Thursday & Friday were both very slow runs. After the Wednesday evening track sessions I always find it difficult to run properly the following day. Yesterday I opted for an easy run to Addingham, one of my regular steady routes, about 11.5k. Today was a bit hillier, around Middleton with a loop around Rupert Road, just over13k. I was running a bit quicker today than yesterday, but nothing to get excited about.
The weather is very mild at the moment which makes running a bit more pleasant than the severe cold we had recently, it's also fairly dry which helps as well.
On Sunday I'm intending to do the Peco cross country at Bramley. For me it's a very low key race & really a chance to get used to racing again before next week's Brass Monkey half marathon. There's not really much comparison between an 8k cross country race & a road half marathon, but at least it will be a welcome break from regular road training.
Friday, 14 January 2011
Wednesday, 12 January 2011
Longer reps on the track
This evening was perfect for running on the track. It was mild, dry & no wind - a complete contrast to last week's icy run. The session was also very different to last week's session. Instead of very short fast reps, we did longer efforts today: 1X2k, 5X1k, with 90 second recoveries. Three of us were running, Mark I, Richard R & myself with coach Pete in charge.
I felt much more at home with the longer reps. Considering the longer distances that I've been running in recent weeks & the lack of fast speedwork, it probably makes sense that running 2k & 1k efforts seemed easier than last week's 300s & 400s.
The slowest kilometre that I ran was actually the 1st half of the 2k, in 3:35. The fastest was the 2nd half of the 2k in 3:30. For the single kilometre efforts they were all between 3:31 & 3:34. This gave an overall average of about 85 seconds per lap, which is 4 or 5 seconds slower than last week's average, but getting a bit closer to the pace that I will be able to run next week's half marathon. Running 21.1k on the road is very different to 7k total of efforts on the track.
Overall I was pleased with the consistency of this evening's session. To prepare for my 3000m track races in February & March, I will need to do more short faster efforts, but as preparation for a half marathon, it was probably about right.
I felt much more at home with the longer reps. Considering the longer distances that I've been running in recent weeks & the lack of fast speedwork, it probably makes sense that running 2k & 1k efforts seemed easier than last week's 300s & 400s.
The slowest kilometre that I ran was actually the 1st half of the 2k, in 3:35. The fastest was the 2nd half of the 2k in 3:30. For the single kilometre efforts they were all between 3:31 & 3:34. This gave an overall average of about 85 seconds per lap, which is 4 or 5 seconds slower than last week's average, but getting a bit closer to the pace that I will be able to run next week's half marathon. Running 21.1k on the road is very different to 7k total of efforts on the track.
Overall I was pleased with the consistency of this evening's session. To prepare for my 3000m track races in February & March, I will need to do more short faster efforts, but as preparation for a half marathon, it was probably about right.
Monday, 10 January 2011
Leeds - Liverpool canal
It's been quite a while since I ran along the canal towpath, maybe even more than a year. Today it was quite wet, with rain falling when I set off & big puddles on the path, but in places the canal was still frozen. I ran from Dowley Gap, near Cottingley.
My intention was just to go for a steady run, it was quite pleasant once I got used to the cold & having wet feet. There were few people around, just the odd dog walker here & there & a couple of other runners. I set off through Bingley & past the 5 rise locks, then to Riddlesden, before turning round a couple of km from Silsden where the path becomes very muddy.
As seems to be inevitable when I run alongside the canal, I try to run faster on the way back than I did on the way out. Even though I'd gone at a fairly easy pace on the outward leg (a few seconds under 5 minutes per km), once I turned around I found myself running 20-30 seconds per km quicker. Whilst this was still a fairly comfortable pace, it's a bit faster than I do most of my steady runs. In total I ran just under 20k.
Less than 2 weeks now to the Brass Monkey half marathon. I'll probably do the Peco cross country on Sunday, to get used to racing again, as I've not raced since before Christmas.
My intention was just to go for a steady run, it was quite pleasant once I got used to the cold & having wet feet. There were few people around, just the odd dog walker here & there & a couple of other runners. I set off through Bingley & past the 5 rise locks, then to Riddlesden, before turning round a couple of km from Silsden where the path becomes very muddy.
As seems to be inevitable when I run alongside the canal, I try to run faster on the way back than I did on the way out. Even though I'd gone at a fairly easy pace on the outward leg (a few seconds under 5 minutes per km), once I turned around I found myself running 20-30 seconds per km quicker. Whilst this was still a fairly comfortable pace, it's a bit faster than I do most of my steady runs. In total I ran just under 20k.
Less than 2 weeks now to the Brass Monkey half marathon. I'll probably do the Peco cross country on Sunday, to get used to racing again, as I've not raced since before Christmas.
Thursday, 6 January 2011
Running in the Strid Wood at Bolton Abbey
It was a bit wetter today at the Strid Wood than when I took this photo last summer.
My run today could not have been much more different to yesterday's session. Despite the car showing the same temperature of 3.5 degrees, there was no ice & instead of laps of the track I was running alone through the woods at Bolton Abbey. My pace was also a long way off yesterday's efforts, the sub 3:30 minutes per km pace was replaced by something over 6 minutes per km.
The funny thing (to me anyway) is that today's run actually felt much harder than the one yesterday evening. My legs felt like lumps of lead. I certainly hadn't recovered from the short fast reps on the track. I managed to convince myself that 'active recovery' is better than just taking a day off......... in any case the route that I ran is one of my favourite routes & there were plenty of things to look at to take my mind off the less than fluid running style.
It's now just over two weeks to the Brass Monkey half marathon, so my plan is currently to mix a couple of fast sessions per week with plenty of slower running and an overall average of just over 100k per week. I probably won't do any more long runs (over 20k) & gradually reduce the distance I'm running generally before the race. Not sure how feasible it will be to improve on last year's time (81:31), my training is going well, but a lot depends how things feel on the day.....last year was one of those days when running fast seemed to be very easy (they don't happen very often).
Wednesday, 5 January 2011
Carnegie track micro-climate
Arriving at the track, the car thermometer said that the temperature was 3.5 degrees, it had been 5-6 degrees most of the day, so I was a bit surprised to be told at reception that spikes were compulsory on the track due to ice. I assumed that it was a case of the Health & Safety bods being over cautious. However once on the track itself, it was really treacherous. The puddles from this morning's rain had indeed frozen & where there weren't puddles, there was a thin film of shiny frost.
We had a bit of a debate about the merits of trying to run quickly in the conditions, only three of us were present....Mark I, Rachael B & myself, with coach Pete. We decided to do a warm up around the perimeter track, then put spikes on & see what it was like for running on the track.
The consensus was that we would give it a go, but being very cautious on the corners........landing on the forefoot was fine, but when the heal came into contact with the surface it felt decidedly slippery. The session we were running was due to be mainly short fast reps: 8X400m (with reducing recoveries...2x1min, 2x50 secs, 2x40 secs, 1x30 secs), 4X300m (100m jog recoveries), then take a view on doing a couple of 800s after that.
I ran the first 400 in 82 seconds, with Rachael & Mark going a bit quicker than me. After that we seemed to get more confident with the conditions, I ran the remaining 400s in 78/79 seconds, which if anything is a bit quicker than I've recently managed. The 300s were marginally faster again in about 58 seconds.
Instead of 800s, Pete suggested that we do a slightly longer effort, with changes of pace....alternating the lead. We did 1200m in 4:18. After the 300s, this pace felt very comfortable, despite the uneven pace.
In total we did 5600m of efforts, which is less distance than we usually do, but it was quicker than average (especially considering the conditions).
We had a bit of a debate about the merits of trying to run quickly in the conditions, only three of us were present....Mark I, Rachael B & myself, with coach Pete. We decided to do a warm up around the perimeter track, then put spikes on & see what it was like for running on the track.
The consensus was that we would give it a go, but being very cautious on the corners........landing on the forefoot was fine, but when the heal came into contact with the surface it felt decidedly slippery. The session we were running was due to be mainly short fast reps: 8X400m (with reducing recoveries...2x1min, 2x50 secs, 2x40 secs, 1x30 secs), 4X300m (100m jog recoveries), then take a view on doing a couple of 800s after that.
I ran the first 400 in 82 seconds, with Rachael & Mark going a bit quicker than me. After that we seemed to get more confident with the conditions, I ran the remaining 400s in 78/79 seconds, which if anything is a bit quicker than I've recently managed. The 300s were marginally faster again in about 58 seconds.
Instead of 800s, Pete suggested that we do a slightly longer effort, with changes of pace....alternating the lead. We did 1200m in 4:18. After the 300s, this pace felt very comfortable, despite the uneven pace.
In total we did 5600m of efforts, which is less distance than we usually do, but it was quicker than average (especially considering the conditions).
Monday, 3 January 2011
Ilkley Harriers Hard Run
Normally the IH 'Hard Run' takes place on a Saturday, but this week's run was delayed until today due to the New Year festivities. I hadn't run this session since October.....I'm not really an early morning runner, especially for speedwork. There were 6 of us this morning, including Lee A from Bingley Harriers who ensured that there was a brisk pace at the front.
We did efforts of 1X4 mins, 3X5 mins & 4X6 mins along the Nesfield Road. Considering that the route is quite undulating and there was a bit of ice on some sections, I was relatively pleased with the pace that I was able to run at. Overall I averaged 3:50 per km for the 11.3k of efforts, which is comparable to the speed that I ran this session in April last year & quite a bit quicker than in October (when I was still recovering from my viral illness).
With a warm down run around the park, I ran just over 19k, giving a total of 113k for the last 7 days, which is quite a bit more than I normally run & over 100k per week average for the last 4 weeks. With that distance in the legs, it's good that I can still do a relatively brisk interval session. With the track on Wednesday, I should hopefully now start to improve the speed that I'm running at, after lots of steady running.
We did efforts of 1X4 mins, 3X5 mins & 4X6 mins along the Nesfield Road. Considering that the route is quite undulating and there was a bit of ice on some sections, I was relatively pleased with the pace that I was able to run at. Overall I averaged 3:50 per km for the 11.3k of efforts, which is comparable to the speed that I ran this session in April last year & quite a bit quicker than in October (when I was still recovering from my viral illness).
With a warm down run around the park, I ran just over 19k, giving a total of 113k for the last 7 days, which is quite a bit more than I normally run & over 100k per week average for the last 4 weeks. With that distance in the legs, it's good that I can still do a relatively brisk interval session. With the track on Wednesday, I should hopefully now start to improve the speed that I'm running at, after lots of steady running.
Friday, 31 December 2010
Review of 2010
I'm not really sure about writing a review of my running in 2010. On the one hand there are a fair number of positives to write about. On the other hand, I'm much more focused now on looking forward to 2011. I guess that the best approach is to use the results from 2010 to set higher standards for next year.
So here goes the review bit:
This time last year I set my targets for 2010 as getting under 18 minutes for 5k (achieved 4 times, with a best of 17:29), achieving Power of 10 UK ranking times for M55 (done at 5k, 5 miles, 10k, half marathon, 5000m & 10000m) & beating some of the Ilkley Harriers club records for my age group (achieved at 5k, 5 miles, 10k & half marathon). So far so good....... sounds like my goals weren't ambitious enough.
Before the start of 2010 I'd never won any age category prizes in road races, but I managed to be 1st M55 at the Brass Monkey half marathon, Dewsbury 10k, Wakefield 10k, Long Eaton 5 mile & Abbey Dash 10k (on chip time). In addition I got series wins for my age group at the Peco cross country, John Carr 5k & Harrogate & District race league. Having never previously raced on the track, I was pleased to win a British Masters silver medal (5000m) & Northern vets medals: gold (5000m & 10000m) & silver (1500m). Amazingly I was also selected as 1st reserve for the England team for the International cross country in Dublin (even though I'm not much of a cross country runner).
Comparing road race times between 2009 & 2010, I improved at 5k (by 47 seconds), 10k (by 26 seconds) & half marathon (by 7 minutes & 3 seconds). My best UK ranking for the year was 5th in the m55 age group (at 5000m) compared to a best of 163rd in 2009 (10k at m50).
On the downsides, the viral illness that I got in July was quite a big setback, with almost 4 weeks of no running at all, then a very slow process of rebuilding fitness over the following weeks/months. I was also disappointed to miss the chance of running a 10 mile time, as a results of the cancellation of the Thirsk & Garstang races due to ice.
I'm not too concerned about overall distances run, but I did run more than 10% further in 2010 than 2009, with a similar number of rest days. I averaged just over 10k per day throughout the year (despite the time lost through illness).
On to the more important bit, looking ahead to 2011. The European Masters 3000m indoor championships is a race that I'm looking forward to.....not sure what to expect having never raced that distance before, nor raced on an indoor track. I'd like to improve my 5k time again.....if I can continue to get faster at short distances, it should benefit my running at all distances. Overall however, the main objective has to be to run regularly & to enjoy it.
So here goes the review bit:
This time last year I set my targets for 2010 as getting under 18 minutes for 5k (achieved 4 times, with a best of 17:29), achieving Power of 10 UK ranking times for M55 (done at 5k, 5 miles, 10k, half marathon, 5000m & 10000m) & beating some of the Ilkley Harriers club records for my age group (achieved at 5k, 5 miles, 10k & half marathon). So far so good....... sounds like my goals weren't ambitious enough.
Before the start of 2010 I'd never won any age category prizes in road races, but I managed to be 1st M55 at the Brass Monkey half marathon, Dewsbury 10k, Wakefield 10k, Long Eaton 5 mile & Abbey Dash 10k (on chip time). In addition I got series wins for my age group at the Peco cross country, John Carr 5k & Harrogate & District race league. Having never previously raced on the track, I was pleased to win a British Masters silver medal (5000m) & Northern vets medals: gold (5000m & 10000m) & silver (1500m). Amazingly I was also selected as 1st reserve for the England team for the International cross country in Dublin (even though I'm not much of a cross country runner).
Comparing road race times between 2009 & 2010, I improved at 5k (by 47 seconds), 10k (by 26 seconds) & half marathon (by 7 minutes & 3 seconds). My best UK ranking for the year was 5th in the m55 age group (at 5000m) compared to a best of 163rd in 2009 (10k at m50).
On the downsides, the viral illness that I got in July was quite a big setback, with almost 4 weeks of no running at all, then a very slow process of rebuilding fitness over the following weeks/months. I was also disappointed to miss the chance of running a 10 mile time, as a results of the cancellation of the Thirsk & Garstang races due to ice.
I'm not too concerned about overall distances run, but I did run more than 10% further in 2010 than 2009, with a similar number of rest days. I averaged just over 10k per day throughout the year (despite the time lost through illness).
On to the more important bit, looking ahead to 2011. The European Masters 3000m indoor championships is a race that I'm looking forward to.....not sure what to expect having never raced that distance before, nor raced on an indoor track. I'd like to improve my 5k time again.....if I can continue to get faster at short distances, it should benefit my running at all distances. Overall however, the main objective has to be to run regularly & to enjoy it.
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