Week 4 of sub20 5K training

This week was really about realisation, realising that sub20 is not going to happen anytime soon. I know I am pretty far off achieving this goal and the main reason for this is just not being able to put enough training in.

My goal now is still to aim to improve my 5K PB between now and the end of the year as well as starting to turn my attentions towards my first event of 2016 which is likely to be a half marathon in February or March. 

Here is how my training turned out this week, again not a great week of running with too much other stuff going on but I did manage to get out running on 5 occasions. 

Monday - This was my big speed work session of the week, 1K warm up followed by 8x 400m sprints with approximately 200m recovery jog in between and a 1.3K cool down to finish off. 

My splits were 1.34, 1.27, 1.30, 1.29, 1.30, 1.37,1.34 and 1.46.

Splits 3-5 were slightly downhill which were reflected in the slightly quicker times but the last three were also on a slight incline so again reflected in the slightly slower times. 

I found the session really enjoyable but tough going, it was only the last effort that really killed me and left me running on empty.

A friend I spotted by the side of the path while I was catching my breathe on a recovery jog.

Tuesday - Working from home on a rare occasion I took the opportunity to head out for a lunchtime run. In these winter months its great to be able to head out for a run in the daylight and I felt fortunate to have this opportunity. 

I completed a 7K run aiming for keep my pace comfortably below 5min/km which was a challenge as my legs felt pretty tired from Monday's tough session.

Not a bad way to spend a lunch break and a great way to keep me energised through an afternoon of spread sheets.

Wednesday - Having ran on Tuesday during the day it then meant I was able to run on Wednesday morning rather than if I had ran after work on Tuesday I wouldn't have wanted to then do a Wednesday morning session as I like to give myself a bit more rest time. With working late on Wednesday evening a morning session was my only chance for a run so I was again glad to have had the opportunity of working and running form home on Tuesday. 

I have found running at pace in my early morning sessions really tough going so rather than a structured session I opted for a fartlek run. In all honesty the differences in pace were not as vast as they should have been and it still felt like a good session and I finished a 5.3K run with an average pace of 5.25min/km.

Thursday - Rest day

Friday - I needed to squeeze in another early morning session and was unsure of what to aim for as I was conscious of not wanting to plan a certain session and then be disappointed with not being able to complete or execute it due to feeling below par in the early morning.

As things turned out I felt really great when I headed out so I quickly decided to run 3x1km sprints and managed splits of 4.13, 4.12 and 4.20. While I was pretty pleased with these times they are a way off sub 20 5K time, realistically I know I could have gone quicker if it wasn't an early morning run but at the same time I know I am no where near comfortably running sub 4min/km splits which is the requirement of a sub 20 5K. 

Saturday - Away in Cambridge with work so a day off running.

Sunday - After a busy and enjoyable two nights away in Cambridge, the evidence of which you can see above, I headed out for an early evening run felling slightly sluggish from my weekends indulgences.

My only aim was to run around 10K at a decent pace and I soon set upon trying out a new route while trying to crack a sub 50 10K.

Conditions were incredibly windy which definitely hampered my efforts however the wind at my back on the last K felt incredible. In the end I just managed to creep under the 50 minute barrier with a negative split.

Overall a decent week of training and a week where I felt like I got somewhere near a balance of enjoying life, dealing with the pressures and constraints life throws at you but also getting some decent training time in. 

And so to the week ahead where I plan to keep up my running and even kick on a gear as I have decided to take part in #adventrunning which is a runstreak of 30 minutes of running or at least exercise on every day for the first 25 days of December. Its a challenge I am looking forward to, the hardest part will be negotiating with the wife to be bale to get away for half an hour on Christmas day!

This blog covers my training for the week 23-29 November

Week 1 of sub20 5K training

So this week was my first specific intensive training for my sub20 5K attempt which is my current challenge with running buddies Chris and Tony.

Having had a week to recover after my Chelmsford marathon PB, a week to ramp it up a bit this was my first week to really kick on.

Heres what my schedule looked like for the week:

Monday - I was so pumped up I really wen for it!

1K warm up, 5x400m intervals averaging around 1.30, 1K cool down, then 10x stair sprints, press ups, 5x stair sprints, press ups, 3x 10 squat jumps a 1K jog home and then a quick abs blast.

I utilised a local walkway over a motorway for my stair sprints and squat jumps.

Tuesday - Early morning circuits - star jumps, crunches, rowing crunches, press ups and plank work. 

Wednesday - The plan was for an early morning speed session but it was tipping it down, dark and cold I can take, dark, cold and wet was a step too far so I opted for staying inside for a circuit session instead. 4 circuits of 25 squats, 25 press ups, 25 crunches and 15 arm dips within a target time of 20 minutes. 

Thursday - Conscious of not just wanting to focus on shorter runs I thought I would pull out an old session I used to do, run for an hour with the aim of covering 13K. I finished with 12.5 which I was happy with as I knew I wasn't in shape to trouble 13 and I went out far too fast on my first K so knew I couldn't sustain my target pace. In the end the second half was a real struggle and was so tough. 

Friday - Rest day - It was much needed as after a tiring week with work and training a bit harder I was feeling knackered. 

Saturday - The plan was for a benchmark 5K race at Hackney Marsh parkrun to get an idea of where we all were with our times. Earlier in the week Tony had unfortunately had to pull out and come Friday I decided to opt out as well as it had been a really long week and I was out for drinks on Friday night. An early morning start for Parkrun on Saturday morning was never going to go that well. 

As it turned out I rather over did things on Friday night so Saturday was a write off for everything not just running. I dint get out of bed until about 3, not my finest hour but you have to let your hair down every once in a while.

Sunday - Not feeling great I just went out for a 'takin' it easy run', I covered 8.5K in 45 minutes which was a 5.15 min/km

Reflecting on the week

Reflecting on the week I think I overdid it a bit and have over trained, my glutes, hamstrings and groins were screaming at me for most of Thursday and Friday. My feeling worse for wear following Friday night I think was also partly due to being a bit run down and tired from the week as well as from the drink. The thought of also feeling some post marathon fatigue also occurred to me, maybe I had pushed too hard too soon after the marathon?

Reflections of a different kind

With the nights and morning for that matter being so dark I have been wearing my Tuvizo reflective gear.

I am not sure what to call it, a belt, a harness, a vest, nothing quite seems to do it justice. It is however very comfortable to run in and I feel like I am really visible to traffic and it does the job of keeping the wife happy about me being out in the dark.

If you are out running in the dark this winter remember to stay safe, wear something reflective, be seen, be safe!

So after a tough but successful week my next week is going to be slightly more challenging as I am away with work from Monday for four nights in Leeds and Belfast. We are only taking hand luggage so no room for running kit which makes me sad. Maybe the rest will do me good and I will just have to try and squeeze in some circuits in my hotel room when I get the chance!