Technical Issues

The week had started very well, with two great runs. I was surprised on Monday; I had expected the legs to feel very tired after two tough runs over the weekend. Instead I was back at the "effortlessly floating" stage. I took it easy and the HR reflected that. The pace for that kind of HR was pretty good though, getting close to pre-Dublin levels already.

Following my resolution to take it easy easier this week, I ran easily on Tuesday as well - at least I thought it was easy. Turns out, it was a good bit faster than on Monday, but being able to run 7:30 pace while taking it easy is not a bad place to be.

I was looking forward to today's evaluation workout. Not only would I be able to run a bit faster than usual, I was curious what the figures would look like.

The morning did not start well. As I tried to turn on the Garmin, it played dead. Thankfully I've read the manual and was able to revive it. Unfortunately, it replied with an "empty battery" message. I had charged it the night before, so this was annoying, if not entirely unprecedented. On any other day I might have gone out without Garmin but for an evaluation run it is absolutely vital, so I spent the next 10 minutes charging it, keeping an anxious eye on the clock.

I can't really be late for work so I ran the warm-up much faster than I would have otherwise, which may have had an influence on the subsequent numbers. During the second mile of the evaluation, the "battery low" message came on and with all the hassle and the dark and the pace I was getting really flustered and turned the thing off for a few seconds by mistake. To be honest, all those problems did not have much of an effect on the final numbers, stressed as I felt. The pace was significantly lower than 3 weeks ago; I clearly still have Dublin in my legs, even with all the good feeling over the last couple of days.

After the 4 miles, I stopped until the HR returned to 130. It took 45 seconds, much longer than last time. Again, a sign of not being fully recovered.

I added 3x800 on the way home. They were supposed to be run at a fast but controlled effort. Last time I got them right. This time I did not. I ran them much too fast, which would explain why they felt much harder.

Maybe I should have left the evaluation for another day, with me starting feeling all flustered and stressed out because of a technical hitch. The run was never going to feel great after that start. You live and learn.

14 Nov

8 miles, 1:01:58, 7:45 pace, HR 139

15 Nov

8 miles, 1:00:10, 7:32 pace, HR 147

16 Nov

11.7 miles, 1:23:06, 7:06 pace, HR 156
   4 mile eval: 6:55, 6:59, 7:02, 7:06 (normalised figures)
   45 seconds to 130
   3x800 in 3:05, 2:54, 2:53