I have joined up with the VMA (Vic Masters) to run in the 2014 winter season. The season kicks off on April 13th with the 3000 metres championships.
I have been running well and injury free until my run on Friday morning (Apr 4th). In a pre-dawn 6km run I decided to just warm up for 2km then have a 3 km trial in the middle. The 3rd and 4th kilometers were just over 4 min pace but in the 5th km I flew at an average of 3:46 pace to post 11:52 for the 3km.
Unfortunately right at the end of the 5th km I felt a pull in my left calf so just jogged it in for the rest of the run.
After work I got on the bike to stretch the calf out and went to Cape Paterson and back. I iced it a few times on Friday night and it wasn’t feeling too bad.
Saturday morning I had planned a 15km run with 6 two min surges. I decided to turn it into an endurance run and decided to cut it down to 10km while out there as it was not as comfortable as I wanted. After hitting 4:40 pace early I spent most of the run at a bit over 4:50 pace. In the 9th km I started to stretch it out a bit but then felt it pull a little more so slowed down immediately. I followed the run up with another 27km cycle to loosen up the calf and then iced up.
Sunday morning I decided to just take it easy with a slower and shorter run. Aiming for 5km at 4:45 pace I found that the calf had warmed up and I was running ok after 3km. I extended the run by one plus km and ran the last 3km in 4:30 pace with the calf holding up well. I then followed up with another hour long (27 km) cycle.
http://vicmastersaths.org.au/events/2014-vma-throws-pentathlon-championship-2/
Tuesday April 8th
Yesterday I rested the calf with a day off running. I did go for a cycle for over an hour and later walked at the beach and stood in the ocean for a while.
Yesterday I rested the calf with a day off running. I did go for a cycle for over an hour and later walked at the beach and stood in the ocean for a while.
This morning I went for a slower run to give the calf a stretch. I did get below 4:10 pace a couple of times but pulled it back both times. I ended up running 6 km at 4:44 pace.
At lunchtime I decided to go for a quick cycle before the rain set in. On the homeward run I went around a corner too fast and slipped on the damp road taking the skin off my left knee and grazing my left hip and elbow. I got back on and slowly made it the last 3 km home. Now I have some additional left side stiffness to overcome.
I went over to Leongatha to help out at under 18 footy training this afternoon. I went out or a bit of a pre-training run and the calf felt good. Later the coach put the boys through a running program so I joined in. I ran 2x 400m then 4x 200m and then did 2 of the 6x 100m before pulling out. Got some great pace in the intervals getting down well below 3 min pace. The calf felt good and the other stiffness hasn’t really set in yet.
Wednesday April 9thI woke up this morning feeling quite stiff – after a rather unsettled night. In addition to my knee my left hip is severely bruised and my left shoulder very sore.
After breakfast I stretched up and set out on a run. The first 2 km were very slow but I did start to move a little better after I got going. I hit my pace (currently set at 4:05) very briefly in the 7th km and finished up getting through 7.5 km. At least the calf didn’t feel too bad.
Thursday April 10th
Felt a little better this morning but the running was hard work again. It is very frustrating at the moment because I havent been able to train as I wanted to since last Friday. I ran a little faster this morning and the calf did hold up. I was only able to pick up speed in the last 2 km, finishing off with a 4:11 and a 4:09 – average speed of 4:29 km/min over the 6km run.
Felt a little better this morning but the running was hard work again. It is very frustrating at the moment because I havent been able to train as I wanted to since last Friday. I ran a little faster this morning and the calf did hold up. I was only able to pick up speed in the last 2 km, finishing off with a 4:11 and a 4:09 – average speed of 4:29 km/min over the 6km run.
Later this afternoon I went over to football training and did the running warm ups for a little extra work.
Friday April 11th
After breakfast I went for another 6km run, trying to get in a good last 3km. I went via the rec reserve and put in a few changes of pace to get everything warmed up. On the way back I started pushing it a bit and got into the low 4s, a bit slower than I wanted. About 1 and a half in I felt in my calf again and eased up. Very frustrating!
After breakfast I went for another 6km run, trying to get in a good last 3km. I went via the rec reserve and put in a few changes of pace to get everything warmed up. On the way back I started pushing it a bit and got into the low 4s, a bit slower than I wanted. About 1 and a half in I felt in my calf again and eased up. Very frustrating!
Later this afternoon I drove out to Inverloch and went for a 45 minute walk to get some repetition in the legs. I put a bit of work into the leg, icing it and rubbing it tonight.
Saturday April 12th
Footy today so I had o drive for 2 hours to Sale. I could have gone for a run early but decided not to – just to give the legs a rest. I stood up on the bench for the whole thirds game then the seniors and made sure I rested in between. Instead of rubbish for tea on the way home I stopped for pasta.
Footy today so I had o drive for 2 hours to Sale. I could have gone for a run early but decided not to – just to give the legs a rest. I stood up on the bench for the whole thirds game then the seniors and made sure I rested in between. Instead of rubbish for tea on the way home I stopped for pasta.
It has been a very frustrating lead in, and I’m not sure what I will bring tomorrow. Not much has gone to plan so far but the legs do feel good tonight. I will be doing an extensive warm up when I get there.
RACE DAY – Sunday April 13thI drove up to East Bentleigh (Duncan McKinnon Reserve) to get there with plenty of warm up time. I had a walk around to stretch then stripped to my running clothes and went on an extended warm up with lots of stretching. The calf felt good, even as I upped the pace. I ended up doing 3.5 km of warm up for the 3 km race.
The race start was delayed and I was still worried about the calf going but my attitude was to go for it and see. I got off to a good start and fell in behind Steve Quirk who was pulling away. I settled in 2nd position and got around the first 1000 in 3:46. I did drop off in the middle laps – fitness rather than the calf – but kept it under 4 mins at 3:56. I felt the challenge from behind in the last third of the race and tried to push a little harder to keep it at bay but on the back straight in the last lap I was overtaken and couldn’t do anything about it. I ended up running at 3:42 pace for the last 1000.
In the end I finished 3rd overall in 11:20 and first in the 45 to 49 years age group. Pretty happy with that given my interupted preparation and the bruising under my left hip.
Steve Quirk finished 1st in 10:06 and I was working hard in the end not to get lapped. I still had 300 to go when he finished and he lapped all but 2nd place and myself.
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