Week 16 of 20 weeks to Sub 2:20?

M 8.5 miles (6:46mm), 5 miles (7:11mm)

T 18 miles including 4X18mins (3mins) (5:54mm), 6 miles (7:04mm)

W 10 miles (6:31mm), 6 miles (6:51mm)

T 9 miles (6:24mm), 6 miles (6:56mm)

F 7 miles (6:22mm)

S 8 miles including 2 at MP(5:26, 5:22) (6:26mm)

S 28.5 miles including 1st place at Halifax Marathon 2:47:25 (6:21mm)

Total 113.5 miles (6:29mm)

Weight 141 lbs

Body fat 9.7%
Aerobic efficiency 972 beats per mile

So after feeling in the depths of despair last week, I was keen to have a more confidence building week this week. All in all it went really quite well - some decent miles and a couple of good marathon specific sessions.

I had the Halifax marathon penciled in as my long run for Sunday and wanted to be reasonably fresh for it given I wanted to do it at a steady effort and knew it to be a hilly course, so did my marathon session on the Tuesday this week. The session was 4X18 minutes at cMP with three minutes recovery. I had taken the decision to try to ease in to the session a bit more than I typically do hoping that I would end up feeling surprised with the output of pace as it progressed. The first interval was at 5:27 pace, the second at 5:26 and then the third at 5:24. I was pleased with how things were progressing and was confident of hitting target race pace (5:20s) for the last stint but it wasn't to be. All of a sudden I had terrible gut issues and really needed to 'go'. After that the legs just seemed to give up and my mind was taken up with concentrating on not disgracing myself! That ended up as a relative jg of 5:39 pace. On reflections I was still quite happy with the session, it wasn't perfect and the legs were a little mullered, but I think that was largely down to residual tiredness from last week rather than anything too sinister.

The rest of the week was steady running until the marathon on Sunday. I looked back at my training log from last year and realised that I had been running my steady mileage a lot quicker then than now and so took the decision to put a bit more effort in on my easy days. Strangely my legs seemed to thank me for it as they felt a lot fresher throughout the week than they have done recently from general plodding.

I had spotted that the Halifax marathon was on a few weeks ago and thought I could use it as my final big long run before Berlin. Give it was a 'race' I knew it would feel more enjoyable than a typical solo long run - maybe I should just pin a number on before every long run! I had heard the course was particularly challenging and so it turned out in terms of the undulations. According to Strava, not far of 2,800 feet of ascent in total. That's basically over half a mile straight up which is a little bit ridiculous, given I generally try to avoid hills at all costs! Anyway I really enjoyed it as something different and put in a very even effort all the way around finishing in 1st place with a time of 2:47:30ish feeling very comfy apart from a slightly tight left calf. Looking at my Garmin trace it looks as though it was a perfect even split too which shows I judged the effort really well. Mile splits varied from 5:25-7:45 which shows the extent of the hills! I had to stop for a couple of pee breaks too (not in the 7:45 mile strangely - that was just a mountain!) which was a helpful reminder that I really shouldn't drink anything within three hours of the race. The course did spark a bit of interest in my mind of what  I could do if I raced it all out. I suspect it would probably have been 13-15 minutes quicker so maybe I could be relatively good in hilly races? Certainly something to consider in the future and someone has already mentioned the Snowdonia marathon which may end up being a target in the future....

Weight has come down another touch this week and I have lost a bit more body fat apparently. Aerobic efficiency has taken a step back a little again. I suspect the figure is swayed quite a lot because of the Halifax race and the undulations meant my heart was having to work harder for the pace output, given I usually run flat routes. I feel a lot happier about this week than last and am confident that things are really coming together. I am doing a track 10,000m in Stretford next weekend, so that should be fun. I've never done a 10k on the track before so it's a bit of an unknown quantity but hopefully I should be in good shape to at least threaten the road PB of 32:05!

Week 15 of 20 weeks to sub 2:20?

M 12 miles (6:38mm), 6 miles (7:15mm)

T 8.5 miles (6:50mm), 5 miles (7:01mm)

W 17.5 miles inc 24 mins, 18 mins, 12 mins, 6 mins, 3 mins (3mins) (5:46mm), 5 miles (7:26mm)

T 10 miles (7:12mm), 6 miles (7:24mm)

F 6 miles (7:38mm)

S 10 miles (6:55mm)

S 17 miles (6:35mm)

Total 103.6  miles

Weight 141.5 lbs

Body fat 10.1%
Aerobic efficiency 949 beats per mile

I went into this week’s training super motivated after a strong over distance run last Saturday and on my runs on Monday and Tuesday my legs felt really good giving me confidence that I had recovered really well. I had noticed however that my cardiovascular system was struggling a little as my heart rate was a little higher than it has been recently for the pace output. It didn’t click at the time but I should probably have taken this as a prompt to perhaps take a couple more easy days in the week before trying a session. I didn’t do that and bowled straight into the session which was 24mins, 18 mins, 12 mins, 6 mins, 3 mins the plan being to start at roughly marathon pace and gradually get quicker. The session itself went well with the first section coming in at a nice 5:18 per mile, the second and third at 5:13s and then 5:08 and 4:58 for the six and three minute efforts respectively. It was super hard towards the end and I do think I overcooked the first a little meaning the rest were a real battle of survival. I then felt pretty smoked for the rest of the day and although tried a recovery run, it wasn’t pleasant.

On Thursday and Friday I was in a world of hurt, my legs were in absolute bits and I was completely wiped out so although the plan was always to run easy on these days, the easy was a lot slower than I have been used to recently! I just wanted to run as easy as my body would allow without doing any more damage. By Saturday I was starting to feel a little bit more normal and Sunday’s run was good from a CV perspective despite the legs still feeling quite tired.

Mike had initially suggested putting in a tempo session on the Saturday but we decided that there was just no point even starting it given how wrecked my legs were and also took a shorter long run to ensure proper recovery.

Marathon training is hard and sometimes it is ridiculously hard. I was in a pretty dark place Thursday through to Sunday but think that the easy days that I have taken will hopefully allow my body to absorb some of the hard work of recent weeks and I am confident that I will come through the other side, stronger than I have been before. In a way, I think the ideal marathon build up is to stress your body as much as possible with specificity to the event without breaking. If you can do that and get fresh for race day, you give yourself the best chance of running a stormer.

Weight is starting to drift down a touch and I am getting a little leaner which is really positive and I still have quite a few weeks before I need to be at my leanest so that’s all positive. Aerobic efficiency dropped back a little this week and I think that was probably due to me just being completely knackered from the hard run last Saturday. I will continue to monitor. c950 as an average is still a good place to be but I would like it to get back to c930 as an average before Berlin.

So on reflection of the whole week, it wasn’t quite what I hoped for mileage wise but I am glad to have another 100+ mile week with a top session ticked off. It is the whole campaign that counts and at least I am putting some good consistent work in which will hopefully pay dividends come 27^th September.  Of course, I hope I don’t have any more weeks that are that hard as I say Thursday - Sunday did leave me wondering whether all this hard work was really worth it at times. Each time that creeps into my mind I just have to remind myself of how good it feels on race day; the whole event, the excitement and then trying to deliver on all the hard training.  And then getting a little bit drunk afterwards. :-)

Week 14 of 20 weeks to Sub 2:20?

M 9 miles (6:35mm), 6 miles (7:13mm)

T 7 miles (7:11mm)

W 11 miles inc. 10X60s(60s float), 5 mins easy, 10mins MP (5:56), 5 miles (7:11mm)

T 10 miles (6:45mm)

F 7 miles 7:14mm)

S 27.5 miles including 26.2 at 5:56mm

S 7 miles (7:09mm)

Total 90.5 miles

Weight 142 lbs

Body fat 10.4%
Aerobic efficiency 936 beats per mile

For anyone that read my blog last week will know that it contained two pretty big sessions so it was always the plan to have a bit of a cut back this week and let some of the hard work soak in. Of course, it wasn’t all easy and there were a couple of workouts that are worth discussing! The main focus became the Saturday long run which was to be a full distance run at a reasonable pace. The aim of this really is to have a good length of time on the feet, but not to plod it out either. Rather run pretty steady and pick the pace up a bit towards the end. Of course, I quite like doing these runs largely fasted as it helps the body utilise fat a bit more as a fuel which is imperative for a good marathon. So with an early alarm call, a quick banana and a double espresso I was out the door.

Anyway, the run started off quite nicely and I had in my mind that I wanted to average approximately six minute mile pace as I had done when I'd done the run previously. I do the course on my tempo loop and for the marathon distance it is 18 laps and the stretch back to home! It is both irritating and fun in equal measure counting up and down the laps. I do find it is a good place for this type of run though as it is quite flat and I can just concentrate on hitting steady mile after steady mile without huge fluctuations in heart rate. My word it can get a bit boring though! I think this is quite good for the mental aspects of marathon racing - it is likely that you will have large segments of the race alone, especially in the second half. To be honest I've never minded running on my own in a marathon unless the weather is really bad where you can get some occasional shelter if running in a group.  All was going well and my legs were moving very well and the pace was hovering around 6:05 per mile. I decided to keep at this sort of effort until half way to see how I felt then. I felt really strong and as boredom was setting in a bit I thought I'd pick up the effort a little over the next seven miles to see how it felt. It felt great and my legs felt really strong, stronger than the last couple of times I've done this. This could be down to the easier week in terms of miles. I ran it well the last two times I did but this felt a lot more controlled. Indeed as I got to 20 I decided to pick the effort up a bit more and was seeing 5:45s for the last 6.2 miles or so with the last mile being my quickest at 5:31 feeling like it was solid but nowhere near all out was really encouraging. My HR averaged 158 for the run so about 20 beats below marathon Heart Rate. It's quite funny doing this type of run and comparing it to for example last week's tempo. I found this so much easier than running 15 miles at a pace just 15 secs per mile quicker. Now this could be due to a couple of reasons such as I was tired from the outset of last week's training run and two I am starting to see some of the benefits of previous weeks' training coming through. In all likelihood it's probably a combination of the two. What it also suggests to me is something I have been pondering for a while is that my endurance clearly seems to be pretty strong (I feel I could have run another 10 miles at 5:55s in my full distance run), my speed is OK but my speed endurance is probably my weakest link, so this gives us something to really focus on over the next few weeks. Don't get me wrong this run was not easy and 26 miles is always a long way and at a reasonable pace it will take some recovering from and I couldn't run at this pace every day but as a specific session within the build up I think I pretty much nailed it.

The other session of note this week was an easier session on Wednesday, which was a slight deviation from the plan. Mike wanted me going in fresh to the long run so we cut it back and put in a bit of speed. It was 10X1min(1min at 6:40), 5 minutes easy, 10 minutes at marathon pace. It was a really fun session, in fact it barely felt like a session at all after last week's hard training sessions. The minute efforts average about 4:45 on the Garmin so could be a bit out but even so that's quick running for me and it felt really controlled rather than sprinting! Then the 10 minutes at target MP.... Well I really had to hold back on this as despite my ongoing niggles the pace felt so comfortable. This may have been due to me knowing it was only 10 minutes of effort but it could also be because of the faster minute efforts got the legs moving quickly that 5:15s ended up feeling like a relative jog!Of course I don't expect race day marathon pace to be 5:15s but I wouldn't mind if it was! Let me confirm now that if 5:15 ends up being my marathon pace this time out I will gladly eat my hat.

My weight has dropped very slightly this week which is nice, but could do with a bit more dropping off yet. I was however really pleasantly surprised to see my aerobic efficiency take a giant leap forward to an average of 936 beats per mile, around 30 better than last week. Looking back over my previous training this is the most efficient week I have ever had, showing that some of the hard work of previous weeks is starting to kick in and hopefully that I am starting to bring myself to a peak of fitness that I have never been in before. 

Week 13 of 20 weeks to Sub 2:20?

M 13 miles (6:36mm), 6 miles (7:11mm)

T 8.5 miles (6:52mm), 4 miles (7:10mm)

W 16 miles including 8X1M (1/2M float at c6:40s) (5:53mm), 6 miles (7:14mm)

T 10 miles (6:50mm), 6 miles (7:14mm)

F 9 miles (6:58mm), 5 miles (7:18mm)

S 20 miles including 15 miles at 5:41mm (6:01mm)
S 10.5 miles (6:21mm)

Total 116 miles (6:36mm)

Weight 142.5 lbs

Body fat 10.5%
Aerobic efficiency 964 beats per mile

Quite a chunky week this week with two big sessions of 8X1M on the Wednesday and then a long progressive tempo run as my long run on Saturday.

Firstly the Wednesday session which I was looking forward to as Mike and I had discussed it was worthwhile trying to keep in touch with some of my speedier running during this specific phase and this session would allow me to do that. The aim was to run the miles at about 5:10 pace for the first 6 and then pick the last two up if I could! This was made more difficult by the fact that the recoveries were more of a float steady run than a true jog shuffle type recovery! They ended up being about 6:40 pace so still reasonably nippy, in fact a touch quicker than most of my other general mileage throughout the week.. The miles went well and I was pretty consistent only really struggling on the last one, but even so it was still pretty quick for me given the combined volume and intensity of the session. The miles averaged 5:06 pace, which should be roughly my theoretical 10k pace. Shame I’ve not yet run a 10k that fast! I also actually need that to be closer to my theoretical half marathon pace for 5:20 as a marathon pace to be at all realistic. We can all dream….

The next session had originally been planned to run as a solid tempo run within a 20 miler of 15-20s per mile slower than MP. But Mike decided it’d be ‘fun’ to try and do it progressively;  so increasing the pace each five mile block. I started at 5:48s and I was already feeling it if I’m honest, the legs were quite tired and I could also feel my pelvis and glute issues again. The next five miles I increased the pace to 5:34s and I was starting to grow in confidence that I may be able to go quicker still in the last five mile section. I was wrong. Despite my best efforts I just couldn’t get the legs to turn over quickly enough. Aerobically I was quite comfortable and the HR data suggests the engine wasn’t under much strain, it was just a problem with the wheels! Even though the pace was really drifting I held it together to average 5:41 meaning the whole 15 mile tempo effort also averaged 5:41 which is still within c20s of goal marathon pace. This must still go down as a very good workout and as Mike reminds me this has such relevance to the marathon as it is so specific. The way my legs felt the last couple of miles I have to agree with him, it did feel like those last few miles of the marathon when you feel like you’re sprinting but really you’re starting to tread in treacle… It is intended to get another of these longer tempo type runs in before Berlin.  I then did a decent steady 10 miler on Sunday to round the week off at 116 miles there or thereabouts which was another pleasing step in the right direction.

My weight doesn’t seem to be budging for some reason and I could do with getting leaner as race day approaches and I am sure if I keep doing what I do it will gradually drop off with the heavy sessions and mileage. Aerobic efficiency has improved very marginally this week so not really much change over the last three weeks for some reason but it is still at a decent level.

Reflecting on this week in isolation I am really chuffed as I got a lot of miles in, two pretty monster sessions and all this whilst on a week’s holiday from work doing touristy things around Yorkshire so spent a lot of time on my feet outside of running too which I wouldn’t ordinarily do. Maybe the odd additional holiday treat I have been having (fish and chips, pizza, the odd pint with my mate Adam who was visiting from Poland) may have something to do with the static weight situation. I am slightly concerned to see the return of my injury issues but luckily it is not stopping me from training, it’s just pretty damn uncomfortable most of the time! I will continue to see the physio and do the work she suggests to try and correct my issues. 

Introducing Adam to a pint of Leeds Best. He liked it. So did I!

As a whole I am now seven weeks away from race day (well six and a half if you excuse the tardiness of publication of the blog!) and I am generally pleased with how things are going. It is not perfect but things could be far worse. I am running much better than I was a few weeks ago and I am gaining in confidence. Sub 2:20 still seems a long way off right now but that’s no bad thing. I know I can peak well when it matters and of course I will run the hardest I can on the day and take whatever result comes from that. But there’s a tonne of work to be done before then and I’m looking forward to every minute of it.

Week 12 of 20 weeks to Sub 2:20?

M 11 miles (6:53mm), 6 miles (7:13mm)

T 8 miles (7:07mm), 4 miles (7:21mm)

W 15 miles including 4X15mins (5:47mm), 4 miles (7:19mm)

T10 miles (6:49mm), 6 miles (7:20mm)

F 9 miles (6:48mm), 5 miles (7:18mm)

S 24 miles (6:24mm)
S Rest

Total 104 miles (6:43mm)

Weight 142.3 lbs

Body fat 10.5%
Aerobic efficiency 966 beats per mile

This week I decided that I was going to go cold turkey on caffeine. Bad idea! And I wasn't successful at all! My friend and fellow runner Jamil Parapia had recommended at least cutting down as it could potentially help me get leaner. Something to do with cortisol levels and the timing of the caffeine intake. Anyway Monday seemed to go OK although my head did start to throb a little bit in the afternoon. By 20:30 I was crawling into my bed absolutely exhausted. I thought I was coming down with a horrid cold, little did I realise at the time what I was experienced was sever caffeine withdrawal. I didn't think I even drank much generally; three maybe four cups a day. I awoke after sleeping for near enough 10 hours feeling dreadful, but went out for my run regardless which was just awful. My muscles were so stiff, I was completely bunged up, massive headache.  I was convinced I was coming down with the lurgy just as my proper training was about to begin. Damn! I then had a physio appointment and the phsyio was doing the usual manipulation on the pelvis area and she told me she had straightened me out quite a bit. To be honest I did feel somewhat less crooked but the proof would be in the pudding on my next session which was scheduled for Wednesday morning. To be honest I didn't know whether I was going to be in good enough shape to do it! As Tuesday wore on it did start to dawn on me that I may be suffering from my lack of tea/coffee intake and so I looked up common withdrawal symptoms on the internet and all became clear. I went straight to the kettle and had a good cup of Yorkshire Gold. 15 minutes later, I felt fine! It was a good job I realised this as I had to drive to Luton Airport and back to pick up my Brother-in-Law who was visiting from Poland. Not sure I'd have made it without caffeine.

Then onto the Wednesday session. One always has a bit of trepidation as the big marathon sessions start. This was to be 4X15minutes with 3 minutes recovery and Mike Baxter had suggested I start them at the same pace that I did the session pre-London and then pick up the last two if I could. Well, the sessions went really well. the first 15 minutes was at 5:25, second at 5:23, third at 5:21 and fourth at 5:18. In the session pre-London I averaged about 5:25s for these so a significant improvement. Although to be fair the last one maybe a little flattering as I had to head home(so marginally downhill!) as could feel the onset of tummy troubles and as my tempo loop is in a residential area, I didn't fancy having to pop for an Al-fresco! I cant emphasise enough how much confidence this session gave me. I was running freely probably for the first time in months and the physio has most definitely corrected something, hopefully it'll stay that way. It is also worth pointing out that to break 2:20 for the marathon I will have to average 5:20.6 or quicker per mile so this was encouraging. Not sure I can say it felt like race day marathon pace just yet though!

The rest of the week went well, a couple of easy days before a decent steady 24 miler on Saturday. This did feel really comfortable. I am making sure my days between sessions and long runs are sensibly easy to ensure I am recovering appropriately and not overreaching. In hindsight although it all ended up OK in the end at London I do think my pace on my easy days meant I was hitting sessions a little more tired than I should be. As a result I didn't get the absolute best out of most of them.

I missed a planned run on Sunday but this was no bad thing really. We had more visitors arriving late on Saturday night for my Daughter's baptism on Sunday and so with a very full house I decided it was pretty futile going out early and had an extra 45 minutes sleep instead.  The legs would have been happy to but I was pretty shattered so it was a sensible decision. Still happy to get my first 100mile+ week in of the campaign though. It all feels like it's going in the right direction. Fingers crossed it continues to.

Weight and aerobic efficiency has been pretty much static this week as last which is fine although I hope to see some improvements over the coming weeks as race day approaches. Other than being off work this week and doing Yorkshire touristy stuff I don't think I have too many social events to go to between now and Berlin so hopefully I'll be able to get on top of my diet a bit more. Last weekend a little too many pies and cakes were consumed!