Pretty happy with this weeks training.
Monday - Gym / strength session and 9km walk (wee but tired and very very stiff and sore from Six Foot)
Tuesday - 5km just taking it easy round the lake
Wednesday - 5km FAST (for me) around the lake and BodyStep Class
Thursday - 23km ride
Friday - 5km run - sore, tired legs but kept it at 5:45min kms pace
Saturday - BIG FAT NUTHIN'
Sunday - 21km on M7 with a couple of friends.
My legs are really tired today. I had a massage from Enter the Dragon yesterday, but they must all be a little scarred by the last time I visited when I sobbed into a tissue. They probably see me coming and go "here comes that masochist woman" again, (only in Chinese) smile, nod politely and back away . Also they have ditched the Enter the Dragon music and opted for Enya, and it just doesn't feel right. So I came away feeling a little ripped off, he didn't seem to be able to get deep into those muscles and loosen them up, so one leg still feels a bit funny.
Getting up this morning after a latish night with a few sparkling shiraz's was hard, the run seemed to make me feel better and it was finally nice to be able to run with people at a reasonable pace (we reckon about 5.50min/kms) hold a conversation and not feel like I am slowing people down. I guess if I can do the distance on tired legs and a One- and- A- Half- Bottles- of- Sparkling- Shiraz Hangover I can do it at that or better in the race.
I nearly died when I realised Woodford to Glenbrook is next week. I thought it was WEEKS away. So more biking, pump and easy runs next week I think.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Recovery Mode
I didn't pull up from running Six Foot as well as I did from North Face, no sir.
Fair to say that I was doing a good impersonation of someone with a very strange gait on Monday and Tuesday. Monday I decided to go the gym with Yvonne and do some core work (pinched from the PT's routine) i.e. standing on bosu throwing a medicine ball, standing on one leg throwing a medicine ball, lying on back lifting a swiss ball with knees, and crunches with a kettle bell. I figured if my legs were going to hurt, I may as well have my upper body hurt too. We also did some work on the treadmill (2km), some tricep dips and we jumped up and down off a box for a bit. All good clean fun, and after an hour or so of ridiculous looking exercises, we set off for a brisk 7km walk around the river.
Tuesday dawned bright and clear and AGONISING!! Everything had just got tighter, sorer and stiffer. There was only one thing for it - a run. So 5km around the lake - a painful 5km I might add, but after a shower and slipping the feet back into heels, I actually felt really good again.
Today I did 6km round the lake, 5km of which I ran hard.
Lap 1 5:35
Lap 2 5:31
Lap 3 5:37
Lap 4 5:46
Lap 5 5:15
Why am I writing down this nonsense I hear you say? Well because at the moment, I can only hold this pace for a short amount of time - say 5km. The plan is to work up to a half marathon at 5.50 pace which would give me my under 2 hour time that I would dearly love. But I need to write it down so I can look back WHEN I improve (not IF).
Next week, when my legs are not so tired from Six Foot shenanigans I will try to do 10km at about this pace.
This weekend I am running on the M7 course with BB which I am looking forward to, because he will obviously be faster than me, so will be another quicker session.
Tonight I am doing a step class!!! Break out the 80's leotard and leg warmers!!!
Fair to say that I was doing a good impersonation of someone with a very strange gait on Monday and Tuesday. Monday I decided to go the gym with Yvonne and do some core work (pinched from the PT's routine) i.e. standing on bosu throwing a medicine ball, standing on one leg throwing a medicine ball, lying on back lifting a swiss ball with knees, and crunches with a kettle bell. I figured if my legs were going to hurt, I may as well have my upper body hurt too. We also did some work on the treadmill (2km), some tricep dips and we jumped up and down off a box for a bit. All good clean fun, and after an hour or so of ridiculous looking exercises, we set off for a brisk 7km walk around the river.
Tuesday dawned bright and clear and AGONISING!! Everything had just got tighter, sorer and stiffer. There was only one thing for it - a run. So 5km around the lake - a painful 5km I might add, but after a shower and slipping the feet back into heels, I actually felt really good again.
Today I did 6km round the lake, 5km of which I ran hard.
Lap 1 5:35
Lap 2 5:31
Lap 3 5:37
Lap 4 5:46
Lap 5 5:15
Why am I writing down this nonsense I hear you say? Well because at the moment, I can only hold this pace for a short amount of time - say 5km. The plan is to work up to a half marathon at 5.50 pace which would give me my under 2 hour time that I would dearly love. But I need to write it down so I can look back WHEN I improve (not IF).
Next week, when my legs are not so tired from Six Foot shenanigans I will try to do 10km at about this pace.
This weekend I am running on the M7 course with BB which I am looking forward to, because he will obviously be faster than me, so will be another quicker session.
Tonight I am doing a step class!!! Break out the 80's leotard and leg warmers!!!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Adventures with bridges
Yesterdays adventure was we ran the Six Foot Track. It was lots of fun, mostly. Some bits hurt.
Things I have learnt.
Bridge crossing was scary. It swung about. It was very high up. And it went on and on and on....
But probably not as scary as the drive home.
Survived the bridge, the hills and the funny yet not amusing way my thighs decided to seize up going along a seemingly flat piece of trail.
Observations: Halfway up Mini Mini is not a good time to suggest entering "King of the Mountain".
Kneecaps have nerve endings. Painful kneecaps is not a pleasant feeling.
Running up and down stairs trying to find your car is an excellent post run recovery strategy.
Oh, some kangaroos will do anything for a bit of brunch bar.
This little fella let me pat him, it was really funny when the brunch bar stuck his back teeth together and he was chewing like mad to get them unstuck.
After the run, whilst a vodka is fine, using a Vodka Cruiser as a mixer in your neat vodka is asking for trouble.
Things I have learnt.
- Don't suggest things you know nothing about. eg. let's go over that bridge instead of crossing through the river
But probably not as scary as the drive home.
Survived the bridge, the hills and the funny yet not amusing way my thighs decided to seize up going along a seemingly flat piece of trail.
Observations: Halfway up Mini Mini is not a good time to suggest entering "King of the Mountain".
Kneecaps have nerve endings. Painful kneecaps is not a pleasant feeling.
Running up and down stairs trying to find your car is an excellent post run recovery strategy.
Oh, some kangaroos will do anything for a bit of brunch bar.
This little fella let me pat him, it was really funny when the brunch bar stuck his back teeth together and he was chewing like mad to get them unstuck.
After the run, whilst a vodka is fine, using a Vodka Cruiser as a mixer in your neat vodka is asking for trouble.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Tool
I have been listening to Tool at lot lately.
Love their sound, and have been blasting it on the way to and from work, singing along. However singing along is a bit hard when you don't know the words, and some are hard to make out.
So I looked up the words to "Stinkfist" - my GOD! Who in their right mind writes a song about poking your finger up someones bum? I am fascinated and horrified at the same time.
Scared to look up any more lyrics....oddly compelled to.
Love their sound, and have been blasting it on the way to and from work, singing along. However singing along is a bit hard when you don't know the words, and some are hard to make out.
So I looked up the words to "Stinkfist" - my GOD! Who in their right mind writes a song about poking your finger up someones bum? I am fascinated and horrified at the same time.
Scared to look up any more lyrics....oddly compelled to.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Stuff - Exciting to me. Probably not to you.
Inventory of exciting things on the horizon:
Next, W2G - I have done this race twice now. First year this was a huge step up for me, I had only ever run 10km beforehand, and took on the 26km blindly. First year, after the run, I sat down and thought I had shattered my pelvis, such was the pain in my - I dunno - back / hips / pelvis / everything.
Last year I ran with a friend and whilst I did a 15 min PB I still don't think I gave it my all.
So this year, I would really like to "race" it. Yes, a quantity totally unknown to me, but one I would like to explore. Lets see. After about 1km I might get bored with the "race it" philosophy and decide it is just a training run, but honestly, in my heart, I would like to race it. Yes I am slow, but if I am honest, I am not that slow and I can do this. Game on. To myself.
Then, very very exciting, is the M7 Marathon. I am still not ready for a marathon, and I know that. And to be honest, I am not all that excited about the prospect of running 42.2km alongside a motorway and waste disposal plant. So my lovely other Angry Dolphin has agreed to a team effort. God love him. So we will do it as a team thingy, and hopefully have a bit of fun into the bargain. I love my wee mate Other Angry Dolphin, he is just so GORGEOUS and happy to do anything just for a laugh, a run, a bike ride or a beer. A good bloke in my books. I will never forget that he gave me the opportunity to do North Face and that meant so much to me.
Then.....drum roll......I get to coerce my good friend Marie and her hubby Ian into City to Surf. This is something that I am doing for them. They need it. They need to stop smoking. They need to get fit. They have talked about doing this for the last couple of years. So I entered them, booked them accommodation and will do it with them. John is even giving up his soccer on that day. So Marie and I set off on a training plan = and suddenly she was called to Switzerland to work. Hmmmm....some people will do anything to get out of training.....ah well, that leaves Ian in my hands.....
And then - Willy to Billy. I sooooo wanted to do this race last year. Things just didn't go my way last year, and I couldn't do it. I was really afraid of the distance too. Now, I am like - 38km? or 34km? or whatever it is? Good . Bring. It. On. Not that I am fantastically fast, or experienced, but that distance no longer scares me. I just need to train better and get faster now. I need Sharenes fancy footwork on the rocky bits, how do you learn that? Sharene????
All v exciting to me. Immediate thoughts are to try and get the M7 half marathon time down....under 2 hours would be amazing to me. Ok.... Under two hours it is..... that's the goal.....
- This weekend Six Foot Track - 45kms of trail - hopefully with a smile
- Woodford to Glenbrook - 26km of trails - with a return journey up the hill just for fun
- The M7 Marathon - Team Angry Dolphins return for a second bout - watch this space
- City to Surf Weekend - booked accommodation, time off work, running with friends for a purpose
- Willy to Billy - wanted to do this race for the last two years - now I can. Giddyup!!
Next, W2G - I have done this race twice now. First year this was a huge step up for me, I had only ever run 10km beforehand, and took on the 26km blindly. First year, after the run, I sat down and thought I had shattered my pelvis, such was the pain in my - I dunno - back / hips / pelvis / everything.
Last year I ran with a friend and whilst I did a 15 min PB I still don't think I gave it my all.
So this year, I would really like to "race" it. Yes, a quantity totally unknown to me, but one I would like to explore. Lets see. After about 1km I might get bored with the "race it" philosophy and decide it is just a training run, but honestly, in my heart, I would like to race it. Yes I am slow, but if I am honest, I am not that slow and I can do this. Game on. To myself.
Then, very very exciting, is the M7 Marathon. I am still not ready for a marathon, and I know that. And to be honest, I am not all that excited about the prospect of running 42.2km alongside a motorway and waste disposal plant. So my lovely other Angry Dolphin has agreed to a team effort. God love him. So we will do it as a team thingy, and hopefully have a bit of fun into the bargain. I love my wee mate Other Angry Dolphin, he is just so GORGEOUS and happy to do anything just for a laugh, a run, a bike ride or a beer. A good bloke in my books. I will never forget that he gave me the opportunity to do North Face and that meant so much to me.
Then.....drum roll......I get to coerce my good friend Marie and her hubby Ian into City to Surf. This is something that I am doing for them. They need it. They need to stop smoking. They need to get fit. They have talked about doing this for the last couple of years. So I entered them, booked them accommodation and will do it with them. John is even giving up his soccer on that day. So Marie and I set off on a training plan = and suddenly she was called to Switzerland to work. Hmmmm....some people will do anything to get out of training.....ah well, that leaves Ian in my hands.....
And then - Willy to Billy. I sooooo wanted to do this race last year. Things just didn't go my way last year, and I couldn't do it. I was really afraid of the distance too. Now, I am like - 38km? or 34km? or whatever it is? Good . Bring. It. On. Not that I am fantastically fast, or experienced, but that distance no longer scares me. I just need to train better and get faster now. I need Sharenes fancy footwork on the rocky bits, how do you learn that? Sharene????
All v exciting to me. Immediate thoughts are to try and get the M7 half marathon time down....under 2 hours would be amazing to me. Ok.... Under two hours it is..... that's the goal.....
Sunday, June 6, 2010
The Shit in the Centre Aisle of Aldi.
Each day this weekend I have woken up shit scared that the weekend was over and I slept right through it. That sort of "where am I and what day is it?" feeling.
Anyway I got to thinking out how much time we waste doing stupid things at the weekend. Weekends are very precious and we do tend to spend a lot of time being daft.
For example, the focus of most Saturdays will be Saturday nights dinner, and there is much deliberation over cookery books and the like . Then of course there is the buying of the ingredients, a ritual in itself. And you can't go to the local shopping centre without doing what we refer to as "Looking at the Shit in the Centre Aisle of Aldi". I mean, what other supermarket sells milk, eggs, bread, a long handled sponge, and a deluxe cat toilet? A long handled sponge? Those crazy germans. Last week they were selling a glue gun. Who pops out for a loaf of bread and a glue gun? Anyway we never buy anything at Aldi and usually walk out giggling - it is just a routine we have got into. Sometimes we do Go Lo as well.
Anyway all this eating and drinking takes its toll, so it is important that I get out on my run, and yesterdays run was 11km (not a very long run, but better than a poke in the eye with a stick) and todays was a measly 4km. 4km!! However I did probably about 10kms more on what I like to refer to as a shopping ultra. All day, on your feet, in high heels, pacing is needed, as is a good breakfast.
So not much exciting running to report, I suppose I could say I am tapering for next weeks 45km trail run.
Anyway I got to thinking out how much time we waste doing stupid things at the weekend. Weekends are very precious and we do tend to spend a lot of time being daft.
For example, the focus of most Saturdays will be Saturday nights dinner, and there is much deliberation over cookery books and the like . Then of course there is the buying of the ingredients, a ritual in itself. And you can't go to the local shopping centre without doing what we refer to as "Looking at the Shit in the Centre Aisle of Aldi". I mean, what other supermarket sells milk, eggs, bread, a long handled sponge, and a deluxe cat toilet? A long handled sponge? Those crazy germans. Last week they were selling a glue gun. Who pops out for a loaf of bread and a glue gun? Anyway we never buy anything at Aldi and usually walk out giggling - it is just a routine we have got into. Sometimes we do Go Lo as well.
Anyway all this eating and drinking takes its toll, so it is important that I get out on my run, and yesterdays run was 11km (not a very long run, but better than a poke in the eye with a stick) and todays was a measly 4km. 4km!! However I did probably about 10kms more on what I like to refer to as a shopping ultra. All day, on your feet, in high heels, pacing is needed, as is a good breakfast.
So not much exciting running to report, I suppose I could say I am tapering for next weeks 45km trail run.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Training and Shit
Monday = first pump class in one million years
Tuesday = 8km run at 5am - how bloody smug do you feel after an early morning run?
Wednesday = 7km run at 5.30am - again feeling of incredible smugness - slowly taken over by feeling of incredible DELAYED ONSET MUSCLE SORENESS. Ouch. Pump class worked chest and arms, and now my armpits hurt big time. Running was ok if I kept my upper body still. Walked around work as if mummified.
Unexplainably (there is probably no such word) got large blister from 7km run today. How come I can run 54km and get no blister and then run7km and get nasty blister that squirted water at my face when I pricked it with a pin?
On the long weekend an old dancing friend and I are doing six foot track together. I cannot wait - a nice 45km that may take up to 7 hours. Despite being a dancer he is also a secret runner, though he doesn't like people to know that, hence I am not allowed to name him here in case dancers want to run with him or runners want to dance with him.
And then Woodford to Glenbrook run it has been decreed that we run the race and then run back up to Woodford - so a nice 52km that day.
So a couple of things to keep me out of mischief over the next month. Plenty to train for.
Loving it. Loving my running.
Tuesday = 8km run at 5am - how bloody smug do you feel after an early morning run?
Wednesday = 7km run at 5.30am - again feeling of incredible smugness - slowly taken over by feeling of incredible DELAYED ONSET MUSCLE SORENESS. Ouch. Pump class worked chest and arms, and now my armpits hurt big time. Running was ok if I kept my upper body still. Walked around work as if mummified.
Unexplainably (there is probably no such word) got large blister from 7km run today. How come I can run 54km and get no blister and then run7km and get nasty blister that squirted water at my face when I pricked it with a pin?
On the long weekend an old dancing friend and I are doing six foot track together. I cannot wait - a nice 45km that may take up to 7 hours. Despite being a dancer he is also a secret runner, though he doesn't like people to know that, hence I am not allowed to name him here in case dancers want to run with him or runners want to dance with him.
And then Woodford to Glenbrook run it has been decreed that we run the race and then run back up to Woodford - so a nice 52km that day.
So a couple of things to keep me out of mischief over the next month. Plenty to train for.
Loving it. Loving my running.
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