At Last - An Actual Training Week

Well, looks like this was the week when I actually started to feel good again, did some faster running without even noticing, and the miles added up a bit more than recently as well. In fact, I think if I had a bit more time I'd actually be able to whack myself into pretty decent shape. Shame I'm running out of time. In fact, this week may well have been a bit much with Connemara only a week away but I needed that kind of week, for the head more so than the legs. They say you need to trust the training when you start the taper, and I definitely had no reason to put any trust in my preparation until a few weeks ago, out as I was with injury.

I actually expected to feel tired at the start of the week after that hilly run on Sunday, but a slow easy run on Monday seems to have been all I needed. On Tuesday I headed out with some work colleagues at lunchtime, as we usually do when we manage to snag some time away from the desk, and I kept chatting to Norbert all the way - and for some reason we got a little bit faster with each lap. I swear I didn't push the pace, so does he, but somehow we just kept turning the screw, unnoticeable if it hadn't been for the watch, and that thing doesn't lie. However, I take the fact that I could run a couple of sub-8 minute miles without noticing as a very good sign.

Wednesday's run commute into the office was almost routine but it was Thursday that really surprised me. I had actually planned to run to and from work that day but my schedule just did not allow that and I only had a very limited window at lunchtime, which had me running a little bit faster than I would have otherwise, but I sure did not expect to average 7:38 pace. That's close to the pace I used to run on my easy days in my better years, and I didn't expect to see that figure ever again on a non-workout day. So I was happy anyway.

I did the to-and-from work thingy on Friday. It's getting a bit close to Connemara for that kind of thing, so I made doubly sure to take it easy. The legs actually felt pretty good, even in the evening - at least once the first mile or two was behind me. I thought the evening run was a good bit slower because I really took it exceptionally easy, but that turned out to be wrong. Funny how perception can be so off at times. However, the right calf muscle started to cramp up towards the end, which was a very unwelcome surprise. I had almost forgotten about my cramping issues. It doesn't bode well for Connemara, and the Hell of the West may be even more hellish than usual.

After an easy Saturday I did the Seahorse run to Greystones and back via the Cliff Walk, though it was a shorter version than last week because I left out the loop through Greystones. I started out feeling really good but my energy ran out halfway through and the run back home was a bit of a struggle, depleted and dehydrated - running without breakfast can have that effect at times.

And so I am just one week away from Connemara. It will probably my longest race for the year since I decided to give my body a bit of a break (a relative break, that is), and, as mentioned, I'd have loved to have some more time but I can't turn back time, and so I just have to suck it up. It's actually not the first time that I'm tackling a 39 mile ultra with way too little training after injury, I did the same in Achill 2015 and I survived that one as well, though the last loop was definitely a struggle. Ah well. It's not meant to be easy!

1 Apr

4.97 miles, 42:29, 8:33 pace, HR 135

2 Apr

4.93 miles, 39:48, 8:04 pace, HR 148

3 Apr

10.23 miles, 1:31:49, 8:59 pace, HR 140

4 Apr

4.55 miles, 34:46, 7:38 pace, HR 150

5 Apr

am: 10.22 miles, 1:27:25, 8:33 pace, HR 142

pm: 10.24 miles, 1:25:32, 8:21 pace, HR 143

6 Apr

6.31 miles, 56:12, 8:54 pace, HR 139

7 Apr

12.03 miles, 1:45:51, 8:48 pace, HR 150