Shock horror – some consistent training

Saturday 22nd Nov  -  Renfrewshire District Cross Country Championships

4 miles, 36.01mins, ave pace 9.06m/m

9.15, 8.41, 9.29, 8.36

My first cross country race and I really enjoyed it, despite it being really hard work.  I found it hard going without spikes and I will certainly be buying some.  I can’t believe after the slow miles I have done on a Wednesday night that I ran 9 m/m for the cross country.

Sunday 23rd November – cross country at the club

5 miles, 1.12.36, 14.41m/m ave pace

Just four of us there today (improvement on two the week before) but it was good fun.  Very muddy again, possibly worse than last week and so that makes it really slow going.  So does walking past the highland cows, stopping to let stampeding horses get past and climbing under or over gates and fences which I am not very fast at.

Monday 24th November

5.29 miles, 50.40 mins, 9.35m/m ave

3 x 3 mins, 3 x 2 mins, 3 x 1 min

9.29m/m pace warm up, 9.08m/m pace cool down

7.37m/m, 7.30m/m, 7.16m/m

7.25m/m, 7.12m/m, 7.20m/m,

6.13m/m, 6.20m/m, 6.45m/m

This is the fastest speed session I have done since before the summer and I really enjoyed it.  It is June since I hit 6 something min mile pace for anything and hopefully I can now pick this up to the 2 min reps soon.  Also the 2 and 3 min reps were faster than they have been in a while.

Wednesday 25th November

7.01miles, 1.03.25, 9.03m/m ave pace

9.33, 9.26, 9.27, 9.23, 8.20, 8.25, 8.40

I have now been at the club Sunday, Monday and Wednesday for three weeks running and quite pleased with myself.  I even went myself tonight.  There is such a world of difference between how tired I would feel at nights last year and how much more energy I have this year – the difference in not having a class of children all day every day.

Again I enjoyed tonights run although I found it tougher.  It was faster than previous weeks recently and I made myself push myself on the way back.  It’s about time I was getting the pace back on a Wednesday I thought and hopefully this will start to spill into longer runs when I get to them.  It was a good route and had a few good hills as well so I feel that is keeping me ticking over on the hill work just now.  Really seeing the benefits of going to the club just now as there is no way I would be doing all of this by myself.

Hilly run

4.9miles, 46.49, 9.33m/m ave

9.44, 9.59, 9.56, 9.27, 8.32

I was working harder than the time or splits would suggest but a) it was a hilly route and b) we regrouped a few times to make sure no-one was getting left behind which I was happy to do as I would like if people did that for me if I needed it!  Glad of the practice on the hills and am not going to run tomorrow now – I have attack and pump and might swim after that as well.  Would like to build up to doing longer again on the Wednesdays but happy to do it gradually.

Getting back into it

3 miles, 29mins

Body Attack, Body Pump

First time running before the classes for a while and first time on my own for a bit too.  So not very far but it’s a start and I found a good hill near the gym for doing hill reps on in the winter (best ones are in Pollock or Bellahouston park and no good in winter) and might give that a go on Thursday.  I have not done any specific hill training in a long time!

Really enjoyed the classes again tonight and worked really hard.

Speed session

5.27miles, 51.29mins

2 x 4 mins, 2 x 3 mins, 2 x2 mins, 2 x 1 min

9.26 m/m pace warm up,

 4 mins – 7.48 m/m, 7.56 m/m

3 mins – 7.19 m/m, 7.30 m/m

2mins – 7.56 m/m, 7.54 m/m

1 min – 7.54 m/m, 7.22 m/m

8.39m/m pace – cool down

I really enjoyed the session tonight but my times are pretty slow compared to what they were before the summer.  If I don’t improve them soon I will start to get disheartened.  Finally bought a club vest tonight for the Rouken Glen cross country races on Sat!

Loving cross-country

5.73 miles, 1.26mins

Just two of us turned up for the cross-country at the club and I was a bit concerned I would be keeping Gardner back by being slow.  I absolutely loved it though, we only spent about 1/4 of a mile on the road and then  it was through the fields around Kilbarchan, actually we could have been anywhere, I did not have a clue!

I will definitely be back, it was such good fun and was totally without pressure.  I am sure it helped that it was such a nice day though.  I could have done with doing a longer run this weekend with the first west highland way training run being only 2 weeks away.

Something to blog about at last!

I started running again after Chicago on Sunday and have had a good week, although my comment on the end of my run at the club on Wednesday was that I had a power of work to do!

Sunday 9/11

7.10miles, 1.29.27, ave pace 12.36m/m

12.11, 14.38, 12.49, 13.09, 11.10, 12.47, 11.45

Definitiley cross country, hence the slow pace.  Ran from Johnstone up to Glennifer Braes, round there a bit and back.  Only saw one other crazy person out as the weather was wild.  Good fun though and has spurred me on to sign up for the next cross country race with the club which is only a week on Saturday.  I will have to actually buy and wear a club vest now – after two years there!

Monday 10/11

Club speed session – 5.26miles, 50.43mins

6 x 2mins and 6 x 1 min

2 mins – 7.32, 7.45, 8.10, 7.25, 7.35, 7.39

1 min – 7.27, 8.24, 7.29, 7.25, 7.17, 7.45

Rather off from what I was running at before but it was good to be out doing the speed session and the weather was no where as bad as it seemed.

Tuesday 11/11

Body Attack

Body Pump

Wednesday 12/11

5.10 miles, 49.08mins, ave pace 9.38m/m

9.44, 9.01, 9.52, 9.55, 9.40

I felt this was really hard, although I was pleased to be out.  I felt like I was going really slowly, which I was, but I could not make myself go any faster.  Attack and Pump the day before might have had something to do with it!

Thursday 13/11

Body Pump

Body Attack

I am hoping to run and swim tomorrow and run and cycle on Saturday.

Update only

Tuesday 28th Oct – Body Attack

Thursday 30th Oct – Body Pump

                                 Body Attack

I wanted to start running today, but woke up feeling rubbish with the cold so am not doing anything to stop myself getting it properly – I really want to start running again properly this week, including going to to the club.