Archives for 5-10k category
Posted on Aug 12, 2011 under 5-10k, 5k, Recovery Runs |
Felt nice and fresh after 5 days off running since my half marathon effort last weekend, so wanted to get out again and thought a nice 5 miler with some pace thrown in, during the latter stages, would be quite nice…
Felt OK at 1k, and increased the pace, by 2k I was starting to heat up and sweat but the sweat wasn’t going anywhere. Had to stop at 3k and realised there was no way I would be running 5 miles today – it was humid and I couldn’t breathe comfortably…
Walking across a road in the last KM, a friendl chap said I would need to quicken up to miss the coming rain, and I said I needed it to cool down – he laughed and said he was sweating just watching me, and as I ran off he shouted “See ya kiddo…” I really love being called kiddo at my age, lol 
Anyway I did put a burst of speed on but then felt totally trashed and took a long time to recover, my left foot was soaked in blood from a toenail digging in too…
Will see about a run on Sunday, guess I will still be tired after the long long run last week!
Posted on Jul 24, 2011 under 5-10k, Intervals, Speedwork |
Had a quiet day and wanted a training session I could squeeze into a short space for maximum benefit, so intervals it was! Weather was hot and sunny with a little wind, decided to break in the new Adidas Supernova Glide 3s, as I plan to race in them in August, but know that racing in brand new shoes is sometimes not a good idea!
Did a 2k warmup, then set off on the first of the 5*800m intervals on the same route I did my intervals last week. For some ridiculous reason, although I set off at a point further back, I was still going long past the point where I finished the first 800m interval last time, and felt I was going pretty fast, but ended up with a 4:21 opener which was a bit strange, reckon it was more like 900m that one! The second one was the only one I managed to run at target pace, but it felt like I was sprinting hard and did have a bit of a downhill – and I think it did me in as I slowed right down after that.
It panned out thus:
4:21
3:43
4:07
4:14
4:16
And I felt quite knackered by the end! Am a bit concerned that I am running my intervals way slower (30 seconds plus) than I have ever run intervals before. I did figure that this was at the end of my highest mileage week in a while (15.86 miles) which mitigates my disappointment a bit – but the days (2010 lol) when I was running 3:19 and and 3:30 800s and moaning about it being too slow seem a long time ago.
Maybe I am just getting old 
Anyway, I will have less running this week due to busy schedule, hopefully next time I can burst out of the blocks and these sessions will pay off with some more speed endurance 
Posted on Jul 13, 2011 under 5-10k, 5k, Cross Training, Easy Runs, Trail Running |
Been a hectic week since I returned north – so just a nice easy 5k through road and trails to get my lungs used to the Manchester air again!
When I got back did some gardening, mowed the lawn, and chopped/sawed down an overgrown tree in the garden – so I guess I can say I did some cross training as well
Posted on Jun 29, 2011 under 5-10k, 5k, Milestones, Season's Best, Tempo Runs |
Wanted a quick fast run, and set off at a nice pace which felt comfortable, despite first doing the first km in 5:05! Started to motor after that and felt utterly great, checked Garmin, which had gone dead. Started it up again and had lost time and distance, not sure how much, but rather than try to work it all out decided to run 5k from there, so started it again and off I went, did second km in 5:15, all well and good, still felt fresh, and started to motor – whereupon Garmin dies again, with the meter still on 2k despite the km beep having gone off about 300 metres back… Got a bit annoyed and realised I hadn’t wedged the batteries in and the faster pace must be jiggling them about, so searched in vain for a bit of paper or card but the streets were scrupulously clean – why is there no litter around when you need it?! Eventually found a chewing gum wrapper, wedged in the batteries, and decided to just start the Garmin from where it was stuck on 2k, and go all out for another 3k. Was hard to get my rhythm back after stopping for a while, my body had almost gone into shutdown mode because I had stopped running for a few minutes. However I did the next km in 4:59 which is my fastest this year, it started to hurt then, so I slowed for a km and then put all I had into the last one, was breathing very hard indeed… Stopped the clock in 25:52, a season’s best for 5k, and not bad considering the stop and start nature of the run – and the fact I probably ran an extra half a km due to the lost time – who knows, maybe I was abducted by aliens in those lost minutes!
Note to self: either remember to wedge a bit of card between the batteries before setting off, or do not run so fast that the Garmin’s innards can’t deal with the shock!!!!!
Posted on Jun 17, 2011 under 5-10k, 5k, Tempo Runs |
Wanted to do a quick 5k to blow the rust off the legs, and wanted to do the first couple of k as a warmup then go all out for a few k. Didn’t quite go according to that plan – ran the first km in 5:44 which wasn’t bad for a warmup pace, and then did the second k in 5:19 and then really started to put some strides in – except the quicker I went the slower the Garmin seemed to register for a while – I sped up to a very fast pace and the Garmin said I was doing something ridiculous like 7 minutes per km, and it was only when I slowed that it went under 5 mins per KM, I think something went wrong on that KM because I felt I was going faster having warmed up, but that km clocked over in 5:27 (I suspect it was longer than 5k though). In any case I slowed down for a maintenace penultimate km, and then again, in the last k, I wast putting in some huge bursts of speed and the display went under 4 mins per km as i powered into what felt like my fastest pace in a long, long time, I felt the Garmin was slowing down, I seemed to cover two road junctions and it barely moved, and then I finished the last km in 5:16, so at least on this occasion my last km was the fastest, as it should be, am just not sure where the two slower kms came from as I felt I was going fast all the way – so will just put it down to the vagaries of the Garmin (I would upgrade my 105 if I could afford to!), as I felt this run was a lot faster all round than the similarly timed one of last week.
In all, although I am only managing one fast run and a long run per week at the moment, due to time constraints, I feel I am slowly improving, and if I can manage today’s pace for 10k it would mean a sub 55 10k, which now seems a reasonable target for the City of Manchester 10k in a few weeks
Posted on Jun 10, 2011 under 5-10k, 5k, Regular Runs, Tempo Runs |
Was a run that was late in the week and late in the day – managed to hit the school run after trying to run home from the libary – quickly realised running with a gym bag with a heavy book inside was not going to work very well
Set off pretty quickly with a 5:16 first km and then slowed to about 5:30 pace, eventually slowing to 6+ pace as I got tired in the latter stages. Not close to the 26 I did in the 5k race the other week but then it wasn’t a race and I didn’t have a warmup or someone to tuck in behind, but felt good to be out running again and get a bit of pace up.
Posted on May 22, 2011 under 5-10k, 5k, Races, Season's Best, Trail Running |
Races are like buses, none for a year then suddenly two come at once!
The Legacy Events East Manchester 5k at Debdale Park was a different affair altogether from the Great Manchester Run last week – 5k, so shorter, and about 38,000 less people, but these kinds of races are just as important, if less well known, and see runners of all abilities.
It had been an exhausting week for me, with some bouts of insomnia, things have been very hectic, so an early start on Sunday morning was one of the last things I needed, and as usual on race mornings I woke up groggy, disoriented, and wondering “why on earth am I doing this?” (or words to that effect). I has some toast wth bean pate on it, then went to get the bus (really should get better sorted these buses, the online timetable never seems to match the one at the stand, which can be very confusing). Anyway, got to Debdale Park in plenty of time and saw the Marshals dotted around. Was pretty cold and very windy. Found the grotty debdale park toilets which were thankfully empty, though am glad I only needed to pee as there was no toilet paper in sight! Lol. Could probably have held on for a 5k anyway…
Did a little jogging around for a warm up, then went to join the organised warmup, had to improvise when they started doing side steps, as that is the surest way to buggering up my dodgy knee! Massaged my legs, right hamstring felt really tight and muscles felt brittle, like cold plasticine, which wasn’t good. A bloke in a red top chatted to me on the way to the start line and said he used to do marathons in 3 hours in his army days, but wasn’t sure what he would do today.
Felt excited as the horn went off, and off we went. I usually struggle pacing 5ks and this was no different, and haven’t done one for quite a long time! And this was actually my first real 5k race, with a number – as opposed to a park run. Felt like I was going a bit fast, went down the first little hill, went round a corner, and my right lower leg almost collapsed underneath me and developed weird spasming shooting pains all of a sudden. Had visions of pulling out, but just slowed down and it went away, but was a bit scary to say the least
Overtook a few people early on and was overtaken by one or two, but the field seemed to spread out very quickly and I started to find my own pace. On the little incline past the reservoirs just before the water station, a young lady came past me, and I responded by sticking with her; she went through onto the long straight path which was very windy, and I tucked in behind her to shield me from the wind. We were destined to to share the work for the rest of the race, she would pull in front of me, then I pulled in front of her, and it was really handy to have someone to work with like that and kept me motivated. I was really hurting by 4k, but then again, only 1k to go, and somehow I found something extra and pulled away from my companion, then sped past a woman who had overtaken me early on, but who I had kept in my sights. I was wincing and hurting as I entered the finishing straight, had no idea what the time would be, but sprinted with whatever I had left for the line, and cross, according to Garmin, in 26:03, which is 2 minutes off my 5k best this season so far, so all in all the race day adrenaline and my temporary running companion really helped pull me on to an improved time.
I stayed behind for a bit to clap more runners in, including a parrot, some nuns, and a fairy. The bloke in the red top finished in about 31 mins and came and found me for a chat. I was getting a bit cold by then so wandered off to get the bus home, buzzing and a little more lively, although by the time I got home I was looking forward to a very lazy day!
Posted on Apr 25, 2011 under 5-10k, 5k, Tempo Runs, Time Trials |
With more running in my legs I was hoping to be able to run around 28 for a 5k time trial, but it was not to be, although was my fastest run in a month. Admittedly a couple of big hills on this route stopped me going sub 29 for the first time, and so the run is not to be grumbled at – was nice to run consistently at sub 30 pace and just get the legs used to going a a bit of speed. Hopefully the longer runs, and some shorter quicker ones, will all come together and get me close to 55 minutes on race day…
I have entered a 5k race (East Manchester Legacy 5k) the weekend after the Great Manchester Run so hopefully can aim for a time at that!
Posted on Apr 23, 2011 under 5 miles, 5-10k, Long Runs |
Woke up in the middle of the night feeling a little sick, maybe something to do with the hot weather, or some deyhdration after a long walk in Southport the day before. Decided I wanted to do a 5 miler and set off in the middle of the afternoon. It had looked quite overcast early on, so I dabbed only a little suncream on, and took half a liter of water.
First problem was the Garmin, which cut out at around 1k, wasn’t quite sure when. Got it going, started running, then realised it was still stopped. All in all I was glad of the stops to sort it, as was already sweating a lot by this point and used the stops to take on water.
By 3k my water was gone and I was stopping at regular intervals, feeling very hot and puffy. I had planned a long loping route but my lower legs were complaining so decided to stay close to civilisation in case I had to stop. Considered cutting it down to 6k, and just got hotter and hotter, and kept stopping to catch my breath. In the end crawled and staggered over the 5 mile mark (7.83k on Garmin but made allowance for the amount I ran while it wasn’t counting), and was really glad to get some water.
So in some ways a really bad run, but good for mental toughness and just the fact I kept going will pay dividends, as I know I can, even if I do need to take a tiny walk break (though hopefully by the Great Manchester Run I will be fine and it will be a little cooler earlier in the morning!)
Posted on Mar 19, 2011 under 5-10k, 5k, Milestones, Tempo Runs |
Experimented slightly with breakfast today, had a banana and pure porridge with some pure fructose thrown in (am going to try glucose as is healthier apparently).
In any case, I wanted to do a sub 30 5k, so set off feeling good, and was feeling OK by the 1k mark which I managed in under 6 minutes. Then came the long incline to the top of the Haughton hill, which slowed me down, then it was coasting for a while, with intermittent bursts of exuberant running speed. I had to reign myself in a little to make sure I got the end at some points!
Felt another burst of speed near the end and wound down and stopped the Garmin on 29:01 – sub 29 should be easy next time I try it!
First k was quick, then there were a coupld of sedate ones, and the last 2 were both well under 6 minutes, which bodes well.
Seems the strategy of the slightly slower longer runs followed by a quick session, has worked on this occasion – and of course maybe the breakfast experiment had something to do with the running too.
