Rest and then run... 5K today...

Morning all - Aussie here after an extended (well, 2 day) rest period after the 10 mile epic run on Sunday...

Lesson for today: Training sensibly works - have a look at those split times campers... WooHoo... I'm taking that as a sub-30... and it was reasonably comfortable... new territory for me as normally I'd be exhausted!

Bank Holiday Monday was spent relaxing and (let's be honest here) eating... great day! The weather was appalling and even though I love running in the rain, I must say that it was torrential at times and I was quite glad to be sitting inside a nice warm and dry pub sinking pints and eating bad food (made even worse by that epic pizza on Sunday)...

Tuesday morning I (again, to be honest) couldn't be bothered... my legs were still a bit stiff and I decided it was time to lay in bed instead... at least until the kids woke me up! Mrs Aussie had other ideas (easy now)... she kicked me as she left the house on her own to do W2R1... woohoo! I didn't feel too bad knowing I'd done my long run but I also knew that Mrs Aussie now has the bug - hehehe... my work here is done! She did it without any problems too... go Aussie!

This morning was my turn and I had decided on 5K... 2 days rest (all joking aside) was an excellent idea as my legs and joints felt great today - well rested and strong... The usual morning routine (water, energy bar, etc) and I left on my 5 minute warm up... the weather was a bit overcast and a crisp, cool morning - excellent for a run...

And we're off... for some reason I decided to take off a little bit quick this morning... I was in "one of those moods" where I thought I might push just a little bit as I was "only" doing 5K today... 1K came up and I realised I should probably slow down a bit... still felt okay though...

Slowed it down and then ever so slightly pushed on the gas in the last few kms... This wasn't a text book "recovery run" by any means and it wasn't overly "easy", BUT (and this is important) it wasn't uncomfortable either... I knew I was only doing 5K, I knew I could do 5K without much of an issue and I knew if I pushed too hard that I could slow down and knew how to do that without stopping (thank you C25K for pacing me!)...

Results? Well, as I say, I'm taking that as a sub-30 minute... not quite a PB, but not far off it... and this was a "reasonably vigorous" session and I felt I could have pushed even harder if I wanted to (I didn't want to though - not today anyway)....

Intervals, long runs, hills and "miles on the legs"... I am seeing results every single week from putting in the sessions and they don't need to be "unable to breath, horrible, painful and gruelling" sessions... Just a little bit of effort on a regular basis and you'll surprise yourself at the improvements you can make...

I can't believe how much my fitness and pace have improved and how good it feels to be out on a run... let's hope I can get myself up a bit earlier when I get back to work in a few weeks... the luxury of a run a little bit later in the morning is awesome right now!

Happy running y'all!

[Slookie Graduate]

Sub 30 is a marvellous result. How long have you been running? I ask because I can't imagine a time when I won't be out of breath and uncomfortable yet here you are sprinting about and still have petrol in the tank at the end, proving it must be possible. The holy grail.

[Hidden in reply to Slookie]

Thanks Slookie! I started C25K on March 7th this year so a little under 6 months of running - pretty much ever... By keeping to 3 runs a week after graduation and slowly increasing distances I am finding my 5K times slowly (slowly) coming down.... it's a constant learning experience this running thing... at only 6 months in I am but a baby at this... but I'm loving it and truly believe we can all get better over time if we take it easy... results won't be instant...

Happy running! And GOOD LUCK with C25K... you'll rock it!

[Slookie Graduate in reply to Hidden]

6 months! Gobsmacked. [Then ... begins to wonder what might be possible for this ole carcass in another few months ... hmmmm ] You are truly an inspiration and a mine of very useful information. Thank you.

[Rosebery Graduate]

Sounds brilliant, are you on heart rate type training? Must investigate how that works!

[Hidden in reply to Rosebery]

Hi Rosebery... thanks, it was a good run... I have been doing a bit of HR based training actually... I run with a Garmin and I rarely show pace information on the screen so I have no idea of timing until I press "stop" at the end of a run... I run now on "feel" and heart rate... I know what HR is "comfortable conversational pace" and what gets "harder to speak pace"... by running on this "feel" and using the HRM I have found a way of increasing distance without going "flat out" all the time...

The added bonus here is that by doing that I am able to push longer at the higher heart rate over time and do times like I did today... at least that's what I'm finding...

I do the following runs to train and increase speed/distance:

1) 1 x 30 minute-ish run (5K-6K) @ an easy pace (can hold a conversation)

2) 1 x hills or intervals session (alternate) - about 30 minutes worth.. run/jog intervals (currently 90 second run/150 second jog) or hill repeats (run up, jog down - repeat)... these are HARD work...

3) 1 x long run (currently 10 miles) and increase distance SLOWLY...

Once a month I drop the long run for a quick and hard "race pace" 5K and this is where I find the training pays off (if you're interested in better times - not everyone is of course but I love the personal achievement).....

I also want to start consolidating the long runs (that is, keep them at about 10 miles for a few weeks and don't increase distance for a while) so my body gets used to the 10 mile distance before pushing it out to HM distance...

I am training for an 8 mile race in October, a 10K a few days later and a HM in Feb next year so I have a few goals to keep me out there...

Whatever you choose, my suggestion would be to just take it easy and have fun...

[Rosebery Graduate in reply to Hidden]

Thanks for the full reply - I think I am a bit geeky and will need to have a system/programme to structure my future running so as a new graduate I am looking for my next step. Years ago I trained seriously for swimming and I used to teach games so I naturally tend towards challenging myself - even though the challenge kicks in at a much lower level now!

[Belindauk Graduate]

And that was your easy day ha ha. Very inspiring indeed. Well done you

[Hidden in reply to Belindauk]

Thanks Belinda... check in on Friday after my hill repeats... those runs SUCK!

[Vixchile Graduate]

Sounds ike mrs Aussie is doing fantastic. Glad to know the mileage all helps!! I feel 5km is fine now but really want to get my time down to 30minutes something.

[Hidden in reply to Vixchile]

Mrs A is doing great! Very proud of her!

I bought my 5K times down by doing SLOWER, LONGER distances... somehow being able to run slow for 10K makes running quicker for 5K more achievable... without you even noticing... doesn't happen overnight of course and the move from 5 to 10 should be done carefully (no more 10% or so a week) but for me, this together with some intervals and hill sessions (which are hard work but pay off) has helped...

Everyone is different and it's comparative of course... a friend of mine does a 1:30 HM as a "recovery run" ...

[misswobble Graduate]

Hi Aus

Wondered where you'd got to

Happy running. Good times there by the way!

[Hidden in reply to misswobble]

Thanks Miss W... I disappeared on my 2nd recovery day! Sorry about that...

[Irishprincess Graduate]

Cor bimey that's fast! And you make it sound easy! What is obvious is your unlimited enthusiasm for this running thing. It's very inspiring!

[Hidden in reply to Irishprincess]

Thanks - I LOVE it... Happy running!

[paul2014 Graduate]

Great 5k run, Aussie and good splits/time. Sounds like you really enjoyed it and your training is paying dividends

[Hidden in reply to paul2014]

Thanks Paul - I hope you're doing okay mate? Really crossing everything for you at the moment...

As an aside, have you tried Tubigrup on the knees post-run... even today I've got some on for pre-emptive measures.... I hope you've managed to get some answers mate...

[paul2014 Graduate in reply to Hidden]

Cheers, Aussie. Tubigrip looks worth a try. A running friend at work suggested compression bandages so I'll look at getting one. Thanks for the info, Aussie

[Hidden in reply to paul2014]

Good luck mate... Hope you're better soon... Rest well!

[poppypug Graduate]

Nice cheeky 5k for ya there Aus, fab time too !

Oh well done too to Mrs Aussie xxx