Madrid minus 10 weeks.

[Riazor Blue]

It's Wednesday today. I have been fairly tied up this week. Running wise, Monday was a rest day. Yesterday was horrible 400 metre series day. Today was an easy 10km.

The series consisted of a 25 minute jog, about 3km the two blocks of 8 x 400 metres. I took one munute recoveries between reps and 3 minutes between the two blocks. The time for each 400 was aimed at 1´30", and was more or less achieved. I think that the slowest was 1'35" and the fastest 1'28". Another 2.5Km jog finished things off.

This morning's run was nice and easy, 55 minutes for 10Km on the esplanade and harbour wall.

It's a very boring entry I know, but time is money as they say Rodders!

By the way, my weight remains rock solid at 82.2Kg despite not eating like a horse at the in-laws this weekend.

[Riazor Blue]

I had to run late in the evening yesterday, at 9.30. I haven't done that for a very long time. I had forgotten how many people have to run at that time of night. How lucky I am usually.

Yesterday was another day of series, see, with the help of this site I am sticking to a plan. Things will change after the marathon, I can go back to just trotting along enjoying the views (which are, of course, better in the Summer when the beaches are full).

The series consisted of 2.5 Km jog to warm up. Then 3 x 4000 metres followed by 3.5 Km jog back home. The splits for each 4K were 17'23", 16'24" and 17'30" for the last one. The first and third rep were slightly uphill, and the second downhill which accounts for the difference. I took a 2 minute recovery between reps.

I have to say, that after just a couple of weeks, these series sessions are starting to have an effect. Last week, doing the 1000m series, 4'15" per Km was very tough. Last night, I was just a shade outside this time, but things were much more comfortable.

I have a couple of races coming up in March, so I'll be interested to see how things are going. The first one is 9.4Km in a place called Ordenes, (I think I have mentioned Ordenes before) it was the first race I entered in Spain, one year ago. I was looking on the ChampionChip website yesterday, my time last year was 48'32". I don't have a target for this year, except to be faser than that.

The second race is the VIG-BAY half marathon on 28th March. I have not done this one before, but it's supposed to be flat. If these series continue, I'm quietly confident of a good time.

Today is a rest day for me. Last week I put in too many Kms for so early in the schedule. Tomorrow will be a long run, I fancy Zapateira again, and maybe a little jog on Sunday. I want to do at the most 70Km. After all, carnival starts tonight.

[Antonio247]

Well done, Brian. If you go on like this, you can do the marathon under 3 hours 20 minutes.

I´ll also be taking part in a half marathon on 28th March but I´m going to Elche in the province of Alicante. I´m looking forward to it since it was the first half marathon I took part in when I started running seriously 15 years ago. I might get a trip to see the London marathon since if you enter before 12th March, you take part in a draw. If I were lucky, I´d go to cheer Liz and Nigel.

Perhaps, on 7th March I´ll also go to Cartagena half marathon. I´m not sure yet.

Well, good luck, Brian.

Greetings from Almería.

Antonio.

[Riazor Blue]

I ran my long one on Saturday morning, when we go to the in-laws on Sunday I do not really have time. So Saturday after breakfast I packed the girlfriend off to work, put on the kit and headed for the car. Before going to Zapateira to run, I stopped off at the hypermarket to buy a couple of those sports food pouches, Isostar Actifood it's called, I like the apple flavour. OK it's expensive at nearly 2 euros a throw but they are easy to carry and easy to digest. Although I had a 1 1/2 litre bottle of water in the car, I bought two 500ml bottles aswell. Also, I got some cerial bars, chocolate and coconut flavour, yummy.

Back in the car, I proceded to start on the energy bars. Following the route of my run I dropped off the two bottles of water at strategic points, hiding them slightly so that anyone passing by would not steal them. Then off to my start point. By the time I had set off, I'd eaten three of the bars. Well, chocolate and coconut....mmmm. One last swig from the water bottle in the car and away. It was the same route as last week, so I returned to the car after 5.6 km, on passing, another great swig. Up then, past the golf club, past where my mate lives and then turning off to head down hill to the aldea (which is not called Uxía, it's Uxes). Where the road turns off, I found my first water bottle, I had already run 1hour 12 minutes, so it was time for a bit of isostar apple puré.

It was a nice day Saturday, rather cold though at 2 degrees when I started. I would imagine that by the time I reached Uxes at 11.30 it was about 10 degrees. I reached my turn around point after 1 hour 40 minutes, and about a kilometer after I picked my second bottle of water from the bushes. 40-odd minutes later I was back at the car, the second isostar pouch being consumed whilst warming down. I was looking forward to another choccie coconut bar (or three).

I have to mention at this point, that Saturday, from a training point of view, fell off rapidly just after my healthy, liver, mashed potato and broccoli lunch. It sort of fell off the rails with 100g bar of Nestle’s extrafino milk chocolate, 2 do-nuts, later followed by 1 x Pint of Guinness, 2 x bottle Estrella Galicia, 1 x hamburger completa, 2 x bottle Leffe black, 1 x bottle Estrella Galicia, 1 x cheese & bacon bocadillo.

Sunday was to be a day of rest, but with lunch with the in-laws on the agenda, always an enormous affair, I thought it best to squeeze in an 8Km gluttony run in the morning. So an hour and a half before settling down to a festive carnival cocido ( boiled potatoes, turnip leaves, chorizo, boiled beef, boiled bacon, pork ribs, marinated leg of pork, chick peas and a type of black pudding), followed by Galician pancakes, washed down with a reasonable Rioja, I completed 8Km along the seafront in a shade under 40 minutes.

71 Km all told this week. Not bad. I didn’t dare go anywhere near the scales this weekend.

[Nigel]

Wow, I love that Northern Spanish food. I remember 'fabada' being just marvellous in Cantabria - can you get that in Galicia ?

Menestra de verduras - in Castilla that was often straight out of a tin, but the fresh variety could be amazingly good in Asturias as I recall. You folks from the green coasts certainly know all about eating. Right, I'm feeling VERY hungry now.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

You guys are making me hungry... and I've just eaten!

I'm gonna have to start living 5km from my fridge I think.