Hurts so good.

Friday, March 31, 2006
Week 6 of 13 Help! I'm trapped in a Seinfeld episode with my massage therapist ! I have asked her for her name now three times but couldn't understand her on each occasion because of her bloody accent ! I am now beyond the point of no return because I fear I cannot ask her again without embarrassment. Perhaps the team at Blogger Forensics could help ? As you can see, I have scanned my appointment card and seek your help Bloggers. What the hell is her name ? Beito, Bento, Beuto, Berto, Bevto ? Without George and Jerry here to help me, I am relying on your help people ! ================================== ==================== FAT FRIDAY ! Weight @ 01/01/06: 83.0kg Weight last week: 79.2kg Weight this week: 78.6kg Comment: Another move in the right direction. :) ==================== EDIT: CoolRunner Bandanna has emailed me with the answer ! Her name is BERTA and she is from Poland (damn, where did I get french from). Anyway, thank god it wasn't Mulva ! Ellie and Kit are the winners and will have to fight over the (virtual) prize. Mood: --->

Easy Wednesday

Thursday, March 30, 2006
7.2km | easy | 39:34 Wednesday is an easy day on my program. It's sandwiched between two hard days and designed to just add to my base I guess. I ran a 7km route near my place which runs along the outside fence of Centennial Park. I like this course because its 50/50 road and grass and can be run at night without fear of being eaten alive by a werewolf in the middle on the park. I ran it pretty easy except for a little niggle in my left leg. It starts out in the ITB, moves down to the inside of my knee, hangs around in the quad for a while, disappears for a time and then heads back to the ITB just to piss me off. It's funny, this problem has only started because I was feeling guilty that I hadn't been stretching much and my hammies were woefully short and inflexible. So consequently I started doing various stretches in this area. Bingo - now I've got these (small) niggles. Maybe it was best to leave "sleeping dogs lie" ? Just another hill to climb in the never ending learning curve of running.... Good thing I've got a massage booked again today for midday. She (still don't know her name) was quite brutal with me last Thursday so I hope she doesn't smash me about too much this time. After all I want to run Striders in the Domain on Saturday. Wobblyman asked yesterday about how my shin splits were going. My answer to that Wobbly is that I don't have shin splints at all - today. ;-) Mood: --->

Big Tuesday

Wednesday, March 29, 2006
6km | soft sand | 53:05 Week 6 of 13 Yes I know that the movie was called Big Wednesday (Jan Michael Vincent ?) but I was down there on Tuesday. I heard that Cyclones Larry and Watti had whipped up the seas and that they recorded 8m surf somewhere on the east coast. Well it wasn't quite that big down at Bondi last night, but it was certainly pumping. Interestingly, there was some guys out off Icebergs having a night surf (Icebergs have large flood lights which illuminate much of the surf at the south end. Still it was stupidity plus!) and heaps of beach fisherman at the north end. I haven't done any soft sand running for a few weeks and decided that I would just head down there and take it km by km, ready to pull the pin if I felt wasted. Surprisingly, I finished the 6kms feeling pretty good apart from the soles of my feet which started to feel a little numb. I shake my head with amazement at the guys who run a marathon in this stuff ! It's seriously beyond my comprehension. I will alternate between soft sand and Darley Road hill reps throughout April and aim to tackle the 4km Bondi Barefoot race at the end of the month. That will give me good preparation for the 9km Manly Soft Sand Classic in June. Mood: --->

Weekend Wrap

Monday, March 27, 2006
Saturday 25 March, 2006 25:00 | grass Week 6 of 13 My program had me lined up for an "easy" weekend, Saturday was 5km at HM pace and I chose to do that on grass to give my legs a break from the pounding of the road. I ran a undulating grass route in Queens Park which takes me up and down sharp hills for the entire loop with only a small portion on the flat. The weather was crap which meant that the GPS had no idea where anything was. So I just ran at a brisk pace and left it at that. No problems with niggles but I did get absolutely soaked. Er, excuse me Mr Nike. Your shirt and shorts did not "wick". Sunday 26 March, 2006 7km | easy | 36:23 I woke up early on Sunday morning and sat in my kit waiting for the sun to rise before I could head off. I am so glad this daylight saving rubbish is over next Sunday. At the first hint of light I did a lap of Queens Park and Centennial Park before the kids woke. No niggles to report, no rain this time either (nice change) but I noticed it was a tad chilly. Hmm, not sure I am ready for winter just yet. Please arrive slooowly so I can adjust... I got home, fed the tribe their Sunday morning feast and headed off for a days hard work at Rushcutters Bay Pre-School where a bunch of us Dads spent the day gardening, sanding, painting and repairing for the kids. Mood: --->

TGIF

Friday, March 24, 2006
Week 5 of 13 ==================== FAT FRIDAY ! Weight @ 01/01/06: 83.0kg Weight last week: 79.4kg Weight this week: 79.2kg Body fat @ 01/01/06: 33.10% Body fat last week: 25.50% Body fat this week: 26.10% Comment: Fat scales seem wonky again. At least I'm still heading in the right direction. ==================== Mood: --->

A little rest.

Thursday, March 23, 2006
Week 5 of 13 Wednesday 22nd 40 min Tempo run: Nup, didn't do that. I was watching Steffenson in the 400m (dressed in my kit ready to head out the door) and by the time it finished, well I was very settled on the lounge and it was raining outside...you know the rest. Thursday 23rd: 5km soft sand or hill reps:I had a massaged booked for lunch today and had a new girl (can't remember her name, but ya got to love that french accent). She gave me a real work out, found lots of knots and tight spots and had me squealing like a little girl at times. I limped back to the office and now plan to have a gentle ride on the bike inside while I watch Jana & Co. Yeah, I'm a slacker. Two days not running this week. Fat Friday could be a shocker ! Mood: --->

Heavy legs

Wednesday, March 22, 2006
6km | easy | 34:41 Week 5 of 13 After watching Benita run out of petrol in the 10km last night, I headed out in the light rain for a quick lap. Like Benita in the last of 1km or so of her race, I had heavy legs for the most of my run due to my last three session being on the road I think. Looking back at my spreadsheet, its the first time that I haven't ran on a soft surface at least once in the week for many months. So I just have to get through tonight's tempo run and I can tackle the sand pit on Thursday. I can also look forward to running both Saturday and Sunday on the grass in Centennial Park. Mood: --->

Marathon Stick

Monday, March 20, 2006
I like to get a massage at least once a month, but at $80.00 a pop, its hard to justify the expense. After all, the good Wife doesn't go out getting a facial and nails done as much as I go to Jackie's Sports Massage. So in the interest of the household budget, I purchased the Marathon Stick for $45.00 from CoolRunner Kato's new website See Me Run. I've read some good reviews on the web (aka The Stick), so I thought I would give it a go. I don't expect it to replace my torture visits to Jackie's altogether, but if it reduces the frequency then it will pay for itself immediately. It arrived today in two days from order (nice one Kato!) and I will give it a burl tonight as I watch Buster win gold in the 5,000m. Mood: --->

Sunday LSD

Sunday, March 19, 2006
13.74km | LSD | 1:21:59 Week 4 of 13 The heavy rain woke me this morning just before 6.00am, so I dressed, grabbed a quick bite and headed out up through Randwick, down to Coogee beach and then followed the coastal path to Clovelly, Bronte, Glamarama, Bondi and then up Bondi Road to home. It felt pretty amazing to be out there today. The heavy rain reduced to a light drizzle but enough to keep the walkers tucked up tight in bed. Dawn at Coogee was therefore witnessed by me alone. No niggles today. I don't think I have felt this good for at least 12 months. Mood: --->

Saturday @ pace

Saturday, March 18, 2006
1km warmup | 5km @ HM pace | 1km JR Week 4 of 13 Today was the start of my Saturday runs at half marathon pace. It seems that from here on Saturdays are allocated to running an ever increasing distance at my race pace. The only problem this morning was that I ran it too fast. I must have had a brain explosion or something because I ran the 5kms at 4:45/km pace, which worked out to be a 1:40 half. That was dumb as I should have ran it at 5:00/km pace which would have worked out to be a 1:45 result. I think I just wasted a session. Doh! Next Saturday I will run at the required pace, I promise myself... Mood: --->

Darley Road Hill Reps

Friday, March 17, 2006
5km | Hill Reps | 0.5km Week 4 of 13 My program had me down for 5km on soft sand but running on wet sand not only turns you into a schnitzel, but the sand also gets between your toes and causes blisters on my feet. So the rain this afternoon meant that I should do hills instead. So keeping to the 5km program I ran the 500m to Darley Road and did 4 reps with jog recovery. Darley Road is not hugely steep, but is a nice long drag with about a 45 degree climb. My splits were: 2:56 2:29 JR 2:50 2:33 JR 2:43 2:25 JR 2:39 2:15 JR Not real sure what all that means but I was pretty buggered afterwards. Probably that I was too soft at the start. IIRC you are supposed to do hill reps at even times (?). So I blew that. At least my times were on the improve rather than on the slide. Looking forward to hammering out much more of these as my program slowly allows my distances to increase. ==================== FAT FRIDAY ! Weight @ 01/01/06: 83.0kg Weight last week: 79.5kg Weight this week: 79.4kg Body fat @ 01/01/06: 33.10% Body fat last week: 26.10% Body fat this week: 25.50% Comment: Huh ? ==================== Mood: --->

Lumpectomy

Thursday, March 16, 2006
5km | easy | 25:23 Week 4 of 13 With Podrunner giving me the all clear to remove the extra padding from my right orthotic, I was off last night for a quick spin around the block. My program actually called for a 5km tempo run with the fast bit being at 5km race pace. I didn't think that was a smart move considering that I had this sore foot stemming from the orthotics issue. So an easy run it was. The good news is that any trace of a niggle disappeared once the speedhump was removed from the orthotic. I ran the 5km very easy and zipped home feeling fresh and ready for more. This morning I noticed that I'm tight in the left ITB so I'll have to get out the rolling pin tonight after my run, which will be either in the Bondi sandpit or Darley Road hill reps if its raining. Mood: --->

6km with a little pain

Wednesday, March 15, 2006
6km | easy | 34.40 Week 4 of 13 I had to do 6km last night and set off for a lap around Bondi Junction and Queens Park. I've been trying to lengthen out my recalcitrant hamstrings lately and whilst I'm getting some progress, the temporary side effect is that they are quite sore at the moment. So last night they decided to complain vigorously for the first 2 kms. Thankfully they eventually warmed to the occasion. A nice stretch afterwards also made them happier. Now to a possible problem. Podrunner put some extra felt pads on the inside forefoot of each orthotic 2 weeks ago to assist with extra pronation (well that's what I think it was for anyway). It feels like a lump in the shoe when you put it on. Anyway, I've noticed a pain in my right foot which extends from the forefoot inside pad through to the big toe. I felt it on the weekend, last night before and after the run and also this morning when I hopped out of bed. I've emailed Podrunner for his opinion. If I don't hear back from him by tonight, I might pull the new padding out before my run and see if the pain eases. Call me paranoid but I don't want to take any chances these days... Mood: --->

Bondi slug

Sunday, March 12, 2006
11km | easy | 63:43 Week 4 of 13 I was supposed to head out at 5.30am this morning for my run, but with one of the kids sick with the flu my sleep was somewhat disrupted. Needless to say that with only 5 hours sleep I wasn't in exactly jumping out of my skin this morning. My legs were feeling heavy, weary and a bit sore around the ankles as I ran through the start of Queens Park. So much so that I had to stop and stretch again when I got to Clovelly Road. By the time I got down to the beaches my legs were OK, but I found it really hot in the strong morning sun. I wore my fuel belt with the new larger bottles and tried to replace as much fluid as possible, but I was swimming in sweat by the time that I got time I got to Bondi. The long grind up Bondi Road to home wasn't exactly pleasant. I finished feeling pretty crappy and noticed that I was 1.5kgs lighter than from when I started. Mucho gatorade to be consumed this morning me thinks. Mood: --->

First light.

Saturday, March 11, 2006
7km | easy | 37:39 Week 4 of 13 My program called for a 5km time trial this morning. Yeah right. How am I supposed to run at race pace without somebody chasing me or visa versa ? Nup, wasn't going to happen. Way too unmotivated for that this morning. So I decided that a steady run of the outside fence of Centennial Park was in order instead. I was running with pretty good form this morning. At one stage down near Randwick Racecourse it was long strides, still head, fast pace. Motorists could have easily mistaked me for Craig Mottram. Geeze I was going good for that 20 meters. ;-P Thinking of the SixFooters right now. The leader would be well past the halfway mark with about about 90 mins to go. Others have another 4 hours to go. Whilst the front runners get all the accolades, its the back of the pack runners for mine who deserve the biggest medals for gutsing it out for that long. I hope to share their experience one day soon. Spare a thought for Ken Smith who said in his email to me mid-week that he would be turning around at Caves House and running back to Katoomba. Yikes ! Mood: --->

Like sands through the hourglass...

Friday, March 10, 2006
5km | soft sand | 43:45 Week 4 of 13 Ok, now Superflake has thrown me into a mild panic here. For the past X years the Bondi Barefoot had been held the second Sunday in July. Now he tells me that its been moved to 30 April ! It seems that the Surfclub have done this specifically to hijack my plans. Payback because I entered Gronk Jnr in Bronte Nippers this year rather than Nth Bondi ? Yes I was thinking that too. That gives me 7 weeks to find the extra legs to go 10km on the sand. Sounds easy but last night my lower legs were Aeroplane Jelly status after 5km. Yes I know there is a 4km race but that would be the soft option, wouldn't it ? I have plenty of time to build my distance, but it's also just 7 days out from when I fly down to do the Nail Can Hill race. Should I be trashing my legs just a week out from (IMHO) the most demanding goal race in on my calendar ? Hmmm. Any advice fellow Bloggers ? ==================== FAT FRIDAY ! Weight @ 01/01/06: 83.0kg Weight last week: 80.1kg Weight this week: 79.5kg Body fat @ 01/01/06: 33.10% Body fat last week: 27.00% Body fat this week: 26.10% Comment: Yay! ==================== Mood: --->

Is DOMS, is good.

Thursday, March 09, 2006
5km | recovery | no watch Week 4 of 13 I pulled up OK after Striders on Saturday with only slight tenderness in the shins. My quads however were screaming like a banshee all Sunday and Monday. On the upside, my post race quad pain usually goes on well into the next week. So the fact that I was without pain by Tuesday morning was a surprise. I assume that it was because of the magnesium that I started taking (amongst other supplements) a few weeks ago. Many thanks for the tip 2P ! :) I was due for a run on Tuesday night and whilst I was fully recovered from the DOMS, I noticed a little niggle in my calf walking home from work - so I erred on the side of caution dropped the run altogether. No big deal as my next priority is Nail Can in May. This means that my training now includes hills, hills and more hills whilst I build my base for the half later that month. I ran a recovery 5km last night at Mr McMillan's suggested 6:00/km pace and felt strong all the way. Tonight I'm off to Bondi for a play in the big sandpit. Mood: --->

Sydney Striders 10km - Olympic Park

Saturday, March 04, 2006
10km | 45:16 | Race | PB 3km | recovery | not timed Week 3 of 13 I ran this morning with the intention of going as hard as I can. Seeing that my shins had mysteriously healed themselves over the past few days (must have been that Benny Hinn Holy Water I bought on Ebay ;-P), I was feeling good enough to give it a crack. I took off with the huge starting group not knowing who or where the 45 pacer was. The only person I saw was Papa Luigi just ahead and I thought that he would probably be running a conservative race today because of 6-Foot next week, so I kept him in my sights. At the first km marker I could see that I was under PB pace at about 4:15 so I tried to turn it down a bit. I went through the 5km at exactly 45 pace at 22:23 so I knew that I was on target. Soon Spud (the 45 pacer) and Johnny Dark ran up next to me and Spud asked if I was jumping aboard the 45 train. I said that would try and hold on for as long as I could. By about 9km Spud & JD were about 50m ahead and there was no chance I could catch them. I tried really hard to run the last km fast but my tired old legs and burning lungs just wouldn't participate. Still, I'm very happy with a 24 second PB and aim to break that 45 minute barrier very soon. I had to drop my Mum's car off at her house afterwards in Double Bay (we are a one car family and our Princess had ballet this morning), so I had a leisurely 3km run up to Woollahra and through Centennial Park to home as a belated warm down. Mood: --->

Shin spin.

Friday, March 03, 2006
Week 3 of 13 I did 40:00 on the static bike last night. 10:00 warmup, 30:00 intervals, 10:00 warmdown. My shins are good. No, actually they are 100%. Today I don't have shin splints. Go figure. Why ? I give up. So apart from a little sniffle, I am ready to go for a jog at Striders in the morning. ==================== FAT FRIDAY ! Weight @ 01/01/06: 83.0kg Weight last week: 80.6kg Weight this week: 80.1kg Body fat @ 01/01/06: 33.10% Body fat last week: 28.90% Body fat this week: 27.00% Comment: Happy ==================== Mood: --->

Pod + run

Thursday, March 02, 2006
5km | easy | no watch Week 3 of 13 I saw Podrunner after work as planned. Andy was planning to tell me to ditch the Adrenalines in favour of ASICS 2110's so he was pleased that I had already switched over to the 2100's although they are a little softer in the heel than the 2110's. I ran for a spell on the treadmill both with shoes on and off. I am so crap at treadmills that I have to hold on to the rails to avoid falling flat on my face. A bit like our friend here to the left ! ;-p Andy videoed it all and it seems that I'm still landing with my left foot askew, which puts strain on the shins. Running on that thing barefoot also left my shins in a cranky state. You wouldn't think that one minute barefoot on the treadmill would inflame them, but I really noticed it walking home. Andy beefed up the support with extra felt on the underside of my orthotics and gave me some exercises to improve my flexibility in the hip. The aim there is to see if my left foot can land straight(er) instead of pointing outwards slightly. I ran last night in my usual 5km loop. A combination of my newly inflamed shins, DOMS from running my overdue beach run on Tuesday and (maybe) the adjusted orthotics - left me very sore everywhere below the knees. I finished OK, but had to ice up afterwards. This morning I massaged my shins and surrounding muscles and applied voltaren gel. My program has me running a 40min tempo run tonight. Depending how I feel walking home this evening, I may drop that for a spin session in readiness for Striders 10km at Olympic Park on Saturday. Mood: --->

Playing in the sandpit.

Wednesday, March 01, 2006
5km | soft sand | 43:45 I headed down to Bondi last night for some more sand running. I had been neglecting the sand lately (I'm supposed to race in 9km of this stuff in June) and my shins were also a little sore. So a play in the big sandpit was the right thing to do. Lately I have been reading the Australian Mountain Running Association's Training Techniques on Downhill and Uphill Running. The use of the arms is a great factor in getting up and down those hills. Something that I haven't really concentrated on in the past. So last night I tried to use the arms more and that coupled with a higher knee action got me through the sand a little quicker. I will need to remember to practice this over the next few months. The only trouble is I get so buggered after about 30 mins thrashing about in the sand that I lose form and just plod. I guess that it all comes down to general fitness and core strength. My infected toe was well on its way yesterday and most of the inflammation had subsided. Trouble was last night that every 10m or so I would clip the top off a small mound of sand with the toe. After 5km of this it was pretty painful and this morning it's sore and tender again. Ouch. I'm seeing Podrunner tonight after work. Andy suggested this a few days ago by leaving a comment on my Blog. It's been on my mind to see him, so the timing was right. I think my orthotics are 12 months old in April and I still have shin splints, although admittedly in a much milder form right now. Maybe they might need adjustment or something. Anyway, seeing him can't hurt. Mood: --->