Rest time !

After 53k in 3 days it was time to rest the legs and get a good night sleep.
Being end of month usually means a couple of late nights at work but it is a necessary evil.
Tonight if all goes well will be fartleks over 15k.
I am starting to feel the rewards of training faster.
I probably need to go to a few sprint sessions to loosen up the legs .
Take care

Crispy pasta bake !

3 days 3 runs and the times got better and I felt better.
I didn't think alcohol would affect the body like that but there is now proof. Maybe this research will continue on for a few more years at varied intervals !
Ha
Last night I did not really have a plan except the pasta bake I put in the oven would take 45 mins. So as I ran down the road trying to decide on a track to take I notice a young man running about 500m ahead of me. That's when the competitive edge kicked in and I picked up the pace.
There was no way I could let this young whipper snapper get the better of me.
What was I thinking?
Anyway I passed him and just kept on running. I would have chatted with him but he had his ipod blaring and did not seem interested.
So as a result 15.3 k at 4:52 pace and a crispy pasta bake !
Take care

Sore legs no sleep

3 days off running trying to catch up on sleep and throw in a party. Not a good mix!.
A few too many drinks then throw in a few plate fulls of food and a late night / early morning and then back it all up with a run at 4am ?!?
What was I thinking ?
It was about -5 deg and I never felt like warming up. A very very slow 22k at 5:45 pace and my hands, arms and nose were frozen.
The long hot shower after was the only good thing about the run.
Sunday arvo another party and you would think common sense would step in and say "hey you remember this morning ?" No way.
Anyway my Monday run felt terrible. My legs felt heavy,sore and I didn't take any water. So when I hit about 14k I was thirsty!.
Alarm bells started to ring and at 15k I stopped at a park watering station and drank lots of water. All up 15.3k at 5:15 pace and felt terrible.
Tonight the farts again and take the rest of the week from there.
Take care

Skins !

I must have looked a sight but I was warm and comfortable.
My long black skins pants and white half top didn't leave much to the imagination. It's funny because when I was kickboxing we would wear thai pants and shadow box in the mirror looking a treat. I never batted an eye lid until one day a friend came to watch sparing night and watch us all warm up and get ready. Her first comment was "Do you know how silly you guy's look?"
It wasn't till then did I stand back and go "oh yeah we do ".
Anyway just a nice run last night 16.5k at 5:10 pace.
I managed to get home in time to watch the second half of the origin. Nuf said !

So far I am looking at the Flinders tour 50k in July as my next race and will set a plan very soon.
Then again I might slip in a half marathon between now and then.
Take care

Stroll in the park !

A nice easy 8k last night.
I had a really busy day and was not off my feet once.
So when it came to the time for a run I was already dog tied and an easy 8k at 5:10 pace did the trick.
I brought a skins half top for cold nights and will try it tonight during a nice 15-18k.
No pushing tonight just a stroll in the park !
Take care

Cold windy night

A very cold night but I got out and did my fart plan. A nice 15.1k with a steep hill at half way.

I started nice and easy and waited till about 2k before the first sprint. It felt good and I continued to take it easy. Another sprint at 3k and still felt good so I picked up the pace a little before the first hill then pushed again up the hill.

I settled back to an easy pace till the steep hill at 7.5k and headed up the hill pushing just a little.

I turned for home and pushed a bit harder. A nice negative split and an overall pace of 4:56. for 15.1k.
The farts are really starting to pay off.
Today might just be a easy 12k to warm the legs !

Who left the freezer open ?

Ouch !
How cold was it Sunday morning?
My body said it was -10 c with the wind chill factor. Ha Ha
A really easy 8k shaking and trying not to run fast. Dam it was cold, did i mention it was cold?
A nice easy pace 5:15 and when I got home the long hot shower really hit the spot.
Monday night back to the FARTS and I will try for 15-18k.
Take care all

Victoria Point to Cleveland and Back !

Well that was the plan. Victoria Point to Cleveland point and home. I left a little later than I normally do (4:30am) and it was nice and col but not cold. Heading out was nice and I felt really good. Over the islands was a spectacular show of lightning with some awesome flashes. But overhead was stars and very clear sky. My plan was to go about 5:45 pace for the whole run and come home strong the last 3k. With the lightning show and heaps of "giddays, good mornings and hey flossy!?!" from people along the way I never looked at Garmin till I hit 20k and I was just a touch over 5:40. With only 7.5k to go I pushed a little harder and my legs started to feel a bit sore.
All up 27.6k at 5:32 pace and the weekend begins.
Tomorrow an easy 8-12k.
Take care

Mc Donalds Splat !

It's been funny reading about people in Coolrunnings forum complaining about being swerved at by cars. I think I had it all. Swerved at, Beeped at, water baloons thrown at me, fireworks and the yelling of abuse. But last night out of the blue someone thought it funnny to not only litter but throw a Mc Donalds bag full of cr#p at me. Thankfully it just missed me and I was also rewarded with a finger from the person to remind me of my place.
Apart from that I set out for a run, no sprints, no farts, no anything, just a run. I did push a bit on the way home and ended up 15.5k at 5:01 pace.
I am still revising my race list for the year but I think it is nearly done !

I do have to say a big Thank you to TESSO who supports and encourages so many runners and runners blogs.

I am back !

Yipee, I know it sounds bad or like I am addicted to running but it was like a good fix of my favorite vice.
I did rest an extra day to make sure the terrible evil flu type thing was gone.
Then last night decided to go for an easy run and see how I felt.
Well 15.3k at 5:10 pace and felt really good. After a walk warm up and a mental gee up I started running and the legs wanted to go hard but I held them back till about 2k and put in a little burst.
Boy did that feel good!
The first hill felt even better and as I looked at the time splits this morning I did a negative split going home.
Wow!
I have planned out my runs for this year and will hopefully post them this week and set a few plans to get to my goals.
Take care

One more night !

One more night of rest should do the trick then ease back into it.
I need a race to set out a plan.
hmmmmmmm......
I think maybe a 50k to get me motivated !

YUK !

Yuk I hate colds and flu.
Early 3am Saturday morning I awoke to go for a long run but when I stood outside looking up at the stars my head and throat felt like cr#p.
Couple of days rest should do the trick.
Take care

Sore throat , YUK

This can't be happening !
I eat well, exercise regularly and drink in moderation. So why am I getting sick ?
Maybe I can run/sweat it out ?
A quick 11.5k fartlek last night with an overall pace of 5:10. First 3k easy then sprint 250 meters then recover run then sprint again. I chose all the hills and flats to do the sprints and rested on down hills. I felt really good and it seemed to clear up my throat a bit.
But this morning my throat felt YUK and I am talking very raspy.
Oh well rest up tonight and long run Saturday morning !
mmmmmmm........ I don't know where to yet but I am guessing to the water somewhere!
Take care and keep warm

Dead Koala !

The plan was to do fartlek for 15k. But as we all know life always seems to throw a spanner in the works. And by the time I actually got to put on the running shoes it was late. I needed to catch up on sleep and get things done at the same time. So I only had time for a quick run 10-12k.
But as I ran along the road my mind took over and I was in day dream land. A car flashed it's lights at me and reality was back. That's when I noticed a dead koala on side of the road. Not a very nice thing to see and I had to look away in disgust, how hard is it to swerve or slow down ?
It's not like a roo that jumps out in front of you these guy's move pretty slow.
Anyway by this stage I realized i was about 7.5k from home and made a quick u turn.
All up 15.5k at 5:10 pace and felt really good !

Thats why I'm easy !

I was going to rest last night but after a busy day i needed to unwind. I have not run with the Ipod for a while and so I strapped it on and went off for an easy slow jog/run to relax a bit.
The first song set the mood. Faith no more's "thats why I'm easy" I ran my 8k track around to Point O'halloran.
As I got to about 4k the smell of a BBQ hit me like a brick wall and when I eventually ran past the guy cooking out the front of his place I was well and truly hungry. He gave me a wave and said "Gee wiz mate I wish I had your energy" And I just laughed but what I was thinking was "gee wiz mate I wish I had your steak"
Anyway 8k at 5:15 pace with hunger pains!
Tonight 15k Fartlek
Take care

I dont like Mondays !

Sunday was a busy day digging gardens, house work ( oh yeah the necessary evil) and chopping trees. So when it was time for a run I was dog tired and ready for bed. Lucky for me Monday is a public holiday so I planned to do at least 23k in the morning.
4:00 am start and it was cold and every time a car or truck went past the wind went straight through me.
By the time I got to Raby bay at the waters edge I looked out over the bay and turned to head home. The pace was 5:35 by half way and it felt easy so I upped the pace and all up 24.5k at 5:28 pace.
A quick shower brekky and start digging again.
Take care

Out and back

A nice early start 3:30 am. The night before set out a plan to do 25k+ out to Cleveland point and back. It seemed an nice run with a few challenging hills to keep me honest, but after a night of not much sleep it was harder to face then most long runs. A nice slow start with no stretching ( I don't stretch before long runs as I have found the slow starts warm the legs up) and at 3k felt like this was all a big mistake. But as the run progressed I felt more confident and got into the groove (this is what I said to myself at the Brizzy Marathon at about 32k) Just get in the groove. Basically it means get the stride right and feel comfortable. At 12.5 k I turned to head home and made my way down to Rabybay, across a grass section and boy did the soft grass feel good. On my way home I felt better and better as the k"s ticked over.
All together 25.8k at 5:40 pace.
Home and hosed by 6am and had the rest of the day to get heaps done.
Tomorrow hopefully only 8k just to get the legs busy doing their thing !
Take care

Hills fast, flat slow !

For once the legs felt good going out to the 3k mark and it wasn't as cold as the night before. This meant I would head for the hills where I would attack them with gusto.
Another 2k before the first hill emerged and away I went feeling like man possessed.
Each hill seemed hard but I just kept pushing the legs harder up each one.
For some reason the down hills hurt a bit but on the flats I could get the stride out and felt good again to hit the next hill. Back at the 3k to go home I still had a few more hard runs left in me so I did a few more choosing cars or light posts to mark them out.
I am still staring blankly at the running calendar unable to see my next race and set down a plan.
Hmmmm.... No still nothing !
Rest tonight then 25+k Saturday morning.
Take care