This morning was one of our more difficult SWEAT sessions due the level of intensity required for the long reps. In order to give my body the wake up call it need I arrived at the park in plenty of time for my warm up. During the drills the legs felt sluggish and tied, so I was a little concerned how I would perform during the session. We did two long reps (lap of the fence, approx 3.5km) followed by a 1km rep. I was really pleased with my times this morning; 17:38, 17:42 and 4:42. I did this identical session three weeks ago and ran; 18:17, 18:34, and 5:07. It is very pleasing to see the reduction in time which I attribute to solid consistent training.
July Total Km: 269
YTD: 1525
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Brains and Brawn
25 July
It was a real struggle to get out of bed. Blue Dog and I visited our local hotel for dinner on Tuesday night and decided to participate in Trivia. The power of "Team Dog" was again very strong, we finished second and were rewarded a bottle of wine and a $40 drink tab at the bar. Anyone would have thought Blue Dog had won the lottery.
Back to running!
I met the girls for our mid week long run at the lovely hour of 5.30am. It was good to hear about Kerry and Deanne's adventures in the Hunter Valley and share. 90 minutes later we fighting fit and ready to take on the day (almost).
26 July
"Wild Wally" session, on an alternative course due to the wet conditions in our usual location. I had seven on the schedule and just seemed to locked into a rep time of 3:16 with the exception of the first and last that were 3:14. A total 11km for the day.
27 July
I enjoyed a nice easy run along the shores of Botany Bay, nothing too exciting just an easy 6km.
28 July
25km Bush Marathon Festival (Canberra). I ran the event at a training run and thoroughly enjoyed it. The course was great, undulating but it kept me honest. I really enjoyed the experience of running along the trail in my own world and just enjoying the run. I was happy to finish the run in 2hrs 31min. Post race I chatted to a few of the local CR's and it was great to catch up with Lucky Legs.
29 July
Just an easy recovery run, 5.5km.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
A Sense of Direction
Monday, 23 July
I had my recovery run schedule for (PM) so I got home from work earlier enough to fit in my run and everything else I had to do around the house. Blue Dog and I started off together but he was running like a "dish licker" at Dapto, so I let him go ahead and agreed to meet him at home. I had some muscle soreness but found myself loosening up and ended up having one of those perfect runs. I finished with 60 mins at 5:30/km pace. I little too quick for a recovery run; however I was pleased to have finished the run feeling great.
I have review of the race calendar now that I am now back into consistent training and had program adjusted, so I am now off to Canberra to run the 25km event as part of the Bush Capital Marathon Festival. I will be treating the event as a good solid training run with the focus remaining on the Fitzroy Falls Marathon.
Tuesday, 24 July
Blue Dog and I have been arriving at SWEAT nice and early to ensure we get a good warm up before the session, which includes Blue Dog wearing a head lamp so we can navigate ourselves around the park safely. This morning we had 4 laps of the lake as time trial. When I started off I advised Kerry it was going to be ugly, but we worked through the session together sharing the lead, until I took my role a little too seriously. I'm still a long way off the pace of those PB days, but getting a little closer. It was nice to hear Sean give me words of encouragement and was impressed by effort this morning. In total I finished with another 13km in the legs after this mornings session.
I had my recovery run schedule for (PM) so I got home from work earlier enough to fit in my run and everything else I had to do around the house. Blue Dog and I started off together but he was running like a "dish licker" at Dapto, so I let him go ahead and agreed to meet him at home. I had some muscle soreness but found myself loosening up and ended up having one of those perfect runs. I finished with 60 mins at 5:30/km pace. I little too quick for a recovery run; however I was pleased to have finished the run feeling great.
I have review of the race calendar now that I am now back into consistent training and had program adjusted, so I am now off to Canberra to run the 25km event as part of the Bush Capital Marathon Festival. I will be treating the event as a good solid training run with the focus remaining on the Fitzroy Falls Marathon.
Tuesday, 24 July
Blue Dog and I have been arriving at SWEAT nice and early to ensure we get a good warm up before the session, which includes Blue Dog wearing a head lamp so we can navigate ourselves around the park safely. This morning we had 4 laps of the lake as time trial. When I started off I advised Kerry it was going to be ugly, but we worked through the session together sharing the lead, until I took my role a little too seriously. I'm still a long way off the pace of those PB days, but getting a little closer. It was nice to hear Sean give me words of encouragement and was impressed by effort this morning. In total I finished with another 13km in the legs after this mornings session.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Training, Tales, and Trails
It's hard to believe how quickly time slipped away last week. I have been very busy catching up with friends, training and getting stuck back into work.
Here's a quick summary:
Tuesday, 17 July: SWEAT, 5 x 800m reps. I was a bit disappointed with my pace, however I managed to keep the reps at a consistent pace finishing off strong in the last rep.
Wednesday, 18 July: Meet Deanne and Kerry for our mid week long run. 90 minutes of running, good company and plenty of chatter.
Thursday, 19 July: I battled to get out bed for SWEAT (too cold), so I ran after work instead. 9km at 5:30/km pace.
Friday, 20 July: 6km at 5:10/km pace.
Saturday, 21 July: Pump class followed by 60 minutes at 5:39/km pace.
Sunday, 22 July: 2hrs 20mins Royal National Park. Blue Dog and I found another trail that definitely challenged my hill and technical running skills, always good to find new trails.
Here's a quick summary:
Tuesday, 17 July: SWEAT, 5 x 800m reps. I was a bit disappointed with my pace, however I managed to keep the reps at a consistent pace finishing off strong in the last rep.
Wednesday, 18 July: Meet Deanne and Kerry for our mid week long run. 90 minutes of running, good company and plenty of chatter.
Thursday, 19 July: I battled to get out bed for SWEAT (too cold), so I ran after work instead. 9km at 5:30/km pace.
Friday, 20 July: 6km at 5:10/km pace.
Saturday, 21 July: Pump class followed by 60 minutes at 5:39/km pace.
Sunday, 22 July: 2hrs 20mins Royal National Park. Blue Dog and I found another trail that definitely challenged my hill and technical running skills, always good to find new trails.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Our USA and WS experience.
I have now had a little time to catch up with a few things, so I will give you a brief outline of holiday.
Months ago Blue Dog suggested with fly via Taipei and have a two day stop over, which would no only give us the benefit of a cheaper air fares but provide us with a cultural experience. Let just say it was a cultural experience. Let's just say I was very happy to leave.
We arrived in LA with our accommodation booked for the first night and a car booked for the month, which I must say was a real bargain. I had arranged a Jeep 4WD Commander for the month for the mere price of $591 (US). With no real plans of with the exemption of needing to be in Truckee on 20 June, we had a look at our lonely planet and loosely planned the trip.
After a good night sleep with jumped on the I-405 and headed to Venice Beach for a run, and the photo on the left shows what we stumbled across.
We then drove to San Diego, which was absolutely beautiful. After a nice couple of days which including sightseeing, running, cycling and some great Mexican food. Our next stop was Las Vegas.
We drove across the Mojave Dessert, and it was spectacular, and very hot. It was 114(F), but a very dry heat. We stopped off a couple of times to get a few photos, and to grab a couple of drinks being fully aware of the risk of dehydrating.
"Sin City"
Vegas did not inspire me at all, given that I have very little interest in gambling, and did not wish to pawn any items it was not my cup of tea. However, we did enjoy a great day to the Grand Canyon which including air flights, helicopters and a boat ride.
I have already confessed to my nearest and dearest, Blue Dog and I did not renew our vows. We both felt it was far too tacky and value our marriage far too much to cheapen it with some dodgy service.
After a couple of days in Vegas it was time to move on so we headed to a small town Beatty, with plans of staying there but on arrival we decided to push on and then drove through Death Valley, yes the home of Bad Water, to a beautiful little town call Lone Pine. This was probably one of my favourite places. After a swim we decided to do what every other like minded runner would do when it's 114 degrees... go for a run along the Bad Water course. We then shared a romantic dinner together to celebrating eight years of living together.
The next morning we decided to go for a run at Mt Whitney which was the beautiful view from our bedroom window. When we arrived and found the rather large signs regarding "Bear Country" and general information about bear safety, I think the during of my run was ran with an elevated HR, and I don't think it had anything to do with the altitude.The next stop of Yosemite. We hadn't booked any accommodation and knowing it was holiday season we were very lucky to have picked up some accommodation in Curry Village. Curry Village has been a holiday destination since 1810 in Yosemite Valley that provides tent like accommodation with electricity. However, all guests are required to remove all items for their vehicle and no food, drink or toiletries are allowed in the cabins. Items must be stored in a bear safe locker. When I woke up a 2am needed to go the toilet, I was hoping Blue Dog would escort however he advised me where to find the torch and assured me I would make back to bed safely.
After a few more days exploring we finally made our way to to Truckee, to join up with the Aussie Assault gang. The couple days before the race seemed to go very quickly, filled with pre-race meeting, Blue Dog purchasing nearly every item in the WS store and few pre-race gatherings (ie drinks and dinner).
Blue Dog and I has some lengthy discussions regarding this race plane and my role as support and crew. The course had a large number of aid stations that were well stocked and with the addition of his drop bags the logistics of getting crew to some of the check points were not easy, so our plan was finalised. We decided I would meet him at Forest Hill and then see him at the finish.
When the big day had arrived, Blue Dog was very relaxed and definitely in the zone for the challenge ahead. We arrived at the start nice an early, with enough time for him to have a light breakfast and mentally prepared for the day ahead.
From a spectators point of view the atmosphere was unbelievable at the start. I was surprised at how slowly everybody seemed to drift into position on the start line. The race was started with a shot gun and I watched everybody slowly climb up the hill to the sound of someone playing the bag pipes.
I arrived at Forest Hill in time to see the lead runner come through and very quickly leave. I waited patiently for the Aussie runner to appear was happy to see Blue Dog arrive looking pretty happy and insisting on a kiss before his medical check in.
After a few hours at the checkpoint I went back to the luxury of my motel room for a shower and a couple of hours sleep before making my way to the Placer High (WS finish). I was very proud to see Blue Dog arrive and ran across the field to cheer him across the finish line.
We then enjoyed a couple of lazy day in Auburn relaxing by the pool before referring to you faithful Lonely Planet book and mad. We found selected our next destination.The last couple of weeks included Clear Lake, The Valley of the Giants (Redwoods), Port Fragg, Occidental, San Fransisco, Berkeley, Nappa Valley, The Big Sur and eventually back to LA.
Some of the highlights:
* hiking in Yosemite
* my first American Ball game, San Francisco v's Atlanta
* eating mulberries and thimble berries whilst running through the woods
* walking Blue Dog eight miles through some dodgy streets in San Fransisco on my mission to purchase some running skirts.
* clam chowder
I will post a few more photos over the next couple of days.
Today's Mind Game: It is hot and sunny!
Yesterday was my first day back at work after six weeks leave, and boy was it a shock to the system. There has been some major changes in the workplace during my leave but it's all good.
After a long day at work and late appointment in the evening, I treated myself to a rest day. I figured I deserved it after Sunday's effort. However, I was up nice and early this morning to ensure I get a decent warm-up in before the session as I figures it was so cold I was going to take a lot of warming up. Today's session was 5 x 800m. My times were not tremendous however, I will just keep working away over the next few months, and I know the results will come.
After a long day at work and late appointment in the evening, I treated myself to a rest day. I figured I deserved it after Sunday's effort. However, I was up nice and early this morning to ensure I get a decent warm-up in before the session as I figures it was so cold I was going to take a lot of warming up. Today's session was 5 x 800m. My times were not tremendous however, I will just keep working away over the next few months, and I know the results will come.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Back to Basics
After returning home a week ago I have hardly had a chance to scratch myself, but I will eventually update everybody on our USA and WS experience, even if it's only a few pictures.
11 July 2007
Even on holidays I was up nice and early to meet Kerry and Deanne at 5.30am for our mid-week run. We knocked out 15km and happy avoided the rain, less one little sprinkle towards the end. It was great to be running with the girls again, I had missed them and our time together. A quick shower and then back to my mum's for some nursing/caring duties.
12 July 2007
Blue Dog and arrived nice and early with enough time to do a lap of the park before we started our Big Bertha session. We used a different area of the park due the rain and mud. I had ten laps on my program and go through the session pretty well and managed to maintain consistent times for each rep.
13 July 2007
I went over to my mum's place again, and had all intentions of going for a run, but it just didn't happen however I did take the dog for a walk. I was not not concerned about missing my run as I had agreed to run King of Mountain with Razor, which was far more then programmed.
14 July 2007
Blue Dog and I went for a nice run around our home turf with was really nice for a change. I did stress the need to take it easy as I wanted to ensure I got through KOM in one piece. Finished with 7.5km with an average pace of 5:35/km.
15 July 2007
Katie and Ray arrived at our house nice and early for our big day out. We arrived with Blue Dog ready to go and Ray and I ready for an adventure. After listening the National Anthem Ray and I started off towards the back of the pack and just settled in for the day. By the time we got to the 10km point we were wondering when went off road, however we did enjoy a nature call along the side of the road and Ray found a frog! I may be bias but given my lack of long runs and training combined with Ray's cold we ran very well, however we did walk the big hill we finished strongly and managed to move up the field in the last 8kms. We finished in 3:28 which I think was great even given the number of hills we encountered during the 32kms.
11 July 2007
Even on holidays I was up nice and early to meet Kerry and Deanne at 5.30am for our mid-week run. We knocked out 15km and happy avoided the rain, less one little sprinkle towards the end. It was great to be running with the girls again, I had missed them and our time together. A quick shower and then back to my mum's for some nursing/caring duties.
12 July 2007
Blue Dog and arrived nice and early with enough time to do a lap of the park before we started our Big Bertha session. We used a different area of the park due the rain and mud. I had ten laps on my program and go through the session pretty well and managed to maintain consistent times for each rep.
13 July 2007
I went over to my mum's place again, and had all intentions of going for a run, but it just didn't happen however I did take the dog for a walk. I was not not concerned about missing my run as I had agreed to run King of Mountain with Razor, which was far more then programmed.
14 July 2007
Blue Dog and I went for a nice run around our home turf with was really nice for a change. I did stress the need to take it easy as I wanted to ensure I got through KOM in one piece. Finished with 7.5km with an average pace of 5:35/km.
15 July 2007
Katie and Ray arrived at our house nice and early for our big day out. We arrived with Blue Dog ready to go and Ray and I ready for an adventure. After listening the National Anthem Ray and I started off towards the back of the pack and just settled in for the day. By the time we got to the 10km point we were wondering when went off road, however we did enjoy a nature call along the side of the road and Ray found a frog! I may be bias but given my lack of long runs and training combined with Ray's cold we ran very well, however we did walk the big hill we finished strongly and managed to move up the field in the last 8kms. We finished in 3:28 which I think was great even given the number of hills we encountered during the 32kms.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
I'm Back
Well we got home yesterday and I cannot believe how cold it is. I have alot to catch up but I'll leave that for another time. I was back at SWEAT this morning, but I am now out the door to see my mum who was in ICU after major surgery when I last saw her. Yep family is always first!
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