RW Forum SIx – 3.30 – 4.00

I've run with a backpack loads (mine is an inov8 one) but never with anything as heavy as a laptop. Swap it for an iPad?

I have an inov8 one as well. It's a work laptop so no chance of an iPad. Everything fits in its just that its heavy !

Had a really busy day at work today and ended up having back to back metings from 8.30 through 3.30.  Got home close to 8.00pm and yes you have guessed it the running track was closed.  As you know I have no problem scaling fences but the track is covered in ice / slush still so intervals on it were not an option.

With the usy day and eating at the wrong time and the running track not lit up, I was not in the best frame of mind when I set out. Must admit tonight was tougher mentally. The cold was annoying me too and I just could not get warm.

I decided that I would head to Regents Park and try and guess what 1200m would feel like. My sports watch is a bit basic so I was running blind with it being dark and not being able to use the backlight as this only comes on when you tap the watch and this also acts as the manual lap signal.

I covered the 1.99 miles getting to the starting point at 9:36 min/mile.

I then did 4 intervals of what I was hoping to be 1200m with about 700m recovery in between.

Did not get the 1200m spot on but the pace was very good. Results as follows :

Int 1  1045m    4:41 min      7:06 min/mile

Int 2  1080m    4:25 min      6:32 min/mile

Int 3  1080m    4:28 min      6:36 min/mile

Int 4  1015m    4:11 min      6:34 min /mile

I knew the second I tapped the watch after interval 4 that it was too short but it was too late to do anything about it.

I then plodded (that is how it felt) back home 2.72 miles at 9:24 min/mile.

Total distance 8.6 miles.

Funny how sometimes you don;t feel right before setting out on a run and then it comes together. But as I said the run home did not feel great. Might have been the cold. Might have been the fact that I had to run much further tonight to get to the place to do the intervals and obvioulsy then had a longer run back at th end than I normally would.

Rest day tomorrow and I am lookinf forward to it.

That's a great pace there Carl well done. It doesn't matter that the distance was out a bit. That's normal to feel crap on the cool down. It's fatigue. Enjoy your rest day!

After a session like that I would recommend a glass of milk, or a recovery shake, preferably within minutes of finishing. SIS Rego, For Good Shakes, etc.

it really helps the muscles recover quicker. You'll feel it the next morning.

Goodness not good!

Morning all.

Good session there Carl.

I've just done 12 miles @ 10:04 so thats me done for this week. I'm starting my cut back/easier week from tomorrow with a couple of rest days so I wont be racing on Sunday after all. It was still really bad out there this morning with the snow now having frozen and plenty of black ice. Hopefully the track will be open next week so I can do some proper speedwork.

On a positive note I have lost 12lbs since Jan 2 !

12lbs?  Good work!  That's the weight of an A4 box of paper. Imagine running a marathon while carrying that box with you. That's the difference it will make!

Well, for the last few years I have been running with 2 crates of A4 paper !!!

I guess I should celebrate with a kebab and Magners ? 

Nooooooo.......

Actually Spoons, how do you know how much a box of A4 paper weighs ??

Hmm. I've just realised I'm one run short for my weekly Jantastic target. I may have to go for a short recovery run (a proper one, not one of mine !) on Sunday evening

Hello all - just found this thread. Lots of great running happening here!

Recognise several of you from Rachel & Daves thread.

In my 4th wk of 18 wk plan culminating in a May Day marathon which will, with any luck, be sub-4

Stonking pace Carl - we'll be losing you to sub 3.30 threads at this rate!

Spoons - you know whilst it should be obvious that after running at that speed for short bursts that tiredness and fatigue is setting in, the thought never occurred to me.

And good advice on the shakes etc as yes I was still feeling the effects of last night for most of the morning.

Will be better prepared for next week. I guess the positives are that even with the high mileage of last week I am maintaining my speed if not getting faster.

I must have a look back at what I was doing last year to compare the difference.

Carter - how is jantastic going for your team ? Was this your planned cut back week or have you decided to move stuff about in your plan ?

I need to map out the rest of my plan now that I have got this far in reasonable shape. I cannot find a HM that suits but can do a 10 miler 4 weeks out from Paris.

Question for the experienced marathoners on here.

Having got to 20 miles already and with 9'weekends of running left (after this one which is a recovery week 14 miles) before marathon week, how many more 20 milers should I be doing ? should I do more than 20 miles, say 21 or 23 miles ? do I do back to back 20 milers or follow a pattern of 20 miles, fast 15 miles, 18 miles, 20 / 21 miles ?

When do I start adding some MP sessions into the schedule ? Should I use the midweek run for this and if so how far should I run - build back up from 6 miles to 10 miles at MP or is that too much.

Do I introduce MP into the long runs at the weekends and if so how best to do this.

Apols for a lot of questions but having got here and in good shape I want to get the most out of the training to make sure that if I feel right on the day of the marathon 3:45 is within my gift so to speak. Thanks.

carterusm wrote (see)

Actually Spoons, how do you know how much a box of A4 paper weighs ??

Haha - I'm commercial manager for a printing company. I spend a million £s a year on paper!

Hi Ricky which marathon?

Carl - lots of questions - you definitely have a good chance of 3:45. I'll respond properly in the morning....

Hi Carl - jantastic isn't going as well for my team as it is for yours !

This is my scheduled recovery week in my plan but I have to admit the old legs were feeling a bit tired after this mornings run (a 12 mile flat easy run and I had to walk a couple of times). What I think I need to do is not do as much running out in the peaks in preperation for Manchester. As much as I enjoy them I think they are taking more out of me than I realise. I haven't actually done a LSR as part of my training where I've not felt shattered at the end of it. I think i have fallen into the trap of doing too much at a high effort so hopefully i have got enough time to correct that. Moving forwards I think I need to focus more on running that is more appropriate. Don't get me wrong, it's not all bad. When I'm ok I do feel stronger than say 6 months ago. I also have more speed than I was expecting I would have so there are still some positives.

Spoons - what are your thoughts on this ? What do you suggest I do for my recovery week and the subsequent weeks ? Should I still race my HM in 2 weeks ? Cheers

Spoons - being from the Emerald Isle probably Belfast or possibly Limerick.

Belfast has been my one & only marathon but was back in 2006. I have only returned to running 10 months ago.... shedding 3 stone in the process!

Feeling shattered at the end of a long run is nearly always down to running them to quick. You are also building endurance so they will get easier. And to be honest, although you're getting quicker which is always nice, it's the endurance you need rather than the speed for your marathon.

For your next long run, I would suggest trying running it on the road, on a flattish course, and keeping the pace at that conversational pace we have talked about and see how it goes. 

I would still do the half marathon as it's essentially a long tempo run and builds strength and stamina which you will need.

It sounds to me like you're getting tired and need a bit of a rest. This is quite natural at the minute as the volume is increasing and also yo've started doing faster running. You're body will adapt and breaking it down so it builds up stronger is the way to do this. However if you push it too much you will either collapse from over training or get injured. I've done both loads of times!

What is your plan for tomorrow and the next 7 days? For tomorrow don't run more than 3-4 miles easy or just do nothing and put your feet up in front of the telly!

Ricky - no chance I will be departing off to the sub 3:30's just yet. My speedwork is going well but the thing that I need to get right this marathon is my endurance training. Having not broken the 4 hours mark in either of the 2 marathons that I have run, I think 3:45 is a realistic target. If the training goes really well and depending on how well I do in the 10 mile race I have planned on the 9th March (marathon itself on the 7th April) then maybe I might think about gong faster. However I do not want to make the mistake of going for a time that is a stretch and then missing the target I set for myself.  

Another LSR done. Another run logged on jantastic. 14 miles at 9:15 min/mile. The first 3 or so miles were tough with the first mile and a half a steady climb and the next mile or so very slippy underfoor as the footpaths were completely covered in ice and the road too busy. A short recovery run planned for tomorrow, no more than 2-3 miles.