PaulB2 wrote: ↑Wed Jan 27, 2021 3:07 pm
I’d avoided running for a few days for similar reasons to above so it was good to get out at lunchtime. What was meant to be 5/3/5/3/5 run/walk turned into a jumbled mess due to phone calls
Phone on silent. Rule 1 if running or riding. It’s your time. Make it yours. I’ve been pretty brutal to some mates over the years when they’ve taken work calls during play time.
Work life balance is so important. And yes, I have been self employed as a freelancer and understand - but no, put the phone on silent.
Good point, well made, though in this case it was more parent of high needs kids / me time balance which is even trickier.
There’s a whole other discussion to be had on weaning myself off phone use for music and or pacing when running so that I can leave it home for an hour.
Am a parent with a wife. It's always about compromises. But, our exercise time is our own time. We're both pretty straight about it and it reduces any friction. Wife has access to all my Google calendars including my training - so we know what plans are. Only way we remove any of the friction.
Taking some pointers from the above, I managed a reasonably quick and hilly 40 minute run between online lessons today.... Left my phone at home, got covered in ankle deep mud, and came back filthy, cold & in a great frame of mind to teach my Y7 class and get on with the rest of the day.
Trail run Thursday. Harder day tomorrow so took the easier route to the base of the Pike. Up the less used fell runners trod. Down the tourist track. Back along the swamp that is Dicks Lane. One other runner out above the day long inversion.
I’ve been doing this sessions for a while now. Varies depending on the time of the year. I have a set hill I use, view is crap, in a fully of sorts but keeps me focused as such.
Warm up is somewhat convoluted, mixture of running and plyometrics - all about getting the body ready to run at max effort in a 25% gradient. Potential for injury without the warmup is quite high.
Main set is 2 sets of 6x10 second max effort Reps on 2 minutes rests. It’s somewhat relentless. Sounds short, and it is, but it’s about preparing the Muscles to run harder and at full effort for longer in a few weeks.
Went out straight after work and collected another Turf zone. WFH meant I could finish at 2 but I find it harder to get out from home than the office post work, even though I know I'll enjoy it if I do. Kept it relatively flat after Monday's hills (and Tuesday and Wednesday's rides where I rode all the hills on the ss seated) so only 722 ft in 11.5 miles but the mud in places made it plenty hard enough.
Today’s effort was 8/5/8 with warm up and warm down either side. I think the plan over the next couple of weeks is to slowly but surely start to increase the running times while reducing the walking gap in the middle.and once the gap has gone to start increasing the distance.
LSR (long slow run) Saturday as normal - joined by my mountain marathon partner. Was long, wasn't that slow.
Took a variation of the local round (Calder Round) and replaced the boring trail/road sections with singletrack. Woke up mildly hungover, a bit tired, and suffering from the past 5 weeks of training finally having accumulated. Rest week next week anyway.
Bimbled up to met Alan up at Popples Common. It started snowing. This was an interesting start to the day. I'd not packed warm gloves so it may be a bit of a problem. Onwards. Hangover still there. Down the Pennine Way and up to Blackshaw on the race route again. Back over to Jumbles to show the descent to Alan - any excuse to run it flat out. Down down down and up the next valley over to the Pike. Take on some food as we're back in the snowline again. Cold. Put on all my layers. Still cold. Start winding up the pace. 5 mins later we're on one of my favourite trails and I'm not slowing. Not race pace, but 80% of it anyway. Down down down to the 'Ryod before we need to go up again. Bit relentless. Up down up and along until the next big down - legs say no at this point so we wheel for home on the flat ish route back.
Today’s run was just warm up, run for 20 minutes, warm down. One of the downsides to living in the centre of town is that until I start upping the distance it’s all pavement.
Last run of a big month of volume. Rest week next week. 218km for the month, all fell, 7,900m of vertical. Very much looking forward to this rest week.
Only 11km but with a big 7km climb to start. 420m of up. 4km down. Frozen solid ground 1h 20mins.
A 10 mile loop after work with 1150 ft of ascent. I thought we'd reached peak-mud but the weekends rain has taken it up another notch you know it's bad when you're hosing yourself off in the garden to reduce the amount of mud in the shower.
Rest week - 8cm of snow dumped over night so it has sort of worked out well. Did a very chilled out hour playing in shin to knee deep powder on the tops. Nice to be post holling beside snowshoe tracks....but at the same time has me irritated that I sold off my ski touring kit (sold off most of my outdoors kit in the final year of my PhD so I could eat).
Took some time to make some yellow snow and admire the scenery. Last week has been tough mentally with teaching and training. Really missing some real mountains and I'm trying to remind myself that I am much more lucky than many.
Home. Gave myself a mullet. Then went and played with my daughter. Could be worse.
I did 9 miles in the mud today. Couldn’t get fired up as it was windy and I’m carrying a bit of a groin niggle. But it was nice to be out and I had the trails to myself. It is an utter slopfest down here at the moment. Never seen it so wet underfoot. I’d love to be running in snow
Dave Barter wrote: ↑Tue Feb 02, 2021 7:38 pm
I’d love to be running in snow
Not when it's thawing. Utterly grim. The bigger dumps we had that stayed for two weeks were fine as it stayed cold and crunchy. Wet snow grips less than slop.
Commute to work this morning, I've not done the run to/from work for a few weeks as I was getting very worn out plus it's one less day riding the bike. It was pitch black when I left which is fine but the head torch didn't allow me judge how deep the water was on the road sections to start... so shoes full in the first half mile. Very wet and muddy on the cycle track (which is why I don't use it to cycle to work) but at least it meant there were no dog walkers in the way.
Part of my usual route is closed on the outskirts of Newport so a diversion through the centre of town was required which was cleverly planned to pick up another turf zone.
7.2 miles in 59 minutes but with only 75 ft of ascent it's pretty much pan flat.
PaulB2 wrote: ↑Wed Feb 03, 2021 2:11 pm
My legs felt a bit dead despite it being an easier run than the previous one, not sure why.
Sometimes my legs are just empty, it's either old age or I've just been doing too much, either running, riding or just walking about?
I've still got the run home yet, but at least the sun's out now. I go a different route on the way home so I've got another 9 miles to go yet today and it's hillier so 700ft+ of climbing, but as I ran to work it's either run home or live at the office
Moderately grim. Rain, snow on ground, mud on anything bar pavements. Did an easy hour around the local Turf loop. Got some abuse from some muppets in a rented canal boat (not sure they should be operating). Noticed it was heading to moor in Hebden so got home, had a shower abs brew, then gave them a bollocking when they were parking up in front of the rental agent and what looked like their wives who were not on the boat.
They must be breaking the rules if there's more than 2 of them as you're only allowed to meet one other person outside? Muppets.
I did 9 miles on the way home, went past my mum's to collect her shopping list. I've not done the run comutte for a few weeks, last time it was dark not long after leaving work, got home and it was still light, but still endless mud*
* The Inuits have loads of different words for snow, we might need more words for mud
Today’s run was 10/3/10 - felt a lot better today though headed out too quickly so tailed off a bit in the second half but my HR never got over 138 so probably took it too easy.
PaulB2 wrote: ↑Fri Feb 05, 2021 7:25 pm
Today’s run was 10/3/10 - felt a lot better today though headed out too quickly so tailed off a bit in the second half but my HR never got over 138 so probably took it too easy.
Don’t worry so much about your HR. 90% of my running is below 134!
Rest week, why do you hurt so much? Really needing this week after 5 weeks of ramping volume. I love the base training period of any year, but the fatigue can be debilitating.
Just an hour today after my final lesson of the day. Quick coffee, kit on, then out of the house seeking some late sunshine. Up the other side of the valley I’ve spent the day starting out at from the office window. Into the mulch and mud. One short loop to shake out the legs then up again into the moorland esoterica. Down the fun fast trail into Nutclough and the town limits (sing Tinas classic while descending as I always do).
7km in an hour with 305m of vertical. Sloppy slipping sludgfest but better than remote teaching.
I don’t normally care about it except for a bit of idle curiosity since I don’t think my watch is overly accurate but my average/peak hr was really low (120/133) compared to previous runs (normally 130s/high 160s). Maybe I’m just getting fitter
you know it's bad when you're hosing yourself off in the garden to reduce the amount of mud in the shower.
