The rest of 2010 - between marathons

[marathondan]

Week 5 of the 9 week 10K programme completed.

The previous week's 6 mile easy run was completed happily, in warm rain and to the sounds of Def Leppard's Hysteria. I imagine that this work sits too late in the history of heavy rock for many tastes around here, but it's a favourite from my teens, and I discovered that the track Run Riot is a fantastic running soundtrack, with a rhythm section that somehow sounds like an accelerating sports car, and a cadence just urgent enough to spur one to a higher pace. In that respect it's fortunate that it only lasts 4 minutes.

The rest of the week didn't go so well. I took on 7 reps of the hill climb, but apart from one effort which came within a couple of seconds of the PB, I was well off my previous pace. I think I'm obsessing too much about beating my best, at the expense of completing a set of decent quality reps. Next time I think I'll leave the watch at home. I know what a quality hill rep feels like now; who cares if I never beat 2 minutes?

The tempo run was similarly disappointing. It was attempted early in the morning for the first time, and there was little in the tank. I just managed my 1.5 miles at target race pace, but there's a gulf between that and the requisite 4 times the distance.

Either the early mornings were doing me in, or I was fatigued. I'd pencilled in a step back some time around now, so with a trip to the North East taking up my weekend, I've skipped the long run and called it a mini step-back.

Meanwhile in Brighton marathon news, I've decided to run for Cancer Research UK this time around. At the weekend I asked my friend, who is unfortunately in South Tyneside hospital and looks like spending a lot of time there, to come up with a fancy dress idea, on the basis that I would go with his decision, no matter how humiliating or painful. The choice: a stick of rock. In Brighton. I'm going to have some fun with that, I think.