Races, especially of marathon or greater distance, almost always have a lower ratio and the dip for Connemara is clearly visible, though you can also see how quickly I recovered. However, Sunday's run was nothing short of alarming, the dip is even greater than the one for the ultra. There are a couple of possible reasons:
- I had a long week of high mileage behind me
- It was fairly hot
- I was quite dehydrated in the end (my weight was down by over 4 pounds)
- I had not eaten for 15 hours before running
My best guess is that all these factor played their part. However, since the numbers picked up again the very next day I think I'm okay, but should probably be a bit more careful.
This week so far has been a carbon copy of last week with 10 miles in the morning and 5 in the evening, except Wednesday when I ran on the Kerry Way up to Windy Gap in the morning. The pace was generally a bit slower but that was on purpose as I tried not to overdo it.
I will ease off slightly over the next few days because I'm doing the Wings for Life run on Sunday. I want to do at least a marathon, which requires me to run 3:08 or faster, something I am perfectly capable of but it won't exactly be a walk in the park, especially with all those training miles in my legs.
- 28 Apr
- am: 10 miles, 1:18:29, 7:51 pace, HR 133
- pm: 5+ miles, 37:37, 7:27 pace, HR 138
- 29 Apr
- am: 10 miles, 1:16:47, 7:41 pace, HR 135
- pm: 5 miles, 37:39, 7:31 pace, HR 138
- 30 Apr
- am: 12+ miles, 1:50:51, 9:03 pace, HR 138, Windy Gap x 2
- pm: 5+ miles, 37:53, 7:30 pace, HR 138
Thomas your flying at the moment.... Very apt that your doing the wings for life run!!!! (no more bad jokes I promise) I was due to run it but my godson in getting his communion so I was told by my wife..."No" and I decided not to push it any further. What a great idea for a race though! I wish you the best of luck with it. I was very surprised to see how fast you recovered from Connemara, even though I knew you had a track records of returning to form quite quickly. But when listed the possable reasons above , high milage, dehydration, lack of food. I think it makes sence. Dare I say it but I think I'm getting used to the double runs & my blisters are a bit less except for one large one covering half my right foot, people are telling me to bust it, but The Funny thing is it's almost flat like it's after subsiding into the sole of my foot! It's no longer uncomfortable...just feels funny at times during a run!!! "forgot to say on the last report actually....I stared at that photo of the chocolate cake far longer than any runner should have!!! ...not a good sign :-)
ReplyDeleteGood luck tomorrow ;-)
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