Confidence Boost

Monday May 26, 2014 (4 weeks to Grandmas)
It has been an absolute pleasure to be outdoors this past week. Unseasonably warm weather has meant a delay to dreary winter. As much as I know winter will eventually arrive, I do feel like cramming as much as possible into this welcome return of summer.

Smoke shrouded the city from backburning in parks surrounding Sydney on Thursday. The air felt like and smelt like summer. 

Great week of quality runs. My confidence has been boosted especially by last Sundays long steady run - the Tourist Trot STaR. First time since my return to running that I managed to I keep up with the 6am pace group.  Wonderful conversation pace running through the city which sparkled in the morning light.  My goal was to run at consistent pace for around 20-25km. Finished 22km in 2hr11min - bouncing off the walls with delight the rest of the day. Particularly pleased as I can feel the low carb eating has kicked in - I don't feel any energy lags running at this pace. 

Previous Thursday completed a 3k TT in 14.45 at North Head, a tempo 14km to Long Reef on Wednesday and on Tuesday 15*30sec hill repeats. Total mileage for the week 50km.  Happy me!

Great North Walk

Monday May 19, 2014 (5 weeks to Grandmas)

Consistent week of running for a total of 60km over five days. Painful heel on every run but otherwise feeling a bit quicker and stronger.  Still panicked about my ability to run the marathon distance but a little bit more confident after completing a long run on Saturday.  

Tuesday: I did 4*1km intervals at  average pace of 4.50min/km. Also celebrated Training Shirt Tuesday by wearing the very bight GrandmasMara training shirt. It is all beginning to feel very real now.

Wednesday: a  14km tempo at Long Reef at average pace of just under 6min/km. Dare I dream of being able to sustain this pace for 42.195km?

Thursday:  12*30sec intervals with 30sec jog recovery, at an average pace 4.30min/km.

Friday: strength training at the gym. 

Saturday: Long slow trail run on  the Great North Walk from Bobbin Head to Crosslands and back.  A total of 30km over 5 hours. I wanted to see how my body would react to being on my feet for a long time,  moving at a moderate pace and on low carbs. Except for the painful heel, I felt terrific the whole way- there was no energy lag. The last 3km were the quickest at just under 6min/km pace. This is my longest run in 3 years.  It will be interesting to see what happens covering the same distance at a more consistent pace on the road (and with carbs added).

Sunday: Walked over the Harbour Bridge to photograph the SMH Half Marathon. With well over 12,000 runners it was a bit congested in many parts. It was great to see parts of the city I have not visited in a long time. The conditions were pretty close to perfect. My observation is that the suffering looks the same  whether you are a front, mid-pack or back of the pack runner. It is just the front runners suffer for a shorter time :-)

On my way to Grandmas

Monday - May 12, 2014 (6 Weeks to Grandmas Marathon)

I had meant to keep a weekly update of my training progress towards my return to running a marathon, but the return was looking so uncertain that the blog got a bit neglected. I thought I cleared all the hurdles, my doctor now knows I am running (a little) and she is OK with that, she is happy with my overall progress and is happy to consider weaning me off all treatment over the next 12 months.  But my confidence in the ability of my body to handle the challenge has taken a battering. Each week I tried to ramp up either speed or endurance there has been a setback requiring a visit to the physio and time off from running. It made me question if what I was asking of my body was maybe just too much considering the underlying damage.   

Over the past six weeks I’ve managed a, not nearly enough, total of 200km. Not a lot of running that would inspire my confidence to tackle a marathon.  Anyhow I am still optimistic especially after a strong Sydney 10k on Saturday May 2 at Homebush. I exceeded my expectation, whilst not a blistering pace it was quite a bit quicker than I thought I was capable of at this stage of my progress.

I am on a quest to find the right pair of running shoes that will take me through a road marathon.  I am convinced that is the main problem now and if I can get that resolved I should be fine, providing I don’t run out of time.  Currently running with a painful R heel, muscle cramping in R calf and high hamstring tendinopathy (just back to normal I guess). Almost weekly physio visits are keeping me on the road.

Over the next month my focus will be on building my long slow distance runs and work on building my mental strength.   Each run is a mental struggle to keep going, partly due to a change in diet and partly due to lack of conditioning. I am waiting for the breakthrough moment when running feels smooth and natural and I will be able to run feeling like I have an extra gear – if needed.    

BUT despite feeling slow and clumsy at the start of each run, it is absolutely thrilling to be running again – highlights in the a past month include a five day running camp in Alice Springs over Easter – not a huge amount of running but plenty of interval running on soft surfaces and the most amazing scenery.

I also  returned to Athletics NSW competition in the Novice X-country event at Scarborough Park, Ramsgate and  Hammer I went to the Sky Run at Mt Buffalo in early April, he ran while I spectated.

Rangers cabin on top of Mt Buffalo

And lastly I did a 20km slow run walk in the Blue Mountains during the Mt Solitary Ultra in late April.  Five weeks to go till Grandma's marathon – trip is booked just need to get a few long runs to boost my confidence.