6 Weeks Out - Recovery Week

With six weeks til the big day and three weeks of increasing to my longest run, the theme for this week is recovery.

I was feeling pretty tired and run down last week after Great Ocean Road, but kept up all my sessions, swapping Monday's long interval session to cross training on Thursday. My long run was 2 hours 25 mins and I was hoping to hit between 25-26km's. We ended up getting out 25km's and this was definitely the worst I've ever felt during a run! I felt good for the until the 18km mark, pace was a bit slower than normal but it didn't bother me too much as it had only been 6 days since GORM. By 18km's, my hips were feeling incredibly tight and sore and as I kept going, I could feel the pain all through my glutes and lower back. I'm pretty sure if Lisa wasn't there with me, I'd have given up but I kept plodding along, almost at walking pace at some points, but finally managed to finish it off. I'm expecting to feel tired and sore at some point of the marathon, just not the 18km mark! 
I'm not going to lie, that run affected me mentally as well as physically (my body was tired, sore and I had come down with a head cold), I've had thoughts of chucking in the towel, that I can't possibly run 42km's if I can barely manage 25, it's all too hard etc etc. I guess this is when you need an amazing support crew around you, lucky I have Ronnie to listen to me whinge and moan, Lisa to be there pushing me along during the run (I know I would have felt 100% worse if I'd given up) and Mel to reassure me that I'm doing ok, remind me it's training and not to put too much pressure on myself. Plus the running group to keep me accountable, helped get my ass out of bed and along to sessions this week!

So my recovery week has come at a great time, Mel has given us a forced break from FIRE sessions this week and it's given me a break mentally, extra time to catch up on sleep and mix my running sessions up a bit. I'm in a much better mindset than I was earlier in the week, that's for sure!
I was also way overdue for a massage and dry needling treatment so made sure I had that scheduled in for this week and my body is feeling so much better for it now. My massage therapist seems to think tight ITB's contributed to my hip and glute pain so we'll see how we go this week. 

Yes, that's me with needles in my back ;-)

Mel is also running a recovery information session tonight with sports physio Ross Kinsella so I'm looking forward to finding out some more ways to recover properly from my long runs. Told you it was Recovery Week!

As I mentioned in my last post, I trialled a hydration pack during my long run last week after seeing a few people using them at Great Ocean Road. I can't stand hydration belts as they always tend to ride up around my waist when I'm running and I find it annoying to fiddle around trying to get the bottles back in and out. And while I got away with not really hydrating during training for half marathons, I'd definitely need to have some from of hydration during any 25km+ runs.
So I got my hands on the Camelbak Classic 2 litre hydration pack - it is not specifically marketed towards runners but I read some good reviews on it from runners and was recommended a similar one by a friend on Instagram. 

It's very compact and sits nice and snug on your back once the the straps are adjusted. I filled it approx 3/4 full for Saturday's run as I didn't want it to feel too heavy on my back. It did take some getting used to at first, obviously I'm not used to having something on my back when I'm running but wasn't long before I'd forgotten it was even there. When it came to drinking, it was amazing! The straw made it so easy to get water in, 100% better than drinking from a bottle or cup while on the run. I would highly recommend using a hydration pack! This week we're trialling Endura (the electrolyte drink they'll have on the marathon course) and over the next few weeks I'll make the decision whether use the pack for the actual race or not.

Thanks for reading - sorry for being a bit of a Debbie Downer at the moment!

Bec xx

Great Ocean Road Marathon

What a weekend! I've decided that races are the perfect excuse for a weekend away! 
Friday night Ronnie and I headed down to Anglesea for the Great Ocean Road Marathon where I would be running the 23km half marathon course.

We spent the Friday night relaxing, went out for dinner and had an early night ready for the rest of the weekend ahead. We were up early Saturday morning and Ronnie joined me for my easy 30 min run around Anglesea, nothing better than running by the beach!
After a delicious brekky at an awesome retro cafe (Red Till in Anglesea, definitely worth a visit!) and lunch in Torquay, we decided to head into Apollo Bay along the Great Ocean Road to meet up with some of the running crew. Mel participated in the 6km race earlier that day and one of our members, Kelly, was participating in the 14km race so we'd be there just in time to see her finish. It also gave me an opportunity to see the course I'd be running the next day.

I've never driven the entire length of a course prior to a race and I don't think I'll do it again! The marathon course is actually 45km's and starts from Lorne and finishes in Apollo Bay - respect to anyone who takes that on for their first marathon, the first 25km's are some pretty hardcore rolling hills and not to mention the extra 3 km's added to the standard marathon distance.
The half marathon starts from Kennett River, finishing in Apollo Bay with two fairly big hills at the start. The drive along the course left me feeling very nervous as the hills seemed bigger and longer than I'd anticipated as well as the distance feeling very....well, long! Suffice to say I was pretty much shitting myself that afternoon and I wasn't too much fun to be around!
I tried to calm my nerves (and my calves) with a quick dip of my legs in the surf before heading out to dinner with the running crew.

I didn't sleep well that night at all, I honestly think it was the most nervous I'd been before a race, but by the time morning came, I was ready to get it over and done with! Ronnie dropped us off at the start line about 7am, which gave us plenty of time to line up for the toilets and warm up, with the race to start at 8am. Lisa and I decided to try and stick together for the run, she was feeling pretty nervous as well so it would be good to have each other there. We promised that if either of us was struggling at any time, the other would go ahead.

And so we were off! There was about 200m of flat course before the first incline began and by the time we'd reached the top and started on the decline, I was feeling more confident, that wasn't so bad! We started the climb up the second hill, which I knew from the drive the day earlier was the longest, and I was surprised once we'd made it to the top - those two big hills weren't so bad after all!
The rest of the course was undulating with spectacular views and a cool sea breeze which provided some relief to the (unusual for May) very mild and humid conditions.

At the 18km mark, Lisa told me to go on ahead as she wasn't feeling the best. It was a hard decision for me but we'd both made to promise to run our own race so I went on ahead. I crossed the 21.1km mark at 1:51.33 - approx. 5.18 min per km pace which I'm actually pretty happy with considering the course and that I'd planned to use this as a training run. It was then abit of a struggle into the unknown for those last 2km's, pace dropped dramatically and I was close to being physically spent, my glutes and legs were sore and I remember wondering how I could possible run another 19km's on top of this is 7 weeks time!

I heard Mel yelling at me with about 500m to go and saw her, Ronnie and the crew all cheering as I ran past. I somehow managed to sprint to the finish line and finished the entire 23km course in 2:05.01 - 5 minutes under the time I'd initially allowed for myself. 

Despite all my nerves, I'm so glad I did this run, I have no doubt it's made me a better runner and I will benefit from it on marathon day. I pulled up pretty well, just general soreness so decided to rest on Monday night and will make up the session later this week. Legs are feeling pretty good now and ready for our track session tonight.

So now starts what I guess would be the hardest part of my training, 4 big weeks building up to my longest run on 14th June (hoping to hit 32km's) with 3 weeks to taper before the big day! Bring it on!

In other news, the new Mizuno's are feeling great, I wore them for all my shorter sessions last week and might transition them over for my long run this weekend. Also doing some experimenting this week on my long run, testing out some gels and a hydration pack so will see how I go with those! And yay - excited that we have finally got a cleaner who will be cleaning our house once a fortnight starting this Friday. One less thing for me to worry about, woo hoo!

Bec xx

Gold Coast Marathon - 8 Weeks Out

Life is pretty crazy busy at the moment! I was prepared for this to happen but sometimes it feels frustrating and the stress can sometimes get the better of me! In reality, I’ve only really increased to one extra training session (Friday’s 30 min easy run…funny that, it actually feels like the hardest session of the week!) but I suppose I’m starting to notice the extra 20 mins tacked onto my 2 weekly running sessions and the minimum 15 mins I try to allow for daily stretching. 

And I’m not complaining at all, I love my life and the way I’ve chosen to live it but with the constant food preparation for a minimum of 6 meals a day, a full time job, finding time to study, doing my best to keep our household running plus all the training, some days it feels all too hard and the motivation starts to waver. I try to visualise myself crossing the finish line and how I’ll feel once I get there (pic below is the new background on my phone) and I'm able to find my mojo again. It's not always going to be easy so sometimes you need a good vent! 

Last weekend was my first Puffing Billy Great Train race and despite a freezing cold morning with a bit of rain, I absolutely loved it! I’m so glad I finally got the chance to do it and I think it’s knocked off Run for the Kids as my favourite race. The course was fantastic and never boring, plenty of rolling hills and amazing scenery to keep things interesting. I was pleasantly surprised that the hills were definitely not as bad as I’d heard/anticipated and it was a great confidence booster passing quite a few walkers on the 2km incline between Selby and Menzies Creek. After a brief discussion with Mel on the Saturday afternoon, she convinced me that I’d get more out of the run by giving it a good crack rather than holding back as I discussed in my last post. So I ended up finishing in 70 mins, which is a pace of approx. 5.10 mins per km and I’m pretty happy with this result, considering the hilly course. Definitely a race I’ll be hoping to do every year from now on!

Monday’s session ended up as a recovery session, I was happy with how I pulled up and did a steady 7.8km’s while the group did a fartlek session. That’s when I noticed that the new Asics weren’t feeling the best. I’d been slowly transitioning into them, running in them on Mondays and Fridays and they hadn’t been feeling amazing but I figured I was just getting used to them. I wasn’t ready to wear them for Puffing Billy and I’m glad I didn’t! I wanted to give them a crack on a long-er run just to make sure it wasn’t me still getting used to them, so I ran in them on Saturday for a 60 min run and that’s when I conceded defeat…the Asics weren’t for me.

I was able to exchange them thanks to our friend Steve so now I’m back in Mizuno’s – the Wave Inspire 10’s. They are definitely not as pretty as the brightly coloured Asics I had for a total of 3 weeks, but they feel amazing and after running in shoes that felt truly crap, that’s the only thing that matters! Will be giving them a good test with 1km reps tonight.

The week ahead will be the biggest one yet with the Great Ocean Road Half on Sunday (distance is actually 23km’s) and will only increase from here so I’d better get used to it! Stretching, nutrition and sleep will be a big focus for me this week.

Thanks for reading!

Bec xx

Entering Races for Training

The past week has been good, another short working week with Easter Monday and Anzac Day on the Friday so a perfect week to start increasing my weekly kilometres. 
Easter Monday I tagged along with Mel (who was making a race comeback after a stint of injuries and bad luck) some of the running crew who were participating in the Anzac Run. The race started at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne with 5km and 10km courses around the Tan. I didn't enter the race this year, but wished I had, it was one of the smaller runs with a great atmosphere and all for an amazing cause. Instead I did 2 laps on the Tan, one easy lap and one hard to finish, so about 7.6k's all up. We then headed out for brekky all together, we all know how much I love food, so no guesses as to why my favourite thing to do after a run!  

Post run brekky on Easter Monday

Wednesday night track session included an extra 2km warm up and I also added in a 30 min run on a Friday, the day before my long run to fatigue my legs a bit. This will hopefully get me used to running on tired legs. I had sleep in on Friday morning (Anzac Day) and headed out mid-morning and out for a post run brekky again.
I also hit the longest run this year, 20km's in approx 1 hour 50 mins with Lisa which took my total kilometres for the week 41km's....still 1.2km's shy of the full marathon distance, a scary thought!

Anyway, I'm pretty happy with how I've pulled up after last week and looking forward to tackling the next 10 weeks.

This weekend my long run will be on Sunday as I'm running in the Puffing Billy Great Train Race. This is a run Mel has done a few times before I started running and it's one I've always wanted to do. I missed the cut off for registrations last year (it's capped at 3,300 participants), but made sure I got in for this year. 

Apart from Puffing Billy, I entered a couple of races that will fall during my training program to change courses up to keep long runs interesting and challenge myself a bit.
Run for the Kids was my first race in the program I've also entered the Great Ocean Road Half Marathon (which is actually 23km's) in a couple of weeks. 
I did Run for the Kids with the intention to run hard and hopefully get a PB. Still being 12 weeks out, it wouldn't affect my training during the week too much if I pulled up sore (which I did!).
The next two races I plan to use strictly as training runs, so I'm going into them both as I would any other long run and try my best not to get too caught up in the atmosphere and push too hard! I doubt it will be too hard to pace myself as both Puffing Billy and Great Ocean Road are hilly courses and hills are definitely not my strong point! Both runs will be good mental and physical training so bring it on!

Bec xx