Maria's Running Blog

easy pre-race run with 4x100m strides. It was very warm today, too warm for running, and I had to dodge crowds and crowds of people and kids that were out in the park. Lots of people were just laying out in the grass in their bathing suits catching the sun. I hope it's not that warm for tomorrow's race.

This 10K course turned out to be exactly the same one I ran in October - Dulwich Park, 3 laps mostly on the outside of the park. I was hoping to at least beat my previous time on the same course (47:08), but it did it to me again! It looks mostly flat, but in reality it is constantly undulating, up and down, so not a very fast course. It was also very warm today, easily 75F and probably warmer in the sun.

There were no markers of any kind, mile or kms, so I could only watch my pace on Garmin - and it wasn't telling a fun story. I started at a good comfortable pace, but by the end of the first lap the average pace was 7:20. It proved to be too fast, apparently. And the same exact thing happened to me in October, I died after the first lap! At the beginning of 2nd lap I started feeling the lead in my legs, and had to slow down. By the end of this lap, the average pace slipped to 7:30, and I was really feeling the heat. And so it went till the end, I couldn't pick up my pace at all, it was just a survival race, and I kept slowing down more, especially on the uphills. I passed a few people, but only because they died even worse than I did. No one passed me, although I fully expected it. On the last lap, my average slipped to 7:40, so I thought I'm going to be around 48:00, but when I finished, I saw 47:06 on my watch. Then I saw that it measured 6.12 miles. Not sure if the course was a bit short, or Garmin lost signal somewhere, but I assume the course was a bit short, and I ran equivalent of 47:45. I almost puked when I was done, then proceeded to drink like a gallon of water and felt better. Really bad time, but that's what I get for not pacing myself right. It's also my first race back after the marathon. Well, as bad as it is, it's a start for the summer season. Hopefully, I can improve on this.

Afterwards, there was a relay that I got recruited into. It was 4x400m on the grass. There were only 3 women's teams from different clubs, and I was given an anchor leg! When it was my turn to run, I was second, and shortly after, the third woman passed me. I decided not to battle with her right away and tucked in right behind her. With 150m to go, I still felt pretty strong and started passing that woman. She sped up as well, and we both passed the woman in first place. Everyone was screaming their lungs off, because it was really close. I ended up in second place, just a half step back from the first. It was a lot of fun, and I felt better than I expected after a 10K. I was surprised I could still run almost all out for 400m. In 5 minutes after I finished I suddenly noticed that my legs were quite wobbly, but it passed after some walking.

With all this going on, it was already 1PM when I was done, so then I realized there was no time for cooldown since I had to get home! So a little short on mileage, but not on fun! Also, it was the cheapest race I ever ran in, it was only 1 GBP! There were no race numbers or registrations either, each club made a list of their runners, and each runner got a tag with a number at the finish, and club captains recorded who got what number. So now, all they have to do is reconcile the tag numbers with times, and we'll have full results. They'll probably publish them online either tonight or tomorrow. There was also tons of food after the race, ironically much better than any "big" UK race I participated in - the hosting club provided all refreshments, and they were good and plentiful.

Legs felt a little tight after the race, but overall I felt surprisingly good and moved along easily. Garmin was out for most of the run, so just ran by feel.

Total time: 53:54 (8:50 pace).

Ran Tinman Tempo today, but it was rather unusual. I ran around Regents Park, and I know it is 2.75 mi. loop. But Garmin was very erratic on my first loop, the average lap pace was jumping wildly and was more of a distraction than help. I knew for sure I could not be running 8:35 pace when I felt like I was running 8:00! But towards the end of the first loop it kind of started showing realistic pace and I saw it drop steadily to 8:08 average. Still I thought I was running faster. Sure enough, Garmin measured first loop at 2.66. I hit the lap button and started on the second loop. Here I saw the other extreme - Garmin was showing 7:20 pace - way too fast, although it was on a slight downhill. Then it got more realistic, but still very fast for this kind of tempo, 7:35. On the last mile, I started feeling tired, and maybe I did push too hard in the beginning, because I did slow down somewhat, but still ran aerobically. Second loop (actually, only 2.3 mi. since I wanted to do 5 miles tempo) was at 7:47 average pace. Very bizzarre, because the effort felt constant throughout but paces were all over the place.

Jogged home with 4x100m strides. When I got home and put 2 loops together, I got 40:00 for 5.1mi - 7:50 average pace. Still too fast.

What makes this run interesting, is that about 2 hours before I headed out, I had a can of RedBull. I never usually drink it, since I don't like all the chemical stuff in it, but today we ran out of all juice, and I didn't want water, so this was the only other choice. While I was drinking it, I realized it's loaded with caffeine and it would be interesting experiment to see how it affects my run. I have to say results are inconclusive, due to Garmin being so unrealiable today, but perhaps I did feel the effects of RedBull, because 7:30 pace felt like 7:55. But again, who knows if it was really 7:30 pace I was running. And who knows how much caffeine stayed in my system 2 hours after I drank it? I need bigger data sample for this experiment.

But it was a good workout, RedBull or not.

Total time 1:07:13 (8:24 avg. pace).

I wanted to do CV reps workout, but got stuck late at work. Only had time for an easy run. I felt good, but few times my right foot bothered me. I felt some twinges at the front of the heel, towards middle of the foot. I'm afraid it could be PF, although I never had it before and don't know how it would feel. The twinges would come and go after few steps, so I have no idea what it is. I felt it on Tuesday as well, and day off yesterday didn't help. It's certainly very minor now, but maybe I should ice and take ibuprofen for a few days just in case.

Did 4x100m strides on the track before jogging home. Average pace was 8:46 until I got on Primrose Hill on the way home. As usual it slowed me down, and the average crept up to 8:57.

Finally got to CV reps today. Ran 2.1mi warmup, then did 4x200m strides. I felt much better on them than last week - had more turnover in my legs and more power in my stride, and the times were faster as well - 49, 48, 50, 49.

Then did 4x1000m with 1' jog recovery. Also did significantly better than last week. I adjusted my goal time to 4:40 after not so great 10K last Sunday, but I actually hit better times: 4:35, 4:35, 4:33, 4:34.

After that, did 4x100m strides. I ran them hard, but they were pretty slow, first in 25 sec, last in 22 sec. Although after the workout it may be not so bad.

Finally, jogged home 1.5mi. Overall I'm pleased with today's times. Training effect of last Sunday's race probably has something to do with it. My right foot bothered me only once, very slightly.

This turned into progression run without me really planning it. It was warm and humid, 75F, but I took Nuun water with me, and it helped (Nuun doesn't have any carbs, just electrolytes).

The first 9.5 miles the pace was steadily dropping from 8:53 to 8:35 avg. with the same effort from me. It would drop on slight downhills, but then it wouldn't climb back on flats or inclines. After about 5 miles, I really started feeling fatigue in my legs - not surprising since my run last night was only 15 hours before. Still, I decided to have faster finish, and ran last 2.5mi in 20:02 (8:00 pace). This was hard, and I sure was glad once it was over. Got to water fountain, refilled my water bottles, and jogged home very slowly, about 9:40 pace. I felt dead.

Total time: 1:54:25 (8:36 pace).

Easy recovery run with 4x100m strides in the middle. I wore my HRM today, and average HR was 141. Total time was 28:57 (not counting strides), 9:39 pace. Slow, but this was a recovery run, so I didn't push the pace at all.

Tomorrow is Southern Veteran AC track meet. I may have to do javelin as a scoring event for the club (Gog help me!), but afterwards I will try to jump into 3000m (unscored). The goal is to break 13:00. I've never ran anything longer than 400m on the outdoor track, so I have no clue what to expect. I'll try to keep all laps at 1:44 and see what I have left in the end.

My biggest worry for now is getting to the track on time. I'll have to leave work no later than 5PM and then rely on a tube line that breaks often, and a bus (in a rush hour!). This track is not in the most convenient location.

This was my first track meet since college! I did javelin throw for the club as a scoring event, and I did ok - I beat my goal of 10m. My first throw was 10.85m, and my second one was 10.65. I didn't do more, because women's 3000m was moved forward by 10min, and I had to hurry. Of course, my upper body has no strength whatsoever, and my result is pathetic, but amazingly, the basics of technique stayed with me, and I was able to recall them after 20 years! I did the running throw with a split step and everything, and all my throws were legal, the javelin landed the right way, and was mostly in a straight line. I definitely scored for the team, just not sure how many points. My right shoulder is already pretty sore though.

Then we started on 3000m. As a non-scoring runner, I was put on the outmost lane, so I had to run a little extra, but it's no big deal. My goal was to run 1:44 per lap, and I did. I timed every lap with Garmin, and stayed at a constant pace. It was a very controlled race for me, I'm thinking I should've pushed it more, and set higher goal for myself than breaking 13:00. I felt great, it was a hard effort, but not super-hard. I started feeling lead in my legs with 900m to go, but it was bearable. I pushed the pace on the 6th lap, the time stayed the same, but I was pushing it - means I was getting tired. On the last lap, I really sped up, and last 100m went all out. Here are the splits (pretty boring, since they're so consistent):

:51, 1:46, 1:45, 1:45, 1:44, 1:45, 1:44, 1:33.

Garmin measured 2.97km, interestingly, and 12:56, but official time is 12:57.1. Now it's officially my first PR in 3000m. Unfortunately, there was no one to run with, I was alone right in the middle of the race, with huge gaps ahead and behind. I got 6th place out of 11 women. It would be easier to push more if I had someone within striking distance. But I liked racing on a track - no hills, no sharp turns, no bad sidewalks and potholes. It's easy to get into the rhythm and stay there. Some may argue it's boring, but not to me - I don't notice surroundings when I run hard anyway. Maybe I just love track, because it reminds me of my years training in Moscow, I don't know.

Conditions were near perfect, mid 60s, cloudy and no wind. A bit too humid, but certainly not too bad. Overall, it was a lot of fun! I'll try to do other meets if I can get to them after work.

Easy recovery run. Didn't feel all that great till about half way through the run, then felt better. My right shoulder and the area around it are sore from javelin yesterday.

Total time: 58:59 (9:03 pace).

I felt good after 2 days off, and decided to try to increase my CV reps. Last few weeks I've been doing 4x1000m with 1' jog rest, and today I thought I would try 5x800m with 0:45 jog rest, and maybe fool my body into doing the 6th repeat. I was hoping it would be easier, but it wasn't. It could have been even harder, especially since I ran repeats a bit too fast. First I did 4x200m strides (49, 51, 47, 48) and started on 800s. I was aiming for 3:40, but I went: 3:35, 3:38, 3:35, 3:37, 3:38. I was struggling on the last one, and that means I was running too fast for this kind of workout. I wasn't able to do the 6th, I barely finished the 5th at that pace. Maybe 45 sec. recovery is too short, but more likely I could've done the 6th, if I wasn't so stubborn and slowed down a little.

Then I did 4x100m strides and jogged home. By that point, I was so tired I was going 11min/mi up the hill (I thought I might as well walk it, but I didn't).

Total time: 1:04 (not counting 4x100m strides).

Ughh, my last few days went really downhill training-wise. We have to look for a new apartment, since ours is up for sale, and so I'm doing lots of walking again exploring new potential neighborhoods for us. We are not too crazy about where we are now, so we'd like to move to a new area. All this walking is making me very tired. Today I also had to do a lot of house cleaning because landlord had some viewings. Of course, none of that would be a problem, if I just ran first thing in the morning before I get tired from everything else! Maybe one day my desire to improve in my running will outweigh my hate of early mornings.

Went for 6 miles and felt tired and sluggish, not to mention dodging of balls, freesbies, scooters and bikes in the park. It was a warm day, and crowds were out in force.

Total time: 53:40 (8:47 pace).

Legs still feeling tired, and I got sore adductors too, not sure why - probably from housework yesterday. Started out not feeling great, not sure whether to run easy or try Tinman Tempo. After 1.5mi I decided that I don't really want to slog at 9:00 pace for an hour, and that maybe I won't feel any worse if I tried some tempo. Well, I did feel worse, but not much, and once I started, I was on a roll and wasn't going to stop until I finished the whole thing. I ran 5 mile tempo, starting at 8:07 avg. pace and ending at 7:59 avg. Total 39:53 for the tempo. First couple of miles were harder than last 3. Legs were really tired by the end, but I made it. Then did 4x100m strides on track with 100m jog. It turned into a pretty good workout after all.

Total time: 1:08:13 (8:25 pace), not counting strides.

Very interesting results this meet. First, it took me nearly 2 hours to get to the track, due to it being on the other end of London from my work and transport links. By the time I changed and got on the track, the meet already started and javelin already had warmup going on. I got to be a scoring runner on it again (I think it's going to be a constant, since no other women in the club seem to know anything about javelin). That meant no warmup running for me at all.  It was a mixed event with men, and there was only 1 other woman. I did ok, improving my PR by 2m compared to last week, and got 12.97m in my best try. The other woman only did about 7m, so I won and scored 6 points for the club. That was pretty cool.

Because of javelin and no warmup at all, I couldn't do 800m (it was at the same time) or 1500m - it was immediately after javelin. I managed to jog about 800m between other events, and decided to do 200m and then 3000m again. So I did 4x50m strides and practiced my low start ONCE. This was the first time since 19 years ago! Most other runners were pure sprinters, in spikes and looking pretty fast, so I thought I'd the last one for sure, but who cares, I just was curious what I can do in 200m all out. There was a drawing for lanes, and I drew lane 6, not a bad lane, actually, as you can see runners ahead and try to catch them. My low start (no blocks though) was okay, but in about 3m runner from lane 5 already passed, followed by most others soon thereafter. It was rather depressing, but I knew it was going to happen. I just ran as hard as I could. After rounding the curve and starting on the second 100, I could feel lactic acid building up in my legs already. I think I was slower on second 100, but can't be sure since I didn't take any splits. I finished third from last, beat the same lady I beat in javelin and a lady in her late 50s or 60s (so I'm not really counting it). Didn't know my time at this point, it would be posted later in the evening. I felt pretty tired after this, and not really in the mood for 3000m, because I still could feel this tightness in my hamstrings.

Then there was maybe 5 min. break and 3000m. My breathing didn't even recover, since I was jogging after 200, not to mention my legs. This was also a mixed race with men, and still being in sprinting mode, I started too fast - :49 first 200 and 1:40 first lap. I started hurting right after the first lap, and had to slow down to 1:45-1:46 laps. The final lap was 1:41 (last week I managed 1:33) and final time was 13:04, 7 sec. worse than last week. I got lapped by countless men, and also 2 women. This race hurt a lot, but I'm sure it was good training coming so close after 200, despite slower result.

Then I went to the posting board and checked my time in 200m. I was hoping that maybe I broke 40sec. Looking at the board, I couldn't believe my eyes. There was my number and my name, in red ink, and the time written across the line - 33.1. I didn't expect that at all. This means I can probably run 100m. in 15.5-16 sec. - much faster than I even run in my strides. So, Sasha, this may answer your question how much your time in real competiton can differ from running on your own, even in time trial. With this spees, my equivalent 5K time should be ~ 19:25, but in fact I cannot break 22:00 even with all the right elements in my training. Perhaps, I'm better in sprints than distance. Or maybe my aerobic capacity is still underdeveloped. But how much more mileage I need to run, because I was already running 45-50 when I ran my 22:05 5K?

Now I want to do 400m to compare to the 200. I suspect, the same pattern will be present as in my competitive years in college - there will be a sharp drop in time in 400 and then maybe from there all other times in longer distances will be equivalent to that 400 time. I should be able to do 400 in 1:10, but I doubt it's the case. I'll have to see. Overall, I had a lot of fun again!

Afterwards, I only had time to cooldown 1 mile before they kicked everyone off the track, it was after 9PM. So far, I learned that with track meets, it's impossible to get good mileage in. I just get there too late, and javelin doesn't give a chance to run (unless you run in small circles in between your tries). I'm thinking of doing few miles early in the morning on the days when I have track meets.

Ooh, the pain... ouch, ouch and more ouch! Every part of my legs hurt, starting from hip flexors and ending in calves. Really, really sore - especially after sitting for a while and then getting up. This is the price I pay for playing around in sprinter's sandbox yesterday! Amazing what 200m can do to you if you're not used to speed. Oh, and my abs and right arm are sore as well - from javelin, although abs might be from sprinting too - who knows.

Had to force myself outside and plodded through a miserable 6 miler where every step hurt. It's gotten a bit better once I warmed up, but the whole run was uncomfortable.

Total time: 55:15 (9:03 pace).

Still very sore, but feeling a bit better. Pace was a little quicker as well, at the same pace as yesterday.

Total time; 53:49 (8:50 pace).

No running today - spent the whole day in an incredibly hot and humid pool for my daughter's swim meet.

She did awesome, so it was all worth it - got 6 PRs again:

100m back - 1:17.74 (a very good time)

50m back - 37.23

100m fly - 1:18.54 (a 4 sec. PR, and she beat her archrival by 2 sec.)

50m fly - 35.43

100 IM - 1:21.5

100m free - 1:12.30

Slowly but surely she is edging towards the County standard, especially in 100 back and IM, only 1 sec. off now!

Just wanted to put in some miles after a 2 day break again. I wanted to run yesterday, but every time I had an opportunity, it was a washout outside, and I kept losing my motivation. Not only it's been raining for like a week already, but it's also cold, only mid 50s. This weather reminds me of some summers in Russia, when I was 12-14 and spent the summer at "dacha" in unheated summer home - it was freezing (although we used electrical heater) and so depressing - I read lots of books in those days. Anyway, the weather is not an excuse, and this is UK after all, but I just couldn't bring myself to go out in that miserable cold steady rain.

It's been raining today as well, but luckily, it cleared up a little in the evening, so I went out and ran 8 miles and some strides. Felt slow and heavy, but the pace was my usual pace. I havent' run long in 2 weeks, and I'm sure it's going to bite me soon.

Total time 1:11:27 (8:49 pace), not counting strides.

Another cold, but at least not rainy, day! This is the second day in a row I was wearing long sleeve shirt on my run, and I was just fine in it, not hot. It's pretty crazy when I think of my runs last summer in heat and humidity of NJ! It's a bit too chilly for my liking, but I'll take it over 100F any time - it's good running weather save the rain. Just went for an easy 6 miler to keep some semblance of volume this week.

Total time: 53:41 (8:47 pace)

Didn't feel like running, but went out anyway at 9PM. I have lots of things going on now, one of which being a new job offer I got. I accepted, but not sure if it's going to be better than my current contract. Potentially could be travel, and the office is 1.5 hours away. But the job sounds a lot more interesting than what I'm doing now. Who knows... also have some problems at home.

So my mind wasn't on my running at all, I planned on doing CV reps, but then just decided to go easy, since I couldn't focus on running. I was on auto pilot, and Garmin didn't pick up the signal, so no info on pace.

Total time: 53:33 (8:46 pace).