Off Season 2018-19

[marathondan]

Miles in the bank have somewhat dropped off a cliff edge after the marathon. Not entirely unexpected. This week has been half term, and most of my aerobic jollies have come from gardening - quite basic and heavy stuff, as I'd done little to keep the garden under control for the last two years. I did however manage a pleasant slow woodland trot early in the week, a good Marathontalk episode (457) on the audio. Today I rounded things off with a rare trip to Parkrun, bookended with two miles travel either side, making a handy 7.5 mile mixed pace outing. Next weekend I hope to get back to the weekly run to Windsor. The short version comes in at about 7 miles, but is fully on road - not something I should be doing a lot of. The long version is around 10, 7 of which are on the Thames towpath and only 3 on hardtop. One of those per week should keep me honest, if I can keep up the routine.

I've mentioned that I'm thinking about trying to get under 4 hrs for my next marathon challenge, as I have two more years to attempt it as a VM40. It's tempting to do it just to use the thread title "Project Breaking 4", but I'm starting to think it would be a bad idea. In 2012 I missed 4 hours by just two seconds. That was an attempt to break a PB set 7 years earlier in my first marathon, and ended up well wide of the mark. Next year is 2019, so in aiming for sub 4 I'd be trying to better my mark from... yep, 7 years earlier. It's a nice idea, but maths and biology aren't on my side. This was brought home again today when I put in a tidy Parkrun, but it was still 100 sec or so outside my PB. A PB which I might never beat. So, that's not a final decision, but I think Project Breaking 4 might be a recipe for heartache.

Then again, what do they say...? Isn't it something like "aim for the stars and you'll detonate on the launchpad reach the moon"?

[marathondan]

The first long run to Windsor didn't happen; everyday life got in the way, as often happens. Managed to sneak out for a circuit of the medium length woodland loop in late afternoon. It occurred to me that dusk would be falling, but by the time I'd got changed and stopped  to put toppings on pizzas before I left, the nightfall situation was rather more advanced. Not ideal for running in tree cover, but I know the paths like the back of my hand and found my way without any falls or branches in the eye. As it wasn't a super long run I'd intended to push the pace up to about 9 min miling, but what felt like a good effort level was rewarded with rather slower than that. I'll blame the mixed terrain and poor visibility, but yet again I'm reminded how the combination of age and sporadic training are slowing me down. On the audio was the Physics World podcast and some gentle banter about the discovery of helium 150 years ago by observing emission spectra. As a physics teacher without a physics degree, I need to be absorbing* more of this stuff to enable me to talk around my subject.

Data for the first half of the year have been lost (and I don't care - must really be getting old).

Jul: 82 miles, Aug: 128, Sep: 47, Oct: 16. 2nd half of year to date: 279

Didn't remember October being that bad - time to get back into good habits.

* (no pun intended, if any physicists are reading)

[marathondan]

Completely failed to find time / energy to run last weekend, or the adjacent weeks. However, the fates were aligned yesterday and I managed the long route to Windsor, along the Thames towpath. It was a textbook glorious Autumn day, not a cloud in the sky, and nature had laid down the red carpet for me along the riverbank. The rowing season seems over, so I didn't see a single active watercraft for once. As I skirted Dorney Lake there was a 5K race in progress. So for a while I was able to run 10m or so from the pack, with a fence between us. I was glad that, even though I had 5 miles or so to go, I had nothing to prove today.

It's a shame that this route takes in 4 miles or so of road, to get onto it and then on to my final destination, but it's a cracking route at a shade under 10 miles. If I could keep it up weekly that would be tremendous. Of course I won't, but it was another good try at getting back into the habit.

[Bierzo Baggie]

It's a shame that this route takes in 4 miles or so of road, to get onto it and then on to my final destination, but it's a cracking route at a shade under 10 miles. If I could keep it up weekly that would be tremendous. Of course I won't, but it was another good try at getting back into the habit.

Once a week will keep you ticking
Twice a week will get you kicking
Three or four...
Can't ask for more

I've been averaging once or twice a week for much of the last few years ...any  more and I might well have injured myself.
Which I did anyway 

Oh, and I'm talking about running! 

How about frequent short runs? it's the long 'ns that are really time consuming!

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Once a week? Oh, Lord...

[marathondan]

Thanks BB, it's a while since I've had a poem from you! I struggle to find the energy for any kind of run during the week, long or short. We all know that the long runs in particular are the most mentally therapeutic. It's a journey that I normally make on a Saturday anyway, just by car rather than on foot. So for now I'm sticking with ticking... sooner or later it will all start clicking. (And I don't mean my knee - hopefully.)

[Charliecat5]

Thanks BB, it's a while since I've had a poem from you! I struggle to find the energy for any kind of run during the week, long or short. We all know that the long runs in particular are the most mentally therapeutic. It's a journey that I normally make on a Saturday anyway, just by car rather than on foot. So for now I'm sticking with ticking... sooner or later it will all start clicking. (And I don't mean my knee - hopefully.)

Over the last three weeks I have been ticking.  Hopefully this evening a tick may turn into a kick...

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Thanks BB, it's a while since I've had a poem from you! I struggle to find the energy for any kind of run during the week, long or short. We all know that the long runs in particular are the most mentally therapeutic. It's a journey that I normally make on a Saturday anyway, just by car rather than on foot. So for now I'm sticking with ticking... sooner or later it will all start clicking. (And I don't mean my knee - hopefully.)

Over the last three weeks I have been ticking...

Ticking? So long as you don't explode..that would be a Charliecatastrophe.




Sorry.

[Charliecat5]

Thanks BB, it's a while since I've had a poem from you! I struggle to find the energy for any kind of run during the week, long or short. We all know that the long runs in particular are the most mentally therapeutic. It's a journey that I normally make on a Saturday anyway, just by car rather than on foot. So for now I'm sticking with ticking... sooner or later it will all start clicking. (And I don't mean my knee - hopefully.)

Over the last three weeks I have been ticking...

Ticking? So long as you don't explode..that would be a Charliecatastrophe.




Sorry.

Don't you have something more useful you could be doing?

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Thanks BB, it's a while since I've had a poem from you! I struggle to find the energy for any kind of run during the week, long or short. We all know that the long runs in particular are the most mentally therapeutic. It's a journey that I normally make on a Saturday anyway, just by car rather than on foot. So for now I'm sticking with ticking... sooner or later it will all start clicking. (And I don't mean my knee - hopefully.)

Over the last three weeks I have been ticking...

Ticking? So long as you don't explode..that would be a Charliecatastrophe.




Sorry.

Don't you have something more useful you could be doing?

Paw form, CharlieCat, don't be such a sourpuss!

[Bierzo Baggie]

Don't you have something more useful you could be doing?

I can think of things much worse
Than sitting around and writing verse

[marathondan]

There was a young(ish) man from El Bierzo
Who twisted his ankle, it hurt so...