Building Begins

With the weather improving.. I mean, with the weather as $#!7 as ever, I can't put off building the long run any longer. I'm aiming to build my weekly long run by one to two kilometres per week with the aim of getting towards 20km by June. With that in mind, I headed out for 12km today and came home just shy of that, clocking 11.6km.

It was a good run. I tried to force myself to run nice and slowly - but as usual, I ended up steadily putting in more and more effort. It culminated in a crack at the Hope Wood East Side Climb KOM. I missed the target but only by 3s, down from 10s on my previous attempt. It won't be long until it is mine... Looking on Strava, I actually think my watch beeped for the finish too soon, as Strava has my pace tailing off before the end of the segment where in reality I actually picked up the pace in the last 50m. Suffice to say I shall be running through the line for an extra 50m next time to be on the safe side. I thought my days of vying for KOMs ended a decade ago, and I know they're only local ones, for the locals but having claimed one last year I'm definitely going to claim a few more.

The rest of the week has seen a couple of good treadmill interval sessions. Medium reps Tuesday and shorter, faster ones yesterday. Zwift-wise I destroyed my virtual Cheddar Gorge climb time on Wednesday and it was a medium pace ride Thursday.

Roll Out the Barrel...

For today's run out and back along Barrel Lane. It was meant to be a steady run of about 10k. It started off that way. The first couple of k's were solid but comfortable. I started putting in little efforts and before I knew it, I was churning along at a good pace. I wasn't on race effort but I was certainly no longer cruising. As I hit the halfway turn around, I decided to see if I could get inside 50 minutes without redlining. I sustained the effort on the way back.

I completed the 10k in 49:08 which is only a minute 20 off my PB from Blaisdon and today's route was 50% hillier. I was running hard by the end but nowhere near my all out, edge of oblivion race effort. I feel pretty confident that my current PB is only going to last until my next road 10k race...

Other training, after my two rest days, was a solid speed pyramid Wednesday on the treadmill, ramping FTP intervals on the bike Thursday and a steady 5k 4% inclined treadmill run yesterday. I am definitely recovered from the fatigue that caught up with me last weekend.

Gonna Pull a Double....

Because sometimes you need to. Monday is absolutely a full rest day and Tuesday too. However much I'm itchy on Tuesday I'm not going to scratch.

This week has been solid training, the highlight was Tuesday's 6 x 4:15 kilometer reps but I don't think I gave myself chance to properly recovery culminating in a bit of a tired run yesterday and today. My legs are proper tired. Hence, I must enforce two days rest - which, on the plus side, means more time for piano and guitar practice.

In other news, I've another race on the books and looking for others...

Not Exactly the Pro Way...

It's been another solid week of training. A steady run Tuesday followed by a couple of more focused interval sessions on the bike and treadmill on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. They were medium to high intensity rather than at the limit as I was mindful I was hitting the Parkrun today to gauge where I am on the 5k front. A course PB maybe? It's not an ideal route for a PB but stranger things have happened...

I have to admit it went a bit wrong yesterday. It was meant to be an easy recovery ride completion of Stage 7 of the Tour de Zwift (bike) but I royally ballsed that up. The start came - and then it went... My virtual avatar refused to move as the field of 652 left me alone to my thoughts. Thoughts like, f~*% why aren't I moving? Cue twenty seconds of faffing to realise I was connected to my footpod - not a lot of good in a bike ride.

So, I got connected and set off, dead last. I almost got off as it's a bit boring with no other riders around, but I continued, thinking I'd catch up if I pushed a little, but I didn't want to go too hard. After a few minutes I was at the back but no longer last. Even at an easy effort I was moving through the field. I didn't really realise it at that point, but the racing part of brain had kicked in and I was little by little putting down more and more power. Suffice to say, by the end I was up to 175th and eye-balls-out, hitting pretty much my PB 30-minute power average. Doh!

Anyway, I decided to get up and do the Mallards Pike Parkrun knowing I was probably going to fail but I didn't think I'd be far away as my legs felt surprisingly good considering the hammering I'd given them yesterday. I had my course PB pacing worked out and decided to stick to it. Lose time to the first half climb and then gain it back on the descent home... I hit the halfway point, puffing like a bastard. Heart rate 178 but importantly, inside the schedule by a few seconds. I then hit the accelerator and nailed the descent to hit home in a new course PB by 48 seconds but better yet, a new PB by 19 seconds. 22:11. It is not going to be long before it starts 21..,.. 

Getting Hilly Nowhere Near Caerphilly

Up yesterday was my first run for a while on what I call the Longhope three peaks, on account of it having, yes, you guessed it, three peaks. May Hill, Brights Hill and Huntley Hill. The biggest climb, from the A40 to the trig on May Hill, is about as close to a fell running hill as you can get in the forest (but it's not really that close). I wasn't far off my time from 2015. I think I can break that later in the year as I was slipping around in the mud on parts of the climb.

Things got slower in the last third on the second and third climbs as it got boggier and boggier. I almost went down on my arse a couple of times but managed to 'ski' myself upright. Anyway, it was a solid 10.5km with a surprisingly decent amount of ascent at 410m, in a time only a few minutes down on my best from 2015 and most of that lost time was down to the mud-fest. Definitely a route I'm going to see more of - but maybe once things start to dry up a little later in the spring.

Up today was another stage of the Tour de Zwift and I didn't go all in, although I put in hard efforts, above FTP, in patches. A sort of fartlek session but on a bike. By the end, a 4km climb to the finish, my legs were cooked.

My training earlier in the week saw me complete a reasonably steadily ramped tempo 5+k on the treadmill (2%incline) Tuesday. Followed by a hard effort on the Zwift (bike) Wednesday, Stage 5 of the Tour de Zwift. The route was a simulation of part of the 2018 world champs in Innsbruck, and a cat. 2 climb. I took it easy till the climb then hammered it. I started to cramp slightly into the final km but managed to keep pushing and get over the top in a new time of 25:16, over a minute inside my previous best effort. I pulled a rest day Thursday as my legs were suffering a bit from the previous days cramping and Friday my legs felt like they needed a fraction more recovery so it was just a lower than tempo 5k on the treadmill, 3% incline. Rest day tomorrow and then back on it.

Getting Hilly Near Caerphilly

An easier week of training with today's race in mind. Up Tuesday was the 3rd stage of the Tour de Zwift on the treadmill where I ran intervals 300-400m on, 150m off with a final hard effort kilometre to the line. Wednesday was stage 3 on the bike and below FTP in the first half, and above FTP in the second. Took a rest day Thursday before an easy stage 4 (bike) in the tour yesterday - although I did go all in on the sprint segment on each lap (3 in total), and I mean all in! It was only 300-400m. Not everyone sprints so it doesn't really count, but I topped the leader board and set myself some new all-time 15s power numbers.

Up today was, of course, the Craig yr Allt Winter fell race over near Caerphilly. 6.4km with 350m ascent. Conditions were pretty good. It didn't rain and it was way hotter than of late, a balmy 3°C. I surprised myself how well I went up the ascents, especially the first. I was able to run most of the way to the top with only a couple of teensy-weensy walk breaks - and I do mean teensy-weensy. Now the third climb... well that was a bit different as by then I was bloody knackered, although I did force myself to run whenever the gradient eased a little. "come on, we can run this bit.....".

I finished just over three minutes quicker than the only other time I've run this race, five years ago, so I'm happy with the result. Can't grumble at 30 seconds faster per kilometre.

Decent Week of Training

It's been a lower intensity week of training but not without some strong sessions. The highlight was Tuesday's kilometre reps. They were substantially inside my current 5k pb pace but there is room to go faster still. Wednesday, I rode the second stage of the tour de Zwift. A two lapper, I sat back on the first to sit towards the back and then hit out above FTP as a time trial to see how many places I could gain. A thoroughly hard effort. There's been a few other runs and rides with the other notable session being today's climb portal ride. I was feeling yesterday's run in my legs but still managed to get within a minute of my best on the 630m of elevation simulated 9km climb up Bealach na Ba.

It's now under a week to my first race of the year...

Back on Track

After that touch of Covid two weeks ago, I spent last week building back up slowly. I felt absolutely fine and my vital statistics were all back to normal barring being a bit phlegmy in the mornings. This week normal service has resumed. I started the week with a 10k run (not a race) on New Years day down in hilly Sidmouth in a not too shabby 50 minutes - not bad considering my PB is currently only just inside 48 minutes. The highlight was the 50m long puddle with the water above my knees - more of a low-light if I'm honest.

Up Tuesday was a medium effort bike session followed by kilometre reps inside 5k pace Wednesday. Up tonight was a double header of the Tour de Zwift. A decent 5.6km treadmill in 4:45 pace followed by a solid effort on the bike (claiming 5 segment |PBs in the process) to complete Stage 1 in both categories.

Looking forward, as one does at the dawn of a new year, I'm intending to race a bit more than last. Kicking that off, I've got my first race entered in the calendar for January the 20th. I'm also aiming to run most - which will almost certainly end up being some, if not just one or two - of GLCL road races. Plus I'm aiming to do a few of the Chepstow champs races...

Normal Service Starting to Resume...

So finally, my resting heart rate returned to normal yesterday. I'm still a bit nasally bunged up but otherwise heading back to normal. I wasn't that unwell with COVID. Headache, a bit achy and the mandatory chesty cough but I wasn't going to be silly about it. Better to ride out the storm and come back fighting...

I ran a very gentle 5k on the treadmill yesterday, and my heart rate remained as low as normal - if not even a little lower! Today I headed over to the woods for a tentative first proper run. I took it easy, pacing a slower than normal. Definitely not 100% yet, but it won't be too many days before I am and then I can gauge the fitness hit I took this last week.

A take away from the week, is just how well my Garmin watch predicted the illness - if I'd bother to check it. Its data for stress levels, body battery and resting heart rate perfectly mirrored my bodies battle with the virus - and if I'd been paying attention last Saturday/Sunday I'd have known my immune system was under attack. How those magical algorithms do their thing is beyond me, but do their thing they do. It knew before me that my immune system was under attack.. Must pay closer attention in the future.

Well, I Might Not Be Doing the K Reps this Week After All...

And this explains my elevated resting heart rate since since Saturday despite not actually feeling unwell - until today. And I honestly don't feel too bad. Bit of a headache, bit of a cough and slightly achy. But overall, not too bad and despite the elevated resting heart rate, I almost took a hill segment PB on Zwift yesterday, and I wasn't going eyeballs out. I was even contemplating a crack at the Hope Wood East Side climb segment this evening as I felt so strong but not now. The curse of Covid has finally struck. After avoiding for almost four years (at least that I know of). Normal service will resume once the resting heart rate comes back down.

I have a feeling I am going to go stir crazy waiting to get back running not to mention the physiological feeling that my fitness will ooze away.

Missed a Week

 ... on the blog but not the running. It's been a mix of bike sessions, treadmill sessions and some 9/10k time trial-esque real world runs. I need to hit some kilometre reps this week as it's been over three weeks since my last set, but other than that it's all good on the running front.

Definitely Gloves Weather

It took slightly longer than expected to get over my unexpectedly knackered legs from last Saturday's Blorenge marshalling - or more accurately the run-jog decent back down. The first part of the week was recovery, followed by a short interval session on the treadmill Thursday.

That led to yesterday's crack at a fast time on the local Longhope-Blaisdon loop, 8½km. I was rewarded with over three minutes off my time from August and only two minutes back from my best (which was 2016 and probably not my absolute best but if it's not on Strava it doesn't exist). I don't think it will be too long before that mark is surpassed.

Today? Well, yesterday was cold but today was colder. Too cold for a pu... - southern softie - like me, so I bottled it and ran a recovery 10k on the treadmill instead.

Nice Trip to the Hills

Yesterday I was on Blorenge fell race duties once again. And what a day for it. It was a cracking weather. Not wanting to miss out on a run I headed over early so I could get out for a little pootle along the canal, and depending on the timing, run as far or not within the time window. Ended up just over 8km at close to 10k race pace. Happy with that.

Then after a bit I headed up to my marshalling spot, counted the runners through and then ran back down. I didn't go berserk on the way down as I was wearing walking boots, but I was more than jogging - and today my quads are sore from the pounding.

The rest of the week has been pretty steady mix of runs and rides and a solid Zwift race (bike) on Friday. It was one of my most competitive although I mucked up the finish and dropped from the front to 29th. I should have blasted into the finish climb as I'm strong on the climbs but instead I went in with the group, who all started hitting the power from the bottom, and I got caught sleeping and it was all over. I managed to claw back a few places, but the horse had bolted. Definitely need to hone my Zwift race craft.

Saved It for the Long Run

The body battery has been a little low this week, so I eased back on the speed work although I still completed the second of the Zwift Academy training sessions on the bike and that was pretty solid. Today was long run Saturday and I extended my distance out to 13½km. A slightly flatter route this week but not without some 200+m of ascent, mostly at the front end. That allowed me to get into a solid rhythm through the middle section where I was pacing around 4:50 pace before feeling the extra distance in the last few kilometres on the run for home. Happy with the run, completed in 1hr10.

I'm aiming to extend the distance little by little over the winter. Interspersed with keeping the speed work going, ready to hit the spring and break some records...