New Challenges

Run rest day today, after last weeks decent build I finished pretty tired. Time to let the adaptions take place and then go again this week.

Really want to nail my 1500m target and get a decent 3000m in soon. Would be nice to be picky about races after that.

Leg speed is clearly the limiting factor right now. I'm staying strong through shorter races. 1500 pace down to 70.9 per 400m. That's about 1 sec slower than Thursdays session so a good yardstick session.

Plan from here is to kick onwards with some speed. That needs to be the main session of the week so I'll move the speed session to Tuesday (after rest day) and a stronger session to Thursday.

Not actually sure where my speed is at right now. It feels like I am starting to relax a bit more at 1500 pace but there isn't a huge amount in reserve.

Looking at rankings, sub 4.20 should get me top 20 for the year. That's 69 flat pretty much. Need to do 8 x 400 in 67/68 to manage that and that does feel possible but I really need to bring my 200 sessions down to 29 low to be finding that a possibility.

Doing Things Right

I have started to get people wonder what I am doing that's got me into shape - like there is some special sauce lol. I've been average for so long now that my current shape starts to look like I am hitting crazy times. The truth is, I still see what I am doing as average. It sounds arrogant but being top 20 V45 for 1500m this year, I cannot see how I am not right up there. In career number 1 I was always in the top few in my AG for everything. Don't get me wrong because I am humble but the 16 minute barrier is just a pathway to the 15 minute barrier. 

I think you could mistake pragmatism for ego but it's too easy to start running sessions in say 6 min miles or 5.30 miles and think that's quick and stay there because it looks cool on Strava. I just want to get faster for as long as I can. At some stage there will be an injury or something and it'll be as quick as I've ever gone, but I can't just accept that 19 people my age in the country are better than me when I am at 100%. 

I'm doing probably less than most people but I am doing what's working for me. No secret sauce, no special sessions. I'm just constantly looking at where I am weak and addressing it. That, and staying injury free !!

Letting Things Go

OK, so on a similar note. This is a huge note to self. I'm scared of letting things go. I'm worried that not doing a weekly 5k pace session (km reps in 3.10) will loose all that 5k fitness. But right now my focus is on short speed and doing those sessions will not help. I have to train like a miler right now, I'll come back to 5k at some stage but if my plans over shorter races comes off I think 15.30 will be the new 16.00.

I'd consider myself a generous guy in terms of effort and knowledge I give people. I've lived a life. I'm not naive so I know that you can't expect the same of most people, and on the whole people will let you down more than they will build you up.  Sometimes change is outside your control, just embrace it and see how it pans out. 

Monday - rest, light S&C (4 sets)

Tuesday - track. Speed work, the focus for this week. Met Geoff and into 10 x 200m off 200 walk. Started with 30.7 and kept all but 1 under 31. 30. high avge. Actually felt like I was under more control than last time but do not have enough speed. Still need to find a couple of secs per rep here.

Good cool down. Gave Geoff a 5-10m head start on reps and chased him down. Made it as much better session. Will be joining him regularly this summer I reckon!

Disappointing that I'm not getting quicker. Lack of flat speed is going to kill me. I'm strong right now but I need at least another gear by June.

May need to think about some very short, very sharp hill sprints of 5-10 secs instead of strides for a few weeks.

Ended up waiting in for a delivery of 5T of stones for driveway and by time they'd arrived it shit down. Managed to spread 3T of them and also did some basic S&C earlier but fuck going for a run I'm knackered lol.

Entered some summer races tonight, race plan is locked and loaded !!

Wednesday - aghhh, fuck sake. OK, so it's the least important day to get wrong but stitched myself up. No GF bread so had cornflakes. Forgot anti-histamine tablets and ran over the trails. Felt tired anyway but coupled with both the above I felt absolutely horrific. Ended up doing 5 with lots of walking. I'll go out again this afternoon but pissed off. Have not made many mistakes in training but taking things too lightly is not how I got into half decent shape.

Ran again in the afternoon. 3 miles or so. Wasn't much better !! Need food and sleep. I'm battered lol

Def a push session yesterday. Tomorrow's track needs to be under a bit more control i.e not flat out !

Thursday - legs are tired. After yesterday need some confidence. Meet Geoff at track for 10am. Prefer these earlier starts, less noise at track and back before lunch. Warm up and minimum faffing straight into 8 x 500m. Geoff leading first 300m for 3 then first 200m for last 5. Plan was to feel like 3000m effort and walk the recoveries down a bit shorter (90 secs or so instead of 105)

1.31, 1.30, 1.31, 1.32, 1.28, 1.28, 1.28, 1.28 really good session. The 1.28s feel very much harder than the 1.31s but difference was all in the first 400m so expect they would. Legs were tired but very business like. Felt controlled, last couple hurt a bit but that's 4k of quicker than 3k pace, not far off 1500 pace to be fair.

Things are really moving in the right direction now. Good 2 weeks building and will ease right back for 2 races next weekend. Happy with how things are responding to training and seem to be able to get slightly more out of each session for slightly less effort.

Really feels like breaking down into blocks of build - where it's hard training - and taper - easing the legs into a race - and then race block - where it's just surviving between races - is paying off. 

Easy shakeout double - 15 mins or so very easy. Tired after track. 2 x track sessions will take some getting used to on push weeks. At my age that's pushing the envelope. Tomorrow will be very gentle shakeout plus some hill sprints. 

Possibly need to look at nutrition more but on build weeks I'm a lot happier just eating and drinking whatever I fancy and saving the more serious focus for the taper.

Met Ian D & Rich in the evening for food & drinks. Always a good laugh with those boys.

Friday - up and legs feel pretty good today. Will do a shakeout and see how some hill sprints go. Need to look at how I can improve my flat speed so will see how this pans out for a few weeks.

Started taking COQ10 supp again. Will monitor energy levels and see if there is anything in that for a couple of weeks. I'm not over keen on taking loads of supps, take a few for my coeliac but right now the staples are - iron, multi vits, vit d2, vit d3, & fibre. 

Easy 30+ mins with 3 x hill sprints. Feel OK - starting to recover a little better but the format is hard, fucked, hard, fucked still lol. Just need to get my head around the easy days will feel rubbish on build weeks as I'm running so hard on sessions. Next week I need to work out what the plan is for Tuesday. I'll rack my brains but something that will help 3k work as the 1500 stuff is locked and loaded.

Nice catch up with John M today. So funny talking about how old menatality and new mentality is so different. I have to take a mindset of the work I have done is banked and it's not going to leak out if I don't top it up constantly.

Did a load of garden work shifting 1700 kg of stones so battered tonight. Long  run tomorrow so recovery is key now. Few beers and loads of cheese tonight then bank some miles tomorrow.

No idea where I am mileage wise for the week. Really need to loose that train of thought in summer. Weekly total is not a metric. Am I hitting session times is. Do not get involved in the volume arms race !!

Next week I'll make a call on Tuesday as to Saturdays race but expecting to go 3000m. Sub 9.20 is the obvious target from where I am at and should be top 10 V45 for the year with that. In theory it should be my best distance but it's not gone well for me in the past.

I'll run 1500m in the vests league on the Monday. Plan will be just to kick off at sub 70 and see where that lands. With those races in mind I'll likely just got 2 x 4 x 400 on Tuesday (or possibly 8 straight through).

Saturday - up early for run. 14.65 miles with Dan & Gemma. Felt absolutely horrific. Think lugging all that gravel about yesterday fucked my back and hammys. Was a decent pace - 7.20/mm avge but just felt heavy, sore in glutes and hammys the whole way around. was due one tbf haha

Slept for an hour or so and trying to eat well to dig myself out the whole. Bath, back stretch and double normatecs and I'll sleep well tonight - that should straighten me out. Pretty much battered from the 2 week build but all is good. 

Looking forward to going easy on myself into next 2 races and see where we are at!

Sunday - wow, slept like a champ last night. That's the most tired I've been for a long, long while. Definately the combo of hard training and garden work but I dug myself a tidy fatigue hole there. Rest day from running, zero point trying to achieve anything productive.

2 weeks since the 5k block was done and plenty of building work. In a build phase I pretty much eat and drink whatever the hell I like so next week I'll switch to taper mode.

Worked as starters assistant for Suffolk County Champs today. Full Dolly Parton day of 9-5. Learned loads and feels good to start giving something back to the sport. Some really good racing too.

No idea on weeks totals but ended up with 5 days. 1 Long run, 2 good quick sessions that we're nailled on pace. Have improved but next weekend I'll find out where I am really at.