Training Log Archive: slow-twitch

Reasonable warmup before race, barely able to jog for a couple of minutes afterwards

Long race at Waitarere. Feeling pretty stuffed right from the start but soldiered on. Things going well for the first hour, although one of those races where while I was mostly always exactly were I wanted to be, often wasn't sure of it at the time. 1:04.5 to the 13th control and on target for 90-100 minutes (probably closer to 100), anything around 90 I'd have been quite happy with. But then hit the low visibility section. Of 6 controls, spiked the last 2, lost some time on the rest, including significant amounts on 14 and especially 16. Relieved to get back into the white forest after that, so relieved that I then completely blew 20 and completely overran 21. Did quite well on the one remaining control before the finish though!

Sub ideal warm-up, running from car to start just in time to be called into pre-start

Middle distance at Waitarere. Possibly the most technical course I've ever run here with some fairly intense things going on in some of the control circles - good work Bill! Slow (especially on the first leg - recovering from the "warm-up" run!) but accurate for most of the course - possibly a minute at most lost on 3 trying to figure out which of the multiple small hills and depressions were which, but otherwise clean to 12. Just off to one side, in the 50:50 situation of just off to which side. Was with P at the time and when she decided to go one way I kinda followed. Wrong time to do so! Then next control headed along a parallel dune system just to the south that I was fitting quite nicely to the one I should've been on. Small loss on the last control, funelling into the wrong depression. Can probably just see 50 minutes, which in the context of how fit I wasn't feeling would be a pretty good time.

Warm down

Event: JWOC Trials & SuperSeries Round 1, Part2
 

Quick little jaunt at the Paekakariki end of QE Park. Realised I'd let the week slip by without any running so ought to get out and loosen up the legs a bit. Used the walking tracks through the dunes - nice and undulating without any excessively long up or downhills and got out on the beach for a bit where it was very comfortable to stretch the legs out a bit more. Thankfully not too hot, even though I'd forgotten that weird sea-mist all across Cook Strait means that things are very warm and very still.

Massey Sprint. Physically was more "on" than last friday, think the run earlier today did more good than harm. Let down a bit by brain on a couple of occasions however. Once again was slow on first leg getting the whole map reading idea back on-line, then blew maybe as much as a minute with a parallel error on 2 that took me down into the big carpark. 8-9 got onto a different route than I intended - still not a bad route but definitely slowed down figuring out why I wasn't seeing what I expected to. Not much time lost but plenty of annoyance as this is the area between the old and new ecology department locations so if I had any home advantage on this map this is where it would be! So in theory I could have been close to 19 minutes which I think I'd have been very happy with. Won by Ross in 13:13, Hubmann another 30 seconds or so, then next best were in high 14 mins (don't know yet how late starters went). So while the head is still not yet up to maths, seems whether or not I got my 50% targets depends on whether we count Ross as a kiwi or euro ;-)

Flood dealt to. All as good as could be. Even the cat missing since friday morning (who personally I'm blaming for the whole scenario) finally reappeared, asking to be let in. At 4 am.

Helping deal to the great flood at the Church Street Aquarium

Event: Sprint The Bay 2010
 

OK better get in that car sometime soon, or my nice relaxed travel day becomes a lot less relaxed

Cameo appearance at Sprint the Bay. Despite being happy with my buildup, didn't have as much speed as I thought I should have in the legs, feeling a bit sluggish. But countered with a mostly clean run. Took the first few controls to remember how to read a map - no mistakes but just processing the info a bit too slowly. A few legs I'm not certain about taking the right route choice but mostly insignificant differences. Did lose 40-50 seconds on 19 - either I was in the wrong place (therefore OOB! shhh!) or didn't persist long enough to find an expected gap in the fence & wasted more time backing out and going long way round than would have by continuing to look. Ross 14:15, Hubmann 14:58, JDog 15:21, so even in strictest sense I'm just around my 50% target, but sure I can do better. Map

Rain!!!! Makes for much more pleasant atmospheric conditions. Except possibly the wetness thereof...

Again, not allowed any chocolate cake until I had completed my training goals for the day. Fortunately today is a rest day. Hooray for cake.

C • last time i got as excited ... 1

Still VERY sweltery. I must have been living here long enough to go rural because I want it to stop being so fricken humid and just start raining... sorry, rant over. Strangely, feeling a bit shattered today so I have to thank Coach Rhonda for ruling that if I didn't go out for my recovery run I wouldn't get any freshly baked chocolate cake. (Still waiting for that cake, Coach Rhonda). Felt horrible at first but better towards the end - helped by the sun finding a nice big cloud to hide behind.

The cake was worth it!

The 5 warming down should probably be a "2", but just staying on my feet was enough of an achievement to count as a "3"

Tutu Road Time Trial. Really stupid conditions to be doing this in. Super hot and humid. But somehow...

Out: 9:51 (-19 secs from 12/11/09)
In: 11:04 (-22 secs)

I was aiming to break 10 for the outward leg (it took me longer than that to DRIVE out to the highway saturday morning - admittedly sheep were being moved around at the time) but thought in doing so, especially given the conditions, that all I would achieve in doing so would be an increase in the total time. So I'm especially astounded by the return leg - and yes I was still certain I was going to die any moment while I was doing it. WILL hurt tomorrow.

I may consider doing all future time trials in Darwin now.

C • My tip 1

Tutu Road Time Trial - Splits

Spent the weekend mooching about in various parts of the BOP. Had various interesting ideas for runs or sprint orienteering self-training but turned out to be one of those weekends where I needed someone to give me a kick up the butt to get out there. Did get to connect with some good friends, and got in some good manly grunting helping some of said friends ressurect their farm shed doors.

I hope I can fit in at least a short run this pm, but this might turn out to be it for the day

10 minutes spent intriguing Vaala is 10 minutes well spent

C • What is this basic workout?... 3

Walk home from Tutu block. Mod heavy pack & kept the pace up once on the road. Found a bit of scallop on the road, but unfortunately not fresh enough to eat. In fact doubt it had seen the sea since, ummm, the Oligocene???

Still not had enough for the day. Recovery run after yesterday. Out most of the way to the highway then up between Robin & John's houses then around the back of Tutu block, through the rock garden then dropped back down to the road to home. Much more fun than just the mailbox run which is what I thought I was doing when I left home. Making stuff up on the run can be good.

Calf tightness not responding to the course of Ignore it and it will go away treatment I'm giving it. But not feeling like a major problem so far....

4 x 4 minute ints (I have been advised on my semantics - apparently I can only call them reps if I fully recover between each one, but that would take all week!)

Not the best effort ever but not the worst either. At least until I died in the last minute of the last, er, int

"down time" for a 40 minute session in total

Better get back into this at some stage I suppose...

Mangaokewa walkway and some way along the Te Araroa continuation thereof. Nice to be running somewhere where you can stretch out a bit but the track isn't so hard to worry about repetitive impact type worries. However...

Murphy's Law applied to off-road running: if you trip there will be a bog.
Subclause: said bog will be just a few minutes from where you end up turning around as the track becomes pretty much unrunnable

At least there was no audience, especially as it was a couple of hours before I thought up my "I saw a rare mudfish and was attempting to catch it" cover story

Came very close to doing nothing productive today, which is good for mental health but bad for training. Decided it was about time to head up to the back paddocks again - UP being the operative word. 6 minutes of pure unadulterated uphill to get there, but unlike my other attempt well over a year ago there was NO WALKING on the climb. Which is due to:
(a) improved fitness
(b) chosing a sensibly conservative slow pace for the uphill bit
(c) no freshly squeezed out lambs on the track to stop for
(d) all of the above?
(5 marks for this question, please show all working)

Nice views and nice rolling plateau at the top make it worthwhile, although I had to be slightly selective about my route to avoid the paddocks with the herds of carnivorous attack buffalo. Thankfully the one time I goofed and ended up on the wrong side of the fence, the 8 or so very large beasts that ran up to inspect me decided after a minute or so they were just ordinary cattle after all and ran off to humourously attempt to all hide behind the same small tree.

A fun little jaunt but I have my suspicions my legs will no longer love me tomorrow.

After a moderately tough day and an hour+ cross country lawn mowing still thought I had the energy for a run. Not really apparently but that's fine coz what I was after was a gentle half hour and that's pretty much all I could do. Did a couple of convoluted laps of one of the tutu road paddocks pretty much because I was short of any interesting ideas of where to go.

4 x 4 minute reps. "11th patch loop" Hot day, getting humid in the evening and I didn't really think I'd get through this but it was OK. 1st & 3rd reps were good, 2nd & 4th pretty awful. Next week I'll just do odd numbered reps ;-)

C • 4x4 2

2 minute recoveries + warming up & down

Still a little shattered from recent festivities, although better after the first proper sleep of the year. Headed out pretty much straight from work to get back into the habit. Up to the back Te Hape boundary to confirm my suspiscion that both my favourite interval loops are back to being cattle free - for the moment at least.

Two things are causing me annoyance - my calves (left especially) seem to be tightening up again, and... how much can an adult foot suddenly change shape? for a few weeks now almost all my left shoes/boots have been pinching across the top and unfortunately my running shoes are the worst