Brunel 5K, and a PB!

I donned a brand new pair of running shoes last night (it's a model I know, so there were no concerns there) and went along to the 5K time trial that my club had arranged.

I don't really know where it came from, but I knocked 53 seconds off my PB with a time of 20:36!!  I'm really, really pleased, if a little shocked.  To be honest, I was hoping to PB tonight but I wasn't expecting that much time to come off.

The route is as flat as you can get, but my previous PB from July was also on a very flat route so they're comparable.

My previous PB was from a flat parkrun in Barnstaple last July, so it's taken a while to get under that 21-minute barrier.   It's good to get a PB early in the year as it's a confidence boost to show I'm on track for a sub-1:40 for a Half, which is still my main time goal.

Mile splits were a little uneven (6:33, 6:48, 6:40 and the last bit at 6:01 pace) but I'm really pleased, with an average of 6:39min/mile.  It was great conditions for it though, and my new trainers seem to suit me well!

Reading back to my post from July, I commented that I was disappointed that my second and third miles were slower than the first, and that was still the case here and I did feel it in that second mile.  I finished strong though, so overall I'm pleased with how I ran it and delighted with the PB.

I find myself starting to ask why it well.  I did have a rest day on Tuesday, and I have been eating different types of foods with plenty of veg.  I'm averaging 10-12 portions of veg a day at the moment.  Whether it was those things, or the new shoes, or a combination of lots of factors, my time is there in black and white so I'll take it!

Braunton 10

I got the Braunton 10 done on Sunday, but on the Friday a message was sent out from the organisers with the below.....

As I am sure you are all aware, tomorrow is going to be "violently stormy" with winds gusting up to 70mph and torrential rain throughout the day.

Anyway, Sunday came along and I left early to get to the race start in plenty of time as race numbers had to be collected.  It was very wet, and there was a warning that one of the area of the course would be flooded but that the route would not be changed.

A quick reminder of the course profile, and this is a trace from my own Garmin.  The bit that was flooded was at the top of the second hill, and it was knee high.

I took the two hills relatively steady, hoping to crack on after the second hill.  However, on the 6.5mile - 8.75mile stretch it was into a strong headwind and there was no respite whatsoever from the wind - honestly, it was really tough going with sleet driving into your face and a fierce wind.  If the knee height water didn't drench me, that section of road with the rain totally did.  I reckon it conservatively cost 30secs per mile in that section, but in reality probably more.

The race was basically in 3 parts.  Firstly, there was a big hill from mile 3 to 4 and secondly another one from 5 to 6.  Then it was more or less level or down hill to the finish.  The trouble is that those 2 and bit miles into the head wind scuppered any consistency in the section where I was hoping to get a move on, but in the circumstances I'm really pleased.  I'm using this as a benchmark and I think/hope I'm on for a sub-1:40 for a Half, based on clubmates I finished around and their half times.  We'll see!

My splits were 7:54, 7:31, 7:28, 9:42, 7:07, 9:08, 7:34, 8:21, 8:08 and 6:45 so I finished strong, which I'm really pleased about.  Having never down a road 10-miler, it was a PB too.....

This week will be interesting as I have two Championship races.  The first is on Wednesday and is a 5K time trial on a fairly flat road.  I'm hoping for a strong outing on this after all those weeks of off-road parkruns I've been doing and if the weather conditions are good I'm planning on giving it a good crack and I'm hoping to get a PB.  Next Sunday I have a 5 mile race and I've never ran a 5-miler before.  It's supposed to again be flat, but is on the sea front and is prone to strong winds, but again I'm planning on giving it a good go if the conditions are right.

We'll see how those two turn out!

Braunton 10

Two posts in one day......

I am doing the Braunton 10 tomorrow, which will be first 10 mile race so I'm guaranteed a PB presuming I don't DNF!!

The race is part of the club championship and it's described as "hilly".  From the race website:
"The first of two steep climbs so cut out the chat and dig in. Beware there are several bends on the climb that hide what is a long drag upwards, but it does end somewhere!"

The profile does look quite tough, but after 6 miles it's basically down hill to the finish, which is good news.

A summary is:
- it's an include to about 3 miles
- a steep hill from about 3 to 4 miles
- down hill from 4 to 5.2 miles
- a steep hill from 5.2 to 6.12 miles
- then down hill to the finish.

It is indeed very steep because when I compare this to the DMV marathon (which is itself steep!) this seems longer and possibly more severe.  DMV goes from 200ft to 400ft in about a mile and this goes from 200ft to 500ft in about a mile.

Having never done a 10 miler before, I'm not quite sure how to pace this one.  I plugged my recent 10K from Stoke Stampede into Macmillan and it suggests the below for 10M and 1/2 Marathon.

Bearing in mind that my A-race is a half marathon, I'd be really pleased if I can get close to 7:30min/mile tomorrow, but I can't really see it happening due to the hills.  We'll see.

Food!!

My wife and I have been tinkering with our food over the last week or so, with an aim of getting more fruit and veg in.  Our meals didn't need a massive overhaul anyway, but below was a fairly standard day of the last week.

Breakfast has stayed with porridge, honey and coffee, although I've added a banana.

Morning snack has changed to a handful of mangetout and either two carrots or half a pepper.  This used to always be an apple and banana, which I also used to have in the afternoon.  This will change depending on what is available on the shop.

Lunch has generally changed to 2 carrots, 2 celery, 2 hardboiled eggs, 2 tomatoes and a small amount of walnuts.  This is the meal that's changed the most.  It generally used to be sarnies (cheese or ham) and crisps, and this will change depending on what is available.

Afternoon snack has stayed at an apple and banana.

Evening meal hasn't really changed.  It's soup, some kind of roast, pasta or fish, all which have 2 or 3 veg in, and usually a glass of fresh juice.  When we wanted an "easy day" I usually just chucked some jacket potatoes in the oven; we're trying to stop this, and this week we've managed it.

Plenty of water throughout the day, but I did this anyway.  If I feel hungry on the evening, it's a jam sandwich or cereal and this hasn't changed although I do seem to be having these more often.

I haven't noticed any real improvements regarding feeling more energised, but I know this food is better even if it's still not perfect.  My weight has stayed stable over the last week (which is what I want), with the help of MyFitnessPal and obviously running.

3 hills challenge

I got along to the club session last night.  It was an interesting session that I haven't done before, called "3 hills challenge".

Basically, there are 3 hills that all start/end at the same point.  The session is to a) run hard down the first hill and jog recover up b) run hard up the second hill and jog recover down and c) run hard up the third hill (which is the steepest hill) and jog recover down.  Repeat this for 45mins.  A tough little session and my Garmin trace does look strange for this one.

Oh My Obelisk!

I got my second Club Championship race in yesterday, and I found it pretty tough.  It came under the "Long Off-road" category which was always going to be my weakest so I'm glad I've got it out of the way early in the year.  It means I don't have to do any other races in this category if I don't want to.

The race website says the course was 10 miles, the entry form says 11 miles and after a bit of investigation on Garmin Connect from last year's race it looked closer to 11.5 miles - my Garmin says 11:53.   In preparation, I'd done 4 sessions in the week (6 miles, 4.5 miles, 3.1 miles, 8 miles) all at a very easy pace so I was feeling relatively fresh on the morning.

This is the race profile, and it was very muddy in parts!

There were a large number of my club mates (31 in total) who did the event.  Although the course itself was quite nice with good views I did find it tough.  The first half is mainly uphill but the terrain on this part had some really muddy sections and I found it hard going under foot.  The second half wasn't so bad in terms of the terrain but I still struggled around in 1:44:58.  2 or 3 club mates beat me at this race, who I wouldn't necessarily have expected but it was good fun and it's another race completed which is the main thing.

Parkrun and First Chance 10K

First Chance 10K
This morning was the Exeter First Chance 10K, which is the first race that is a part of the Teignbridge Trotters Club Championship for 2014.  Yesterday (Saturday) I was really thinking that the race would be called off as a sponsor posted the  below picture which is part of the course.

However, late on Saturday the organisers posted that the race would be going ahead but at a later start time to miss the worst of the high tide.

I got to the start area this morning and it was annouced that the course would be changed, but it wouldn't be exactly 10K.  The organisers had said this would happen if it was particularly flooded, so I was expecting it anyway and my Garmin showed exactly 6 miles.  The ground was fine with no mud or really large puddles, but it was obviously very wet.  However, there were some really strong headwinds for a lot of the course and it was raining quite hard.  I don't overly mind the rain, but the wind was tough.  The profile of the course is as flat as you can get though, so that is one positive.

Anyway, after last week's 10K which I averaged 7:04 min/mile I had hoped to go off at 7 min/mile pace today with aim of seeing if I could sneak a PB if it had been a full course.  However, the first bit of the race was into a headwind so I couldn't do that and just ran to feel.  My mile splits were 7:11, 7:12, 7:09, 7:26, 7:03 and 6:52, which is an average of 7:09, and a time (according to my Garmin so not official yet) of 42:54.  It does mean that even if the course had been a full 10K I wouldn't have PB'd, but I'd say that is to be expected for the conditions so I'm quite pleased really.

Running as part of the club championship added another dimension to the race for me as well, and if I stay injury free and can complete it I think I'm going to enjoy it.  I overtook 4 club mates and had a 5th in my sights but couldn't catch him, and no one from my club overtook me today.  It's all friendly competition but I think I'm going to enjoy that part of it.  The next race is next weekend which is an 11 mile (approx) off road which I will struggle with in comparison to today, but I'll just do my best    I don't expect to come anywhere in the championship at the end of the year, but it means I'm going to do some different races which is what I'm looking forward to.

Killerton parkrun
My wife and I did Killerton parkrun yesterday and the organisers has warned to expect mud!  My wife had bought a pair of trail shoes earlier in the week and this was the first time she would be trying them out, and she really enjoyed it and said the shoes helped a lot.  It was the worst conditions I've seen at the parkrun but I enjoyed, as did everyone else.  I slipped and slid around in 24:08 and although I found it tough it was a nice little limbering up session for the 10K today.

2013 Review

At the start of the year I posted a few goals for 2013, so as it's New Year's Eve it seems a good time to have a bit of a think back over the running year.

I've had some successes, and other things came in which changed the nature of my running a bit.

- Get down consistently below 13 stone.  I have done this comfortably, although I haven't obsessed about it.  It's just kind of happened, with a couple of tweaks to my eating/drinking and increasing of exercise.

- Be wary of my alcohol intake and go for "streaks" of being teetotal (probably between holiday times).  I'm afraid I failed on this except for the first few months of the year, although my intake generally has vastly reduced compared to previous years.  This has helped with the above weight goal.

- Crack a 1:45 for a half marathon.  This was my main time challenge for 2013, and I managed this twice, so I have to be pleased with that.  There were however two other races where I had aimed to go under 1:45 and I failed, so this 1:45 time still isn't a given for me.  On the other hand, I think I've got more in me so this is kind of a mixed bag really.

- My blog says "Get around a full marathon and actually enjoy it (unlike London 2010)!! A time of sub-4:30 would be great...", so I did actually do this with a 4:08, however off of a 1:42 half this is a weak time.  So, I'm pleased I got close to that 4hr mark, but I didn't break it.  I can't even really say I'll definitely do it in 2014, as I so far haven't entered any.

- Get under 45mins for a 10K.  I did this with a 43:40, so no complaints there, although I thought this was going to be toughest time target.  According to Macmillan, this is my "best" time, which is a bit strange and points to a lack of endurance at longer distances.  On a "fair" course, I did Sunday's 10K and also went under 45mins.

- Keep it going with the Trotters (running club).  I did this, and this is a big part of the reason for any running improvement I've had, along with the weight loss.  I also marshalled at 4 events, which I really enjoyed.

- Rack up 1200-1500 miles in the year.  This was more of a measure of consistency and to see if I could stay injury free (i.e., 30 miles a week on average for a year) and I managed this.  I've just checked Garmin Connect and I've done 1624 this year.  Now I know this isn't massive mileage by any stretch, but it's the most consistent I've ever been so I've got to be happy with this (which I am!).

- Keep my back healthy!!!  This was the last goal, but I noted it was also the most important and (touch wood!) I seem to have done that after big problems in 2011.


Two things that kind of crept up on me that weren't on the radar at the start of the year were a) parkrun and b) off road running.

Parkrun is just brilliant and I'll try and keep them going.  I've done 19 this year, with my first being in June.  For next year, I'm not going to put a target number on this as with the amount of races I'm hoping to do I don't expect I'll get that many done, but I do enjoy them and I will get along when I can.

Offroad has been a relatively late introduction to me.  My regular parkrun is off road terrain, but it's fine in the summer/dry.  However, in the rain it's a mud bath.  Due to this I bought some trail shoes and have since done 2 "proper" off road races.  I always shied away from off road, but due to me getting into it a bit means I can have a go at the club championship next year, which is one of my main goals.

As well as the club championship my other main goal is to see if I can get under 1:40 for a half, so we'll see how that goes.

So in summary, I think I've had a good year where I've enjoyed my running although I'm disappointed with my marathon time.  Although not quick, my lower distances are better than my higher distances (according to Macmillan), which can only be that I lack endurance, so that's something to look at.  I've had PBs at all my distances too, which is a good sign:
5K - 21:29
10K - 43:40
Half: 1:42:02
Marathon: 4:08:12

Post-Xmas post

A quick update since my last post is that I unfortunately didn't manage to get one of my club's London Marathon places, but I am first reserve in the unlikely event that someone pulls out.

Over the Xmas period, I managed to keep the running going so I'm quite pleased.  I also got a 10K race in yesterday!  It was called the Stoke Stampede in Taunton and it was a great little race and the conditions were perfect - it may have been a tad cold for some people, but it was perfect for me.  I managed to get around in 44:02 (this is my Garmin's time, so unofficial at the moment).  It's not quite a PB, but my PB is on a course where the first mile is down hill so I don't really count that.  This is a PB on a course that I would consider to be a fair one so I'm really pleased as I feel I've finished the year on a bit of a high!

Mile splits were 7:17, 7:14, 7:07, 7:01, 6:55, 6:45 with the last bit at 1:42 so you can see I got progressively quicker, although I definitely lost a few seconds in the first mile or so due to congestion.  This is an average of 7:03, and I had nothing left at the end.

I'm already looking forward to my next 10K which is next weekend on a very flat course although if it's windy the course can be tough as it's fairly exposed.  The next race is the first one that is part of my club's championship and it will be a good way to ease myself into that.  There are a large number of my club doing it so that should be good.

Dogs, hills, long runs and the London Marathon options (plus 100th post)

Dogs
I got a 10-miler in on Tuesday at a steady 10 min/miles.  One part of it is a long stretch of flat gravel path section that is used by runners, walkers, cyclists, dog walkers and runs along the back of a local racecourse.  Anyway, I use it quite regularly and there is one chap who has a small dog who I've seen a few times.  This dog isn't dangerous (in fact, it looks a lovely little thing), but it runs very quickly up and down this long path whilst the owner saunters along.  It was turning dark, and a cyclist was coming along at what I would have considered a sensible pace and had all the winter gear on.  The dog was legging it up towards him and unfortunately the cyclist ran over the dog.  There was a lot of yelping but the dog was fine.

I'm getting to the point, but the dog owner absolutely lost it with the cyclist ("If I see you here again I'll throw you over the f'in fence" type of thing).  The cyclist had stopped and I jogged up next to the cyclist and didn't say anything, but then the dog owner started having a go at me as well!  Something like "And you - you need to slow the f down as well!".

I initially felt a warm burst of pride that he thought I was running too quickly, but I quickly realised the chap was delusional!  I just calmly pointed out that it was a shared path and that I saw the whole thing with the cyclist and felt the cyclist was going at a safe pace.  The dog owner wasn't happy though!

In all seriousness, over the last 12-15 months since I've been running more regularly, I quite often see altercations between different groups of people.  On this occasion though, I thought the cyclist hadn't done anything wrong and the dog owner was very over the top in his reaction.

Hills!!
Wednesday night is the club night that I usually do and there is a choice of sessions to attend.  This week was one of my favourite sessions, known as Pitt Hill.  It's a hill-repeat session where you run hard up the hill (and also along a flat stretch) and then a long jog recovery.  We jogged from the club house and then did one loop as a warm up, and then 5 intervals.

I know these things are as only as tough as you make them, but I always feel like I've had a good work out on these sessions.  The instructions are to run hard up the hill and went it levels out keep pushing until a certain point.  When it levels out, you're absolutely knackered, your lungs are bursting, your legs feel like jelly and you really just want a little lie down, but it's only another 50m so you dig in.  There's always some friendly competition as well which helps, and then there is a long jog recovery (about 3.5mins), before the next effort.  The jog recovery for me is very slow, but that means I can attack the next effort which is the point of the session.

The times don't mean very much, but I pressed the lap button and the efforts were quite consistent which I was pleased with, and each effort being about a 1/4 of a mile.

1          1:51.9             0.24

2          1:48.2             0.23

3          1:51.5             0.23

4          1:50.8             0.23

5          1:54.2             0.24


Long runs
I did a 12-miler yesterday, going out at 10min/miles.  I often do something like this and the pace is always a close approximation but yesterday's session, according to my Garmin, was precisely 10min/mile over the 12 miles.  Little things!

London Marathon
This weekend is the first extra chance I have to get in to next year's London Marathon, following the failure to get in via the public ballot.  I am in the club's ballot for a London place, and the ballot takes place at this weekend's Xmas party, so I'm looking forward to that.

Also on Saturday is the last of the "run 8 parkruns in a row for a chance of a London place" promotion.  The odds of getting a place via that route are very slim though as they have 2 marathon places, but currently over 4000 people still in with a shout.

I have entered various other competitions (Lucozade, Holiday Inn etc) and this week Timex had a promotion, which I had to give a reason with no more than 100 words as why I wanted the prize, which included Timex's new GPS watch.  I wrote:

I am a regular poster to the Runner's World forums and a subscriber to the magazine.  The London Marathon and I also have unfinished business as the last time I did it (2010) I crawled around in 5:15, when the course well and truly beat me.  Some decent training, together with the Timex Ironman Run Trainer for extra motivation, will hopefully see me do much better.  When all my clubmates see my shiny new device and see me knock minutes off of my PB, I’m hopeful that they will all go out and buy the new Timex device too.

100th post on this blog
This happens to be the 100th post on this blog.  Looking back, I've waffled a lot, but I'm pleased with keeping the blog going.

Exeter Santa Run 5K

My wife and I took part on the Exeter Santa Run 5K yesterday, and it was great fun.

It ended up being my 6th day of running in a row, which isn't something I usually do, but it was all fine.  Proceeds went to a local charity, and for the entry fee runners got a Santa suit, a timed event and a decent medal to finish.  I'd definitely do this event again.

Me limbering up at the start:

At the start line, and it was a cracking day for running.  These suits were very hot though, which made me think again about what those people who do a marathon in a gorilla suit must go through!

There was some bling at the end.  My wife pointed out that the medals were in the shape of a Christmas tree bauble, so when we got him we tool the ribbons off the medal and stuck ours on our tree, which we had put up the day before.

Bicton Blister 10

I got another off road race in yesterday, called the Bicton Blister.  It's 10.25 mile multi-terrain race on Woodbury Common in East Devon, starting and finishing at Bicton College.  The start and finish are short road sections, with the remainder of the race being on sandy, stony and muddy paths across the Commons of East Devon.  There is also "The Bicton Lite" which is the Bicton Blister's little Brother and is 4.5 miles with the same start and finish but less distance on the Commons.

After The Drogo last week, I searched around for another off road race and this came up as recommended.  I have heard of the race before, but usually don't even look at it as it's off road.  Due to this, I had missed the online entry cutoff so had to enter on the day, which is what I did.

There were 431 people who the 10 miler and 78 who did the "lite" version, so again it's a relatively big event.  I got around in 1:31:51 which I was quite pleased with really, although I did struggle on a couple of the hills.  I covered the last mile, which was on road, in about 7:30 so I was pleased I finished strong.  I got caked in mud though!

A massive highlight for me was when we were winding down through some woods at around 5 miles on a tricky section and in the distance I heard what sounded like bagpipes.  I thought my mind was playing tricks on me as I couldn't see anyone playing, and I had just about convinced myself that it must be someone with a good sound system of some sort.  However, the music got louder and I turned a corner and suddenly these 2 bagpipe players came into view.  It was a great thing for such a local race in the middle of nowhere and really put a spring in my step for the next mile or so!

The profile of the race is below and is quite challenging, I think.

I know I've only done 2 of these and they're not 'A races' for me but I find I'm enjoying them even though I wasn't quite in the right frame of mind for it yesterday for some reason.  For example, I find I turn up and don't have any nerves on the start.  Usually for halfs or marathons I'm quite nervous on the start line so I'm hoping this new mindset will transfer into my 'A races'.

Compared to what I'm used to, they seem more like adventure courses than a 'race' as such.  For example I splashed through some obstacles that can really only be described as bogs, scrambled up and down some very rocky trails and tried picking the quickest route through some thick woods. Great stuff.  Don't get me wrong; I know many people do race them and some are stupidly quick!!

I think because one off-roader can't really be compared to another it's more a case of me just doing my best on the day rather than rigidly trying to stick to a specific pace.  There's certainly no time to relax on these courses and although I'm relatively slow I'm hoping it'll help with my road running in terns of strength, but we'll see.  I am hoping that when I run a flat half marathon, it will seem much easier compared to these off road races.  That's the plan, anyway!

A bit of a break, but I'm back to it

After DMV I had a two or three weeks off, as I was feeling a bit despondent....not to mention very tired!  However, I'm back to it now as I did 38 miles week and 32 miles the week before.

There has been quite a bit going on and below is a quick summary.

parkrun have a London marathon promotion
As I have mentioned a couple of times, I'm getting quite into parkruns.  I have now done 14 parkruns in total, and they have a promotion on at the moment where if you compete or marshall at 8 parkruns in a row between Saturday 26th October 2013 to Saturday 14th December 2013 you're in with a chance of getting a place in London marathon for 2014.  It is Saturday 26th October 2013 to Saturday 14th December 2013 very slim odds, but you've got to be in to win it.  With the marshalling points I got via my Club, I do still have two chances for a place in London.

The only slight concern was that my "home" parkrun was getting very muddy and I was getting no where fast using my usual road shoes, although I was enjoying the events.  However, it is my birthday soon and my wife kindly bought my some trail shoes which have really helped and I've got out 3 times with them.

Speaking of trail shoes...
...I got a 10-mile off road race in yesterday called The Drogo 10, which is a tough trail race around Castle Drogo.

I entered the event on a bit of a whim on Saturday night, not knowing very much about it and had presumed it was a reasonably small event (i.e., a couple of hundred at most).  However, there were well over 500 entrants who had pre-registered so it was bigger than I had expected and with entrants on the day they may have got close the 550 limit.

I bumped into a few people who I knew, and they had completed the event before so there was lots of chat about the course and there was a great atmposhere before the gun went off.  I had checked the route profile before the event and had decided to go off steady and see how I felt on the inclines.  

I had also intended to keep in sight of a fellow club mate who is a similar standard to me on half marathons (he didn't know of my plan to try and keep him in sight!).   However, within the first mile it was clear I wasn't going to keep up with him as he was like a mountain goat going down the hills whereas I.....urrrm, wasn't.

In the first couple of miles I was warned that there would be congestion as we had to cross a stile and also a bridge in single file, but that was fine.  I (and everyone else around me) probably lost about a minute or two here, so nothing to worry about.  However, if this race gets put into the Club Championship (which it has in the past) I'd probably start further forward in an effort to lose less time here.

I got to mile 3 and the hill just reared up, and it was muddy/stoney.  At this point I thought about running it, but I knew there was another massive hill at mile 8 so I decided to walk and conserve energy, as did most other people around me.  There were a couple of people who were gamely trying to run it, but I found myself overtaking them anyway as I walking (I have long legs).

At the top of the hill, I found myself in a group of about 20 people who were all more or less my ability and we were having a bit of banter and it was a great atmosphere.  I was secretly trying to pick off a few people, and I'm sure there were others who were trying to pick me off, which is all fine and to be expected 

At about mile 5 there was a steep descent and this was probably the biggest learning experience for me as I was incredibly wary going down here as it was really dodgy underfoot, whereas other people (who I had just passed) were bounding down and re-overtaking me.  If I'm to get better at these events, I need to figure out how to run down these hills!  On the positive, my new trail shoes were fine and gave plenty of grip.  My issue was a confidence one.

From mile 6-8 it was a flat section along the river (still muddy/stoney) and I repassed a few people and I got into a bit of a rhythm.  There were a couple of small rivers/lakes crossing the path so we got soaked, but it was all good.


Mile 8 came around and I again took on the same strategy and walked it, and even with this my legs were feeling like jelly by this point.  However, at the top of this there is only a mile or so to go and I pushed on at the top and finished strong.


I finished in a time of 1:34:06, which I'm quite pleased with really.  I know I'm not going to break any records, but it was a great event and I'd do it again.

The chap I was going to try and keep up with did it in just over 1hr30mins, so there is room for improvement.  Also, if I had known I was going to do the event I probably wouldn't have run 12 miles on Friday night and a reasonably quick parkrun on Saturday.


Here is a screengrab of the profile from my Garmin:

Here is a quick pic of me snapped my a club mate who was spectating:

Dartmoor Vale Marathon

I got around DMV marathon yesterday, but I can't say that it was a particularly pleasurable experience.

I got to the start line at my usual 1 or 2 minutes before the start.  I had been at the course for about an hour, but just pottering about.  I get nervous before these things, and just tend to do my own thing.  I am rarely seen in any club pre-race photo as I always arrive so "promptly".

This is the course profile:

When the start happened, I went off steady (which was the plan) and was running with clubmate for a mile or two.  I also ran/jogged up the first hill and got to 10-mile mark in good shape, which was where my wife was for the first lap.  We exchanged a few words and I was off again.

I was still running comfortably and got to the half marathon point in 1hr59.  Just before this point, all the half marathon runners I was with turned off to head for home and at this point I was running more or less by myself, which I had prepared for so it wasn't a shock.  I was still feeling fine in myself, but at about 17 miles I felt some tightness in my hamstrings and I got to 18 miles (which is just before the big hill, for the second time) in pretty bad shape.  By this time, I knew sub-4 wasn't going to happen so at this point it was just doing what I could to get around.  My wife was here and she gave some words for support and off I went again.

At about 20-miles I was well and truly on my own with no one in sight ahead or behind me, and then the rain started.  It was ridiculously heavy, and I was questioning why I was out there.  Out loud I'm afraid I uttered the words "I'm never f'in doing another one of these f'in things ever a-f'in-gain" and I found those last 6 miles hard.  Someone I know who has ran over 300 marathons has said it was the heaviest rain she has ever known in over 20-years of running.

At around this point I was struggling to run up hill or down hill as my hamstrings were sore, and also my hips were hurting.  I was really just walking, with a bit of shuffling every now and again at this point.  At about mile 23 it was the home stretch, and by this time I was with a drawn out line of people who all looked equally dejected in one way or another and we were passing and repassing each other all the way to the finish.  I managed to jog through the finish line in an official time of 4:21:26.  A marshall offered me a seat, but I declined as I didn't think I would be able to stand back up again!  My wife was at the finish and she shepherded me to the car where I got a change of clothes and did some stretching.

I was home in 10-mins (the great thing about this one is that it's so local) and had a bath and went straight to the pub.  I was hungry so had a Gourmet Burger meal....and then had another one for dessert   I was still under my calorie goal for the day, so that was all fine!

This morning whilst writing this, I'm pleased I've done it but I realise (yet again!) that I have so much to learn.  I don't know why I cramped up so badly.  I feel the training I've done has been representative of the course profile (i.e., I feel I was prepared for the hills) but I was just in pain.  Yesterday, I was wondering if I'd "thrown the towel in" and "wasn't willing to push through the pain", but this morning I honestly don't think that was the case.

So, on reflection, I'm glad I have ticked one off and I am pleased I completed the event.  OK, I'm not delighted with the time but, deep down, I know it is the best I could have done on the day.  I am taking some positives from it as well.  I think my food/drink strategy was fine as from an energy perspective I was okay on the race and I don't feel too bad this morning, apart from the soreness in my hammies).
Apologies if this is coming across as a negative report, but it is accurate :)

A running-related update

A quick update
I haven't blogged for a month or so, but I'm still keeping things ticking over.  I did pick up a bit of a cold so had to take it easy for a week or so, but since my last post I've done the following which isn't where I wanted to be, but it's not too bad.

w/e 22nd September: 38.53 miles
w/e 29th September: 18.15 miles
w/e 6th October: 32.98 miles

Next up for me is still Dartmoor Vale Marathon and I'm still hoping to do it.  I've been considering dropping back the half marathon but at the moment I'm still planning on doing the race.  If I do it, the target time is 4hrs to 4hrs30mins, so we'll see how it goes.

Since my last post many thousands of people have had the disappointment of not getting a  ballot place on 2014's London Marathon and unfortunately was one of those people.  I do still have a chance of a place via by club (I've marshalled at 4 events, which ensures I'm eligible for the club ballot) but obviously that's not guaranteed.  My sister-in-law is talking about doing the Edinburgh marathon (which is a fast one!) to get a GFA time for London 2015 but I can't commit to that yet as if I do get the London place I'd prefer to do that one.

P&D for me?
Even though I haven't got this marathon out of the way yet, I'm thinking ahead to the spring already and (reluctantly) find myself revisiting P&D again.  I'm again looking at the 18-week 55-mile plan and think I should be able to start it in reasonable shape mileage-wise.

P&D is quite technical (I'm quite a simple soul at heart....) but I have come up with the below based on my current Half marathon time (1hr42) with a view of getting into the sub-4 category next Spring.

- Long/Medium Long runs-  10:21 to 10:48min/mile.  This is based on 15-20% slower than MP).
- Marathon Pace runs.  9min/mile.
- General Aerobic runs-  10:21 to 11:15min/mile (15-25% slower than MP).  11:15 is slow, even for me.
- Lactate Threshold - 8min/mile.  P&D says between 15K and Half pace.  I've never ran a 15K but 8min/mile is 1hr45 for a Half.  My PB is 1hr42 on a fair course.  P&D say that people on this training plan should be at the slower end of the range for these LT sessions so I came up with 8min/miles.
- VO2 max -  7min/mile.  This is very slightly slower than my 5K average PB on a flat course and looking at the schedules, the VO2 max sessions are interval sessions where I think I could do this pace (or slightly quicker for the shorter intervals).
- Recovery - P&D doesn't really specify the recovery pace, although it says it should be the slowest session of the week.  Slower than the 11:15 GA pace seems very slow though....

I do these paces anyway in various sessions, with the exception of the GA run which is slower than what I would do currently and I think I'd do the LSRs at 10min/mile pace.  However, it's the mileage increase that is a concern for me in terms of tiredness.  The most I've done for this marathon is 45 miles in a week but I've done several high 30s and a couple of low 40s.

The other big difference compared to what I do now is the amount of miles at Marathon Pace that are in the Medium/Long runs, but I can definitely see how this would improve my chances of getting the sub-4.  I think if I can do these it will be a confidence booster, if nothing else.

Sub-4 should be within my grasp based on my Half PB (probably not in October though).  Some predictors even say 3:45 but I'm well off that currently with my PB currently at 4hr08.

Another concern with P&D is the stories I hear of people getting injured.  I'm still not sure yet on if I am going to follow the plan.  I may follow it loosely with a view of getting some more miles in as I think that is what I need to do if I want to see sub-4.

A couple of specific session that I enjoyed

5K individual time trial
For one reason or another I haven't done a parkrun for a few weeks so I decided to go out and time myself on a flat loop I know.

There's an industrial estate near me that my running club use for various interval sessions as it is pancake flat, and it's very quiet when everything is shut (evenings and Sundays), apart from the odd learner driver.  It's 2 miles from my house, so I jogged down there and warmed up.  I had set my Garmin up to count down from 5K so altough I know it's not 100% accurate the Garmin read 21:38 for the 5K effort.  My PB at a flat parkrun is 21:29 so I was pleased with my effort, and then I jogged the 2 miles home.

6x600m with the club
Last night I did a 6x600m session with the club, with 200m recovery, in one loop.

Interval     Time       Dist         Av Pace
1        2:29.4 0.37         6:39
2          2:35.0 0.38         6:53
3          2:34.6 0.38         6:48
4          2:33.3 0.37         6:51
5          2:33.5 0.37         6:50
6          2:28.0 0.37         6:35


It's not a measured course so it relied on me clicking the lap button on the efforts but 0.37 of a mile is 595m (according to Google).  I'm pretty pleased with that; it's relatively consistent and I finished strong, although I was gasping at the end which I suppose is the point!

A pretty good training week following the Half last week, plus a chat with a quick runner

I feel I have done some good sessions this week, following the disappointment of the Half mast week.  On Tuesday I went out and did 9 miles at my target Half Marathon pace, which was a nice confidence booster after last weekend.  I'm still convinced I've got a sub-1hr40min in me, but I've got to get it done as I know "talk is cheap".

Wednesday was a "reccie run" of the Ladies 10K I'm marshalling at this morning and the purpose of these runs is for the ladies to run the course, and the men to know their marshalling points.  My wife is thinking about doing the race this morning so I'll be on the look out for her.

Due to time constraints this week I found myself having to do back-to-back longish runs, which I haven't done before. Anyway, I did 10 flattish miles (9min/mile) on Friday night after work and then tagged along for a club run on Saturday morning where I got 15.5 in (10min/mile, including regrouping), with plenty of hills. I'm quite pleased actually as I felt ok and feel I've got my long run 'out of the way'.  I know it's not the same as say a 20 miler but I'm happy and I did have 2 or 3 cheeky beers on saturday afternoon!

On the club run yesterday I got talking to a runner who in his day was quick (2hr34 marathon). It was fascinating talking to him and I know techniques may have changed since his day as his PB was 30 years ago.  Basically though when I asked what his key sessions were, he did LSRs at 1.5min/mile over his goal pace and did extremely tough (his words) four or five by 1 mile intervals where the intervals were maybe 30-45 seconds quicker than his goal pace.  This session was great for the mental side of things as well, knowing he could push through the pain and maintain a pace.  Those were his two main weekly sessions, plus a 10 mile "time trial" where he knew the mile markers (this was before GPS), which was also tough.  He did reel off his other sessions, and I didn't spot any rest days although I may have missed it.  He was doing 65ish miles a week at this point.

Interestingly, he said it wasn't initially a conscious decision for him to do his LSRs at the pace he did. He kept very detailed notes and when he went back over them at one point he noticed the 1.5 mins slower than goal pace calulcation, so stuck with it.

He also said that what worked for him didn't work for others that were at his kind of level in his club, and vice versa. He just did what worked for him. For example, he trained himself not to take any water at all when racing a marathon as he said taking water slowed him down. People at his club said he should be taking water as they thought he'd do even better, but he tried it and it didn't work for him. When he did ultras, he did take "liquid food" but I'm not sure what that was.

He did share my view about the shame that there were no British men who turned up for the recent World Championships and he put the blame squarely with the "suits" who run athletics, who he doesn't think care enough about road running and do little to bring athletes on.

I felt a bit embarassed talking to him about my goals when he asked me (sub-4 mara and sub 1:40 half) as they are very slow compared to his times, but he was great and unassuming and just happy to chat about things.  His main goal at the moment is to do 1500 miles this year (which he is on target for), and I beleive he is doing the Club Championship and chipping away at a timed course he runs regularly with the club.

He did write a great piece in the club magazine a few months ago so I'm going to dig that out and have another read through.  The level of hard work and dedication to get to these sort of times is amazing.  I just worked out what a 2hr34 marathon would be - that is averaging under 6 min/mile!  Unbelievable.

Bridgwater Half Marathon

Bridgwater Half done in 1:49:34 (that's from my Garmin; official results not out yet), which is 10mins slower than I was hoping for, so not a great day at the office today.  On the positive, it's a good event and it was well supported/marshalled etc.

If the event had been on Saturday AM instead of Sunday I would have been a DNS because I was having stomach issues that would have meant running would have been, erm, dangerous (if you get my drift).  However, the issue cleared up late on Saturday and I had done my best to rehyrdate myself enough.  I was up for the race come Sunday and was feeling relatively good at the start line.

The first 6 miles were fine and I was on target to sneak under 1hr40 for the first time (PB is 1hr42).  I felt in control and felt I was going to be able to push on in the second half, but then at around 9 miles I had some stomach pain that unfortuantely just stopped me dead in my tracks and I just had to pull into the side of road.  After a few seconds I started walking (in total I walked for nearly 3/4 of a mile) and from 10miles onwards I knew any time was out of the window so I was just doing what I could to finish.  In the circumstances, those last 3 miles were tough but I'm also pleased I managed to complete the race.  This running malarkey is funny because this time last year I would have been happy with sub-1hr50 but it wasn't what I hoping for at this even.  I think in hindsight even though I felt okay at the start line, it's clear I wasn't fully over my stomach issue.  My mind was playing tricks on me as well (I was swearing to myself, not out loud I hasten to add!) and at that point I was beaten mentally as well, I'm afraid to say.

I think the course is pretty good for a PB attempt, so maybe I'll go back next year and have another crack at it.

So in summary, Bridgwater is a good event which didn't come right for me personally on the day but I know I'm running relatively well so I'm hopeful this is a minor blip.  Onwards and upwards!

Forest Flyer

I have had to move things around a bit this week as we're having our bathroom done and one of the workmen didn't leave until 8:30pm on Wednesday and I was really tired on Thursday after work.  I'm still hoping to get 5 session in this week though, but I wanted 10-11 days between my long run and the next Half Marathon, which won't happen if I do get a long run in on Sunday.

Anyway, I managed to get a number for a local race called the Forest Flyer tonight (Friday) which is a 5-mile race that is part of the Teignbridge Trotters Club Championship.  I'm not doing the Championship, but as my wife wasn't getting back from a trip away until late on Friday I decided to get a run out.  I don't overly like the off road stuff but this was more of a trail race with no large obstacles so the terrain wasn't bad.  There was a very large hill at the end (it lasted 1 mile) which was a killer, but I enjoyed the event.  I won't be sure of my my time until the results are published as I forgot to stop my watch, but it was 38:50ish I think which I'm quite pleased with.

The profile of the event is below.

Torbay 10K, and a bit of a look back over the last 12 months

I got to the Torbay 10K start line in good shape so was raring to go at the 6pm start.  I've done this course a few times before and know there can be a bit of a bottleneck so I stood in the first quarter of the field hoping that would mean I'd have a clear run out, which worked out to be the case.  I also don't feel I held any quicker runners up, so I stood in about the right spot for me I think.  The conditions were good - it was dry, but not too hot and there was a bit of a breeze.  This "bit of a breeze" was a headwind for maybe 1 mile of the course, but it wasn't too bad.

I know the course very well and I had promised myself that I would go out steadily and leave something for a strongish finish and the first mile was done in 7:10, which was actually a bit quicker than I had anticipated but I felt okay.  The second mile includes a reasonable hill but then miles 3, 4 and 5 are basically flat and I had planned to use this part of the course to settle into a rhythm and see how I felt, knowing that the 6th mile includes an  uphill section, before a fast downhill section to the finish.  I was gasping at the end and the last 200m were very hard, but I kept a reasonable pace so I think that means I paced the race well, which I'm pleased about.

Looking back, I think that it all came together and I managed a chip time of 45:31 so I'm pleased.  This isn't a PB (my PB is on an easier course than this), but it is a strong course record as I've knocked over 4 minutes off of the time from last year, which at that point was my PB.  It was after this race last year that I decided to join a running club, and I'm really glad I did.  I'm sure Mo wouldn't do this, but we did have a couple of beers and some pizza to celebrate!

My wife also did great and managed a PB as well, so she was really pleased.

The last 12 months
It was immediately after 2012's Torbay 10K that I decided to join the Teignbridge Trotters and I'm so glad I did.  It feels like the right time to review the last 12 months as I know my running has come on so much, plus I've met loads of people through the Club which is very friendly and welcoming.  My PBs in 10K, Halfs and the marathon have tumbled in the last 12 months, and I've lost about 1.5 stone in weight and about 5% in body fat (according to my scales, which I'm not sure how accurate they are on the body fat %), which has helped as well!

Turning a bit towards my inner geek, Garmin Connect has some reports that can let you analyse lots of things and below are a few highlights .
- In the last year I've done 1564 miles, which is way more than I've ever done and is an average of 30 miles per week, every week.
- This shows I have been very consistent, which I think has been part of the the key and I'm hoping to keep that going, depending on injuries.
- According to my Garmin, I've burned nearly 250,000 calories!  Again, I'm not sure how accurate this is but it's probably in about the right area.  That is a lot of pizza that be consumed to make up for that shortfall....!
- For the majority of the last 12 months, I've done either 4 or 5 runs per week with 4 weeks where I planned only 3 sessions per week before an event.  There are just two exceptions to this.  The first week in January I picked up an injury so only did one session that week and for a holiday in April I only got two sessions in.  I think that is pretty consistent and has definitely helped with my running.

I have no real targets in mind, apart from to keep up the running with the club and to see if I can continue chipping away at those times.  I know I've been really lucky with injures this past 12 months and hopefully that will remain the case.  This time twelve months ago, if anyone asked I wouldn't really have called myself as "a runner".  This year, if anyone asked I do count my self as a runner and I have really got the bug!

One thing I think I need to do is start to become more structured in my training, which I will try and look at before a Spring marathon attempt where I'd like to go sub-4 hours. I think that is my main goal and I think is achievable on the right day.

It was the Men's World Championship Marathon in Moscow yesterday and I watched the whole race.  I was on the look out for Yuki Kawauchi, as he is very popular on Marathon Talk.  He is a 2:08 runner and has a full time job in Japan and he races a lot!  He did get a bit of coverage on the BBC as well.  He didn't do amazingly well (he finished 18th), but it was good to see him.

I mentioned back in June for the Torbay Half that I had arranged to meet an old school friend after the race.  I went out with him and his brother again last night, and it was good to catch up and we were talking about running, triathlons etc.  He was talking about that he has removed most (if not all) sugar from his diet and has seen him times tumble this year.  It's food for thought for me (no pun intended) as I still think I need to lose a few pounds from a running perspective.

I mentioned in a previous post that I had read Chrissie Wellington's (A Life Without Limits) book about Ironman, which was a very good read.  Chrissie raced a lot at the renowned Kona Ironman event, and there are rumours going around the Internet that Gordon Ramsay is doing the event this year.  There are no real reputable sources that I can find (except the Daily Mail, which has delighted in publishing pictures of Ramsay getting changed for a training session, which I'm not going to link to here) but there is a thread on Runner's World about it.  It will be interesting to see if Ramsay does the event, although it seems he hasn't made the qualification time so may have got a place as he is a celebrity.

My wife and I went out for another run this morning around our popular stomping ground of Torquay/Paignton.  We had seen adverts around for a Sky Ride event in Paignton, and it was good to see that it was very well attended.  Basically, a few roads are closed from 10:30am-4pm, and it is an opportunity for people to get out on their bikes in a safe environment.  The event was really well attended which is good to see.  I'm not sure if it's a regular thing, but details of my local event are here.