I Found My HR Monitor.........

I should tidy under the bed more often - cause I find all sorts of things that I have given up as lost, none more precious than my Garmin HR Monitor. Now I could see, as well as feel, the suffering in todays Half Marathon in Blarney. The morning was perfect, for running that is, mild with a light rain. I left home shortly after 10 for the 15 minute drive to Blarney. Still no sign of sunshine - great. Following registration I met Brendan coming in from his warmup as I was heading out on mine. I felt a bit sluggish and my stomach was a bit heavy after my breakfast - not conducive to fast running - then again that is the purpose of the warmup - better to warmup before the race than during the first few miles. I returned to my car and changed, pinning the gel I got from Richard to the inside of my shorts - felt a bit uncomfortable so I decided to hold it in my hand. I met Thomas just before the start and we wished each other well as we stood on the footpath not too far from the front line....and then the gun (well whistle) went off and we were away. As I was slightly in front of Thomas I got in front of him as we headed down the road - new territory for me. I kept a comfortable pace over the first mile, my half formed strategy being to keep under 06:50 pace (90 mins) until I was over the first hilly half and push the pace for home after that. A few runners passed me during the first mile, but I controlled myself. 3 Eagle AC runners in particular, noticeable from their black singlets (I don't have one yet), passed me - Pat Twomey, Pat Murphy and Denis Carroll. I thought that I might see some of them again as my target was somewhere in the middle of their recent results. Mile 1 in 06:31 - "ok well it is my HM training Pace and the hill hasn't come yet and I feel comfortable". I kept the pace reasonably even as we headed out to Waterloo when suddenly the gel slipped from my hand and I turned my head in what appeared to be slow motion, took a quick look at it lying on the road - "fuck it" I thought and turned around and took one of two fast steps to retake my position relative to the guy in front of me. "Shit" I thought "I may come to regret not picking it up - then again I could drop it again - i'll just have to make sure and take on water at each station". Mile 2 in 06:33 - "Slightly behind the 06:30 pace required for 01:25 - well that was always going to be a very tough target, remember sub-90 is the goal" - but I knew that I would not be satisified with just a sub-90 - I wanted a bit more. First water station after the 2 mile mark and I managed to get some water into me. The next 2 miles went by more or less at the same pace as I managed to pull back some distance on runners in front of me, Pat Twomey being one of them (Pat did very well in the AAI 2008 National Half marathon in waterford last Sunday - getting third M55 in 87:55). Mile 3 in 06:29 and Mile 4 in 06:32. Then the rise to Grenagh started, first with a gentle pull and gradually getting steeper. I spotted Pat Murphy in the middle of a bunch of girls ahead (like Charlie and his angels) and gradually managed to catch up and as the rise began to get steeper the bunch spread out leaving me and Pat at the front. Mile 5 in 06:44 - To be quite honest, eventhough the Garmin matched the mile markers very well, I did not see all the mile splits (combination of small text and trying to keep my arm still) - but I knew I was doing farily well and while I felt good there was a long way to go and I was hoping the early pace could be maintained to the finish without blowing up. The road continued to rise and then the only steep part of the course to the 6 mile mark. My pace certainly reduced but so did the pace of those in front. Top of the hill into Grenagh Village. Mile 6 in 07:04 - I certainly don't remember seeing that split. The Garmin was on total time and current and lap (1 mile) pace. I picked up the pace going through the village and then the right turn and the long steep downhill over the best part of 3/4 of a mile. Picking off one or two in front but most managed to increase their pace like me. I spotted Denis Carroll ahead - if I'm near him I must be doing good. Mile 7 in 06:09 - I certainly didn't see that split at the time. The next 2 miles turned out to be at the same pace (although I didn't know at the time) Mile 8 in 06:08 - I did see the total time of 52:12 as I passed the 8 mile mark. Mile 9 in 06:09 - Those three miles were consistently fast - may be due to the momentum of the first. I was alongside Dennis Carroll now, after passing a guy and a girl (girl turned out to be 2nd female). But I don't think I got too far ahead as I could hear the odd bystander saying "c'mon Dennis" as I passed. Fatigue began to creep into my legs now and my breathing got heavier as the effort to maintain pace became more difficult. Every time I looked at my watch the current pace seemed to read 06:27. As I passed the ten mile mark I looked at the watch 01:04 "shit no second display on this screen - still it is better than my Ballycotton 10 Mile PB of 01:05:04. Mile 10 in 06:23 - Didn't see this split either. I was now concentrating on the overall time. I appeared to be close to 01:25 time so I started counting down the minutes as the effort and pain intensified. I caught up with another Eagle AC runner, Derek O'Keeffe, and we ran more or less together over the next few miles, changing position regularly. Mile 11 in 06:19 - All I saw was 01:11 on the watch. "14 more minutes of pain - keep the legs on autopilot for as long as you can". This is when the mind games begin. I began wondering when I would begin to blow up and fall of the pace - would I lose 1 or 2 minutes. "The longer I hold on the less I will lose". Mile 12 in 06:27 - "01:17 on the clock - only 8 minutes of pain". Dennis Carroll was back on my shoulder and passing me out. Derek was ahead of me also. How much would I fall behind them - would I lose 30 seconds over this last mile. My "autopilot" kept going. We kept going and for a spell I was in front of them. "They don't look as bad as I feel, maybe they are human just like me". So we all suffer in silence. Mile 13 in 06:23 - just another big effort up a short incline and around the corner, I could see the finishing area, Dennis was past me at this stage - I had no kick. I was just delighted to be so close to the end as my first sight of the clock showed 01:24:2x. I passed under it in something like 01:24:33 and stopped my watch. Exhausted, delighted and sooo glad to be finished. My watch said 01:24:30 but I don't mind I was under 85 minutes I couldn't believe it! I had beaten my PB by over 5 minutes. I know it was any easy PB to beat, but to run a HM in sub-85 as my first sub-90. McMillan had given me 01:25:07 as my target HM based on my April 10k time and I had beaten it - this is now my breakthrough race. While I was expecting Thomas to come up on my shoulder at any moment during the race, it was not to be - but he was closer than I thought. I met Thomas, Brendan, Richard and my neighbour, Pat, after the race (he ran it at the last moment with very little training and still did a 01:36). Richard let out a cheer when he heard that I had come in first as my race history with Thomas had not been peppered with success. I completed a warmdown with Brendan back to the car (less than a mile) where I met John Desmond and I joined John for a warmdown with Pat Twomey back out the Waterloo road. What I didn't know was that this warmdown was over 4 miles - a "Pat Twomey" special I'm told and by the time it was over so was I. I was famished and headed straight for the refreshments at the GAA Hall - and what a spread was laid on - ham rolls, cakes, scones, tea, soup, coffee and plenty of it - full credit to the volunteers with St Finbarrs AC they know what a hungry runner needs - plenty of food & drink. The official results put me at 01:24:21 which I think is wrong. Others thought that the official time was out by 7 seconds - so i'll stick with my watch time of 01:24:30. Sun 14th Sept 19.13 Miles in 02:14:56 (07:03 Pace @ 156 HR) with 13.11 Miles in 01:24:30 (06:27 pace @ 167 HR)

"Nutters"

From Wednesday to Friday I was attending a conference in Wexford at which I was giving a presentation. In the pub (aptly named the Undertaker - although I think that was the other profession of the publican - which is common in Ireland) on Thursday evening I got talking to a fellow runner, Richard, who is training for the Dublin marathon. I asked Richard was he doing the Blarney half on Sunday to which he replied "Do you think I would be here if I was?". "Maybe I'm not taking this seriously enough" I thought as I stared into my pint of Guinness.

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Once we got talking about long distance runs, gels, hills, etc. the others in our group looked on as if we were from a different planet especially when Richard started talking about how addictive running can be. "Nutters" someone said as he passed by on his way from the bar - at least there was more than one of us. The following morning Richard gave me one of his "Go" gels that he swears by (doesn't need to be taken with water) So I'll give it a go in tomorrows half - Thanks Richard.

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In terms of running I completed a 7.7 mile base/recovery pace run on Wednesday morning after the Tuesday mixed intervals.

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The recovery week programme called for 2 x 2 miles @ HM pace for Thursday morning which I completed on an out and back run from the Hotel out the Rosslare Road. The first 2 fast miles were into a strong headwind and a net uphill which took a lot out of me. I was glad when I turned around and had the wind at my back for the return leg. the fast miles splits were:-

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06:46

06:56 (uphill section into the wind was tough) - avg 06:51 pace outbound

06:25 (expected faster downhill with the wind)

06:18 - avg 06:22 pace inbound

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Avg 06:36 pace overall.

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Two easy 5 milers on Friday and Saturday mornings completed the week ahead of tomorrows Half marathon in Blarney which should see me get my first official sub-90 result - hopefully the first of three PB's between now and Amsterdam.

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Wed 10th Sept

7.76 Miles in 01:02:41 (08:05 Pace)

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Thur 11th Sept

9.1 Miles in 01:07:02 (07:22 pace ) with 2 x 2 miles @ 06:37 pace average

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Fri 12th Sept

5 Miles in 39:42 (07:56 Pace) - TREADMILL

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Sat 13th Sept

5.36 Miles in 45:56 (08:34 Pace) with Adrian, my old running partner.

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Premature Recovery

This four week phase of my training programme ends with a recovery week leading to a HM tune-up race. As I have the Blarney Half Marathon next Sunday I have swapped weeks 3 and 4, taking the recovery week this week instead.

Sunday's recovery day was welcome as my calves were a little tight after Saturdays 20 miler. The tightness was still evident during Mondays base pace run over 7.7 miles but had eased by Monday evening when I churned out another 2.5 miles on the treadmill. I am being careful with not overdoing things so close to marathon day as it was at this stage in my previous training cycle that I developed ITBS, followed the week after by calf cramps which essentially prevented me from completing long (ITBS) and tempo runs (cramps) during the six weeks leading up to the Cork Marathon - just when I needed them the most.

This evenings mixed intervals at the track went off quite well particularly as it was a cutback session with 2k @ HM Pace, 1 Mile @ 10k pace, 1k @ 5k pace and 800m @ 3k pace. The times compared to those of 2 weeks ago compare reasonably well as follows:-

Scheduled Dist & (Pace) - 9th Sept - (25th Aug) 2,000m @ HM (06:30) - 06:18 - (06:15) 3,000m 1 Mile @ 10k (06:09) - 06:01 - (06:00) 1,000m @ 5k (05:56) - 05:45 - (05:48) 800m @ 3k (05:40) - 05:37 - (05:38)

Garmin measured the paces for each Interval as 06:05, 05:50, 05:31 & 05:31 but I'll go with the track distances and assume that the satellites had a job tracking me going around in circles.

Have a good week.

Mon 8th Sept

• a.m. 7.72 Miles in 01:00:35 (07:51 Pace)
• p.m. 2.5 Miles in 00:19:50 (07:56 Pace)

Tue 9th Sept

• 6.98 Miles in 00:52:31 (07:32 Pace) with Mixed Intervals 2k to 0.8k @ 06:18 to 05:37 pace

Marathon Pace My Arse!

My "long" run this week called for 9 miles @ MP with 2 miles warmup and recovery giving 13 miles in total. Not wanting to reduce my endurance training I opted to extend the run to 20 miles and revert to the programme by taking today off and recovering. Marathon pace for me, which is based on my "once off" 10k in April, is 06:51 and although I have not come even close to it in a marathon (07:31 is the best so far) it is still my training target and if I can run at that pace I will. While I find it near impossible to achieve some of the faster training paces (e.g. tempo runs @ 10k pace) I appear to generally get on target for the "slower" paces (half marathon to marathon pace). My plan was to hit the 06:50's after the 2 mile warmup and possibly extend the MP section to 10 miles and "cool down" over another 8 miles. The route I selected was reasonably flat, with the first mile to the Inniscarra Bar and then a left heading in the Lee Road to Wellington Bridge, down the Mardyke, along the UCC walk to the North Gate Bridge and back out the Straight Road, through Ballincollig to the Ovens Bar on the Macroom Road and back home. Following 08:02 and 07:34 opening miles I cranked up the pace coveing mile 3 in 06:52 (bang on target). The effort felt reasonably comfortable but I had to concentrate at times to keep from falling off the pace as my cruise control wasn't the best. The remaining MP miles went by pretty uneventful:- 06:49 07:07 (the only real hill) 06:28 (gradual descent down the other side - fastest mile) 06:44 06:42 06:45 06:44 06:47 06:35 (pushed the last mile) 10 Miles in 01:07:39 (06:46 Pace average) I can tell you now that there is no way that I could extend that pace for another 10 miles not to mind 16.2. To be quite honest this is closer to my half marathon pace and I would be quite happy to run at this pace in the Half marathon next Sunday - after all it would give me my first sub-01:30 HM (01:28:41). While I was tired after pushing the last MP mile I recovered and kept the remaining 8 miles all under 08:00 pace to give me 20 miles in 02:24:15 (07:13 Pace). My fastest 20 miles to-date (I think). I thought about what kind of 10k I could have run if I had kept going - even a 50 minute 10k would give me a sub 03:15 Marathon. However that final 10k shouldn't be under-estimated as, from an effort point of view, you are only halfway through a marathon at the 20 mile mark. I was glad of the rest day today as my legs were fairly fatigued and I had a bit of a hangover following a feed of Guinness at a neighbour's 40th birthday party last night (@ this morning) Sat 6th Sept 20 Miles in 02:24:15 (07:13 Pace) - with 10 miles in 01:07:39 (06:46 Pace) Legs: 8/10 Sleep: 7 hrs: 7.5/10 Marathon Training week 10/16 - 59.5 Miles .

Happy Beginnings and Sad Endings

The title of my post has nothing to do with running but does accurately reflect my week thus far. On Monday Saran had his first day at School and from the minute he went in the door he didn't look back. "I want to go to school for ever and ever" is what he said after his first day. Lets hope the sentiment lasts.

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On Tuesday I went to Dublin to attend the funeral of a colleague's wife who lost her battle with cancer at the age of 45 - very sad occasion. So heartbreaking to see her Husband, Tony, and 2 young daughters (10 & 15) say their last farewells.

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On the running front I covered 10 miles on Monday at base pace (07:44) following Sundays day of rest.

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I was overnight in Wexford on Tuesday night (work related) so did not get to do my mixed intervals at the track and instead covered 10k on the treadmill at the Hotel I was staying in. I had it in my mind to do a 5k race in Cork on Wednesday evening in lieu of the mixed intervals but decided against it as I was tired when I got home and Abina was heading out to work.

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That left my legs fresh for this mornings 2 x 3.75 miles @ HM pace - although I felt less than fresh hauling my sorry ass out of bed at 0530hrs. The route was fairly flat (same route as last training cycle) so that I would have a fighting chance. While McMillan gives me a 06:30 HM pace my HM PB pace is 06:52 - so anywhere between the two would mean a satisfactory run.

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Last training cycle I extended the first leg to 4.25 miles in 06:34 pace to get the pain over with early and the return 3.25 miles in 06:31 pace. This time round I wasn't too far off that with the first 3.75 miles in 06:32 pace and the return leg after half a mile at recovery pace slightly slower in 06:35 pace. The splits

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06:36 06:38 06:23 04:48 (06:24 pace) . 6:33 06:45 (partly uphill) 06:33 04:48 (06:24 pace) .

Mon 1st Sept a.m. 10.18 Miles in 01:18:43 (07:44 Pace) p.m. 2.5 Miles in 19:50 (07:56) treadmill Legs: 7/10 Sleep 6.5 Hrs: 7/10 .

Tue 2nd Sept 6.2 Miles in 47:20 (07:38 Pace) treadmill Legs: 7/10 Sleep: 6hrs: 6/10 .

Thur 4th Sept a.m. 12 Miles in 01:25:49 (07;09 Pace) with 2 x 3.75 @ 06:32 & 06:35 Pace. p.m. 2.5 Miles in 21:50 (08:44 Pace) treadmill - recovery. Legs: 8/10 Sleep: 5.5hrs: 5.5/10

Nice Long Run to end the week.

The hardest part of yesterday's long run was rising at 6 a.m. to drive through the wet dark morning to meet a group from Eagle AC & others who were embarking on a 14.1 mile long run from Pairc Ui Caoimh at 6:45. En-route I passed a runner making his way to the meeting point - turns out he ran the 3 miles from home to get a longer run in. I planned on adding my miles at the end. While the schedule called for 20 miles I was planning on getting a bit more if I could. My last long run was 4 hours, this time round all I could afford was 3 hours max - the idea was to reduce the time (4 to 3 hours) and increase the pace (08:19 to 08:00 at least - which was the planned pace for the group run).

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8 turned up in total which was a good number for such a damp and dreary morning. One or two I knew from previous runs. Pat Twomey who is training for Dublin and John Desmond of Running in Cork blog fame. Rhona Lynch, who won the recent Ballycotton 5 mile series, is training for the half marathon in Amsterdam so I'll be there to cheer her on.

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The route was out along the old passage railway line to........Passage and Monkstown and looping back through Rochestown. The first 8 miles or so along the shoreline were flat. I ran most of this section with guy who introduced himself as Der Moloney (who came in 4 seconds behind me in last Thursday's 5 miler). The first time I heard of Der was when he pipped a certain Thomas at the post of the Bay Run Half marathon last year (although he went by the name of "yellow shoes" in those days). I didn't mention that his name had gone down in running folklore.

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After 8 miles we turned inland and began a climb up the only hill of the day, which went on for a mile and a half - a good test for the lungs. At this stage we were all strung out, with Pat Twomey leading the charge. It was only when I joined him at the top did he tell me that the intention was to push hard up the hill. I ran the remainder of the loop with Pat at about 07:30 pace arriving back at Pairc Ui Caoimhe to replenish our drinks, regroup and (some of us) extend the run by another 4 mile loop. From then on I was on my own and I headed at more or less the same 07:30 pace back out the old passage line following the path around the Mahon peninsula to Blackrock Castle and back in the Marina to the car. Approaching the car I had 3 hours on the clock but was about 3+ minutes shy of 24 miles so I ran a short out and back to get me to 24 miles in 03:03:36. (07:39 pace average)

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While my legs were tiring towards the end I felt reasonably strong and satisfied with the run, especially that it was at a faster pace than anticipated. I was using the run to trial "Power Bar" gels which I am thinking of using in Amsterdam. They certainly appear to have done the job.

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After the run I dipped my legs in the Atlantic Pond to aid the recovery process.

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I took a rest day today for once as per the programme.

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Sat 30th Aug

24 Miles in 03:03:36 (07:39 pace)

Sleep 6.5 hrs: 7/10

Legs: 7.5/10

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Marathon Training Week 9/16 - 69.4 Miles

Nothing to Report

.....I was hoping to report a 5 mile PB.

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I thought it was in the bag, just turn up and put one leg in front of the other at a rate that would get my heart thumping comfortably hard. After all it should be relatively easy to beat 32:06 - the first 5 miles of my 10k PB were clocked in 30:59. Thomas walked me around an 8k last Sunday in 31:17 - what's the problem..........

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The Ballycotton 5 was the problem

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- although I can't really blame the course. Hilly and all as it was in parts it was no worse than last Sunday at Liscarroll.

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I could blame tiredness from last Sundays race and the mixed intervals on Tuesday - but I did not feel tired and my legs felt fresh - at the start at least.

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I could blame the lack of Mr Garmin (not charged) in giving accurate realtime pace (replaced by a stopwatch) but I did get mile splits. In any event my best race to-date was run without any idea of how fast I was going.

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I could blame the unseasonably warm evening (Ireland got it's summer on Thursday 28th August - gone by 29th) but I didn't feel unseasonably warm.

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...and so what did happen?

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...........bang! goes the gun and we're off. All around me charge off as if we are doing a 400m dash or the bull run at Pamplona. The first mile was primarily downhill - there was a commentary car at the front of the pack giving a blow by blow account of the leaders over a loudspeaker. "No one taking out the pace"..."course record won't be broken"........."first mile in five twenty something" - I could see the leaders around the corner.

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"christ they're well ahead, it'll take me at least a minute to get there"

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and sure enough it does

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"06:24" the timekeeper at Mile 1 says.

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I don't push the pace but keep it steady knowing that the effort has to be sustained for quite a bit yet. The road levels out and takes a left turn, slight downhill. My steady pace is enough to continually reel in one or two runners a minute, leaving me in no-mans-land for a while until I catch onto the coattails of the next bunch.

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Mile 2 in 06:32.

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"christ this isn't getting any easier and it's been largely downhill so far - could it remain downhill for much longer"

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My mind tries to rationalise an all downhill loop course and the "never-ending staircase" appears.

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"isn't that all uphill though - depends which way you're going - it's an illusion man get a grip"

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No need to imagine anymore, halfway through mile 3 the road begins a gradual rise that culminates in a short steep "stairway to heven" that would test the resolve of the most hardened runners. Still I held my own and even gained a place or two.

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Mile 3 at the top of the hill - 06:44. Not pretty but to be expected given the rise.

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Mile 4 is undulating but I appear to do reasonably well, especially on the uphill sections passing about 6 during this mile. One guy, all in black, with long loping strides did pass me out before the 4 mile mark though.

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"twenty six minutes" the time keeper at Mile 4 said (my watch put the mile at 06:22 - 26:02 in total)

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"that's 06:30 pace, which will give me 32:30 - at least i'll get 32:xx.

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While the course did rise and fall a bit over the last mile I ran steady putting in the extra effort to stay on pace, all the while passing one or two who appeared to be suffering in front of me. I recognised Nollaig Hunter about 100 yards ahead and though it would be nice to catch her before the finish, although I made no conscious effort to realise that daydream. I could see the lap split on my watch and knew reasonably accurately how many minutes of pain were left, which I found comforting.

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While I find it difficult to push myself to pass runners in front, once I have passed someone I feel compelled to stay ahead, particularly near the end of a race. This, in the end, is what drove me to a sprint finish to the line with about 200m to go. One guy I passed was coming back at me so I upped the pace and felt comfortable, knowing I had less than a minute to go and the pace kept increasing until I was passed the next guy and hurtling past Nollaig and sprinting for the line. My first sight of the clock 50 yards out revealed "32:06". I didn't realise I was that close. I stopped my watch at 32:12. 6:10 for the last mile.

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Given that the sprint finish felt so comfortable I concluded that I did not push myself enough during the race, particularly in the early stages, If I had upped the pace maybe I would have been able to sustain it for the 5 miles - although that hill at mile 3 might have been a showstopper.

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The official results put me at 32:14, 79th out of 379. Anyway I'll live to fight another day.

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I met a few runners after the race who are doing the half marathon in Amsterdam on October 19th. We agreed to meet up and have a few beers after the races. As the marathon is starting at 1030 and the half a 1400hrs they promised to have a few beers for me on the finishing line - very thoughtful. I'd want to make sure and finish well before 1400hrs to give them a chance to warmup though.

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Thur 28th Aug

About 9 miles with 5 miles in 32:14 (06:26 pace)

Legs: 7/10

Sleep: 8 hrs 9/10

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Fri 28th Aug

8.12 recovery Miles in the park at about 08:24 pace

Legs: 7/10

Sleep: 7 hrs 7/10

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Have a nice weekend.