Bring on the Bank Holiday weather

Bring on the Bank Holiday weather by leecolgate at Garmin Connect - Details

I was planning a 2-in-1 today, having completed a pre-lunacy run yesterday and planning a post-idiocy one today.  But today's didn't happen (I will do it tomorrow) for various reasons, not all of them childishness-related.  I had a thoroughly excellent weekend with Sharon and John, spending money on all sorts of wine and cheese and generally being rude about large people in inappropriate clothing at the Heathfield Show.  I'm just as rude about myself in running gear, so it's all guilt-free.

And when I got home I decided to press on trying to complete outdoor chores, specifically staining the decking, so we can put everything back where it belongs and start USING the damned space.

Shopping for plants tomorrow, for pots to finish everything off.  BUT RUNNING FIRST!

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It IS May, right?

It IS May, right? by leecolgate at Garmin Connect - Details

Just checking I didn't sleep through to November or something.  Really cold and miserable out there this morning.

Yesterday was a strange day, I had no energy at all and had an afternoon 'nap' that lasted for several hours.  This meant that I had one of the worst night's sleep ever last night.  I finally snet myself to bed, still quite alert, at midnight and was still awake at 2.30 this morning.

Which means that when I set out for my run today (which I could not motivate myself to do yesterday) I was, let's say, a bit below par.  And so the pace today was worse than Tuesday's 'easy' run, despite the target this time being a 'steady' run.  I just didn't have any bounce and my quads tightened up about half way, making it very difficult to stride out in anything approaching an impressive and athletic fashion.

Still, I completed the run and got home just before the wind picked up and th sky started hemming and hawing about dropping a load of icy rain on the world.  It still hasn't made up its mind. I'm really hoping it gets it over and done with and tomorrow is a dry, if cloudy, day, as promised in the recent forecasts.  We're off to Heathfield for the annual heifer watch at the Heathfield Show.  This is an annual ritual and always a bit of a riot, with much laughter and good times with our favourite cousins.  So PLEASE let the weather be OK!!!  I will try to do another run before we go, and the final one of the week on Sunday when we get home.  And if I don't, there's always Monday to catch up - Colin for once has a Bank Holiday off, so it will give him some 'me' time.

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Mildly moist morning

Mildly moist morning by leecolgate at Garmin Connect - Details

Not raining yet, but I'm fairly sure it will shortly.  It's really humid.

This is exactly the same session as last Tuesday's and, coincidentally, I covered exactly the same distance at, obviously, exactly the same average pace.  Crucially, however, this is the most evenly paced run I have completed to date.  I seem, without really trying, to set out a bit too quickly and then struggle at the end of most sessions.

My 4 marathon attempts are prime examples, sadly.  This time, however, I did 1.66 miles in the first half and 1.67 in the second half.  And I finished the thing feeling much fresher than I have for many weeks.

There are no interval sessions in this week's plan, just a series of steady runs.  That being said, I have plans for the weekend that might get in the way of my completing all of them.  Not stressing over this, though, che sera sera, etc.

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I feel fab

I feel fab by leecolgate at Garmin Connect - Details

Despite a faint hint of tipsy last evening - well, it was Eurovision and so it's compulsory.  Disgraceful results, by the way, a just about acceptable winner but some real strangeness further down the table with Ireland plumb LAST.  Madness - I set out to do this week's long run this morning.

50 minutes actually seemed to fly by.  There was welcome distraction on Hove promenade, although I have no idea exactly what the event was.  Many people, most in fancy dress of some description, running.  There were people stood around clapping them, from which I drew some vicarious encouragement.

The end result was a huge improvement over the last equivalent session.  16 seconds per mile quicker, in fact!  Still over 9 minutes per mile, but there's plenty of time to get that sorted.  The rain that started just as I got home from the run has speared me further outdoor chores for the rest of the day, so it's time to recover from everything with a good (I hope) movie and a flop on the couch.

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Thar she blows!

Thar she blows! by leecolgate at Garmin Connect - Details

Me, I mean.  @beachedwhalefromportslade.  Skived another session this week, Thursday's horrible-sounding interval session.  But I have good reasons that I won't go into in any detail; suffice to say I'm having to be very mature right now, I'm horribly out of practice and it's taking all my focus.

I'm really, really pleased with how today's session went.  It was only another 30-minuter, but it felt much easier than Tuesday's and the evidence is in the pace figure and the distance I covered.  This is, in fact, by quite a margin, my best performance so far.  And it didn't kill me, I felt all bouncy and energetic and, dare I say, athletic, throughout.  Hurrah!

Tomorrow's long session is a 50-minuter, I think.  Can't be bothered to check right now.  In the comforting glow of a job well done, I am onesied up in preparation for this evening's Eurovision lunacy.  Between now and then, I need to complete the weekend's 'having to be grown up' mission ready to deliver on Monday and then keep everything crossed that it pays off.

Even if you hate Eurovision, it's worth following the hashtag #eurovision (!) on Twitter, or finding someone that commentates.  Dare I suggest myself?  You'll get all the camp without having to watch it, and if you're watching it, get involved with the conversation.  It's an absolute hoot.  Hope to tweet you later.  @leecolgate signing off for now.

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Here comes the rain again

Here comes the rain again by leecolgate at Garmin Connect - Details

Although, admittedly, just as I got back from today's run and therefore not giving me any real justification to whinge.  Therefore I won't.

You may have noticed I took last week off completely.  Although this is only true for a given value of 'you', being people who have been following my blog.  On recent performance, this gives us a value of 'you' equal to 'me'.  But whatever.  I don't apologise for leaving anyone bereft of my sarcastic blithering for a week and guess it may have come as a relief (or will do in future) to anyone feeling compelled out of some sense of as-yet-undiscovered loyalty to read my drivel.

In the past, I have actually found these extended breaks in a long training plan can be advantageous.  They refresh me, renew my enthusiasm and in some cases even allow my body to develop hitherto unattained levels of performance, meaning I'm faster than I was when I was sticking slavishly to whatever plan I was following.  While this is not the case on this occasion, my performance has at least remained fairly consistent rather than plummeting off a cliff, which is also a possibility/risk.  Incidentally, did Formula 1 and Pirelli just come up with this terminology, or am I only now noticing it for the first time?  It's rather good.  As is the F1 championship this year.  Soooo good to see someone other than Vettel (I'm afraid I really can't bring myself to like him much) winning.  Alonso's home victory was particularly gratifying.

All the sessions I failed to complete last week were endurance ones, steady running for a period of time (one of them 10 minutes, which I'm not sure I would have bothered with anyway!).  So I've not missed any pace-enhancing interval or Fartlek runs.  There is one of these in for Thursday of this week.  I'm back on the horse and back on the case now, complete with new anti-chafe shorts as my old ones (and I do mean old, I bought them when I started training for the 2005 London marathon, in 2004!) wore through in an area that led to most unwelcome chafing.  The new ones are white and, it turns out, a bit see-through, so my policy of always wearing another layer over anything made of lycra is proving doubly worthwhile.

Finally, a question.  My other pre-occupation in recent months has been the search for a new job.  I have submitted a few applications through the 'aggregator sites', Jobsite and TotalJobs.  I always get a confirmation from the site concerned that my application has been submitted, but have never once got further confirmation from the recruiting agency or employer, or anything else for that matter.  Should I genuinely take that to mean that I'm a hopeless candidate and not wanted, or has anyone else out there had similarly poor results from using these sites and do they have any suspicions that they're not doing what they say they are?  It won't make that much difference to my self esteem, which barely exists at the moment anyway, but I would be interested to know.

More from me on Thursday.

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Hello Sian Leaker!!!

Hello Sian Leaker!!! by leecolgate at Garmin Connect - Details

Sorry if title feels a bit stalkerish, but it was lovely to bump into Lady Sian of Leaker on this morning's jaunt.  It also gave me an excuse to stop and gather myself for a bit. :-)

So, not  non-stop session this morning, but an hour's running all in all and a decent pace - faster than what I managed over the 50 minutes of last Sunday's session, anyway.  Assuming I could keep going at this speed, I'm looking at just over 2 hours for the half marathon at the moment.

On the day, I'm looking to get under 2 hours and under 1 hour 50 would be a PB.  There's plenty of time for further improvement, so no panic at this stage.

Had a thoroughly lovely time yesterday at the wedding of two dear friends and will post some pictures on FB later.

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The Interval Effect

The Interval Effect by leecolgate at Garmin Connect - Details

If you needed proof that interval runs work and should not be skived, here it is.  I shouldn't, really, having seen them work in the past, but I do hate them so, and it's therefore reassuring to find my memory of their impact is not imagined.

Improving the pace you can reach and sustain when you push yourself really does naturally improve what just happens naturally, if you let it, without thinking about it.  Yes, when you hit an uphill bit, you need to push on to keep yourself moving at a decent (i.e. noticeable) rate, but just going out for a light jog, you find yourself moving along at a better speed than you used to.

So, following yesterday's fartlek, this is the most productive half-hour run I've managed to date.  Which means I can go to the wedding this afternoon and eat like a pig, thank you so very much, even if I can't drink cos I'm driving.  Doubly so as I have actually managed to lose weight this week - not enough, however, to fit in the suit I wore to a job interview just 4 months ago.  Hey ho.

I should be doing a full hour tomorrow.  While I am hopeful of completing this fairly comfortably, I'm not sure I'll see a continued improvement in pace as this will be the third run in 3 days and this usually doesn't go that well.  Time for the foam roller now on those sore bits from yesterday - and a few more that have appeared today, which may not be accessible to that kind of therapy. Nuff sed.

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F!d

F!d by leecolgate at Garmin Connect - Details

Yes, indeed, the first Fartlek.  Another glorious, glorious morning and as with all the sessions involving any kind of high-intensity intervals, I drove to the seafront to do this one.  And it was heavenly down there.  The lightest of breezes, sun glinting off the sea and other general loveliness.

I programmed the high intensity bits to be at 8:00 to 8:15 minutes per mile, which is pretty quick for me.  (Guidelines were 'at your 5k pace', but I don't have one!)  And I'm pretty pleased that I managed it, consistently, without dying at anybody.

I actually felt like I still had a lot of last weekend's long run still in my legs.  My shins and achilles in particular were feeling a bit sore and tight.  And they are again now.  So I'll have to deploy another 'f' - the foam roller.  No pain, no gain, etc.

Hoping to see my sister and nephew again this afternoon, then we're at a wedding tomorrow (please let this weather stay for that!) and therefore likely spending Sunday recovering, although I'll be driving and hope therefore still to do the long run.  This time it's meant to be an hour.

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