Catching up

 I have been running 3 times per week for 5.5-5.6k each time. In the last couple of runs I have done from 4 to 5k at 05:01 and in the last run (today)  at 5:05 feeling much better than the 5:01, but the legs much more sore. That leg training leave my legs very very sore. I am going to the gym at 06 a.m. wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays so 3 times per week, and run 3 times per week, so a good combination of exercise. Very happy with the weight lifting so far, improving my strength each week and feeling much more confortable. I am really liking it. That balanced with the running is good, since I can keep the running addiction going , but without killing nor obsessing like before. 

I think following this routine, will keep me in pretty good shape. Later when I feel better with the weights I will add a 4th day of lifting. I am very weak so I want to become very strong. 

Hope your running is going well!

Hybrid Athlete

 I have decided to retire from competitions for a while and just run for the joy of it. I also signed up in a GYM where I plan to go 3-4 times per week, also running 3 to 4 times but just 5k just for the love of running. I realized that I was training hard in running with no progress at all, and that was getting frustrated, especially after you have been running for 19.5 years and you are competing with slow people. So what you put in, is not necessarily what you get out, especially in running that talent is the most important thing in significant improvement.  I love running, but every time I raced I left the race dissapointed. At this point, its better to try something new, Weight lifting is something that I always wanted to try and in fact I have tried before but always end up giving it up, just to get back to running. This time I will do both, but giving the strength training priority. Maybe I can jump a 5k race off just strength training and easy running, maybe I could surprise myself. 

This week I ran yesterday, and today I lifted  at 08 a.m. and when I finished, I got home , changed sneakers and headed for a 5k run in 30:55 , ran 20 mins of those with my brother. I was really tired from the leg workouts and shoulder workouts that I did this morning. 

I felt great after both workout though. Running is just great, when you are not obsessing about performance and about race times. 

I hope that your running is going well!

Easy run at mid day

Headed out at 12:20 p.m. to run. Did the same route as yesterday, 3 laps in the long blasco park and headed home. Felt very tired today, luckily it was a watchless run. Maybe the push ups that I did yesterday got the best of me. My heart was in my mouth, but I got it done. Kept the effort as easy as I could. Enjoyed the run. Have been thinking its time to hit the gym and start building some muscle, we will see. Around 45 mins of running today, no idea exactly. 

Getting back to the blog

 On Sunday I ran a 10k race that I have been training hard for, I did a disaster. Ran 53:09 watchless, felt pretty good, but timewise it was a disaster. My brother did 53:06. In October I did 50:45, and my training did not change that much except with the little time off due to injury, but for the last 8 weeks I have been training very well, but the times are not there. Intervals and tempos have not gone well. 5k tempos have been alright in 25:08 and 25:16, then a 6k tempo in 31:23 feeling very tired. A 10k race in 52:48, 3 weeks prior to this one. I thought that int his one I would run sub 52 mins, or at least run sub 52:48. I feel very frustrated and its time to take time off from the watch and performance. Just run and enjoy running for what it is. I will never be elite, so no need to obsess with this without the least talent. I will take time off from strava as well. The comparation trap get the best of me and my paces are very slow to post it there. Its hard to see a person that trains way less than you running on their regular runs 2 mins per km faster. That its not fun. I think that do the hard work and you can do anything does not apply to this sport. You can be better than previous self, but talent always is going to defeat hard work in this sport. 

I have decided to get back to this blog and avoid all that social media, strava is a social media after all, and I dont have any other social media, I ditched it years ago, and I feel great because of it. Its time to do the same with Strava.

I will post my training here and I will run watchless for a while, just enjoying running for what it is and enjoying being out there without obsessing about times. My GPS will have to remain in the shelf for a while.

Monday and Tuesday were days off.

On Wednesday after work, did 52:13 in the blasco park at a very slow pace with my normal watch ( no GPS), that heart rate feature of the gps was driving me crazy when my heart rate surpassed the 160 beats at a pathetic pace. 

Rested Thursday and Friday, simply was not motivated to run, my moral was destroyed. What a pussy you would say?, but we have trained hard for years and it seems that we are getting worse instead of getting better, even when our times are pretty doable and slow. Anyway, no more complaints. 

Today I went out watchless and ran to the blasco park, but extended my lap, instead of 900m laps, did around 2-2.2k laps, dunno exactly the distance and I did not care, did 3 laps of those. I just felt free out there running watchless. In the last 15 mins I threw 5 strides, which felt better and better. My right calf wanted to cramp like 2 weeks ago, but in the strides did not bother me at all. I just was running like a kid enjoying every step of it. Did around 40-45 mins dont know exactly.  Why obsess about tine? when we are going to get slower anyway. I really enjoyed the race on Sunday and felt strong out there, but as soon as my brother told me the final time, my positive attitude and happiness melt away and started to feel angry and dissapointed. The point of all of this is to enjoy our hobby, after all, this is just a hobby. Its time to change the approach and start running for fun. I will keep doing workout, but they will be without a watch.

Hope that your running is going well!

Catching up

 I got  Polar GPS and raced a 5k race on Sunday (yesterday). It did not go as planned. Not because of the watch, I think the watch helped because it let me know when each km was as the course was not marked. I am posting my workouts on strava as its easier now that I  only have to upload the activity. Basically I got out well for the first 2-3k and then bonk in the last 2kms. I did just under 25 mins I think. Splits as per the watch are: 4:43, 4:44, 4:55, 5:17, 5:07. The first 2 kms were downhill, last 2 were uphill. Anyway, I dont know whats happening, on May and June I ran 5 races and all were in the range of 22:42 and 23:05 because there were different courses. Almost 2 mins faster than now and training one day less per week.

I have come to the conclusion that I run well off 5 days per week of running, instead of 6 runs. It seems that with 6 runs, i dont asimilate the training well, whereas with 5 days of running per week I trained hard but at the same time was fresh and looking forward to my workouts. 

I have decided that for a while I will get back to 5 runs per week and see if that makes a different, as 25:00 for 5k is just too slow (in my case) given that I did 22 a few months ago and my training has not changed much, nor I took months off running, just a couple of weeks due to sickness/ injury. I dont understand.

Today I did 10.56 kms and worked my pace down to 5:55 pretty easy, and in the race I reached 5:17 huffing and puffing, i dont know the reason. Ok, no more complains, back to 5 runs per week and see what happends, the structure will be the same, 2 workouts per week, 1 long run and 2 easy runs. From time to time, will push the long run a little and want to run more than 2 hours. Taking advantage of the cold weather to run long. 

Evening easy recovery run

 Today I ran at 6:30 p.m. in the blasco park very easy to recovery. Felt pretty good today despite the right leg bothered me for the first 200m or so, then it went pretty well. Decided no to look at the watch and just ran easy. Finished the 7.5k total in 47:25. I wore my windbreaker today and I felt pretty good, not cold, not hot. 

Today I finally after a lot of time my brother suggesting me, I ordered a GPS watch for the first time. In my 19 years of running, I have never worn a GPS watch, and on Saturday I will wear one for the first time. I love the simplicity of running and even race my races watchless. However, in the past year I have not improved the way I wanted despite training hard and only resting when I had COVID 19. A watch wont make me run faster, but maybe will allow to analize my training ( DATA)  better, we will see. Maybe I will get tired of it pretty quicky and go back to my 10 EUR basic watch. 

I am even considering racing with the GPS on Sunday 5k race. I wont look at it though, so its the same as running without, but I will be able to see my splits post race and not eating my head wondering is the distance is accurate or not. 

When you are not running in a certified course, it can get really frustrating, you dont know if you ran 4.9k, or 5.1k, or 5.04k or whatever. The GPS is not 100% accurate, but gives a pretty good idea. Also it gets frustrating when you are racing watchless and there are no km markers on the course, you pretty much are running blind, or sometimes there are markers, but you are running with so many people that you miss them.

And last, but no least, here in Valencia you pretty much run in mass races, where you are not really racing, you have so many people next to you, that you cannot focus on one person, or another, its difficult to explain. But head to head competition here is very difficult, unless  its a little race like the run for the oceans that I was battling head to head with a guy in the last km. But other than that, you pretty much are in a parade, and you have to run your own race, because if you compete with other, you dont know if that person went out 30 seconds behind you, or 20 seconds ahead. 

The idea is not to look at the watch, but if for whatever reason I want to look at it, at least I have the option. 

Also with a GPS watch it will be much easier to upload the data on strava. 

Decent evening interval workout: 5 x 1000m

 Today I went to the Turia park at 06:40 p.m. already dark with my brother. We were doing completely different workouts though, but did the warm up together and the cool down. The plan for me was to do 5 x 1000m with 400m jog rest. I had more than a year that I did not do 5  x 1000m as we always do 4 x 1k, but if we want to move the needle we have to push ourselves and its time to to increase to 5 x 1000m. To be honest this workout went much better than expected. I thought that with the disaster that I did on Sunday, 4:45-4:50 would be a real struggle today, but I did much better than expected. Not my usual splits, but not too far either, and I did 1 repeat more than usual, which hurts a lot more. 

I warmed up 16 mins easy and then did some leg swings, and then did 4 x 100m strides at the pace that I wanted to run the workout, splits were 27, 26, 27, 27 and felt easy and controlled. 

Then started the workout. Splits were: 4:36, 4:38, 4:28, 4:31, 4:24. First 2.5 repeats were with  a head wing. 3rd repeat was out and back. Very happy and satisfied with the workout, these splits dont reflect at all my performance on Sunday. I signed up for a 5k on Sunday in a county, I should run better than on Sunday, but given that is not a certified course, I cannot trust the distance, but all in all this workout tells me that I am in much better shape than I showed on Sunday.

Today I wore my windbreaker for the first time. The weather was in 14 degrees, but it was at night with a bit of wind. If I had worn short sleeves, I would not warmed up at all. I think that affected me in the race. After our warm up, we lasted in the starting area for 30 mins and we lose our heat in that waiting. when the gun goes off, you basically are huffing and puffing cold. Another thing, is that I did not do strides and I think that affected me as well. 

From now on, I will incorporate strides at the pace I want to run the race/ workout. That worked pretty well today. 

My brother did pretty well in his 4 x 1 mile with 1 min rest at 10k race pace. He did better than race pace and felt pretty good. 

He is training for a marathon in February and I am his coach. Lets see if I can make him run sub 4 hours. 

16:22 easy cool down to home. Around  10k for the day. I was afraid to wear my wind breaker at the beginning, because I thought that I would fry myself once I warmed up, but that was not the case, I did just fine with the windbreaker and never felt hot, quiet the opposite, I thik that I still ran cold.

I always say that this weatther only helps on long runs and race over 10k. For races under 5k and under , cold can be an hindrance especially for us slow runners that cannot enter the corral within 5 mins before starting the race.

No more complaining, in my book I ran a good workout.