As the time flies towards the big day, here’s another brief wrap up of this weeks training.
Monday 15th September – Quick run on the treadmill (2.9km @ 12:30) before stepping into the yoga class. Last week with the instructor. Seems strange as someone who has introduced me into the practice is about to leave. Hoping I get a chance to visit him in his new place over in France.
Tuesday 16th September – Jumping on the spin bike at 6:00am is definitely a great way to wake up. Getting an hour of exercise done first thing allows a great chance to continue the day on a winning way. Pushed really hard and hit a highest rate for average watts. (22.0km @ 52:58, Avg 84rpm / 191 watts)
Wednesday 17th September – Off for a quick run this morning, but felt a bit flat. Really felt like I was just going through the motions. Regardless I made sure I completed the intended distance and was glad to get back home. (16.01km @ 1:12.05) Wednesday evening and back on the yoga mat. Final class with Rob Howard, will definitely miss him. Namaste mate.
Thursday 18th September – I’m guessing if you’ve read any of the rest of my posts you’d understand my routine by now. No prizes for guessing where I was from 6:00 to 7:00am this morning. Not quite the effort from Tuesday, but still respectable none the less. (23.6km @ 58:34, Avg 82rpm / 180 watts)
Friday 19th September – Out for the usual Friday morning 14km today but wasn’t really feeling it. Body is starting to ache all over, and I think the recurring late night / early morning combo is running me down. Needing to have a think about my goals and re-evaluate how I am going to obtain them. Trimmed a few kilometers off the end of my run and wrapped it up at 11km. (11.22km @ 47:58.9)
Saturday 20th September – Decided to run a half marathon distance this morning and again trail the gels. Set off with the temperature still quite cool, which means I wore my gloves again. At the 13km mark I took my gloves off to allow me to take the gel without getting it all over them. Completed my run and once I walked inside realised I couldn’t feel my gloves in the pocket. This led to a stage of panic looking for them to no avail. This lead to jumping on my Mountain Bike, which meant pumping up the tyres, and retracing my path to try and find my lost gloves. Again… no luck. $35 on a pair of Nike running gloves gone… damnit. (22.12km @ 1:40.05 run, 18.1km @ 50.12 ride)
Sunday 21st September – Race day – Eliminator race with the Geelong Cross Country Club along the Barwon River. First time in this format, definitely something different. First off is a 4km run, next is a 3km run. Both are run within groups of around 10 guys, all with a sealed handicap. From the 2 runs a top 20 is decided and those 20 run the final over 2km. My plan was to stick with the quickest from my group and see where I ended up. Plan seemed to work, I ended up making the final. For the final I had a 3:17 minute handicap and meant I had to haul ass to get anywhere near the first place. To my surprise I smashed my fastest pace and managed a 3:40 min/km on the 2nd kilometer of the final. In the end I finished in 9th place, around 20 seconds from first place. Overall a great outcome from my first season of running with the Geelong Cross Country Club. (4:01 @ 16:00.3, 3:01 @ 11:56.6, 2:01 @ 7:38.27)
Another week down, and checking the social media sites seems the bibs are getting sent out for the Melbourne marathon. Hopefully mine isn’t too far away.
Overall distance – 45.6km spin class , 61.2km running , 18.1km riding