#blogjune Post 14 - Back to work

Alas, the long weekend is over and it's back to the grind.  Thank goodness it's only a 4 day week and next week will only be a 4 day week too because we are heading to a wedding in Qld.  I could get used to these 4 day weeks.

This morning it was up at 4.30am to meet my running buddy for a 12km easy run at 5.30am.  Hmm, since my running buddy is naturally speedy, it was not going to be an easy run.  We decided to head out along Yellow Rock Rd, which runs along beside the river and has paddocks on the other side.  A nice run when you can actually see the scenery - this morning it wasn't till we headed back that we could see anything.

The Garmin played up around 4km and started dropping in and out.  This stuffed us up a bit because we were sure the turn around was at a particular point but we had not hit 6km yet.  So we decided to turn at 5km and add a bit of a detour on our way back.  By the end it felt like we had done more than 12km but if it's not recorded on the Garmin/Strava then it never happened so we had to make sure we had done the 12km according to the watch!

Funnily enough, when I uploaded the run to Strava, it did say 12.3km (still think we did more) and apparently we went swimming across the river to North Beach.  I think Garmin was confused - perhaps it doesn't want to get back to work either!

This sort of leads in to how much I rely on technology to track my runs.  And how disappointed I get when for whatever reason it doesn't work out right.  Mind you, I do not live by the watch when I run.  In that way, I mean I don't hang off every km split it give.  Due to completing the Run Down Under virtual run around Australia, I'm more concerned that I track my km's.  And it does help having something track how far you've gone rather than trying to measure it out yourself by driving the track first.  I wonder how they did it all before km tracking watches?!?

#blogjune Post 7 - I hate speedwork

Ok, I dislike speedwork.  Hate is too strong a word.  And I do feel good after a speed work session so I can't say I hate it.  Perhaps I hate it when I'm doing it but I don't hate it so much I won't do it.

This morning I was out at 5.30am in the dark with my friend I call Speedy Emily.  She has been one of my running companions for about a year.  Emily has been kind enough to do most of my training sessions with me even when she is not training for anything.  She joined me on my long long runs I did leading up to the Warwick Pentath-Run and she even did most of the speed work sessions with me.

Previously, I have done speed work when training for other races, but usually interspersed with a regular run.  I had never done a whole session of speed work on a track or distance repeats at effort.  This was until I got my coach through GaleForce Running.  Now pretty much every week I will have a speed session.

I'm not a fast runner.  I detest going out of my comfort zone.  But since incorporating speed sessions into my training, I have seen the results and I'm not "happy" to do them.

Today's session involved a 2km warm up, then 6 x 1km repeats (at effort - I like how Chris my coach never really specifies a pace, but I know he wants me to push it a bit) with a 3 minute walk break at the end of each rep, then a 2km warm down.

With only a headlamp to guide us, Emily and I set off.  The first rep you always (well I do) go out too fast.  You learn to respect just how far 1km is when you are going at an effort pace.  Not a sprint but an effort you should be able to maintain for a km.  This is the trick of these sessions.  To try to maintain the same pace over a particular distance each rep.  By the end of the session I felt myself slowing down, but surprisingly when I looked at my Garmin watch, we'd kept a pretty consistent pace throughout.

Without Emily, I'd probably give up and walk.  It helps to have someone else suffer with you!

Speed session done and it was light by then.  Home to have a shower and warm oats.  Yep I feel good for getting that done - Thursday it is a 10km hilly run!  Training for the Ipswich Park2Park is in full swing!