Week 12 - Final Time Trial

Our final time-trial! It was raining again on Wednesday and the track was closed. We went to Kirribilli instead, which I was excited about. But when I got there I was so disappointed to find out we were going to have to run across the dreaded Harbour Bridge! A nasty surprise.

Despite my initial negative projections, a run across the bridge a night time turned out to be a more exciting experience than during the day. The lights of the city and Circular Quay really made it a much nicer run than any other Saturday run. As it was a 5km TT, my pace was a bit quicker, so it didn't feel like I was on the bridge all that long. Thank God my attitude changed within the first five minutes, I've no doubt the excitement of running across the bridge at night helped shape the success of this time-trial.

On the way back, coming back up the Cahill Expressway hill onto the Bridge, I started to struggle a little. It's hard to keep a good pace on a hill, and harder to keep positive when you're slowing down! I joined one of the girls in my pace group, Celia, and stuck with her for the rest of the 5km. We maintained a really great speed and my final time was 29:30 mins. Compare that to my first time-trial 9 weeks ago, which was 40:28 mins!! I was exhausted and couldn't speak for a few minutes, but very proud of myself.


"You must start with a positive attitude or you will surely end without one. "
Carrie Latet


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Week 11 - Saturday 18KM RUN!!

The longest run we have to do before race day. I know it was only 2km up on last week’s long run, but still...! A nerve-wrecking morning, without a doubt. It was raining again, but nowhere as bad as last week. I feel like a seasoned runner now that I’m not put off by the rain!
The run out over the Harbour Bridge was the easiest so far. It would want to be after the amount of times we’ve run over it! As I ran up Macquarie Street and past Hyde Park, I remarked to one of my mates, Richard, that the first time I ran up this street on the first 6km run, I couldn’t make it to the 3km turnaround! We jogged on past that very spot where I had nearly fallen over with exhaustion and pain 

:-D

We ran down Art Gallery Road and around Mrs Macquarie’s chair AGAIN. This track is actually the final stage of the half-marathon, so it’s a good sign that I’m used to (sick of) running around it! When I get to the last few kms of the race, it will be great to have confidence in getting through the last bit! We ran around Farm Cove, around Sydney Harbour house (in the company of Cantoo founder Annie Crawford), around Circular Quay until I reached the Overseas Passenger Terminal. This was my 9km turnaround point. I had to remain focused on my goals and ignore all the other gazelles continuing on to their 10km turn around for their 20km run.

And so, back the way I came. I joined another group for this part of the run. Rob, the coach joined in for a while. I was glad - I started to really struggle on my way back around Farm Cove. I had to concentrate on my technique, which is hard when you start to feel heavy. I tried to channel a bit of Rob to do that! Copying his technique and listening to his advice on my posture and rhythm. Once I got around that seemingly endless cove, I got a spring back into my step. Up the hills again - I managed them well. I stopped for a quick cup of water outside the Art Gallery where one of the Cantoo ‘energy champions’ set up camp. I cheered up a bit when I saw Sarah coming running with white suds coming out of her knees. She hadn’t rinsed her joggers out properly and the rain was causing the suds to form. Ahhh, a good laugh is obviously all one needs to get momentum to go on!

The next few kilometres were really really hard. My knee had started to twinge and was getting quite painful. I struggled for at least 2km until I got up onto the Harbour Bridge. By this stage I was sick of this running and I wanted to be over. So Susannah (mentor) and I picked up our pace a bit and didn’t speak, just ran. Once we hit the half way mark of the bridge I decided a proper run (not job) was required! I’ve no idea where the energy or stamina came from, but I managed to finish at a great speed. I came in at 2:10 hrs! Again I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. I found it hard to walk, or talk for that matter. But what a feeling - I had just run 18km!!

"Impossible is a word only to be found in the dictionary of fools".  

Napoleon

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Week 10 - 16KM Run in the rain!!!!

We have run in the rain before now. There have been a few Saturdays where the odd shower came along and we were actually grateful to feel refreshed, especially on the warm days.

But this was rain like no other. Apparently it was the wettest April day Sydney had seen in ten years. It even warranted a Channel 7 news slot - one which we featured in! I remember running past the camera-man thinking what on earth would possess someone to stand in the rain at 7:30am to photograph Sydney Harbour on such a disgusting morning. For proof, just click here!

http://au.news.yahoo.com/video/national/248153/?q=rain Look for “Sydney Swamped By Rain (Apr 16th), and skip to 0:34 mins.

Torrential rain. From the start. I foolishly believed if I kept my feet dry, everything would be fine. Alas, they were saturated within 10 minutes, despite my best puddle-jumping efforts. We ran to the other end of Luna Park and back first to get a quick 2km in before heading up through the hills of Kirribilli. Running up hills with wet heavy shoes and socks is a miserable feeling! The fact that there were another 30+ people ‘in the same boat’ must have contributed to my self-reassurance that running in torrential rain and gale winds was not a sign of madness. Or maybe we were all mad that morning.

The rain finally eased - near the 7km turning point! To look on the positive side we reassured ourselves that at least if it rained on race day, we wouldn’t be at risk of being put off. PMA. Positive Mental Attitude! As for me, this run turned out to be one of my best ones yet. I took on the hills really well and my mind was positive and strong. It also helped that I had borrowed a ‘fuel belt’ to carry water with me around my waist and knocked back a couple of Gu Chomps. I took off on my own on the way back and I came in at around 01:50 hrs. The hardest part was trying to keep focused and positive as Dave overtook me on the last big hill into Kirribilli (he was in the faster group that did 18km that morning). It was hard to ignore the fact that he had run an extra 2km and passed me on a steep hill about 1km from the end! But that’s another lesson to be learned for the race. Focus on your own efforts and not on everyone else around you!


“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.”
Oscar Wilde

Week 10 - Wednesday Interval Training

Daylight savings is over and the clocks have gone back. Which means in some ways it’s easier to run on Wednesday nights because the sun is no longer shining down on us and draining our energy before we even run! At the same time, the prospect of going out to run on a dark cold night is not as appealing as bright summer evening training was.


Track this week was 6 x 800m with a 400m jogging recovery. As in, 2 laps of the field, followed by one slow jog around the field - six times! I can definitely see the improvement I have made now. Stopping to walk is definitely not an option, I rarely finish up in a panting state and I don’t mind the recovery jog (as in I’m not trying to get out of it by walking anymore).

The long runs at the weekend are obviously helping to build up my stamina and that’s a big part of running. My fitness levels are slowly becoming more obvious, so stamina and strength of mind are what require some exercising now!

"Positive anything is better than negative thinking. "

Elbert Hubbard

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Week 9 - 14km Run!!

Needless to say, Saturday's 14km run was the longest distance I have ever completed. The route was over the dreaded Harbour Bridge, down to the Botanic Gardens, around Mrs Macquaries chair (with views of Woolloomooloo bay, still Sydney harbour waters, Kirribilli glistening across from us) along Farm Cove towards the Opera House (and back again). Those doing the 16km ran as far as the Opera House, but I turned back at the 7km turnaround point in Farm Cove. Luckily a few others at my level were happy to turn around there also.

The run out was fantastic! I ran at a pace of 6:20 minute per km. I think the company really helped. I chose to run this time with Sarah and Bec, who normally run way ahead of me. Again, I think Lindfield helped me build up my stamina and confidence! We had great chats, a few laughs and just enjoyed the experience of being in this beautiful part of Sydney at such a quiet time of the day.

I tried out Gu Chomps http://www.guenergy.com/products/gu-chomps instead of gels today. Success! They are much easier to stomach, much tastier and the consistency doesn't make me want to throw up :) One on the way out and one on the way back was all I needed for a boost to get me through the run, and more importantly back over the Harbour Bridge. Coming back in to Kirribilli, I was ecstatic. Dave was there to greet me with a hug and I was very close to tears. The relief of finishing (and in a good time) is hard to put into words. I felt like crying and laughing all at once. I couldn't believe what I'd just done, without stopping!!

Rounding the corner at Mrs Macquarie's Chair

Week 9 - Wednesday training

Oh how running is so much easier now after having completed the gruelling 10km hill race on Sunday! This running on flat terrain is a doddle :) Well that's what it felt like to start off. I could definitely feel more strength in my legs and my breathing is more regulated.

This week's interval training was (after 1.5 km warm-up of course) 3 sets of 5 x 400m with 30 secs rest between each 400m and a 400m recovery jog between each set. We were lucky that it rained tonight. The grass track was closed, so we had to run at Kirribilli, in the rain and the dark. It was actually quite magical. The city lights reflecting on the harbour brightened it up and we were all in great form. We ran back and forth from the old jetty to Luna Park. There was a lot of passing each other over and back and plennty of high fives between me and Sarah (she was obviously well ahead of me). For the first time I actually enjoyed Wednesday night running. The monotony of a track can really affect your enthusiasm for running. As it turns out, Sydney city lights and a bit of rain actually helps!

View of Sydney Harbour from where we were training

Week 8 - Lindfield 'Fun Run'

No long run on Saturday this weekend because Sunday was Lindfield 10km 'fun run'. Let me set this straight, there's no fun running 10kms of hills. None whatsoever.
Lindfield is a residential suburb, north west of Sydney which is really pretty - due to it's hilly location. Some people who completed the run before had mentioned that there would be a 'few' hills. I blame them for making the hills sound insignificant. If I had been mentally prepared, there might have been some fun involved!!

It started off to a stressful start.....a queue of 20 people outside one toilet with 15 mins to go before the start gun went off. It wasn't a case of not being prepared - Crohns disease doesn't care what time it is! I literally came out of the loo with 1 minute to go.  I teamed up with my similar-pace buddies and within 5 minutes I had come to a quick realisation of what was ahead. My attitude to hills has been "what goes up must come down". Works well in general. But when you start of a race with 10 minutes of downhill, that philosophy suddenly backfires on the pysche. Downhill, turn a corner, another downhill, flat, oh look more downhill. There's no way out, you have to go down. I think we ran to the bottom of a valley, almost vertically and the rest of the run involved slowly getting out of that valley. Even worse, this run was two laps. So what I endured the first time around was going to be lying in wait for me the second time around.

There were instances of negative thinking creeping in during the race, but thankfully not too often. Local families came out to cheer us on and in some cases, local kids ran alongside for a while. One family hosed us down with water as we ran past! A couple of uphills were really deceiving (as they wound around corners) and that required loads of mental strength to continue.

Positive things about this run? I only needed to walk the last 50 metres of the gigantic hill near the end (which I had managed to run the first time around). The training we had done around the hills of Cremorne and Mosman (and my Wine Glass Bay effort) had obviously paid off. I also had the experience of running with loads of other people. And I mustered up some energy to pick up my pace for the last km. Apparently that's a good sign! I did almost collapse when I crossed the finish line. There weren't any cheers on my finishing. Most of the crowd had dissipated by the time 1 hour and 11 mins had passed! I couldn't see any drinks table so gasped around in a tizzy before finally finding the Cantoo gathering where I dropped onto the grass and lay on my back for about 10 minutes. Not the most graceful of finishes :)

All I remember after that was saying "I'm never doing that again, I'm never coming here again. Luckily everyone else (even the strong runners) were cursing it. The unity in negative feelings brought us together and eventually there were some smiles!

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“There is an uphill for every downhill, and a downhill for every uphill.”
Turkish Proverb