Running
15Km in 1:22:09, average pace 5:29
Not bad at all really, had a nice quiet run by myself on a trail a few minutes from home. I was going to explore a new trail but being that the cool change had not hit before I started I changed my mind and went somewhere familiar where I knew there would be water fountains. I have tried fuel belts but I can never get comfortable with them.
I don’t have any bread in the house at the moment, the temptation to scoff endless slices of buttery toast and raspberry jam on the weekends is too great, so I have stopped buying it. However that meant I could not have my usual slice of toast and jam pre-run snack. Instead I opted for a gel, this at least meant I wouldn’t have to wait for it to digest. I just can’t get used to the things though, just gotta rip the top off and get it down without thinking too much about the texture and taste, sorry but just makes me think of sweet snot (wonder how many Gel users I have just grossed out with that one?). Did the trick though, certainly put a spring in my step, anything under 10Km is fine on an empty stomach, anything more and I need a boost. I have always used Leppin Gels, since a friend gave me on to try on a long run.
The run got started at 07:30, no music, just me, the birdies and the dog walkers. The cool change hadn’t hit yet, it was still 23 degrees, but the air wasn’t as dry as it had been. It took me a few Kms to get into the groove today but all told it was a pretty good run. I upped the pace over the last 3Kms, I like to do that at the end of long runs to get used to running well when tired. There were also a couple of steady hills and I am pleased to say I held quite strongly on these.
This brings me to my current mission, to get stronger on the hills as I suspect that the X-C season will bring some hills. Also the Run for the Kids course is relatively flat but there are some good inclines to deal with. Most notably coming out of the Domain Tunnel and then at the 8Km mark getting onto the Bolte Bridge, I don’t want to be sacrificing a good time because I faded at these points. To that end I have been finding some hiller routes to run on and concentrating on steady efforts when I hit the hills. Obviously as I am still returning from injury I am being careful not to over do it though.
Weekly Summary and Build a Better Runner
This was my first decent week of running since returning from injury.
46.5 Km, 5 days and over 4 hours on my feet. No specialist work, just some extra hills, but mainly concentrating on getting the Kms back into my legs. Overall my foot has felt fine and I have made sure to stretch and look after it. My calves have been quite tight though so I have a massage booked for Wednesday.
I have updated my details on the BABR page, weighed in at 60.2 Kg today, so that is a loss of half a kilo. Pretty happy with that, anymore only really represents fluid loss. I ate very well this week, perhaps a bit too much of the high GI fruit like grapes, watermelon and bananas, but they are my faves and I was craving sweet stuff. I don’t particularly like the low GI stuff like apples and pears, boring!
I did a big shop again today and stocked up on lot’s of pantry stuff to make healthy dinners, I prefer to get the fresh veg the day I need it. My fridge has a tendency to freeze things in the veggie tray and I am too much of a tightarse to spend the $1000 to buy a new one.
I would like a nice glass of wine though, apart from toast and jam it is the only thing I am missing at the moment.
