Sunday, June 07, 2009

Weary Miles

I have felt really achy over the last few days; not just the leg muscles, everything feels not quite alright. I also awoke today with quite a sore throat, so I’m guessing I’m fighting off some bug at the moment. Since I don’t have any symptoms that would stop me from running, this isn’t much of a problem. My guess is that it’s the same that Maia’s having at the moment; she’s not quite herself, and quite cranky most of the time.

I got up early on Friday to run around the lake for the third time this week. I intend to keep doing that for many, many weeks from now. If that doesn’t build up my leg muscles, nothing will. I felt rather weary on the climbs, but put in a few surges towards the end of the run. This not only brought down the average pace a bit, it actually made my legs feel better. It’s funny how that works.

On Friday evening I realised that I was way ahead of last week’s mileage, which had suffered because of Niamh’s absence. Because of that, this week saw a massive jump, much more than originally intended. However, I seem to be able to handle it. Theoretically I should reach 100 miles in a fortnight, but since we will be on holidays for that week this is rather unlikely to say the least.

I was really reluctant to go out yesterday. The legs didn’t feel right, and I knew that a ¾ effort would be uncomfortable. When I finally opened the door, things went much better than anticipated. Last weeks 11+ miles had been a bit over ambitious, so I cut the loop short and was back home in 10.5 miles. This went a lot better. I was slower than 2 weeks ago but faster than last week, and felt a lot better. I can feel an improvement, but there is still along way to go yet. The effort is higher than marathon pace and the pace is lower. It’s a good thing Dingle is still plenty of weeks away.

My mum arrived yesterday for a week (just as the weather turned bad). Maia has taken a real shine to her “new gaga”; she’s clearly making eyes at him. It’s funny how young kids just take in some people while blanking out others. The object of her desire seems a bit bemused by it all.

Today was as close as I get to an easy run. I ran 12.5 miles towards, and past, Killorglin. The course chosen was a bit hillier than intended, but nothing in comparison to the Caragh Lake loop. I was stiff and tired early on, but after a set of 11x100 strides towards the second half felt a lot better, and once again the average pace dropped by quite a bit when the effort didn’t. I have to remember doing those strides. It can be a real chore at first, but the legs will thank you every time.
5 Jun
15 miles, 1:59:41, 7:58 pace, HR 146
6 Jun
10.5 miles, 1:13:42, 7:01 pace, HR 160
7 Jun
12.5 miles, 1:37:17, 7:47 pace, HR 145
incl. 11x100 strides

Weekly Mileage: 90

5 comments:

  1. I was feeling exactly the same during the week..may be something going around but more probably something to do with the very changeable weather!! Can't believe that summer is over already!! :)

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  2. Make sure you allow yourself some time to rest and recover. You've logged loads of miles over the few years, not need to rush back.

    In your last post you mentioned the lack of recovery, what with long runs, tempo runs & hill runs... you know where I'm going with this don't you?

    And in this post, well, the name says it all. Make sure you take care of youself.

    Happy trails.

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  3. Get a good recovery and you will be back doing non weary miles (is there really any) in no time

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  4. It's weird how you can feel better after a run when you are fighting off a bug. Glad to hear the effort is a bit easier than last week.

    You're right, plenty of time before the next marathon.

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  5. I hope you haven't caught a dose of H1N1 Thomas! The MP and effort gap should close in the coming weeks as you become accustomed to the increased mileage.

    Thanks for the reminder about the strides.

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