Hopefully all injuries aside I plan to start the next phase in my training. General idea is;
- Monday, easy 2 hour walk with NSC in the evening to do the race walking sessions.
- Tuesday, leg strength in the gym, increased endurance base, less weight and more reps, maybe a spin bike session, and finish with core work.
- Wednesday, long fast 2 hour walk.
- Thursday, hill repeats and maybe some track work.
- Friday, long steady cycle appx 2 hours.
- Sat. or Sun. a mixed terrain walk maybe adding in some hills- only about an hour or so.
Next week is when I am going to start to increase the actual walking mileage. Again, I am going to allow myself to be versatile in my planning and work on areas that I feel either weak in or know that I need to improve. There are many ways to implement the ideas within the above programme but my priority here is that it has to fit in with work and around my clients needs and, also, more importantly my family life. The main point now is to try the above out and see how I feel next weekend and then make any alterations I need depending on how things have gone. Fingers crossed!
Firstly, although I didn't race last week I did manage to go down to the NSC to watch some of it. Alan informed me that at the last minute he was asked to referee a football match thus explaining his absence. I have to say having tried to walk with Michael G and knowing first hand how fast he is getting, what a great performance he put in- so near to his first sub 50 minute race, well done. By the same token what great performances there were all the way through the field, more notably Peter K and his new UK over 45 10k record (I think I am right in saying this) and also, a great first time out by Steve P. Well done all.
This week training has been difficult. Firstly Saturday and Sunday I took a rest allowing my left leg niggle to settle. It did. Monday went with Dave M. for an easy 8 miler. Tuesday leg strength work in the gym followed by a spin session but felt another niggle this time behind my right knee, so back to the ice packs. Wednesday it felt all ok so I went for an easy, at "Parish" pace walk along the Heritage Trail an hour out and an hour back. It's funny although I said I am not racing the Parish this year, it was so hard to try and do my first "slow" walk. According to Garmin my avg. pace was 4.5 mph exactly, great it was what I plan to do the Parish in this year- after all the race training I have done it did seem painstakingly slow... the boredom did start to creep in, oh how I forgot what it is like getting in the miles on the longer walks! Anyway, Wed. evening I was the proud owner of a right knee that was football shaped! Ice packs, pain killers and anti inflams please. Writing this today it is still puffy and sore so I was planning a walk with Alan C tonight but had to cancel at the last minute. So, will take Friday, Saturday and Sunday of and see how it is Monday, fingers crossed I don't really want to take too much more time out as frustrating as this all is, it is better to be patient than sorry.
My lessons learnt this week are simple. I will never write publicly that I am going to enter another race, or that so far I have managed to avoid any injuries. Do I see a pattern emerging?
It has been a Saturday agonising over a simple decision. On Thursday evening was on a walk with Alan Cowin, details later, nothing that we hadn't done a million times before, when out of the blue I felt a pull in my left quad. Ewww, sharp and very localised, Dumbo here had realised an injury. Oh well, at that moment in time I was just coming down onto the Prom. with about 3 odd miles to go, so I pulled back a fraction on the pace and it seemed to have done the trick. Friday I wasn't going to do any training anyway as my sites were set on Sundays race so it worked out quite well. No more pain I felt good. This morning family outing into town and each time I took a step there was that same pain in the leg. I have "pulled" a muscle and it isn't going away, ice, ice and more ice but to no avail.
I made my decision not to race on Sunday. I hate the fact that I have not even competed in 1 round of the winter walking league when 4 months ago it was a major part of my pre-Parish training. Don't get me wrong, it sounds like I made an easy decision not do the race but it wasn't. I telephoned Alan C. and told him of my decision but was glad when he said that he was still going to enter and race... I have a sneaky feeling that he may do very well (sorry if you read this before the race Al)!
So that is that. I am now just going to take the weekend easy and see how the leg is Monday. As much as I wanted to race I had to be sensible, ultimately I know it is the right decision and it is what I would advise anyone of my clients to do in the same situation, however much the heart wanted to do otherwise.
Training did go well again until Thursdays' little pull! It sort of went like this;
- Monday NSC track session. That included track work of 300 metres race walking, 100 recovery and repeats. Totalled according to Garmin 2.67 miles. As hard as these sessions are, especially when you are walking with Michael & Marie (or trying to), I really enjoy them because it is not what I am used to doing. I feel more like a sadist each week! That evening I did my hill repeats as normal. I really felt good so I tried what I now call the 5 hill challenge. Saddlestone, stop sign at bottom to start as normal but for some strange reason I walked each of the 5 hills in there twice !!! From my house total distance 7.35 miles, time 1:23:27, Avg pace 11:21 /mi, avg. speed 5.3 mph and max speed 8.0 mph (that must of been falling down the last hill)!
- Tuesday, leg strength in the gym. Lots of high rep/endurance type work. Really enjoyed this one. Finished with about 15 mins. core/ back work with the fitball and BOSU, tough session.
- Wednesday was an easy 1 hour run on the treadmill.
- Thursday I played squash for an hour then walked with Alan Cowin in the evening. My house, Braddan Church, Jubilee Tree, Tromode, Johnny Wats. Lane, right onto Ballanard Rd., Blackberry Lane, Prom and Ouch!, Sea Terminal, Peel Road, Braddan Church and home. Total distance 6.81 miles. No time as Alan is racing his first FPI race and isn't handicapped at the moment!
What I hope to do next week, leg permitting, is slightly change my training. I am happy with the last months training and it has gone more or less to plan. My endurance is picking up, speed is good and leg strength feels great. Plan is to do an extra walk of more time at "Parish" speed, drop a cycle and add in another run. The Parish speed walk is something I didn't do last year. All my training sesions were done at 200+ mph (give or take)! Great for over all fitness etc but as I started out on the Parish Walk itself it was at a speed I had never walked before. I am not racing, I am trying to finish it and better what I did last year, so it stands to reason that at least one of my longer walks should be at the same pace as I plan to walk on the day. I must be honest I do have a long term plan for the Parish Walk. I may regret this but I will write it anyway. This year, I am aiming to finish in 20 hours or under. Nothing more and nothing less. My reckoning is that I started to hobble and pass out around Ramsey, from that point on it was just a case of limping it back to Douglas. If I hadn't of been in such a bad way and had of managed to walk normally I feel that I could have a good chance of achieving this time. I sort of feel like a fraud saying this, 20 hours or less, especially after finishing in the top 20 of last years shortened End to End (still elated at that one). But the Parish Walk is a totally different type of race. I have to be honest, I now hold The Parish Walk course and each of its' 85 miles with the utmost of respect. I have to because I know from first hand experience that at any second it can turn on you and bite you hard. This is why I am taking the training as seriously as I know how and not taking any chances.
This, although only the third week was the toughest. Not in terms of amount, distances or times but just the will to get up and venture out in near freezing conditions. It was one of those weeks. I almost couldn't be bothered. Its funny, it's the type of attitude I am not used to feeling but how I felt glad when each training session was over. Oh well, should be spring soon!.
Monday started with my normal hill repeats, again building on time, frequency and speeds. This week no times or stats. posted, I am guarding a secret this week - Thursdays session !!!. Tuesday was my leg and core work in the gym with 2 more exercises thrown in. This session went very well for 2 reasons. One it was warm and indoors and two, all weights and reps went up with no problems so I am pleased so far. Wednesday I walked for an hour covering all types of race walking drills and this was nearly all flat. Thursday was a fun one. I met Al Cowin at about 20.00h at the Manx Harriers hut. Al knew I was entering the final round of the FPL walking league , what he didn't know at this point was that he was also going to be doing it !!! My idea was a simple one , just how long it would take us to walk the 10k in?. I have really no race experience bar a few efforts before, 2006 Parish, 2006 End To End and the Peel open 5k. What we did it in does not matter now. What for me was the important point was paying attention to detail. We walked the first lap at an easy pace noting our time, each subsequent lap we tried to be within 20 or so seconds either way. As it turned out we were speeding up by appx. 10 seconds a lap untill about the 9th lap (Laps are of the outer perimeter road within the NSC). On the very last lap we deliberately held our pace and only "went" for it the last 200 metres. What felt good was knowing that come race day, injurys and niggles permitting, there was a bit left in reserve. Al was as pleased as me, we were well inside our target 2 hour mark!!!. Friday was an easy half hour walk on a treadmill as my hamstrings and right knee was tight from the night before. As you will notice there was no cycling this week. That was not my intention at all but my road bike has tyres about 2 cm's width and those roads seemed very slippy this week, so yes I bottled out of it!
The final bit of good news this week, and I can't believe I am going to write this, is I have now finally got back my 5th toe nail that fell off from Parish 2006. Un real 8 months to grow back but I guess I am lucky that they all grew back including the big ones without being in-grown. This is the very last time I write about my toe nails, I promise!
I am now looking forward to training next week but I am hoping that the weather will not be as cold, don't get me wrong I really don't care one way or the other what the weather is doing, but, at the back of my mind the entire time I am outdoors training at this time of year I am always worried about slipping on an icy path or road and picking up an avoidable injury. Unfortunately we are all in the same boat. At this time of year there is a lot to think about training wise, throw in snow, sleet and ice and it makes me wonder why am I still so focused. It's strange, but on hind sight, stood on the start line last year did I think about snow, ice, cold, numb fingers and toes?... don't think so...Wonder if I will this year...?
Having gone over my recent training etc., all seems to be going well at the moment (asides from the dodgy Garmin readings handicap secretary your honour!). I have decided tonight that the 6th and final round of the Winter Walking League would be a good race to try and have a go at. I still have mixed feelings about my decision, what if I'm last, what if I get clobbered with an unfair handicap, how will my leg hold out, what if its cold and a lot of other what if's !. to hell with it. At the end of the day it doesn't matter how you treat it or what happens, as long as you are there, give it a go and give it your best shot. Be positive, even on a bad race draw a positive, where did I go wrong, how can I improve and what have I learnt. I must be honest looking at the top people over the series, men and women, there is a very high standard to try and compete with. This is a good thing and this is why the handicapping works so well, more or less everyone can compete on an even basis. I must say that all this said, to encourage others to maybe think about having a go as part of your Parish 2007 training, dont treat it as a race - treat it as a chance to walk in a safe, traffic free zone with other like minded people as part of your training prog. At the end of the day it doesn't matter where you finish or how you do, it is just about getting more miles under the belt, you never know you may even find a walking partner !.
Personally I can't wait. Not sure if it's the new found enthusiasm I have for walking (albeit only a year old now), or the fact that I am really enjoying all the new challenges as a result of my decision to do the Parish again. That said, I am still really nervous for the Parish 2007 itself. My main worry now, and I will be totally honest here, is what happens if it is sunny and hot ???. Last year my back ups loaded with 24 litres of water, some Isotonic, some carb and some plain. Up to Peel the event was so well sponsored and supplied I didn't need any of my own drinks. At the end I had drunk appx 22 litres of my own drinks plus whatever to Peel that was en route... Guess what, in the total time of 22 and a half odd hours it took me, I only peed 3 times - sound familiar?! From memory I can recall heavy rain and a fairly mild day, ok rain from about 15.00h to 17.00 hours. Must ask the organisers if I can borrow a camel to walk with me?! I think I said to Janet at just past Peel, "it is only raining because I put on a 24 hour sun block that am - guess I was tempting it ! I look back at old photos and see walkers over the years wearing protective head gear from the sun etc., as part of my check list I must remember to include things like this. Mental note, must ask the next time I see Adrian Cowin what the weather will be doing... no pressure at all !. So again, even though training is going well and I am looking forward to the event, I still can't help but wonder about the weather. To be honest lets face it, middle of summer, who am I kidding, how hot will it be, huh, chance would be a fine thing?!.
Still on buzz, training is now in full swing, no niggles and an air of dare I say it, excitement?! Here is how this week went.
- Mon. 29th Jan. 17.15 Meet Liz. C, Bridgett K and Steve P along with a handful of others at the N.S.C. for the Monday race walking session. A lot of the people there had raced the Peel to Douglas on the Sunday so with that said we were split into 2 groups, I am not sure what the other group were doing, I had enough trouble doing my own thing! We started doing some warm up laps easy running then moved onto some walking drills for appx 10 mins. Our brief was to go onto the track, race walk 200 metres flat out (attention at all times to technique), stop, turn around and walk back slowly for 100 metres and start again. I think we were doing this for about half an hour or so, it seemed longer !. As normal I was wearing my watch and amazingly I/we managed to cover 3.15 miles in the 45 minute session. Boy, as tough as it was, still great training. So, went home, ate, put kids to bed and went back out at 20.00h for my normal hill repeat session. Stats according to "Garmin"; 6.56 miles, 1:14.12 hours, 11:18 /mi average pace, 5.3 mph ave. speed, 7.4 mph max speed. Details, Out of Vicarage Park, Braddan Church, Peel Rd., left at QB up Bray Hill to top at St. Ninians, touch traffic light on left and down to bottom traffic light and touch. The repeats were bottom to top traffic light done 5 times then home again. 9.71 miles in total. On hindsight that evening my hamstrings felt like piano wires so perhaps if I do such intense speed work the hill repeats change nights!
- Tue. 30th Jan. Leg strength gym work, this week included barbell squats, dumb bell step ups on a step, dumb bell stair climbs, walking lunges forward and reverse and side steps. I then spent appx 15 mins. doing core work using cables, fitball, BOSU and wobble board. As this blog moves on I will endeavour to go into a little more detail about my training strategies and why I choose these type of routines over more conventional ways of training, i.e. why you would never see me use a leg extension machine for example.
- Wed. 31st Jan. 14.90 mile cycle with a client and then taught a circuit class in the evening. As the cycle was with a client no details I'm afraid.
- Thur. 1st Feb. Went for a walk with Alan Cowin. A lot of people reading this will know Alan. Alan was 6th place finisher in the 2006 Parish Walk in an incredible time of 16:39:13. I know Alan from my football days at Douglas Royal so I called him up and asked if he fancied going out on a training walk, he said yes and where possible we try to get together once a week to walk. This night was the one!!! As it was Alans first walk this year and I am only just getting back into the full swing of training, I was nervous and well aware of Alans normal pace so I said lets take it easy tonight! Famous last words! Our route was one of my favourate "quick" hour or so walks. Vicarage Park, Braddan Church, Peel Rd., right at Greens restaurant, past the IOM Business School, Kewague (tough Hill!), B&Q, right to Horse & Plough Pub and home again. Garmin stats. 5.77 miles, 09:40 /mi Avg pace, 6.2 avg. speed, 8.2 max speed, max heart rate 167 bpm. Time of walk 55:54 secs...a new record by 10 mins! It was the first time I have ever race walked it and boy did it feel good. Could not help but call Alan and tell him all the stats, I do believe he was pleased too ! If any handicap secretary is reading this I must point out that the GPS watch is prone to "funny" readings and therefore cannot be taken into consideration when setting future handicaps!!!
- Fri. 2nd Feb. Last day of training this week. Legs ok just generally tired, did treat myself to a Sports Massage yesterday so they feel heaps better. Todays training a cycle. Left my house and out of Vicarage Park, lest up Vicarage Rd., right at roundabout and the back way to Ballasalla, right to Cross 4 Ways, left to Castletown, main Rd back to Douglas via The Fairy Bridge. Left at Westminster Motors along Saddle Rd., left at Kirby and home again. Garmin stats. 19.04 miles, 1:24:15, 4:25 /mi avg. pace, 13.6 avg speed, 42.4 max speed (Richmond Hill), max heart rate 158 bpm. Not the fastest time in the world but pleasing for me as I felt I kept a nice and steady pace throughout, not too shabby considering I am no cyclist.
- Total combined weekly distance this week 50.63 miles.
What I must point out at this stage is please don't try to copy this type of training programme. This is fine for me at the moment with my current level of fitness. If you are a beginner then the sensible approach is day on, day off with 3 to 4 training sessions per week, and then only progress that if no injuries etc. If in doubt ask someone. Don't be afarid to ask, it's the not asking that can cause injuries! The reason as I said before for me going into so much detail is that it at least gives you another thing to try, idea to do or have a go at "racing" against some of my times. The training can get lonely and boring especially at this time of year, so if you do have a go at any of my times- please let me know how you get on. Another idea could be to post your routes and times on the Parishwalk.com forum and let everyone know how you are getting on, the more people who do this the more routes and challenges for the rest of us. It may catch on. As for now... an ice cold bath for my legs!!! I may even treat myself to a glass or 2 of wine tonight!
