Re-setting the bar

So the dust has settled from a successful marathon campaign, and I have taken the last two weeks to start thinking about the direction that I want to move forwards in for the next stage of my development into a better all round runner.

I took 5 days completely off from all running in order to rest up after race day. My calves and quads in particular were in a pretty bad way in the aftermath of the marathon, and I was definitely ready for some time away from running to get myself back to normal. I did do a light gym and swim session on the Wednesday after the race, and also managed to get a massage booked in to shake out some of the badness from the legs.

By Saturday I was fed up of kicking my heels and felt ready to have a little run out. I wasn't looking forward to it and knew that I would probably suffer, but I decided to jump back in with a park run at Preston, to try and have a little short, sharp blast out to wake the legs back up. I didn't expect much, and actually ran ok - albeit well short of my form when I set the course record 4 or 5 weeks previously! I got around the 3 laps in just under 17 and a half minutes, holding a steady 5:43 average pace throughout, and although my legs felt pretty battered again as soon as I finished, it felt good to be back up and running.

I followed that up on the Sunday with a steady 10 mile run on heavy legs, averaging just a touch under 6:30s. By the end I was starting to realise just how much the marathon had sapped from me energy wise, and knew that it may be a process that takes a good few weeks to get back to my normal shape and form.

Week one of recovery stats:

Total mileage for the week: 18

Average pace for the week (m/pm): 6:30

Total mileage for the month of September: 219

Total mileage so far this month (October): 10

Total mileage for 2017: 2730

Average miles per day 2017: 10.00

On to this week, and thankfully as the week has gone on, my legs have started to feel more and more back to normal. I have enjoyed a steady week of running, just making the most of being able to get out for an hour or so each evening and turning the legs over without the pressure of particularly having to chase specific targets or aims. It has been nice to just enjoy running for running's sake for a while, I will probably return to some proper sessions in the coming week, but this week was all about ticking over and enjoying getting out there again.

I used the Parkrun again as a way of motivating myself to get out of that little comfort bubble of running steady, but decided to extend the session by running the 8.5 miles from my house to the event venue at Avenham Park. I enjoyed the run there, averaging a decent 6:15 pace there, but once I got going in the park run itself I started to feel a bit unwell. I had a dodgy stomach (I have also suffered from a bad cold in the aftermath of the marathon) and felt quite quezzy from pretty early on, so I was pleased to run just a little bit quicker than the week previous, in spite of the illness and the extended warm up.

I finished this week off with a good paced 12 miler. I averaged 6:15 pace overall, but miles 6-11 were very consistent and I found a really nice rhythm, ticking over with splits of 6:07, 6:06, 6:07, 6:06, 6:07 and 6:02. I couldn't have been any more consistent than that - which was especially pleasing the morning after a heavy session on the ale at a beer festival!

Total mileage for the week: 66.5

Average pace for the week (m/pm): 6:20

Total mileage so far this month (October): 76.5

Total mileage for 2017: 2796.5

Average miles per day 2017: 9.99

I have started to plan for my next block of racing and targets, although things are still at an early stage and I need to meet with Rob Affleck to discuss properly the direction that we take from here. For now, I am entered into Brampton to Carlisle 10 mile road race and Wesham 10k in November, and Telford 10k in December. Depending on how things go between now and then, I may also add Ribble Valley 10k to the list at the end of the year, as well as hopefully a few crosscountry events.

My main aims for the rest of the year now are to really target pb's at the 10 miler and also to reduce my 10k time. I have taken a lot of confidence and learned a lot about myself and my training over the recent months, and I believe that I still have scope for big improvements across all distances. I am determined now to get my 10k time down as far below 31 minutes as possible by the close of the year.

Up until now, my targets have always been incremental improvements, and small aims to gradually move in the right direction. That is still very much the case, and each time I hit one of those targets, the bar gets re-set and adjusted accordingly. The marathon performance was by far my most accomplished so far I would say, but I now believe that there is plenty more to come where that is concerned. I am not in a rush to do another one, and it may be that I don't attempt the distance again now until as far away as 2020, but when I do I want to ensure that I maximise my chances of fulfilling my full potential. To do that, I need to get faster, stronger, fitter and cleverer with my training. 

Next year will have to be all about getting as fast as I can, whilst I can. I want to reduce my 5 and 10k times as much as possible, and to do that it may be the case that I finally have to dip my toe into the world of track racing. It is a difficult one for me, as that would probably have to mean joining another club, either as a second claim, or a higher claim for track purposes - as Wesham aren't affiliated to any leagues or track competitions. I don't really know how that works, so it is something that I am going to have to research and look into over the next couple of months.

Breaking through the Berlin Wall

All the training was done, all the miles and hours upon hours of running were in the bank, and by the beginning of last week there was pretty much nothing more that I could do to aid my preparation for the marathon.

As the week started, I was actually in quite a nice reasonable head space and felt prepared and ready for the challenge ahead. But the marathon is a difficult beast to tame, and unless you have actually encountered it yourself, it is hard to describe the mental anguish and psychological mind games that you go through as the event draws nearer.

By Friday - at this point already in Berlin and number collected - I was starting to get nervous, on Saturday I sent myself loopy with cabin fever as I confined myself to the hotel room for the vast majority  of the day, and by Sunday morning I was something of a wreck - mentally and physically feeling exhausted as I headed downstairs for my pre-race breakfast.

Why do we put ourselves through it? I will come to that question in better terms later, but in essence for the sense of belonging and the sheer euphoria as you cross the line knowing that you have really achieved something meaningful - regardless of the time that it takes to complete.

Those that have followed the blog for a while, will be aware that this has been by far my biggest training block and most seriously targeted race I have done so far by some distance. But it has been much more than a 12-14 week journey. I have been building for this one ever since the day I crossed the finish line at the London marathon in 2:36:52 in 2015. That day I had ran an 8 minute pb, and of course earned a lot of memories in the process - but I was determined that I didn't want that to be my pinnacle, or what I was most remembered for in my running. I want to be remembered for my own achievements and the times that I run - not just for being lucky enough to finish with one of the greatest runners of all time, but for running great times of my own.

In the aftermath of London, I made a decision to step away from the marathon for a couple of years. I wanted to get stronger, quicker, more experienced - to really work hard to improve and to come back and do myself justice. I knew back then that Berlin was the venue I wanted to return to the distance at, and I knew that this summer was when I wanted to tackle it.

I have reduced my pb's across all distances in preparation, and increased my main block of training mileage from 14 weeks at 62 miles p/wk in 2015, to 12 weeks at 84 miles p/wk this time around. Rob Affleck has been brilliant with me in guiding me in the right direction every step of the way and allowing me to learn from all his previous experience. He has been a fantastic coach and friend and I can't thank him enough for helping me get into the shape of my life.

The final days of the taper went as follows: Monday - easy 6 miles at 6:50 pace, Tuesday - easy 5 miles at 6:40 pace, Wednesday - 2 miles easy, 2 miles with strides, 2 miles easy, at 6:30 average overall. Thursday - 5k at 6:45 pace. I took both Friday and Saturday completely off running and substituted with just an easy 45 minute walk each day.

As the race got underway, I took advantage of the fact that Rob Affleck was there too, and we set off through the first couple of k's together, easing into it with a couple of steady miles. At around 3-4K though, I knew that I was feeling good - much better in fact than I had been anticipating after feeling horrible in the couple of days building up. I made the decision to press on and catch the back of a group forming just ahead. I went from 5:48 pace on mile one, to 5:38 pace on mile two, and then down to 5:28 pace on mile three.

My pace settled down, and I was feeling in a fantastic rhythm. I knew that I was going well, and I was growing in confidence with each passing kilometre - but was wary that there was still a long way to go. At around 5 miles, I got into a conversation with a runner from San Fransisco, we chatted briefly and he told me that his intended time was in the region of 2:24-2:25. At this point I was just starting to think about reigning it in a touch! He asked me my target and I was honest and said I didn't really know - I had just come to run as hard as I could and get a time as quick as I could. I told him my previous time and said that anywhere around 2:28-2:30 would be nice. He commented that it would be interesting to see if I would cramp up as we were on around 2:27 pace at this stage, before he increased his pace and steamed on. I thought about reminding him of this comment as I passed him underneath the Brandenburg Gate shortly before the finish line, but thought better of it! 😂

My pace was steady and fairly consistent throughout. I moved from one pack to another and tried to keep pushing on each time as much as I could. Settling and tucking in at the back of the pack didn't appeal to me - I wanted to feel in control of my own run and to be the one pushing the pace, not hanging on.

I got into a conversation with one other runner on the course. A German lad a similar age to myself, around the half way stage, he pointed to my vest and said "hey I know you, we have run together before!", and then I remembered him - we had battled it out the first time I won Palma Half Marathon in 2015. It is a small world, and it brought welcome respite - it was good to be running with a familiar face, and it gave me added determination to make sure I beat him again! 😂

Unlike past marathons, when I haven't spotted any of my friends and family along the course, this time I was able to see my mum, dad, Molly, and friends from the club and other clubs multiple times along the way. I can't tell you how much it helps and gives you that extra punch and drive to keep going!

The race couldn't have gone more to plan, right up until about the 38k mark, when I started to feel the effects. Whether this is related to only training up to 24 miles, I don't know, but the last 4k hurt. My pace didn't drop too much, and I stayed in touch with the runners that I had been in and around for the miles leading up to that point. By this stage, doing my maths, I knew that I was on for my sub 2:30 as long as I didn't do anything daft, so I wasn't overly concerned to be slowing a touch, as long as I kept my rhythm fairly consistent. 

I found a last bit of energy down the finishing straight to sprint (ish) home and over the line in 2:28:37 - knocking 8 minutes and 15 seconds of my previous best time. I finished in 89th place overall out of some 40,000 runners, so I can be proud of my achievement.

I am now on a week off from running, and will start to think about my next aims and ambitions over the next few weeks. But I am leaning towards another extended rest from the marathon and another stint at trying to get quicker over the shorter distances once again for a while, before returning to the longer stuff in a few years time again.

It was great to also get to enjoy a few of the sights and learn more about the history of the City yesterday before returning home too. I will leave you with a couple of snaps from my trip - all made possible of course, because of the brilliant Mick's Tours 👍

Total mileage for the week: 47

Average pace for the week (m/pm): 6:06

Total mileage so far this month (September): 211

Total mileage for 2017: 2712

Average miles per day 2017: 10.20

Strawberry sauce and sprinkles

There's not long to go now - this time next week and the marathon will have been ran, and all the training - and now the waiting - will hopefully have been worth it.

In many ways it would be easy to think that there isn't much more left that I can do at this point, but judging the final weeks (the taper) and getting the balance between rest, recovery, and keeping the engine ticking over just enough, is still crucial in order to make sure I hit race day in prime condition.

The taper is something which has a reputation that precedes it of course, and - as with much of my training this summer - it is still very much a trial and error and part of the learning process for me. Luckily I have guidance from more experienced heads around me, but ultimately you just have to trust your own mind and body and approach it as you see best.

Personally, I am delighted with how the 12 weeks panned out and am confident that I am without a doubt in the best physical condition that I have ever been in. That I have got a solid 3 months of uninterrupted, injury free training under my belt is half of the battle and these two weeks in between that block and the race day itself are all about adding the finishing touches. 

The metaphor I am using in my head is that I have bought myself a very nice ice cream in these last 12 weeks, and it's going to taste nice either way - but now I am adding the strawberry sauce and sprinkles to make it just that extra couple of percent tastier! 😂😂😂 

This last week has seen me reduce my mileage down to a smudge under 55 for the week, but whilst maintaining the same intensity to the work that I have been doing. I ran a steady 8 on Monday, then did a reduced short, medium intensity session on Tuesday, before a gentle 30 minutes shake out on Wednesday. The Tuesday session consisted of 9 x 1 minute efforts (at 4:50 minute per mile pace) off a 1 minute jog recovery. 

Thursday was my main session of the week and the final real bit of serious pace work that I intend on doing before the race. Affleck set us a 10k tempo session, with the aim to get around in approximately 33 minutes. Now, I forgot my watch, so had to record the session via Strava on my phone and I am not 100% sure what time I ran - according to my phone it was around 32:20, but according to Rob's Garmin, it was more around 32:40. Either way, it was a really good session, done to a high intensity but without going over the top. I felt brilliant throughout, so hopefully the beginning to drop down the volume of training is starting to pay dividends.

Friday was an easy 8 miles jog home from work, whilst Saturday was just a 3 mile plod. On Sunday I did my final run of any real distance, with 13 miles at a comfortable 6:30 pace throughout.

From here on in, it is all easy running and rest. Basically I will just be playing at it a bit over the coming days. 

So here we are, there's not much left to say, and all the training and miles are in the bank. The next time I blog, the marathon will be done and dusted and we will know the end result either way. There are just a few thank you's I would like to say ahead of whatever may come. Firstly to my mum and dad for helping me through the summer and keeping me sane, fed and watered properly. Also to all of team Wesham that have helped me and given advice and asked about how it's been going through the summer. Rob Affleck for coaching me to this point and dragging every little bit of effort and energy out of me and setting me on the right track with my training programme - not just this summer, but throughout our 4 year journey together! To Moll for the nightmare that I will be in the coming week 😂😭. And finally to you the reader, for giving me the excuse and platform from which to vent and put down into words my thoughts, plans and general training diary.

See you on the other side!

Total mileage for the week: 54.5

Average pace for the week (m/pm): 6:24

Total mileage so far this month (September): 164

Total mileage for 2017: 2665

Average miles per day 2017: 10.29

Berlin Marathon training week 12/12 - clean sweep

So here we are, at the end of the twelve weeks block that I had set myself in order to try and give myself the best possible chance of setting a big new pb at the Berlin Marathon. It has been, without a doubt, the biggest and most demanding spell of training that I have undertaken. It is also definitely the best and most consistent spell of training I have ever done.

Twelve weeks ago, I set off with two main aims: 1) to average above 80 miles a week, in order to give myself the best possible endurance base ahead of the race; 2) to try and get a few carefully selected races in, and as much pace work each week as possible, in order to try and keep as much of my top end speed as possible.

My mileage at the end of the 12 weeks reads as follows: 83, 85, 79.5, 85, 87, 78.5, 88.5, 89.5, 77, 90.5, 87, 69.5. This means I ran exactly 1000 miles over the course of the 12 weeks, at an average of 83.33 miles per week.

My racing has gone well, and I have ticked off as many boxes as possible and got as many of my long runs done as planned to give myself a great deal of confidence that I couldn't have done any more now to get in shape to pb on the day. Now I need to concentrate on making sure I judge the next two weeks dropping down well, and hope for a fair wind and ultimately a performance whereby I do myself justice on the day itself in Berlin.

This week, my main sessions were done back to back on the Wednesday and Thursday evenings. These were the final interclub race of the 2017 series, and an 8 mile tempo around the docks with Rob the day after.

The race was hosted by Red Rose, at Worden Park in Leyland. It was around 4.3 miles long and quite a twisty, turny course. Fortunately for me, there was a few runners missing from the front end and I was able to round off the series with a comfortable victory, without exerting too much energy. It was a pleasing win, that allowed me to complete the full set - an interclub Grand Slam! - with 7 wins out of 7. It is nice to have that little record, as I've been told it hasn't happened before, and having recorded 6 wins from the first 6 races two years ago, I had to miss the final race and the chance of the record then due to holidays. 

My 8 mile tempo went better than expected on heavier legs than normal. I started off rather conservatively and finished up stronger to record an average pace of 5:33.

I took Friday off, rather than doing the planned 8-10 miles, as I had ran every day for the previous 20 days and had a massage booked in. I decided that the rest would probably do me as much good as the easy run I had planned.

On Sunday, I rounded off the final week of the block with a 17 mile long run, as I begin to reduce down the miles for the next couple of weeks. It's starting to get all the more real now, and I just hope that I can perform as planned on the day to do everyone proud.

Total mileage for the week: 69.5

Average pace for the week (m/pm): 6:23

Total mileage so far this month (September): 109.5

Total mileage for 2017: 2610.5

Average miles per day 2017: 10.36

Marathon build up week 11 - Golden Ball 20

The first half of this week was mainly about easy and steady miles, as I was feeling the effects of the previous week of hard training - especially the back-to-back park run and 24 mile weekend effort.

I made the most of the bank holiday and ran earlier on the Monday morning, with an easy hour, and then had a much needed massage in the evening.

I was running on tired legs and wary of pushing it too hard before my body was ready to go again, so I opted against any hard session on the Tuesday. I continued to run fairly easy on Wednesday, but doubled up to get extra mileage in.

My first proper session of the week was the tempo run on Thursday. It was the third week out of three of our 10 mile tempo efforts, and as targeted we have managed to get a little bit quicker each week. Having completed the previous efforts in 55:11 and 54:11, this week's I got around in 53:44. I was really pleased with this run, especially as I hit a few obstacles this time around - getting unlucky with the traffic at one mile, and shortly afterwards had a bit of an altercation with four chavs purposely blocking the path on their bikes! Having forced my way through them, I put in a bit of an effort for the next mile as they followed after me giving me abuse 😏😂

I ran easy on Friday morning as a recovery, and then a steady hour long run home from work on Friday evening.

I had an easier day on Saturday with a 7 mile jog at lunch time, opting to rest up a bit as I was booked in to do the Golden Ball 20 mile road race on Sunday as my final long run.

I was caught between a rock and a hard place on the Sunday somewhat, as I was conscious of the fact that I am getting ever closer to the real race day now, and didn't want to race this one too hard. I wanted to turn it into a hard long run, which is the reasoning behind me doing the race as opposed to another solo long run, but I didn't want to use too much energy. In the end, I opted to stick to roughly 6 minute miles throughout. I ran the first few miles with Matt Lalor and Mark Leadbeatter, and we grew through the field through the opening miles. By 7 miles Matt pushed on and flew through the second half to take a well deserved and thoroughly convincing win. I was happy enough with my run out, recording 2:01:04 (6:04 pace).

It is another box ticked off and another step closer to the real thing in three weeks time. I have one more real week of training planned now, before I start to ease back, which fits in fairly nicely with Molly's return from her American adventure this week. 

Total mileage for the week: 87

Average pace for the week (m/pm): 6:24

Total mileage for the month of August: 383.5

Total mileage so far this month (September): 40

Total mileage for 2017: 2541

Average miles per day 2017: 10.37

Marathon update, week 10 - Park run pb

This week was all about piling on the miles and getting some real intense sessions done, on the back of a more relaxed week last time out. Following on from what was something of a recovery week, this one and the next couple were/are planned as putting the final touches together, to make sure I am in peak condition in 4 weeks time.

I feel that I have probably just completed my best ever training week. I have banked 90+ miles for the first time ever, and have put together a clutch of quality sessions to boot too.

My first serious session of the week was an 8x3 minute fartlek off a 90 second jog recovery. In truth, this one was a hard workout. I probably overcooked it in the first half of the session, with the first 4 lots of 3 minutes all being clocked in at sub 5 minute mile-ing. Despite the pace dropping through the second half (the next 4 reps went at an average of 5:12 pace), I held it together quite well to finish with an overall average of 5:06 through the 8 reps, and clocking about 59 minutes for 10 miles in total.

Thursday's tempo was possibly the most controlled and consistent session I have ever done. I ran well for the 10 miles last week, averaging 5:31s and running 55:11. This time around, I ran even better. I felt strong, relaxed, controlled and as though I could have gone on for a while further too. I ran 5:25 average, and 54:11 for 10 miles. The key though, is I didn't feel as though I was particularly pushing myself, it just felt like a natural and relaxed pace - and I finished it feeling confident that it is a good indicator for the shape I am in.

I doubled up with morning and evening runs on Wednesday and Friday, and with Sunday penned in for my longest run prior to the marathon, I had it in my head that I wanted to be running it on tired legs and - this might sound daft - I actually wanted to feel rubbish for it. Mentally, I just thought that if I can get through that longest run on tired legs and feeling horrible, it would be perfect preparation for how I can expect to feel on race day.

So, as part of that plan, I decided to utilise the local Preston park run on the Saturday. I chose to use it as a really hard session, in order to empty the tank, build up some lactic and also to get a bit of pace work thrown into the mix.

Joe Monk was also doing the Park Run, after his sub 16 effort last week, and so I had some good company to help me get into the right pace bracket early doors. Joe had another good run, on back of equaling his pb at Mid Cheshire 5k just 2 days before, and ran 16 minutes again. Thankfully, I managed to push on and on through the 3 laps and ran strongly. It is a hilly course and not exactly what you would call a quick 5k track, so to run 15:31 on it was very pleasing. It is again, another good indicator of the shape I am in, and despite little in the way of real pace training, I am still probably actually in 5k pb shape potentially on a quicker, flatter course. Taking the course record was a nice little bonus too! I am quite proud to take it actually, as I thought the previous one was a fantastic time on a difficult course, that would be tough to beat.

I ran my long run, which was definitely on tired legs (!), with Rob Affleck, and we ran the Guild Wheel, and added on a lap of the docks and a bit extra around Avenham Park to make it up to 24 miles. I did feel rubbish and it was a hard run, but I got it done, held my pace at 6:35s and - despite wanting to several times - I didn't stop 😂

4 weeks to go, two more solid weeks of training and we are almost there.

Total mileage for the week: 90.5

Average pace for the week (m/pm): 6:30

Total mileage so far this month (August): 336.5

Total mileage for 2017: 2454

Average miles per day 2017: 10.31

Countdown to Berlin (week 9) - Recovery on the move

Week 9 of marathon training saw me drop down the mileage, as planned, in order to recover from two consecutive weeks at an average of 89 miles each. I took Friday off completely, and booked in for a massage as well, as I had ran for 20 consecutive days and was concious of the fact that my body needed a bit of time to take all the recent efforts in.

Still, I managed three quality sessions through the week, so managed to fit all of the most important training in to the 6 days in which I did train.

I ran steady on Monday, Wednesday (double) and Sunday, and put my real effort sessions in on Tuesday and Thursday - with a longer run on Saturday.

In Tuesday's session, I opted for a repeat of the previous Saturday's fartlek session and had a fantastic run out. The session was 15 minutes warm up, followed by 5 x 5 minute efforts off a 3 minute recovery, and a 15 minute cool down. I managed to run each of my efforts at 5:10, 5:00, 4:56, 5:04 and 5:25 pace. The final split was intentionally slower, as I have taken to running my final effort at a slightly more relaxed rate in recent sessions - it is still faster than my intended race pace, but feels substantially easier in comparison to the faster reps that I run before it, whilst making sure that I am holding a bit back in the tank for another day.

This Thursday, me and Rob started our final phase of our marathon preparation together. After 8 weeks of progression work, we have now moved on to doing 10 mile tempos. Last week was the first of these, and I was surprised just how well I took to it on the first attempt. Running 2 miles from the continental pub, along the river and to the docks, followed by 4 laps of riversway dock and then finishing with the 2 mile return back to the pub, I recorded 5:31 average and 55:10 for the ten mile effort. It was a pleasing return, but made all the better by how strong, consistent and relaxed I felt throughout.

On Saturday, I mixed my long run up a bit. After running 23 and 22 miles in the previous two weekends, I dropped back down to 20 miles this weekend. I switched things up a bit though, by running 15 miles as a warm up, before running the Preston park run and then finishing off with 2 miles as a cool down. My first 15 miles were ran nice and steady at 6:28 pace, followed by 3.1 miles at 5:30 pace and then finished off with 2 miles at 7:05 pace. I was left well adrift of Joe Monk, who had a fantastic run to go under 16 minutes for the first time on a difficult course, but overall I was more than happy with my own effort with 16:42 on the back of a big warm up!

After a bit of a lower mileage week, I feel ready now to attack the final 3 weeks of big training now, as things start to get serious and race day creeps ever closer.

Total mileage for the week: 76.5

Average pace for the week (m/pm): 6:24

Total mileage so far this month (August): 246

Total mileage for 2017: 2365.5

Average miles per day 2017: 10.23