I have huge admiration for 10,000m runners on the track. It is totally beyond my comprehension how anyone can summon up the mental strength to keep going 25 times round the same flat track.Quote:
Originally Posted by Derby Tup
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I have huge admiration for 10,000m runners on the track. It is totally beyond my comprehension how anyone can summon up the mental strength to keep going 25 times round the same flat track.Quote:
Originally Posted by Derby Tup
I think I’d rather run round a track than on the treadmill. Assuming the track was outdoor
Once did the Lancs Champs Track 5k at Blackpool. Never again. Mind-numbing.Quote:
Originally Posted by Derby Tup
No wonder all the serious athletes take drugs eh? ;)
a pint at 3k would have done me :D
I'm keen to do a track 5km... Reckon i could have a shot at going under 18mins, which i may never get to at a parkrun.
Steeplechase also a fantastic event. Fancy another go at that... last time i did it i just wanted to get round without hospitalising myself at the water-jump, but now i'd like to give it some hammer...
My only track exploits were half a dozen or so Steeplechases many years ago whilst I was in the RAF. I agree with Travs that it is a fantastic event but really tough.
Although in the races I did I was only really making up the numbers I still used to give it my all. The skill of the event is being able to cope with the break in rhythm that the hurdles cause and deciding whether or not to hurdle or push off the top.
That decision making can become a bit blurry towards the end of the race when running on empty and is when the mishaps happen. Those hurdles do not move!
It is my favourite athletics event to watch on TV and I am in awe of those who make it look so easy.
Yes you can't run through a steeplechase hurdle, like you can on the little hurdles the sprinters use.
My issue was, as I need the push off from each hurdle... I don't have the confidence to land on top of the hurdle on my weak foot. So I'm taking off on my weak foot, strong foot on the hurdle, then landing on my weak foot. Sucks all momentum out of me.
Need to learn to hit the top of the hurdle with my weak foot then I'll be much quicker.
Went back to Shropshire today for a solo attempt on the Gill Harris Round, the 22 named tops of the Long Mynd.
Didn't really have a schedule to keep to, just knew that i felt capable of under 4hrs. Ran well, picking some much better lines than a fortnight ago, resulting in running 2 miles less according to my GPS.
Crossed the finish line at The Square in Church Stretton in 3hr49.... 20.5 miles 5350ft
Was an interesting insight into how our mind works and pushes us to improve. I'd have chopped an arm off to get under 4hrs beforehand. yet driving home i was absolutely kicking myself for not pushing harder over the big climbs in the last hour to get under 3:45.... yet at the time i was cursing myself for ever getting involved in fellrunning.
Admittedly i did start to wither a little on the final couple of climbs... but after 3hrs of hard work it was to be expected. And i ran as well as could be hoped for. Will possibly re-visit next spring. Can't go any faster at my current level of ability/speed/fitness, and perhaps in spring the vegetation won't be so extensive (was over my head a couple of times today!)
Brings another solid week to a close... 62 miles and 12150ft.... Although a full working week will likely see this drop to around 40-50 miles next week.
Well done Travs, good to see you out and cracking time!
Cheers Dave, i hope you "enjoyed" the notorious Callow race route!
I went wrong.
Twice.
Even though I have run the race a number of times!
Amazing how you can convince yourself that you're wrong, when you are really right.....
Amazing how different those Fells look with the vegetation up.
Trying to hit the Long Mynd Valleys descent off Pecketstone down towards Grindle Hollow, in head-height bracken!
Up this morning at 5:30 and around 7:00 decided to break away from my accounts and get my backside out.
4 miles around Witton in 35:37
Finished with 8 sets of strides down the canal and now a quick shower, breakfast and a brew and on to the orders.
Buck Hill and the Outwoods in the rain. Still a few people out walking, but not as many as usual.
5 miles, 61 minutes and 955ft steady around Billinge Woods.
Beacon Hill and Windmill Hill in rain and clag (cloud base down to about 600ft). I could have imagined that I was on the Lake District fells.
Track session tonight. 400, 800, 1200, 1600, 1200, 800, 400, all off 2mins rest.
Had rather ambitiously hoped to do the session consistently at around 86-88secs/lap (5:45-5:50/mile pace). But (and here come the excuses) it was incredibly wet and windy, and my legs are still somewhat heavy from sunday's big effort.
It was all i could do to keep it at 6min/mile pace, with a big effort on the final two shorter reps down to around 5:30/mile pace.
I suppose the positive i can take out are that even though i felt a bit jaded, i was still able to hold it to 6min/mile pace.
7 wet miles.
I did manage to use a bit of mental trickery during tonight's session...
Was struggling during the first half, and considering jacking it in and saving my legs. Then i thought "well if you can't see this track session out you've got no chance of getting round 35 miles next weekend, let alone even further in a few weeks time".
I also used a phrase from a motivational video that my Kickboxing coach used to make us watch/listen to... "you're already in pain... don't quit, get a reward from it..."
RATRuns resumed this evening. 5 of us did a 6 mile loop from the Bulls Head in Monyash on footpaths, mainly over fields of varying length grass,and taking in Magpie Mine and Flagg. A damp, misty and cool evening.
Back at the Bulls Head, cheesy chips were washed down with very good Timothy Taylor Landlord.
yet another busy day ahead so could only fit in a shorty.
3.12 miles around Witton in 25:39
WP you seem to be consistently around 8-8:30min/mile, whether you do 3 miles or 7 miles. That must be a good sign...
Not really :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Travs
As soon as I stick a hill in there it heads north somewhat, but partly that's because I really take my time downhill when just training to take care of my back.
7 miles, 1000 ft, 76:40 setting off from Darwen early and back home via Sunnyhurst Woods, Darwen Moor, Roddlesworth and Tockholes.
To be honest, I think if I got in a 5k race, I'd be able to run around 23 minutes which is the best I've been for a couple of years - probably try Preston Parkrun when they get back going. But in reality my real target is to run 9:00 mile pace steady for up to a couple of hours which then gives me a chance of getting through the cut offs on the Three Peaks.
Long walk tomorrow with a pint and lunch all being well :)
4 mile, 35 minutes
Just a shorty up the canal to Feniscliffe playing fields. The exterior of the area is a nice short-course cross country loop with a little 100 yard drag up each lap.
so I ran there, 4 laps which are around 1km each and then back with half a dozen 30-40 second strides on the return home.
Tonight's RATRun was from the Packhorse Inn, Crowdecote down the Dove valley to Pilsbury Castle and up onto the ridge and back towards Crowdecote over some Permitted Access land which was lovely tough running with only some faint sheep trods to follow. The main group continued up High Wheeldon but I wimped out, as my groin was giving me jip, and jogged back down the road to the pub.
Did 6 miles in total on a lovely evening.
Back at the pub chips were washed down with a very good couple of pints of Hartington Bitter from the nearby Whim Brewery.
Beacon Hill and Windmill Hill: 62 minutes. I felt good until after coming off Windmill Hill, but then seemed drained of energy for the final 2 miles back home. I am starting to wonder if I will ever again do this route in under an hour.
Never give up...!Quote:
Originally Posted by anthonykay
i have a facebook friend from the Shropshire area... a runner of some significant past repute on the flat and the hills (you may have even raced against him in your glory years!)... he is talking about getting back under 20mins for 5km by his 60th birthday (i believe he is nearing his 59th)
Potter around one of my races today, the Royal Rumble route at Tockholes starting with Roddlesworth Woods and then over Darwen Moor.
It was wet through.
I'm on my 2nd pair of Adidas Terrex - which are my first Goretex running shoes. First time today I've had problems with water getting in the shoe. It made a couple of descents really tricky as my feet were sliding around inside the shoe.
It wasn't the puddles that caused the water to get in, it was the dense, wet vegetation.
5.3 mile, 63 minutes, 1000ft
Thank you for the encouragement. My fitness seems to fluctuate randomly, and it seems to have taken a dive since last year, but who knows what will happen next year?Quote:
Originally Posted by Travs
I had the Terrex X-King which were the closest they got to bona-fide fell shoes. Used them for a season. In the dry i thought they were as good as anything else (and looked pretty sexy... plain black).... In the wet and slop just didn't quite live up to the Inov8 and VJ of this world... they were a decent alternative though but not sure they still make them... They were very durable though.Quote:
Originally Posted by Witton Park
https://www.amazon.co.uk/adidas-outd.../dp/B01HLQG6RQ
A much quieter week this week due to other things going on, but managed a solid 23 miles 4900ft over the weekend.
Hope to bump up the miles again starting tomorrow, and of course look forward to the long-awaited gym reopening next saturday!
Racing training starting in earnest now there's a target to aim for. 10000ft steady climb in last two days. Not pleasant, not particularly enjoyable. But good solid work.
Also weighed in at 79kg. Which is the lightest i've been since my last kickboxing fight in 2015 (and even then i only dropped down to 78kg for a few days before and up to the fight.
Will be interesting to see how that weight is affected once the gym opens on saturday and weight training starts again.
4 x 1250mtr reps (the 1st lap of the local parkrun), with decreasing rest between each one (2:30, 2:00, 1:30)
Consistent at 5:55/mile pace. Had hoped to get in a 5th after a final 1:00 rest but couldn't move.
Learnt the value of my GPS watch though today. Without it i'd have jacked it in after 3 reps as i was feeling totally trashed, and felt that i'd fallen apart completely during the 3rd rep. But my watch was showing that i had still been consistent through the rep and it was just physical pain rather than complete loss of pace, so i felt i could push for a 4th rep (which was incredibly unpleasant, but again maintained the average pace with a huge final effort).
Booked the track for a week tomorrow and hoping to attempt either a 5km or Track Mile, depending on how fresh i feel... with gyms opening at the weekend the chances of me trashing my legs with strength work are pretty high, and a "fast" 5km next week might be a stretch!
First "effort" since weekend. Felt a little light headed this week as if I've got a slight lurgy, but off I went.
Did feel a bit weary, but at least I got a pleasant early morning run in around Witton. Felt more like a nice March morning though than a July one.
4.02 miles, 35:33
Been back to "The Green Green Grass of Home" for the first time this year. 3 days tidying up my late mums house in Llani and no internet!
Last evening a run up Bryn y Fan, from Y Fan, 6 miles and 1'200 feet. A slowish time of 75 mins due to recceing a wild camp and ending up in waist high bracken and not being able to spot the sheep trods! Perfect conditions for running and a bit of drizzle on the top.
Refreshed with a couple of pints of Butty Bach in the beer garden of The Angel.
Club session from last week, not done until this morning... 3 x 5mins with 2mins rests. Then 5 x 1min (1min rests).
Nothing remarkable to report, other than the gym being back open! Straight back into a full session, although tried not to go overboard, having done very little apart from bodyweight work since march.
Those who are into climbing may well have previously come across the perpetual rope climbing machines... basically a long rope coiled round a wheel at the top, you sit/stand and continually pull the rope down towards you. They've had one of these for ages and i find it a great way of getting shoulder and arm work . But now they also have a horizontal one, which looks similar to a rowing machine in that you sit on a seat and pull the rope towards you... the burn from that was absolutely ferocious!
Sounds like good Tug of War training Travs!Quote:
Originally Posted by Travs
Certainly good arm/shoulder work without having to resort to isolation exercises (which i'm not a big fan of).
Despite the minor inconvenience of wrenching my entire big toenail out playing football with my nephew yesterday, i wasn't going to be prevented from finishing the week solidly and posting up a total of 77 miles and 15,450ft.
A pleasing week as it included a quite encouraging rep session where i held it together against the odds, and then the gyms re-opening.
Next week i'm hoping to get in a track 5km effort if feeling fresh (might revert to a track mile if i've got any doubts about fatigue though). Can i get to the longed-for 18mins mark...? i've certainly got the ability to run at the required pace for several km (in fact i ran a 3000mtrs last summer in 10:45 which is 17:55 5km pace... but can i string 5km together in non-race conditions?
Although really the big target is 13 days time and a return to the fells.
plenty of excuses for missing a few days training over the weekend.
Baby sitting granddaughter Friday and through to Saturday morning.
Viewing some motorhomes Saturday afternoon.
Piss-poor weather Sunday, lots of orders clocking up so got some done to take pressure off Monday, Burnley on the box (shouldn't have bothered :D )
Monday just pulled out with work.
None of them valid really.
I think mostly there's just an expectation of some half decent weather. It is July after all and I bought some new shades 1st week June and I've only managed to run in them once.
Anyway, back at it today with a canal progression run of 4.28 miles, 36:20 broken down by mile to 9:05, 8:47, 8:13, 7:59 with 7:53 pace for the part 5th mile at end.
We had a simple club session... 7 miles... odd numbered miles easy, even numbered hard.
I ran the hard miles a lot easier than i usually would due to plans for later in the week, but a good leg-stretcher.
Really noticing the fact that the gym is back open and i've been giving the strength and conditioning side a good hammering. Legs are protesting a little this afternoon!