Two Months In …

Things are going well at the moment. I am managing to maintain consistency. I am enjoying my training. I am still varying my training due to it being my off season. And I am improving (a bit).

As stated above I have been varying my training.  This includes the use of pieces of gym equipment that I rarely go near. This includes the Versa Climber and the Concept 2 Rower.  I normally go on these bits of kit after a spinning session and set myself the target of, by Christmas, managing to do an hour on each. Well I managed to achieve this target this week: Monday I got up to the hour on the Versa and Tuesday an hour on the rower … well chuffed with that :)

On the weight front I have now lost a total of 15lb … this is making a massive difference on the bike. I am averaging higher speeds … getting close to the magical 20mph average for my 60mile ride. And climbing much better … something I never thought I’d hear my self say (or type in this case)

The Stats...

WEIGHT	197lb	(14st 1lb)(89.5kg)	Total Loss = 15lb
BODY FAT	16%	Combination of Scales and Calipers	Total Loss = 6.7%
WAIST	34.25in	(86.9cm)	Total Loss = 2.25in

Finally, my better half has decided it would be a good idea to enter me into a Marathon next month. All arguments to the effect that I have not been training for a marathon falling on deaf ears … so the 28th of October … I will be running a marathon in Newcastle … All good fun.

WW

Run, Run/Walk, Walk

Whichever way you look at it the Ironman marathon is both a challenge and a joy, you will have the swim and the bike behind you and you will be thinking more of the finish line but you will also be hurting, you will be tired and aching and you insides may be doing summersaults (think portaloos).

Unless you are a one of the very speedy types walking will probably pay part of your race. You will see many posts on various forums from those macho types belittling those who walk, but in truth many find themselves walking at sometime during the marathon.

You may have a strategy of run 9 walk 1 or similar or walk the aid stations and ramps and run the rest or you may just be playing it by ear.  In Switzerland I ran the first lap quite fast, then i switched to 9/1 and by the end it was more like 2/1 but I got round in a reasonable time.

The key to this is (IMHO) to know that walking in a race is not a stroll, you need to know how to pace you walk, In my first Ironman in Germany 2006 I walked most the marathon as I'd overcooked it on the bike, but I was passing others who were running and i finished strong. if you think about it, if you walk at 7kph you can cover a marathon in close to 6hrs

A good place to practice pace walking is on a treadmill, maybe as part as an indoor brick session, a typical session may look like ...

• Spinning class
• Then Treadmill set the incline to somewhere between 1% and 5% and start at 5kph
• Each minute up the pace  by  0.5 kph until you are at 7kph 
• then alternate 5min intervals at 7.0kph and 7.5kph for up to 1hour

The purpose of 7.5kph interval is to make the target pace of 7kph feel 'easier'

Also when you're out and about think walk not stroll

All this will hopefully help you not slow down too much in your Ironman marathon when you walk ... remember WALK DON'T STROLL 

WW

Newcastle Town Moor Marathon

It's been quite some time since I ran a marathon by itself, probably over 2 years so I spotted this one, the Newcastle Town Moor Marathon, a while back and since it's almost on my doorstep I thought I'd give it a go. 

I haven't really done any marathon training as it's my 'off season' so my longer runs have only been between 10-13miles and only a couple of runs per week, but i am feeling quite fit at the moment so i hoped that would carry me round the 26.2 miles.

Also I didn't bother tapering either as i was going into the race as just a run out and still did my PT session on Thursday and tempo run on Friday ... but i did have a rest day on Saturday with nothing more than a walk on the beach with the dog.

The race was 5 laps of the town moor and ii RAINED ... in fact it rained so much that the paths were quickly turning into streams and the off road sections turned into mud bogs .. i quickly wished i had wore a pair of trail shoes rather than my normal runners

Things got off to a good start and I felt good in myself ... well apart from the DOMS from all the squats on Thursday but I quickly loosed up and into my stride running at about 9mm and maintaining that pace well into the race and to the half marathon.

On the third lap during a half mile off road section i slipped and pulled by right hamstring but i managed to run this off in the next couple of miles but it did slow me down. 

On the last lap, my lack of marathon training showed and I slowed dramatically and had to introduce a 1min walk in each mile.

But I eventually finished in a not to shabby (for me) time of 4:26 getting me thinking that i may have to try and train properly for a marathon some time.

So I went home happy ... and wet and  took Monday as a rest day

WW