AK reserve visit sparks intensity as taper kicks in

WEEK 8 (of 10) (21/09/09-27/09/09);
Volume;176min. Sessions; 3 Best RHR; 46
Sleep;39.25 (5.60 per night) *32 MR-17hrs

OD/LSD sessions;102min (12km/62min hard, 40minutes easy (saturday)
Short/Medium runs;
-Ran 12km 62.36 (Saturday)
Reps sessions;
-5x300m 3min 14 per KM average (Friday)
-5x600m/5x800m AND later 2x200m/2x300m=8000m reps in 31.51 (3.59 per km) (Tuesday)
Comments;Feel like I am still building some momentum, with 2 weeks to go. The trip to AK reserve (and to a lesser extent the 300's on Friday night) was very worthwhile even though it was a bit of a messy session trying to make the most of my time there. I made some gains there, (could feel it the next day), and mentally it was just so inspiring! The 12km is another good run logged. So the aim now is to drop the volume, by dropping the long run out of the training, but to attack the reps, and some short runs (5km-12km) with MAXimum intensity!, so that will be my focus in week 9 pretty much the same as it was this week. Then in week 10 I will do no sessions beyond 4-5km...Probably the first time I have really done a proper taper...I feel my prep is the best its ever been for the Marathon in some ways, just hope I have (a) compensated for my overweightness (although this has dropped 1-2kg in recent weeks to be sitting around 79-80kg...) and (b) got back to a good fitness level (the resting heart rates of 42-46 suggests I am back on track in that regard)...Although I need to be careful as I didn't really get enough sleep this week, so need to be careful not to lose the momentum there, and keep on turning up the power!

I got my Melbourne Marathon number in the mail this week, and its all looking good. I feel I am almost ready to hopefully (if enough things go right on the day and I get the training right (and keep the injuries under control)in the last 2 weeks), hopefully...smash the 3.55 PB finally, and give my 2009 target of a sub 3.40 a really good shot!


Saturday AM 26th September 2009 A.D.;
Ran approx. 12km in 62min 36 (5min 13 per km) HR 168...
Hilly bitumen course (4 big hills). Headwind /Tailwind...
6km splits; 31.41/30.55..so a negative split which is very pleasing...was a bit sluggish early on into the headwind but felt better as the run went on...Hammy a bit tender especially early on and on some of the steep hills, but seemed to survive reasonably well.

Then 5minute walk break down to local grass oval, and 40minutes of jogging to make this into a long run effort, i.e. a multipurpose session(instead of doing the fastish 12km one day and a 100min-120min run another day, I just added on the extra 40min to the 12km fastish run to make it into a 102-103min long run...HR down to 126 at end of this...

Hot conditions although a very cool wind...had some hassles with swooping magpies so ended up running on one side of the oval to avoid them, and so was a bit unsure of the distance I ran...
Hammy a little tender but ok.

A good warm-down after an excellent 12km. Wanted to be under 5min 30 per KM for the 12km as I am wanting to simulate Marathon Pace hopefully...I think 5.13 per km is about 3.37 marathon pace, and on a very hilly course, with hopefully still some major tune-up fitness gains still ahead, thats pretty much what I want to be comfortable with now. So on target...:-)


Friday PM 25th September 2009 A.D.;
5x 300m reps at S. Park grass track...
55.06/59.28/58.66/59.50/59.93 = 4.52.43 total for 1500m.
HR's 165-186...
Which is a PB for this session by a few tenths of a second on the 4.52.98 I did on March 18th 2009. The last 2 reps I was running on empty, struggling to hold it together. The first one the 55.06 was very pleasing...Important short sharp session to help me go faster in the 800's...
1km pace 3min 14.95...

Tuesday PM 22nd September 2009 A.D.;
My first run at AK reserve!!!;
5x600m,5x800m and 20min later 2x200m + 2x300m;

5x600m (2 minute rests);
2.12.56 HR 165 1st 400m 1.25
2.28.57 HR 183 1st 400m 1.36
2.21.97 HR 177 1st 400m 1.29
2.20.40 HR 180 1st 400m 1.33
2.21.53 HR 186 1st 400m 1.35
TOTAL = 11min 45.03 for 3000m.
average time is 2min 21...1km pace is 3min 55.

Ran the first rep with Clown, and he probably made me work a bit harder which was good. However he was using a Garmin to measure his 600m distance, and taking 90 second rests.
(a) I don't have a Garmin and I don't like the idea of running the distance blind relying on someone else to know how far I have to run at high intensity...Especially in reps sessions like to have a high degree of control over the session so I can get the best out of myself...and (b) I thought 90 second rests was too short for me...I like to have 1:1 rests...although for some of the 800's I was having rests of less than 1:1...
So after the first rep running with Clown I ran the next 4 on my own...

My target was to stay under 2.30's and try and get close to 2.15's or better. I stayed well under 2.30 in all reps, so mission accomplished there...but need to work harder on going sub 2.15 the tougher goal...

3minute rest then;

5x800m (2-3 minute rests)
3.14.25 HR 183 1st 400m 1.30
3.22.38 HR 186 1st 400m 1.41
3.28.72 HR 183 1st 400m 1.42
3.26.15 HR 183 1st 400m 1.42
3.16.37 HR 192! 1st 400m 1.42
TOTAL = 16min 47.87 for 4000m.
average time is 3min 21.57...1km pace is 4min 11.97.

I tried to get Clown to join in with the 800's but he wasn't too keen, and reckoned he'd done 20km for the day and that was enough, so I had to do the last 2 on my own as Epi and Biscuitman were finished for the night.

Well I struggled a bit after the 600's but the 3.14 and 3.16 are good, the rest are slow but, did enough to keep the average at 3.21 and so under a 3.25 average so pretty happy with that.
Had to put in a total "go for home/pedal to the metal" "PRE/Bekele/Andrew Lloyd" finish to nail the 3.16 too...was shattered at the end of that one as the 192 heart rate shows...

For the first three 800's I was starting behind Epi and Biscuitman who were going after 2.40's! Well done to them!!! Biscuitman in particular looks destined for great things, with a 2.41 average for 10x800m!! Epi only did 8 or 9x800m I think but was right up there pushing Biscuitman all the way (and running wide into lane 2 a lot of the way too!)...

Just to sit behind these two legends I had to hit the first 200m in about 36-38 seconds, so doing that at the start of every 800 was hurting a bit, and probably my attempts to recover from that, cost me a few seconds on most of my 800 reps. However in the long run I think thats good, cos its helping my body to get better at absorbing a fast surge, while not losing too much...It was inspiring just getting a feel for their pace....

I'm thinking maybe my 800m local B. oval course is perhaps a little short so if anyone with a Garmin wants to make the trek up my way and measure it for me it would be much appreciated, and give me some closure/definiteness on how good or bad my times on that course have been this year...

After the 800's, 20-30minute rest chatting with Epi,Biscuitman and Clown, watching State 10km champ Courtney,Kenji, State rep Deboer, and National 800m finalist Stingy? doing 200m sprint/200m float laps...After Clown went home, and the others had gone to the showers...I Put on my Freo Dockers tracksuit pants, and slipped on my Nike spikes for the first time in about 5 years...(I ran in my normal Reebok"Road Plus KFS VI" training and racing shoes for the 600's and 800's.)
Did some work on my finishing kick under lights at this glorious $73million facility...;
2x200m + 2 x300m;
200's; 33.16/35.68 300's 67secs,64secs...average pace 3min 20 per KM.

Hammy starting to get a little tender in the 300's...

Total for entire session;
8000m of reps in 31min 51...@ 3min 59 per km...or 3min 11 per 800m.

About 16-20minutes of rest between reps, which I tried to make somewhat active recovery by jogging between reps, although Clowns active recovery of jogging continously around track between reps is at a much higher and more sustained level of intensity of active recovery than mine...As I have to stop to write down my times and heart rates, and to take my heart rate for 10 seconds using my finger on my carotid pulse, etc etc...

Also an extended 20-30min rest between the 600's/800's and the 200's/300's was not very active recovery oriented at all...At that stage I was tossing up mentally whether or not to try out the spikes...

Then it was onto the long 1 hour drive home, and a visit to Subway and red rooster for some much needed sustenance! first meal of the day as I decided not to eat before metering work that day (several hours of walking around the streets before this session)...so as to minimise toilet stops...

Tired!!! but very happy! what a venue!, Inspiring people to run with! A good nights training!...If only I could do sessions like this every 2nd night...

HERE and HERE is some links to info about AK reserve, the site of the 2010 Commonwealth games trials and the 2010 Australian Masters championships.

The AK Reserve facility was designed by Cox Architects who also did the SIAC see
HERE
(Sydney International Athletics Centre or SIAC was the warm up track for the Sydney 2000 Olympics, and I was marshalled there before we went through the tunnel into the Olympic Stadium for the Australian 20km walk championship in February 2000 see HERE
) Arena Joondalup, the northern stand redevelopment of the MCG etc etc
HERE


Many thanks to Clown for inviting me along, and to Epi and Biscuitman for being great people to run behind, and chat with afterwards.

Black or white a good song from the king of pop MJ...then there is the other MJ(Michael Jordan) both MJ's bring back memories of my brother Tim (been in USA for many years now), and his cut sick PRE-ish attitude with the Black Torana when he played basketball in Mandurah before heading for USA...Hope to approach this race with a similiar attitude...
READY STEADY GO!for my (MEL)Bourne ID III...I'm in the mood for some AP2 or Argyle Park as they were formerly known, that feeling of intense momentum...Industrial metal is great for that...Then there is always some time for Mortifications Nocturnal(a reminder of some of the night runs I have done to keep things ticking over this year) or Noah was a knower hahaha but soo true too God keeps his promises..., or Grave Forsaken...or maybe an oldskool onslaught or Tourniquet(e.g. tire kicking, drawn & quartered,K517 or the Deliverance WOOW vid that was on MTV...or nu-metal like Demon Hunter's Lead us Home or some hardcore old skool death metal e.g. Believer or some unblack metal which I discovered in the last year or so like Royal Anguish or Horde...etc etc etc...So in 2 weeks time its time To give me an Answer as to whether there is still some PB's to hammer out and NAIL this year...FREE to Take it to the limit and see how far I can go into overdrive with Gods help...
...Love on the line...something that has been a big comfort during some of the tough dark times this year...
Hopefully this can Re-animate my PB Flashpoint this time...