Project 2:50 - Week 8

Week 8 Training: 21st-27th August

Monday Lunch - Easy Twinnies Run

The sun was shining for this run with the Twinnies, so a coffee stop on the way back was on the cards! Legs felt great and HR was surprisingly low after yesterdays race (Kilcock 10mile). Good start to the week!

Time: 1:04:58

Distance: 11km

Avg Pace: 5:54min/km

Avg HR: 126bpm

Max HR: 136bpm

Monday PM - Easy 2nd Run

The plan this week is increasing the run volume to a new level for me, so added in a second easy run today (solo), keeping HR low and effort comfortable and relaxed. One thing I have figured out that allows you to run more than before, and run bigger volume training weeks, is to simply slow down and go easy on a lot of the runs! Its actually quite enjoyable running like this, no pressure on pace or heart rate, just enjoying an easy jog and it takes very little out of the body!

The more you do this, what happens is you end up banking ~20km in a day and it barely feels like to ran at all! Works like magic!

Time: 00:49:48

Distance: 9.01km

Avg Pace: 5:32min/km

Avg HR: 128bpm

Max HR: 136bpm

Tuesday AM - Easy Run

Another morning run adding up the mileage for the week, keeping HR low, effort easy, and allowing the body to wake up! Consistency has been really good these past few weeks, and this is another benefit of taking your easy runs easy enough - if you have a busy life with work, family, kids, whatever it may be - it is always harder to do hard training sessions, and this increases recovery time on top of the other stresses. Whereas training EASY is much easier to do even when you are tired from work, kids, etc - so its so much easier to be consistent getting your easy training sessions in, which add up each week, and allow you to improve! Too much stress/hard training is always the biggest culprit for why people can’t sustain their training over time.

Time: 1:28:45

Distance: 16km

Avg Pace: 5:33min/km

Avg HR: 128bpm

Max HR: 137bpm

Wednesday Lunch - Easy Twinnies Run

The twins were absolutely trucking on todays run, so a coffee (for me) and a treat (for them) was the highlight of this run! 

Time: 1:01:45

Distance: 11km

Avg Pace: 5:36min/km

Avg HR: 130bpm

Max HR: 140bpm

Wednesday PM - Easy run with strides

3km Easy

5 x 100m strides with 100m jog recoveries

3km Easy

This run was simply about getting a bit of life into the legs, as I plan to race tomorrow 👀

Time: 00:36:02

Distance: 7.01km

Avg Pace: 5:08min/km

Avg HR: 137bpm

Max HR: 163bpm

Thursday PM - Celbridge AC 5km Race

Racing on a Thursday Evening? Thats something different for me, nice way to spice up the week! Because the race start time was late (8pm) it meant that the girls would be in bed so I was able to get out to race. Grace actually ended up coming out with me to this one, and her Mam babysat for us while we were out! Having done a few of the Naas park runs in the past few months, I was really looking forward to having a crack at a 5km race - the Naas park run course is TOUGH, and the times there are slow, so it didnt give me confidence in my 5km ability!! This evening was a chance to take the leash off and have a crack - I still had over 50km in the legs already this week, so there was no taper or freshness, but that was the point - keep the volume up this week, and have a go on training legs! It was good to meet up with Killian and Claire who were racing also, so we warmed up and cooled down together. I will do up a race report on the race itself, but a short summary: I went out fast, too fast, and lost some time on km 3 and km 4, but managed to pick it back up for the finish where there is a lap around the grass track before the finish line. I actually ended up with a 1sec PB for 5km (and yes I am taking that 1 second!)

Km 1 - 3:18

Km 2 - 3:20

Km 3 - 3:38

Km 4 - 3:50

Km 5 - 3:29

5km = 17:34 (3:31min/km pace)

Avg HR = 175bpm

Max HR = 185bpm

After doing this, I know I am in shape to run faster, if I pace it better (something I am learning, or not learning, from these races is getting too caught up in racing them and not pacing myself for my best time). So I definitely think a sub 17min 5km is there in the near future. Also we took advantage of being out away from the kids and having a babysitter to get pizza and chipper on the way home :)

Totals including warm up and cool down:

Distance: 8.78km

Friday AM - Easy Run

An easy run to shake out the race legs from last night. Legs felt surprisingly good again after racing!

Time: 01:06:29

Distance: 12km

Avg Pace: 5:32min/km

Avg HR: 127bpm

Max HR: 146bpm

Saturday AM - Marathon Specific Session: 2 x 10km ~ Marathon Pace (30km)

I don’t know what it is but I get a buzz out of these types of sessions. They really motivate me and get me fired up for them. Not knowing how they will go, seeing what I can do on the day, I love this! Early mornings have to be done here in order to fit the long runs in, and to be honest it doesn’t phase me running at 4 or 5 in the morning. I don’t have to do it - I want to do it, because its my time and my training and its the only way I can fit it in right now. And to be fair - its not too dissimilar to ironman race morning where you are up at the crack of dawn for an early race start! Anyway, prepared for this session, had my fuelling and hydration organised the night before, and got stuck into it. Plan was 5km warm up, 2 x 10km at ~ Marathon Pace with 3min rest in between, 5km cool down, so 30km in total. A 2:50 marathon is ~4:02min/km pace, so that was the target!

1st 10km - 40:30 (4:03min/km) Avg HR 163bpm

2nd 10km - 41:00 (4:06min/km) Avg HR 164bpm

Doing this session solo, in the dark, early morning, is very different to doing it with other people at a normal time, so I take pride in working off my own back here. Its all internal motivation and drive that gets this done. Really happy with my pacing here, as what I have been doing in races is going out just a bit too fast and fading. So really trying to be consistent for these reps is what Im trying to practice. A few seconds slower than target race pace, but still very close! Good solid morning ticked off, and also within my biggest run week to date.

Time: 02:12:59

Distance: 30km

Avg Pace: 4:26min/km

Avg HR: 155bpm

Max HR: 173bpm

Sunday AM - Team WattsUp Social Run + Twinnies + Coffee

What a great way to round out the week with some of the Team WattsUp Crew! Great to catch up while banking some easy km’s, and grabbed a coffee afterwards! The change of scenery was great, as being able to run with the twins on a flat route felt a lot easier than our usual route!

Time: 01:28:24

Distance: 15.6km

Avg Pace: 5:40min/km

Avg HR: 127bpm

Max HR: 146bpm

Run Totals

Total Runs: 9

Total Distance: 120km

Total Duration: 10hrs 29mins

That wraps up my biggest run week - and with 2 big sessions in there, my 5km PB and the Marathon Specific Long Run - I was really happy with how it went. The body felt good, the week went well, recovery was good, and the motivation is high to keep moving forwards!

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Until next time, Happy Training :)