Some weeks just feel like they mess up your training with lots of bitty things to do. This was one of them. Out four nights in a row. Monday and Tuesday were early evening starts so no running then. Which meant five consecutive days running starting Wednesday which isn't good and the quality of the sessions suffered - especially Thursday's intervals which was only half as long as it should have been. On the plus side the new interval paces are achievable without too much pain.
Friday was a run in torrential rain on flooded roads. So wet that I'd worn my heavier waterproof jacket. After the run I dropped it in the back of the car to drive home. 20 mins later a big puddle had collected where it had drained.
My usual parkrun was cancelled this week for a cycling event so I had planned to go to Stratford which is my next NENDY* run. Only I overslept - doh! So just a gentle three miles later in the day.
Sunday was an easy 10 miles to finish the week.
Stats for the week:
Miles: 22.72
Elevation gained: 331 m
LeJog: 641 miles (just over 1000km and halfway between Dalchalloch and Inverness)
*Nearest event not done yet
Sunday 21 July 2019
Sunday 14 July 2019
Parkrun PB and a holiday
Not content with two first finishers in my age category this week I smashed my Parkrun PB by 49 seconds setting not just a course PB but an all time PB (7 seconds faster than my previous fastest parkrun on a different course). It's also the first time I've ever got an age grade of over 70%. So the interval running is finally paying off. My first two miles were within a second or so of each other, with the third being around 10 seconds slower. So all I need to do is to run the third mile at the same pace as the first two and that's another 10 seconds off - something to aim at.
As a result of the new PB I've re-calculated all my training paces. It's interesting to compare my current paces with those from January when I was just coming back from a very low mileage year as a result of injury. My easy pace has gone from 10:05 - 10:59 to 9:11 - 10:10, with my interval pace going from 8:48 - 9:13 to 8:07 - 8:25. So what was my tempo pace in January is now more or less my easy pace.
Not a particularly high mileage week as Scouts Expedition Challenge took most of the weekend. Combined with holiday packing it meant no long run on Sunday.
Most of last week was spent on holiday in Cornwall, so some new running territory. Some nice easy paced runs on the coast path and local footpaths. Finished the week back home with an easy paced 9.5 miles on Sunday.
Totals:
Week 1:
Distance: 10.51 miles
Elevation: 68 metres
LeJog: 592 miles
Week 2:
Distance:26.26 miles
Elevation gained: 428 metres
Le-Jog: 618 miles 75% of the way to John O'Groats
As a result of the new PB I've re-calculated all my training paces. It's interesting to compare my current paces with those from January when I was just coming back from a very low mileage year as a result of injury. My easy pace has gone from 10:05 - 10:59 to 9:11 - 10:10, with my interval pace going from 8:48 - 9:13 to 8:07 - 8:25. So what was my tempo pace in January is now more or less my easy pace.
Not a particularly high mileage week as Scouts Expedition Challenge took most of the weekend. Combined with holiday packing it meant no long run on Sunday.
Most of last week was spent on holiday in Cornwall, so some new running territory. Some nice easy paced runs on the coast path and local footpaths. Finished the week back home with an easy paced 9.5 miles on Sunday.
Totals:
Week 1:
Distance: 10.51 miles
Elevation: 68 metres
LeJog: 592 miles
Week 2:
Distance:26.26 miles
Elevation gained: 428 metres
Le-Jog: 618 miles 75% of the way to John O'Groats
Tuesday 2 July 2019
Compton Verney Half Marathon
After the very wet Hilly 10k of two weeks ago the weather has done a sudden flip to very hot at times. It was nearly 20 deg at Parkrun on Saturday morning. Fortunately it had cooled down a bit for Sunday and was merely in the high teens for most of the Compton Verney Half Marathon.
This was the first time I'd entered this particular event having handed out water to runners for the last 2 years (Scouts were out handing out water again this year). With one very short exception (where you run 25 yards down a road to turn round a bollard and run back again to make up the full distance) it's actually a really nice route.
The start is in front of Compton Verney House, now an art gallery and park. The first half mile or so through the park's landscaped gardens is undulating before you get a long downhill section. If you've studied the route map you of course realise that you're going to have to run back up this in the closing miles of the race. It then heads off into the countryside along nice quiet lanes.
I deliberately started right at the back of the field to avoid the temptation to sprint off too fast at first. There is a small risk of getting blocked but knowing that you go onto closed roads fairly quickly it's not too much of a worry as there is plenty of overtaking room. I then spent the entire race picking off runners ahead of me. I find that's a far better way to maintain a good pace throughout than constantly looking at the figures on a watch. Especially as it automatically encourages you to negative split the race - the further you go the faster you have to run to keep overtaking people.
The organisers, Tempo Events, put out plenty of water stations, including extra drops of water every couple of miles when it's hot. There were even semi-frozen ice pops being handed out by a marshal this year. Lovely.
The final hill isn't so lovely. Although it's not actually that steep or that long coming as it does around mile 12 it's enough to drain the energy from you, especially if it's hot. I decided to play it tactically and walk up the steepest section of the hill, knowing that it was then pretty much gently down hill to the finish. The tactic paid off with the final mile being my fastest by a few seconds.
I'd set myself an 'A' target of under 1 hr 58 with a 'B' target of under 2 hours. In the end I was 7 seconds under my 'A' target so pretty pleasing overall.
This was the first time I'd entered this particular event having handed out water to runners for the last 2 years (Scouts were out handing out water again this year). With one very short exception (where you run 25 yards down a road to turn round a bollard and run back again to make up the full distance) it's actually a really nice route.
The start is in front of Compton Verney House, now an art gallery and park. The first half mile or so through the park's landscaped gardens is undulating before you get a long downhill section. If you've studied the route map you of course realise that you're going to have to run back up this in the closing miles of the race. It then heads off into the countryside along nice quiet lanes.
I deliberately started right at the back of the field to avoid the temptation to sprint off too fast at first. There is a small risk of getting blocked but knowing that you go onto closed roads fairly quickly it's not too much of a worry as there is plenty of overtaking room. I then spent the entire race picking off runners ahead of me. I find that's a far better way to maintain a good pace throughout than constantly looking at the figures on a watch. Especially as it automatically encourages you to negative split the race - the further you go the faster you have to run to keep overtaking people.
The organisers, Tempo Events, put out plenty of water stations, including extra drops of water every couple of miles when it's hot. There were even semi-frozen ice pops being handed out by a marshal this year. Lovely.
The final hill isn't so lovely. Although it's not actually that steep or that long coming as it does around mile 12 it's enough to drain the energy from you, especially if it's hot. I decided to play it tactically and walk up the steepest section of the hill, knowing that it was then pretty much gently down hill to the finish. The tactic paid off with the final mile being my fastest by a few seconds.
I'd set myself an 'A' target of under 1 hr 58 with a 'B' target of under 2 hours. In the end I was 7 seconds under my 'A' target so pretty pleasing overall.
 |
| This has got to be the biggest and heaviest bit of bling in my growing collection! The ribbon is about an 1 and a half across |
This little chap is nothing to do with running. I spotted him (her?) soaking up the sun on Saturday afternoon when the temperature hit 30C.
Totals for the week:
Miles: 24.27
Elevation gained: 187 m
Le Jog: 582 miles (just past Kenmore)
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