Supposed to be an easy run, but had a steep hill near the end which made it a bit harder. Ran down through Haughton Green, downhill into Woods, along woods then back up St Road Hill and back home.
Actually ran slower than on my long run, but the term “easy run” is a misnomer, as I was glad to stop at the end feeling very warm.
Bit of a disaster, was hoping to run 3km within 15 minutes as part of attempt to do 5k inside 25 minutes. Set off at a suicidal pace (about 4 minutes per k) but at just under 1k my Garmin freaked out, lost the signal, and stopped clocking distance for the next 8 minutes.
This did all kinds of things to my head, not having done such a “sprint” before, I had no idea what my pace was, except that I was slowing, and was frustrated I was not going to get a proper time. The Garmin came back on, but I was running in a circuit and it was obviously measuring A to B across that, so was totally out - I was blowing up anyway due to suicidal starting pace, so stopped where I thought the 3k mark usually is on longer runs using that route.
Felt totally knackered - lungs felt raw and burning!
But run a success in one way, as it’s clear I need to do more of this type of thing to get used to running at a faster pace - although I obviously struggle when I set off very fast.
Much prefer the long slow runs for enjoyment, but will do a few more of these and hope the Garmin keeps track next time!
A successful and enjoyable run - despite fact it started completely pouring down after 5 minutes, so my sunglasses went into my shorts pocket to help visibility
This was my first proper long run - I was aiming to do 12k and see how I felt, and I felt OK so I did just over 14, or just under 9 miles, in just under 1hr 23, funnily enough I managed to run 14k at what was my flat out 10k race pace just over a month ago, which is great - also this was the first run where I seemed to really get my pace right - I started off slowww, and kept resisting the temptation to think, “Hey, I feel good I’m going to speed up!” - the result was a really enjoyable run where I felt very comfortable and as if I could go on for much longer - so I had to reign myself in and stop at 14k, as it was already a lot more than I’ve run before, so didn’t want to overdo it - when I stopped my legs felt numb, I could feel the endorphins rushing round too, and although I was soaking wet and starting to get cold in the rain when I finished, I felt a great buzz at exceeding my furthest distance so far. The last time I tried a long run I had done 11k and struggled a lot - partly because it was hot, but also because I set off too fast - but I seem to be learning the value of setting off slowly (even though it wasn’t madly slow compared to my shorted run paces, it makes a big difference it seems!)
Was nice to see a couple of other runners out and exchange a friendly greeting - a woman walking her dog could have curdled milk with the look she gave me when I said hello as I passed her
Seem to be struggling with this 5k lark (at least to make significant improvements) - I felt I was running at an increased pace all the way today, didn’t go into a recovery pace like I did last time - well maybe for 10 seconds here and there - result was 12 seconds off the last time! Not sure if that’s good or not so good, considering I was knocking minutes off not so long ago. Still, at least I DID make a small improvement, and I did reach my first goal of coming within 26 mins - albeit by only 1 second at 25m 59s!
Although it was hard work to get this small improvement, pushing all the way, and feeling more knackered at the end than ever before, I did feel good on the way round, it was exhilarating even though felt tough at times!
Didn’t think I’d make this 10k - in more ways than one! Thought doing 2 5k’s followed by a 10k on 3 consecutive days might be pushing it, as have not run so intensively before - and then less than 1k into the run was nearly poleaxed by a falling tree, thankfully just got scratched by the twigs instead of clobbered by the heavy bit Struggled a bit running into a very fierce gale force headwind!
At 1k thought, God, another 9 to go, but gritted my teeth, was managing to pace myself, and passed 5k in about 27 mins, then pressed on. Masochist that I am, I had mentally altered my route so that the last kilometre would be uphill all the way - this bit was really tough, although I had managed to conserve energy with a recovery pace on the k before that. It was slow going up this hill, but when I kept going and when it levelled out with 200 metres to go, it was a good feeling - my thinking is, if I can do the last k in training uphill, finishing on the flat should be a doddle and I may even be able to inject a final burst of pace
Finished in 56m 28s - not far off my PB (edit - just noticed it’s in fact only 3 seconds off!), and considering the headwind, near death experience and extended uphill stretch, was probably worth a PB in itself.
Am making the most of being back after my enforced rest - my training blog over the last few months was saying to me I wasn’t really getting enough running in, which hurt me when I had the enforced lay off, so now I can run again, I am going for it (within reason)
After yesterday’s easy run back into it (well it was supposed to be easy!), I decided to do a 5k tempo pushing hard as I could all the way. It was raining and pretty damn cold for 21st June - so off I set. After about 1.5k I hit this mode where I felt I was flying, and kept that up for about 1k, but felt it was too much to maintain right to the end, and settled into a recovery pace for a bit before trying to pick it up again. By the end I was pushing hard but feeling the pinch, I thought I was going to smash my PB but always seem to think the 5k lampost is a lot nearer than it actually is (in fact another 40-50 seconds away!) - when I hit the lampost (figuratively) and the garmin clocked over 5k, I stopped and had got back to my 26 11 pace of 3 weeks ago. Which is a vast improvement on yesterday’s run, although I did have to push quite hard to get it, and seem to be still some way off being able to break 25 minutes (not in fact having managed to break 26 yet!!! :eek.
Plan to do a 10k regular run tomorrow or Monday to top up the stamina as it’s not long until my next race now.
I thought it was worth trying a run, so I went for a moderate 5k. It felt great to be putting my shorts on, although my warm up wasn’t as energetic as normal (no pushups or situps just yet!). Felt good to get out into the sunshine, and I was almost as nervous as my last race when I pushed the start button on my timer and set off. Ribs handled well, but it might be the two weeks rest - they did twinge at times, but I didn’t try and push too hard.
Mid way through it became hard work every time I tried to increase my pace a little - not from the ribs, but more from the lost fitness I think. Anyway I trundled round 5k in 27 36, a full 1.5 minutes slower than my time 3 weeks ago, but it was good just to set a modest target and finish for my first run back. I think I have lost a little physical fitness, but noticed that I had a fear of pushing myself harder because I didn’t have a run for the last 15 days - that mental fitness will come back with time, I am just glad I can run again 
It looks like I will be able to reach the start line of the City of Manchester 10k after all, which is good news!
On the road back from injury - what has surprised me is the devastating mental effect an injury can have. It is not like I am an elite athlete, and running is basically my life - I have no idea how it must affect top athletes in any sport when they are sidelined. But in my case, I took up running because of very difficult events in my life, as a better way of dealing my stress and depressive states than my usual addictions of the past (drink, drugs, all bad stuff!). So the running has been so good for me - but every time I start to get to new levels, I seem to get an injury. The first time I think was from not using proper shoes - I had some hip pain, but that didn’t come back once I got proper shoes. The next injury was from a gentle swim - groin strain from unaccustomed breast stroke - so I worked my way back and even managed to race. Then, I start flying ready for my next race, have a weekend on the coast, and fall in a boat and smash my ribs up… I tried a jog last week, but it was no go, so decided to rest - the ribs are painful in a morning but seem to get easier, for a time it was hard to take a full deep breath, but that is slowly improving…
Anyway, I did thirty mins on exercise bike today. At first my legs didn’t feel right, but as my ribs weren’t complaining, I made a go of it, and worked up a sweat, going fast when my legs could handle it, slowing when they protested, but kept going. I actually felt my body start to feel happier - sounds strange, but my moods and energy levels have been dropping since the injury, so body must have been happy just to get the blood pumping.
The good news is that the ribs were ok taking deep breaths, so at least I have a form of cross training to keep me going for now - my dilemma is whether to still aim to do the city of Manchester 10k (without much training) or just skip it. But I will monitor the ribs and see how things pan out.
Smashed ribs stumbling on boat at weekend - so this was first attempt at run. It’s been hard to breathe in really deeply, as it causes pain, so that was a worry.
Anyway, barely managed 200 metres - felt good in myself, but the jolting from running was causing the ribs quite a bit of pain/discomfort - which got a lot worse when I started breathing deeply, as it seemed to put pressure on the rib from 2 angles at once. I felt I could continue running through the pain - but knew that it would not do me any good in the long run, and it wasn’t worth sacrificing the next 2 months for the sake of one run, as the aggravation to the ribs was only causing more damage and doing no good at all…
Only option now is to rest as much as possible - will try some work on exercise bike to see how breathing affects ribs without the jolting. Am keeping fingers crossed some enforced rest will mean the ribs heal fairly quickly and I don’t lose too much fitness in the meantime.
So - 2 months before Great Manchester run, was flying, then got injury swimming.
Month before City of Manchester 10k - was going great - then get injury on a boat.
All feels a bit annoying to say the least!
Was feeling quite tired, and a bit dispirited with toughness of last few runs, but set out for 10k regular run. Tried to set off slowly, and this seemed to make breathing easier, although still always tempted to go faster once I start feeling it’s too easy.
Had spells of feeling really flying with periods of feeling really knackered as if I wasn’t even going to be able to cross the 10k line. Was pretty hot and sunny, so took on some water.
Varied route slightly, so by the time I reached the end of the woods I still had some distance to go, so ran up and down Stockport Road, meaning last 500 metres was up a pretty steep hill, which probably added a few seconds on to my time.
Still, managed 56:25 - about 2 minutes off previous best in training, so am getting closer to sub 55 10k, and hopefully sub 25 5k.
Tough 5k runs really seemed to pay off towards the end of the 10k as it gave me the confidence to maintain my pace, and the distance run gave me the confidence I could reach 10k with something left - so mixing up the runs seems to be starting to pay off.
Now I plan to have a long weekend off work - and running - as I always seem to come back fresher after a mini break!
