Marathon Training and the Paris-Roubaix

Kit packed & ready

Yesterday was the classic Paris-Roubaix cycle race, and the Chinley Churners Cycling Club had organised a Spring Classic tribute Sportive plus a screening of the race afterwards in the Papermill pub, Chinley. Tim was riding the sportive, so I took the chance to get a long point-to-point run in from Glossop to Chinley. I needed about 3 hours or so in my legs, distance to be approx 25km. With my route planned, I managed to recruit fellow Glossopdale Harrier, Zoe, to join me.

Our route took us from Old Glossop, up past Shelf Benches, behind James Thorn, over to Higher Shelf Stone trig point, then along Crooked Clough and to Snake pass summit. The forecast of rain was doing what it should, and so far staying north of us. A stiff Southwesterly breeze was taking care of that, and already giving us a hint of what was to come.

Zoe running up onto the edge of Kinder

As we ran along the flags from Snake summit we spent time trying to find a faint trod off to one side that would, were we to be going that way, get us back down towards Glossop. We think we found the general area....the finer navigation on that one needs some work. The ebb and flow of the paving flags and a steady running pace soon got us to Mill Hill and Zoe's declaration that she was going to run all the way up Kinder corner...which she promptly did, hats off to her! I managed to get to the top without firstly stopping my steady walk pace, and secondly being blown off. The wind was clearly picking up.

I collected Zoe from her sheltered spot behind the cairn and we headed on towards the Downfall, more aptly

Looking back down to Mill Hill from Kinder corner

viewed yesterday as the Upfall. It was doing it's classic thing of being blown straight back up and over the path. Along from Sandy Heys we adopted a comedic style of 'running' which involved guessing where your foot was going to be blown as you attempted to stay on the path - or not as the case was several times! The wind was so strong that we seriously considered linking arms to prevent ourselves ending up in Yorkshire.

A vague lull in the wind enabled us to negotiate our way past the Upfall without getting completely drenched, and found ourselves in a slightly sheltered spot. I felt battered. My legs were going ok, and my lungs. But all over body weariness from fighting against the wind was certainly adding to the challenge of my longest training run to date. I'm pretty sure that each kilometre of our run should be worth 1.5km, from the effort point of view if not actual distance covered.

Picking our way through the rocky undulating path we passed Red Brook, and soon found ourselves at Kinder Low trig point. Next up was some peaty loveliness and heather bashing across to Edale Rocks, then picking up more flagstones down to the path towards Brown Knoll. Thankfully we weren't going the way that the bog-monster lives, but bearing off to the right and over to South Head. By now we'd been going for about 3hrs, therefore my target of a 3hr run had been achieved. So, the decision was made to make our way directly to Chinley and get ourselves a good seat for watching the Paris-Roubaix.

the approach to South Head

a tad windy on top of South Head - check out Zoe's fringe!!

With map in hand (I don't know the paths down off South Head) we fought against the wind some more, down to the fields on the approach to Chinley. At the bottom of the road, just before the Old Hall in Chinley we'd clocked about 25.5km in a wind-challenged 3:44 (moving time of 3:19....did we really faff that long, or were were going backwards in the wind!). Anyway, Job Done on the training front. Time to relax and await Tim's return from the sportive. Many thanks to Zoe, without her company I'm sure the run to Chinley would have been far more of a struggle, and definitely less entertaining.

Thanks to the Chinley Churners Cycling Club and the Old Hall/Paper Mill for a putting on a great event. The buzz in the pub after the sportive was brilliant, as was the very welcome log fire.

Tim's final climb on the sportive

and into the finish he goes, well done, 2:40 I think was his time!

Dawn Patrol + Janathon #15 + S&C

Early start for the Global Therapies Dawn Patrol runners. We headed down to the leisure centre at 5.50am, meeting four others and doing the Derbyshire Level loop. We were rewarded for our early start with the hoots from two owls, how delightful. Total run for me and Tim was 8km which includes about 2.5km to get to the leisure centre and back. A lovely 51mins with great company chatting all the way round.

Back home and I went straight into the 'home gym' to do my strength and conditioning session. Today's set was:

3 rounds of:
20x kettlebell swing, 20kg
10x deadlift, 40kg
10x goblet squat, 16kg
1min rest

then 3 rounds, no rest:
2mins weighted step up, bodyweight+20kg
1min plank
1min back extensions

This was all followed by the barefoot training, strengthening and balance exercises for the research project we're taking part in, plus a 20min barefoot (wearing fivefingers) walk.

Total exercise time: 2hrs 15mins.

Janathon #10

Today was going to be a 10-15km run with a friend around Ladybower reservoir...we have a regular running date each Thursday, which this week was swapped for today. Sadly my mate woke up feeling rubbish...her husband has had flu so it looks like it's going round their house. As I'm running every day I decided to swap my longer run today and will do it tomorrow. Instead of the long run today I just did my barefoot run, which I would have been doing as well as the long run. This is a sensible approach given I'm running everyday this month, as rest is good for muscles.

I like having flexibility in my training, but at the same time I am starting to hanker after a bit of speed in my runs. Lately it's started to feel like I've been plodding a bit too much. That will ultimately mean a period of weekly hill reps and speed sessions to get my cadence up, to push my cardiovascular system and muscular strength so they adapt and get stronger. I've got a race coming up on the 25th (Kinder Trial which I did back in 2011 though I'm hoping there won't be snow on the ground this year!) so over the next few weeks I'll be adding slightly longer runs to each week. Looking at other things in the diary I reckon I shall be in a position to put in two structured training sessions per week starting from the last week of January. I'd like to start it a bit sooner, but at the same time I want to ensure that this run-a-day-Janathon challenge is completed sensibly and without an increase to intensity as well as frequency of runs. Until the end of the month I'm going to put in a few fartlek type sessions, just adding short bursts of speed randomly, and hill reps in an unstructured way as and when I am ascending.

Need to find an empty wall somewhere near home so I can practice these more often. Shoulder/upper body and core strength are great for runners to develop

The trick is to Keep Breathing

I started writing a post for this, my personal blog, but it turned into something quite relevant to share on the Global Therapies blog...so head over there to read about why I've been blowing up balloons:
http://globaltherapies.wordpress.com/2013/10/03/breathing-your-diaphragm-and-strength-training/

Incremental

Since mid August I've been gradually increasing the distance of my long runs. I did a few long days while I was in Switzerland in early August, with a few of the days around or just above 20km. They were decent days out, but owing to the big ascents you inevitably get in the Swiss alps the days were mixed running and walking. All very enjoyable and good time on the feet. Since our holiday I've been working towards running the Edale Skyline route, and I'm almost there. But not quite. My longest run until recently was 25km last June, since which I've not done many long runs so the Skyline route a big challenge for me to work towards.

I went up to the Brown Knoll area yesterday to watch this year's Edale Skyline race. I was somewhat jealous of the runners and wished I'd started getting longer miles in earlier in the year. Still, I was secretly pleased not to be running in the 'moderate breeze' that was very blustery and knocking the runners around - my lungs and strong winds are not friends as I was reminded on my long run on Saturday! A gorgeous day for the race though (there's a few photos below) and some great running by Glossopdale Harriers and other fell running friends. Well done to all who ran the race.

Sitting around waiting for the runners to come past I was trying to work out how my training was going. I thought it was a good idea to recap just what I have done in the last few months. That way I can see if progress is going how I want it to. Here's how it's all panned out with just the running I do. I also mix in recovery turbo sessions, strength training, walks, stretching, foam rollering, sports massage and total rest days, but here's the running:

11/08 - 9km
13/08 - 10.5km
17/08 - 17.7km in 2:45 and 1028m ascent

23/08 - 5.5km
24/08 - 18.5km in 2:27 and 882m ascent

26/08 - 7km tempo run
28/08 - 4x 3min hill reps
31/08 - 20.11km in 2:39 with 620m ascent

03/09 - 5x 1km intervals
03/09 - 8.2km
07/09 - 25.4km in 2:29 and 464m ascent. flatter run to focus on distance

09/09 - 8.6km tempo run
11/09 - 4x 3:30min hill reps
13/09 - 5km
15/09 - 21.47km in 1:58 with 142m ascent. flat run to work on speed/distance

17/09 - 5x 400m sprints
18/09 - 5x 3:30min hill reps
19/09 - 9.1km
21/09 - 26.62km in 3:33 with 851m ascent

23/09 - 5.5km
25/09 - 4x 4min hill reps
26/09 - 8km
28/09 - 29.2km in 3:53 with 894m ascent

I'm really pleased with how it's going. Distance is building gradually and I've got a few flatter long runs in so know my pace can be good over the distance too. The last two weeks have seen me do my longest ever runs and I can honestly say I don't feel too tired afterwards - that is of course once I've got over the initial feelings of 'thank goodness that's done'. I can honestly say that after having a cup of tea and a few hours rest I feel like I could run again. I therefore judge my progress to be going very well indeed. This coming week is slightly different for me because of work and other commitments so I will see what I get done before deciding whether or not to do a long run, shorter long run or just to have a rest.  In the meantime, here's a few photos from Edale Skyline yesterday (the full set are on facebook):

Looking towards Brown Knoll

Looking down towards the check point at the top of Jacobs Ladder 

Glossopdale Harrier Caity Rice heading to the check point

I got a sticker!

That may not mean a lot to some. But to those in the know, they will be smiling with me because what it means is that I have passed the assessment for the Walking Group Leaders Award. I'm therefore qualified to lead people out in the hills. First step is joining MTE which I've just done, insurance will get sorted this week, then I'd best get my thinking cap on and work out what I'm actually going to do with it!!

Just a quick update on my 2013 Aspirations given I've just completed #7:

#1   Run 10km in under 50 minutes: Achieved at Salford 10k race
#2   Run Glossop to Hope in under 3hrs 45mins: plan to do this late summer
#3   Run Herod Farm fell race quicker than last year's race. Achieved
#4   10 chin ups: ongoing
#5   Box jump onto big box: ongoing
#6   Complete my Walking Group Leaders Award training: Achieved
#7  Successfully achieve my Walking Group Leaders Award: Achieved
#8  Handstand press-up: ongoing

So, a long run, 10 chin ups, jump onto the big box and do a handstand press up all still to be worked on. All except the first is reliant on me putting in some hard work in my strength and conditioning sessions. 

Salford 10km Race

My first ever road race. 10 kilometres of tarmac round Salford. A glorious sunshine, blue sky day at the end of March and a wonderful social occasion with 16 Glossopdale Harriers on the entry list. No wonder with it being the first counter in our road, cross-country and trail championship. I'm not really expecting to score highly on this, but to be honest I probably stand a better chance of gaining points in this championship than the fell one (heavy lean towards longer races, and races further from home - neither my personal preference).

With lifts organised (thanks to John for mine) for everyone we all congregated in the registration room. My first challenge was securing a timing chip - someone had mysteriously taken mine so I was no longer going to be "154" and number buddy with two club mates. Oh well, twenty minutes later and thanks to the wonderful ladies on registration I was now "118".

There was chatter about what kit to wear, long sleeved or just club vest? Gloves/no gloves? Nothing to change for me. I knew the temperature outside was chilly, warming a little in the sun. But I'd decided on my kit, only minor change was ditching the hat owing to the addition of warmth - no icy wind I'm used to on the hill.

Next was warm up. I'd already had a foam roller session at home while I waited for my lift. This was a gentle jog up and down the road, plus some instruction from Caity on gradually increasing speed and high knee lifts.

Soon enough there's a gathering of runners in the road...we'd spied a vague line across the road but I was surprised there wasn't any "Start" sign - no timing mats either? Apparently there was a quick speech by the race starter but to be honest in the middle of the huddle I heard nothing. The next thing I knew was runners were speeding ahead of me...so I followed and quickly remembered to start my garmin.

Now, I've never run a 10km road race before. In fact no 10km race at all. Fell races are usually a random distance. So, I had no idea what time I would run. The club 10km handicap race has been held a couple of times this year but I've always been working. I've run the route which includes two hills, one that drags for 2.5km, and my time was about 57 minutes. I'm reliably informed at least 2 minutes can be taken off for the hills, so my aim was a sub 55 race. My target for the year is sub 50, but I didn't think I had any chance of getting that at Salford, and in fact would have been really happy with sub 55.

Scrawled on my hand was the kilometre paces for 55, 54 and 53 minutes. I'd decided to just run and see how I did, aiming to be under 55 so running less than 5:30 on average. Chatting to other Glossopdalers before the start I'd secured a few targets to help pull me along in the first few kilometres, just to keep me on track and stop me from running too slow. Yes I can keep an eye on my garmin, but knowing others are more experienced at pacing and have run many races before is useful.

So, chatting away to Rachel right before we start, I find I'm running alongside her for the first 500m. She's aiming for about 48. Too fast for me. But I seem to be doing ok with the pace - quick glance at my watch and I'm doing 4:30. Way too fast. I'll slow down soon. But then I wonder how long I can sustain this pace? Will I blow up before the halfway mark? So many questions. Difficult decisions to judge for a road racing virgin.

In the end I stay with Rachel for 2km or so then she's gradually pulling away from me - even with me making as much use of straightening out corners as I possibly can. Thanks to Neil for that tactic on the club handicap run. I probably keep her in sight for another 1km. Nev had also been in sight for a while but he's gone too. I'm all alone. Well not exactly but the runners around me are unknown. Times unknown. No use to me for pacing. I carefully ignore them. Not wanting to get dragged into running too fast or too slow. I need to now pace myself. There's still 7km to go. I'm astounded I've managed the first 2km at about 4:30 pace - thanks Rachel!

I get my head down and try and focus on breathing. It's now laboured and I don't dare think what my heart rate is doing. I know it's hard work. How long can I sustain it. I knew I needed to slow down or I'd have to stop so I even off at around 5min/km. The halfway point comes and goes. It's a steady drag up (not quite a totally flat course) to what will be the finish line and I knew Neil would be there cheering me on...he is, and a few others who shout words of encouragement. It works and all thoughts of giving up are shoved out. Rule #5. I'm halfway. That's my usual point in any run or race for knowing if I've got that far I can get to the end. But just how fast will I be?

At some point around the 5km point it dawns on me that I'm holding around 5min/km pace and I'm a minute up with doing the first 2km faster. Hmmm. How does that calculate for a sub-50? Just. I could just do it IF I can sustain the pace. I'm not sure. I settle again and keep working hard. Pushing not to slow down. The sun is directly into my eyes on the 6-8km stretch which sort of helps as all I can do is keep my focus on the next short stretch. I glance up to see the bends and keep taking the straightest line possible. Each little bit I etch off a corner is a bit saved. This road running lark is weird I conclude.

But thoughts quickly return to a possible sub50 race. At 6km gone I do a calculation and reckon IF I sustain around 5min/km I could just do it with maybe 30-60 seconds under. It's a big ask. My heart is beating crazy fast, my breathing is laboured and my left hamstring is sort of complaining a little. Like that, I'm about to cramp on you feeling. I stretch out my legs, tell myself to lean into the stride. There's a slight decline just after 8km coming up and I know I can stretch out a bit there, gain a few seconds maybe.

At about 7km I hear a "good running Lynne" or words similar...its fellow club mate John....how the heck did he get behind me? He's soon past and pulling away from me. But I use him to pull me along again. He's quicker than me, I push the puzzling thoughts of why he was behind me out and just try to keep in touch with him....the invisible tether soon gets stretched and I'm alone again.

I knew I needed to be at or under 40 minutes at 8km. I was just about there. That meant I needed to run another 2 kilometres at 5min/km pace. Wow. This hurts. Keep going. Use the downhill bit. I'll need it. The long straight to the finish is slightly uphill again and I knew that was going to hurt.

I round the corner at the bottom of the route and head to the finish. A chap shouts "just one more to go"....he's clearly talking miles as I'm still showing I've about 1.5km to go.

1km to go and a sub50 looks possible. Wow. (I said that a lot). This hurts. (said that lots too). Flipping heck I'm going to get under 50 minutes for 10km. Keep it going.

I know I'll have a welcoming party of Glossopdalers at the finish line...I'd counted on being the slowest in the club. And there they were....shouting words of encouragement, pushing me to the line just beyond them. Where was the bloody line. I needed to stop....there it is. Those blue mats. Wow. I've finished. Click. Garmin off and yes, it's showing sub50. Yes!!!! I just hope the official results show the same. With the confusing start and no chip/timing mats we were going off gun time so there'd be a slight difference in time. I had 49:28 on the garmin and officially its 49:30. I'll let them have 2 seconds. This time.

Here's my split times:

1	4:30
2	4:35
3	4:53
4	5:00
5	5:08
6	5:11
7	5:06
8	5:08
9	5:02
10	4:52

The moments after finishing are a blur of timing chip removal, drinking icy cold water, seeing club mates, congratulations hugs, and a growing sensation of feeling sick. That didn't wear off totally for about 5 hours. Then came the weariness. I've never felt so overwhelmingly tired all over. And the weird thing is my legs actually felt fine (still do). No cramp despite the earlier warning signs. No pain. Just an overwhelming need to not do a great deal. I eventually went for a short walk in the afternoon sunshine and legs are fine.

(thanks for the photo Kirsty)

Many thanks to my fellow club mates for such a wonderful atmosphere, and the support from everyone else, especially Neil who turned up to support even though he wasn't running. A massive thanks goes to the coaches who've been training me over the past year or so. Nik Cook and his running programmes have undoubtedly got me to this amazing time. I would simply not be running so well without Nik making me accountable for my running. Getting out there consistently and pushing those heart rate zones has clearly worked beyond what I knew possible. Sean and Zoran at Strength & Performance gym for the strength and conditioning work. The individual programme that's written for me is definitely helping with the running. Something people would do well to realise this. It's not just cross-training, but training and resting intelligently that allows growth. Most importantly thank you to my partner Tim for all of the support, motivation and inspiration he gives me. I'm clearly biased (given that I'm a soft tissue therapist myself and Tim's partner) but Tim really does give a brilliant sports massage - that's just one part of my recovery, the others being rest and regular use of the foam roller. But nothing beats the hands on work from Tim to keep my muscles working at their best.


Here's the results for the Glossopdale Harriers gang - congratulations to Nev on his category win:

Pos	Num	Forename	Surname	Cat	Team	Perf%	GunTime
85	80	Michael	Mawby	M	Glossopdale Harriers	72.60	00:37:09
119	175	Steve	Crossman	M45	Glossopdale Harriers	75.20	00:38:26
147	254	Thomas	Skelton	M	Glossopdale Harriers	67.86	00:39:45
192	432	Charlie	Eaton	M	Glossopdale Harriers	65.00	00:41:30
202	156	Caitlin	Rice	F	Glossopdale Harriers	71.12	00:42:04
257	155	Kirsty	Johnson	F	Glossopdale Harriers	67.66	00:44:13
264	264	Vaughan	McKay	M60	Glossopdale Harriers	73.51	00:44:33
290	46	Andy	Burnett	M45	Glossopdale Harriers	63.54	00:45:29
293	6	Neville	McGraw	M65	Glossopdale Harriers	75.51	00:45:36
315	114	Ian	McGarry	M40	Glossopdale Harriers	60.28	00:46:14
354	444	Rachel	Higginbottom	F40	Glossopdale Harriers	65.48	00:47:40
379	480	John	Stephenson	M50	Glossopdale Harriers	61.58	00:48:46
389	118	Lynne	Taylor	F35	Glossopdale Harriers	60.59	00:49:30
425	366	Malc	Brown	M45	Glossopdale Harriers	56.30	00:51:20
438	562	Sharn	Whaites	F40	Glossopdale Harriers	60.04	00:51:59
447	521	Rachel	Walton	F35	Glossopdale Harriers	57.15	00:52:29

Full results are here and my garmin track is here: Salford 10km Race - have a close look at the average and max heart rates...I'm speechless. No wonder it hurt so much!!

The result also means I've achieved one of my 2013 Aspirations - #1   Run 10km in under 50 minutes. Complete and coaster obtained.

2013 Aspirations - Update

My goals for this year were defined. I'm coming up to three months into the year and thought it timely to have a check on where I've got to so far.

#1   Run 10km in under 50 minutes
On the club handicap 10km route I've run 57:50. There's 135m ascent, which includes a long uphill drag for about 2.5km so I'm told by club runners who do flat 10km races that you can take a couple of minutes off that. Well, we'll see tomorrow what my flat 10km time is....it's time for the Salford 10km race in the morning.

#2   Run Glossop to Hope in under 3hrs 45mins - see my Home from Home blog for my 2012 run.
I've not done a lot of longer runs so far this year. I'll be looking to run this route about the same time of year (June, maybe later) so will build up to longer distances.

#3   Run Herod Farm fell race quicker than last year's race. I'd be happy with under 40mins.
Not long until this year's race on 17 April. To be honest, with all the snow and ice we've had my off-road running has taken a back seat. The focus has been on hill reps and building speed. How that translates when it comes to race day will have to wait. Best get my fell shoes out soon though, this race has a couple of lung busting hills.

#4   10 chin ups - this was on last years list, and I did reach 7 at one point...must try harder this year.
I'm back up to my high point of last year. Yesterday was a good day in the gym. Not only did I get a pb on bench pressing (6x40kg on my 5th set), I did 7 chin ups. Even better, that was also my 5th set, so I'd already done 4x4. I reckon I've a couple more in my if I go for it fresh. Soon. I sense this one will come soon!

#5   Box jump onto big box (will measure it next time I'm at the gym - its 31 inches high)
Box jumps are off the training programme this month and I've got hurdles instead. I was about 5 inches off target so it seems feasible.

#6   Complete my Walking Group Leaders Award training
Done. I did the training last month - the blog report is here.


#7  Successfully achieve my Walking Group Leaders Award (won't know if this is possible in 2013 until the training has been completed)

#8  Handstand press-up
I continue to build my confidence with handstands and at the end of each gym session I do some handstand holds. Even after a heavy training session yesterday which had tired my shoulders I managed a 30sec, 20sec, 20sec hold set. Other strength work is building up shoulder strength. My particularly least favourite is the push press with a 20kg bar.

warming up for push press

Closer

No measurement but I'm one mat closer to the big box jump target. Here's what I jumped on Monday:

I jumped the right hand box + 11 mats

Training is on schedule for February, I've managed three strength and conditioning sessions, and three runs per week. I'm off to do hill reps shortly....they're going to hurt.

Box Jump

This week I jumped a whopping 27.5 inches in my Monday training session. I'm now 3.5 inches away from my 2013 target of jumping onto the big box (31 inches).

Just after take off...

...mid air...

...and land.

It's nice to see the progress I've made - I'm now jumping over double the height from where I started (box to my right). My target is to the right of where I'm landing.

Skinny

Almost a year ago I wrote about my red dress and the illusions I held about my weight. Another item of clothing I have owned for a few years now are a pair of skinny jeans. Since moving north they've been a bit of a benchmark for where my weight is - if easy to put on I'm happy, a struggle means I need to work harder in my training. I bought them in the last year I lived in London, so they're maybe 3 years old now. I hardly wore them. Mostly because they really were a tight fit - and as skinny jeans should be, I suppose.

Well no more.

Here's the result of a couple of years of training sessions plus recovery practices (sports massage, soft tissue therapy, foam rollering, stretching, hydration and better nutrition).

12cm less than I used to measure judging by this belt

I have a few people to thank for helping me achieve the baggy skinny jeans look. First up is Tim, my partner. He's a rock. Too many reasons to list why he's top of the list. The guys down at S&P gym in Stockport, without the training programme written for me there my strength and conditioning sessions would be adhoc and inefficient to say the least. Nik Cook, for planning the running programme I do. I'm sure I'm not his easiest customer with my random and competing goals, but the hard work is paying off. Without the running programme I just would not get half as much running done. I'm motivated to get out there, but I'm also really good at finding reasons not to. What I have discovered over the past year or so is that I am very good at complying with what people tell me to do. I'd also say thank you to all the folk in Glossopdale Harriers - a great bunch who have definitely motivated me to get out there on good and rubbish weather days over the past year. So, thank you guys and galls. Couldn't have done it without you all.

ps. the title of this blog has nothing to do with me believing I'm skinny....just the name sewn into the back of the jeans. With 25% body fat I've a way to go before I count myself as skinny. I am however very happy with my weight :)

Beast Mode Engaged

That's right folks. I have a new running programme and a new strength & conditioning programme so beast mode is engaged. After successfully conquering and completing my handstands last month I'm more motivated than ever to keep up the hard work. If I can do something that for years gripped me with fear then I can lift a few weights and push myself up a few hills. For the first time my running programme includes me building up some serious hill fitness - so lots of hill reps and some tabata work. I asked for it...let's hope the lungs and legs behave themselves.

Here's the strength work I'll be doing over the next month, three sessions per week:

Did the first session yesterday, managed 3/3/2/2/2 on the chins so room for improvement over the coming month

B2 looks...interesting....building on my handstand work. I may need help to start with.

I'll be doing this session at home, either on Fridays or Saturdays

Working on form with RDL's

In with the weekly training schedule I'll be doing plenty of recovery work too, including daily sessions with the foam roller, having plenty of sports massage, staying hydrated and ensuring I get quality sleep. I've been fairly disciplined this year in going to bed at 10.30pm and getting up at 6.30am. So far, with the exception of about 3 days, I've managed to stick to that schedule and it is certainly helping me feel more alert.

Strength

Here's my strength and conditioning programme for this month...filled in with the three sessions I've done so far:

Halfway

It's a little over halfway through 2012 and a good time to review my 2012 Aspirations. Am I on track to reach my goals this year?

#1 - 24 GDH runs
I ran five times with the club in Jan/Feb/Mar. In April I did three races and no club runs. During May I ran once with the club - a great run up from Crowden and in June I joined the summer solstice run up on a very very wet Kinder. That totals 7 club runs in 6 months. Although I'm not on target at this rate to make 24 club runs this year I'm not bothered. My training has shifted focus with the new programme and the past month has meant no running above a certain heart rate - essentially lots of very steady paced running. I am going to renew my club runs in the post-Olympic months.

Typical Summer Solstice weather for the club run!!

#2 - run 3 fell races - achieved.
28th January - 28 Kinder Trial
18th March - Dark&White Mini MM in Macclesfield Forest
15th April - Dark & White Mini MM in the Hope Valley (3hr score event fell race) - here's the blog
18th April - Herod Farm Fell Race - here's the blog
22nd April - Kinder Downfall Fell Race - race route recce'd & blog posted here and the race report is here.
13th May - Dark & White Mini MM around Dovedale/White Peak -  here's the blog

Kinder Trial fell race

#3 - cover 25km in one go - achieved. On Sunday 10th June I ran from Glossop to Hope - here's a write up of the run which was delightful. I'll repeat the route later in the year and see if I can beat the time - under 3.30 should be very achievable, closer to 3hrs would be amazing. I also want to repeat my Circumnavigation route with less stopping, running round Kinder edge is lovely and I'm curious to see how I get on with trying to do it as fast as possible.

The Mam Tor-Lose Hill ridge - on the final section of my Glossop to Hope run

#4 - 10 body weight chin ups - I'm up to 7. My current strength & conditioning work has me doing 5 sets of 4 on a Monday and I'm getting these each week. It's tempting to see if I could do 10 right now but I'm holding back just a little longer.

Practicing....with a chain!

Any revisions to my goals at the halfway point? Nope. The club runs will happen as they happen so my only real aim now is to do 10 chin ups. I'm happy with my running and overall progress this year. The training is all enhanced by regular sports massages,  foam rollering, stretching and the odd bit of dry needling by Tim. I've also been doing some mobilisation exercises before heading out for a run, and have found that it really helps me feel warmed up and ready to go. The final bit of recovery that I've been doing is cold showers...just on the legs, but its definitely helping to keep my legs in good shape.

Base work

For the past month or so I've undertaken some base training for my running (short intro to it here). Essentially it's designed to build up my endurance and at some point - once unleashed from the slow and low heart rate running - I'll be able to run for longer with greater ease. What my week consists of is six runs - three pre-breakfast road runs to build economy and fat burning, two short hill sessions and one long hill run at the weekend. In addition I've done a turbo session and two strength and conditioning training sessions in the gym. Each week builds up duration for each session.

By the end of week 4 I'd built up my mileage (or kilometerage if that's a word) to 66km (42miles) with relative ease. Just getting out six times consistently has been great. On the down side I've tweaked my right knee. It's a weird one - my quads feel like they're not working properly and my knee sporadically gives way - usually when I'm pushing off on that foot so my whole body weight is on it. I won't dwell on that, I'm rehabbing it by having lots of soft tissue therapy and dry needling, plus the foam roller is getting a good bashing too. I've skipped a couple of runs this week too in favour of resting it, even though the run training is scheduled as a recovery week so intensity is less - it's just not wise to train through an injury. The last thing I want is to cause further damage to my knee and end up being unable to run at all.

I'm finding the structured training really good. Up to now my running has just been as and when I've fancied it. I've vaguely tried to get out three times a week, but it hasn't always worked. So when I was faced with six runs in a week I was a bit anxious that I'd be able to do it. There's even one day where I run twice! That was a shock to my system, if only mentally!! What I have learnt is that if someone tells me to get out there and do X on such-and-such a day I'll get out there and do it. Some of my runs have been in horrendous weather, but how good did I feel afterwards!

This is the end of week 5, tomorrow is another rest day (though I'll be renewing my first aid certificate so no laying about on the sofa). I'm then into the build phase of training which includes tempo runs and turbo spin-ups. Now those should be fun.

I'm a little impatient to see if my pace will have increased by a decent margin, or if the changes to my running are a lot more subtle. I've deliberately been ignoring the FRA race calendar - racing is out of the question for now which is fine. One slight disruption to the continuity of my training is that I'll be in London for a couple of weeks and have no idea how my shifts at the Olympics (I'm working as a Sports Massage Practitioner which is very exciting) will leave me feeling. I've got runs planned, but I'm just going to see how it is when I'm down there.

An exciting month ahead - the Olympics is going to fly by and it will be mid August before I know it. Time to review goals and my 2012 Aspirations before then to ensure I'm on track!

In the zone

Since moving to Derbyshire in April last year my running has literally come on leaps and bounds. Now I'm no chaser of first place in fell races....yet....but I am really pleased with how my running has improved. I feel like I can start to play with technique now, and work out what feels better, more efficient and what makes my running just, well, easier.

I've never had a training programme of any sort until going along to the gym, Strength & Performance. I'm working on strength and conditioning stuff down there - with the aim of being stronger and having more stamina for running. It feels like it's working, and running does seem to be feeling more natural now. However, I want to improve more, so I've arranged for a running programme to be written for me. To get things moving I needed to complete a couple of tests:

Heart rate threshold test: warm up, 6x50m sprints (at about 80% effort), 15mins evenly paced running but as fast as possible. The test was as much mental as physical. I had no car on the day I did the test so my nice straight line test along the Longdendale trail was switched to a several-times-round the 200m track at Regra - easily accessible on foot from home, but tedious to say the least as I went round, and round, and round, and....!  Result - average HR is 170bpm.

My HR zones have been calculated from this.

Next up - a 60min run, flat course and keeping within HR zone 1. For me that's between 111-145bpm.  With my garmin forerunner set up I headed down to the Longdendale Trail. I was joined by Tim and a few friends - a couple of which are fairly new to running so the pace was ideal for them. Leaving the car park we ran in a straight line down the trail for 30 mins, turned round and back again. Nothing exciting, just a steady pace. It was lovely to have friends join me - I suspect that if my first attempt at running for an hour within the HR zone was solo then boredom might have kicked in. As it was, we chatted and ran and it was great. I'd set my time alert on the garmin to bleep every 5 minutes - as I'm trying to work on my running form I'm using the alert to bring my focus back to the sub-task in hand. On this run it was to work on less heel striking, more midfoot strike. So for about 30sec-1min every 5mins I'd do some technique practice. I can see that all the low HR zone work I've got over the next month will give me ample opportunity to continue working on my form.

Garmin track was sent off and in return I got myself a schedule for a months worth of running (plus one turbo session and my two regular strength&conditioning sessions).  My programme officially starts on Monday next week, but being keep to get into the routine I'm copying the first week's sessions this week. So far all is good. Setting my HR alerts is keeping me more-or-less within the right zone and I'm heading out on the runs with some aspect of technique to think about, work on and absorb as I do my steady plods.

The weather was atrocious yesterday, and perhaps without the training programme I wouldn't have run. But I have one, and I did. I ran to Old Glossop, up to Mossy Lea and continued up Doctors Gate towards the foot bridge. I paused to take this photo on my phone, though it was too wet to get the phone out of its waterproof pouch I think the photo reflects what I could see most of the time fairly accurately:

Looking east towards Doctors Gate

Although I got soaked through it was a good run. I felt strong and had enough in me to continue at the end - exactly the point of my training. Plus, I got to see a great show by two curlews - buzzing each other and swooping really low by the path. The sound they make is just so unusual, makes me smile every time I hear them. So I ran in the rain, got hailed on a little, blown about a lot in the wind, splashed through oodles of puddles, and had a great time.