...for yesterday.
Had a good day both at work and with training. HURRAH for both!
Managed to get up early this morning (it was still very dark outside and even the bin men had not been), and headed for the gym armed with a running magazine and my swim stuff. It's ok I wasn't going to read in the pool... but read on the bike. Yes I did take it kind of easy, a steady 45mins of easy spinning on the gym bike (not too ideal a stead but you get what you get).... nothing too arduous, keeping my HR well in the FB zone (about 122). Read pretty much all the mag too. Good oh! The bike said I'd done 25+k which can't be right really, so assumed that to be more like 20k.
Followed the ride with a quick shower (I'm considerate like that), and headed for the pool for a session (second one of the week - can't remember when I did two swims in a week). Did a good session there, again quite a lot of drills for a total of 1500m in about 45mins.... All good stuff so far.
Then scampered on back home to work for the day - yes I do occasionally have the opportunity to work from hom. Usually get quite a bit done too - although today my phone was more like the bat-phone... didn't stop ringing all day!! Still a good day it was too... so much so that this evening I took one look at the TV listing for tonight (nothing on) and headed back to the gym!!! Just to see if my calf would stand a run. Did look a bit of a nerd (yes, yes, more then usual), as I had a compression sock on the bad leg - but not on the other one - and yes I was wearing shorts. As I said; I looked a bit of a nerd!!! Still I managed 10mins on the x-trainer as a warm-up (which counts as "running" in my training tracker!), some stretching then on to the treadmill for some intervals. Nothing too strenuos - 10reps of 1'@11.5kph, 1'@8kph. This was all fairly comfortable - which is fine at this stage of the training schedule. Walked for 5' warmdown (which I don't count in my stats), before embarking on a rather lengthy stretch session (which I will count in my stats!). Have realised (about time some would say) that the stretching part is really important, particularly to my warm-down. My hammies, calfs and quads could all do with being longer and certainly not so tight!
So I think I've made up for yesterday's malaise! Tomorrow is though another day. I'm working in London all day prior to going to a black-tie awards evening in Mayfair in the evening. So there will certainly be no training in the afternoon/ evening, and let's face it I'm going to have a sherbert or two at the awards evening so I am planning on having a TFI Friday with no training in it. So my chance to train is tomorrow morning - which means an early get up so I can fit it in something before taxi comes to get me in the morning! What that something is is dependent on the calf situation in the morning. If it's up to it I'd like to get another run in - we will see.
On another important note - There may be an addition to the family. More on that later.
Oh and one further book of recommended reading (not that I usually do recommend books), but this is particularly for Wes. Wes you may consider putting this on your Christmas list:
"The Book of Etiquette", written by Lady Laura Troubridge (1926)
A very interesting read !!! ;o)
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
The breaking strain....
...of a kitkat....
Yesterday I planned a strength session in the morning and either a club run in the evening of easy turbo on the bike.... I did manage the strength session before breakfast but did not make any evening activity - to be fair though this was mainly because I didn't leave work until about 7pm and then when I did get home I was on the phone (working) until just before 9pm... so no fun there. To be honest I thought it best it worked out that way in the end because my calf (the one that had the strain in the summer) seems to be sore after the x-country. Thinking about I realise I did have a bit of cramp on the route on Sunday, which is probably what I'm feeling... hummm... hopefully no strain like the last time.
Anyhow - onto the point of note.....
I then *thought* I'd get up early this morning to make up the bike session with another one this evening (this time a swim)... and this is where my will power has let me down! I have discovered over recent months that what they say in the books is true: Get your training in early and it takes away the strain from having to fit it in the rest of the day. Anyhow I obviously forgot this when I hit the snooze button at 0615 this morning! The Kitkat was definitely under strain. But it's ok I thought... I'll do a 50' bike and a swim still tonight.... Oh then I went to work where.. SNAP... "Shall we go to the pub after work?"... "Oh ok then"... damn. So I find myself home late and with no will to get on the bike and do anything.
At least I stuck to the lime and soda!
Recent training summary;
Monday: Strength session = 1 hour
Tuesday: Zip, Nil, Nada....
Yesterday I planned a strength session in the morning and either a club run in the evening of easy turbo on the bike.... I did manage the strength session before breakfast but did not make any evening activity - to be fair though this was mainly because I didn't leave work until about 7pm and then when I did get home I was on the phone (working) until just before 9pm... so no fun there. To be honest I thought it best it worked out that way in the end because my calf (the one that had the strain in the summer) seems to be sore after the x-country. Thinking about I realise I did have a bit of cramp on the route on Sunday, which is probably what I'm feeling... hummm... hopefully no strain like the last time.
Anyhow - onto the point of note.....
I then *thought* I'd get up early this morning to make up the bike session with another one this evening (this time a swim)... and this is where my will power has let me down! I have discovered over recent months that what they say in the books is true: Get your training in early and it takes away the strain from having to fit it in the rest of the day. Anyhow I obviously forgot this when I hit the snooze button at 0615 this morning! The Kitkat was definitely under strain. But it's ok I thought... I'll do a 50' bike and a swim still tonight.... Oh then I went to work where.. SNAP... "Shall we go to the pub after work?"... "Oh ok then"... damn. So I find myself home late and with no will to get on the bike and do anything.
At least I stuck to the lime and soda!
Recent training summary;
Monday: Strength session = 1 hour
Tuesday: Zip, Nil, Nada....
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Cross Country
As in off road not angry (although after that football game most of the country is actually quite cross - but that's another thing entirely!)
So what fun. A lovely morning, cool with blue skies and dry. Hurrah! Unfortunately I had a very very good sleep (read overslept) so had breakie a little late at about 9am. This gave me 2 hours before the race.... which I thought may not be enough given I had porridge... and I was right! The starting horn sounded and a fought with the food for the first couple of miles!
The race itself was really nice, well attended and really well organised. It took place on some army training ground, mainly trails through forest. The paths were all pretty good with the odd area of boggy mud which really didn't hinder at all.
The race itself was a little ... err... "emotional" for the first half in that it was quite hilly, some longer and some short but sharp nasty little things. Apparently this is good for you (so I'm told!!). Found myself being overtaken on the hills then catching some people back up on the downhills (I can't help myself but just freefall these!)
With the help of the trusty Garmin you can see the start was in the sandy area in the centre. The first loop around to the right was were it got hilly. After that the loop to the left was very slight slopes really with open heathland and a little boggy.
In the graph thingy above some stats... HR, pace and elevation change (from previous point I guess??). HR started nice and easy (that's because the first half mile or so was down hill pretty much!)... then came a bit of a slight hill followed by a short nasty monster during mile 2. I guess you'd put mile 3 onwards definitely in the tempo zone. I didn't warm up really until a good 10-15mins into the race (yes maybe I should have actually warmed up before the start ...hummm)...... the next race is as soon as next weekend and that one is supposed to be very very hilly (OH DEAR!)
A good way to get a training run in though.... Oh just under 55mins for 5.5miles (8.9km) and 66th lady from about 90.. which is about normal for me (particularly given these x-countries are full of proper club runners and this is the first run in two weeks and about 2nd in a month!!!!)
Oh and Wes - yes no IM in the race schedule for next year - I am not that mad (yet) ... unlike you ;o)
So what fun. A lovely morning, cool with blue skies and dry. Hurrah! Unfortunately I had a very very good sleep (read overslept) so had breakie a little late at about 9am. This gave me 2 hours before the race.... which I thought may not be enough given I had porridge... and I was right! The starting horn sounded and a fought with the food for the first couple of miles!
The race itself was really nice, well attended and really well organised. It took place on some army training ground, mainly trails through forest. The paths were all pretty good with the odd area of boggy mud which really didn't hinder at all.
The race itself was a little ... err... "emotional" for the first half in that it was quite hilly, some longer and some short but sharp nasty little things. Apparently this is good for you (so I'm told!!). Found myself being overtaken on the hills then catching some people back up on the downhills (I can't help myself but just freefall these!)
With the help of the trusty Garmin you can see the start was in the sandy area in the centre. The first loop around to the right was were it got hilly. After that the loop to the left was very slight slopes really with open heathland and a little boggy.
In the graph thingy above some stats... HR, pace and elevation change (from previous point I guess??). HR started nice and easy (that's because the first half mile or so was down hill pretty much!)... then came a bit of a slight hill followed by a short nasty monster during mile 2. I guess you'd put mile 3 onwards definitely in the tempo zone. I didn't warm up really until a good 10-15mins into the race (yes maybe I should have actually warmed up before the start ...hummm)...... the next race is as soon as next weekend and that one is supposed to be very very hilly (OH DEAR!)
A good way to get a training run in though.... Oh just under 55mins for 5.5miles (8.9km) and 66th lady from about 90.. which is about normal for me (particularly given these x-countries are full of proper club runners and this is the first run in two weeks and about 2nd in a month!!!!)
Oh and Wes - yes no IM in the race schedule for next year - I am not that mad (yet) ... unlike you ;o)
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