Chasing my tail!

Life has been pretty busy since my last post;

* a trip to the Glass House Mountains that involved a 30km trail race (4th female)
* Blue Dog's birthday
* annual work ball
* my step-daughter's 21st
* a wedding
* baby sitting a beautiful red cattle dog whilst my parents are away for a couple of weeks

Although life has been hectic and I have not blogged for a couple of weeks, my training has continued as usual and am feeling pretty good about my forthcoming marathon. Too much detail to bore you with!

I have adjusted well to my medication, and I have already lost a couple of kilograms even though I was told not to expect any weight loss for at least three months.

..............

1 September

I had every intention of running the Striders 10km, however I woke up feeling extremely nauseous. This feeling remained with me most of the day and I felt a little guilty have missed my race, so I decided to just go for a run and hope for the best. I ran my usual 7km circuit, and pushed the paced in the last 3km running at sub 5min km pace.

2 September

I meet Deanne, Kerry, Ray and latter Helen for our Sunday run. We went in search of the "feral fence", but not luck we had easy access down Macquarie Street, Sydney Opera House and the Botanic Gardens. We ran a total of 25km at 5:50/km pace, and I was really happy to finish.

3 September

Rest day. I actually had the day off work on sick leave, as I still felt a nauseous and little off colour. For the record, I am not pregnant, I was diagnosed with diabetes roughly three weeks ago, so my body is adjusting to the medication.

4 September

This morning was one of our hard SWEAT sessions. That included 1 lap of the white fence followed by a jog recovery, then a 2nd lap of the white fence, jog recovery and finish with a 1km rep. This morning the wind was a real challenge and so was my stomach, so I just concentrated on my form and ran strong. I was pleasantly surprised to finish with a session PB. I have checked my records and I pleased with the significant improvement;

10 July = Lap 1 (18:17) Lap 2 (18:34) 1km (5:07)
31 July = Lap 1 (17:38) Lap 2 (17:42) 1km (4:42)
4 Sept = Lap 1 (17:22) Lap 2 (17:16) 1 km (4:34)

Goodbye August

27 August


I woke with the legs still feeling pretty good and complete escape from DOMS, which clearly indicated in ran W2B and the correct "training pace". I was still however very stiff in the left shoulder and neck due to non-running related incident, twisting my neck the wrong way early Saturday morning to look at the clock ;-(. I enjoyed a nice easy run along Botany Bay covering 7km at 5:48/km pace.


28 August


After waking up in pain at 2am to take some anti-inflammatories for the my neck and shoulder I decided to give SWEAT a miss and actually had a complete rest day. I figured I had ran W2B on Saturday following with Sunday's and Monday's in fair bit of pain in the neck and shoulder area, a rest would do it good. I did however I have my first deep tissue massage in 7 months.


29 August


The usual routine; Kerry, Deanne and I hit the streets for our mid-week long run. I felt pretty good and cruised through the run, probably a combination of a rest day and the massage. Total 15.80km with an average pace of 5:50/km.


30 August

With Saturday's SS 10km approaching I had decided to take it easy in for the session, 4km Fartlek. I finished the session in 19.22 (average pace of 4:48) and felt pretty good.

31 August

I enjoyed a nice easy run along Botany Bay covering 6km with an average pace 5:36/km. This is a little quicker than my programmed pace however, I have noticed lately I have been struggling to keep my runs at the slower pace so I have been enjoying the recovery session with relative effort.

August Stats.

Total KMs: 345

YTD: 1870

Willy to Billy

After Kerry had managed the logistics of our Willy to Billy adventure, Kerry, Helen, Deanne, Kit, Razor and I all headed to the mountains for the day. On arrival we said our goodbyes to Kit and Helen and boarded our bus to the start. The bus ride was an experience and we were a little afraid Deanne was going to loose the benefit of her carbo load. After the bus driver getting a little lost and showing us his three point turn skills we finally arrived at the start area. We were greeted by the usual suspects and enjoyed the usual pre-event chatter.

Deanne, Kerry, Razor and I all planned to run the event as training run. It was a good opportunity to for me to manage my energy levels for an extended period of time, particularly with my recent diagnoses and the commencement of medication.

The start caught us by surprise due the level of chatter and the very casual start call. Once we hit the trail there a couple of muddy and slippery areas that were a bit of fun as romped through it. We shared another enjoyable run learning about Kerry's Jelly Bean eating habits and I shared my electric blanket secret. As we approached the aid stations Razor was very supportive and caring, ensuring I was looking after myself. We eventually made our way to the bridge before commenced our climb to the finish. During this section of the course we eventually broke away from each other. I can happily say during this section no one passed me, and I managed to pass a number of runners. As I approached the finish chute, Razor was running back towards me offering encouragement. I finished 3:53hrs and felt pretty good.

I enjoyed a nice shower and then Kerry, Deanne, Helen and I enjoyed a nice coffee at the Bilpin Fruit Bowl on the way home.

26 August 2007

I was pleasantly surprised this morning when I woke up feeling great no muscle soreness at all, which indicates I ran W2B correctly. I only had a very short recovery run on the program this morning and I was tempted to go a little further, however Blue Dog advised me not to overdo things. I settled with 3.5km with an average pace of 5:46/km

Finally

22 August

As usual Deanne, Kerry and I got together for our mid-week run. Whilst it was not raining, we were greeted by those nasty August winds. I again experimented with my pre-race nutrition and felt great throughout the 90 minutes, so I think I now have something to work with. Finished nice and strong with an average pace of 5:48/km.

Finished off a great day with a Pilates class.

23 August

Once I got through the usual routine we then headed to our Wild Wally course. I had seven reps on the program and was very pleased to have completed the session with my best times this year; 3:15, 3:13, 3:12, 3:01, 3:00, 2:59, 2:55. Kerry and worked together throughout the session and we both ecstatic with the result. It was good to get some positive feedback from Sean, who believes things are now starting to kick in for me.

24 August

I enjoyed an easy session along Botany Bay this morning, unfortunately there was no beautiful sunrise but at least the rain held. I was feeling pretty good and had to remind myself to slow down a couple times. I arrived home feeling good with 6km in the bank at 5:46/km pace.

Results

As I drove to SWEAT this morning I was feeling slightly nauseous but otherwise feeling pretty good. Blue Dog and I did our usual warm up lap of the park, whilst he felt great I was just happy to keep the contents of stomach together. We had a four lap time trial of the lake this morning, so by the time I had warmed up and completed the drills and strides I lined up with the rest of the group and hoped for the best. As Blue Dog ran past he gave me a pat on the bum, wished me luck and ran off into the distance. I took off a little too quick but settled into a good pace and felt pretty good through and was determined to keep pushing along running through a few muddy spots and couple of very slippery areas. I finished in 28:17 which is a 74 second improvement since last months time trial, so it looks like everything is coming together.

Plodding Along

15 August 2007

On my day off I was up at 4am to meet the girls for our mid week long run. Even though we had arranged at our usual time, we all decided to trial a couple of different things in regards to pre-run nutrition. By the time we started our run my stomach felt quite comfortable and a thankfully I no problems. I actually felt more energised and continually felt strong during the run. As we ran our usual Wednesday loop we hardly noticed any runners out training, perhaps they have all gone into semi-retirement until next years C2S J. With another 15.5km in the bank I could then enjoy my day off work.

I enjoyed a great day with Blue Dog which included a nice lunch, movies (Mr Brooks) followed by the Bob Dylan concert.

16 August 2007

After waking up exhausted I decided to have a couple extra hours sleep and miss SWEAT and enjoy run after work. I was still pretty tired when I got home for work so I ran an easy thirty minutes.

17 August 2007

Rest day.

18 August 2007

After feeling pretty nauseous most of the morning due to some medication I had commenced taking a few days ago I finally got myself out the door. I enjoyed a nice 10km around Kogarah and Botany Bay and was pleasantly surprised to be running a very comfortable average pace of 5:30/km.

19 August 2007

I meet Deanne and Razor at The Bay for a DIY STAR. When we arrived it was absolutely poring with rain, within about 500m our shoes were filled with water and we must have looked like drowned rats. Despite the wet conditions I really enjoyed the run, and we even managed to get a few kilometres in whilst the rain held off. However, when we got back to The Bay, it started to pour again.

After 25.5km we then enjoyed a nice breakfast.

Blowing in the Wind

12 August 2007

After a bit of planning I finally arranged to met Kerry and Deanne for a LSD at the pleasant hour of 5.00am. The goal was to complete our long runs and shower and then make our way down to Bondi to watch the C2S. Enjoyed a great run, which included our usual loop around Centennial, then we ran around the back of Randwick Race Course and down towards the Lakes and Australian Golf course. I ran for 2.5hrs and enjoyed a nice pleasant run in warmer conditions. The girls continued on as they were doing a little extra.

We all met up down at Bondi where Katie and Bec had secured a great area so we could watch and cheer the winners.

13 August 2007

I enjoyed a 60 minute recovery run along Botany Bay watching the sun come up. It was another pleasant morning and a great way to start the day.

14 August 2007

I arrived at SWEAT and did my usual 3k warm up and then lined up for the drills and strides etc. I only had 3 x 800m on my program, but I spoke to Sean who agreed I should increase this to 5 reps. I ended playing the bunny today and lead 800m group in each rep. After my first rep Sean advised me to slow down, but it just didn't happen. My times were; 3:36, 3:32, 3:33, 3:32, 3:30. I was happy with the session.

Off to bed now..........another early start in the morning

Building up the Base

7 August 2007

Hill reps today, on our new "Wild Walter" course. I had 10 reps on my program and just ran consistently throughout the session, with the exception of the last rep that was 10 seconds quicker than the other reps.

As I lined up writing my times in the "squad book", Razor pointed out my husband was amongst the trees vomiting; we laughed if off as normal behaviour however a couple of new people behind us were surprised and little concerned.

8 August 2007

Deanne, Kerry and I ventured out for mid-week long run once again. With the days start to get longer hopefully I'll soon be able to leave the gloves at home. We finished with another 16km in the bank.

9 August 2007

Fartlek session that commenced with one of Sean's very informative speeches to all the C2S runners, offering a few tips etc. I was up for 5km of Fartlek however most of the group finished with 4km so there weren't too many bunnies to chase in the last lap. I finished in 25:06 which wasn't too bad, my Garmin measure the course a little longer, but hey maybe I didn't run the course using the shortest route, but it's all good.

10 August 2007

I gave myself a rest day today.

11 August 2007

I had so many options today, given that I had decided to give the C2S a miss this year. A couple of health reasons that I would rather not go into at the moment. I had a couple of options, do my LSD today, head up with Blue Dog with and do part of 6 Foot while he runs 12 Foot; but in the end I decided to stick to a local 30 minutes.

I will be meeting the girls at 5am tomorrow morning for our LSD and then heading down to watch the C2S.

A week of ups and downs

1 August 2007

I meet the usual gang for our mid week run. I was pleased to have Razor join us again after finishing his community service. Just another 90 minute session, with our average pace getting slightly quicker each week.

PM- I meet a friend at my local gym for a Pilates class.

2 August 2007

I woke up exhausted; Blue Dog just laughed and commented how that exactly the way distance runners should feel (according to Sean). Today's session was Big Bertha, however on our new course. I had ten laps and by the time I got to the fourth lap I could have just walked away from the session, I felt terrible. I just gritted by teeth and finished the 10 laps and was thankful it was all over.

3 August 2007

30 minutes today. Just for something different I set the Garmin to alert me at 15minute intervals, allowing me to just turn around and run home after 15 minutes not looking at pace or distance. I finished a perfect run with 30 minutes at 5:26/km pace.

4 August 2007

A couple of weeks ago I was instructed not run/race the Striders 10km. This actually worked out well, as I had to have some medical tests on Saturday morning that involved fasting, urine tests and a lot of blood tests. After a nice wholesome lunch and my first coffee for the day, I went for a run later afternoon and felt great. Total of 11km at 5:35/km pace.

5 August 2007

After endless emails during the week the usual gang decided on a run in the Royal National Park. I suggested a course that would meet every body's needs. Everything was going great until I hit 90 minutes and I just hit the wall. This was probably a combination of the tests from the day before and the diet I had to follow leading up to the tests. I decided to keep running until I found Katie who was out for LSD Walk and then walked back to her car with her. We waited for the others to return and I decided to run back to my car with them. So in total I had a 2hr run and 1hr walk. Not quite the training session I had planned, but shit happens.

We then enjoyed a great brunch at Gymea. Our waitress had a very familiar face, and when I suggested she was the winner Australian Princess everyone thought I was mad. I am pleased to say I was right, us dirty smelly runners were being served by reality TV royalty.

6 August 2007

An easy hour along the shores of Botany Bay watching the sun came up.

Let the Good Times Roll

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

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.

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.

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.

Holiday Pics

Guess who?

San Diego harbour


For Razor!

Blue Dog: Grand Canyon



For all you "ultra" types.

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.

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.

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!

The Day After

Today is the first day I have access to update the blog. We have a had a great couple of weeks that include San Diego, Las Vargas, Death Valley (and yes I have now ran on the "Bad Water" course), Lone Pine, Mt Whitney, Yosemite, Reno, and of course the pre-race fun at Truckee.

The WS states experience from a spectator was unbelievable, the Aussies did us our proud and of course Blue Dog brings home a buckle.

I have kept a travel diary and will provide a full report when I can.