Hill reps - faster!

13M - double; recovery run & hill rep session
5M am recovery run at ~6.45min/M with pack
8M pm hill rep session incl 30x400m off 45s (alternating up and down)

Another good day... topped off by a well deserved soak in the bath. I felt pretty spent before my rep session... my last one before the marathon given that I'm racing in the National Road Relay on Saturday.

But, despite my legs' complaints, I found I was considerably faster than last week. Despite having put in a fairly good 'medium long' session yesterday. I ran the session exactly as last week and hit 68-70s on all the uphill legs (compared to 71-73s last time). And my downhills were 55-58s. Also faster. Feels like things are coming together well...

The leg is good. So is the rest of me. A gentle day tomorrow ready for the relay.

My leg is back on track!

19M - double; recovery & medium long runs
5M am recovery run at ~7.40min/M
14M crescendo medium long run at 6.15min/M (1st 1/3), 5.55 (2nd) & 5.30 (3rd)

My adductor is back to its normal, relaxed self after some tlc (massage, baths, ice and rest). I'm really chuffed. Yasmin and I had a nice gentle run in to work this morning - followed by breakfast at the Fleet River Bakery (very nice). No reaction from the adductor there, so I pressed on with my last 'medium long' run this evening. Y took my bag home, so I could run without it. My legs felt almost anxious - a combination of rest and beginning to get hyped for the marathon I think. But they felt fine and the adductor was totally pain free. I hit my planned splits or a little faster. It was great to run in the warm sun along the river. And a real relief that my thigh wasn't a real issue. Time to refuel now.

More rest!

Another rest day. Still a bit of tightness in my adductor, but improved. I should be good to return to THE PROGRAMME tomorrow.

Well earned rest - the taper is here!

I rested today after a really good week. And a good few weeks in fact. It's two weeks to the marathon, so the taper starts in earnest.

I also have some tightness in my right adductor / hamstring since yesterday's race. I went to see Gavin at Backs and Beyond for a bit of work on it. And added a bath followed by ice for good measure. I felt good after all that but am also planning to rest tomorrow - nothing to be gained now from risk taking (until race day itself).

Summary of week ending 03/04/2011

Mon 28/3 - 15M double; 5M recovery & 10M gen aerobic runs & exercises
Tue 29/3 - 15M double; 5M recovery & 10M long rep session (2x2M & 1x1M)
Wed 30/3 - 18M long run at 6.15 (0-6), 5.50 (6-12) & 5.30 (12-18)
Thu 31/3 - 15M double; 5M recovery & 10M gen aerobic (6.15min/M) runs
Fri 1/4 - 14M double; 5M recovery & 9M hill rep session (30x400m up/down)
Sat 2/4 - 8M recovery run at 7.15min/M
Sun 3/4 - 7M incl 10K race in 32.38
TOTAL - 92M

A 10K race

7M incl Regent's Park 10K race in 32m38s (1st place; 5.15min/M)

I had a good blast this morning around the Regents Park 10K. A bit of a race - I managed to get free at about 10K. And a bit of steeplechase - I had to vault an errant dog. I didn't feel the freshest after last week's heavy schedule, so wasn't too unchuffed with the time. I'm going to start tapering properly now.

2 weeks to go... I just hope the twinge I've had in my hamstring since my vault of the dog doesn't turn into anything.

Eight gentle miles in the parks

8M - recovery run at 7.15min/M

Just eight gentle ones today, mainly on the grass in Brockwell and Dulwich Parks to give my legs a rest from the pounding. They can feel yesterday's reps. No niggles, just tiredness. I'm planning a 10K race tomorrow to get a bit more tempo in me.

Hill reps - to improve my speed and form

14M - double; recovery run & hill rep session
5M am recovery run at ~7.00min/M (with pack)
9M pm hill rep session incl 30x400m reps off 45s (alternating up and down)

This evening's run was a hill rep session. It should help with my running form as well as my speed.

I used the Brockwell Park hill, which has a decent gradient, and alternated reps up and down with a 45 second recovery at the top or bottom (wherever I finished the previous rep). I ran 30 reps (15 up and 15 down) in two sets of 15 with 5 mins rest between them. As usual, the rest was almost the worst bit and made my 16th and 17th reps my slowest... which always happens after a rest. My heart rate probably drops or the blood vessels to my muscles constrict during the rest. Or something.

I'm used to uphill reps, which are pretty killing, but the familiarity makes them easier to pace and manage. I hit them pretty even times: 71-73s.

The downhill reps are new. They're meant to help me extend my stride. I could feel them improving during the session. By the end, they had dropped from 58-59s to 55-56s per rep. I was much further forward and aggressive in my strides, landing on my mid- or forefoot and pushing off harder - rather than my natural/initial tendency, which is to lean back heel strike.

My week is going well.