30km run under the belt!

With exactly 5 weeks to go, I posted a 30km run in preparation for the Great Limerick Run – Marathon.

The previous 25km run went well for me so I was in good mental shape starting out. That said between 10 and 20 was hard enough. Perhaps this was due to the fact that I was running a piece of road that was new to me. Anyway, I hit the 20km marker with 1 hr 44 on the clock so I knew I could do the 30 km if I injected a little jist into my pace.

I broke the remaining 10k into 2 X 5k slots thinking that if I managed the first one within myself I could put the hammer down a bit on the last stretch. That’s exactly how it worked out. What was good for me about this was that I knew I could have gone the distance, so with 5 weeks left on the clock, I know I can do it, and now I can focus a bit more on what time I can do it in!

It was also helpful to note that my pace per km was the same as what I achieved for my previuos 25km run, which is 5 mins and 2 seconds per km. I suppose that means I either have more in the tank or that I’m responding well to training…I’ll take either one just now thanks!

Will do some gentle running on turf tonight just to facilitate the recovery and might do a cycle/run combination on Wednesday or Thursday, depending on how I feel. Hope your training is going well too, back to my desk for now!

Running update

Yesterday was a big day for me. Made the jump to 25km distance in prep for Limerick Marathon on May 2nd.

It felt good I have to say, better than I expected. I really enjoyed the last 5ks and was having something of a purple patch. Its amazing what some good tunes do for you! I have The Joy Division, Black Eyed Peas, Lenny Kravitz and Jack L to thank for keeping my beat going! Running is a great escape, and it was a productive day at the desk of platformweb so positive vibes all round!

Will rest up the legs now until Sunday when I’ll take on a 30km run. However in preparation for Nenagh Triathlon on April 17th, I’ll do a simulation of cycling and running of the relevant distances, namely 20k on bike and immediate switch to 5 k run, that will happen tmrw all going to plan.

Anyone interested in the Great Limerick Run, please note closing date for entry is 20th April.

Duathlon Progress

Well, yesterday saw me complete the second of two duathlons in a month.  They were the 2nd and 3rd of the Limerick Tri Club series.  I came in 62nd in the February race and 77th yesterday, despite picking up 2’15” time improvement.  Was looking to beat the hour, missed that by 39 secs…but there will be other days!

Focussed now on two events, the Limerick Marathon on 2nd May, but before that I am sharing the Nenagh Triathlon with my wife who is swimming before I do the cycle and run.   Recently ran a 10km run in Castleconnell in Limerick too, came in 42nd of over 300 there so chuffed with that… and my time of 45:37

That said, not much improvement on running times yesterday over my previous duathlon event, and that surprised me.  The second run in particular is really a compromise of your mind and your body, getting both to do what you want is like pushing a piano up the stairs sometimes.  Regardless of time, I knew at the end I had given it close to all I had which pleased me.  It could be early next year before I get a crack at that course again.  The hour will be mine!

Will add photos soon.  Well done to Limerick Triathon Club on a superbly organised and enjoyable event.