Secret Blog for Killing Track and Parkrun PBs

A bit of a diversion from here on as I am training for a marathon and my best friends are training for much shorter. Of me: I will detail in next days. Of my friends: The training will be a bit more hands on but this is the general gist. In simple terms: Stick to the Stromlo set. We have to enter your events soon...think smart (think to win) and work backwards from there. Race pace lactate intervals are at no slower than 3:20/km for Steve and Keith. Direct Preparatory Period 2 December 1-January 5 Aims to develop: Aerobic endurance, race pace, specific speed, power Training Goal: Aim to fit in no more than 3-4 of the sessions below each week according to body fatigue LT Runs: steady runs comfortably hard of 20-50 mins at lower threshold, effort =3/10, weekly once Race Pace Lactate intervals: short intervals at race pace, effort=9/10, weekly once-twice Long intervals, long recovery: 800-2000m with long recovery at race pace, effort= 9/10, weekly once Ra...

The sets: 4x100m, 2000m, 1500m, 1200m, 800m, 400m, 4x100m, 4x600m. First part with Steve, last part with Steve and the girls. Minnie was doing a 10km threshold in early preparation for the Paris Marathon. A no pressure session today, just happy to get through it. The ribs were very sore by the end. All the efforts were roughly 5% slower than normal. Today ends a strange month. I started and finished with a 145km week and had nine days of minimal or no running in the middle. I still averaged over 100km per week for the month.

Wednesday and Thursday and Friday the same basic loop of 90 minutes+ through the bush and taking a diversion to see the track resurface progress. That makes a weekly total of 140km + this week. The chest slightly better. No need for drugs on training runs or tape. Still using a compression top. Still hurts all day. Still can't sleep at night. Still 3-4 weeks before it is better and I can breathe properly again. Happy to see some signs of recovery. The track has been laid 120m approx. My guess is they are laying 30-40m a day. It's starting to look good and from what I can see it looks like it will be ready on time. Kathy had a return to form on Tuesday with 23:35 for 5km. I big improvement fro the week before. Keith is still training hard. Running in Albury a 5000m this weekend. Steve is recovering from the 10km up north in 37:50 or so.

The course slightly different than the previous two runs with a washout on the bike path adding an extra hill into the mix. On the positive: Near exact splits on the out and back course of 8:45 giving 17:30 or 3:30/km. The running form was good. I didn't fatigue much at all. I won by 30seconds. On the negative: My two efforts in November 2009 were 16:07 and 16:14 (with help of some great runners). No matter how I look at it 2kg overweight off 7 days training and 1.5 lungs and broken ribs 17:30 is an awful result so no Zatopek Lower Grades 10000m next Thursday. I will have to take the long road back into form. Long road back into form means next Tuesday another fake race 5km at Stromlo. The following weekend Black Mountain Challenge 5km run (last 2.5km up,up,up). Sessions and long runs in between. Big picture: Broken ribs should be better in 4 weeks. Oceania Masters 5000m and Half Marathon in first weeks of January to aim for. I am from this day forward aiming for a good mar...

I tried a session this afternoon but a small sore spot in my thigh put it to an end and into along run of 19km. The failed session 4 x 100m, 800m 2:34, 200m 36 stop niggle, continue to 90 minutes or 19km. Six days straight running and 118km for the six days. Tmoz if the rolling pin takes care of the knot a 5km effort on the bike path. That will take a week of 136km and aside from the fat belly I should be near the fitness I was two and a bit weeks ago. The bones are far from healed, as on previous days ibuprofen in small doses and compression tops get me through the persistent pain in the chest...I've given up on taping.

After helping out at ACTVAC XC handicap a late long run of 90min+ on the bush trails. Being disoganised I had to do drug free (ibuprofen) and was not pleasant at all. I can't wait until those bones finally heal. This afternoon another run to make up 25km for the day and keep that weight dropping off. Still 2-3kg overweight.

Yesterday another 75 minute run in the bush. No compression, tape but some ibuprofen. Very painful until the pills kicked in. Today at Stromlo just a few of us including Maria, Kathy and Karen. The set: 4 x 100m, 4 x 800m with 200m recovery (2:39, 2:38, 2:36, 2:34). Karen ran the first two efforts with me. Another improvement on past days and never flat out...still some ways to go. A late loosener this afternoon.

Down in Keithland 4 x 100m, 4 x 1000m all around 3:28 For me a trip to Stromlo after work without the drugs, tape and compression tops I had yesterday...result painful but almost bearable. 5000m splits: 5:00 warm up, 4:00, 4:00, 4:00, 3:20=20:20. I did the session as intervals with the watch on 20/100m for the first 500m and recovery float for the next 500m. I couldn't maintain for the first 3 efforts, by the fourth I was 2 seconds under and ran hard to the finish. At 2kg over weight and still in some pain the body is barely coping with the shock back to life. Only 20% chance of making Zatopek Lower Grades 10000m on December 5 but I will give it a crack. I will race 5000m next Tuesday on road and shock the body a little more. I will need to get in lots of slow kilometres this weekend to shed some weight. After the session I ran with Bella another 8km

Three pieces strapping tape, two compression tops, two ibuprofen, one long run of 80 minutes in the bush. Chest sore the whole way but not unbearable. Unsure of how much pain without ibuprofen but I don't want to find out. On the way I looked at the track. Work has begun with high jump and long jump areas first. Seems to me like a face lift job and not a new face. I can't be sure about the main track so I won't say too much and hope we get a decent track out of this and not the old one with make-up on. I am back on program meaning a session tmoz. Will see how and if that goes before thinking out loud.

The ribs only getting marginally better each day. I'm now able to sleep well enough and had my second day of running (13 minutes today). It is still scary painful so I won't go beyond these small trots unless the body improves. Today Minnie drove off to Goulburn to visit Charlie and bring us back a new trainer for the bike. My old time trial machine is set up on the new Lemond Revolution. This afternoon begin to sessions based on the running program. Only 10 minutes on the trainer. 1 minute rolling, 6 minutes gear 53/15 @ 85rpm, 1 min rolling, 2 minutes 53/17 gear @ 100 rpm. I've been wantng to do some cross training for a while and finally I am back into it but not by choice...I'd rather be running. No pain on the trainer, very much pain running...the jolting to my ribs all too much at present. Next day, Monday: 10 minutes or 2km with Bella then 10 minutes on the trainer. 1 minute rolling, 6 minutes gear 53/15 @ 85rpm, 2 minutes 53/17 gear @ 100 rpm, 1 minute r...

This morning: Steve and Jane usual set: 4 x 100m, 2000m, 1500m, 1200m, 800m, 400m with 200m walk recovery. The conditions were cool with a stiff breeze. Steve another step forward, Jane a step back up after an easier week. Kathy & Helen: 4 x 100m, 5 x 1000m. Kathy just starting to find form again. Helen in great form still (404-413). Both having to rely on Tuesday Spring Series races to keep race fit. Karen found us after a two year absence to to family circumstances and travel. She she is very fit. Hope to get her back on the track when we get one and along for some training sessions. KT & Ken out there doing own thing and quick. Ken especially looking good again. In Bega Keith 2x 1600m, 1200m, 800m, 400m 5:55, 5:49, 4:19, 2:47, 79 Of me: Two cracked or bruised ribs still. Tried a 300m run with much pain but no bad after shocks. Hopeful I can do some very short runs in the next days or if not weeks. Not risking anything though, prepare to wait another 5 weeks if I ...

It took a few weeks but I finished watching all 110 episodes of Northern Exposure over a period of 4 weeks (including some episodes twice). I still have one DVD to go as 'Ed' has just launched a book and DVD to be released by the end of the month...good timing Ed. I could say much more on this topic but will save for another time and different place. What I will say again is I visited Roslyn (Cicely) in 1990 by an act of fate. The show was first shown in US around the time I visited but it did not screen in Australia until 1993. I only watched several episodes but it had a profound affect at that time. Sometimes I wonder if the show helped form who I am or whether it simply resonated with who I was already becoming. My ribs are sore, right near my heart.

Took a tumble yesterday so no running. Bruised rib, bloodied arm, bloodied and sore hip, bruised shin all down the left side. No damage that should take more than a few days to get over but Victorian 5000m Championships is off for me. I will get another chance to race in Melbourne on December 5 Zatopek lower grades 10000m.

Today a 90 minute early in the bush trails and a 30 minute loosener late in the rain. This week peaked at 147km, now down to 137km, aim to get to 90km by Thursday and the Victorian 5000m Championships. Need one final session on either Monday or Tuesday. Last year the session was on Tuesday: AIS 600m (146),400 (68),300 (50)200 (32) with short recovery. This week it all depends on the rain and wind. Beyond Thursday it will be several months of working hard and mini-tapers for key events. I've kept the workload going longer than I did in late 2011 and 2012 with an eye on the Paris Marathon in April 2014.  Time will tell if that's good or bad for track.

We scheduled in a TT 5km at AIS simply because there are four days of the old track left and we don't get the new track until 2014 (grass only until then). On any other day we would have run in the bush tracks...so glad we didn't. 5000m TT: 1. Positive head 2. Perseverance The wind as the BOM attest was gusts to 39kpm at 8:30am, but we did any way. Steve 17:48 (all time PB, but no where near current form) ; Keith 18:07? ; Me 17:00? ; Jane 12:00? 3km It wasn't so difficult for me until lap 6 when the wind knocked 4 seconds out of me in 90m (at 3:10/km), from there it was all down hill. I looked across the track each lap after at Steve and Keith and lost track of the laps, but couldn't work the story out until post race, so sorry. In any case a good session and some lessons for all. Tomorrow a long recovery run, Monday or Tuesday a final track session, a huge taper until Thursday, Victorian 5000m Championships.

Last meet before the track is ripped up and renewed. 3000m: Me on pacing duties, every 100m in 20 or a touch under for 9:5? Along the way Steve held on for 5 laps 10:10? (season best) and Keith 10:22 (lifetime best and getting very close to the ACTVAC M55 record). That's a great way to end part 1. Anthony Kennedy also a run out of the box low 10s...great running you three. 800m Higgins handicap: In honour of the only runner to die at an ACTVAC track meet. Minute Silence. Almost 30 runners lined up. I'd never won this event, best a 2nd & 3rd. While I haven't got any slower than in 2008 (even quicker if anything) those around me have slowed. I thought 2:16 would do the job. Set the beeper on 17s and was 2 metres under at the first 100m and got in the groove for a 2:15 and win by 30 metres or so. I must have gone through 600m in 1:41 which is a tad quicker than training on Tuesday (see the previous post) and held onto it to the end. I still have 146km in the legs t...

Yesterday rond du lac Walter Burley Griffin + etc in 85 mins. Today 4 x 100m, 4 x 200m with 200m recovery (34,33,33,32), 600m, 400m, 200m with 200m recovery (143,68,31) with Steve. In Bega Keith 4 x 600m (159,157,157,157) plus 4x100m Helen 1500m 6:09 plus 4x100m   On Thursday 3000m and if capable 800m handicap.

Yep that was the count this morning on the 92 minute run on Black Mountain and Mount Painter...very hot. I did a loosener on Mount Painter this afternoon and it has cooled off nicely. That's 120km for the week, my first for a couple of weeks. All the reptiles were sun baking on the track and my second brown snake sighting this year got me alert to the lizards and sticks that look like snakes.

This morning the usual set with Steve and Jane early, Maria and Kathy later. It has been a while as the magpie has been swooping. Today I didn't see him although others did. The set: 4 x 100m ; 2000m 6:41, 1500m 4:55, 1200m 3:55, 800m 2:27, 300m 51 ; 4 x 80m power hills. Steve was around 3:30/km only the early efforts and quicker than me on the last. Jane was well under 4:00/km today. I helped Maria on her efforts 1500m,1200m,800,400m after my set. This afternoon a loosener and tomorrow a long recovery run.

It's been a week of getting my legs back after those hard runs on Thursday and Sunday last. Wednesday and today long recovery runs of 70 & 90 minutes. Thursday a 20km run including 5 x 600m on track (153,150,150,150,149). Deliberately slower than usual but shorter recovery to replicate a 5000m pace. At track Keith, Steve and Helen ran the 1500m. Helen also ran the 6 lap handicap. All good runs for everyone on the night. Keith ran an all time PB in the 1500m. As an M55 he is now in contention for a medal at world level in everything from 1500m up. Still much improvement possible for all of them but the track gets ripped up after next Thursday so they may have to wait until the new year.