Project Good For Age Week 13 of 30
Goal : Automatic Entry Into the London Marathon
How? : Run a 3:15 Mara @ Manchester Mara in April (Current PB 4:45)
First Step : Run a 45 Minute 10k @ Windmill 10k race on 12th November (achieved) (10k time at start of project : 58 mins) www.fyldecoastrunners.com/uploads/5/2/4/9/52490083/w10k3_overallresults_classic.pdf
Next Stop : Blackpool half mara in Feb – Target 1:37 (Current PB 1:58)
The dreaded week 13 and it’s xmas week…
We are slap bang in the middle of party season and I am sat here drinking a fookin protein smoothie whilst the masses get pissed.
Some days I aint interested, feel like i’m operating on a different level like.
Yet on other days, a song like this comes on the wireless and I start thinking “what am I doing? Life is all about making memories….Let’s go get pissed like everybody else”.
But the biggest thing I have learnt in this quest for speed?….
One must learn to resist.
The thing is, i’m not like a normal person that can go out and just have a couple……
I’m like Gazza,….
It’s ten pints, bad food, smokes, then I start helping myself to the top shelf and before I know where I am i’m bouncing around some night club at 2am when I really should know better at 41 years of age….
Not exactly condusive to what I am trying to achieve is it?
I doubt you will catch Mo Farrah engaging in such debauchery.
So strongly do I feel about the xmas party season totally wiping out all my hard work so far that I have enetered a 10k race that starts at 10am on boxing day….
10am on boxing day.
There was a time, and it wasn’t all that long ago, when Iron Rookie was just getting in from the night before at that hour on boxing day…
We are nearly there Rookie, stick to the beetroot smoothies son, your time will come….
On a similar vein, my weight is at the lowest it has been for a while. 13/6 from a start of 14 stone.
I reckon there is still a good stone, possibly a stone and a half of fat to shift there.
As I keep saying, shedding excess weight in a bid to increase speed is a complete no-brainer in my opinion (try running with a rucksack full of bricks on your next LSR and u will soon see what I mean)
On that note, an interesting article got my attention this week.
I am tempted to give it a go.
I’ll keep you posted.
Here is how training went.
Monday 5K Speed set on the mill www.strava.com/activities/1317593066
Notching it up once again, here is what I wrote immediately after the session…
0-1km @ speed 15 – Felt comfortable
1-2 @ speed 14 OK
2-3 @ speed 15 Starting to feel uncomfortable
3-4 @ speed 14 Uncomfortable
4-5 @ speed 15 – closed me eyes and held on!
Wednesday – 5k Speed session on the mill exactly as above
0-1 – OK
1-2 Started to feel it towards the back end of the kilometre despite the lower speed
2-3 – Cranked it up, Went into a place where I just totally focussed on my music, didn’t want to look at the screen till the end of the track when hopefully it would be nearly over
3-4 were uncomfortable despite the lower speed – I think pscologically you say to yourself “this will be a break because the speed is lower” – but its not a break, its still a tough speed.
I remember looking at my HR and it was up at 170 which unnerved me as I knew what was coming. Tried to settle into my rhthym, sort my breathing out and get my HR under control.
4-5 – Managed to get the HR to around 167 before going into the final km and noticed it stayed steady in the early 170’s once I got cracking at the higher speed which I was pleased with but lets have it right, I cranked it up, shut my eyes and help on once again!
Make no mistake, I am working in these speed sessions, like really working and i’m pushing the line.
Always I am soaking wet through at the end – soaking wet.
Friday – 5k on the mill, exactly as above
I was pissed off today and I tell you for why.
My HR monitor on my Garmin stopped working properly as soon as I fired up the mill.
Nothing like seeing your HR plumeting to record lows to unnerve you before you’ve even got started.
Now I might be a little bit crazy, but I ain’t stupid.
Trying to do a 5k run close to the red line without a HR monitor would be like a skydiver jumping without a spare parachchute.
You simply don’t do it.
Plan B was to hold the HR monitors on the mill every kilometre, which wasn’t ideal.
I got through the session but I didn’t enjoy it one bit.
However I noticed something interesting, according to the mill, my HR was lower at the various points than it has ever been on my garmin.
This need investigating.
£220 sheets I paid for that fookin Garmin….
I expect better.
Sunday 14k on the mill at target race pace (speed setting 13) www.strava.com/activities/1317590027
Still, I continue to do my LSR’s on the mill.
0-3 were a piece of piss as you can imagine, race pace feeling little more than a jog.
“Lovin this” I thought to myself.
3-8 were weird.
My legs felt ok, my breathing felt ok, but I got this strange sensation, like a motion sickness, as if my body doesn’t understand how I can be ‘running’ for so long without actually going anywhere – this was slightly uncomfortable.
But once I got to 8km, I began to feel ridiculously strong again.
I am noticing a theme here, It’s almost like my body doesn’t warm up properly till 8km!!
8-10 were great.
10-13 and I gets distracted.
If Carlsberg did gyms they would probably be the best gyms in all the world, if you catch my drift.
Not exactly what the HR needs is it?
I swear one of them turned round and started smiling at me.
Can you stop that please?
I’m in ‘the zone’ here
Anyhow, into the final kilometre and the following happened…
This tune dropped at max volume and I was absolutely buzzing my tits off….
www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlWwd0q-HWM
The euphoric legal high that occurs when you are feeling strong for the final kilometre of your first attempt at a new distance at target race pace whilst listening to really loud dance music, it’s ridiculously addictive, and its something I have only really started experiencing in these last few weeks.
I was high as a kite – whatever chemical reaction is happening in my brain during these sessions, my god do I want more….
Next update : 24/12/17 – Xmas Eve! let’s have it!!…..
To your amazing journey!
By the way, I have written a book, it’s all about how I went from zero fitness to completing an Ironman triathlon, it’s only just come out but it has got some fantastic reviews already!- you can check them out here: (also available on Amazon in the US but please read the UK reviews first!)
