Secret Blog for Killing Track and Parkrun PBs

Sunday morning recovery run of 18km, mostly on bike path. Weather sunny, windy, cool. A cold front is rolling through over the next couple of days bringing winds and showers. Next set on Monday morning, a short time trial and 500m efforts. This morning Keith ran a virtual Parkrun in 19:24 on a challenging course.

Saturday morning group session at Stromlo XC circuits. Six of us there for the set, 11 and a dog for coffee after. Weather foggy (pea soup),no wind,cold to cool, grass wet with misty dew. The set: Warm up, 5 x 100m strides, 2000m,1500m,1000m,500m with 2 minutes recovery jog, warm down. All efforts included hills except final 500m. Splits(500m): 2000m(1:35,1:38,1:54,1:43),1500m(1:31,1:39,1:35),1000m(1:31,1:43),500m 1:25. Steve earlier ran a 10km tempo run that included a 4km section at 3:49/km. A short afternoon recovery run after the fog had lifted to maintain 120km for the week. Sunday morning an 18km run on forest trails. Next set on Monday morning with a short time trial and some 500m efforts.

Lunch time hilly 17km run on trails. Weather gorgeous with full sun and light winds. I didn't see anyone on the trails. Next set Saturday morning, the usual group session running long XC intervals at Stromlo.

Lunch time set at Stromlo XC circuits. Weather full sun, cool to warm, light head wind. Same set as yesterday. The set: Warm up, 5 x 500m efforts, 500m jog recovery, warm down. Splits: 1:29,1:26,1:26,1:25,1:24. All efforts under 3:00/km and quicker than yesterday except final effort +1sec. That's my best set of this type on record by 9 seconds cumulative. Steve ran a 12.3km tempo run in the morning including 2 x 3 minute efforts at 3:35/km Keith ran 8 x 150m strides as a set of 2 x 4 efforts. Times were 25 seconds working down to 23 seconds. Next up for Keith is a 5km time trial on undulating terrain. An afternoon run with Milli the Border Collie to maintain 120km for the week. Next set on Saturday at Stromlo, long XC intervals. It could be the last good weather day before another cold front rolls through.

Wednesday morning session at Stromlo XC circuits. Weather cool, partly cloudy, no wind. The set: Warm up, 5 x 500m efforts with 500m jog recovery, warm down. Splits: 1:31,1:30,1:28,1:27,1:23. Surprisingly quick given no hard efforts in a week. Final effort my best on record. An afternoon recovery run to maintain 120km for the week. Next set on Thursday, similar session as today.

Tuesday morning session for Steve of 4 x 3 minute efforts. It was very windy with one direction much faster than the other. I ran to work and back to get my 17km in for the day. For me running mostly downhill to work was into the wind, the return leg up hill and with a nice tailwind. We will now have around 4 days of light winds with crisp mornings and sunny days. That will allow me to get in a couple of strides sessions and one decent workout before the next cold front rolls in on Sunday.

Lunch time run around the lake from work. Weather very windy, cool, sun was out. Hard to get into a rhythm with the wind swirling. I added on an extra loop at the end to ensure I didn't have to go out in the weather again and maintain 120km for the week. It was my first day at work for months due to Covid-19. Now I have a spare set of clothes and some food at work I can commute from home and back tomorrow. I'm only spending two days a week in the office, the remainder working from home. Next set on Wednesday, short XC intervals (500m-800m).

Sunday morning recovery run of 18km. Milli the Border Collie only wanted to run 2km, I took her to a picnic table to wait for me an hour later. Lovely day, full sun, light winds, chilly. I am returning to work for two days this week, the remainder from home. I'll shift to lunch time running on work days, a run around the lake should get the job done.

Rolling on from the European Masters Athletics 5km Virtual Challenge...I now have the 10km challenge to train for and post a time on any date in June 2020. I'm into my 16th week of a high volume (120km+) base building block and about to commence direct preparation block for my own virtual World Masters Athletics Championships which was cancelled. I will run 8000m XC, 5000m and 10000m in the last week of July. The EMA Masters 10km Challenge will slot in nicely into that direct prep block. This week I'll do a mix of long recovery runs on forest trails and short interval sessions (500m-800m) to burn some fat and get my leg speed happening again. The following weeks I'll begin longer intervals, tempo runs and short time trials. When I'm happy with my form I'll look to posting a good 10km time trial or two. I'll mix in grass and bitumen surfaces throughout.

Saturday morning group session at Stromlo XC circuits. A cold, dreary day with low cloud and drizzle, no wind. five of us there for the set, nine for coffee at same venue. The set: Long warm up, 5 x 100m strides, 5 x 3 minute efforts with 1 minute float recovery on the hilly 2.5km loop, warm down. All up 14km for the morning, an easy recovery run in the afternoon, 120km for the week. Sunday morning a long recovery run on forest trails. Elsewhere Steve ran the set 6,5,4,3,3 minute efforts. Splits: 3:49,3:43,3:38,3:35,3:41/km

The Open European Masters 5km Virtual Challenge was completed today. I finished 1st M55, 4th Age Grade Overall 95.1%. We had from the 9th-21st May to complete a 5km and provide evidence through Garmin or Strava. Eight of my friends completed the 5km, some a couple of times. In the end there were 346 finishers, mainly from Europe. The talent pool was extremely deep with many world champions and ex-Olympians competing. It was a great event to be a part of, I had several overseas friends and competitors competing. My closest age competitor was Steve Watmough, only 6 seconds back. When the Covid-19 panic hit and all running events stopped I continued training and racing by myself or with friends. In all I had 15 time trial over 1500m-5000m. During the Open European Masters 5km Virtual Challenge I had 6 time trials over 1500m-5000m with my final 5000m 16:31 being my best performance. Results for my friends: Steve 17:44, Jeff 18:43, Helen 22:32. Jen,Gabe and Clare didn't submit times. ...

Thursday morning virtual Parkrun at Ginninderra pacing Clare W65 23:45ish, Gabe W55 25+mins and Jen W65 24:45ish, Carol solo W55 28+mins. Weather cool, foggy, no wind. Goal to establish times for the girls in the Open European Masters 5km Virtual Challenge. All the girls did well. 10km for me in the morning, 7km at lunch, 120km this week marking the end or week 15 of this high volume (125km/week) base building block. Tomorrow begins a new training block to focus on direct preparation (8 weeks) for a competition period of one week (virtual World Masters Athletics Championships 8000m XC, 5000m, 10km road) to be held from 20th July.

Wednesday morning Virtual Parkrun 5000m at Stromlo, pacing Helen for a time in the Open European Masters 5k Virtual Challenge. Weather chilly, very windy, drizzle and rainbows. Helen's last 5km outing was with perfect weather on grass in 22:32. With the weather against us today we moved to the adjacent bitumen criterium track. Result on that surface was an identical 22:32. Both her runs were outstanding. Had conditions been OK today Helen could have lopped off 10 seconds or more from that time. I had a lengthy warm up before Helen arrived. 17km for the day, 120km for the week.

Tuesday morning Virtual Parkrun 5000m at Stromlo. Weather +4 degrees, no wind, foggy. Both Steve (17:44) and I there. We were using this run as a time for the Open European Masters 5k Virtual Challenge. Splits: 1:36.7,1:36.1,1:37.5,1:38.0,1:39.9,1:39.9,1:41.7,1:41.5,1:42.1,1:38.1=16:31.4 Like yesterday I had no bad splits although I was relatively slower in the final 2km. That's my fastest 5km since January 2018 when I ran the same time at Parkrun Gungahlin and 16:29 in Oceania Masters Athletics Championships a couple of weeks later. 15 weeks of solid training at high volume (125km/week) and numerous time trials to get my speed endurance up. Biggest difference today was mental...I was up for it knowing it was my last time trial in this training block. I can rest mentally for a few days now.

Monday morning 3000m time trial around Holdens Creek Pond in 10:01. Weather cold +2 degrees, light winds, sun not up yet. Focus was starting conservative, holding speed and having no bad splits as I have had in some of my recent time trials. On this circuit one 500m sector is slightly faster (1 second) than the other on the almost 1km loop due to 70m of loose gravel on the bitumen path. I need a broom! Splits: 1:40.6,1:41.7,1:40.6,1:41.7,1:42.3,1:34.9=10:01.8 Result no bad splits. First 1km was identical splits to the 2nd kilometre. I had enough left to run under 3:10/km for the final 500m. Almost a perfect run pace wise. A lunch time recovery run to make 17km for the day, 126km this week. It's exactly 9 weeks until my virtual World Masters Athletics Championships which was to be held in Toronto Canada. My focus will now be preparing for those events. 20th July 8000m XC, 22nd July 5000m, 26th July 10000m. There won't be much change to my training sessions. Recovery days will ...

Early Sunday morning 5km Time Trial doing laps around the Holdens Creek Dam. Weather cold (minus 1), light winds, pre-dawn. Any later than 630am and the paths are unsafe, people, dogs, prams everywhere. I'll try again in coming days. It was my first outing on this course. I had 3 bad splits, I can go faster. A warm down along the river with Milli the Border Collie made it 18km for the day, 126km for the week. I bumped into Leonor along the track. Splits: 1:35.6,1:40.9,1:39.6,1:41.7,1:44.0,1:41.9,1:45.4,1:41.3,1:45.1,1:35.1=16:50.5

Saturday morning set at Stromlo XC circuits. Weather cool, no wind, cloudy. Most of the girls ran a marathon or half marathon to celebrate Jen's 65th birthday on Wednesday. We ran an undulating fartlek session to keep the heart going but rest the legs. We've done this set in the past, named the 'Half Chat' because we can only chat half the time during the session. All the girls were well matched, I was able to round all of them up during the recovery phases. The set: 2500m warm up, 5 x 100m strides, fartlek session, 3000m warm down. Pace for me started at 3:30/km reducing to 3:02/km. 11km for the session, recovery run to make 17km for the day, 126km this week. Next set on Sunday morning including a time trial incorporated into a long run. Steve ran 6,5,4,3,3 minute efforts starting at 3:49/km reducing to 3:25/km. Keith ran a 5km time trial in 19:56 today and has been reducing his times consistently since April.

Friday lunch time tempo run by the lake. The weather was great, full sun, light winds, cool. Pace was in the low 4mins/km. 126km this week. Next set Saturday morning at Stromlo XC circuits.

Lunch time run with Milli the Border Collie. She only wanted to do that much, me too! I did run 30km the day before. I was sore from my collision on the bike path in strange places from being air born and landing heavily. I have 10-15 seconds I can't account for during that incident, a slight concussion. I will aim for a longer recovery run on Friday morning. On Saturday morning I'll aim to complete a set or time trial.

Wednesday is Time Trial day. At Gungahlin Parkrun course Steve ran his 5km time trial in 18:00. I ran 17:16. Both Steve and I had to return and restart our time trials after I collided with another runner after 1km leaving me lying on the ground with a sore neck and assorted cuts and abrasions. After I had some medical treatment I traveled to Stromlo XC circuits to pace Helen in her 5km time trial. Helen's Splits: 2:06.3,2:21.61,2:10.44,2:21.93,2:13.95,2:19.86,2:14.72,2:19.46,2:12.38,2:14.19=22:34.8 That is Helen's best 5km since her 6th place in the 5000m W55+ World Masters Athletics Championships race in 2016. Helen also placed 2nd in the W55+ 10000m, 3rd in the W55+ XC and also a member of the winning Australian M55+ XC Team at that meet. I will have to allow for some recovery time before I attempt another 5km time trial.

Freezing Tuesday morning again. Steve and I did Tempo runs. Minus 2.6 degrees at Dairy Flat Road for my 2km Tempo run (3:30/km). It would have been more but for everything limb being frozen. Steve reported minus 1 degree at his local lake. His Tempo run 12.5km including 4km at half marathon pace. 4km splits:3:58,3:56,3:53,3:51. 17km for the day. 120km last 7 days. Next set Wednesday morning a 5000m Time Trial. It should be a little warmer than today.

Monday morning 3000m Time Trial at Stromlo. Weather freezing minus 2.7 degrees, no wind, full sun just up. The set: Warm up 3.5km including 5 x 100m hill strides, 3000m TT 9:59.5, 1.5km warm down. Splits: 1:35.5,1:38.2,1:40.4,1:42.1,1:40.4,1:43.0=9:59.5 An easy recovery run at lunch to make 17km for the day, 120km for the week. Next set on Wednesday 5000m Time Trial.

Sunday morning 18km recovery run down to the lake and back. Weather cool, windy, full sun. We celebrated easing of Covid-19 restrictions with a small gathering. It was a late night and happy I have done my running early so I can have an afternoon snooze. Next sets will focus on setting times in the European Masters 5km Challenge, a virtual event we have entered to keep things interesting. I'll look to post a couple of solo 5km times and help my friends post theirs with some pacing help. Any sessions in between will be short interval sets that aid my 5km time. I'll incorporate a few easy days but won't drop below 120km/week.

Saturday morning set at Stromlo XC circuits with the girls. Weather cool, very windy, partly sunny with the odd shower. The set: 4500m warm up, 5 x 100m strides, 5km XC Virtual Parkrun on the hilly 2.5km loop, warm down 2500m. Seven of us for the set, 11 for post run brunch. Helen 23:52 and Jen (incorporating long intervals) best of the girls. An afternoon recovery run to make 17km for the day, 120km for the week. 5km Splits today: 3:20,3:21,3:35,3:17,3:34=17:10. Splits 26th March: 3:18,3:37,3:22,3:42,3:28=17:27. Splits for 3rdkm and 5thkm included a hill and into the wind. A 17 second improvement since 26th March which used the easier 2km loop with two less hills compared to today. The wind on 26th March was coming from the opposite direction, just as strong. Steve ran 6,5,4,3 minute efforts. Splits: 3:58/km,3:56/km,3:44/km,3:39/km. Sunday a long recovery run. Next set on Monday short XC intervals (500-800m).

Friday morning 17km recovery run on forest trails. Weather cool, some cloud, light winds. Next set on Saturday morning at Stromlo XC circuits, long intervals. 120km last 7 days. Keith in Bemboka continues his build up of form. On Thursday with a hill session of 10 x 200m efforts all between 38-40 seconds. Keith tested out some older shoes Adidas and Nike Zoom Fly. Nike a clear winner.

Thursday morning session at Stromlo XC circuits. Weather cold, pea soup fog, no wind, track slippery from dew, wore full body cover. The set: Warm up, 5 x 100m strides, 4 x 500m efforts with 500m jog recovery, warm down. Splits: 1:35, 1:33, 1:31, 1:29. An afternoon recovery run making 17km for the day, 120km last 7 days. Wind increasing today with rain to follow on Friday and Saturday as a cold front moves through. It should be fine with light winds by Sunday afternoon. Friday a long recovery run, set at Stromlo XC circuits Saturday morning (long intervals), long recovery run with strides Sunday. This morning Steve ran 4 x 3 minute efforts with a 3:38/km average for the last 3 efforts.

Morning Time Trial at Stromlo over 2000m in 6:30. Weather cold zero degrees, frost and fog about, sunny, no wind. The set: Warm up, 5 x 100m strides, 2000m time trial, warm down. Splits: 1:38.7,1:37.2,1:38.7,1:36.0=6:30.6. Time was 3 seconds quicker than a week ago. Only 6km in the morning, 11km recovery run on forest trails at lunch. 17km for the day, 120km this week, 13th week of high volume training, average 123km+/week.

Morning set at Stromlo XC circuits. Weather cold, sunny, no wind, heavy frost on track, slippery. The set: Warm up, 5 x 100m strides, 3 x 500m efforts with 500m jog recovery, warm down. First 500m effort on bitumen, grass too icy. Splits: 1:38,1:32,1:29. Wearing spikes or similar in future. Morning session was 8km. An afternoon recovery run to make 17km for the day, 120km last 7 days. Next set Wednesday morning, I'll see how I feel and wear shoes with some grip, more frost. Steve is back into structured training again after a short active recovery. Today it was a 10km tempo run at half marathon pace.

Monday morning 5000m Time Trial at Stromlo in 16:51. Weather a freezing minus 1 degree, sunny, no wind. The sun made it bearable. Splits (500m): 1:39.4,1:38.9,1:40.5,1:39.8,1:41.4,1:42.5,1:41.6,1:45.9,1:41.1,1:39.7=16:51.0 Splits were very similar to my last 5000m TT on 9th April. Biggest difference was 3 seconds slower in the final 500m this morning. In the afternoon a very short recovery run to make 121km last 7 days, down from 130km as of yesterday. Next set on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings at Stromlo, short XC intervals (500m-800m). Later in the week some long recovery runs as I wait for another cold front to roll through.

A cold Sunday morning 18km recovery run, all on forest trails. Snow overnight on nearby hills and lots of it on Mount Franklin in the Brindabellas. No clouds to be seen and light winds made it great for running. I had Milli the Border Collie for company. Next set on Monday morning, I'll wait to see how cold it is and how my legs are to decide the set. Monday to Wednesday will be cold early with light winds. The next cold front will be developing from Thursday to Sunday when it hits Canberra. I'll make the most of the good conditions early in the week and run back to back sessions. Volume this week is 130km. I'll reduce that back to 120km on Monday morning by not doing a second run after the speed session.

Saturday morning session at Stromlo XC circuits. Weather very windy, cold, track completely saturated, sometimes sunny. We found a relatively dry section on the lower part of the circuit although nowhere to hide from the 50kph winds. Five of us there. The set: Warm up, 5 x 100m strides, 4 x 800m efforts with 400m slow jog recovery, warm down. Post session coffee and jaffle. Six of us there for that. Splits: 3:15/km,3:09/km,3:10/km,3:06/km. Huge gusts of wind out there during each effort. It was almost stop dead at times. The best of the girls just over 4:00/km. Sunday morning a long recovery run. Next set on Monday morning, the weather should be less windy, very cold morning.

Friday morning 8km XC run, first 4km with Milli the Border Collie, second 4km solo. Weather cold, very windy, course saturated and slippery. Only 7 degrees expected in Canberra today, snow on the mountains. Splits from 2nd 4km (500m): 1:48,1:58,1:44,1:55,1:46,1:52,1:47,1:53. Every 2nd split was into the wind. Tough going out there. In the afternoon an easy 9km on forest trails making 131km last 7 days. Next set on Saturday morning at Stromlo XC circuits, long intervals. Yesterday marked the first day that Canberra (population 400,000) is Covid-19 free. Of course things can change quickly, it only takes one person to start a cluster again, here's hoping it stays this way for a while. I am still working from home, we are on level 3 restrictions. In Bemboka Keith continued his return to training with a set of 150 metre strides in 18 seconds.