Monday May 20th. HRV= 74 White.
A good start to the week and my new training cycle. Easy lunchtime run of 30 minutes keeping my HR below 130bpm, legs feeling heavy since the session last night but apart from that I’m feeling good. Met some club mates after work and did a repeat of yesterday’s session but ran for pace rather than heart rate as that’s the compromise when running with others. Only 2 minutes slower than yesterday but average heart rate was 8 beats lower which has me thinking that the pace for this run might be more economical.
Plan for tomorrow is an early Gym session and a run of 10-20K.
Tuesday May 21st. HRV=62 White.
Change of plan as my Gym session is cancelled so I used the opportunity for a long recovery run to work keeping my HR below 130bpm. Wasn’t really on form for this run and tried to convince myself to stay in bed but the guilt was keeping me awake. Made a deal with myself as and if this morning’s reading was an Amber it was back to bed for a few more minutes. Here’s a few tips from Men’s Running magazine about the running commute with a little contribution from myself: http://www.mensrunninguk.co.uk/runningforoffice.obyx
Plan for tomorrow is a long easy run.
Wednesday May 22nd. HRV=62 White.
Lower than expected and HR higher than usual even though I think yesterday was a good recovery day. Skipped the opportunity to run during lunch but instead ran home at an easy pace and went a little bit longer after meeting a club mate running towards my direction as planned.
Plan for tomorrow is an early gym session and a steady run after coaching.
Thursday May 23rd. HRV=55 Amber.
Before going to bed last night I wasn’t expecting this result but when waking I felt tired. Easy Gym session of single leg squats and an abdominal routine. Will decide this evening whether to run or not. Normally I’d just skip the run but chances are my weekend could be a write off so I want to maximise my available time but will be cautious not to overdo it. Didn’t run.
Tomorrow is still in the planning stages and includes a 4hr drive to Kerry for a wedding.
Friday May 24th. HRV= 70 Green.
A great result and I tried to make the most of it with a long Tempo run but the DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) were starting to kick in and the effort felt a little bit too much. Decided to do a longer warm up but in my mind I was torn between a hard session to make up for what I might miss over the weekend but also wanted to listen to my body and not negate the training effect from the strength session by working weak muscles that were trying to repair and adapt. Finished meters short of 16K in 62 minutes after a long lazy warm up and walked to cool down. The long drive didn’t do my legs any favours and the hours of inactivity meant serious cramping by the time I reached my destination.
Plan for tomorrow is an early run before the wedding but I might be pushing my luck.
Saturday May 25th. HRV= 69 White.
A good result after yesterday but my legs feel totally seized up. Went for an early run of 10K and felt like I was running on the spot for the first half but managed to get going on the return and finished in 41 minutes. Would have liked a longer session as my thinking is the extra miles will cancel out some of the damage I might do at the wedding.
Plan for tomorrow is undecided but I’d like to do a long run.
Sunday May 26th. HRV= 69 White.
Delighted with this result after a long day yesterday. Only got to bed at 4:00am and was up again at 9:00am. Dreading the drive home and in advance I pre planned to stop if suffering from cramps. Journey went ok but felt tired when I got home, wanted to run but had all the reasons why I deserved the day off but also knew I needed to get out. Weighed myself and the one day damage became visibly obvious and without any further thought I was out. Took it easy and finished with 25K in just under 2hrs, better than nothing and during the run I thought about a few long sessions I might do over the coming days and weeks.
Plan for tomorrow is a lunchtime recovery run and either a steady hilly run or a longer trail run..
Weekly Summary
Could have been worse as the weekend was a possible write off but managed to salvage 45K.
Expected after almost 20hrs of running, 37 waking hours and very little sleep. Early start for the long journey home and I’m feeling fine but will only do what I need to do and try to rest as much as possible while travelling and that means sitting in coffee shops rather than walking around shops. For the journey I’m wearing Under Armour Recharge recovery tights and on my feet I’m wearing Salomon RX Recovery Shoes. The recovery tights minimise muscle vibration while walking and support fatigued muscles while moving and this in turn aids recovery. The shoes are very light, cushioned and don’t restrict movement while allowing for any swelling. Putting the effort into recovering can ensure you benefit from the Training Effect of the race by not needing so much time off that you begin to de-train.
Today I’m in Recovery mode and my way of switching off is to wear a normal watch rather than a sports one. Good result and if I hadn’t planned a trip to a Contrast Therapy Pool there might be a temptation to run! Spent close to 1hr alternating between a cold and hot bath which was only half enjoyable (the hot half) and felt great when it finished.
Recovering well and met with some club mates for an easy run of just over 7K with two options to cut it short if required. When making a comeback it’s advisable to ease back in and don’t test yourself to breaking point. Set a maximum distance to run but not a minimum and this is when a treadmill run can be an advantage as you can always just step off without worrying about getting back to the start.
A sure sign that I’m recovering very quickly and I’m assuming the Amber reading is caused by the rapid rise in HRV. I won’t get carried away as I’m sure my muscles are still in a state of repair. Easy lunchtime run of 8K keeping my HR below 130bpm and paying attention to how I’m feeling
Much lower than expected and confirms my decision to rest today.
Not much of an improvement and with a busy day ahead I decide to rest again.
Not a good start to the day and doesn’t help with my motivation. Found it hard getting my mind in gear and think I’m still suffering from mental fatigue. Decided to feed the hunger by going to watch a local race and spectate rather than participate and before the race had even started I was wanting to run. Got to witness some great performances from my club mates and although they might not know it their actions caused my reaction and I finished the day with a 16K run that started easy but finished a little bit faster.
Expected after a good weekend. Rested for most of today and then hit the Track for a short but intense Interval session of 3*1K off 5 min Recovery. Splits were: 3:15, 3:13, 3:12 followed by a long cool down.
Moving in the right direction. Early Gym session of mobility work & stretching followed by a very short recovery run after work.
Rest Day
Early start for a long day travelling to The Netherlands. No training and an early night
Higher than expected after a long day of travelling and today will be yet another busy day. While queuing for breakfast I was approached by an IAAF official and then taken away for interview and drug testing. Not a pleasant experience but good to see it being carried out. Busy day with meetings to attend and the Athlete parade with a bit more walking than I’d have preferred. Finished the day preparing race day food & clothing and had our pre race Team meeting.
Didn’t sleep to well but woke without an alarm clock which is always a bonus. After a rushed breakfast because of the long queues we made our way to downtown Steenbergen arriving close to 2hrs before the start. The weather seems very unsettled with some light rain to start and I decide to wear a rain jacket to start.
Same as last Monday but after a tougher day. Skipped the lunchtime run as I’m running to a meeting with the Athletics Association of Ireland after work. Ran at an easy pace with a slight detour via a running track and did a set of 6*400 at close to my 3K race pace off 60 second recovery. Felt fatigued after each rep but recovered quickly and finished the session with a distance of 12K. Delayed after the meeting and missed my train home which meant a later than planned night. Resisted the temptation to run home by going for a 1hr walk rather than hanging around the train station.
Moving in the right direction. Early Gym session of 4* Walking Lunges with 10Kg Dumbells, Hanging knee raises and a short Interval session on the Airdyne. The Airdyne session was 5 minutes of mostly low intensity with the last 15 seconds of each minute being an all out effort. Evening recovery run of 10.5K working on my race pace and avoiding hills. Early night.
Signs of recovery and a big improvement on last week which was partly caused by a night out. Will try keep my score high while making allowances for some short fast sessions and a 5K race on Saturday. Most sessions from now will be just enough to keep what I’ve got while still allowing recovery from what I’ve done. Decided to skip the lunchtime opportunity to run and did some pre race shopping. Easy 7K after work with 6* 1 min @ 5K race pace to finish and then an even easier 5K at Recovery pace with the club’s Couch to 5K crew. A long day and although the training was easy I’m feeling tired. Finished the night with a decent serving of Cherry Active.
Lower than expected but still ok and an improvement on last week plus my base line is climbing. Feeling a slight niggle in my lower left leg and that changes my day that was being decided as I was going to bed. Took it easy in the gym and did mostly stretching and foam rolling with some light upper body work. Booked a massage for lunchtime and it was torture. Didn’t think I was as bad but luckily I went and got it sorted before I got the final warning. Repeated last night’s session of 6*1 minutes after a long warm up and all seems to be ok.
Lower than expected and left leg feeling tender since massage. Will rest today and don’t mind as I’ve a race tomorrow. Took delivery of the Team Kit
Expected and would have liked a higher score but it’s a slight improvement on yesterday and a big improvement on last week. Woke well before the alarm and took my time getting up. Had a quick cup of coffee and went out for a short easy run before breakfast. Home for breakfast and then took my time getting ready for the race as hosted by my club. Arrived an hour before the start and relaxed into my usual pre race warm up before lining up just behind the start line. My goal time was 17:30 with a worst case finish of sub 19 minutes. Started of at a relaxed pace and this suited as the first Km included the toughest hill on the course and it would be very easy to do too much too soon and pay the price towards the end. On the descent of the hill I got caught amongst the pack and found it hard to make a break and by the time i did it was straight into a headwind and I’d lost contact with the group up ahead. I tried to make up some ground and slowly pulled away from my pack but failed to make up the lost ground. Hitting the last Km I felt very comfortable and tried to get uncomfortable but the extra gear wasn’t there. Crossed the finish line way off a Personal Best but it’s my fastest 5K this year and I’m not a 5K runner. Having said that I won my age group category which was a nice surprise and a confidence boost for next week.
An excuse to take it easy but it’s a beautiful day outside and a shame to waste it. Used the opportunity to practice my pacing for next weekend and had a great run. Took about 10 minutes to get into a rhythm and then I was locked on. Ran for 1.5hrs and confidence has increased that little bit more.
Not sure how the Taper is going as there’s always self doubt at this time but on the plus side my base line is creeping upwards. Felt a slight niggle in my lower left leg towards the middle of the week and a massage to loosen out my legs was a lot more painful than I’d expected.