days I struggle with as I find it hard to leave school early enough to get a decent run in before pump and my motivation is lagging by Thursday as that is a ‘run on my own’ day.

Body Pump was good though, my friend Laura is back six weeks after having her baby so it was great to be doing the class with her.  She did really well and seems really motivated to get back to the gym.  I hope I would be like that if I was in her shoes!

I was tired in Body Attack though as I have not had a day off from exercising since last Tuesday and my legs are feeling it. Not sure when I am going to get a day off either, maybe not until next Saturday!

A better one tonight

5 miles, 45 mins 

Managed to get myself to the club tonight and I was really glad that I did.  I am always nervous about going on a Wednesday as I feel as if I will not be able to keep up but tonight was fine – although I was working really, really hard.   That is exactly what I need though for a tempo run on a Wed.

It was not as fast as I thought it was, considering how hard I felt I was working but I was not feeling great and it was really windy so that was probably partly why.  It was exactly how I like to do my runs though – starting slow and then getting fast.  I am no good at starting fast straight away.

 The splits were: 9:48, 9:44, 8:23, 8:26, 8:43 m/m. I should be able to run much faster than that but it is getting there slowly!

And then a rubbish session!

Of course after having such a good session on Monday night I was enthusiastic about Tuesday night.  However, it was not to be.  What I had hoped would be a steady five mile run at 9 m/m pace was in fact a four mile slog which for the first three miles averaged about 9.20 m/m pace and then for the last mile was considerably slower.

My legs were really tired and slow so obviously Monday had taken quite a bit out of me plus I wonder if like Mr pacepusher Sunday’s Body pump class was coming back to haunt me. 

I followed this run with Body Attack – I think I would have gone home in disgust if I had not been meeting people and my legs were still really tired so I did not enjoy myself as much as usual.

I hope tonight that I will make it to the club.  It is supposed to be a steady run but that actually means a tempo run for me and I always worry I will not be able to keep up.  Fingers crossed that I am brave enough to go and that my legs are not so tired tonight!

Monday night speed session

5 mile speed session at the running club, 47 mins overall.

I have one of my very rare runners highs!!! 

I really did not want to go to the running club tonight, I have not been in ages and it seems such an effort to go back out once you have been home, (I am much better at going to the gym and going out before I go home) but since I had been at a meeting in Blantyre I had to go straight there instead of going home first so this made it much easier. 

Mr pacepusher came with my group tonight (he usually goes with a much harder one) which helped me a bit but mostly I was just really ready to do some speed work as I had done my long run on Saturday instead of Sunday so my legs were not too tired.  He says I need to add in that he then ran 4 very fast miles home!

I will not bore you with my pace for every rep but they fell between 7.50 minute miling and 6.10 minute miling – which I do not think I have ever seen on my watch before!  The reps were 30 secs to 2 mins long with half the time recoveries inbetween.

I am so glad I went out tonight now!

It is twelve weeks yesterday until the London marathon and on Saturday I got up to 16 miles for my long run, which I did on the first part of the West Highland Way.  This was good fun but really, really hard work.  The first part from Milngavie to Drymen has always been one of my favourite parts of the WHW and it was really good (although muddy) to run it.  We got lots of bemused looks from walkers!

Tomorrow I hope to do a 5 mile steady run (ish) and then Body Attack.

First post!

Come back soon once I have had time to write something – hopefully after tonights fartlek session at the club!

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