StairMaster, Bibra Lake and a hollow body

Things are going well, while autumn struggles to kick in, at least here in the West.

Two weeks have gone, of which one I did not run, as I had to go interstate for work, carrying a cold from my kids. I did, however, lots of work in the gym, especially on the StairMaster. It's a whole new level compared to the standard treadmill - it burns your legs, lungs and heart in about 10 minutes.

However, not running is not great for running purposes, so when I eventually returned to Fremantle, I adopted a low profile and a "let's start again, once again" attitude. Instead, a surprisingly positive week followed. Here are the details:

Monday - 8km in progression with the guys from WAMC 

1. 4.26
2. 4.26
3. 4.06
4. 3.56
5. 3.52
6. 3.45
7. 3.39
8. 3.37

Tuesday - 10km at 4.46
Wednesday - Rest (core work at home) - (have you tried hollow body holds?)
Thursday - 10km at 4.37, with 6x1' (3.25-35) and 1' jog
Friday - 11km at 4.48
Saturday (today) - Park Run in 17.50 (average 3.34/km, passing the first km in 3.47)

If I make it for a recovery run tomorrow, that'll be around 60km total this week, which is spot on. Still a very long way to go, but it feels good!

Getting rid of the cobwebs

A good run yesterday with the folks from the Western Australian Marathon Club. They meet every Monday evening at Point Walter, a great spot along the Swan River, just south of Perth. You get to meet like-minded people, enjoy a beautiful scenery, train your stamina, and get a glimpse into how billionaires live (google image “Melville Beach Road” for an idea).

Monday night they schedule tempo runs of various lengths, so I joined in and run with a couple of dudes how were doing the 8 km. We started at around 4.20 pace, chatting about Italy’s non-elections and the WA running scene. After 5 km, I increased the pace progressively and ended up running the last 3 km at 3.40-45, without stressing. Felt nice. Overall, just under 12km.

In less than six months, I am supposed to run 42km at around 3.30. Here are some positives about the current situation:

1. I’m in a reasonably good shape. Have not put any weight on, still at around 62 kg as when I was 20, I think I could skim a couple of kilos of that, if/once the weekly km go up
2. No major physical issues. My calves remain a bit stiff, but hopefully I’m doing the right work to keep them at bay 
3. Despite a chronic lack of consistency, it seems that once I manage to line up a few runs (I think I have had around 10 runs over the past 2 months, and never over 8km) my body gets set for running at decent paces (see yesterday). So, I’m not starting from total scratch
4. I am working from home at the moment, so I can organise my days pretty easily, do lots of core work at home (using the Pomodoro Technique, 25 mins writing and 5 minutes working out - more on this later), eat well, and even sneak in a power nap in the afternoon if all the stars are aligned

On the downside, I have no idea how (if!) I will manage heavier running loads. At the moment, at a mere 30km a week, everything is like a pleasant stroll. But when (if!) I’ll get to do 30 km in one day, it’ll be very tough – and I have no idea how my 40 year-old body will cope with that. 

Also, six months (actually, just under 24 weeks) is a long time, and it will be hard to keep focused and maintain the motivation to run like a crazy person amidst work, family etc. And the risk of over-training will be one of the major threats to fend off - e.g. I will have to be very careful with increasing the running load over the weeks.

That said, the goal for this month is to stick to 8-10km per session, 4 times per week. Do lots of core work, especially on glutes, which have been flattened by years of philosophising on my ass. Trying to run a bit faster every now and then, and enjoy life.