Week commencing 29th April - Intervals and seven mile challenge

This week was all run in Cambridge, as I was there for the week for a training course in King's Cross. As such all my runs were along the side of the river. This fulfils most of my key criteria, being almost flat, fairly traffic free and going far enough that I'm yet to find any sort of end. I also run there because it brings back the nostalgia from my days rowing, and the boats help to distract me when it hurts as well as providing targets to trace down.

29th April 2013 - Interval sprints

Distance (miles): 1.71
Time (mm:ss): 19:31
Pace (min/mile): 11:21

As with all intervals, the headline numbers don't mean a lot. I jogged down to near Trinity Hall boathouse, and stepped off the main path to where a gentle bath had been trodden down in the grass. This kept me away from most of the people, allowing me to sprint freely for approximately 300m. I got down to just over 5:06 pace on the first sprint, with the next 5 at around 5:40 pace.

I was originally planning to do a seventh, but due to a pack of gambolling dogs on the path, and quite large ones at that I decided rather than going hurtling through them perhaps discretion was the better part of valour, and so stopped at this point to wander home.

2nd May 2013 - 7 Mile challenge

Distance (miles): 7.01
Time (mm:ss): 48:18
Pace (min/mile): 06:53

Having managed the 5 miler at sub-7 pace, I decided to try and do the same at seven miles. I wasn't really expecting to get close, but feel like if I can find where I am I can more easily work out how to get where I want to be. At this point I was planning to try and add 1 mile at target pace every week, in order to build from 5 miles to 13 for September. Looking back this is a really stupid way to do things, but there it is.

The first mile was completed in 6:20, well under target and new that if I could keep pushing I could get there.  As I passed mile 2.5 I saw Emma's crew up ahead, and so targeted to catch them in the next half mile. This meant at a point where I normally start to slow a little instead the pace came down and set me up for the rest of the run.

It was not over yet though, and as I came through the gut and round the turns my pace was well off target, hovering around 7:30. A quick glance at my watch told me this as I hit the reach, and so as I had done before on the river I pushed myself out of the turn, but this time on the towpath. At 5 and a half miles I knew I had a shot, and just had to put my head down and run as hard and fast as I could.

I pushed and pushed through to the end, and near collapsed as I crossed the 7 mile mark. This was not the wooziness of the endurance run, but burning lungs and tired legs making the ground look much more appealing as a place to lie than it usually does.

Once I had recovered a quick glance at my watch showed my total time, and as I realised I had gone under 49 minutes a whoop of joy was emitted and I practically skipped my way home.

4th May 2013

Distance (miles): 2.58, 1.36
Time (mm:ss): 17:42, 12:15
Pace (min/mile): 06:50, 09:01

There are two sets of numbers above as I had a nice rest half way along, but more on that later. I had planned to do an interval workout I had read online, being 1 mile at target 10k pace then 1 minute gentle jogging. This was supposed to aid preparation for the Horsham 10k where I was aiming for a 40 minute 10k, meaning a 6:20 mile pace.

The first mile went well, completed to target, and then I set off for the second at a similar pace. This went less well, with the pace increasing fairly steadily throughout to 07:30 pace. The next rest period was less of a gentle jog and more of a slow walk, not aided by running out of path to follow as I hadn't crossed over the river and so had reached fen ditton.

Ignoring these set backs I dutifully set off for the third set, getting down to 6:40 pace within a quarter mile though it had risen back to a 7:30, and I gave up. I stopped my watch and sat on a fallen tree. It was hot and humid (I hate the heat) and I felt sticky and tired. Just I just stopped and sat there for a while and thought.

At first I felt bad for not following the plan, and tried to encourage myself to continue immediately. When that didn't happen I decided that it was probably for the best, and I'd rather just jog gently home. So I did. This is the second set of times above, and was just a nice, gentle jog back to where I started.

Despite the complete failure to maintain target pace here, or run the target 20 minute 5k the week before I somehow thought I'd still be able to do a 40 minute 10k. Never mind.

Lessons learned

• If I'm going to push myself to the limit, as I did on the Thursday I need to rest after.
• I don't like intervals, they break up my rhythm and make me have to think.
• I hate the heat.