Dear faithful reader, I confess I've been a tardy blogger!
There has been lots to report - I have two training sessions, a fitness assessment, and yesterday's half marathon to tell you about.
There's also exciting personal news like having sold my house, finished an assignment for school, and rewarding progress at yoga.
On the fundraising front I'm thrilled to announce as of this morning I've surpassed the $1500 mark. Getting to $5000 is not going to be easy but I feel incredibly motivated to strive.
Updates are on their way, I promise! Thank you for your readership!
Monday, June 29, 2009
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Week 4 : Session 1 : Pacing and self knowledge
I really enjoyed training last night and it could not have been a greater contrast to Wednesday’s session last week.
I knew the plan was warm up jog, running drills, then three repeats of 1.2k (increasing speed on the final 400m), with 400m slow jog recovery between each.
There was no guest speaker so I knew I’d be able to get home nice and early and also that we’d have time to get through the full session, no compromises.
I thought about the challenges I faced last week, going out to fast on the first interval and spending the rest of the time recovery, and I thought about how counting in my head with my breath helped me manage my pace on Saturday’s run.
I wanted to maintain or slightly increase my speed with each 1.2k repeat which meant finding the balance of pushing hard but not too hard.
Well the short of a long story is it worked out! I kept a counting rhythm going in my head which I varied according to my pace, I managed to feel in control of myself and in control of my pace, I picked up the pace for each of the final 400s, I jogged slowly during recovery, and when all was said and done and I was able to check my my times it was something like 8:13, 8:09, and 7:49.
During the running I focused mainly on the counting but when my mind did slip I tried to steer it towards positive thoughts – how it was a beautiful night and pleasure to be running under those conditions, how attractive albert park lake is, how much I enjoyed the challenge of pacing and that it was truly all about self knowledge and working towards surrendering the ego. Good times!
Nutrition continues to be very challenging this week! I’ll keep you posted on that one.
Two quotes that are rocking my world today :
If you think you can or you think you can't, you're right && He who rejects change is the architect of decay.
I knew the plan was warm up jog, running drills, then three repeats of 1.2k (increasing speed on the final 400m), with 400m slow jog recovery between each.
There was no guest speaker so I knew I’d be able to get home nice and early and also that we’d have time to get through the full session, no compromises.
I thought about the challenges I faced last week, going out to fast on the first interval and spending the rest of the time recovery, and I thought about how counting in my head with my breath helped me manage my pace on Saturday’s run.
I wanted to maintain or slightly increase my speed with each 1.2k repeat which meant finding the balance of pushing hard but not too hard.
Well the short of a long story is it worked out! I kept a counting rhythm going in my head which I varied according to my pace, I managed to feel in control of myself and in control of my pace, I picked up the pace for each of the final 400s, I jogged slowly during recovery, and when all was said and done and I was able to check my my times it was something like 8:13, 8:09, and 7:49.
During the running I focused mainly on the counting but when my mind did slip I tried to steer it towards positive thoughts – how it was a beautiful night and pleasure to be running under those conditions, how attractive albert park lake is, how much I enjoyed the challenge of pacing and that it was truly all about self knowledge and working towards surrendering the ego. Good times!
Nutrition continues to be very challenging this week! I’ll keep you posted on that one.
Two quotes that are rocking my world today :
If you think you can or you think you can't, you're right && He who rejects change is the architect of decay.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Week 3 : Session 2 : A good session, but the other 22 hours in my day need work
Saturday was a pretty good training day.
Usual start to the day - alarm goes off and I think "WHY, Lee?? WHY???? How do you get yourself into these messes".
By the time I make it to training I'm more positive, but only gingerly.
I felt confused as to where we were supposed to be running not knowing the area so well, but dismissed it. As long as I ran for 35 minutes, turned around, and made that negative split I'd be happy.
And that's what happened. I got lost, but I made my negative split and I was happy! and I know the area a little better now, so hopefully an improvement to the map following next time..
I stayed and stretched for 20 minutes, and pulled up ok on Sunday. It was a much more comfortable, controlled run than Wendesday night (thank goodness!) and I experimented with counting in my head in conjunction with my breath to pass the time and manage my pace. I liked it, more to come!
On the other hand.. things I've still to work out is actually getting the sunday, monday and thursday training I have planned achieved (watch this space..), getting enough core strengthening in during my training week, and eating right. This week I plan to focus on the eating, so we'll see how that's going after thursday night!
This coming Saturday's workout is a shorter run - 8k - and the following weekend I have the half marathon, so this two weeks between now and then seems the perfect time to get good habits launched and consolidated. Watch this space!
Usual start to the day - alarm goes off and I think "WHY, Lee?? WHY???? How do you get yourself into these messes".
By the time I make it to training I'm more positive, but only gingerly.
I felt confused as to where we were supposed to be running not knowing the area so well, but dismissed it. As long as I ran for 35 minutes, turned around, and made that negative split I'd be happy.
And that's what happened. I got lost, but I made my negative split and I was happy! and I know the area a little better now, so hopefully an improvement to the map following next time..
I stayed and stretched for 20 minutes, and pulled up ok on Sunday. It was a much more comfortable, controlled run than Wendesday night (thank goodness!) and I experimented with counting in my head in conjunction with my breath to pass the time and manage my pace. I liked it, more to come!
On the other hand.. things I've still to work out is actually getting the sunday, monday and thursday training I have planned achieved (watch this space..), getting enough core strengthening in during my training week, and eating right. This week I plan to focus on the eating, so we'll see how that's going after thursday night!
This coming Saturday's workout is a shorter run - 8k - and the following weekend I have the half marathon, so this two weeks between now and then seems the perfect time to get good habits launched and consolidated. Watch this space!
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Week 3 Session 1 : Empowered by feedback, the glass is half full
Difficult training session last night!
The conditions were tough, cold and wet, with lots of puddles on the albert park track.
Time was an issue as we didn’t get started on our warm up until about 6:35 and our intentions were warm up jog, running drills, 8 x 400m sprints with 400m jogs in between, cool down and stretch – all before a 7:30 talk from a guest speaker, a nutritionist.
We knew meeting those intentions was not possible but it was not clear what we would cut to make it work, which was tricky for me, I like to know exactly what I am going to have to do so I can pace my level of effort accordingly.
Warm up was nice and I got to chat a bit to Dave who has done marathon training with Can Too in Sydney before and recently moved to Melbourne, he is a mentor to us and it was good to find out a bit more about him.
Only half of me was present in the running drills but after reading part of the book "chi running" on the weekend as well as our notes on running form prior to training, when we set out to do our sprints I was TOO focused on form. I set out on my first sprint very quickly (for me) with high knees, chest up and out, pumping my arms, and was utterly exhausted by the end of it. Yes, exhausted at the end of the first sprint, with 7 more planned to go.
Instead of jogging between the first and the second I walked to recover. I did this again after the second sprint until coach Brian caught me and advised I’d recover better with a slow jog. I found this extremely hard to believe but managed to jog between the remaining sprints (due to time constraints we ended up only doing 6).
My middle two sprints were absolutely terrible, not much more than a slow jog, after having gone out too hard and fast to begin with. When I knew there were only two more to go I was able to regain some control and run well and actually enjoy myself. On the fifth spring I focused on appreciating being at training, being in the moment, concentrating my effort on the rhythm of my breath and my footfalls, and on the sixth I basically just hammered it, gave it all that I had left.
Rushing straight from that high intensity into sitting down for a talk was not ideal. I stayed at the back of the room and stretched for most of it and I had some hot tea in my thermos to enjoy once my body had cooled down (It was an absolutely freezing night). The nutrition talk was very informative and reiterated a lot of my recent reading. The irony of us discussing the importance of getting carbohydrates into our system in the first half hour after finishing training was not lost on anyone (Noone was prepared with food to eat during the talk). Last Saturday I had a smoothie with me for right after training and I will try to organize something similar (with perhaps less preparation) to take on Wendesday nights in future.
On the negative side, I was disappointed with my lack of control over my level of effort and outcome during the session. On the positive side, I showed up despite the difficult conditions (There was only a handful of my group who did), I gave it a red hot go, and I made sure to do plenty of stretching afterwards! And for the first time on a Wednesday night after training, instead of having takeaway I made a healthful dinner at home afterwards with a carefully calibrated mix of carbs, protein and veggies. The glass is half full, I think.
The conditions were tough, cold and wet, with lots of puddles on the albert park track.
Time was an issue as we didn’t get started on our warm up until about 6:35 and our intentions were warm up jog, running drills, 8 x 400m sprints with 400m jogs in between, cool down and stretch – all before a 7:30 talk from a guest speaker, a nutritionist.
We knew meeting those intentions was not possible but it was not clear what we would cut to make it work, which was tricky for me, I like to know exactly what I am going to have to do so I can pace my level of effort accordingly.
Warm up was nice and I got to chat a bit to Dave who has done marathon training with Can Too in Sydney before and recently moved to Melbourne, he is a mentor to us and it was good to find out a bit more about him.
Only half of me was present in the running drills but after reading part of the book "chi running" on the weekend as well as our notes on running form prior to training, when we set out to do our sprints I was TOO focused on form. I set out on my first sprint very quickly (for me) with high knees, chest up and out, pumping my arms, and was utterly exhausted by the end of it. Yes, exhausted at the end of the first sprint, with 7 more planned to go.
Instead of jogging between the first and the second I walked to recover. I did this again after the second sprint until coach Brian caught me and advised I’d recover better with a slow jog. I found this extremely hard to believe but managed to jog between the remaining sprints (due to time constraints we ended up only doing 6).
My middle two sprints were absolutely terrible, not much more than a slow jog, after having gone out too hard and fast to begin with. When I knew there were only two more to go I was able to regain some control and run well and actually enjoy myself. On the fifth spring I focused on appreciating being at training, being in the moment, concentrating my effort on the rhythm of my breath and my footfalls, and on the sixth I basically just hammered it, gave it all that I had left.
Rushing straight from that high intensity into sitting down for a talk was not ideal. I stayed at the back of the room and stretched for most of it and I had some hot tea in my thermos to enjoy once my body had cooled down (It was an absolutely freezing night). The nutrition talk was very informative and reiterated a lot of my recent reading. The irony of us discussing the importance of getting carbohydrates into our system in the first half hour after finishing training was not lost on anyone (Noone was prepared with food to eat during the talk). Last Saturday I had a smoothie with me for right after training and I will try to organize something similar (with perhaps less preparation) to take on Wendesday nights in future.
On the negative side, I was disappointed with my lack of control over my level of effort and outcome during the session. On the positive side, I showed up despite the difficult conditions (There was only a handful of my group who did), I gave it a red hot go, and I made sure to do plenty of stretching afterwards! And for the first time on a Wednesday night after training, instead of having takeaway I made a healthful dinner at home afterwards with a carefully calibrated mix of carbs, protein and veggies. The glass is half full, I think.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Week 2 : Session 2 - Good Session, lots of rest afterwards
Warm up jog, running drills, and then setting out for a one hour run (or 10k which ever came first, for me it was one hour). It was our first run leaving Albert Park (the mid point was the base of Anderson St Hill on the tan) and the intention was to start out at an easy pace and pick it up from the turnaround point, with a few surges on the way home for a strong finish.
I took easy pace to heart and started out very slow and comfortable, heart rate 160ish. I was glad to have started slow, after about 15 minutes coach Brian came back and ran with me so there was some inevitable pace picking up then. At the turnaround point my heart rate was in the upper 180s so I tried to ease off for a few minutes before picking things up again.
About 40 mins in I felt a sharp pain in my low back, left hand side. I tried to run through it but had to stop and forward bend for 30 seconds or so and then it was gone. Gave me a little bit of panic but also reminded me that if something happens on the big day itself, I'll deal with it and keep going. It's not the end of the world.
After the stretch I was able to keep some pressure on the pace, get some surges in and finish with a negative split of about 500m and no discomfort, so I was happy.
I hung around at Albert Park stretching and doing yoga for half an hour. I spent the rest of the day quite restfully, did some reading, got my hair done, took it easy - a big improvement on the previous weekend.
I had planned to go to the Grampians the next day for the rest of the Queens Birthday long weekend but decided to stay in town and lay low, rest, take it easy - I knew it would be a long time before I'd have two days off with no pressing plans again.
I didn't run as planned on Monday, taking the opportunity to get my body fully rested. Wednesday is going to be a very intense session (8 x 400m sprints with 400m jogs in between each) - so it will be interesting to see whether the rest has helped or hindered.
Was great to relax and get a important matters dealt with. Nutritionally the weekend was a disaster and I have noticed over the past few weeks I've been having a lot of sugar, coffee, and lots of white bread/white rice - I am not feeling so great about it all and am sure it's been affecting my energy levels, so I'd like to refocus on this area.
I took easy pace to heart and started out very slow and comfortable, heart rate 160ish. I was glad to have started slow, after about 15 minutes coach Brian came back and ran with me so there was some inevitable pace picking up then. At the turnaround point my heart rate was in the upper 180s so I tried to ease off for a few minutes before picking things up again.
About 40 mins in I felt a sharp pain in my low back, left hand side. I tried to run through it but had to stop and forward bend for 30 seconds or so and then it was gone. Gave me a little bit of panic but also reminded me that if something happens on the big day itself, I'll deal with it and keep going. It's not the end of the world.
After the stretch I was able to keep some pressure on the pace, get some surges in and finish with a negative split of about 500m and no discomfort, so I was happy.
I hung around at Albert Park stretching and doing yoga for half an hour. I spent the rest of the day quite restfully, did some reading, got my hair done, took it easy - a big improvement on the previous weekend.
I had planned to go to the Grampians the next day for the rest of the Queens Birthday long weekend but decided to stay in town and lay low, rest, take it easy - I knew it would be a long time before I'd have two days off with no pressing plans again.
I didn't run as planned on Monday, taking the opportunity to get my body fully rested. Wednesday is going to be a very intense session (8 x 400m sprints with 400m jogs in between each) - so it will be interesting to see whether the rest has helped or hindered.
Was great to relax and get a important matters dealt with. Nutritionally the weekend was a disaster and I have noticed over the past few weeks I've been having a lot of sugar, coffee, and lots of white bread/white rice - I am not feeling so great about it all and am sure it's been affecting my energy levels, so I'd like to refocus on this area.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Week 2 : Session 1 : First 5k Time Trial
Yesterday I had a physically intense afternoon doing a team building exercise for work. It was great fun and had us running around the city all afternoon. Unfortunately it had me running late … Then I was distracted and got off the tram at the wrong stop making me even later for training (and by that stage, quite fatigued)
I knew we had the 5k time trial and that I wanted to do well – It wasn’t the time that concerned me (except as a baseline for future performance) but getting the process right – acknowledging the fatigue I felt and using that information to guide my pacing and effort.
Well I wasn’t able to get it all right – I don’t think I achieved a negative split for instance, but I was pretty close and am stoked with the run. Everything hurt but I was able to find a pace that I was able to maintain, with some struggle, what I thought was probably the right amount of struggle for a 5k time trial. It was another great mental exercise, running at a challenging pace with no ipod to aid disassociating.
Afterward I was pretty spent, in great need of a long stretch and a big sleep. I stayed at Albert Park for another 20 minutes stretching and doing yoga in the cold. I felt like a kill joy while the rest of the group went to the pub – which I would have really enjoyed, It’s going to be great to get to know these guys better as we go, but my mind and body were crying out for the stretching and the downtime.
My time was 34:27.
I knew we had the 5k time trial and that I wanted to do well – It wasn’t the time that concerned me (except as a baseline for future performance) but getting the process right – acknowledging the fatigue I felt and using that information to guide my pacing and effort.
Well I wasn’t able to get it all right – I don’t think I achieved a negative split for instance, but I was pretty close and am stoked with the run. Everything hurt but I was able to find a pace that I was able to maintain, with some struggle, what I thought was probably the right amount of struggle for a 5k time trial. It was another great mental exercise, running at a challenging pace with no ipod to aid disassociating.
Afterward I was pretty spent, in great need of a long stretch and a big sleep. I stayed at Albert Park for another 20 minutes stretching and doing yoga in the cold. I felt like a kill joy while the rest of the group went to the pub – which I would have really enjoyed, It’s going to be great to get to know these guys better as we go, but my mind and body were crying out for the stretching and the downtime.
My time was 34:27.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)