Let me begin by getting one thing straight ... for a few days after a 24 hour race my head is all over the place (always has been) and I'm prone to making silly mistakes and doing a few stupid things [please don't mention DIY to Fay]. This time the big error was in the last post and, just to correct any errors, it is my RIGHT foot and ankle that is injured, not my left.
Yesterday was the first day since arriving home that I've been able to walk unaided - still painful and slow though. And painfully slow !!! I'll keep using ibuprofen for at least another week but ice and rest won't be so easy to come by after tomorrow. Three toes are still strapped up - including both big toes.
Tomorrow is the day Keir goes to university. So Fay and I are going (with Keir) to Coleraine in Northern Ireland for a few days to help with accommodation, shopping, etc. We'll be back (without him) on Wednesday and I'm not going to post anything until else then at the very earliest. I'll probably be too busy anyway.
Training for my next race begins then. Cycling, stretching and weight training ... not sure about running, we'll see how things progress whilst I'm in Northern Ireland.
Thanks to everyone for all the kind words on Facebook, this blog, by email and in person. They're much appreciated and really have helped ease the disappointment of only 231 km. Disappointed with 231 km - that sounds ridiculous but it is exactly how I felt.
At this moment in time I can't say whether they'll be a full race report. They probably will be but it'll be a few weeks late as rehab and university are taking up all my spare time at the moment.
OK let me finish with a few stats of which I'm very proud. I've now taken part in ten 24 hour races and what follows is a summary:
pb ... 238.286 km
average of best 2 performances ... 234.896 km
average of best 3 performances ... 233.711 km
average of best 4 performances ... 232.286 km
average of best 5 performances ... 230.381 km
average of best 6 performances ... 228.924 km
average of best 7 performances ... 227.752 km
average of best 8 performances ... 224.912 km
average of best 9 performances ... 222.439 km
average of all 10 performances ... 218.381 km
average of 2 most recent races ... 226.029 km
average of 3 most recent races ... 230.115 km
average of 4 most recent races ... 228.276 km
average of 5 most recent races ... 228.922 km
average of 6 most recent races ... 228.770 km
average of 7 most recent races ... 227.752 km
average of 8 most recent races ... 224.615 km
average of 9 most recent races ... 222.439 km
Showing posts with label statistics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label statistics. Show all posts
Friday, 14 September 2012
Sunday, 20 May 2012
mentally tired
Just had a few very heavy training weeks and I'm feeling a little tired:
since Easter an average week has been ... about twelve hours of running and two hours on the bike and over five hours strength work finishing off with almost two hours of stretching. And there's been a couple of races too.
And now, although the body has coped remarkably well, the mind needs a break. So this week I've decided not to do quite so much and the plan is ... no cycling and no steady running. In essence I'm just keeping the essential stuff for seven to ten days.
That's the long runs, hill reps, tempo runs, speedwork, strength work and stretching ONLY which will free up a good few hours for mental recovery.
The strange thing is that I'll begin tapering anyway in less than two weeks from now. But sometimes, recently, when it's been time to go for a run I've been in two minds about whether to actually get my kit on or not. Perhaps it's the very early stages of overtraining syndrome, or maybe a virus, or maybe the worst Yorkshire springtime on record is just getting me down ... but whatever it is I need to get it sorted. Now.
So, a relatively easy week or so and hopefully I'll come bouncing back in time for a hard three weeks tapering.
since Easter an average week has been ... about twelve hours of running and two hours on the bike and over five hours strength work finishing off with almost two hours of stretching. And there's been a couple of races too.
And now, although the body has coped remarkably well, the mind needs a break. So this week I've decided not to do quite so much and the plan is ... no cycling and no steady running. In essence I'm just keeping the essential stuff for seven to ten days.
That's the long runs, hill reps, tempo runs, speedwork, strength work and stretching ONLY which will free up a good few hours for mental recovery.
The strange thing is that I'll begin tapering anyway in less than two weeks from now. But sometimes, recently, when it's been time to go for a run I've been in two minds about whether to actually get my kit on or not. Perhaps it's the very early stages of overtraining syndrome, or maybe a virus, or maybe the worst Yorkshire springtime on record is just getting me down ... but whatever it is I need to get it sorted. Now.
So, a relatively easy week or so and hopefully I'll come bouncing back in time for a hard three weeks tapering.
Wednesday, 4 January 2012
injury updates ... stats ... other stuff
Quite a bit to get through today so ... here goes ...
My rehab from the calcaneous stress fracture and achilles tendon injury seems to be progressing very well at the moment. Until Sunday evening I was a little unsure as to whether the ankle was actually getting any better. But then, from Monday morning, things seemed to click into place and I'm now confident that my rehab is going to plan.
It appears that the many hours spent massaging, icing, stretching, etc are finally paying dividends and that got me round to thinking about 2011 ... and then 2012.
Last year began with a knee injury which limited training during the whole of January but after that things went exceptionally well apart from the two important races. In the first of those it was a momentary lapse of concentration that cost me the winner's trophy (and the course record by almost an hour). That's something that needs to be corrected in the next year or two. You can read that story on this page.
The second (and most important) race was a different story entirely. I was in very good shape for that one but, stupidly, I stuck to my pre race plans and almost everyone else was adjusting theirs to take account of the very windy weather in Llandudno. Having said that, if a very bad run produces 220km (136.7 miles) what would a very good have produced ? There's something for me to think about.
So ... two big races completed and two important lessons learned.
Now, for everyone who's interested in the numbers, here are a few from 2011:
running
over 2444 miles (3933 km) in the year ... 46.9 miles per week (75.4 km per week) ... very nearly an hour per day
cycling
almost 18 minutes per day on average
stretching
almost 14 minutes per day on average
strength training
over 25 minutes per day on average
rehab stuff
over 18 minutes per day on average (not including ice)
In total my training and rehab took over 830 hours last year ... that's over 2 hours 16 per day which doesn't include changing clothes, showering, etc.
My end of year 24 hr ranking is correspondingly a bit disappointing and the stats read:
World ... 72 (down from 37)
Europe ... 49 (down from 26)
UK ... 5 (down from 4)
England ... 4 ? (last year 3)
Full details and year by year comparisons can be found over on this page.
OK ... on to other stuff now.
I was saddened to learn yesterday of the recent death of the great coach Frank Horwill. I'm sure I've talked about him in previous posts but his wisdom and writings have been a large source of information about all thing training related. I highly recommend that all runners read the articles on his club's website - here.
Local athlete Racheal Bamford (who lives about 200m from me) recently represented the North of England in the Nos Galan 5k in Wales recently. She finished first woman on the uphill course with a time of 16:44. Fantastic ... well done to her ... and she's going to get quicker.
My rehab from the calcaneous stress fracture and achilles tendon injury seems to be progressing very well at the moment. Until Sunday evening I was a little unsure as to whether the ankle was actually getting any better. But then, from Monday morning, things seemed to click into place and I'm now confident that my rehab is going to plan.
It appears that the many hours spent massaging, icing, stretching, etc are finally paying dividends and that got me round to thinking about 2011 ... and then 2012.
Last year began with a knee injury which limited training during the whole of January but after that things went exceptionally well apart from the two important races. In the first of those it was a momentary lapse of concentration that cost me the winner's trophy (and the course record by almost an hour). That's something that needs to be corrected in the next year or two. You can read that story on this page.
The second (and most important) race was a different story entirely. I was in very good shape for that one but, stupidly, I stuck to my pre race plans and almost everyone else was adjusting theirs to take account of the very windy weather in Llandudno. Having said that, if a very bad run produces 220km (136.7 miles) what would a very good have produced ? There's something for me to think about.
So ... two big races completed and two important lessons learned.
Now, for everyone who's interested in the numbers, here are a few from 2011:
running
over 2444 miles (3933 km) in the year ... 46.9 miles per week (75.4 km per week) ... very nearly an hour per day
cycling
almost 18 minutes per day on average
stretching
almost 14 minutes per day on average
strength training
over 25 minutes per day on average
rehab stuff
over 18 minutes per day on average (not including ice)
In total my training and rehab took over 830 hours last year ... that's over 2 hours 16 per day which doesn't include changing clothes, showering, etc.
My end of year 24 hr ranking is correspondingly a bit disappointing and the stats read:
World ... 72 (down from 37)
Europe ... 49 (down from 26)
UK ... 5 (down from 4)
England ... 4 ? (last year 3)
Full details and year by year comparisons can be found over on this page.
OK ... on to other stuff now.
I was saddened to learn yesterday of the recent death of the great coach Frank Horwill. I'm sure I've talked about him in previous posts but his wisdom and writings have been a large source of information about all thing training related. I highly recommend that all runners read the articles on his club's website - here.
Local athlete Racheal Bamford (who lives about 200m from me) recently represented the North of England in the Nos Galan 5k in Wales recently. She finished first woman on the uphill course with a time of 16:44. Fantastic ... well done to her ... and she's going to get quicker.
Monday, 27 September 2010
split times from Perth
Over the weekend I had a really in depth look at my lap times from the Perth Ultra Fest. Below is a list of my 10k splits:
10k ... 48:17
20k ... 1h 42:58 ..... (54:41)
30k ... 2h 36:23 ..... (53:25)
40k ... 3h 31:30 ..... (55:07)
50k ... 4h 25:35 ..... (54:05)
60k ... 5h 19:54 ..... (54:19)
70k ... 6h 11:56 ..... (52:02)
80k ... 7h 09:21 ..... (57:25)
90k ... 8h 03:05 ..... (53:44)
100k ... 9h 00:10 ..... (57:05)
110k ... 10h 00:58 ..... (60:48)
120k ... 10h 59:07 ..... (58:09)
130k ... 11h 58:58 ..... (59:51)
140k ... 13h 03:18 ..... (64:20)
150k ... 14h 07:30 ..... (64:12)
160k ... 15h 12:29 ..... (64:59)
170k ... 16h 22:20 ..... (69:51)
180k ... 17h 23:38 ..... (61:18)
190k ... 18h 40:29 ..... (76:51)
200k ... 19h 48:28 ..... (67:59)
210k ... 20h 48:44 ..... (60:16)
220k ... 21h 51:23 ..... (62:39)
230k ... 23h 04:07 ..... (72:44)
From 70k to 230k these times are all personal bests except for the 200k. Which is rather weird really. In Perth I beat all my split times from the Commonwealth Championships [Keswick 2009] except for the 200k where I ran 19h 47:42 twelve months ago. Overall I ran 7k further in Perth than I did in Keswick.
Looking at the times above it's obvious that I did slow down dramatically between 180k and 190k but then I managed to pick it up again which I'm very pleased about.
Which probably means that I managed to keep it going in Perth and didn't reduce to an almost constant walk like I did in Keswick last year.
My 10 mile splits from Perth were:
10 miles ... 1h 21:57
20 miles ... 2h 47:15 ..... (1h 26:18)
30 miles ... 4h 13:22 ..... (1h 26:07)
40 miles ... 5h 41:42 ..... (1h 28:20)
50 miles ... 7h 12:49 ..... (1h 31:07)
60 miles ... 8h 42:37 ..... (1h 29:48)
70 miles ... 10h 19:39 ..... (1h 37:02)
80 miles ... 11h 52:27 ..... (1h 32:48)
90 miles ... 13h 35:35 ..... (1h 43:08)
100 miles ... 15h 21:13 ..... (1h 45:38)
110 miles ... 17h 02:57 ..... (1h 41:44)
120 miles ... 18h 59:30 ..... (1h 56:33)
130 miles ... 20h 44:23 ..... (1h 44:53)
140 miles ... 22h 31:24 ..... (1h 47:01)
All the above times from 40 miles onwards represent personal bests.
Looking at the above times shows that between 17 and 19 hours I slowed quite a bit (the 10k splits above also show this) but I managed to pick up the pace again.
This period of slower running happened just before dawn and reading my report again confirms that I did realise I was slowing down and I took steps to rectify things ... starting using the MP3 player, which obviously worked.
Looking at how far I actually ran in each hour:
1st hour ..... approx 12.4 km
2nd hour ..... 11.2 km
3rd hour ..... 11.2 km
4th hour ..... 11.1 km
5th hour ..... 11.2 km
6th hour ..... 11.0 km
7th hour ..... 10.7 km
8th hour ..... 10.7 km
9th hour ..... 10.6 km
10th hour ..... 9.9 km
11th hour ..... 10.3 km
12th hour ..... 10.0 km
13th hour ..... 9.2 km
14th hour ..... 9.3 km
15th hour ..... 9.2 km
16th hour ..... 9.4 km
17th hour ..... 9.2 km
18th hour ..... 7.5 km
19th hour ..... 9.2 km
20th hour ..... 8.8 km
21st hour ..... 10.0 km
22nd hour ..... 9.5 km
23rd hour ..... 7.9 km
24th hour ..... 8.9 km
This confirms that the 18th hour was indeed a bad one but I did manage to pull myself together and put in a very good 21st hour. Surprisingly these figures show that I also had a bad 10th hour, which does show up slightly with the splits from 100k to 110k at the top of this post.
All in all I'm pleased with most of this data but it appears that I still have to work hard at keeping things together in the last four hours or so and not fluctuating so much.
Lots to work on then.
If anyone out there has any more observations from all this data please leave a comment or drop me an email.
10k ... 48:17
20k ... 1h 42:58 ..... (54:41)
30k ... 2h 36:23 ..... (53:25)
40k ... 3h 31:30 ..... (55:07)
50k ... 4h 25:35 ..... (54:05)
60k ... 5h 19:54 ..... (54:19)
70k ... 6h 11:56 ..... (52:02)
80k ... 7h 09:21 ..... (57:25)
90k ... 8h 03:05 ..... (53:44)
100k ... 9h 00:10 ..... (57:05)
110k ... 10h 00:58 ..... (60:48)
120k ... 10h 59:07 ..... (58:09)
130k ... 11h 58:58 ..... (59:51)
140k ... 13h 03:18 ..... (64:20)
150k ... 14h 07:30 ..... (64:12)
160k ... 15h 12:29 ..... (64:59)
170k ... 16h 22:20 ..... (69:51)
180k ... 17h 23:38 ..... (61:18)
190k ... 18h 40:29 ..... (76:51)
200k ... 19h 48:28 ..... (67:59)
210k ... 20h 48:44 ..... (60:16)
220k ... 21h 51:23 ..... (62:39)
230k ... 23h 04:07 ..... (72:44)
From 70k to 230k these times are all personal bests except for the 200k. Which is rather weird really. In Perth I beat all my split times from the Commonwealth Championships [Keswick 2009] except for the 200k where I ran 19h 47:42 twelve months ago. Overall I ran 7k further in Perth than I did in Keswick.
Looking at the times above it's obvious that I did slow down dramatically between 180k and 190k but then I managed to pick it up again which I'm very pleased about.
Which probably means that I managed to keep it going in Perth and didn't reduce to an almost constant walk like I did in Keswick last year.
My 10 mile splits from Perth were:
10 miles ... 1h 21:57
20 miles ... 2h 47:15 ..... (1h 26:18)
30 miles ... 4h 13:22 ..... (1h 26:07)
40 miles ... 5h 41:42 ..... (1h 28:20)
50 miles ... 7h 12:49 ..... (1h 31:07)
60 miles ... 8h 42:37 ..... (1h 29:48)
70 miles ... 10h 19:39 ..... (1h 37:02)
80 miles ... 11h 52:27 ..... (1h 32:48)
90 miles ... 13h 35:35 ..... (1h 43:08)
100 miles ... 15h 21:13 ..... (1h 45:38)
110 miles ... 17h 02:57 ..... (1h 41:44)
120 miles ... 18h 59:30 ..... (1h 56:33)
130 miles ... 20h 44:23 ..... (1h 44:53)
140 miles ... 22h 31:24 ..... (1h 47:01)
All the above times from 40 miles onwards represent personal bests.
Looking at the above times shows that between 17 and 19 hours I slowed quite a bit (the 10k splits above also show this) but I managed to pick up the pace again.
This period of slower running happened just before dawn and reading my report again confirms that I did realise I was slowing down and I took steps to rectify things ... starting using the MP3 player, which obviously worked.
Looking at how far I actually ran in each hour:
1st hour ..... approx 12.4 km
2nd hour ..... 11.2 km
3rd hour ..... 11.2 km
4th hour ..... 11.1 km
5th hour ..... 11.2 km
6th hour ..... 11.0 km
7th hour ..... 10.7 km
8th hour ..... 10.7 km
9th hour ..... 10.6 km
10th hour ..... 9.9 km
11th hour ..... 10.3 km
12th hour ..... 10.0 km
13th hour ..... 9.2 km
14th hour ..... 9.3 km
15th hour ..... 9.2 km
16th hour ..... 9.4 km
17th hour ..... 9.2 km
18th hour ..... 7.5 km
19th hour ..... 9.2 km
20th hour ..... 8.8 km
21st hour ..... 10.0 km
22nd hour ..... 9.5 km
23rd hour ..... 7.9 km
24th hour ..... 8.9 km
This confirms that the 18th hour was indeed a bad one but I did manage to pull myself together and put in a very good 21st hour. Surprisingly these figures show that I also had a bad 10th hour, which does show up slightly with the splits from 100k to 110k at the top of this post.
All in all I'm pleased with most of this data but it appears that I still have to work hard at keeping things together in the last four hours or so and not fluctuating so much.
Lots to work on then.
If anyone out there has any more observations from all this data please leave a comment or drop me an email.
Thursday, 19 August 2010
statistics - part 2
Well, here goes. This is how I interpret the previous post.
Except for the crash training week my mileage appears to be slightly less than last year, so does the actual time spent running. I'm not too bothered by this because I believe I'm now training smarter by including far more appropriate strength and conditioning exercises. I'm doing far more of this type of training and lots more cycling too, both of which I believe will have a positive effect on my race performance.
Stretching, on the whole, takes about the same amount of time per week this year as last. During the actual crash training week things were different though. In 2009 I included two daily sessions of stretching whereas this year I stuck with my usual one.
Frequency of running is slightly reduced this year but the average distance of a training run has risen from 13.0 miles (21.0k) in 2009 to 13.6 miles (21.9k) this year. This partly accounts for an apparent slowing in my running speed, other factors include age and that it included warm ups, cool downs and recovery time during speedwork.
It has been impossible to compare races this year with last as there is nothing similar between the two 4 week periods analysed. I also appear to have been less tired at the end of the crash training week than when I did this in 2009 ... fitter perhaps (although my resting heart rate is slightly higher than last year).
I believe this year's training to have been better overall in terms of preparing me for the demands of a 24 hour race. I've learnt from past performances and other runners. This has meant cutting back on some of the 'junk' mileage and replacing it with cycling for endurance and weights for strength.
As a last thought. Does crash training work ?
I'll let you know after Perth but it has worked for me in the past.
Except for the crash training week my mileage appears to be slightly less than last year, so does the actual time spent running. I'm not too bothered by this because I believe I'm now training smarter by including far more appropriate strength and conditioning exercises. I'm doing far more of this type of training and lots more cycling too, both of which I believe will have a positive effect on my race performance.
Stretching, on the whole, takes about the same amount of time per week this year as last. During the actual crash training week things were different though. In 2009 I included two daily sessions of stretching whereas this year I stuck with my usual one.
Frequency of running is slightly reduced this year but the average distance of a training run has risen from 13.0 miles (21.0k) in 2009 to 13.6 miles (21.9k) this year. This partly accounts for an apparent slowing in my running speed, other factors include age and that it included warm ups, cool downs and recovery time during speedwork.
It has been impossible to compare races this year with last as there is nothing similar between the two 4 week periods analysed. I also appear to have been less tired at the end of the crash training week than when I did this in 2009 ... fitter perhaps (although my resting heart rate is slightly higher than last year).
I believe this year's training to have been better overall in terms of preparing me for the demands of a 24 hour race. I've learnt from past performances and other runners. This has meant cutting back on some of the 'junk' mileage and replacing it with cycling for endurance and weights for strength.
As a last thought. Does crash training work ?
I'll let you know after Perth but it has worked for me in the past.
Sunday, 15 August 2010
crash training statistics
Now that the hard training is over - until next time - let's compare this year with last. My last week of crash training was just before the Commonwealth Championships in September 2009.
First of all I'll compare the week immediately before crash training, last year's figures are in red.
1 - 7 AUG 2010 ... 15 - 21 AUG 2009
mpw: 80 ... about 88.5
running time: 11h 20:18 ... 13h 11:24
average pace per mile: 8:30 ... 8:56
cycling time: 2h 23:31 ... 1h 42:41
stretching time: 1h 41:08 ... 1h 20:11
strength/conditioning time: 3h 14:17 ... 0h 30:10
total training time: 18h 39:14 ... 16h 44:26
races: none ... 4 mile club handicap (25:54)
running sessions: 6 ... 6
cycling sessions: 3 ... 2
stretching sessions: 6 ... 6
strength/conditioning sessions: 6 ... 1
resting heart rate: 45.1 ... 42.1
my weight: 57.5 kg (126.7 lb) ... 57.7 kg (127.2 lb)
Now let's take a look at the crash training week itself:
8 - 14 AUG 2010 ... 22 - 28 AUG 2009
mpw: about 164.5 ... about 162.5
running time: 24h 10:57 ... 23h 41:39
average pace per mile: 8:50 ... 8:44
cycling time: 5h 51:00 ... 3h 20:22
stretching time: 1h 53:01 ... 3h 05:01
strength/conditioning time: 3h 04:27 ... 2h 13:56
total training time: 34h 59:25 ... 32h 20:58
races: 5k (20:56) ... none
running sessions: 12 ... 14
cycling sessions: 7 ... 4
stretching sessions: 7 ... 14
strength/conditioning sessions: 9 ... 4
resting heart rate: 44.5 ... 43.0
my weight: 56.6 kg (124.8 lb) ... 56.5 kg (124.6 lb)
Now let's take a look at an 'average' training week during the 28 day period ending with crash training day 7:
18 JUL 2010 - 14 AUG 2010 ... 1 AUG 2009 - 28 AUG 2009
mpw: almost 99 ... about 104.5
running time: 14h 42:20 ... 15h 11:16
average pace per mile: 8:56 ... 8:44
cycling time: 3h 03:23 ... 2h 19:25
stretching time: 1h 44:54 ... 1h 47:13
strength/conditioning time: 3h 22:24 ... 1h 15:52
total training time: 22h 53:01 ... 20h 33:45
all races: 5k and 2.75 mile relay leg ... 4 mile club handicap
running sessions: 7.25 ... 8
cycling sessions: 3.75 ... 2.75
stretching sessions: 6.5 ... 8
strength/conditioning sessions: 7.5 ... 2.25
resting heart rate: 45.0 ... 43.4
my weight: 57.3 kg (126.3 lb) ... 57.2 kg (126.1 lb)
And what do all these facts and figures mean ?
I'll let you know my thoughts in the next post. Please let me know what you think ...
First of all I'll compare the week immediately before crash training, last year's figures are in red.
1 - 7 AUG 2010 ... 15 - 21 AUG 2009
mpw: 80 ... about 88.5
running time: 11h 20:18 ... 13h 11:24
average pace per mile: 8:30 ... 8:56
cycling time: 2h 23:31 ... 1h 42:41
stretching time: 1h 41:08 ... 1h 20:11
strength/conditioning time: 3h 14:17 ... 0h 30:10
total training time: 18h 39:14 ... 16h 44:26
races: none ... 4 mile club handicap (25:54)
running sessions: 6 ... 6
cycling sessions: 3 ... 2
stretching sessions: 6 ... 6
strength/conditioning sessions: 6 ... 1
resting heart rate: 45.1 ... 42.1
my weight: 57.5 kg (126.7 lb) ... 57.7 kg (127.2 lb)
Now let's take a look at the crash training week itself:
8 - 14 AUG 2010 ... 22 - 28 AUG 2009
mpw: about 164.5 ... about 162.5
running time: 24h 10:57 ... 23h 41:39
average pace per mile: 8:50 ... 8:44
cycling time: 5h 51:00 ... 3h 20:22
stretching time: 1h 53:01 ... 3h 05:01
strength/conditioning time: 3h 04:27 ... 2h 13:56
total training time: 34h 59:25 ... 32h 20:58
races: 5k (20:56) ... none
running sessions: 12 ... 14
cycling sessions: 7 ... 4
stretching sessions: 7 ... 14
strength/conditioning sessions: 9 ... 4
resting heart rate: 44.5 ... 43.0
my weight: 56.6 kg (124.8 lb) ... 56.5 kg (124.6 lb)
Now let's take a look at an 'average' training week during the 28 day period ending with crash training day 7:
18 JUL 2010 - 14 AUG 2010 ... 1 AUG 2009 - 28 AUG 2009
mpw: almost 99 ... about 104.5
running time: 14h 42:20 ... 15h 11:16
average pace per mile: 8:56 ... 8:44
cycling time: 3h 03:23 ... 2h 19:25
stretching time: 1h 44:54 ... 1h 47:13
strength/conditioning time: 3h 22:24 ... 1h 15:52
total training time: 22h 53:01 ... 20h 33:45
all races: 5k and 2.75 mile relay leg ... 4 mile club handicap
running sessions: 7.25 ... 8
cycling sessions: 3.75 ... 2.75
stretching sessions: 6.5 ... 8
strength/conditioning sessions: 7.5 ... 2.25
resting heart rate: 45.0 ... 43.4
my weight: 57.3 kg (126.3 lb) ... 57.2 kg (126.1 lb)
And what do all these facts and figures mean ?
I'll let you know my thoughts in the next post. Please let me know what you think ...
Thursday, 3 September 2009
well prepared
Well, today is the first day since my crash training week that I've not felt tired. The worst day for tiredness was yesterday ... five days after crash training finished. I've still been training - about half my normal load, but that's OK as I'm now in tapering mode anyway. The big race is only two weeks away ...
I've also had a headache for the past couple of days (it is slowly getting better now though) which I reckon is due to my switch from normal to decaffeinated coffee in preparation for the Commonwealth Championships. Caffeine withdrawal sucks.
Now, lets have a look at some statistics. These figures refer to an 'average' week between 1 Aug 2009 and 28 Aug 2009. I've included for comparison, in red, figures relating to an 'average' week between 31 Aug 2008 and 28 Sep 2008 which was just before my last 24 hr race (when I set my pb).
miles per week ... 104.34 ... 87.68
running time ... 15h 11:16 ... 12h 54:34
cycling time ... 2h 19:25 ... 2h 05:24
stretching time ... 1h 47:13 ... 1h 25:09
strength/conditioning time ... 1h 15:52 ... 1h 41:42
eccentric achilles stretches time ... 30:01 ... 27:21
total time ... 21h 03:46 ... 18h 34:10
running sessions ... 8 ... 5.75
cycling sessions ... 2.75 ... 2.5
stretching sessions ... 8 ... 6
strength/conditioning sessions ... 2.25 ... 3
eccentric achilles stretches sessions ... 2.25 ... 2.5
resting heart rate ... 43.4 ... 45.5
weight ... 57.2 kg (126.0 lb) ... 57.7 kg (127.1 lb)
The upshot of all this is that I appear to be quite a bit fitter and healthier than I was 12 months ago. I'm in good shape to do well at the Commonwealth Championships in a couple of weeks time - I'm looking forward to it. Seven days intensive training inevitably took it's toll but I'm feeling much better now and tapering hard.
Although as a non-driver it isn't going to be easy getting there on public transport, especially as Keir wants £200 to £300 in the next fortnight as a deposit for a school trip to Russia as part of his A level History course. Is anyone out there driving from (or through) West Yorkshire to Keswick on Wednesday 16 September and can give me a lift ?
I've also had a headache for the past couple of days (it is slowly getting better now though) which I reckon is due to my switch from normal to decaffeinated coffee in preparation for the Commonwealth Championships. Caffeine withdrawal sucks.
Now, lets have a look at some statistics. These figures refer to an 'average' week between 1 Aug 2009 and 28 Aug 2009. I've included for comparison, in red, figures relating to an 'average' week between 31 Aug 2008 and 28 Sep 2008 which was just before my last 24 hr race (when I set my pb).
miles per week ... 104.34 ... 87.68
running time ... 15h 11:16 ... 12h 54:34
cycling time ... 2h 19:25 ... 2h 05:24
stretching time ... 1h 47:13 ... 1h 25:09
strength/conditioning time ... 1h 15:52 ... 1h 41:42
eccentric achilles stretches time ... 30:01 ... 27:21
total time ... 21h 03:46 ... 18h 34:10
running sessions ... 8 ... 5.75
cycling sessions ... 2.75 ... 2.5
stretching sessions ... 8 ... 6
strength/conditioning sessions ... 2.25 ... 3
eccentric achilles stretches sessions ... 2.25 ... 2.5
resting heart rate ... 43.4 ... 45.5
weight ... 57.2 kg (126.0 lb) ... 57.7 kg (127.1 lb)
The upshot of all this is that I appear to be quite a bit fitter and healthier than I was 12 months ago. I'm in good shape to do well at the Commonwealth Championships in a couple of weeks time - I'm looking forward to it. Seven days intensive training inevitably took it's toll but I'm feeling much better now and tapering hard.
Although as a non-driver it isn't going to be easy getting there on public transport, especially as Keir wants £200 to £300 in the next fortnight as a deposit for a school trip to Russia as part of his A level History course. Is anyone out there driving from (or through) West Yorkshire to Keswick on Wednesday 16 September and can give me a lift ?
Tuesday, 30 September 2008
Statistics - again !!!
Before I start, there's one thing I forgot to mention yesterday. The total time I spent training last week was 33h 52:08.
With only three weeks to go before the 24 hr race at Tooting Bec in London it's time to look in depth at how my training has been progressing recently. Below are some training comparisons between now and three weeks before the Hull 24 hr race. The figures in red relate to an average week during the period 1 Sep - 28 Sep 2008 and the figures in black relate to an average week during the period 26 May - 22 Jun 2008. Both these periods include one week of crash training.
running miles per week ... 87.68 ... 73.68
running time per week ... 12h 54:34 ... 10h 52:45
running sessions per week ... 5.75 ... 5.50
cycling time per week ... 2h 05:24 ... 1h 30:26
cycling sessions per week ... 2.50 ... 2.00
stretching time per week ... 1h 25:09 ... 1h 15:38
stretching sessions per week ... 6.00 ... 5.75
strength training time per week ... 1h 41:42 ... 0h 56:47
strength training sessions per week ... 3.00 ... 1.75
eccentric achilles stretches time per week ... 0h 27:21 ... 0h 53:53
eccentric achilles stretches sessions per week ... 2.50 ... 4.50
ankle massage time per week ... 0h 35:27 ... 0h 32:49
ankle massage sessions per week ... 6.75 ... 6.25
wobble board time per week ... 1h 11:13 ... none
wobble board sessions per week ... 14.00 ... none
total training time per week ... 18h 06:49 ... 14h 35:36
total rehab time per week ... 2h 14:01 ... 1h 26:42
grand total time per week ... 20h 20:50 ... 16h 02:18
grand total sessions per week ... 26.50 ... 20.25
pulse on waking ... 45.5 ... 47.1
weight ... 57.7 kg ... 59.0 kg
NOTES:
running - better no matter how you look at it
cycling - again better all round
stretching - light change for the better
strength training - more sessions per week with bigger weights and for longer
eccentric achilles stretches - now down to maintenance levels after achilles tendinosis late last year and early this year
ankle massage - better because I missed some in late May when on holiday
wobble board - began using late July for an ankle problem which began in mid May
total training time - increased by almost 25%
total rehab time - increased by over 50% because of wobble board use
grand total time - increased by over 25%
grand total sessions - A large increase but a training session is often composed of more than one element, eg I often do some stretching followed immediately by ankle massage followed immediately by wobble board work.
Overall, it appears that things are improving rapidly, which I'm pleased about. Perhaps I need to look again at my targets for the London race which is now less than three weeks away.
With only three weeks to go before the 24 hr race at Tooting Bec in London it's time to look in depth at how my training has been progressing recently. Below are some training comparisons between now and three weeks before the Hull 24 hr race. The figures in red relate to an average week during the period 1 Sep - 28 Sep 2008 and the figures in black relate to an average week during the period 26 May - 22 Jun 2008. Both these periods include one week of crash training.
running miles per week ... 87.68 ... 73.68
running time per week ... 12h 54:34 ... 10h 52:45
running sessions per week ... 5.75 ... 5.50
cycling time per week ... 2h 05:24 ... 1h 30:26
cycling sessions per week ... 2.50 ... 2.00
stretching time per week ... 1h 25:09 ... 1h 15:38
stretching sessions per week ... 6.00 ... 5.75
strength training time per week ... 1h 41:42 ... 0h 56:47
strength training sessions per week ... 3.00 ... 1.75
eccentric achilles stretches time per week ... 0h 27:21 ... 0h 53:53
eccentric achilles stretches sessions per week ... 2.50 ... 4.50
ankle massage time per week ... 0h 35:27 ... 0h 32:49
ankle massage sessions per week ... 6.75 ... 6.25
wobble board time per week ... 1h 11:13 ... none
wobble board sessions per week ... 14.00 ... none
total training time per week ... 18h 06:49 ... 14h 35:36
total rehab time per week ... 2h 14:01 ... 1h 26:42
grand total time per week ... 20h 20:50 ... 16h 02:18
grand total sessions per week ... 26.50 ... 20.25
pulse on waking ... 45.5 ... 47.1
weight ... 57.7 kg ... 59.0 kg
NOTES:
running - better no matter how you look at it
cycling - again better all round
stretching - light change for the better
strength training - more sessions per week with bigger weights and for longer
eccentric achilles stretches - now down to maintenance levels after achilles tendinosis late last year and early this year
ankle massage - better because I missed some in late May when on holiday
wobble board - began using late July for an ankle problem which began in mid May
total training time - increased by almost 25%
total rehab time - increased by over 50% because of wobble board use
grand total time - increased by over 25%
grand total sessions - A large increase but a training session is often composed of more than one element, eg I often do some stretching followed immediately by ankle massage followed immediately by wobble board work.
Overall, it appears that things are improving rapidly, which I'm pleased about. Perhaps I need to look again at my targets for the London race which is now less than three weeks away.
Monday, 29 September 2008
Crash Training (summary)
Time to reflect on last week's training.
Normally I would have run 80 miles last week with two long runs [20 miles+], one fartlek session and one tempo run. I managed 160 miles with three long runs and four 'speedwork' sessions (Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday). Total running: over 24 hours 6 minutes.
Normally I would have been on the bike twice and done two strength/conditioning sessions. I managed four of each. Total cycling: over 3hours 20 minutes. Strength/conditioning: over 2 hours 21 minutes.
Normally I would stretch six times a week. I managed to stretch every day for a total of over 1 hour 40 minutes.
Eccentric achilles stretching, wobble board work and ankle massage remained exactly as normal.
At the beginning of the week my average waking pulse was 45.4 ... at the end it was 45.5.
At the beginning of the week my weight was 57.9kg ... at the end it was 57.7kg.
Other observations were:
1 - I'm glad the weather was decent, it wouldn't have been much fun if the weather had been bad.
2 - hydration wasn't easy to maintain towards the end of the week.
3 - I wasn't as tired or sleepy as expected ... although I do feel tired now.
4 - The pace of my steady runs seemed to drop on Thursday and Friday but picked up again on Saturday (despite perceived effort remaining constant) ... I'm not sure why.
5 - On Sunday afternoon Fay reported that of late I had been a bit more aggressive than usual. I hadn't noticed this at all and it came as a bit of a shock. She couldn't say whether it was just tiredness or increased testosterone levels because of all the training [if that's possible].
6 - Good diet and recovery definitely helps.
Someone once said that "Ultraunning is an experiment of one."
Well, this entry (and those for the last week), I hope, provides some results of that experiment.
Normally I would have run 80 miles last week with two long runs [20 miles+], one fartlek session and one tempo run. I managed 160 miles with three long runs and four 'speedwork' sessions (Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday). Total running: over 24 hours 6 minutes.
Normally I would have been on the bike twice and done two strength/conditioning sessions. I managed four of each. Total cycling: over 3hours 20 minutes. Strength/conditioning: over 2 hours 21 minutes.
Normally I would stretch six times a week. I managed to stretch every day for a total of over 1 hour 40 minutes.
Eccentric achilles stretching, wobble board work and ankle massage remained exactly as normal.
At the beginning of the week my average waking pulse was 45.4 ... at the end it was 45.5.
At the beginning of the week my weight was 57.9kg ... at the end it was 57.7kg.
Other observations were:
1 - I'm glad the weather was decent, it wouldn't have been much fun if the weather had been bad.
2 - hydration wasn't easy to maintain towards the end of the week.
3 - I wasn't as tired or sleepy as expected ... although I do feel tired now.
4 - The pace of my steady runs seemed to drop on Thursday and Friday but picked up again on Saturday (despite perceived effort remaining constant) ... I'm not sure why.
5 - On Sunday afternoon Fay reported that of late I had been a bit more aggressive than usual. I hadn't noticed this at all and it came as a bit of a shock. She couldn't say whether it was just tiredness or increased testosterone levels because of all the training [if that's possible].
6 - Good diet and recovery definitely helps.
Someone once said that "Ultraunning is an experiment of one."
Well, this entry (and those for the last week), I hope, provides some results of that experiment.
Sunday, 31 August 2008
Statistics
This morning was a strength training session followed by 6+ miles fartlek. Next week I'll only run two thirds of my usual miles [a recovery week] but this will include a long run of 31 - 32 miles on Wednesday.
Not sure of the route yet but utilising the Leeds Liverpool Canal is a distinct possibility.
Only seven weeks to go until my next 24 hour race [in case you've forgotten, it's at Tooting Bec in London - training ground of Olympic gold medalist Christine Ohuruogu].
Time to look in depth at how my training has been progressing recently. Below are some training comparisons between now and seven weeks before the Hull 24 hr race. The figures in red relate to an average week during the period 4 Aug - 31 Aug 2008 and the figures in black relate to an average week during the period 28 Apr - 25 May 2008.
running miles per week ... 52.36 ... 53.17
running time per week ... 7h 38:16 ... 7h 23:40
running sessions per week ... 4.25 ... 4.50
cycling time per week ... 1h 30:36 ... 1h 31:38
cycling sessions per week ... 2.00 ... 2.00
stretching time per week ... 1h 14:15 ... 1h 16:16
stretching sessions per week ... 5.50 ... 5.75
strength training time per week ... 1h 26:10 ... 1h 48:53
strength training sessions per week ... 2.75 ... 3.50
eccentric ankle stretches time per week ... 1h 52:50 ... 24:45
eccentric ankle stretches sessions per week ... 8.50 ... 2.25
ankle massage time per week ... 40:41 ... 36:24
ankle massage sessions per week ... 7.75 ... 7.00
wobble board time per week ... none ... 1h 11:36
wobble board sessions per week ... none ... 14.00
total training time per week ... 11h 49:17 ... 12h 00:27
total rehab time per week ... 2h 33:31 ... 2h 12:46
grand total time per week ... 14h 22:48 ... 14h 13:13
grand total sessions per week ... 25.25 ... 25.00
pulse on waking ... 47.9 ... 46.0
weight ... 60.0 kg ... 58.3 kg
NOTES:
I'll repeat this statistics exercise in four weeks time.
Not sure of the route yet but utilising the Leeds Liverpool Canal is a distinct possibility.
Only seven weeks to go until my next 24 hour race [in case you've forgotten, it's at Tooting Bec in London - training ground of Olympic gold medalist Christine Ohuruogu].
Time to look in depth at how my training has been progressing recently. Below are some training comparisons between now and seven weeks before the Hull 24 hr race. The figures in red relate to an average week during the period 4 Aug - 31 Aug 2008 and the figures in black relate to an average week during the period 28 Apr - 25 May 2008.
running miles per week ... 52.36 ... 53.17
running time per week ... 7h 38:16 ... 7h 23:40
running sessions per week ... 4.25 ... 4.50
cycling time per week ... 1h 30:36 ... 1h 31:38
cycling sessions per week ... 2.00 ... 2.00
stretching time per week ... 1h 14:15 ... 1h 16:16
stretching sessions per week ... 5.50 ... 5.75
strength training time per week ... 1h 26:10 ... 1h 48:53
strength training sessions per week ... 2.75 ... 3.50
eccentric ankle stretches time per week ... 1h 52:50 ... 24:45
eccentric ankle stretches sessions per week ... 8.50 ... 2.25
ankle massage time per week ... 40:41 ... 36:24
ankle massage sessions per week ... 7.75 ... 7.00
wobble board time per week ... none ... 1h 11:36
wobble board sessions per week ... none ... 14.00
total training time per week ... 11h 49:17 ... 12h 00:27
total rehab time per week ... 2h 33:31 ... 2h 12:46
grand total time per week ... 14h 22:48 ... 14h 13:13
grand total sessions per week ... 25.25 ... 25.00
pulse on waking ... 47.9 ... 46.0
weight ... 60.0 kg ... 58.3 kg
NOTES:
- running - more miles per week in less time means faster training
- cycling - increased average speed not shown above
- stretching - very slight change for the better
- strength training - more sessions per week with bigger weights and for longer
- eccentric ankle stretches - now down to maintenance levels after achilles tendinosis late last year and early this year
- ankle massage - very similar
- wobble board - began using late July for an ankle problem which began in mid May
- total training time - increased by 1.5%
- total rehab time - decreased by 13.5% as my injuries heal
- grand total time - decreased but training time/rehab time gives a better picture
- grand total sessions - very similar. A training session is often composed of more than one element, eg I often do some stretching followed immediately by ankle massage followed immediately by wobble board work.
I'll repeat this statistics exercise in four weeks time.
Wednesday, 16 July 2008
More thoughts
Recovering well. Compression tights definitely work for post race muscle soreness ... but not for my Exercise Associated Collapse [I've got the bump on my head to prove it !!!].
Looking at all the amazing stats kept by my crew. Let's see what we have here:
1) position and distance travelled at the end of each hour
2) a note of what I ate and drank - EXACTLY how much and when
3) how far I walked during my breaks (to nearest tenth of a lap) and how long it took
4) exact times of all toilet stops (and their duration)
5) time and duration of vaseline stops and changes of clothing
6) notes regarding how my digestive system reacted to the various foodstuffs I asked it to deal with whilst running
This stuff is amazing and there are no words to describe how essential a good crew is - without a doubt they deserve the prizes just as much as me. During the race all I do is run and report how I'm feeling, everything else is the crew's job.
Right now I'm starting to piece together a race report which will appear on this blog when complete. I'm also starting to plan my next campaign (already - yes I know - not too long though before London in mid October). I feel 225k will be a realistic target for that one.
Next week will be very important though - training resumes and I'll soon discover any lingering injuries.
Thanks to all who've offered their congratulations, from Otley AC members to members of other clubs to non runners including the Otley Police Officer whose name I have mysteriously forgotten (sorry about that but you know who you are).
Finally, spare a thought for Samuel Black. He took part in Hull at the weekend and just before he left home for the race his club (Abbey Runners) persuaded him to run in the Washburn Relay on Friday 18 July. A 24hr race on Saturday and a 3.5 mile race six days later !!!
And you lot thought I was mad.
Looking at all the amazing stats kept by my crew. Let's see what we have here:
1) position and distance travelled at the end of each hour
2) a note of what I ate and drank - EXACTLY how much and when
3) how far I walked during my breaks (to nearest tenth of a lap) and how long it took
4) exact times of all toilet stops (and their duration)
5) time and duration of vaseline stops and changes of clothing
6) notes regarding how my digestive system reacted to the various foodstuffs I asked it to deal with whilst running
This stuff is amazing and there are no words to describe how essential a good crew is - without a doubt they deserve the prizes just as much as me. During the race all I do is run and report how I'm feeling, everything else is the crew's job.
Right now I'm starting to piece together a race report which will appear on this blog when complete. I'm also starting to plan my next campaign (already - yes I know - not too long though before London in mid October). I feel 225k will be a realistic target for that one.
Next week will be very important though - training resumes and I'll soon discover any lingering injuries.
Thanks to all who've offered their congratulations, from Otley AC members to members of other clubs to non runners including the Otley Police Officer whose name I have mysteriously forgotten (sorry about that but you know who you are).
Finally, spare a thought for Samuel Black. He took part in Hull at the weekend and just before he left home for the race his club (Abbey Runners) persuaded him to run in the Washburn Relay on Friday 18 July. A 24hr race on Saturday and a 3.5 mile race six days later !!!
And you lot thought I was mad.
Sunday, 22 June 2008
Crash Training (summary)
Decided to stop crash training one day earlier than planned. My right ankle is beginning to show signs of breakdown and if I look back, the day before crash training was a 10 mile cross country race.
So, I had seven days of intense training which included two races, one long tempo run, three long runs (20 miles +), one interval session and one fartlek (!) session.
I also managed one session on the bike, stretching every day, one strength training session, four sessions of eccentric achilles stretching, and daily ankle massage.
Felt extremely tired on Thursday afternoon and had a nap but apart from that I didn't feel much more tired than usual. Also used a product from Science In Sport called Nocte. This is designed to aid recovery whilst asleep - used this three times (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday). I definitely found it beneficial.
Also used ice after every run from Wednesday onwards and increased my intake of carbohydrates and vitamins C and B. Began using ibuprofen on Friday to control possible inflammation.
During the seven days (15 - 21 June inclusive) I ran 130 miles. The four weeks before that had an average of 59 miles.
Stats then:
during that week I ran for 18h 50
cycled for 45 mins
stretched for 1h 27
did strength training for 35 mins
performed eccentric ankle stretches for 59 mins
and massaged for 37 mins
This means that, taking the last 28 days (25 May - 21 June), an average week was:
running: 11h 04
cycling: 1h 19
stretching: 1h 12
strength training: 57 mins
eccentric achilles stretches: 1h 10
massage: 33 mins
At last, I've now reached the stage where eccentric achilles stretches (for achilles tendinosis at the start of the year) need only be done once every three days.
Next week will be an extremely easy week but as this is my first tapering week it isn't a problem at all. My four runs will include a club handicap, a tempo run and two fartlek sessions.
So, I had seven days of intense training which included two races, one long tempo run, three long runs (20 miles +), one interval session and one fartlek (!) session.
I also managed one session on the bike, stretching every day, one strength training session, four sessions of eccentric achilles stretching, and daily ankle massage.
Felt extremely tired on Thursday afternoon and had a nap but apart from that I didn't feel much more tired than usual. Also used a product from Science In Sport called Nocte. This is designed to aid recovery whilst asleep - used this three times (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday). I definitely found it beneficial.
Also used ice after every run from Wednesday onwards and increased my intake of carbohydrates and vitamins C and B. Began using ibuprofen on Friday to control possible inflammation.
During the seven days (15 - 21 June inclusive) I ran 130 miles. The four weeks before that had an average of 59 miles.
Stats then:
during that week I ran for 18h 50
cycled for 45 mins
stretched for 1h 27
did strength training for 35 mins
performed eccentric ankle stretches for 59 mins
and massaged for 37 mins
This means that, taking the last 28 days (25 May - 21 June), an average week was:
running: 11h 04
cycling: 1h 19
stretching: 1h 12
strength training: 57 mins
eccentric achilles stretches: 1h 10
massage: 33 mins
At last, I've now reached the stage where eccentric achilles stretches (for achilles tendinosis at the start of the year) need only be done once every three days.
Next week will be an extremely easy week but as this is my first tapering week it isn't a problem at all. My four runs will include a club handicap, a tempo run and two fartlek sessions.
Thursday, 24 April 2008
Time Spent Training
A few days ago I was asked how long I spend training each week. I didn't really know the answer so I sat down with pen, paper and training diary to try and find out.
Over the past 28 days I have, on average, spent:
5h 52 per week running
1h 32 per week cycling
1h 15 per week stretching
1h 45 per week strength training
3h 08 per week doing eccentric achilles stretches
1h 17 per week massaging my ankle
making a total 14h 49 per week
Over the coming months the time spent running will increase as my mileage reaches a maximum at the end of June. Cycling and stretching will stay roughly the same. Strength training will decrease as I approach important races, eg Hull 24 hr. Achilles stretches will gradually decrease to about 34 mins per week. Ankle massage will also reduce to about half the current level.
Of course these stats do not take into account time spent with ice on my ankle, or in the shower, or changing clothes, or fetching equipment, or writing training diary or ...
Over the past 28 days I have, on average, spent:
5h 52 per week running
1h 32 per week cycling
1h 15 per week stretching
1h 45 per week strength training
3h 08 per week doing eccentric achilles stretches
1h 17 per week massaging my ankle
making a total 14h 49 per week
Over the coming months the time spent running will increase as my mileage reaches a maximum at the end of June. Cycling and stretching will stay roughly the same. Strength training will decrease as I approach important races, eg Hull 24 hr. Achilles stretches will gradually decrease to about 34 mins per week. Ankle massage will also reduce to about half the current level.
Of course these stats do not take into account time spent with ice on my ankle, or in the shower, or changing clothes, or fetching equipment, or writing training diary or ...
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