Moraghan Training - Stevie G

Bus - legs still sore, but gradually improving.  Not going to run at all until the weekend at the earliest, and only then if I feel great.

SS - think the vague idea is another autumn marathon next year, maybe Abingdon as it's fast and close to home.  Then VLM in 2014.  I could be tempted to do VLM next year if I get championship qualification from a half by the end of the year (75) but that's likely to be a stretch.  Not tempted by a mara yet then?

The Bus wrote (see)

Philip - are yous till doing your long run on Saturday and do you s till fancy some company? If so, how long, when and where?

Plan is to drop #3 off at HW station at about 9:30 and then do maybe 90 mins, so  I could be at yours by 9:45 and you could take us out on an up and down.

Dachs wrote (see)

think the vague idea is another autumn marathon next year, maybe Abingdon as it's fast and close to home.  Then VLM in 2014.

Looks a bit like my plan, will try Abingdon in the autumn next year to get 2:49:59 or better and then try to improve steadily to get down to 2:45.

SG: I need to go from 2:50 to 2:45 and it won't happen without changes. The pace is not an issue, even 2:45 is only 6:18 pace which is 19:34 for each 5k so it isn't blisteringly fast, it is just long, so I reckon just more miles will be the plan so have a nice cross country year this winter and lots of hills, then put a bit of speed work in over the start of next summer and then midway switch to miles up to Abingdon.

Dachs, no marathon for me for quite a while, got lots of improving to do. In reality every run I do is marathon training as year on year I'm getting fitter, and one day I will have a pop at one. Probably when I'm in 2:49ish shape (realistically, not hypothetically).

Phillip, will be very interesting watching build your 2:45 training this/next year. Mileage the only change? What would you be pitching in at 70/80 per week?

Sorry Philip, needs to be pm for me on Saturday unfortunately - son's got a footie match am.  Hey ho - I know my place, and it is as chaffeur and chief cleaner upper!

I'm also thinking of doing Abingdon next year and would be looking to target a similar time ideally. Sounds easy when you say 2:45 is 'just' 19:34 5k pace!! It would give lots of opportunities for some joint training - not to mention a bit of competition for the V45 ranking!

If anyone is thinking of Abingdon next year, I'd keep a very close eye on the day it opens for entries. This year it was February and was sold out, in February! and to think my race one year was stuffed by the organisers putting the start time back 30 mins to accommodate late entries. 

tights already? Ye gods man! Still, we know how tricky you find shorts

Good point Ric - does fill up v.quickly!

Oxford Half organisers won't let me have my mate's number anyway! Bloody cheek for a race that cost him £27! I'd be happy to pay an admin fee for their trouble....

SS - or any others fancy it.  Helsby half entry has opened this week and is filling up v fast.  Im in and planning on using it as a temperature check on my tilt at a PB at wilmslow.

For those not north based this was the half that chingo, SS and addy raced in very high winds last january.

Stevie see wrote (see)

Phillip, will be very interesting watching build your 2:45 training this/next year. Mileage the only change? What would you be pitching in at 70/80 per week?

Well the real change is to get race pace form 6:29 down to 6:18 per mile so that 11 seconds just crops up all over the place so a steady 10 mile run should be about 2 minutes faster and my staple 10@MP+20 followed by 10@MP+10 needs to drop from 2:29 down to about 2:25 so about 4 minutes faster. 

The week should be somethig like 10 miles which is a race or track session, 15 mile medium run and 20 mile long run and then the other 3 days make up to 25 so that means a few double recovery runs.

The Bus wrote (see)

Sorry Philip, needs to be pm for me on Saturday unfortunately - son's got a footie match am.  Hey ho - I know my place, and it is as chaffeur and chief cleaner upper!

I'm also thinking of doing Abingdon next year and would be looking to target a similar time ideally. Sounds easy when you say 2:45 is 'just' 19:34 5k pace!! It would give lots of opportunities for some joint training - not to mention a bit of competition for the V45 ranking!

I have same role, but as I need to be up there is no point going home as everyone else wil be asleep, will book anothr day sometime. Abingdon was the BMAF champs in 2011 so the winner last year was ... V45 Stephen Male in a time of 2:31. 2:45 would get you 5th V40 and my 2:50:28 woudl have left me 15th V40 and 25th overall.

This year at Tenby first was 2:57

Best part of a 1000 ft of climbing in the Tenby marathon mind.  At least with Abingdon you are likely to be able to run in a group. That said, when I did it in 2006 I was on my own for most of the last 10 miles!

Dachs - great time for your first marathon.

DT2 - I think SG summed it up well when he suggested that you may be outgrowing this thread. 72 half with a bit of illness is quite something!

If you want a quick, relatively small field marathon, then Abingdon is perfect. I did my first sub 3 there in 2010. 2:57 was only good enough for 68th in a relatively small field of about 1,000 so the quality is fairly good. It was supposed to be my 2:39 attempt this year but we all know how the training for that went! Will probably do it anyway though, as mentioned a few weeks ago. I did 23 miles on Sunday at 7:40 pace at under 75% max HR so endurance seems to be ok. Speed, on the other hand, is another matter altogether.

Any Southerners running the cross country relays at Wormwood Scrubs this Saturday? 

http://www.athleticsweekly.com/videos/pile-up-at-start-of-cross-country-race/

Shocking (that stripy green team kit I mean!)

Same time as me at Abingdon for my first marathon - I'll never be able to attempt a 2:39 though!

SG, see you ben chatting to Gareth, another a bit like Dean, 99 for a half last eyar and now just outside 80. He is with HX, maybe there will be a team there some day to chase round.

Sept 23rd - Grand Pier Half Marathon (Weston-S-M) - 6th - 80:24
Sept 16th - Maidenhead Half Marathon - 48th - 81:45
July 15th - Wycombe Half Marathon - 23rd - 86:23

Blimey Phil, I just checked, and you're not a mutual pal of either Gareth or Big Trev, so how did you spot that  

Reminds me of the time I spent off the forum, where I'd deliberately plant the odd bit of nonsense, and have a private bet with myself how quick you'd post it on here.

Record was 20mins!!

ps yep...big improver...some guys make massive improvements quickly...others like myself and The Bussinator, gradual over the years.

Although in fairness his 99 was at the not exactly comeback friendly Marlow!

Stevie G . wrote (see)

Blimey Phil, I just checked, and you're not a mutual pal of either Gareth or Big Trev, so how did you spot that

If you comment, I see the whole thread.

that's quite worrying , it's a good thing i keep my sharking off the public wall on that site

Warren - I'm doing to XC relays. I've not done it before but missed the road relays this year which I normally do. Have you done it before? Whats it like?

dean richardson 7 wrote (see)

For those not north based this was the half that chingo, SS and addy raced in very high winds last january.

Speaking of which, does anyone know how Chingo's return to running is going?

Fraid not - he's not posted for a while. You lurking Chingo?

Tempo today at lunch. 1M warm up then 4M in 5:49, 6:01, 5:55, 5:58 all on pavements with a bit of a headwind and some dodgy road crossings thrown in!  Quite pleased with the pace, as its been a fairly full on past 6 days, including a race, intervals and a lot of hilly xc. Haven't done a fast (realtive!) tempo for a while - I'd forgottten how hard they feel compared to racing at a faster pace!! The old RDM!!

15M easy paced road tomorrow to finish off the week (will give 70M in 7 days, or 62 M for this week) and a rest day Sunday.

Odd week: I missed a 5 mile recovery run on Monday so 5, 10, 5, 10, 5 become 0, 10, 7, 11, 7 for the same total over 4 days instead of 5 days and I feel very tired. Bumping the recovery from 5 to 7 just makes the next day a bit harder and it carries over. The odd bits mean I am actually at 36 and not 35 so need 14 tomorrow to hit 50 but will most likely pull up short as that tiredness is starting to tell so maybe 9 for 45 will be more realistic.