Not long to go...

Wednesday 28th (pm)

I may have to change my attire for Sunday after some of those comments. Although it may be a strange coincidence that I can't find my CR cap anywhere? Must look in the toy box, I think Go Baby had it on last....Could be anywhere...

Went to the Gym last night to do my planned 50 mins easy run. I wore my long skins mainly because I had been for a massage with ET earlier on in the day and because it was so cold outside. I didn't realise how bloody hot it was going to be in the Gym. As if that wasn't hot enough, who do I run into...MPH! Strutting his stuff on the tready.

After finally working out how to "quick start" the machine I didn't set it at any particular time, just did a 2k warm up then set it to 5 min/k and planned to run for 50 mins. The silly thing cut out after 25mins?!? Gee I was angry.. One of the reasons I had joined that Gym was because they reassured me that the treadmills didn't have a limit on them...Liars! It was almost a case of Treadmill Rage. Well not really, but I was pretty annoyed. Luckily Martin came over to talk to me which gave me a good excuse to stop the machine and start again for another 25mins..

I'd had enough by the end of it, although it was good to have all of the different TV screens to look at while running. All up I did 12 km. 10k @5min/k pace and 2k @ some other speed? With a break somewhere in the middle.

This afternoon will be 12 x 30 x 30...easy! Then just a slow 30 mins tomorrow morning-cool!That's it all done! Not sure about how much Internet access I will have after tomorrow as I fly out tomorrow afternoon. I'm guessing the Hotel will have the Internet so I may be able to post something after the race.

The final week..

Monday 26th

Rest Day - I did completely rest. I haven't mentioned before but I have been battling a bit of a cold in the last week and just over the weekend I could feel it moving to my chest. I have been like a frantic medicine woman trying to get rid of it.

I have taken a bucket load of lotions and potions trying to clear it up and just today I actually woke up not feeling too bad. So I am avoiding the early morning running in the cold and I have been going out in the afternoon instead.

I'm trying to do all of the right things like drinking heaps of water and getting plenty of rest. I am confident that I will be ok for Sunday, the worst of it has passed.

Tuesday 27th

Complete dress rehearsal and 4k @ race pace. I set off in the afternoon did the usual 20mins warmup run then the 4k @ race pace. I found this to be so painfully slow but it was good to have the Garmin there to keep me on track and I kept on monitoring my pace for about the first 1.5km's then the rhythm of the required pace set in and I was right. Tested out the new gear as well and it was all good : )









For Tesso and the Cheersquad, this is the top that I will be wearing with black Sogoi shorts. This top is great. It's a Sugoi top and it has a little pocket on the back just perfect for my gels, tissues etc.... I will be wearing my CR cap as well and of course my precious green shoes ; ) Now I'm just downloading a few more songs for the playlist and I will have that finalised by tomorrow. Geez, so much to do!

Wednesday 28th

Off into town to catch up with a friend who is in a Barrista competition in Martin Place this morning..Oooh...free coffee!! Then It's an hour of massage with Easy Tiger. I will be running at the Gym tonight instead of out in the cold, I just don't want to push my luck. Easy 50mins on the program. I might even go into the steam room and see if that helps.

A strange week...

Saturday 24th

After a mix up in times for football I ended up not being able to make it to the CR 5K Challenge. At 7:30am the team manager rang up and said that the football was off.. Great! It has been one of those weeks for me this week.

Sunday 25th

Determined to get out and at least do my scheduled 5ktt I set off at 7:30 am for the local baseball field. I felt very fresh after the few days rest and completed the normal warmup routine with some stretches just before the 5k. The run went really well overall and I felt like I had pretty much pushed it all the way. I ended up with a new PB of 20:50!! A 1 minute PB. It's a shame that no-one was around to share it with me : ( I guess I will have to validate my new time at the next CR 5K Challenge.

Finished off with a nice slow 10km afterwards and I was feeling pretty happy with myself. I soon made it back home and then headed off to watch the finish of W 2 G. That looks like a great run and I would love to give it a go next year. Gave a big cheer to Jen_runs and Horrie as they came in and chatted to Orunner and Gnomey at the end. Also saw Easy Tiger who had had a pretty bad stack but came away with a course PB.

Just to add to everything else that has happened to me this week (believe me there is more than I have told here) On the way to Glenbrook I witnessed a very sickening accident. A cyclist was knocked off his bike and was pushed into a fence, after cartwheeling a few times over the handlebars. I just couldn't believe it! This was actually on the opposite side of the road to me so there was not much that I could do from where I was. A heap of cars had already stopped so that was ok.

Then a woman was driving in front of me down Windsor Rd and for some reason went into the right hand lane straight into on coming traffic?? So I sped up and beeped the horn at her to get over before she had a head on collision with the on coming traffic. I then looked at her number plate and the last 3 numbers were 666. What is going on? I hope next week improves.

Stacked it!

Thursday 22nd

40 mins run
30mins cycle

I decided that I would take the bike out for a spin. I should have realised from the start that it was a bad idea. Firstly it was dark. Secondly it was slightly raining and thirdly I'm still getting used to the new bike this being only my second outing on the road.

Everything was going fine and I didn't travel too far from home and I managed to do 4 x 3km loops with no problems. When I returned home I forgot to release the cleats and yep...over I went. I managed to miss the nice soft grass completely and took the full impact on my left knee and left buttock, ouch!

Luckily it was dark and no-one else was around. What a TERRY! ( Had to steal your word there MPH) I was just lying there for a while taking stock of what injuries I had sustained. Thankfully the only thing that really hurt was my ego... After I finally released my other foot I got up and picked my bike up and went inside for some chocolate therapy : )

I have a little bruise on my leg and my butt, but I'm ok. The bike is off limits now until after the Marathon.

Little Millie

Millie is a beautiful14 month old little girl at my son's day care. Yesterday afternoon when I walked into the day care centre, Millie had just hit her head on one of the cabinets. I heard the bang from around the corner and went in to the room to have a look at what had happened.

Millie was lying on the ground convulsing. One of the child care workers was sitting with her and promptly rolled Millie on to her side. Millies eyes were rolling back and she was gasping for air. I straight away clicked into emergency mode. I noticed that Millie was turning blue and was having difficulties breathing so I put my fingers under her chin and pushed her head back to open up her airway which instantly helped her breathing and a normal colour returned to her face. The Mother was in the room and was obviously really distraught so I asked one of the child care workers to take her into the office until the ambulance had arrived.

Millie was very weak but we tried to keep her awake by talking to her about her pets and friends but we just couldn't, her little body was so exhausted she went off to sleep. I grabbed one of the child care workers and asked her to write all of the information down for the Ambo's including the length of time of the seizure. I stayed with Millie monitoring her breathing and pulse. The Ambo's took about 15mins to get to the Child Care Centre (after they worked out we were in NSW not VIC! ) As soon as the Ambo's arrived I just got out of the way and took my two boys home.

As soon as we walked inside the door at home my eldest son (9yrs) started crying and was very upset over what he had just seen. I had completely forgotten about him during all of this but he was right there with me and had witnessed the whole incident. He soon calmed down when I explained that Millie would be alright and she was in good care now.

I called the day care centre later on in the evening to see how Millie was and apparantly she woke up in the Ambulance after they had administered oxygen. Millie is ok now and was released from hospital late last night.

The whole experience has just made me realise how fragile life can be. I gave my little treasures extra hugs and kisses before bed and appreciating the fact that I have two happy, healthy children that are loved very much.

Wednesday 21st

Ran the usual Wednesday long run. I left my watch at home today but ran for the desired time and distance so the box was ticked.

Time: 1hr 23mins
Distance: 16km

Dog of a day!

Monday 19th

Rest - Real rest day ; )

Tuesday 20th

I loved doing this session. I trotted off in the fog this morning to the nice soft baseball field to do my scheduled 15 mins of 100m sprints with 50m floats followed by 1min sr then 5 more mins of the same thing.

As I was doing the usual warm up run I was thinking to myself what an intersting session it is going to be in the dark and the fog. I have always had pretty good night vision so once I was down there it was just a matter of listening to the beeps on the garmin and running flat out hoping that I didn't hit the wire fence before the beeps stopped me first.

Everything was going so well until about 10 mins into the first set when this huge Labrador came out of nowhere and knocked me down. After I had said a few choice words and got up and dusted myself off, the silly mutt was still bouncing around me like I was it's owner. Soon after the owner came over and called the dog off me. I couldn't resist telling him of his responsibilty to have his dog on the lead!!!!! He seemed disappointed that he actually had to walk his dog now and not just let it off the lead and let it run while he watched. It wasn't the dogs fault, he was a nice dog.

After the dog incident I was a little shaken but managed to get back into it and finished the session off pretty well. The jog back home was fun in the fog.

Everything in reverse

Saturday 17th

Rest day - 1hr cycle (windtrainer) while watching the Alice in Wonderland movie. What a strange show that was!

Sunday 18th

After much deliberating (will I go toinight? No maybe I will go in the morning? etc.....) I finally made it out for a chilly 8:30pm 1hr run. I don't normally run at this time of the day and I don't really like running at this time of the day either. It was supposed to be 2hr easy run but I was a little spooked being out on the roads by myself so late at night. So after the first loop I had decided that was enough and trotted off home. I promptly got changed and hopped on the windtrainer for 1hr. So I did the block thingy, but in reverse. Or is it brick?

I don't think that missing out on that last 1hr of my run is really going to effect my marathon preparation at all especially now that I'm in taper mode anyway. I have been pretty good with sticking to the program and little diversions are to be expected along the way. I'm sure no training program is ever completed without some sort of sabotage happening along the way.

Run
Time: 58mins
Distance :11.25km
Avg Pace: 4:58/km

Cycle
1hr

Thursday 15th

40 mins cycle (windtrainer) 40 mins run

Friday 16th

Too cold to get out of bed. Besides I had decided to take 26miles advice and run when it is warmer to condition myself for the GC ; ) Good excuse hey.

Ok, the run was delayed until the afternoon so at approx 3:31:25 I set off for what was going to be tough session. I don't know why I get all stressed about these 3km runs in training but I just freak about them every time? Probably more even than when I am racing. So today it was:

20mins warm up
3 x 3km @ sub 13:15 with 45 sec sr.

13:01 = 4:21 avg pace
13:22 = 4:27 avg pace
13.11 = 4:24 avg pace

a shorter warmdown because I had to get home but the run ended up being:

Time: 1hr08mins
Distance: 14.3km
Avg Pace: 4:46/km

I was really happy to be able to keep the pace reasonably controlled. Rather than my last lot of runs like this where I went out too fast and died in the last 2 km. I think I am starting to get the hang of this pacing thing (sort of) I deliberately didn't look at my watch to check the pace after the first 1km for each 3km set. I set the pace and tried to hold it and it seemed to work pretty well.

Feeling pretty good right now and really happy with how the training is going. Not sure how much training I will get done this weekend though with Go Hubby away on his Annual Watagans bush bike bash. I think the windtrainer is going to be my new best friend.

Hey ya!

Alright, Alright, Alright...So I had the Lyrics mixed up a bit. But yes it was Outkast. Well done to those that knew the answer. Yeah good one Shane, very clever. Just one of the many songs that feature regularly on my midweek running playlist. Hello to new reader Carmen.


Monday 12th

Rest day - Cycle 45mins (Wind trainer) Stretching - 45mins

Upper body weights, core and push ups - 40mins

Tuesday 13th

20 mins warmup run and 8x 1min efforts with 45 secs sr. I headed out the door late in the afternoon after getting up early and taking a little peek outside. I saw the frost and decided that I wasn't going to run in the freezing cold. I know, toughen up Go Girl! But I just wimped out.

Felt pretty good doing this session, even felt a bit faster than normal. It was just one of those sessions where you come away feeling really good. The 20mins run back home was pretty uneventful and I followed it up with some stretching.

Time: 50 mins
Distance: 9.1km

Wednesday 14th

Mid week long run again. The weeks are just flying by. I felt a little residual soreness when I jumped out of bed this morning. Mainly in the back of the legs. I suspect from the weekend's run but more so from yesterdays speedwork.

How cold was it this morning? Woke up to fog, darkness and very cold conditions. If I wasn't training for this Marathon I think I would have been tempted to just roll over and go back to sleep today. But I strapped on the shoes instead and took off down the road.

Feeling good again today for most of the run until about the 12km mark where I started to get some really bad stomach cramps. I had to stop for a few minutes because I felt like I was going to be sick at one stage. Luckily I was right near a bubbler and I had a little sip of water and then kept on going. Ended up with:

Time: 1hr 21mins
Distance: 16km
Avg Pace: 5:05/km

Another one in the bank. A few of you have been asking about predicted times etc.. for the GC. I have started to think about this a little more now as the event draws nearer. However, I still have bit of training left to do yet and I will just be happy to enjoy my first Marathon, whatever time I end up with.

What is cooler than cold?

Ice cold! Anyone know what song that is from?

This picture is of one of the many bridges that I run over on the M7.

Sunday 11th
I resisted today's long for most of the day however I knew that any amount of delaying it would just result in not doing it at all so I headed out at about 1:30pm.

All of my long tights were in the wash so it was shorts and long sleeve shirt for today's 2hr 40mins. Slight drizzle as I started but that soon went away. It wasn't too cold to start with but that soon changed. Not long into the run a very cold breeze hit me head on and it was tough going.

Feeling pretty fresh today and was just glad that I had made out the door so I didn't really take any notice of the pace until I had reached the 10km mark where I had just passed the 50 min mark. A little quick but I felt good so no biggie really. I had a Gu that was recommended by one of my fellow Bloggers (Portrunnr) Espresso Love.. Let me tell you, I needed all the Love that I could get out there today because no-one else was as stupid as me not even the cyclists were to be seen today.

I reached the turnaround and it felt great because now the wind was at my back instead of in my face, nice. The Espresso Love must have kicked in because i found myself turning over 4:40's and 4:50's for a few km's leading up to the 21km mark. The hills just didn't worry me today and I was really happy with my breathing considering I had felt so tragically out of breath during the week after some of the speed sessions.

I started to think about the GC Marathon in a weeks time and letting myself know that I need to just relax now and not worry too much about it. I'm not nervous yet, just getting excited really. Staring to think about playlists for the Mp3 and what to wear etc.. At least I have the shoes all sorted, and what nice shoes they are too ; )

Felt great in the last half and the usually tough hills at the end didn't bother me today. I found that I had done a huge negative split (5mins) and when I returned to the car park I had to keep on going because I was supposed to run for 2hrs 40mins, not 2hrs 35mins.

I managed to make it back after hunting down some more road on:

Time: 2:40 mins
Distance: 31.69km
Avg Pace: 5:03/km

Really happy with today's run and is a really big confidence booster a few weeks out from the Marathon. Did heaps of stretching at the oval afterwards and spending time now rehydrating while I watch the Aussies thump the Poms in the Rugby Union.

I did the Block

Thursday 8th

AM -40mins cycle and 40mins run. This was interesting! I rode down to the entrance of the M7 cycleway where I normally do my Sunday long runs. It took me about 20mins and then I turned around and rode back home.

It wasn't as scary as I thought it would be being out there on the road with the big bad traffic. So after a quick strip off of the cycle gear I then went for a 40 min run. It felt a little weird at first after just jumping off the bike but it was fun.

PM - 1hr wind trainer (Knicks are good)

Today
Distance: 8.1km run
Cycle: 1hr40mins


Friday 9th

15 min effort at 80%

Weather= Slight drizzle

This is the same training session that I did back in April. Last time I started at point A and ran for 15 minutes to point B (As you do) However this time I had the goal of running past the previous point B mark. Snow worries! Easy, did it, Next...


I'm off for a massage this afternoon and I'm sort of looking forward to it. Hopefully my legs will not need the same torture that was endured upon them last week. I know Easy Tiger, it had to be done.

My eldest son turns 9 tomorrow! I can't believe that he is so big and is 9 already. He wanted to go indoor rock climbing with his friends for his Birthday so that's what we are doing tomorrow after the movies.

Today:
Distance: 9.7km

It's raining again...

I forgot to mention in my last post so just for Jeff the NOSH was a 15km trail run with some very steep sections.

Monday 5th

Rest day - Lots of stretching

Tuesday 6th

Missed getting up early (lazy bum slept in) so I did my 8 x 500m in the afternoon. I really hate running this time of the day, it just doesn't feel right. I got down to the baseball field and the patway was full of water. Great, now what? Plan B: run on the track behind the baseball field but not my favourite course because it has an uphill for the return. Oh well, can't be fussy i suppose. Did the usual 20mins warmup run followed by some stretches then launched into the 500's.

1:52
1:50
1:52
1:50
1:48
1:53
1:49
1:48

Surprisingly I did ok. Still didn't feel that good though and I really had problems with my breathing between reps. At one point I thought that I was going to have to call for the oxyviva to come and revive me. Not happy to stop at just that, I jogged home and hopped on the fluid trainer for 45mins and absolutely hammered myself. Why? Just felt like it.. Then still not satisfied I did 40mins of upper body weights followed by some core strengthening and push ups. Ok, that's enough for one day.

Wednesday 7th

Mid week long run time again. Managed to drag myself out of bed and trot off down the road. I was feeling a little tired but not too bad. No residual soreness from the day before at least in the beginning anyway...Until I hit the first hill and ooohh, my butt was hell sore. Silly bike! Actually I felt pretty good most of the way. Skipped along to Elvis Costello - watching the detectives and an old favourite 10CC - I don't like cricket - I love it! Which reminds me, since we missed out on the Cricket tickets for the Ashes in Sydney, looks like we might be heading up to Queensland to watch the Aussies do in the Poms.

Time: 1hr 22mins
Distance: 16km
Avg Pace: 5:08/km


Edit: Nice pick up Chelle. I was avoiding that number ; )

NOSH so squeezy

Sunday 4th
I was really looking forward to this run and what great fun it turned out to be.

Arrived early and picked up my pre entry bib and chatted for a while witha host of CR's including, Wild Thing, Mr Wild Thing, Don Juan, Lonewolf, jen_runs, Owly, MPH, Ellie, Bristol? (Tim) and finally got to meet SteveL from Japan who would have to win the most unusual race preparation prize - jumping straight off a Boeing and coming down to the race. Now that's dedication.

All plans for a warm up run went right out the window but the warm up chat with MPH on the way to the start line was enough to get the blood pumping.

We had sort of pushed our way near the front but then others soon pushed in front of us too. Then the gun went off and it was a civilised scramble along the track. I managed to stick with Martin for about 2-3km before he took off at which point I followed another female runner for almost the rest of the way.

Chatted to a few people along the course but most were like me - huffing and puffing trying to get up those hills. It was pretty tough and I was soon walking most of the up hills but jogging the flat and down hill sections. I was passed by about 5 runners at the 12km mark where I stopped for 2 drinks. When we hit the bitumen it felt very spongey and I managed to catch up at least 2 other runners and caught 2 more further down the trail.

On the last 200meters I caught up to a runner that I had been joking with and chatting to earlier on and we spured each other along. We poped out of the bush into the field and I urged him to run it with me and we both sprinted to the finish. Finished in 91:04 and more importantly with no injuries : )

I picked up my bag and promptly went to get changed after seeing Jen finish and was surprised to see 2P there at the end too. Gee it was cold afterwards and I had to feel sorry for Martin who had left his bag at the start, so he had no warm clothes to change into. Brrr..I had a nice Bacon and Egg Roll, coffee and a Powerade. The organisers did a great job on this event.

After the formalities were over it was back to the start and then on home for a nice warm, loooong shower. Still not feeling 100% and missed a days training last week just because I felt so crappy. Thankfully It's not getting any worse and hopefully I can train to full capacity this week. That's it now, nothing until the Gold Coast.