Yorkshire Marathon 2016: Week 5 of 16

M 9.5 miles HA (6:55mm), 5 miles (7:36mm)

T 6.5  miles HA (6:52mm), 6.5 miles (7:20mm)
W  10.5 miles Fartlek (6:27mm)
T 10 miles (6:30mm)
F 7.5 miles HA (7:22mm)
S 5 miles (7:21mm)
S 11 miles, including Great Yorkshire Run

Total 71 miles (6:48mm)
Aerobic efficiency 1014 beats per mile
Weight 141.7lbs
Body Fat 10.2%

This week was all about making sure I hit Sunday's Great Yorkshire run quite fresh. Despite it being  a slow course, I was keen to run well as I complete this phase of training. Being staged in Harrogate for the first time was also special to me, given I was born in the town and Mum still living there.

The week started off pretty sluggishly, probably due to the hard parkrun last Saturday and the hard hilly long run I did on the Sunday. Monday and Tuesday felt like a bit of a struggle and I didn't even need to get my layers on for a Heat Acclimatisation run on Tuesday evening as it was over 30 degrees!

Wednesday I did a bit of a sharpening session around Victoria Park in London as I needed to be in town for work. Again I started off feeling a touch sluggish but it went well overall. The session was 5X[3mins(60s), 1 mins (120s)] with the plan to run the 3 minute efforts at c 5 minute per mile pace and the 1 minute efforts at 4:40 pace. It came in pretty much bang on with the 3 minute efforts at 4:57 pace and the 1 minute efforts at 4:40 pace. This proved to be a hard session, as there was quite a decent amount of volume at high intensity but I was really pleased to be consistent with the splits.

And so with that I took it very easy on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, I really wanted to run well in my race. I stayed at Mum's on the Saturday which was very special as it's the house that I grew up in and the house my Mum was born in too. It was probably the last time I will get to stay the night there given Mum is selling up as she downsizes. It also meant getting my girls up and to the race should be less stressful given my Mum lives only a few minutes away from the start.

The plan simply was to race the competition and conditions as I found them and not be too concerned with the final time. Great Run events really are sublimely organised. So well organised and have such a 'big race' feel. There were thousands out to support the 3,000 entrants at the start and indeed around the course. After a somewhat lively warm up we were off on a short lap of about 2.2k.

Within 1k I had opened up a bit of a gap as we worked up a steady climb. And then the excitement got to me a touch as I knew we'd be passing back past the start where the hordes where waiting. I couldn't resist a few high fives as I went by!

After that we were off on a longer and tougher lap, up through Valley Gardens and then on to Harlow Carr Gardens before a quick lap of the Pinewoods and working back towards the finish. I took a few glances behind me but each time I checked the gap was growing. This was pleasing as the guy behind me, Joe Sagar had beaten me at Dewsbury 10k this year by a few seconds and I knew him to be in good form, having consistently run sub 33 for 10k this year, as well as an impressive 8:49 3,000m!

With the knowledge that the gap was growing in mind I could really enjoy the last few km without going to the well. I won comfortably by just under a minute from Joe in 32:55. A very pleasing run and I have to say I really did get a little too excited. See the below celebration of my 'temporary' idiocy and my first experience of 'breaking the tape' (just like you do in dreams and stuff!).

I then enjoyed a few moments of fame on a proper podium and met one of my all time heroes, John Mayock who is ranked 5th on the UK all time list for 1,500m. A legend of British distance running and a thoroughly nice chap.

So, a really fun weekend and a decent week's training. It was special for lots of reasons, mainly for personal ones which I wont go into here, but you can probably see how proud my Mum looks in the photo below. :-)

From a training point of view I am really pleased with where I am. Despite the time not being a PB I do think it is probably my best run over 10k I have ever done, given the multi terrain, hilly nature of the course and feel there was more in the locker had I needed it. I now go into the marathon specific phase of training, starting with a very easy week of one run a day. I have never been this fit or fresh going into the specific phase which is a very good place to be.