From a household point of view, this was a bad month. We’ve had the car, the hoover and the washing machine all fail within a few days of each other, and since they are all rather important items for a family of six, we have been struggling to cover at times. At least by now they are all repaired, the bills didn’t entirely cripple us financially, and we have our fingers crossed that we’ve reached the end of that series.
My biggest worry, as far as the marathon is concerned, is getting sick. Two weeks ago the entire family apart from me had some cold; not too bad but it took Maia especially several days to get better. I’m taking heart from the fact that I didn’t get any symptoms whatsoever. If my immune system can ward off that particular bug then I guess it should be in decent shape. Just don’t let me catch a cold too close to race day, please please please!
If you read a few Irish running blogs you probably get the impression that we’re all obsessed with the weather. Maybe we are, but if you pursue an outdoor hobby in this country it tends to get challenging around this time of the year (not that we had a good summer). Yesterday’s 8 easy miles saw plenty of wind but no rain, today it was pretty much reversed, no wind but heavy rain. Niamh happened to be up at 6:40, the time I left for my run, and just took one look at the weather, one look at me, and went to bed shaking her head in disbelief. You’d think she’s used to it by now.
I had planned an easy tempo run, 2x2.5 miles, at roughly half-marathon pace. For some reason I had set my mind on 6:40 rather than 6:30, but maybe I’ve just learned my lesson from all the frustrating summer workouts. Mind, that’s still 25 seconds per mile faster than the pace I used for tempo runs before the Cork marathon. I had originally planned to use the racing shoes but for some reason didn’t want them to get soaked in all that rain and wore normal trainers instead. The first interval went pretty well, I felt good and the pace came without pushing much. The second interval started the same, but for some reasons not entirely clear to me I completely fell apart over the last mile. While it was slightly uphill, that should not have been sufficient reason to slow down all the way to 7:20. I got incredibly tense and never managed to relax at all. I can’t quite figure out why, but I won’t dwell on it. One botched mile is not worth worrying over.
Just have a look at this instead:
- 13 Oct
- 8 miles, 1:03:01, 7:53 pace, HR 142
- 14 Oct
- 9.15 miles, 1:07:55, 7:25 pace, HR 154
incl. 2x2.5 miles @ 6:41, 6:58
That looks like me at mile 23 of the *fill in the blank* marathon.
ReplyDeleteShe is very adorable.
Nice video. Ally just called from the other room and wanted to know what I was watching.
ReplyDeleteBest of luck at staying healthy.
That is a very cute little germ factory you have there. All the work is done so try to enjoy the next few weeks.
ReplyDeleteoh so cute! I think that was maia's tempo run for the day. she is so good natured and will not GIVE UP! hmm, who does that remind me of?
ReplyDeletewhy must all the appliances go at once? is it a conspiracy??
and since you asked so nicely, OK, I won't let you catch a cold before race day.
:)
She's a cutie for sure! I've got 10 days till my next marathon. I'm hoping for the same thing - to stay healthy. It's always a challenge when I am in and out of preschools.
ReplyDeleteCute! It's great to have that on video. A bit early to tell if she has your running style though ;)
ReplyDeleteStay clear of the desserts during the taper.
What a great video! Oh, how I remember those days.
ReplyDeleteStay healthy and take your vitamins.